The Swindon page 2005 - news archive

CAMPAIGNERS have vowed to keep the BNP out of Swindon. This comes after the party announced it would be fielding candidates next year in the town. Wiltshire party chairman Mike Howsman claims that Swindon is a fertile' hunting ground for new members and that the party has been getting a lot of support in the town. But Andy Newman, the race equality officer for the GMB union, has vowed to fight the BNP all the way and he is sure that there will be all-party support against them.

LAST week I was reading a report about the Third Extraordinary Summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in Mecca. Here Pakistan's President, Pervez Musharraf, called on Islamic countries to ban groups that preach violence or commit terrorist acts in the name of Islam. He further called for the promotion of the Islamic values of tolerance and moderation. As I read this article I felt very grateful that as the western world's celebration of Christmas approaches, our brothers in the Islamic world were promoting those very virtues that Christ Jesus also promoted.

BLAIRITE MP Anne Snelgrove has the best attendance record from the 647 MPs in the House of Commons, new figures have revealed. The South Swindon MP has voted in 113 out of 116 debates 97.4 per cent since she won her seat at the May general election. Three other MPs Dan Norris, (Lab, Wansdyke), Diana Johnson (Lab, Kingston-upon Hull North) and Sadiq Khan (Lab, Tooting) have the same percentage at the top of the table, compiled by Internet site Public Whip. The figures also revealed she is one of Tony Blair's most loyal foot soldiers.

Webmonkey's note: See Anne Snelgrove's voting record at http://www.publicwhip.org.uk/mp.php?mpn=Anne_Snelg... - her current rebellion rate is 0%

PLANS have been approved to expand the new section of the urban training village at Copehill Down, on the Salisbury Plain training area, which was specifically designed and built earlier this year to simulate fighting in slum shanty' areas.

THE 10 RAF servicemen involved in the Hercules air disaster were killed when their plane was shot down by enemy fire, an official inquiry stated. Eight of the crew were based at RAF Lyneham, near Chippenham and were in Iraq supporting coalition forces when their plane crashed in January.
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Defence Secretary John Reid told parliament on Thursday the board's findings showed three factors had contributed to the crash. Dangerous low-level daylight flying, the lack of a fuel tank safety system in the wing and insufficient robust information about ground-to-air fire all contributed.

A PURTON pensioner has been warned by magistrates that he could face jail after withholding 10 per cent of his income tax payments in protest against the Iraq war. Douglas Barker, 72, a former RAF serviceman, appeared at Chippenham Magistrates' Court yesterday to defend his actions.

A TEENAGER has been remanded in custody after admitting starting a fire at a mosque at the beginning of Islam's biggest festival. The 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, also pleaded guilty to daubing racist graffiti on the mosque as well as Swindon's Sikh Temple.

ANTI-WAR protester Douglas Barker appears in court today. The 72-year-old, from Purton, is withholding 10 per cent of his income tax payments in protest at Britain's presence in Iraq. Mr Barker says he is prepared to go to prison rather than pay his tax bill in full to prove his point over the war.

Douglas Barker, a pensioner from Purton near Swindon was in court because he has withheld 10% of his taxes as a protest against the war in Iraq. The protest was filmed by BBC local news, and Doug was interviewed for BBC radio, and extensive coverage was gained in the Swindon Evening Advertiser and the Wiltshire Gazette and Herald.

Doug's supporters crammed the magistrates court and heard him make a dignified speech to the court. He explained that he could not in good conscience pay taxes knowing that they would be spent in pursuit of an illegal war, where weapons like white phosphorus are being used on civilians, so he had reduced his tax payment by the amount he estimated was due to the military budget.

Nuclear is the not the way ahead. Sir David King is wrong to state that it is a CO2 free source. While the reactors don't emit carbon dioxide, you need to look at the whole nuclear fuel cycle to assess its contribution to greenhouse gases, and in this it is responsible for large emissions.

Swindon peace protesters are concerned about the rising death toll of British troops in Iraq. The death of Sergeant John Jones in Basra following a roadside bomb on 20 November 2005 has brought the number killed during operations in Iraq to 98. There have also been several hundred wounded. Secretary of Swindon Stop the war Coalition, Andy Newman, fears that the number may soon reach 100.

I would like to contend Ann Snelgrove's statement that of the "thousands" of letters she has so far received on the subject, "not one has come out in opposition to identity cards". Well I, for one, have written to her in opposition, and received a reply. As a member of the Swindon No2ID group I am aware of several other members who have also had similar correspondence with her.

I WAS saddened and annoyed to see Anne Snelgrove MP's comments about ID cards in the Swindon Advertiser of November 21. She states: "Of the thousands of letters I've received on this subject, not one has come out in opposition to identity cards". I have written three times to Ms Snelgrove on this subject, and each time I have stated quite categorically that I am opposed to the Government's ID card scheme.

THE Prime Minister is insulting the electorate by repeating the usual misleading propaganda from the nuclear industry. Nuclear power is not safe and it is not carbon-neutral. The fuel, uranium, has to be mined abroad, shipped for thousands of miles, converted and enriched. When exhausted, it must be reprocessed and transported to a long-term storage facility.

I have written an open letter to Ms Snelgrove for your readers to consider: Dear Ms Snelgrove, Several of our group are constituents of yours.

These people have certainly written to you, in some cases more than once, to assert their opposition to the Government's plan to introduce a National Identity register as part of the ID card bill. As you have replied to these constituents I have to assume that you did in fact receive their letters. I therefore invite you to correct your reported statement in the Swindon Advertiser of November 19 that. "Of the thousands of letters I've received on the subject of ID cards, not one has come out in opposition to identity cards." It being extremely unusual for people to write to their MP to say that they are in favour of a Government proposal, I wonder if you meant to say that you had received thousands of letters in opposition to ID cards?

MORE racist graffiti has appeared in Swindon. A van and building were daubed between Friday night and Saturday morning. The first incident was between 8pm Friday and 10am Saturday. Graffiti was sprayed in red on the side of a Transit van that was parked in Ferndale Road. The second attack occurred after the same wording was daubed in red spray paint on the side of a building in Rodbourne Road.

WIDOW Kellie Merritt, whose husband was one of ten Lyneham crew members to die in the Hercules crash in Iraq, has spoken out for the first time, controversially saying he died for a cause he didn't believe in.
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Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald in the week the couple would have celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary, Ms Merrit said her husband didn't support the Iraq war. She said: "Paul died for a cause that he did not politically support, for a government he was not a citizen of, in a war our children were not aware of. "He questioned the legality of the war, the legitimacy of the so-called relationship between al-Qaeda and Iraq, and the ideology of a right-wing government who use fundamental Christianity as propaganda."

IDENTITY cards are nearly fascist and similar to registers used to single out Jews in Nazi Germany, a controversial Swindon peer has said. Lord Stoddart, of Swindon, who was the town's Labour MP from 1970 to 1983, compared the Government's flagship legislation with fascist laws introduced by Adolf Hitler in 1933.
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"Hitler in 1933 did exactly the same. As soon as he came to power he introduced a national register which enabled him to define who were Jews and who were non-Jews, and we know what that gave rise to."

Having admitted after the 7/7 bombings that ID cards could not prevent terrorist atrocities, the Government now claims that they will prevent identity theft. International experience shows that assigning everyone a unique identifier ­ the proposed National Identity Register Number on your card ­ is actually more likely to increase identity fraud.

A PENSIONER from Purton says he is prepared to go to prison rather than pay his tax bill in full to prove his point over the war in Iraq. Douglas Barker has withheld ten per cent of his income tax payments ­ approximately £1,200 ­ in protest. The 72-year-old has now been summoned to court to defend his actions and says he is not scared of going to jail to publicise his stance.

