YOUR LETTERS

Nivea suncream (factor 30) was on offer for £4.01 and Piz Buin £6.39 (factor 10) compare that with 17 euros for each one in Majorca.
Paracetamol almost 5 euros - UK supermarket 35p. The price of a litre Smirnoff is now similar in the UK to the Duty Free at the airport. There is no need to be troubled carrying alcohol home. Likewise the prices of perfumes etc were generally more expensive than the UK.

Notwithstanding the weakness of sterling, prices in Majorca are exceptionally higher than those in the UK.
The recession has been recognised in the UK and prices have been reduced in an effort to attract custom. Trade in Majorca will continue to fall if no action is taken. There was no evidence of the present situation being considered and/or taken seriously by retailers. It is too late for those who have left - many have stated they will not return. Tourism and the economy will continue to suffer if the prices remain at these expensive levels.

Mr P Carson

Glasgow

Dear Sir, I was interested in Ray Flemings' article on Taxi's. When Bristol Airport was redeveloped about 8/10 years ago it was renamed Bristol International Airport and had no taxi rank, meaning that it was impossible to come out of the Airport and just jump into a taxi. A mini-cab company, owned by the Airport opened with its own office just outside of the arrivals hall where you have to book a cab, you then go outside and get into a numbered vehicle. If you are being dropped off by taxi you can only be dropped off in the public drop off zone like any other passenger. The system does actually work very well, but it has taken an awful amount of business from private enterprise and it has a monopoly. The question of monopoly has been raised many times in the local papers, but it still remains! I think that because it is deemed to be private property a ban on taxis is allowed, hence this operation can exist! Although I personally do not like this arrangement because I will always favour the “small man”, I have to say that the system does actually work extremely well!

Nick Winter, Bristol UK