SIR – I note the letter printed in last week's John O'Groat Journal ("Wick High School went downhill under Labour). I am happy to reply to cover some of the issues made.

SIR – I would like to thank Mr and Mrs Sutherland, of Durness Street, Thurso, for posting parcels out to Afghanistan.

SIR – Through the columns of your newspaper may we appeal to any people we have not yet managed to contact regarding our high school reunion?

SIR – The committee of Castletown Playgroup and Toddlers is fundraising to provide an outside play area for the children based at Castletown Primary School, and I would like to take this opportunity to express my gratitude to those who are giving us their help and support.

SIR – Imagine my surprise when I read that some local councillors are against bilingual signposting on the grounds that "it is not relevant to Caithness".

SIR – I read with interest the article in the Caithness Courier this week written by Labour MSP Rhoda Grant.

SIR – Like a daft, stockie rainbow trout I am tempted to respond to the provocative lure so ably cast by your correspondent Bruce Sandison (John O'Groat Journal, April 25).

SIR – I have always thought it possible for an ATM to debit money from your account without actually handing over the cash, and on a Wednesday in March an ATM in Wick treated me in precisely this way.

SIR – Friday's headline in the John O'Groat Journal, "Bleak outlook for filling stations 'extremely worrying' says MP", comes as no surprise.

SIR – I read with great sadness about David Flear's decision to stand down at the next election (John O'Groat Journal, April 18). At a time when Caithness is at its most vulnerable, it needs people with determination, skills and experience such as those held by Mr Flear.

SIR – With all the talk of the disrepair in Wick High School, I took up the opportunity to attend the open evening there on Tuesday evening.

SIR – This is the first letter I have written to your newspaper. However, I feel so strongly about the proposed Gaelic signs to be introduced to the county that I felt compelled to write to you regarding this situation.

SIR – Our councillors seem intent on making a virtue out of their alleged inability to understand why Caithness should ever have bilingual road signs. But it isn't that difficult.

SIR – It is wrong to imprison Stuart Nisbet for growing his own medicinal cannabis (John O'Groat Journal, April 11). It will cost £15,000 to imprison him for six months when he is clearly no harm to society.

SIR – Is this the future for local government in Caithness?

SIR – Wick Town Improvements Association will be holding gala week from July 26 to August 2. However, the art exhibition will be open to the public from Saturday 19th until Thursday 24th July.

SIR – I welcome Jamie Stone MSP's article in last week's John O'Groat Journal in which he was hoping to get the chance to "drive a train". I hope his wish came true.

SIR – As a result of the expulsion of Councillor David Bremner from the SNP group on the Highland Council we seem to have a curious situation in which there are now two classes of independent Highland councillor.

SIR – Through your newspaper I would like to thank everyone connected with the Northern Nashville Caithness Country Music Festival in Halkirk for all their sterling work in ensuring that the event ran so smoothly.

SIR – In response to Iain Sutherland's anti-children diatribe (Groat, April 4), may I point out that these young children have a one-hour session per week in the library, which encourages them to come back and use the library as they get older and more experienced.

SIR – I feel compelled to write to you to let your readers know of the wonderful time I had with a friend at the Northern Nashville Caithness Country Music Festival held in Halkirk over the Easter holiday.

SIR – Fortunately, parents and grandparents still instinctively teach the basic skills to children before they join the school, at the right time. Only inadequate parents have to resort to finding surrogates.

SIR – I refer to a misleading statement made in the Caithness Courier of March 19 ("New trials on seabed clean-up").

SIR – I would like to express the gratitude of Caithness and Sutherland Search Team (CASST) to all those people who made last weekend's assessments for Trossachs SAR so successful, especially John and Myra (Castle Arms Hotel, Mey), A. & D. Sutherland, Spittal Quarry, the Scottish Casualties Network and Jacq and Rhona who were our casualties.

SIR – The annual auction sale and associated activities held in the Portland Arms Hotel, Lybster, on March 29 to fund the senior citizens' Christmas party has raised to date £1888.50.

SIR – As a family we have been using the Newtonhill Community Woodland since it opened some 12 years ago, and it is a wonderful facility. So we, in company with many others, were appalled to hear that it was to be closed to the public.