I'd be the last person to deny the heroism and sacrifice frequently involved in fighting a war, and, at best, the red poppies and remembrance parades are all about those who gave up their lives for the sake of others. The tragedy is that men and women were pitchforked into such a death-trap in the first place. Talk as we may of `just wars', justice plays little or no part in the atrocious reality of modern warfare, when the most surgical of strikes seldom avoids `collateral damage'.

A FORMER Swindon MP features in a new book about rebel MPs. But Julia Drown's main entry in The Rebels, How Blair Mislaid his Majority is for arguing that the term `rebel' should not be used.

THE police have moved up a gear in their bid to tackle gangs of youths hanging around the Wyvern Theatre. Officers have begun arresting youths who defy a dispersal order designed to stop intimidating groups gathering. The order at Theatre Square came in to force in September and it means groups of two or more teenagers, who police deem are likely to cause intimidation, harassment, alarm or distress to others, can be moved on ­ or face being arrested.

A SOLDIER from Swindon who helped rescue two SAS men in Iraq is back at his Wiltshire base. Philip Tollafield, 19, arrived back at Tidworth army camp this week.
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The soldier and others from the King's Royal Hussars, hit the headlines in September after breaking into an Iraqi prison where the captured SAS were being held illegally. Philip was in a Warrior armoured vehicle, which smashed into the prison's walls.

On Remembrance Day, November 13, the country will again be remembering those who lost their lives in the war that was to have ended all wars. I feel that the best way to honour the dead of past wars is to build a world in which we do not `solve' conflict by killing other people. Wars are not earthquakes or floods. They are not inevitable.

A FORMER airman from Swindon has hailed a landmark decision to award a Gulf War Syndrome victim a disability pension. The Government and the Ministry of Defence have always insisted no such condition exists. But earlier this week the Pensions Appeal Tribunal ruled ex-guardsman Daniel Martin, of Luton, should be given the award.

As a daughter of a Naval Officer who served in the last World War ­ he survived but was invalided out at the end ­ I shall be wearing a red and a white poppy on Remembrance Day; red to remember the servicemen and women who died for our freedom and white for the future.

The white poppy symbolises the hope that all wars can be abolished. As we see these now create far more civilian than service personnel casualties, and rarely solve the problems.

I SEE Peter Brown is still viewing Blair and Co through his rose coloured glasses.
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Millions more being spent on defence. Fighter planes which can only fly when the sun is out. Helicopters grounded for lack of spares etc, troops in Iraq having to buy their own kit.
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ID cards to stop the terrorists, but all the London bombers were entitled to a card.

A TEENAGER who is accused of setting fire to a Swindon mosque has been remanded in custody by a judge. The 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is also accused of criminal damage relating to racist graffiti.
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The allegation relates to a fire being started at the Jamia Mosque on Broad Street on Tuesday October 4 ­ the day after the start of Ramadan. The youth, who is from Park North, is also accused of daubing the Sikh Temple in Kembrey Street with a swastika and racist language between September 20 and 23. He is also accused of doing a similar thing to the Broad Street mosque on September 21.

JAMES Gray has been accused by MPs of making extraordinary and bizarre arguments in the House of Commons. Labour and Liberal Democrat politicians rounded on the North Wiltshire Conservative MP after he attacked a bid by backbenchers to strip the Prime Minister of his power to declare war.

Mr Gray, pictured, yesterday suggested giving Parliament a veto would increase the temptation of Prime Ministers to mislead the House of Commons into supporting action.

HOW much more of our individual freedoms do we have to lose before we as a nation wake up to this dictatorial government? Tony Blair tells us we need more laws to combat terrorism. We all tend to accept this as a fact when in reality there are already 200 anti-terror laws.

I WOULD like to be our next MP. My record is one of scandal, lies (or at best half truths), failure, supporting an illegal war and acts which, in an earlier age, would be called traitorous towards giving our nation to a foreign government (ie the European Union).

GANG members plotted a racist smear campaign by reporting a fictitious robbery and blaming it on ethnic minorities, a court heard. After being egged on by a group of racists, Matthew Weeks, 19, of Campion Drive, Trowbridge, called police to say an Afro-Caribbean man robbed him of his mobile phone at knifepoint.
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They realised the teenager was lying after discovering he had called 999 on the phone he claimed had been stolen.

PEOPLE in Swindon will have a chance to support a campaign against the arms trade in an unusual way. Amnesty International is to collect photographs for their Million Faces photo petition. They will be campaigning in Swindon town centre on Sunday between 11am and 3pm.

A FATHER-OF-THREE who saw children die in the Gulf War was a changed man when he returned to Swindon, an inquest heard. Royal Engineer Andrew Davies sank into a depression after serving in the Middle East and his family are convinced he was the victim of Gulf War Syndrome.

POLICE were called to New College after a right-wing extremist handing out leaflets was involved in a scuffle with students. British National Party youth member, Mark Bullock, 21, was chased from the college, in Queens Drive, for handing out literature titled Freedom And Security Not Diversity And Danger.

A TEENAGER accused of setting fire to a Swindon mosque did so at the beginning of Islam's biggest religious festival, a court has heard. The 16-year-old from Park North, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is accused of setting the Jamia Mosque on Broad Street alight the day after the Ramadan festival started. The teenager faces four charges relating to a campaign of racist abuse against the town's Muslim and Sikh communities. He has not yet entered a plea.

A SEVENTEEN-year-old, from the Park North area, who was arrested on Wednesday, on suspicion of racially aggravated arson and criminal damage has been released on bail without charge, pending further police inquiries. The youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is due to return to Swindon's Gablecross police station on November 23.

POLICE are investigating whether the racists behind a series of attack on religious centres in Swindon may have been producing home-made explosives. An investigation was launched after attacks on two mosques and a Sikh temple. Officers trying to establish who carried out the racially-motivated vandalism now believe those responsible may have been experimenting with home-made explosives

A CHECHEN family who fled to Swindon expect to get kicked-out of the country any time.
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The Home Office was unable to deport the family until now because their third child, Angelina, was too young. But now the child has turned six-weeks the family, who live in Ipswich Street, can legally be deported.

THERE are fears someone will be hurt if there are more racist attacks in Swindon. The warning comes after an arson attempt on a mosque and three separate racist graffiti attacks in seven days.

The fire at the Jamia Mosque in Broad Street was put out and no one was hurt. But Jaginda Bassi, director of the Swindon Racial Equality Council, pictured right, is worried another attack could be more serious.

AS the mother of a soldier serving in Iraq I have come to the conclusion that your letter confirms my suspicion that you are not only anti-Army but truly oblivious to the situation in Iraq.

POLICE are to "stop and search" students outside a Swindon school in the latest blitz on graffiti. Any pupil found to be carrying a marker pen or spray paint will be arrested. Offenders who attend Greendown School in Grange Park may even be forced into after-school graffiti-busting gangs.

A CAMPAIGN of racist graffiti and an attempted arson attack have hit the town's Muslim and Sikh communities. Swindon police are appealing for witnesses to come forward after two mosques and the Sikh Temple were attacked within seven days.

A fire was started at the Jamia Mosque, Broad Street, on Wednesday this week. No one was hurt. The mosque, along with the Shah Jelal Mosque on Manchester Road, and the Sikh Temple in Kembrey Street, was sprayed with racist graffiti.

I FEEL obliged to point out some omissions in the article "Now that was our brave boy," published in the Adver, Sep 22. I understand that a local newspaper will want to write a positive human interest story about a local person but this article almost read like a MoD press release.

PROTESTERS from Swindon were among the thousands that descended on London this weekend urging the government to remove British troops from Iraq. Around 20 people, from people in their early twenties through to an 80-year-old World War Two veteran, boarded the bus in Regent Circus before making their way to join the crowds at Whitehall.

Swindon Stop the War Coalition spokesman, Andy Newman, said: "We were slightly disappointed with the turnout from Swindon but you never know how many people will turn up for these type of events."
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"Our soldiers have been there for over two years now and it is deplorable that there is no exit plan," he said. "And that is not just anti-war groups, the military is also calling for plans to be made. It was sending a clear message on the eve of the Labour party conference that the Government needs to make its decision."

