Your letters & email: June/July
Treating us like peasants
It is clearer now how the Tesco supermarket application was handled by Northumberland County Council, the developer, and the Amble Town Council. I have also written to the local MP and prospective parliamentary candidate who have apparently no opinion on whether a very large supermarket should be built in a small Northumbrian coastal town.
Northumberland Estates acquired land on the Braid, north of the ‘gut’, not only for the supermarket access road but for future possible ‘development’, ruining the integrity of the newly designated town green. This is still not yet public knowledge. None of the revenue from the sale of part of the braid came to local people and Tesco have offered us £60,000 for local projects.
Sometimes it feels like being a peasant, or a native being offered beads, mirrors and trinkets to buy their acquiescence.
What is new is that a Tesco development in Bristol has been experiencing bitter opposition by local people. In addition Ed Miliband has stated the need for greater public consultation and participation in the planning process. In the case of Amble, objectors were given 5 minutes to speak against the Tesco application (one minute and 15 seconds if four people wished to speak). If felt like the council were treating us with contempt.
Some of us are still asking for a public enquiry into the Tesco Amble development and lets hope changes in planning procedure will expose some of the murky issues surrounding planning applications.
John Bird
Mariner’s View, Amble
Tesco eco
The nearest Tesco Eco store of the type intended for Amble is at Berwick-on-Tweed. There will be differences dependent on local conditions (Berwick has a Pharmacy and a filling Station; Amble will not.) but in general they will be similar if not identical. Berwick does not have a cafeteria; I doubt if Amble will have one either. This seems to follow the general supermarket practice where the major chains have the same general ‘house style’ but with the odd local variation.
To get there go up the A1 Berwick by-pass until you reach the big roundabout; (ignore the Scremerson turn-off) follow the sign for Berwick. At the second roundabout again follow the Berwick signs. Tesco is about half a half a mile ahead on the left.
Ian Hinson
Eastgarth Ave, Amble
Amble Coastal Market success
The Amble Coastal market was a great success and I would like to thank every-one for their support. I couldn’t have hoped for a better day as all stall holders had an excellent day.
The next one is on July 3rd and there will be more stall holders again i.e. Rainbow scarves, hand made pottery, hand made jewellery and more.
Thank you
Sandy Higson, Coquet Valley Preserves
via email
Disappointment with Continental Market
Whilst on holiday for the last 2 weeks staying at Beadnell we made a special trip down to Amble last Friday 27th May for the Continental Market (as per the green leaflet) as this is something we enjoy. We were disappointed to say the least as we arrived at 10.45 and most were still setting up. There was no German sausage stall, no French wine, no stall with coffee beans (item 11) – and what has garden furniture from Stoke got to do with a Continental Market. Such a shame to go all that way and find so little there.
Mrs L Sault
Weston-Super-Mare
via email
Stung by poisonous fish
On April 20th I was on Hauxley beach with my friend Angela and her dog Sooty; it was a very low tide and as we walked out to the edge of the sea Sooty found a small fish which looked dead – whilst getting it away from her Angela was stung by dark spines on the back of the fish.
It was extremely painful and when we went to the Medical Centre we discovered from our description that it must have been a weever fish. This is a small sandy coloured fish measuring 10 – 15 cms which lies beneath the seabed with its fins showing above the sandy bottom waiting for prey to swim past – commonly shrimps which are stunned by the poison. They are poor swimmers as they do not possess a swim bladder. It appears that stings are more common in the hours before or after low tide.
Although not dangerous, it is very painful with pain escalating two – three minutes after the sting and the affected area becomes red and swollen and two pin prick marks can be seen. The treatment is immersion in hot water as this breaks up the poison. This gave Angela instant relief and combined with painkillers she recovered well.
Given the onset of the holiday season it is advisable to wear sandals, jellies or harder soled wetsuit boots when in the water.
Many thanks to Dr Pettifer and the pharmacy for their advice and help. Angela (being a noble soul) was just glad it had not been Sooty who was stung – certainly we would have our work cut out with a standard poodle in agony on the beach!
Ruth Hawkins,
Priory Park, Amble
The chances of finding another weever fish with its nasty sting is extremely remote on our beaches. Do take note, however of the simple treatment recommended should you, or your dog, be unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of its spines.
British Legion
Thank you to all the local people who booked the coach trip to RAF Elvington, York on 14th April organised by Warkworth and Amble Royal British Legion. It was a great success and raised £235.50 for the 2011 Poppy Appeal.
A similar trip will be organised in 2012.
June Watson
Amble & Warkworth British Legion
Aid thanks
THANK YOU AMBLE
Christian Aid Week raised the great sum of £2984.62 – a truly great effort in these hard times. Thanks to all the ‘house to house’ callers, Churches, money raising functions, coffee mornings etc. Your generosity does not go unnoticed!
Penny Bingham
Christian Aid Organiser
WANTED:
A copy of “The Sailing Ships of the Aln and Coquet from 1830 -1896” by Richard E. Keys.
Please email vglass@clara.co.uk
Calling all Joes
I’m home from Canada and looking up wartime friends. I’m hoping to trace a friend from Amble – Sgt. Joe Davidson. I met him when he was stationed in Norwich, and last heard of him when he was sent to Burma, so wondered if he had survived the war. Could anybody help me in any way? Perhaps he has relatives in Amble. Before joining the army, he was a fireman with British Rail.
Mr. A. Kudar
35 Regent Rd., Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR32 1PB
The Power of Players
(extract from an article in Bangkok press sent to us by Ray King)
Former Aston Villa manager Martin O’Neil is absolutely right when he says that power has been removed from the clubs to the players. This once wonderful game has been turned completely on its head by selfish, petulant players (not all of them!) who make totally unrealistic demands on their respective clubs. Big salaries are paid out to players who, in my view, have limited ability and this in turn forces the salaries of the so-called “star players” into what can only be described as astronomical territory.
Managers too, come under the spotlight; managers such as Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger often castigate referees if a decision goes against their team. If these managers had guns then the referees would be prime targets!
In the 40s and 50s, playing on the mud-laden pitches, the ultimate pleasure was back in the dressing room, sitting down on the bench, covered in “clarts” (mud to those of you not familiar with the Geordie vernacular), and enjoying a mug of hot steaming sweet tea. This was a moment of sheer bliss! Whether we would get the customary £4 for a win or £2 for a draw was really the last thing on my mind.
Ray King
Former Newcastle United, Port Vale and England “B”
