Heatwave, wildfires and devolution - your letters plus two pictures from the past

September 1983: The stretch of the River Sow running through the Stafford town centre was safer for wildfowl after a clean-up exercise mounted by Stafford Sub Aqua Club. The swans and ducks that swim on the river had fewer abandoned trollies to dodge on the river bed.

placeholder image — September 1983: The stretch of the River Sow running through the Stafford town centre was safer for wildfowl after a clean-up exercise mounted by Stafford Sub Aqua Club. The swans and ducks that swim on the river had fewer abandoned trollies to dodge on the river bed.

Heatwave, wildfires and the merits of devolution - your letters plus two pictures from the past

April 22, 1987. Lord Northfield, chairman of Telford Development Corporation, with the town centre in the background. The tallest building, Darby House, was the British HQ of Brown Boveri, the Swiss multi-national. Closer in is the railway station approach road.

Send cool kids to AI companies

I’ve been watching the Let’s Save Water ads where, as in quite a few ads lately, the kids take charge from the idiot parents. They charge around berating said idiot parents for their irresponsible use of water during the current drought.

The parents are scolded, and look suitably cowed, by their children, for using too much water for showering, for using a hose in the garden and for cleaning their teeth etc. small domestic matters really.

But we don’t see the cool kids marching into AI establishments and taking anyone to task there. The AI industry apparently, uses billions of litres of water a day to do whatever it is they do in order to potentially destroy us, but no scoldings from children there! And neither do we see these cool, radical kids directing their self righteous ire against the water companies who seem to be painfully slow in dealing with the numerous leaks that I keep seeing on my travels.

And as for the girl who sits there interrogating her terrified father as he nervously unpacks the shopping. I can just see me talking to my old man like that. I’d be wearing the peanut butter!

Alan Jones, Halesowen

Do we need Cobra on heat?

"Danger! Danger! A national emergency. Summon COBRA."

Burnham calls a crisis meeting of COBRA. I listen terrified. Has Vlad hit Wolverhampton with a nuclear missile and are there hundreds of thousands of Yams Yams no longer able to say to one another: "Ow am ya mate?"

Thank goodness then that it's only out of control raging fires and that Burnham has found the solution.¶"Stop buying those disposable beef burners."

Tell me Andy, was it really necessary to know that disposable barbeques should not be available under present conditions? Do you need a committee to inform you of that?

Alan M Etheridge, Sedgley

Most just look for a quiet life

George Morran makes a compelling case for devolution across England. Being a dyed in the wool sceptic I read devolution as more like "division".

Within a few years very obvious differences across regions will manifest themselves. This can very easily morph into competative tribalism with conflict following. Any opposition to an incompetent or corrupt leadership will be shouted down, or worse. Look at Scotland. It's a common mistake to believe everyone wants to be the leader. I would guess the majority just want a quiet life, with as little interference from "leadership" as possible.

Trevor Howard,

Wolverhampton