IT”S nearly six years since newsagents E J Teare in South Street, Wellington suddenly closed.

There could not have been many people at the time who would not have thought it would reopen or someone else would move in quickly.

The newsagent wrote a heartfelt post on its Facebook page (July 13, 2017) explaining the reason for its closure.

It was because of ‘alleged problems’ with its banking provider - HSBC. However, the shop has remained almost exactly as it was left - and deteriorated to such an extent it has become an eyesore. Its windows are shattered and waste bins are continually placed outside the building. Not the ideal scene to attract shoppers to the town.

I have tried to find out why something has not been done to either force the owners to smarten it up or for the new unitary council to undertake the task and bill them. But for some unknown reason there is no news of this happening.

It seems a long time for a building in such a prime position in the town to be left in such a state. I would hate to think what it is like inside.

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MARIO Laghos’ story in the WWN last week concerning Wellington police station’s ‘unreliable’ opening hours reminded me of the time in the 1970s and ’80s when it was open all hours.

The station in Victoria Street now only opens for about 16 hours a week - and even then this is not always the case.

There was a time many years ago when the station was manned for long hours with a sergeant in charge of a number of officers.

There were constant patrols in the town with police on foot. Now you might see one occasionally - on a bike!

Police are no longer accessible to the public as they used to be, and they do not have enough officers to deal with every crime.

Although they do seem to spend a lot of time trying to catch drivers breaking the speed limit.

But if your home is burgled there’s little chance of the culprit being caught because the police do not have the time to deal with such crimes. When you think about it, it’s easier to catch speeding motorists!

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YES, some people DO read this column. Mark Dyer certainly does (Brexit was a vote for freedom for UK, letter to WWN, April 21).

As a Brexiteer, Mark voted to leave the union based more on politics than economics.

Well, that would appear reasonable Mark, apart from the fact that Brexit has made this country poorer. Just ask those who have to use food banks every week.

It’s no good having freedom if you haven’t got any money. What’s the good if you don’t know where the next penny is coming from?

I don’t think the Government has turned Brexit into a ‘deliberate’ mess. It seems only common sense we try to get back some of the lost trade with the EU. This doesn’t mean we want to rejoin the EU.

It’s going to take a few more years just to unravel all the complexities involved in leaving it.

What we now need to do is pick out the best bits of being in the EU and try to do this to our advantage.

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WIVELISCOMBE Rugby Club will be celebrating the end of its 150th season with a Gala Dinner next Friday, May 5.

Wiveliscombe has no football team yet its rugby club punches way above its weight, playing the likes of Tiverton, Kingsbridge, Penryn, Bideford, etc in Western Counties West.

It has junior sides whose players progress through the ranks to the two senior sides. It also has a women’s team which was improving throughout the past season. Their matches have attracted good sized crowds.

All this cannot be achieved without those working behind the scenes - many of them ex-players who are putting something back into the game.

And, of course, there is always the Boxing Day derby against Wellington to look forward to. That’s a match both sets of supporters look forward to.

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THE cricket season is now upon us and the first competitive match to be played on the Playing Field this year is next Friday evening when Wellington Reds face Taunton Deane Tornadoes in an under 13 11 a side fixture in theTaunton and District Youth League.

The team could do with your support.