Last updated 11:38, Friday, 16 May 2008

FOLLOWING your feature regarding the forthcoming lunch to celebrate the lives of Mossbay’s more mature residents (News & Star, May 12), I feel it necessary to clarify my personal position.

Action area: Mossbay has been pinpointed as an area of low life expectancy – but there are plenty of residents who have lived long and happy lives

While Doctor Ashton’s report has caused “outrage” among some residents within the neighbourhood, I believe that much of this has arisen as a result of a misunderstanding of the report’s content due to the way in which it was reported at the time of publication.

My comments quoted were made in my role as chairman of the Mossbay Village Residents’ Group. On a personal level, I welcome the report. We finally have a statistically-validated report highlighting the problems within Mossbay, and other areas of west Cumbria. Hopefully, the primary care trust and other agencies will now deliver on their obligations to target their resources at reducing the gap between west Cumbria and the more affluent areas of the county.

Despite the statistical lower life expectancy within Mossbay, I look forward to meeting as many of those as possible, who have “bucked the trend”, at the celebration lunch.

DAVID MCGARRY

Mossbay Road

Workington