Shop owner Memis Dogus must be admired for his courage in repelling raiders from his store in Hythe Road, not for the first time either.

The Adver states there have been three attacks in Swindon and one in Royal Wootton Bassett in just over a week.

As our provincial town has a relatively low rate of crime, it makes me wonder what is going on in the rest of the country.

Not so long ago Mr Dogus would probably have found himself charged with using an offensive weapon in a public place with intent to cause injury, then imprisoned for five years.

The culprits, if caught, would have been sentenced to 300 hours flexible community service serving drinks in an all-girl summer holiday camp. They then would have successfully sued the Government for sexual discrimination, receiving £500,000 compensation each for the trauma and stress inflicted upon them by Mr Dogus.

Perhaps the tide is at last turning in favour of the victim.

If the judiciary follow suit and start giving out lengthy custodial sentences where appropriate, Mr Dogus may be able to retire his wooden baton then get on with being a shopkeeper in a close-knit community without fearing for his business as well as his life.

I won’t be holding my breath for too long on that happening.

Bill Williams Merlin Way Swindon

No political claptrap

In response to the letter from Bill Duggan, can I suggest that Bill rereads my letter?

It was no political claptrap, as he describes, it was about soldiers doing their duty as instructed. It also mentioned the pay rates they get and the rates tanker drivers get.

I am glad this dispute is not about pay, as that will ease matters in discussions with Acas.

Perhaps Bill will tell us how many tanker drivers there are and how many voted for the action?

Bill is an ex-soldier, so his letter is also a puzzle with regards to what that union man said. Perhaps the bit about the political aspirations of the Unite leader, and many other ones, was what irked Bill.

They long for the days of the tea and biscuits in No 10, after all they are paying for it...

T Reynolds Wheeler Avenue Swindon

Water shortage solved

From time to time letters appear, indicating Swindon is on the brink of a major water shortage.

Mr E Crook's letter,(SA Thur April 12) has another slant on the situation by advocating unemployed construction workers commandeer excavators and dig holes. All the digging will not do much good if the rain in the catchment area is sparse.

A more plausible plan is called for. Thames Water mooted plans to build a reservoir, with a price tag of £1bn, on a large area of farmland, near Abingdon.

Last year, after a government inquiry, the inspector threw out this proposal and ordered the investigation of alternatives, these having been previously dismissed by Thames Water.

Two principal alternatives have merit, both involving water transfer from the Severn to the Thames and both are pipelines.

They differ in that one scheme involves a continuous pipeline across the country pumping water from the Severn to the Thames. Anticipated cost £500m.

The alterative is a pipeline pumping water to the summit of the Thames and Severn canal with gravity moving it for free into the river Thames at Lechlade(Inglesham). Initial costs are £250m, running costs about half that of full pumping, much less than maintaining a reservoir and do-able in a shorter time scale.

A major additional benefit would be the restoration of the Cotswold Canals (Thames and Severn and Stroudwater canals) for leisure use.

A daily volume of water equivalent to 120 Olympic swimming pools, should obviate the need to instigate Mr Brook’s proposals.

Henry Smith Whitefield Crescent Swindon