Police not to blame for carnival woes

LETTER - It was only a matter of time before the police would get the blame for the woes of Shifnal Carnival.

Jenny Johnson makes it sound as though the fair has been paying for the police bill for the last century, whereas in reality it has only been for a couple of years.

The council has previously said enough is enough with the added burden the carnival and fair places on the public purse - and so should the community as a whole.

Why, oh why, do we have to have that monstrosity thrust upon us from the Friday night to the Tuesday morning?

And it is not just the police bill the fair should be paying for. I would be interested to know what the total bill is for the huge clean-up operation that has to take place - again at a cost to the public purse.

I am sure those monies could be better spent within the community instead of having to clear up the rubbish that is left mainly by people from outside the town.

When Jenny Johnson talks about what we stand to lose, how would she have felt if a gang of drunken yobs had piled into her house?

On that night the poor lady involved lost her right to privacy and the one thing we all hold dear, our right to feel safe in our own home.

And so when the council meets, I sincerely hope they try and place themselves in the shoes of that lady.

What I and a good number of people in this town would like to see is a carnival in a happy and peaceful, alcohol-free setting, not a scene from some Wild West film.

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