Some of the marchers on the stop-the-war demonstration held in London on 24th September 2005, spotted an exhibition of anti-war / anti-capitalist art, cartoons and subvertisments attached to the railings in Park Lane. Here are photos of some of them.

Brian Haw’s peace camp is still there in Parliament Square, and under the Serious Organised Crime act, he is now the only person who can protest there without prior police approval(!) Here are some photos of the messages on display there.

Photos of placards, banners, clothing and unusual props which were used by marchers to get their message across at the stop-the-war demonstration held in London on 24th September 2005

Photos and audio from the demonstration held in London on Saturday 24th September 2005, called by Stop the War Coalition, CND and MAB. Includes MP3 files of two speeches, the samba band and a jolly tune which was playing on the Rinky Dink. A short report is included. More photos coming soon.

Protesters will be joining an expected 100,000-strong demonstration in London tomorrow (Saturday) to demand British troops withdraw from Iraq. The protest has been called by the Stop the War Coalition and coincides with international events including a peace march in New York.
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Swindon Stop the War Coalition spokesman, Andy Newman, said: "The recent London bombings were clearly linked to the ongoing British involvement in Iraq. Before the war started MI5 warned the prime minister that it would increase the chance of a terrorist attack on Britain and tragically they were correct."

THE Wiltshire Wildlife Trust recently published a booklet entitled Recycling Directory as part of its community waste minimisation project. Having acquired a copy I can best describe it as, no offence, the bible of recycling, every home should have one. In some 50 pages (all recyclable) it covers, in my opinion, every conceivable aspect of recycling that anyone who is in the least bit interested in the environment would wish to know.

A SOLDIER from Swindon has been hailed a hero for his part in the daring mission to rescue two SAS hostages in Iraq. Phillip "Tolly" Tollafield, 19, of Toothill, drove the 25-ton Warrior armoured car ­ pictured in TV reports ­ that smashed into the jail where the troopers were held.

PEOPLE in Swindon were urged to think peaceful thoughts as part of the UN International Day of Peace. The Tranquillity Zone ­ held at the Health Hydro in Milton Road ­ organised a special relaxation class to mark the occasion. Around a dozen people who attended yesterday's session listened to calming music and inspiring poetry.

Stop The War spokesman Andy Newman said: "The events of the last 24 hours have left every British soldier in Iraq in greater danger and have made it even more complicated to reach a peaceful and just solution. We may never know the truth about what these SAS men were doing in Arab dress with explosives, but the resulting confrontation between Iraqi police and British military is a disaster."

JUSTICE and peace will be the theme of a special Tranquillity Zone session tomorrow to mark World Peace Day. The Tranquillity Zone, which is held at Milton Road Health Hydro, is an initiative run by the Baha'is of Swindon. It is described as being an oasis of calm and well-being for the body, mind and soul.

HAVING read, and become incensed by the article in the Swindon Advertiser about the dispersal order served on the gathering of young people in Theatre Square, I felt I had to write to defend a section of our society which all too often is demonised and discriminated against for no other reason than age.

fMINISTRY of Defence officials have hit back at claims from defence experts that military bases near Swindon could be at risk of terrorist attacks.

The comments follow the recent release of Google Earth, a free website which shows pictures taken from a variety of satellites around the world, including nearby air force bases at Lyneham and Fairford ­ which is used by U2 spy planes.

A PRESENTATION about life in the West Bank will be held next month. Beyond Belief is a reflective, multimedia presentation based upon the lives of ordinary people living in the West Bank. It comes to Swindon at the end of One World Week on October 29.
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"Opinions and loyalties are deeply entrenched and buried under years of pain and conflict, so to excavate the whole truth is a painstaking and delicate task. Beyond Belief unveils stories that are seldom heard, those of ordinary, peace loving people struggling to survive. It is a collection of postcards from the edge, daring us to walk a few steps into the wilderness, in the footsteps of the prophets and to feel what life is like for those on both sides who pray for peace and work for justice in the land we still dare to call holy."

YOUNGSTERS gave an open show of defiance by gathering outside the Wyvern Theatre on the day a dispersal order came into force. The order means groups of two or more teenagers, who police deem are likely to cause intimidation, harassment, alarm or distress to others, can be moved on ­ or face being arrested.

But more than 30 youngsters were gathered in groups outside the theatre yesterday afternoon. And they insisted they were doing nothing wrong.

SWINDONIANS are being urged to leave their cars at home on Thursday for European Car Free Day. Swindon Council's Local Agenda 21 team is encouraging people to get to work by bicycle, walking or bus rather than driving their cars. Nearly 1,000 cities across Europe are signed up the take part in the day.

Seven out of 10 of all journeys to work are made by car while a typical business manager spends nearly 11 hours behind the wheel in an average week.

WILTSHIRE Police is too small to cope with the future threats of terrorism, extremism and organised crime, the Home Secretary has been warned. Speculation is now rife that the force will be merged with Hampshire and Dorset to form a south west strategic force.

A report by Her Majesty's Inspecto-rate of Constabulary (HMIC), released yesterday, is expected to trigger a huge merger programme with the number of UK forces being significantly reduced. It states that forces with fewer than 4,000 officers fall below the standards expected in protecting the public.

With only 1,228 Wiltshire Police is far below the threshold set by the HMIC and now seems almost certain to be shaken up.

THE merging of Wiltshire, Dorset and Hampshire police forces is long overdue, according to a Swindon councillor. A report published on Friday said Wiltshire Constabulary was too small to cope with terrorism and organised crime, leading to speculation the force would merge with Dorset and Hampshire.

A DISPERSAL order is now in place at Theatre Square, outside the Wyvern Theatre. Police have put notices around the area, which explains what the order means. The order will be in place in this area from today until March 16, next year.

It means if a member of the public is harassed, intimidated, alarmed or distressed by a group of two or more people then the group can be removed from the area by a police officer. It is an offence to fail to comply with the order and an arrest can be made without a warrant.

The areas affected include: Theatre Square, The Cenotaph, both Wyvern Car Parks, both pedestrian walkways and stairways and the pedestrian access routes to all of these areas.

MAY I respectfully take issue through your columns on the subject and current topic of fuel (petrol) supplies. The bold headline on the Swindon Advertiser on September 14 should be directed at the media, radio, television and the press for, if there is going to be a shortage (of anything) there will be a shortage!

RAF FAIRFORD say they will do their best to reduce noise as planes from Brize Norton are moved to the base.

The first of 28 tanker and transport aircraft from the Oxfordshire base have started to fly to the American airbase north of Swindon where they will be based until January.

A BLACK WATCH soldier has been decorated with the Queen's Gallantry Medal for saving the lives of eight colleagues following a suicide bomb attack in Iraq.

Private Michael Mc- Laughlin, a medic with the 1st Battalion The Black Watch, based at Battlesbury Barracks, Warminster, risked his own life to tend to the wounded soldiers when a suicide bomber attacked his platoon in North Babil in November 2004.

Despite coming under heavy mortar fire, Pte McLaughlin, who was then only 19, remained with the casualties throughout.

All eight soldiers survived after being airlifted to safety by an American helicopter.

SWINDON peace protesters will be joining an expected 100,000-strong demonstration in London on Saturday, September 24, to demand British troops are withdrawn from Iraq. The protest has been called by the Stop the War Coalition and coincides with international events including a peace march in New York.
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Mr [Andy] Newman said: "It is now possible for the government to detain someone without even revealing what they have been accused of. Imagine if a future government used this law to silence democratic dissent. It is very dangerous".

RAF Lyneham will be the scene of a massive security operation when defence ministers from the European Union meet there next month. The event is regarded by staff at the airbase as a great honour.

Britain's defence minister John Reid will join his counterparts from around Europe at the gathering on Thursday October 13. All 24 defence ministers have been invited but it is not yet known how many will turn up for the day, which is to be hosted by Mr Reid.

