Letters

A LOT of people might agree with the naming of the new ground, well I'm sorry, but I totally disagree with it.

Yes, George Reynolds paid off the debts; yes, he saved us from liquidation, but what exactly is he trying to do?

He's driven most of Darlington's best players out, and we narrowly avoided relegation last season.

Do we really need the stadium to be called The George Reynolds Stadium? What's wrong with something like Neasham Road Park or something like that? - Amanda Taylor, Thornaby.

I CANNOT believe that some of my fellow season ticket holders might be objecting to good old George Rewynolds's name appearing on the new stadium fascia.

Had he not adopted our club we wouldn't have a stadium to put anything on. But perhaps George will give a thought to the long traditions of the town and the club and feature the club's nickname in the way it has adorned a certain breakfast cereal box for many years.

Now that the ends have gone in on our truly impressive-looking structure, he could name it the "Reynolds Quaker Bowl". The approach road could be "Oats Way" and perhaps what is served up on the pitch next season will be exciting steaming fare instead of the cold porridge we had to endure last season.

Whatever you call it George, may you have the success your boldness deserves. - Eddie Martin, Stockton.

I THINK George Reynolds is doing an excellent job. He's a businessman and I can see why he obviously needs to be realistic about the wage bills - and the stadium is looking fantastic.

I feel that he is being badly let down by Gary Bennett, who is making poor signing after poor signing, and that, along with his tactical decisions, means that George must replace him if we're watching the same old garbage after the first few games of the new season.

You don't need to pay huge wages to get out of Division 3. You just need contacts and tactical awareness. - Paul Bradshaw, Darlington.

MIDDLESBROUGH FC

BRYAN Robson is on his way, and not before time.

Football is not a cheap hobby, especially for the working classes, and the way in which Boro fans have been "entertained" during his time on Teesside beggars belief. Good riddance! - Darren Metcalfe, Darlington.

LOTTERY COMMISSION

I AM surprised by the editorial (Echo, May 24) about the National Lottery Commission.

Your main point is that we have not chosen correctly for the good causes. That is the exact opposite of why we chose Camelot and not the People's Lottery (TPL). After detailed scrutiny of the bids, we concluded that Camelot's bid was likely to raise more money than TPL's.

Our view of likely future sales is not affected by the fall in Lottery sales this year. In fact, these sales figures highlight our judgement that it will be difficult to achieve a dramatic uplift in sales for the next licence as forecast by both bidders. Our position was recently supported by a committee of MPs. The Commission believes that it has made the right decision for the good causes.

You are quite wrong to say we ignored any matters about propriety. The Commission initially rejected Camelot's bid precisely because of matters of propriety. That action has resulted in stronger powers for the regulator and more safeguards for the Lottery's propriety. The bribery case you mention was settled by the High Court and the previous regulator long before the Commission was set up.

Finally, when it started this process, the Commission drew attention to its expectations about executive pay and remuneration and these comments were widely reported. It is disappointing that you have not recognised them. - Lord Burns, Chairman, National Lottery Commission.

MISSILE SYSTEMS

TODAY, it seems unrealistic to believe ballistic missiles would ever head our way, but the Americans who pay for or pull the strings behind many of the world's conflicts are seeking to protect themselves, by significantly changing the roll of our early warning station at Fylingdales.

Our politicians shouldn't take their eye of the ball when dealing with this issue. Elected representatives should vigorously defend the safety and interests of their constituents.

Fylingdales plays a useful role in tracking objects in space and as the early warning station.

The crucial turning point comes if it is allowed to be used by the American military as a vital part of an information and guidance system for their own missiles. Instantly, Fylingdales becomes a first strike target from any dispute large or small involving America throughout the world of which we may have no involvement or control.

There are alternative proposals and missile defence initiatives to counter any ballistic threat involving many nations and various methods of accountability The one presently debated would be totally controlled by Washington and protects only the American people. - Alec Featherstone, Pickering.

WASTE PLANT

IN response to your article, Watchdog highlights danger of burners (Echo, May 23), I should like to clarify that the Energy from Waste plant in Billingham is subject to stringent regulatory and safety standards and operates with a licence from the Environment Agency.

The £40m plant, processing 250,000 tonnes of waste collected from households in the Cleveland area, uses technology that incorporates a sophisticated flue gas cleaning system. This treats all emissions from the plant, removing those pollutants such as dioxins, heavy metals, acid gases and dust, amongst others, to within levels set by the EC Directive on Incineration.

These levels are internationally recognised as safe. Driving a car or simple household activities generate exceedingly more dioxins than the Cleveland plant.

Even with the intended expansion of the plant, SITA Cleveland Waste Management is confident that it will meet the new, more stringent, EC Directives on Incineration that are due to be implemented in December 2005.

Energy from Waste is one of the most heavily-regulated industries in the UK. If the Environment Agency felt the plant represented a risk to the local environment, it has the powers to shut the plant down.

The majority of breaches to the EC Directives in the past two years, reported by Greenpeace, took place during controlled shut down periods. These were reported to the Environment Agency, stating the cause and the measures taken, and are a matter of public record. - Joanna McGee, PR Co-ordinator, SITA, Billingham.