December 21st 2011

Dear Telegraph Editor.

Reporting on Occupy Sheffield has failed to acknowledge there has been no complaint from any local business about Occupy. In fact there have been positive responses from many local businesses in the city. The protest is outside the Cathedral due to its central location and its proximinity to a number of high street banks. It isn’t actually on city
council land.

The Dean’s recent letter regretting supposed inconvenience to these banks sadly ignores the tax they avoid paying which could fully fund the excellent Archer Project and others many thousand times over. He also ignores the obscene greed of the chief executive of Barclays for example, a man who gained £27m last year. Sadly he also omits that the
activities of these same banks have encouraged debt and fund unsustainable house prices, leaving many ordinary people in poverty and in need of services the Archer project and others provide when they fall into difficulty.

It is disappointing that both national and local media have failed to grasp this message. They have a key role in reporting on and supporting the Occupy movement and their campaign to encourage a fairer, more equitable society for the good of us all in 2012 and beyond.

Yours Sincerely,

Bernard Little.

Sheffield Green Party.