WHEN I look at the unfolding agony of the poor in New Orleans, I think of those heroic few days 65 years ago when a (then) poor and stressed-out country got a third of a million men (including wounded) across the English Channel in Navy ships and thousands of those famous small, slow, private boats, having to navigate round minefields while under fire from the air and land.

I think of all those brave men on those little boats who came from all over the country (even Scotland I believe).

I see America, though a much richer country, with vastly more resources taking so long getting much faster coaches and lorries along what are obviously perfectly good roads (though only one into New Orleans). I think this is not a racial issue for them but a lack of concern for the poor.

I WOULD like to comment on the recent article in Saturday's newspaper concerning the ban on kids hanging around at the Wyvern.
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At least when we are at Wyvern we are out of the way. People have been coming up to the Wyvern to meet with their friends for over 20 years. It won't stop now, we won't be moved on now, we'll fight to keep as our space, every step of the way.

ARMY top brass have agreed to tighten rules on low flying planes and helicopters. The move ­ approved by the Ministry Of Defence ­ comes just weeks after a woman was injured when a helicopter flying low over Wroughton spooked her horse. The MoD will work closely with the British Horse Society to ensure riders are given more consideration.

A campaign called Be Seen Be Safe has now been launched. Riders are being encouraged to wear high visibility clothing to ensure pilots spot them.

The first of 28 tanker and transport aircraft based at Brize Norton in Oxfordshire were due to fly to the American airbase north of Swindon where they will be based until January, yesterday morning. The move is due to runway resurfacing at Brize Norton. Some 28 RAF transport and tanker aircraft will operate from Fairford including TriStars, VC-10s and C17s. Aircraft chartered by the MOD will also use Fairford.

FUEL prices at Marlborough's London Road garage hit a record high of a whopping £1.08p a litre yesterday as proprietor Zubair Dean cashed in on the petrol panic. While other garages in the area kept their prices at around 99.9p a litre for both diesel and unleaded, Mr Dean refused to comment on his policy of charging £1.05p for unleaded and £1.08p for diesel.

FILLING stations in Devizes are getting back to normal after a flurry of panic buying by motorists.

The panic buying that gripped Malmesbury motorists has eased, according to filling station workers in the area.

THINGS are getting back to normal ­ that is what most garages in Swindon were saying last night. As reported in later editions of yesterday's Advertiser, the much-hyped fuel protest, which led to scenes of panic buying across the town, failed to materialise with just a handful of protesters taking part.

GAZETTE & HERALD: PANIC buying has resulted in petrol pumps running dry in Chippenham ­ as well as frayed tempers on the forecourts.

MOTORISTS are being told to be sensible when it comes to buying petrol or risk causing hysteria. With some filling stations in Swindon running short of fuel, trading standards officials are urging people not to panic. Garages across the town were having to shut off some pumps as supplies run low. But the only shortage has been caused by panic buying and not because there are problems with fuel coming out of the oil refineries.

BUS passengers face an unknown hike in fares as the row over fuel prices deepens. John Owen, managing director of Thamesdown Transport, said it was "highly likely" fares would rise next month. The grim news comes as fears grow in Swindon that there could be a possible repeat of the fuel shortages seen in 2000.

A TYPING error on the dispersal order for Swindon's Theatre Square has delayed it coming into force. A spelling mistake on a road name has held up the order, which will now come into force on Monday.
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It means groups of two or more teenagers who police deem are likely to cause intimidation, harassment, alarm or distress to others can be moved on. And if the youngsters refuse to obey the officers, they can be arrested.

THE first signs of panic buying emerged in Swindon today as motorists fear a petrol shortage could be on its way. Drivers worried about petrol shortages were this morning queuing at garages across the town to fill up their tanks and jerry cans. Some petrol stations said they had run out of unleaded and diesel over the weekend as people stocked up.

THE situation in Iraq is getting worse and worse. Wednesday, August 31, 2005 was the worst day of the war so far when 1,000 innocent civilians were killed in one day. There is no progress being made towards any restoration of law and order. It is time to admit that we have made a terrible mistake and bring our troops home.

Eye surgeon Thamir YasenIRAQI surgeon Thamir Yasen has spoken of his shock that a bridge he crossed daily has been the scene of a tragedy.

Nearly 1,000 people died on Wednesday after a stampede at a holy shrine, apparently triggered by rumours of an imminent suicide attack.

Many were killed attempting to flee the area by jumping off a bridge and into the River Tigris.

As a medical student in Baghdad, Mr Yasen ­ an eye specialist at Swindon's Great Western Hospital ­ used to walk over the bridge every day.

I was deeply disturbed to read in the Gazette that the British National Party had held an event in Chippenham. Just recently we marked the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War and the victory over fascism. The war memorial in Chippenham marks those brave men and women of our town who helped bring down the evil of fascism.

I believe the BNP is a fascist, racist party and the thought of these people holding such an event in our town, or anywhere, is quite sickening.

A CHECHEN couple who face being deported say the birth of their daughter has been a ray of light during dark months. But the Home Office says the new addition to the Eltuyev family makes no difference and they must still return to their homeland.

As previously reported in the Adver Islan and Zarina Eltuyev and their two children came to Swindon seeking refuge from the Russian security forces in Chechnya in 2003.

YOBS, thugs, ASBO and hoodies are words many people associate with teenagers today. But are they really that bad, or is it just easier to assume they are up to no good? In the last few days police announced a crackdown on gangs of youths congregating in Liden village centre, intimidating passers-by and shoppers.

The Advertiser has been talking to teenagers to find out what it's really like growing up in the town. And most of the teenagers we spoke to say they are "tired of being put into a box and labelled" by people who have never actually stopped to speak to them.

I WROTE recently to make two points. That American foreign policy and, of course, British foreign policy which follows it, has all to do with supporting the profits of huge corporations and nothing to do with democracy. And that the appalling London bombings demonstrably follow from US/British foreign policy, particularly in the Middle East.

HOTEL owner Geoff Lijka is horrified that his premises were used for a charity evening organised by the British National Party. The right-wing organisation, which believes in repatriation and stringent immigration control, kept its identity secret when making the booking for a Patriots' Evening at The Angel Hotel in Chippenham.

Mr Lijka, whose family is originally from the Ukraine, said: "I would not knowingly associate myself with them or their views or their politics," he said. "If they had come and told us they were the BNP, we would most categorically have said no. But how were we to know if it was booked under an individual's name?"
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The party-goers raised £60 for local charities, dividing the proceeds between the Wiltshire Air Ambulance, the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust and the Wiltshire Association for the Blind. The Wildlife Trust, however, sent the cheque back.

Seeing the story on your website today I can't help but feel very badly for the Eltuyev family. If their worst fears of deportation come true then a possible suggestion would be for them to try the Matanuska-Susitna Valley here in Alaska. We have a quite large Russian population in this area, with Russian spoken in many of the schools. Might be an off-the-wall idea but it sounds like this family can use all the help they can get.

A FOOTBALL team has embraced a Chechnyan family facing deportation. Islan and Zarina Eltuyev fled their homeland to start a new life in Swindon after claiming to have been persecuted by the Russian security forces.
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As our picture shows, the family has been adopted by Ferndale Rodbourne YCFC. Andrew Ray, manager of Ferndale Rodbourne YCFC, reckons the lad has a real eye for the game.

Tony Blair recently informed television viewers that the rules for dealing with terrorism had changed. Those rules since time immemorial are encapsulated in the words "know your enemies" which this Government is incapable of doing. As a result of its foreign policy the people of this island now face a prolonged spell of terrorist threats and untold damage to the economy.

