SIR - I read with concern your editorial last week, and the article on the previous page, which suggested that something like three dairy farmers a day are going out of business, because of having to make a loss of 4p a litre on milk sold in the supermarkets.

What can be done about this? Should we just shake our heads, and wait for your next article in a few months' time, regretting the loss of further farms?

The supermarkets may say they can do nothing to improve the situation.

They will pretend as always, that their customers demand the lowest possible prices. This is just not true!

The superb Fairtrade scheme, which aims to offer poor farmers in developing countries a reasonable price for their products, has grown to become a £290 million operation in only a very few years. Fairtrade sales rose by 46 per cent in 2006 alone. Taking just one example of the scheme's success; the banana farmers of St. Lucia were apparently desperate only seven years' ago, but now the premier of the island has told Sainsbury's that its supermarkets have been the saviour of those same farmers.

Why cannot this idea be extended to a local "Fairness to Farmers" campaign?

An individual can do very little, but if a newspaper like yours, with its access to so many homes, was willing to start a campaign, I cannot believe that our local supermarkets would not listen. Milk would still be sold at the usual price to those unable (or unwilling) to pay more, whereas those cartons labelled "Fairness to Farmers" would be sold at a premium sufficient to keep dairy farmers in business.

One national newspaper puts the success of Fairtrade down to "the public's seemingly insatiable taste for ethical trading and the supermarkets' desire to become better global neighbours".

I cannot see why similar generosity should not apply locally to protect Craven farmers where this seems reasonable. If such a scheme were to work here, it might even catch on nationally, to the credit of Craven residents, our local supermarkets, and your newspaper. No?

Bob Adamson, Fallowfield, Skipton.

Nobody cares

SIR - The street name plates in Skipton in years gone by were always kept in good order and well painted.

Ward councillors checked them every month and reported any damage, painting or graffiti to district council or supervisors. Any damage was soon repaired or renewed.

Today nobody cares.

For example, Newmarket Street in front of the Trademan's Place plaque: One post has been broken for over a month and the stone plaque needs cleaning.

Or the Otley Road name plate in front of Coronation Gardens. Damaged beyond repair for six months, it needs renewing and sighting nearer to Newmarket and sighting nearer to Newmarket Street junction.

Traffic that comes to the roundabout looking for Otley Road cannot see the name plate. Okay, there is a sign post in the garden across the roundabout saying other routes but that doesn't help a tourist looking for Otley Road. A tourist coach last week from the east coast went straight up Shortbank Road and ended up on Greatwood Avenue looking for Otley Road.

Broughton Road and its street names are in a terrible state. Most need painting or renewing.

The late Councillor Stoddart would have made it a priority. He was a man proud of his ward.

On a good note, the council workers and all concerned are doing an excellent job looking after the cinder path. Twelve months ago it was a grot spot.

Even Councillors Solloway and Heseltine have been seen litter picking around the Greatwood Middle town area. That can only be good with elections coming up in May and a visit from Simbach's Lord Mayor in June.

Allan Mason, Jenny Gill Crescent, Skipton.

Cunning plan

SIR - Wanting to walk up Simon's Seat through the Valley of Desolation from the River Wharfe last weekend, we took the Storiths road intending to park in one of the lay-bys in the woods.

But we found the lay-bys, which as far as I know have been used for years, were blocked with boulders, vastly reducing the amount of space for people to park on that side of the river.

Is there a good reason for this or is it simply a cunning plan by the Devonshire estate to increase the income from their car parks?

Tim Quantrill, Pinhaw Road, Skipton.

Terrace talk

SIR - I feel I must support the residents of Devonshire Place regarding the smoking terrace article.

Living next door to a pub myself has caused me to wonder how the smoke ban could affect us. I am fully aware that Environmental Health and Police work hard with anti-social behaviour, but it can be very much hit and miss due to their extensive workload, they can't be everywhere at once.

The actual siting of the terrace at the back would be a replica of my own home if this was on my doorstep. A house opposite me has been on the market for over 12 months, devaluing of property is a worrying thought.

Best wishes, Mrs Curran, and all concerned keep your campaign for a decent class of living alive.

Hazel Bulcock, Devonshire Mews, Skipton.

Awful prospect

SIR - I think that the idea of the Strata nightclub having an outside smoking patio at the back of the club is madness.

We live behind the club and the front of our house is facing the back steps of the fire escape and the area where the patio will be. As there are no houses blocking the view of the back of the club any noise (of which there will be a lot) will come straight to our house.

We have had the noise inspector from the council round to our house on Friday and weekend nights previously and she said that the noise is too excessive now - so what would it be like if they are given this planning permission?

She met with the manager of the club, who promised to keep the noise down and this promise did not last beyond two weeks. It is hell now, especially in summer, when it is hot and you want to open your lounge or bedroom windows to get some cool fresh air in the house. You cannot as when you do all you can hear is both noisy loud music coming out of the club (or hellhole) or the noise and foul mouth abuse or fights coming from the people either going down to or coming out of the club.

On the last weekend of February we had the music coming from the club and then later on we had the drunken people, who had been to the club, going past to get home, swearing, shouting, fighting and using one of the wheelie bins to give each other rides up and down the backs of our houses.

All we see in the Craven Herald newspaper is the initiative that the police have with the public houses and clubs in the town, in that if someone gets too drunk in any of the establishments, then they can evict them and stop them going in any other place in Skipton.

But they do not say anything about pubs and clubs having taken the money from these people, and kept taking the money from them until they get very drunk and start causing trouble, they then throw them out with the police's help.

