A PEACE campaigner has been putting the finishing touches to his "Say no to the war heads" banner before posing with two caricature-masks of Bush and Blair.

Pun aside, Keith Davis wants his message to be strong and clear as he takes to the streets for an anti-war rally in York on Saturday.

Mr Davis will be one of thousands expected to join the Against The War campaign, which will meet at noon to march from Clifford's Tower to the Minster.

He said: "Anyone who says we are marching for Saddam is being absolutely ludicrous. We are marching for a peaceful way to deal with what is happening."

After the march, speakers outside the Minster will include Labour York city councillor Janet Looker and Professor Mohammed El-Gonati, chairman of the York Mosque Committee.

Laura Potts will speak out for Women in Black, an international network committed to solidarity with women facing violence and oppression.

Weighty parcels protest

RELATIVES of soldiers serving in the Gulf have condemned what they say are ludicrous restrictions on sending parcels to their loved ones.

A weight limit of 2kg has been placed on packages mailed to British personnel preparing for war on Iraq.

But North-East families, many with relatives who were based at Catterick Garrison, North Yorkshire, before being deployed to the Middle East, say the restraints are doing nothing for morale.

Mother Tina Lindsay, of Darlington, said she had gone to the main town centre post office, but was turned away because her parcel, containing food and other items from home, weighed 2.4kg.

It was only accepted after she went home and split the contents into two sets, before returning.

"Why does it have to be such small packages when we're supposed to be building the morale?" she asked.

"We're near Catterick, so there will be plenty of relatives from Darlington affected by this. What if it is a birthday? Two kilos is not a lot if you want to send presents."

Post Office chiefs have faced many complaints about the issue, but the decision rested with the Ministry of Defence chiefs, who said it was because of limited space.

The row was the second this week, after it emerged earlier that Britons were paying far more than Americans to send parcels.

Locals' backing for PM 'growing'

SEDGEFIELD is starting to swing behind its local Member of Parliament in his hour of need, Tony Blair's constituency agent said yesterday.

Speaking in Mr Blair's office in Trimdon, John Burton said: "In the last couple of days, we have had nothing but phone calls of support. We are getting about 20 calls a day, which is much more than we usually do.

"People have seen the way Tony has been treated and they are thinking that it is no way to treat a man who, whether you agree with him or not, is leading us where he thinks is right. The easiest thing would be for him to do nothing, but he is quite convinced that we must do something for the sake of our children and grandchildren."

Mr Burton believes that talk of a leadership challenge from the anti-war left of the party is a throwback to the days of old Labour.

He said: "We spent 20 years in opposition because we represented party activists and not the community as a whole. We were making policies in smoke-filled rooms and telling the vast majority of people what was good for them, and we are going back to that at the moment.

"I believe that there is a silent majority that supports Tony in trying to avoid war."