SWINDON'S England international boxer Jamie Cox will fight the corner of a Chechen family who say they face death if they are sent home. As revealed in yesterday's Adver, Islan and Zarina Eltuyev fled their home in Chechnya in fear of Russian security forces.
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Islan, 39, who is not allowed to work by law as his asylum application was rejected, has been helping out as a volunteer at the Walcot Boys' boxing club. Harry Scott, 64, who runs the club wants Islan to stay and so does Walcot southpaw Jamie.
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Now, local anti-deportation campaigner Andy Newman, who has supported others in Swindon in similar circumstances, has taken their side and wants the people of Swindon to make sure that the family are allowed to stay here. He said: "Swindon has always been a welcoming place for those fleeing atrocities and it is something that we should always be proud of.

WHEN Zarina Eltuyev found her four-year-old son curled up in a corner and rocking back and forth she knew she had to do something. Her eldest child had just watched as his parents were dragged out of bed, marched out to the garden and beaten by Russian security forces. Zarina was held by the hair and hit in the face as six armed men laid into her husband, Islan.

And all this was because they wrongly believed Islan was a terrorist. That was back in 2003. By May that year the family had fled their homeland to seek refuge in England. But now with their asylum application rejected they face being sent back to the place where they left in fear of their lives.

TONY Blair tried to deny the connection between the London bombings and the illegal attack and invasion of Iraq. This was despite evidence to the contrary from, among others, the British Joint Intelligence Committee, the CIA, and the Chatham House Organisation, not to mention the Stop The War coalition.

Only last month Saddam announced he was to sue The Sun newspaper after it published pictures of him in his Y-fronts. And heavyweight Alex ­ a legal hotshot and member of Walcot Amateur Boxing Club ­ was asked to fight The Sun's corner. But it seems he will not have to deliver a knock-out blow after all ­ Saddam has done that himself. His family have issued a statement announcing that the team has been sacked.

MORE THAN 800 lanterns floated across the lake at Coate Water during the annual Lanterns on the Lake event. The event, organised by Swindon Ranger Services, was to commemorate World Peace Day, and those who died in the Hiroshima bomb.

ACCORDING to Tony Blair Muslims living in Britain should adopt British values.

Does he want Muslims to be soft on crime, take up 24 hour boozing, no smacking, no discipline in schools, teenagers ruling the streets at night, teenage pregnancies, and rape cases virtually impossible to win.

Are these the sort of values Tony Blair wants the Muslims to adopt?

JOHN Utting of Penhill is not convinced that Britain is being targeted because of the Iraq war (SA, letters, July 13 and 30).

I agree that such a link between recent atrocities and Iraq may be an over simplification of the situation, however it is revealing that Hussain Osman (aka Hamdi Isaac), suspected of the attempted bombing at Shepherd's Bush, has claimed the bomb plot was directly inspired by Britain's involvement in the Iraq war.

THERE have been 35 race or religious incidents reported in Swindon since the London terrorist attacks in July. The figures represent a 59 per cent increase on the same period last year. Across Wiltshire racially aggravated crimes have gone up by almost two-thirds in the same period.

IN these times of war, terrorism and suicide bombers it is my personal view that the Royals ­ all the Royal Family the whole of them ­ should be evacuated to say Balmoral, Bahamas or Sandringham away from London town.

A NUMBER of Swindon groups are working together to make sure the International Day of Peace becomes part of the town's calendar. Swindon Film Society, Swindon and Marlborough Amnesty, Swindon Fair Trade Coalition, Swindon Churches Together, Swindon Oxfam and Swindon World Development Movement are co-operating to make sure that September 21 is celebrated here every year.

This year's event will be held at the Drove Community Hall, beginning at 6.45pm.

Leeanne Wheatley, 32, has written to the council demanding that a notice is put on the cemetery or a policeman at the gate to stop people using it to view the air show next year.

Mrs Wheatley said: "We went to visit our baby daughter on the second anniversary of losing her and found hoards of people watching the Fairford Air Tattoo. They were having picnics on the grass and children were throwing balls thinking that they could use a place of tranquillity and peace as a public park or makeshift viewing area for the air show."

COULD someone in a higher echelon than myself, ask Prime Minister Blair, is this the safer world which he and President Bush envisaged when they waged war on Iraq?

SCOTLAND Yard is engaged in its biggest ever operation as Britain's top police officer warned the country faced a campaign of terror. Sir Ian Blair said terrorist cells could still be at large and may be determined to launch new attacks. Those attacks would not necessarily be on the transport system, he warned.

THE wild assertion by Brian Utting (SA July 13) that the London bombings are not a response to the UK involvement in the Iraq fiasco is not shared by most political commentators.

A massive demonstration against this illegal war by UK citizens was ignored by Tony Blair, as was the sound advice by the French and German governments that this matter should be resolved by the United Nations.

THE letter from M Bray on how he sees the uniform worn by Prince Edward as not fancy dress is right ­ it was not fancy dress, it was a disgrace.

He enlisted to serve as an officer in the Royal Marines, he failed to make the grade in that unit. He has no other military service so even if he is the honorary colonel of an Army unit (was that another Christmas present from mummy?), he should still wear civilian dress.

NO one supports the bombing in London. But many ordinary British people are equally angry with Tony Blair. He took us into an unwinable war against the wishes of a million marchers in London and overwhelming views of the British people.

TERRORISTS will never change our way of life, advises the Queen. Didn't she recently give her government the go-ahead for ID cards? As for way of life, her way of life is totally alien to 99 per cent of the population. Get on public transport and take risks like the rest of us. Perhaps then respect might be restored to a moribund monarchy.

IN recent letters to the Evening Advertiser questions have been raised regarding the teaching of Islam and Christianity in our schools (reference G R Bray, Your View, June 15 and C Newcombe, June 20).

I would like to confirm that the Swindon Agreed Syllabus for Religious Education seeks to ensure that young people in our schools learn about, learn from and have a good understanding of the different world religious faiths.

SWINDON'S Christian and Muslim communities are joining together in silence today to remember those killed, injured and bereaved in the London bombings. A two-minute silence will be held at noon at the War Memorial at the top of Regent Street. Swindon Churches Together and the Muslim Council of Britain are encouraging faith communities to observe together the silence, in public and the workplace.

I was appalled to see Prince Edward attired in military uniform with medals on his chest. He was a wimp who quit military training. He is a disgrace to the uniform and a mockery to royalty. Yesterday was a solemn occasion and not a fancy dress party.

PEACE campaigners Marilyn and Anish Harrison have returned from last week's G8 Summit in Edinburgh. The mother and daughter, from Toothill, were caught up in violent clashes with the police that marred the start of talks aimed at reducing world poverty.

Marilyn said: "As we joined the protest it was very good humoured with everyone having fun. But the police blockaded us into a street and refused to let us move. After being kept like this for some hours the police suddenly charged into the crowd with batons raised. This was understandably very frightening, especially for those who had young children present."

MP Michael Wills has refused to answer questions from me stating in the past that I don't live in north Swindon.

I don't live in London either but I have had letters from a London MP. The last letter I had from him, he said Julia Drown would answer it.

Over four years gone by and we have 88 dead in Iraq now and I am still waiting for this letter.

These politicians to get votes will say anything. As the Royal British Legion says, remember the dead but don't forget the living.

At 12.10pm police officers were called to the Regent Street branch of Lloyds TSB, where a member of the public had spotted a bank deposit envelope in the street which they handed into the bank. Staff were then evacuated and the police were called. All of the shops in the central part of the Brunel Centre and a 200-yard section of Regent Street from BHS to HMV were evacuated as police checked out the envelope inside the bank.
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Police later X-rayed the envelope and found it contained a box of sweets, but considering the events in London, the manager had erred on the side of caution and the branch was reopened later in the day.

RELIGIOUS leaders in Swindon say that it is important people understand there is no link between religion and terrorism.
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Mr Khan said: "We utterly condemn what has happened. This is my homeland where me and my children live and we are shocked to see this. My family work in London. It could have been any of them. It's shocking. I hope there will not be a backlash against Muslims because this has nothing to do with religion. The finger of blame will be pointing to Muslims but we are embarrassed by this and we utterly condemn it. The one thing I would like to say is to make it clear that it is not real Muslims."
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Chief Supt Andy Tatum, said: "Any form of religious or racial recrimination as a result of the incidents in London will not be tolerated by Swindon police. We encourage victims or witnesses to report such incidents to us immediately."