What do they think they do? They come around the back streets in Middletown and cause trouble, a mess, noise, foul language and fighting round us. Where are the police then?

You never see them around the back streets - only on the High Street, Keighley Road and Sackville Street.

All of the rest of us do not exist.

I bet the people like the police architect, who says that the patio will not cause any trouble, do not live any near here and so the trouble and disturbance will not effect them.

This club never should have been allowed in a residential area and should have been put out town where there are no houses and people living near them.

I hope that the police and town council will act in favour of the residents of Skipton, for once, and do not let the club go ahead with this lunacy.

Julia Steward, Skipton.

Due process

SIR - The following is a letter which I recently sent to the STAND (Stopping Trouble And Night time Disorder) committee members and the Chief Superintendent of Skipton Police Station. I believe the issue is of public interest which your readership should be made aware of: Dear committee members, Firstly, may I applaud the proactive way in which you are attempting to regulate the admission of provocative and unruly customers to our licensed premises; these measures, together with the Security Industry Authority (SIA) licensing of door staff does help maintain a safer environment for the majority of the district's more peaceful customers.

I do, however, have some grave concerns over recent developments in the application of punitive measures that place banning orders across the entire licensed estate without first having gone through legal due process.

The effect in practice actually creates a restricted social environment for a person who has yet to have their day in court. Any suggestion by police authorities that they support this process appears to create a bias against the defendant, thus endangering their impartial position in the investigation of crime.

Creating bodies such as STAND should be in order to create greater co-operation between licensees in monitoring known offenders that have received a sentence that is a matter of public record, not a quasi- political body that imposes sanction without evidence!

May I ask that you review your current policy and re-assess "what STAND stands for", before your collective businesses are referred to the local magistrates court for breach of licence under the European Court of Human Rights legislation on a breakdown of legal due process and enter into an engagement with your respective parent companies?

RE Milburn, (Retired Licensee), Skipton.

Down the drain

SIR - It really will not do, Mr Curry. It is quite unacceptable that you now write your letter to the local press to castigate Mr A Smith (Letters February 23) for writing his.

Mr Smith informed us that it costs every person in Britain £875 of our money to belong to the European Union, which I calculate to amount to more than £50 billion per year. I, for one, am glad to know this indication of the cost and I am extremely grateful to Mr Smith for volunteering such valuable service to us in default of inaction by our paid politicians who so often keep us in the dark on matters affecting our welfare.

Little thought is needed to realise how an additional £50 billion per year would completely transform Britain's economy.

Mr Smith is quite right to publicise how our own public services would benefit if so much were not squandered in Europe. I am sure most of us are aware that a great proportion of our hard-earned taxes are wasted or even misappropriated by the persistent corruption that has prevented the official auditors from approving the European accounts for the past 11 years, while the European response has been to sack any auditor having the integrity and courage to speak out against the problem. Is it any wonder that we hear so much about "The European gravy train"?

My understanding is that the treat to our post offices is the result of our government's withdrawal of £150 million of Social Network Payment, which is banned under European Law - Article 88 of the Treaty of Amsterdam. Mr Curry's letter seems to deny this.

However, there is no doubt that the present Government must bear much responsibility. For example, in spite of the work of Britain's Food Standards Agency which absolved Bowland Dairy from fault, our Government's Department of Health rolled over' and bowed to the decision of the European Commission's diktat. But can it be that Mr Curry has forgotten the part played by Governments of his own Conservative Party in surrendering British control to Brussels - for example the Single Market Legislation (1986) and Maastricht Treaty (1992), which did much to replace British democratic self-government by control from Brussels?

JR Jones, Kirk Lane, Eastby.

Victimisation

SIR - The saga of Mr Cuthbert (fined £7,500 for not keeping his own property) tidy begs some questions.

Who was the instigator of this action?

Who supported it? What are their motives?

To whom are they answerable?

Is this victimisation?

Is this the new conformist reformation? the new inquisition? the latest witch hunt?

Are Mr Cuthbert's individual human rights being threatened under European and international law?

What is the Member of Parliament doing about it?

It is time for everyone to stand and be counted, because it could be your turn next.

Diana Kaneps, Moss Barn, Wigglesworth.

Hats off

SIR - May I congratulate Little Saods on another excellent production of Seussical last week at Skipton Town Hall. Each year they just get better and better.

Their talent and enthusiasm is a joy to watch and, if some of the cast doesn't end up on the West End stage - well, I'll eat my red and white striped hat!

Audrey Tattersall, Church Street, Gargrave.

Treasured legacy

SIR - The Panto season is over for another year, but Glusburn's panto was quite memorable and will stay in its audiences mind for much longer than a season. This year it was Aladdin. It was an extremely good production and everyone concerned should be proud of themselves.

The children in the cast were amazing. It is quite rare, for a village production, to have a cast solely of children and young teenagers and no adults. They all performed so well. The technicalities of the lighting, the flying ballet, the scenery and the general stagecraft were most professional. The parent volunteers were unfailing, and the care of the children during and after performances was good.

I took visiting relatives to the show, children and grown up son and nephews. They had travelled from Plymouth and Newcastle and were most impressed by our village panto. They were also impressed by the institute building and the purposes for which it is used.

It's good to think that What The Victorians Did For Us', namely Sir John Horsfall, can benefit us now on such a personal level. His legacy, of the Institute building, is still a living, breathing monument to the community, for the community. This year's good traditional pantomime performances are just one brilliant example of successful events happening in our institute now.

Jenny Wood, Glusburn Institute, Management Committee.