SIR – Whether Gaelic was widespread in Caithness in the past or not is surely not the point in the debate about erecting road signs in Gaelic now.

SIR – On behalf of the Thurso Town Improvements Association may I congratulate the Northern Nashville Caithness Country Music Festival committee and members for once again putting on an outstanding and fantastic music festival.

SIR – After reading the report on the front page of the Press and Journal headed "Call for schools to come before arts projects" (March 24), it seems to me that the Inverness area councillor Roddy Balfour is the only Highland councillor to talk sense as far as money is concerned.

SIR – The new traffic lights in Thurso are a disaster area for both pedestrians and motorists.

SIR – I was a little surprised and disappointed to read the letter published on Friday, March 14, in which Iain Sutherland suggested that children's activities in Wick Library on a Wednesday morning are a "farce" and that the library is now a "playgroup".

SIR – It was with a heavy heart that I read recent reports in the Caithness and national press noting that elected representatives in my native county are engaging in some sort of absurd assault on Gaelic under the guise of a defence of Old Norse.

SIR – In reply to Mr Sutherland's letter (John O'Groat Journal, March 14) regarding the use of local libraries by children, we felt compelled to write to place an opposing view.

SIR – Thinking about tidying the garden when the weather improves, I happened to walk past one of the worst eyesores in Wick.

SIR – I read with some mild annoyance the letter in last week's John O'Groat Journal from Roger Saxon, who obviously feels impelled to justify his opposition to the failed proposal to develop the site next door to him at Pennyland.

SIR – I would like to comment on some of the statements about me that were reported in the John O'Groat Journal of February 29, which I reject entirely.

SIR – Contrary to what was published last week I did not withhold consent for access here by specialist tracked detection vehicles from November 1, enforcing a period of four months' absence by UKAEA's contractors (as reported in the John O'Groat Journal of March 7), nor did UKAEA make such a statement.

SIR – We were told at a recent meeting, by the adviser for childcare and early-years education, that the possible closure of one of our two pre-school provisions in Lybster is not a threat.

SIR – I was disappointed to hear that the Highland Council has proposed that the Lybster Lightbeams Playgroup be merged with the Lybster Primary School nursery.

SIR – Comment at last week's meeting of Thurso Community Council that the local plan is stifling development is misplaced.

SIR – I wonder how much of the litter we see blowing around our streets, gardens and countryside is a result of the design of Highland Council wheelie bins.

THERE have been two recent two wind turbine collapses in Denmark. This video should be seen by everyone!

SIR – I hear with astonishment the news of Tesco's willingness to meet with the Government to discuss the binge-drinking culture in the UK.

SIR – Prompted by an article I read recently in Scotland on Sunday and a letter I received today, may I, through the medium of your newspaper, bring up a matter of considerable concern to the public who visit Dunnet Forest?

SIR – How right Karin Simon is ("Cutting library service is a damaging and retrograde step", John O'Groat Journal, February 22). What on earth do Highland councillors think they are doing?

SIR – I would like to express my concern about the cuts in school cleaning that our Highland councillors are going to impose on the service, as reported in the Groat of February 15.

SIR – It seems a refurbishment of Thurso's pedestrian precinct is being proposed by Highland Council officials.

SIR – We wish to draw your readers' attention to the position regarding the closure of the private lane at Oldwick, leading through our farm to Green Road.

SIR – The chief constable of Northern Constabulary, Ian Latimer, has expressed his disappointment that his force has not been able to trace the person responsible for the death of Nairn banker Alistair Wilson in 2004.

SIR – I write to bring to your attention the decision made last Thursday by Highland councillors to remove the posts of principal schools librarian and resource assistant, and to close the resource centre in Dingwall.

SIR – I am writing on behalf of the Caithness Autism Parents' Support Group to issue an open invitation to a public meeting to be held next Tuesday (February 19) at the Pentland Hotel in Thurso, from 6.30 to 8.30pm.

SIR – Plans for the A90 are on course, according to the Scottish Government. Alex Salmond's spokesman has listed the improvements.

SIR – With new scientific studies being published all the time, it is easy to get confused about how our lifestyles can affect our risk of cancer.

SIR – I must welcome Councillor David Flear's recognition, as reported in the Caithness Courier of February 6, that there is a democratic deficit in the new-style Highland Council structure.