POLICE are calling on people to remain vigilant after Swindon was caught up in the threat of terrorist activity. The train station was closed after abandoned packages, believed to be birthday presents, sparked a security alert. Shortly afterwards part of the town centre was also closed off after a packet of sweets triggered alarm.

A SUSPECT package which saw Swindon station evacuated this morning turned out to be a false alarm. Another suspicious object was found in the town centre at about midday with more people being evacuated. After an investigation of the object, this also turned out to be a false alarm.

People from Swindon were a part of two historical events aimed at making poverty history. They shared their memories of Live8 in London and the G8 protest in Edinburgh with Lyndsay Scanlan.

POLICE officers from Swindon are being drafted in to help take care of the world's leaders at the G8 summit in Edinburgh next week.
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A spokeswoman for Swindon Police said that due to operational reasons they were unable to reveal exactly what the officers would be doing.
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Police have blocked plans for a Stop The War rally to march past the Gleneagles Hotel on the opening day of the summit.

A record number of demonstrators are expected in Edinburgh for the Make Poverty History March today. And, with an important few days in the political calendar ahead, the city is gearing up for trouble. Some shops are boarding up windows and concrete traffic bollards are being put in place, as well as extensive parking restrictions. A control room will run 24 hours a day from today until the end of the summit, where 150 staff will control the movements of the G8 police force. There will be 10,000 officers on hand and support from helicopters and specialist search teams. But the police are not planning to use either water cannons or CS gas.

The Government's own information commissioner, Richard Thomas, attacked the plans for identity cards. He described the scheme as excessive and disproportionate.

He maintains that the government is planning an unnecessary data trail on every individual that reaches far beyond requirements.

The ID card and its sinister central database is opposed by civil rights organisations such as Liberty, and our local MP, James Gray.

Faced with such widespread opposition we can only hope that the government will retreat. Unfortunately, hope may not be enough. I urge readers to register their dissent at www.no2id.net

ACTIVISTS from Swindon will travel to Edinburgh on Saturday to join a mass rally.

Coach loads of protesters will leave the town to take part in the rally organised by the MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY coalition. It has been organised four days before the G8 summit to pressurise leaders of the world's richest countries to drop third world debt.

Anne Snelgrove (South Swindon) (Lab): Does my right hon. Friend agree that the nuclear option and timetable cannot be pursued unless a permanent intermediate-level waste store site has been found in his country? It is a pity that Opposition Members who are pursuing the nuclear option did not take the opportunity to sign off the papers for one before the 1997 general election.

Alan Johnson (Secretary of State for Trade and Industry): My hon. Friend makes an important point. The work that is going on and the time scale within which it is due to be completed are good reasons why we should not rush a decision. I agree that we need to find the answer to the problem not just for this generation, but for future generations. We cannot make a positive, final decision until those problems have been resolved.

IN the recent general election Mr Blair was heard to say words to the effect, `Hey guys, let's draw a line under the Iraq issue and move on.' Well, the 88th British soldier has just been killed in Iraq. The thousands of British troops now in that country have to cross that line and put their lives on that line to do their daily duty, and I'm sure that they'd love to move on too.

We now learn that ID cards are going to cost £100 each, which will have to be paid for, one way or another, by us taxpayers. As an engineer working in the security industry I am very sceptical whether the technology will even work. ID cards are about as good an idea as the poll tax or the Millennium Dome.

The Government assures us ID cards are for security, I think Hitler said something like, "It is easy to take away the freedoms from people, just tell them they will be more secure". In Blair's England I worry more about going into hospital, for a minor operation than I do about a threat from Al Qaeda.

THE Prime Minister is today expected to embark on a collision course with disgruntled Labour backbenchers as he revives plans for identity cards. The highly controversial biometric cards are expected to form the centrepiece of the Queen's Speech.
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But left-wing activist Andy Newman, who is secretary of the Swindon Stop The War Coalition and Socialist Unity camdidate in this month's General Election in the North Swindon constituency said: "There is not a single crime that it would solve, and it could lead to more crime because within months forged cards would be available."

WAR veteran Allan Thipthorpe, 79,has been invited to Buckingham Palace on Sunday, July 10 for the VE and VJ celebrations.
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The invitation is from the Prime Minister as well as the Queen, but Allan, who wears an anti-war badge, has no intention of chatting to Mr Blair. He said: "I wouldn't waste my time speaking to him. The servicemen do the dying, and the politicians do the lying."

FRONT page news came to the Swindon Festival of Literature with the appearance of a former Cabinet Minister. Clare Short was in town as yesterday's festival lunchtime speaker. Taking questions from the audience, discussion inevitably turned to the question over when Tony Blair should resign. And Ms Short's view on the matter?

"The sooner the better."

MICHAEL Wills limped to victory to secure the North Swindon seat for the third time. The Labour MP is vowing to help his party listen to the needs of the country during his next term in office. He praised his hard-working team for helping him beat off the Tories even though the majority had fallen from 8,105 votes in 2001 to just under 2,500 this morning.

SOUTH Swindon has a new Member of Parliament­ but the seat is still held by Labour. Anne Snelgrove gained a narrow victory of less than 1,400 votes, over Tory candidate Robert Buckland, to become the area's MP. But Labour's share of the South Swindon vote was 11 per cent down from the last election in 2001, leaving Mrs Snelgrove with a majority of just 3.1 per cent.

THREE other servicemen may have tried to take their lives at a barracks where a Swindon soldier killed himself. A police inquiry was sparked when Private Gregory Bruce, 28, was found hanged in his barracks room at Bicester three weeks ago. Now several national newspapers have reported that three other soldiers at the barracks have tried to commit suicide in the past six months amid allegations of bullying.

THE final hustings before the election takes place tomorrow night. Former Swindon Labour MP Lord Stoddard will chair the public meeting organised by the Swindon Stop the War Coalition. The meeting, at 7.30pm at the Steam museum, will allow members of the public to question the candidates on their attitude to the war and the continued deployment of British troops in Iraq as well as on how best to combat terrorism and safeguard civil liberties.

The question of Iraq is coming to centre stage in the last week of the election campaign, with the conservatives and Lib Dems questioning the Prime Minister's decision to take Britain to war. The Labour party argue that the decision to topple Saddam Hussein was justified, and the Prime Minister had to take that tough decision. Swindon Stop the War Coalition has therefore organised hustings for Swindon's general election candidates for Tuesday 3rd May, at 7:30 pm at Steam in Kemble Drive. The meeting will be chaired by Lord Stoddart of Swindon.

SOUTH Swindon's Labour candidate has come under fire for refusing to say whether she supports Tony Blair's decision to invade Iraq. Anne Snelgrove is one of 17 new Labour candidates who are refusing to state whether they agree with the war. Ms Snelgrove was asked to state her views as part of a national survey of Labour's 48 candidates who are defending seats in which an MP is standing down. The survey found that only four candidates would publicly back the Prime Minister's decision.

IN 1945 when Britain was at war, our troops all over the world were given the right to vote. Yet in 2005 with all the technology available, our troops in Iraq are being deprived of their right to vote. What, if anything, is Tony Blair doing to rectify this situation given that he was quick enough to send the troops there and put their lives at risk?

“I reasonably believe that it may result in serious disruption to the life of the community or that the purpose of the persons organising the public assembly is intended to intimidate others to do or not to do something they have a right.” - Assistant Chief Constable John Donlon of Thames Valley Police, imposing conditions on the peace march and rally around Brize Norton on 23rd April 2005.

