Do you agree with our readers? Have your say on these MetroTalk topics and more in the comments
‘I don’t wish to walk into any bank and be ‘judged’ by my values’, says reader
Danny (MetroTalk, Tue) criticises banks for being motivated solely by greed.
I trust he is aware of the problems when they begin to do otherwise.
Take the incident with Nigel Farage in 2023, when the Reform leader had an account with Coutts closed, in part because of his political views.
I don’t wish to walk into any bank and be ‘judged’ by my values, my current politics, or even what football team I support (say, if they happen to sponsor a rival and I arrive in my team’s kit).
I don’t want to be concerned whether I am ‘their type’ of customer.
I just want to know where I stand – that they want to get as much money out of me as possible and in return I want as much service for as little cost as possible.
Easy and clear. Every corporation wants to make money. I won’t go so far as to say ‘greed is good’ but I do want businesses to focus on their business.
And as to Danny’s claim that it was the banks’ greed that left them susceptible to the Amazon Web Services outage on Monday, put your internet servers on the moon if it keeps my mortgage cost down! Just make sure you have adequate disaster recovery plans. Kevin, Lewisham
Are Pizza Hut closures a ‘sign of the times’?
It’s an unfortunate sign of the times that Pizza Hut is to close 68 restaurants across the UK with the loss of 1,210 jobs (Metro, Wed).
I don’t, however, think the brand was helped when the decision was made to turn its restaurants cashless.
There are a hardcore of people who are choosing to boycott businesses that don’t take cash.
In these cash-strapped times, everyone knows where they stand with coins of the realm. While using cards may be regarded as being more secure, for many people, especially those on a budget, using real money is preferable to using what is technically virtual currency.
Also, imagine a world where a parent or grandparent can’t press a crisp banknote or shiny coin into their child’s hand. Whatever the logistics, our currency is worth preserving. Cash is king.Jimmy, Stockport
‘What are security guards for?’ reader questions
While one might sympathise with the security guards who failed to prevent the multi-million pound Louvre jewellery heist (Metro, Tue), it does raise the question of what they are actually for.
I am reminded of the words from the Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera, The Yeoman Of The Guard, after the escape of Fairfax from the Tower – ‘Pretty warders are ye! Whom do ye ward?’
The same applies to shop ‘security guards’ and shop theft. Perhaps they are all just a waste of money. Aliena, Putney
Latest London news
- London council ‘tore down 80 Union Jack and St George’s flags in two days’
- London’s iconic ’50p building’ to be transformed into 250 flats
- London buses ‘infested with cockroaches’, drivers say
To get the latest news from the capital visit Metro’s London news hub.
Reader says China’s embassy should be ‘in a field in the middle of nowhere’
It’s very easy to solve the issue of China’s proposed embassy amid security concerns that the site near the Tower of London would allow agents to tap in to fibre-optic cables carrying sensitive data (MetroTalk, Tue).
What with remote working and the internet, I’d give the Chinese permission to build the biggest embassy in the world… in a field in the middle of nowhere far away from anything sensitive. Sorted. Next. Victoria, Sutton
Reader defends net zero
Stefan (MetroTalk, Tue) says most people would prefer ‘a return to pollution’ rather than meet the cost of net zero.
He obviously has net zero understanding of climate science or the concerns of 80 per cent of the British people about the impact of the climate crisis, according to the government’s DESNZ 2024 tracker.
Our energy bills will be much cheaper when we finally kick our addiction to fossil fuels and make the transition to clean energy. No one wants to return to a world of more pollution, poisoning our children’s future. Eneregy secretary Ed Miliband is doing a good and important job and we should thank him for it. Helen Elwes, Binsey
‘What’s the point of the UK doing it’s bit’ for the climate crisis, says reader
Much as I have been in favour of net zero, I’m now minded to think what is the point of the UK doing its bit if other far more polluting countries aren’t doing their bit and we’re going to hell in a handcart anyway? Ant, Manchester
Punny reader makes a comeback
Now that autumn is here, we can expect Tamla Motown temperatures – Three Degrees, perhaps Four Tops? Jeff, Nuneaton
