REVIEW OF THE YEAR: June 2017

Traumatised veterans who have turned to alcohol to cope with their PTSD are facing a health ‘crisis’, a leading armed forces charity warned.

Research conducted at Cosham’s Queen Alexandra Hospital by Combat Stress revealed scores of veterans were waiting longer to deal with alcohol addiction. The charity called for more to be done to help veterans recognise their alcohol addiction and the underlying reasons for it.

A 50-year-old ex veteran told The News of his alcohol addiction: ‘Alcohol almost ruined my life and marriage. I knew I had a problem with PTSD but didn’t know how to deal with it.’

A spokeswoman for Combat stress said: ‘Their lives could spiral out of control. Without getting treatment they could go down a very dark path.’

Urgent calls were made to improve cycling routes across the city after a man died in a cycling incident.

Jon Spencer, chairman of Portsmouth Cycle Forum, criticised the city council for the city’s poor cycling infrastructure. His comments came after a cyclist was killed after he fell of his bike in Eastern Road just days before.

Mr Spencer said: ‘Something needs to be done. There was a cause for urgent action before these accidents. Now more than ever, these incidents show that it needs to stop and investment is needed.’

Stolen visitors’ books with signatures from royals, including King George V, were returned nearly three years after they were taken.

Devastated members of the Royal Maritime Club in Queen Street, Portsea, told how the vanishing of the books containing Queen Victoria’s signature had left them distraught. The books were recovered from Gatwick Airport and police thought they had spent some time in Turkey.

John Alderson, the general manager at the club, said: ‘They were part of the club’s history and they were stolen on my watch, which really upset me at the time. They’re finally back where they belong.’ A court case against a former member of staff at the club was later dropped.

Litter on Hot Walls beach in Old Portsmouth was branded ‘disgusting’ by residents, who blamed groups of young people for the mess.

One resident who spoke to The News said: ‘Not only is it with shocking sadness but it’s utter despair when I think that this is something that represents our city. It’s getting worse. There’s a total lack of respect for rules, regulations and authority.’

Portsmouth City Council Liberal Democrat ward councillor Rob Wood said he was aware of the problem and that the council were working on strategies to keep rubbish off the beaches.