SIR – I am writing to your readers on behalf of Caithness Talking Newspapers to appeal for volunteers to help us continue this free and valued service to the visually-impaired folk of Caithness and beyond.

SIR – I would like to reassure your readers following the letter from Ms Waddell (John O'Groat Journal, January 25) about the taste of her drinking water.

SIR – We write on behalf of the Wick branch of the RNLI and Wick RBLS Pipe Band to thank everyone for making our recent concert and ceilidh such an overwhelming success.

SIR – Through your columns I would like to invite local residents to a public meeting I have organised regarding the proposed closure of Pulteneytown Post Office.

SIR – Permit me, please, to correct your article on the front page of the Groat last Friday headlined "Minister urged to act over Sandside standoff".

SIR – Excellent to see Louise Smith in the Courier! It's been a while since we last saw her on a front page...

SIR – Since there are going to be additional flights south to Inverness, which is fine, is it not long overdue that something was done about the way in which our tourism industry is handled in respect of Wick Airport?

SIR – I have complained to Scottish Water about the chlorine in the water but no change has been made.

SIR – As a general supporter of renewable energy schemes, I now find that I share the very real concerns of Councillor David Bremner as reported in the Caithness Courier on January 16 regarding the position adopted by the Highland Council planning department as submitted by David Mudie.

SIR – I appreciate the publics interest in the major renovations at Achvarasdal House.

SIR – It is now 2008, and if you are a parent of a baby and want this child fluent in Gaelic by 2011 you will have to begin this year.

SIR – I refer to your front-page report headed "Residents say 'no' to wind farm" (John O'Groat Journal, January 11). It says that farmer Tom Pottinger "insists the fears are misplaced and points to the potential operation of a community fund worth £100,000 a year".

SIR – It is most distressing to have learnt from the media that Pulteneytown Post Office is being forcibly closed.

SIR – I read recently about a discussion regarding the future of the St Fergus Gallery in Wick Library.

SIR – Some people toss statistics about like confetti, to bamboozle us, but often are just as bamboozled themselves.

SIR – The Scottish Government has said "no" to nuclear energy in Scotland, which, incidentally, is in line with the wishes of the population, with only 15 per cent backing nuclear energy (BBC/ICM poll, 2006).

SIR – BT Retail Charity Fundraisers is a committee of people who work at BT Retail's call centre in Thurso and raise money for two local charities, chosen annually.

SIR – The Hogmanay in Thurso committee would like to say a big thank-you to everyone who helped us in any way.

SIR – On behalf of the HAPPY committee I would like to say a very big thank-you to everyone who contributed to the success of our Hogmanay street party in Wick.

SIR – I agree that the A9 needs to be upgraded from the Central Belt to Inverness, but why stop there?

SIR – The operators of public transport services in Britain frequently come under fire for perceived or real failings – e.g. Network Rail's inconvenience to tens of thousands of would-be rail travellers immediately after New Year because of time overruns on essential track upgrading at Rugby station on the main Glasgow/Crewe/London route.

SIR – I am writing to wish your readers a happy and a healthy new year on behalf of everyone at World Cancer Research Fund.

SIR – In reply to Bruce Sandison's article about losing the true meaning of Christmas, I would express the view that many in our modern society have indeed done so, through personal greed and materialism.

SIR – I note a perception, represented in the Groat of December 28 under "Council trio told: 'Go back to the drawing board'", that there is a simple relationship between the boundaries of community council areas and the East Sutherland and Edderton ward.

SIR – I would like to take this opportunity to send sincere thanks to all the many volunteers and supporters in the Highlands who have contributed to the work of Chest, Heart and Stroke Scotland over the past year.

SIR – As one of the residents of Shebster, and in response to Tom Pottinger's letter (Groat, December 14), I feel that I must speak out.

SIR – With regard to the front-page item in last week's Groat concerning the comment by Caithness West Community Council about rail journey times, I welcome the news that they are seeking to affiliate to the Dornoch Rail Link Action Group, and I also express appreciation and gratitude at the recent decision by Thurso Community Council to join our group.

SIR – I would like to bring to the attention of the roads department of the Highland Council a near-fatal accident which occurred at the South Head, Wick, on Monday, December 17.

