IF all the unsolicited charity clothing collection bags that have landed in my letterbox over the years were opened out and laid end to end, they’d probably stretch from Salisbury to the North Pole by now.

Where they’d no doubt swell the tide of plastic detritus that’s polluting our once-pristine Arctic waters.

What a waste of resources when we have perfectly good charity shops (indeed, a great many of them) in the city, only too eager to accept our donations.

I don’t know about you, but I put those bags straight in the rubbish bin and carry on taking my unwanted bits and pieces to the Dogs Trust, Oxfam (oops, have to watch that one now!) or whichever of their rivals has an empty parking space outside.

And that way, because I’m a taxpayer, the charities get the benefit of Gift Aid, which boosts their finances still further.

Come to think of it, perhaps I should put the bags that come through my door to some use, and fill them, rather than bin liners, on my trips to Catherine Street.

Then at least they’d do some good before being dumped in a skip.

Thank goodness that the powers-that-be have finally woken up to the plastic problem, which has as a result been occupying many column inches in our national press.

The day can’t come too soon when Wiltshire Council starts collecting our plastic food wrapping.

We’ve started saving all our empty yoghurt pots, sandwich wrappers, supermarket fruit and veg trays, etc and taking them with us when we cross the border into Dorset, where they do accept such things for recycling.

n THERE’s been a predictable but ultimately unenlightening spat in the Journal’s Postbag between Wiltshire and city councillors over our rocketing tax precepts.

The Guildhall Gang say they had to ask us for more, because Wiltshire didn’t give them enough to fund the services it offloaded onto them.

It ain’t so, County Hall retorts. It handed over everything it had promised.

We, the punters who have to stump up regardless (an extra £180 for the average household in the city) have no way of knowing who’s telling porkies on this one.

What we do know is that when it comes to the redistribution of wealth, the Tories of Trowbridge have achieved something any Socialist would be proud of.

They’ve taken Salisbury’s assets and spread the proceeds around the rest of the county so now we’re all equally broke.

They could almost portray themselves as modern-day Robin Hoods.

From that point of view, I suppose ought to support them.

But I’m so niggled by the intellectual dishonesty with which this exercise has been conducted that I can’t do so.

anneriddle36@gmail.com