Report and photos

"There were around a hundred marchers on Saturday, including one coachload from Oxford and one from Bristol. People came from as far afield as Wrexham, bringing a variety of colourful banners as well as vital supplies of chocolate bunnies, flapjacks and hot soup. Music was provided by the Oxford samba group Breach of the Peace, and the Bristol-based singing group Red Notes with a little additional assistance from some of Oxford's Sea Green Singers. There was a grotesquely-excessive police presence, including a number of mounted police. The main street of Carterton was crowded with people, who had apparently never seen anything like it before. An unusual feature was how many of the local boys decided to come along with us on the march despite the rain, and stayed on pretty much throughout the day's events. Presumably because of the novelty rather than any deep commitment, though it would be interesting to know if their experience had any lasting influence on them."

MICHAEL Howard has been accused of trying to mislead Swindon voters after claiming a link between asylum seekers and rising council tax bills. The Conservative leader has written to voters in North Swindon, claiming a massive bill for accommodating refugees in Swindon and Wiltshire could have been spent on local services.

POLICE are investigating the death of a soldier from Swindon found dead at a barracks in Bicester. Officers from Thames Valley police were called to St David's Barracks in London Road, Bicester, on early on Tuesday, April 12, where they found the body of Pte Gregory Bruce.

There is no better example of the utter failure of the so-called war on drugs than how Afghanistan, under American and British control, has returned to being the world's number one narcotics producer.

A FORMER airman believes Gulf War Syndrome is forcing him to give up work. Martin Curtis, 50, from Old Town, spoke yesterday about the effects of his illness, on the day the Government came in for fierce criticism for its handling of so-called Gulf War Syndrome.

ELECTION '05: ELECTION candidates will be quizzed on the war in Iraq at a meeting two days before polling day. Swindon Stop The War Coalition has organised the meeting, which will be chaired by former Swindon MP Lord Stoddart. It will allow members of the public to question the candidates on any issue, but particularly on their attitude to the war and towards the continued deployment of British troops in Iraq.

THE message on the wreath gave a simple message ­ To Daddy. Missing you from head to toe. Poppy. This came from the seven-year-old daughter of Flt Sgt Mark Gibson who died after the Hercules from Lyneham he was travelling in crashed in Iraq in January.

The fact is, a vote for Blair is a vote for Bush. A third term Tony will put Britain's security, its reputation and the lives of Wiltshire's young soldiers uncritically at the disposal of the Bush White House for another four years, lending strength and credibility to the Bush programme.

WHAT are we doing poking our noses into other people's countries. Let the Arab countries sort out their own affairs. Get our troops out. If Mr Blair wants troops out there let him and Mr Wills MP send their sons.

FOR the general election South Swindon Labour Party has selected a right wing candidate, Anne Snellgrove, who supports the Iraq war. So I am delighted that the Green Party have selected Bill Hughes, who is an excellent local environmental campaigner and who has been active in Swindon Stop the War Coalition.

SWINDON'S skies are set to get busier later in the year with the arrival of aircraft from a base in Oxfordshire. Tanker and transport jets from RAF Brize Norton will be moving to RAF Fairford and RAF Lyneham near Swindon for up to four months while urgent work is carried out on the Oxfordshire base's runway.

TERRITORIAL Army Private Robert Brandon is putting a university degree course on hold for a year after being mobilised to spend six months on operations in Iraq.

Also heading for Iraq is 26-year-old Chris Grant, of Chiseldon, an old boy of Ridgeway School, who joined up in 1996.

The Swindon soldiers expect to be based just outside Basra during their six-month stint in Iraq, carrying out duties that include patrols and vehicle convoys.

A SWINDON campaigner is protesting at a leaflet he says incites racial hatred. Andy Newman has referred the UK Independence Party leaflet, which was delivered to homes in Swindon, to the Commission for Racial Equality. Mr Newman said: "The leaflet shows crude racial stereotypes of people from Spain, Greece and Hungary with begging bowls taking money away from UK pensioners. This is particularly offensive given the significant number of EU citizens who make a very welcome contribution to Swindon's economic and cultural life. There is no call for this at a time when racism is rising."

THE remains of Flt Lt Paul Pardoel, the Australian airman killed in the Iraq Hercules crash, which killed 10 people, will be returned to Australia. Flt Lt Pardoel was the first Australian killed in the conflict. His widow and children are to fly back to Australia for the funeral. Mystery still surrounds both the cause of the crash and the C130's mission, which was on election day in Iraq.

MIKE Spry certainly possesses a vivid imagination. His letter in the EA on March 21 paints a doomsday scenario regarding Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq that did not exist prior to the invasion.

"TWO years ago, missiles were firing and bombs were dropping on Baghdad in the first wave of strikes of the Iraq War. But even though politicians claim that the war is apparently over, the conflict and the reasons for going are still as detested today by the Stop the War Coalition, as they were in the run-up to the conflict. British and American troops continue to die in a struggle to bring peace in the once dictatorial state.

That is why on Saturday several dozen anti-war protesters and their colourful banners left Swindon to join thousands on the streets of London."

"I DO like Andy Newman, his heart is in the right place, and I do sympathise with his anti-war argument.

I think most people are anti-war. Unfortunately a significant number of people in the big world out there are not.

They have a different view on violence; some of these people are in power in countries where Andy and his supporters would not have the right to express their views."

"Photos from the "19.3" march and rally held on the 19th March 2005 in London, called by Stop the War Coalition, CND and MAB. Includes a montage of many of the mass-produced placards being carried, individual photos of some of the more creative ones, and the largest samba band I've ever seen. All photos are copyleft - if you like it, go ahead and re-use it!"

"I WELCOME the announcement that Italy will be withdrawing its 3,100 troops from Iraq by September. Italy has joined Holland, Poland, Spain, Hungary, the Philippines, Norway, the Dominican Republic and other countries in withdrawing their troops. This means that Britain stands alone as the only other country apart from the USA with combat troops in Iraq and no date in sight before they come home.

Only this week young men from the TA in Swindon have gone to Iraq. I call on Tony Blair to support our troops by bringing them home before any more are killed."

"RUMOUR has it there's a General Election coming in May. Leaflets are already hitting my letterbox and many of the Evening Advertiser's readers have recently been expressing their own very crystallised perspectives on political issues. So am I the only one in Swindon who has no idea which way to vote in May?"

"THE man, who sent a baked bean tin by post which resulted in a Swindon street being cordoned off for five hours and the bomb squad being sent in, has blamed Tony Blair for creating a climate of fear in the UK.
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"I blame Tony Blair for this, with his batty war on terror. It's his fault, making the public all jumpy. If I had received that package, I don't think `bomb!' would have been my first thought. " "

"TA infantrymen from Swindon are about to embark on their last training evening before peacekeeping duties in Iraq."

"TICKETS are on sale for a demonstration against the war in Iraq.

Andy Newman, of the Swindon Stop The War Coalition, pictured, hopes the national protest in London on March 19 will put the war back at the centre of the political agenda in the run-up to the General Election. A coach will leave Swindon New College at 10am and arrive back at around 8pm. Tickets are £12 with £6 concessions. For more information call 01793 612409."

"On Friday evening an alarmed Old Town resident called police after receiving what she thought was a letter bomb through the post.
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While this was going on Amy Kemp, 26, was enjoying a quiet drink with pals at nearby Steam Railway. Amy, who lives two doors away from the house at the centre of the drama, was expecting a mobile phone and charger to drop through the door.
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"..he'd wrapped the phone charger in a baked bean can so the plug wouldn't stick out of the envelope ­ that's just like him." "

"It is now clear that Mr Blair was sadly mistaken and that Saddam Hussein was telling the truth ­ he had no weapons of mass destruction and no means of creating such weapons. I do not doubt he harboured ideas about wanting them but that is not the same as possessing them or being able to use them."

"EMPTY shoes were laid at the war memorial in Regent Circus in a poignant memorial to British men and women who have died in Iraq. Swindon members of the Stop The War Coalition placed 85 pairs of shoes to mark the number who have died. Among those remembered were the ten servicemen from RAF Lyneham who died after a Hercules plane crashed in Iraq."

