Have your say on these MetroTalk topics and more in the comments.
Regarding your article by Sally Hope, who says schools fining parents for taking holidays during term time are an assault on the poor (Metro, Tue), I am a retired secondary school headteacher from, quite often, deprived areas,
The imposition of fines for term-time holidays is entirely symptomatic of a system that has no grip on reality for some people.
Much of the working population is told when they can have their holiday so that prime-time holiday slots are shared around the workforce.
Fining people such as these is unfair. Often the best they can afford may be a short stint on a caravan park with the UK weather to accompany them.
Instead, deal with travel companies who put a premium on holidays at certain points in the year. Colin, Bury
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People who put holidays ahead of their children’s education deserve to get fined. Pleading poverty when you’re shelling out for a holiday abroad is obscene.
As an ex-soldier, our family holidays largely consisted of trips home to see relatives. Actual ‘holidays’ were an expense we couldn’t afford.
Your kids don’t care about going ‘on holiday’ – they would rather play with friends at home. Tony, Leyland
I know people who took their children to Asia for more than seven weeks of term time. How can children catch up with the missing schoolwork? Dave, Glasgow
How can it be that fines for taking holidays during term time are ‘an assault on the poor’? If you’re unfortunate enough to be ‘poor’, you can’t afford to jet away for an Italian holiday, term time or not. Pete, Solihull
I was really shocked and saddened to read of Paralympian Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson’s experience on a train (Metro, Wed).
The former wheelchair racer, 55, booked assistance to help her off a 7.15pm LNER service from Leeds when it arrived at London’s King’s Cross, but missed her original service and arrived on the 7.45pm train. She says there was no one to meet her and was forced to crawl off the train.
Putting aside LNER’s failures in this, whatever happened to human empathy? Why could no one offer her assistance or help to get off the train?
It’s sad that the world has come to this. Shame on all those who stood by and watched her struggle. Agatha, Surrey
Sir Keir Starmer said this week he had achieved more in seven weeks than the Conservative government had achieved in the past seven years.
What is it about our politicians that leads them to make such arrogant claims? Can’t Starmer see it will take a lot more than seven weeks to fix the economy? Scott West London
Well done, Spencer Matthews for your world record for the most consecutive marathons run on sand (Metro, Wed).
The former Made In Chelsea star ran 786 miles in the Jordanian desert in 45C to raise money for charity.
Considering the heat and the fact that running on sand can’t be easy, that’s top!Claire, Nottingham
At last, supermarkets are beginning to realise what a big mistake self-service checkouts are and some of them now want to get rid of them or reduce their usage. Hopefully we’ll no longer hear the annoying message ‘Unexpected item in the bagging area’ from these unwanted items in the checkout area. Carlos, Lancashire
Checking through the small print in the contract for my prepaid cremation-only plan, I came across a clause that guarantees a 50 per cent refund of the monies paid if I should die in a fire… Bob Readman, Sevenoaks
In reply to Jane in Darlington (MetroTalk, Wed) who says it’s ‘brilliant news’ that Oasis are getting back together again, someone once described the band to me as ‘Manchester’s Status Quo’ – which is a complete insult. To Status Quo, that is. Ryan Blackwood, by email
After all this time, it’s great to finally see a long-overdue Oasis reunion.
The Gallagher brothers are rightly considered to be rock’n’roll royalty. Indeed, I believe Liam himself once compared his brother Noel to a King Edward, saying he looks like a potato. Julian Self, Wolverton
