Today Metro readers are discussing Prince Harry and Meghan’s paparazzi chase and whether it stands up to other accounts of the event. Do you think they might have been exaggerating?
Readers are also discussing the £10Billion pledge and accompanied apology given by water companies to clean up our rivers and seas after ‘not acting quickly enough’ to deal with 825 raw sewage spills in 2022. A cost they will recoup from the consumer. Shouldn’t they be footing the bill for their mistakes?
Speaking of the environment, does Keir Starmer’s attitude towards building onGreen Belt land make you less sure of voting Labour?
Let us know your thoughts in the comments
■ Prince Harry’s spokesman’s account of a high-speed chase by the paparazzi through the streets of Manhattan (Metro, Thu) appears at odds with others’ reports about what happened.
It must have been a scary experience for Harry and Meghan but the description that it was ‘near catastrophic’ is perhaps a slight exaggeration.
Scott, West London
■ How can anyone be chased through New York for two hours and not get stopped by the police or go through the red lights?
Have you ever driven though New York? It is impossible to do, let alone do it while being chased.
It’s strange to me that this story comes out soon after Harry has been told he cannot have security to help him out when over here.
Linda Pearce, High Wycombe
■ I had a ‘near catastrophic’ shower this morning, I could have drowned.
Putting on my T-shirt, I was almost strangled catastrophically. I do not want to talk about the horrendous walk to the station alongside the rush hour traffic and the underground journey to the city. It could have been catastrophic.
John Nightingale, Redbridge
■ Maybe the paparazzi were just trying to overtake Harry and Meghan so they could get to someone more interesting.
Russ, Stockport
We need our Green Belt land, Keir
■ I was horrified to learn that Labour under Sir Keir Starmer wants to allow house-building on our much-needed Green Belt land.
It has certainly put me off voting for the Labour Party in future.
Adrian Appley, via email
Do water companies invest their profits into controlling pollution spills?
■ Some ‘nobody’ representing the nation’s water companies popped up on TV boasting of a £10billion pound ‘investment’ to control polluting spills and discharges into our rivers and to say that apparently the water companies ‘get it’!
One thing they don’t and never have is ‘get it’.
They have invested nothing in ‘real terms’ over decades and have simply and greedily taken the profits.
Criminal proceedings should be brought and brought regularly against those running the water show shower.
Les, South London
‘Don’t blame the receptionist — blame the GP’
■ This is in response to the person from Leeds (MetroTalk, Wed) who says a GP receptionist ‘witholding appointments’ left her with life-changing hearing problems.
As a lowly paid medical receptionist we get too much credit and abuse/ blame for something we have no control over.
Appointments are allocated by management as per agreement with GPs (many of whom are leaving the profession or going on very long annual leave for their sanity).
The appointments are strictly regulated and released on the day. If a receptionist tried to use a future appointment, the GP would complain (throw a tantrum), then a manager would give a verbal warning to the receptionist.
In fact, we are trained to ask many questions – not to be nosy but to gauge what kind of help you need as it could be an issue that someone else can deal with.
Please don’t blame the lowly paid receptionist (earning £12 an hour) who has no power but the £100,000k GPs or locum GPs earning £4,000 a week. Your receptionist is not Specsavers or a clinician. In fact most patients don’t have the guts to confront their GPs because they fear they will get black-listed or made to join another surgery.
Name Withheld
Impending tariffs weren’t Brexit fearmongering
■ The car industry is warning about the collapse of the sector because of impending tariffs (Metro, Thu).
These tariffs were dismissed by Brexiteers as ‘Project Fear’. Is the penny dropping for Metro readers yet?
Neil Dance, Birmingham
Helping Ukraine means the conflict could be over sooner
■ To add to those responding to MetroTalk writers questioning our continued support for Ukraine (MetroTalk, Thu). If we continue to give them the arms they need, it’s likely the conflict will be over sooner. Many lives will be saved and our economy will benefit from a period of peace that would be less likely if we abandoned Ukraine to serve our interests only.
DS, Hertfordshire
£2 bus fare won’t pay my rent
■ What a relief that my bus fares will stay £2 until October 31 (Metro, Thu) as my landlord last week sent me a letter that my rent is up again because his mortgage has gone through the roof.
Now, saving some money from the bus fares, I will able to pay my rents – thank you, prime minister!
Samuel, Tooting
I can only assume fly-tipping is legal
■ I can’t understand why Julian Self (MetroTalk, Mon) thinks that fly-tipping will increase because of fines for leaving rubbish out.
Fly-tipping is clearly allowed in virtually every part of the country. There are very few places where it isn’t allowed and every one of these places, without exception, has a clear sign telling you not to do it.
Or have I somehow misunderstood?
Adrian, Horsham
■ I am writing about how carelessly people handle the rubbish/recycling separation. Food wastes are in the regular trash bins, plastics are in composites containers. And public spaces are dirtier than ever. It is citizens’ responsibility – the government has provided every means to recycle properly. Do we need more rewards or fines? More cleaning personnel?
Quinsan, London
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