SIR – I am writing to you about an issue which I'm sure many others like me feel very aggrieved about.

SIR – Through your columns I would like to thank everyone who has supported Pulteneytown People's Project through a very successful year.

SIR – In light of recent press coverage of the Baillie Windfarm proposal, I feel compelled to write to inform the public of the current situation.

SIR – As a Highland Council elector and, I suspect, a Royal Burgh of Wick Community Council elector, I read with considerable interest the concerns of the Highland Council's Caithness ward manager, David Sutherland, about community council area boundaries, as reported in the Groat of December 7.

SIR – The article in the John O'Groat Journal of December 7 describing some of the decommissioning at Dounreay gives the impression that nothing similar had been achieved in the past.

SIR – I am writing to update your readers with the progress our group has made regarding the Highland Council's cut in autism services which was reported on October 10.

SIR – At long last Tesco has got the message to opt for rail transport, although it is still the indecisive "could" and not the actual positive "will" (Caithness Courier, November 28).

SIR – The week before last (Groat, November 23) I wrote that the Wick office of Rob Gibson, MSP for the Highlands and Islands, seems never to be open, describing it as perhaps no more than expensive support for a billboard advertising the MSP's name and status.

SIR – Through your paper I would like to say a rather sarcastic thank-you to the heartless coward who left myself and family with broken hearts and a vet bill for £115 on Saturday, December 1.

SIR – I am not surprised that someone who had served as a community councillor for two years did not know that he lived in a different community council area until this was discovered by the returning officer (Courier, November 28).

SIR – I'm supporting Macmillan's Cancertalk Week (January 21-25, 2008) and I'd like to invite your readers to do the same, as there's lots they can get involved with. Whether you're a parent, teacher, youth leader or a young person yourself, you can all encourage your local schools and youth groups to sign up.

SIR – I read with great interest the letter from Laurel Bush in the Groat of November 23 on the issue of an MSP's lack of response to a constituent.

SIR – I have been asked by the Group of Caithness Head Teachers to highlight an issue which is of growing concern to us and which impacts on local businesses.

SIR – Saturday was definitely a day to spend indoors, so the four sodden and bedraggled ladies who returned to Canisbay Church hall clearly had some purpose in mind.

SIR – Bangladesh is a disaster-prone country. However, over the past two weeks the people of Bangladesh have had to come to terms with one of the greatest disasters of recent years after Cyclone Sidr hit on November 15.

SIR – I read with great sadness the article on the front page of last Friday's John O'Groat Journal about a decision to be made on a new shopping complex for Wick.

SIR – I write as a former member of Thurso Rotary Club concerning the front page of last week's Courier where the problems about the aftermath of the bonfire on Thurso beach appeared to take precedence over the Remembrance Sunday services.

SIR – I read with interest the account of Jamie Stone MSP in the Groat November 16, of how one of his constituents was plagued and disturbed by pressure to honour a nonexistent debt.

SIR – The ongoing debate over Scottish university funding seems to have generated considerably more heat than light.

SIR – The HIE chief executive is sadly misinformed, like many other people, about wind farms.

SIR – The shocking impact that cancer can have on someone's life at work is this week being highlighted by the charity Macmillan Cancer Support. As the UK's leading children's cancer charity, CLIC Sargent is happily backing this project.

SIR – The recent collapse of a 200ft high wind turbine in Argyll highlights some of the dangers posed by wind turbines.

SIR – Dunnet and Canisbay Community Council's ballot on Stroupster wind farm got a 63 per cent response with 61 per cent of voters opposing the development, showing the value of a community council's democratic role in informing and consulting with the electorate.

SIR – After I wrote last week about local politicians and the fate of local democracy, it became apparent in a daily newspaper that at least four Highland councillors – David Alston, Roddy Balfour, Billy Barclay and Gregor Rimell – have concerns similar to my own.

SIR – I was pleased to read in the Courier of October 10 that two or three councillors are making an effort to have Wick town centre improved.

SIR – We in the Dornoch Rail Link Action Group welcome the decision by Thurso Community Council to join our group, although we feel that some clarification is required with respect to the comments made in the article reporting this event in the Caithness Courier on November 7.

SIR – I would like to send my thanks to an unknown reader of yours.