"AT LEAST four members of the Territorial Army in Swindon will be flying out to Iraq, it has been confirmed. Captain Will Richards, of the Royal Rifle Volunteers, which has an outpost in Swindon and headquarters in Reading, said the men will soon begin an intensive training course before flying out to Basra at the end of May. But he has refused to name those involved until after March 29."

" "They died that we might live" reads the inscription on the Cenotaph, a monument erected in memory of soldiers who died in the first and second world wars.

In the case of those being remembered at this ceremony, the phrase "they died that the greedy might plunder" would have been more appropriate. If only Blair and Bush had paid attention to that massive outburst of public opinion two years ago, those soldiers would still be alive today.

At a dignified ceremony, the names were read out, of all eighty-five British soldiers who have lost their lives so far as a result of the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq, and a pair of empty boots for each one was laid in front of the Cenotaph. Included in those 85 were two from Swindon who were on board the Hercules aircraft which crashed on 30th January: Gary Nicholson from Stratton St Margaret and Mark Gibson from Sparcells."

"Swindon campaigners will conduct a ceremony to remember those killed in Iraq tomorrow. Eighty-five pairs of shoes will be laid out at cenotaph in Regent Circus at midday to represent the British servicemen and women who have died so far in the conflict."

"This is a short review of the play “The Truth about Hoggett and Webb”, which was performed at the Arts Centre in Swindon on Wednesday 9th February 2005. The play compresses the story of the 2003 invasion of Iraq and the aftermath into a single day in the office of two civil service bureaucrats, who produce dossiers and reports to support Blair’s case for war. It does an excellent job of unravelling the lies which led us into war, making use of quotes from real dossiers and reports, and in the humble opinion of this reviewer, it should be performed and shown as widely as possible."

"A HERCULES from RAF Lyneham, which crashed with the loss of all 10 people on board, was most likely shot down by a surface-to-air missile, according to a US think-tank."

"Lord Stoddart, who was Labour MP for Swindon from 1970 to 1983, compared the Government's policy of house arrest with methods used in 1930s Germany and Italy and during the apartheid era in South Africa. Now, the 79-year-old peer has filed a motion calling for the House of Lords to censure the Prime Minister for making the case for war in Iraq on "the basis of doubtful intelligence concerning weapons of mass destruction." "

"EVERYDAY life at RAF Lyneham came to a halt yesterday as the bodies of the 10 brave servicemen killed in the Hercules tragedy flew home for the last time."

"IT was late afternoon 10 days ago when the first news reports began to filter through that a RAF Hercules had crashed in the Iraqi desert north of Baghdad killing all 10 men on board. It was the biggest single loss of life to hit British forces since military action in Iraq began and occurred hours after polling closed for the first democratic elections held in Iraq for decades. Among the dead were two men from Swindon: Master Engineer Gary Nicholson, 42 from Stratton St Margaret and Flt Sgt Mark Gibson, 34, of Sparcells."

"ON behalf of Swindon Stop The War Coalition I would like to offer our deepest sympathy to the families, friends and comrades of those killed in the Hercules crash."

"LOVED ones of those who died in the Hercules crash in Iraq are expecting to hear today when the bodies of the victims will return home. The Ministry of Defence is due to announce today when they will fly back to RAF Lyneham."

"On Tuesday the 1st February, around sixty people filled the hall of the Moravian church in central Swindon, to listen to veteran anti-nuclear campaigner Bruce Kent on the latest stop of his tour of the UK promoting the concept of alternatives to war.

Lord Stoddart, formerly the Labour MP for Swindon until 1983, chaired the meeting, and passed on apologies from Kate Hudson of CND, who had also been scheduled to speak about the situation in Iraq, but unfortunately had to pull out at the last minute due to circumstances beyond her control. As it happened, he stepped into the breach and delivered a fine summary of the current situation in Iraq, and the recent history leading up to where we are now. "

"REGARDING the court martial in Germany of British soldiers charged with ill-treating Iraqi prisoners. I find their defence statements rather chilling: "I was just doing what I was told." This is what Adolf Eichmann said in his defence of the transportation of Jews to the death camps."

"LYNEHAM villagers are beginning to come to terms with the enormity of the Hercules crash. The village is still quiet and sombre, five days after the tragedy which killed eight airmen from the RAF base."

"FAMILY and friends of Swindon servicemen who died in the Hercules crash have described the agony they are going through. Master Engineer Gary Nicholson, 42, of Griffiths Close, Stratton St Margaret, and Flight Sergeant Mark Gibson, 34, of Gairlock Close, Sparcells, were among the ten men killed when the plane from RAF Lyneham came down in Iraq."

"The Princess Royal visited RAF Lyneham yesterday afternoon where she spoke to members of 47 Squadron to show her support. The Princess expressed her condolences to members of 47 Squadron and their engineering support personnel, In addition, she spoke to staff assisting the bereaved families. the Queen has sent a message to the families via Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon. The message reads: "I was saddened to learn of the loss of the RAF Hercules in Iraq on Sunday. I should be grateful if you would convey my deepest sympathy to the families of those who have lost their lives." "

"THE ten service personnel killed when an RAF Hercules crashed in central Iraq have been described as among the best in the force. At a press conference at Lyneham yesterday Section Commander, RAF Lyneham Group Captain Paul Oborn paid tribute to the men that died. They are Squadron Leader Patrick Marshall, Flight Lieutenant David Stead, Flight Lieutenant Andrew Smith, Flight Lieutenant Paul Pardoel, Master Engineer Gary Nicholson, Chief Technician Richard Brown, Flight Sergeant Mark Gibson, Sergeant Robert O'Connor, Corporal David Williams and Acting Lance Corporal Steven Jones."

"George W. Bush’s burning vision for his version of ‘freedom and democracy’ around the globe has already profoundly affected the world. His zeal is undimmed says former Greendown School and Swindon College student Alex Ogle, who was commissioned to cover the swearing in of the 16th two-term president of the United States on 20 January, in the American capital for The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh student newspaper."

"THE community of Lyneham will strengthen after the tragedy of the Hercules crash over Iraq according to its vicar.
The Reverend Anthony Fletcher, priest in charge of Lyneham and Bradenstoke, said that the entire community was in disbelief. "Almost everyone in the community of Lyneham has a link with the base, whether they work there, have friends stationed there or are retired from the Royal Air Force," he said."

"Flags were flown at half-mast at RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire
The 10 UK servicemen feared killed when an RAF Hercules crashed in central Iraq on Sunday have been named by the Ministry of Defence. The plane crashed 25 miles (40km) north-west of Baghdad. Eight of the men were from RAF Lyneham, in Wiltshire"

"As the town paid tribute to the million victims of Auschwitz one traffic warden had other ideas. A PARKING warden who asked the Mayor of Swindon to shift his car during a Holocaust Memorial Day ceremony has been accused of insulting the memory of the thousands who died at Auschwitz."

"MICHAEL Howard's announcement that his party would have maximum quotas for asylum seekers horrifies me. Asylum seekers are people running for their lives."

"They came from all different walks of life to gather in the cold and rain for one common reason ­ to pay their respects to the millions of people who lost their lives during the Holocaust and subsequent human rights tragedies. The Mayor of Swindon, Coun Peter Stoddart laid a wreath at the Cenotaph in Regent's Circus to mark the Holocaust Memorial Day before giving a speech to a crowd of young and old."

"It was 60 years ago today that the notorious concentration camp was liberated. GARETH BETHELL talked to two who survived the Nazis."

"PEACE campaigner Bruce Kent will speak at a public meeting in Swindon next week. The meeting has been organised by Swindon Stop The War Coalition and will be chaired by Lord Stoddard of Swindon. The meeting is at 7.30pm on Tuesday, February 1, at the Moravian Church Hall in Dixon Street."