IN THE week the world remembered the 160,000 victims of the bombing of Hiroshima, it was with disbelief that we read the letter from F E Sharpe (Defence petition) Wiltshire Times, August 7, in which he asks “do you support an increase in defence spending? If so please support a petition to the UK government.” The UK has many nuclear weapons, each one eight times as destructive as the one dropped on Hiroshima, and with an estimated 15,000 nuclear weapons worldwide, we ask why does F E Sharpe want to see more spending on planes, helicopters, ships, submarines and military manpower? With this government committed to replacing Trident at a cost of £100 billion, we ask how much more does he/she want to spend on machines that are built for the sole purpose of causing death and destruction. We both say no to an increase in military spending, but yes to an increase in spending on other vital public services.
Martin & Mark Webb, Swindon Road, Old Town, Swindon
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