The woolly mammoth is to be brought back by 2028… But why? (Picture: Getty Images/Science Photo Libra)
Bring back the Mammoth? Not without a habitat to bring them to surely.
In today’s MetroTalk, a reader writes to say that bringing back the prehistoric animal is a waste of time and money, when they can no longer roam the arctic tundra which is currently melting due to the effects of climate change.
Meanwhile, readers share their thoughts on the budget, posession of the moon, MP hate speech towards the church of England and life in Northern Powerhouse.
Share what you think about these topics in the comments.
‘We have wildlife that needs saving that exists now!’
The woolly mammoth could be making a comeback in 2028, according to a genetic engineering company (Metro, Thu).
Colossal Biosciences says it can edit stem cells from an Asian elephant to create the huge mammals, which became extinct 4,000 years ago.
If global warming is melting the ice caps, there will be nowhere for them to roam.
Stop wasting money and time, otherwise it will be the human race that will be getting reintroduced in another 4,000 years. Stephen Hinkles, Huddersfield
I read with interest your article about the reincarnation of the woolly mammoth.
Don’t we need to learn to look after the wildlife already under threat on our planet before creating another species to try to protect? Bernard Butterfield, Garforth
Staking claim on the moon
China wants to keep watch over its part of the Moon – even though it technically doesn’t belong to anyone (Credits: Getty Images/500px)
Regarding your report on the Russians and Chinese proposing a nuclear-powered ‘launch pad’ on the moon (Metro, Thu).
Should the moon not come under the same regulations as the Antarctic, that it falls under no one’s overall possession? Rob, York
How we honour fallen soldiers
£1Million will be spent on a war memorial to honour 750,000 muslims who died in service (Credit: Matthew Chattle/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt pledged £1million for a war memorial to honour the 750,000 Muslims who died ‘in the service of freedom and democracy’ in last week’s Budget (Metro, Thu).
It is only fitting that this has been done, and long overdue. In fact, it’s unbelievable it has taken this long. Bob Jones, Kidbrooke
The entire point of a war memorial is to honour and remember all who fell in conflict, regardless of race, religion etc.
The minute you create a segregated memorial for a particular ethnic/religious/gender group, you exclude many other heroes and see all the groups who gave their lives merely as a statistic, not as the brave people they were.
In an increasingly divided society – which apparently rejects the notion of labels – is a memorial specifically for Muslim people really needed? Agnes, London
Is it not a major concern that the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has reason to claim that a number of MPs have expressed hate speech towards the church? Perhaps all political party leaders should remind their colleagues how to behave, otherwise how can they expect ordinary people to be law-abiding Jonathan Longstaff, Buxted
‘Motorists are easy targets for tax’
A reader writes in to say he has no choice but to drive because he cannot rely on TfL (Credits: Getty Images)
To Adrian the transport consultant (MetroTalk, Thu) who defends financial measures to discourage car use in cities such as London on the grounds of the harm they cause.
I’m a Londoner, and I’m a motorist. Do I want to pay the ever-increasing insurance, road tax, fuel and maintenance that adds up to just under £4,000 in a good year?
No, but what choice do I have? I cannot rely on public transport. Living in Zone 4 of east London, commuting to central London would be another £2,000 a year.
I would happily pay £3,000 for reliable transport and lose the car, but I need it.
And motorists are easy targets – tax the masses (sugar tax is another example).
It’s easy, the sheep just go with the flow, everyone buries their head in the sand and accepts it. I admire the French for taking civil action against similar measures.
I remember the TfL consultation about expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez), the results of which were published in November 2022 – 59 per cent opposed it, yet it went ahead.
This all started with the Congestion Charge, then there was the Low Emission Zone and now Ulez. I dread to think what will come next.
No one can tax the big international businesses but they can when it comes to average Joe. What a carry on. Milch, Chigwell
May I point out to Malcolm of Stockport (MetroTalk, Tue) and other critics of London mayor Sadiq Khan that he was elected in 2021 with more than a million Londoners voting for him. Colin Price, Ilford
The reality of living under the Tories up north
Those who think all is hunky-dory under the Tories should move up here to their ‘Northern Powerhouse’.
On Monday afternoon last week, I was stuck at Hope Valley station, waiting for a train that was two hours late, which then failed to stop where I needed to get off.
I’d missed the last bus through the village by at least 12 years.
Councils are cutting bus services. We used to be able to travel by bus or train and walk from many places in the Peak District or Yorkshire Dales, but no longer.
My £100 a month top-up pension will now be subject to income tax thanks to the freeze on the personal allowance.
Meanwhile the government presides over a system of rip-off electricity prices where we pay four or more times the production cost to foreign-owned firms.
Our council throws money around like a billionaire but never cleans street drains or maintains pavements, so we pedestrians get drenched from road floods and wobbly paving slabs. Roads have huge pot-holes and many street lights are on all day. Matthew Hall, Stockport
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