THE outgoing chairman of the TUC, Brendan Barber, has called upon Labour Leader Ed Milliband to show some boldness in supporting striking workers amid criticism of Milliband’s failure to support workers in the public sector last year.

Whilst personally in most disputes I would support the worker rather than the employer, I would remind trade unionists that the extreme actions of some members in the 1970s and 1980s turned public opinion against them, and led in part to many years of Conservative government.

My late mother, Mrs Kathleen Kidd, came from a family of Labour supporters, but it was militant picketing and other actions at the hospital she worked at in Epsom to move her to becoming a supporter of the centre-right.

The violent scenes at Grunwick in North London were, she told me, the final straw!

Mr Milliband, you have shown some stamina in recent months, but you need now to more than oppose, you need to come up with some more concrete ideas.

We need to know which of the coalition cuts you will and will not restore.

Secondly, on the subject of global warming, the national media seems to be largely ignoring examples of extremely cold weather worldwide.

Severe blizzards in Northern China and Japan have had little mention.

The November edition of the Countryman Magazine reported that the north east of Scotland has had a cool and gloomy summer.

There are still forces at work I believe that we do not completely understand.

Is it not possible that in 30 years time we will all be wondering what the global warming fuss was about?

Richard J Kidd, Danegeld Close, Andover