ZURBURAN PAINTINGS

THE argument surrounding the Zurburan portraits seems to show how people have woefully lost sight of what the Church is really there for.

Yes, many churches welcome tourists, whose offerings help to swell the coffers, but we are not primarily visitor centres.

We may have buildings and their contents which are of historical interest, but we are not museums. We may also have in our churches religious artefacts that are now said to be of artistic value, but we are not a collection of art galleries.

Churches are groups of worshipping people. Church buildings are where Christian people meet. Therefore, the prime purpose of the Church of England is to worship God and spread the Gospel message.

This means that we must, at all times, be able properly to husband our resources. The Church of England is certainly cash-strapped at present, with the Diocese of Durham probably being the worst off, financially, of all our dioceses.

It would, therefore, be entirely wrong of us to have millions of pounds worth of art treasures hanging around when we haven't got the money to carry out God's challenge in our parishes.

Some people have argued that the Church Commissioners should sell off other things instead, when the fact is that, in many cases, they simply cannot do this in law. This is because of the legislation surrounding the set-up of the Church Commissioners, coupled with the fact that much of what they also manage is a result of bequests, which they hold and control on behalf of individual churches.

Recently, the Durham Diocese has had to go through a complete reorganisation, with the recommended loss of more clergy and changes in the local groupings of parishes. I haven't heard preservation groups creating any fuss about the impending losses of ordained ministries and Anglican traditions to local communities, even though this has been well publicised, with items in The Northern Echo in particular.

However, if concerned people were to roll their sleeves up by getting themselves to church and helping with active commitment and fund raising, including covenanted giving, instead of simply sounding-off in public, the Church Commissioners' need to sell off works of art would, I am sure, become much less urgent. - Derek Jago, Member of the General Synod of the Church of England, Bishop Auckland.

ELECTED MAYOR

AT a recent full meeting of Sedgefield Borough Council, I proposed that, due to lack of public support for the cabinet model of local government reforms, the council writes to the Government pointing out that only two per cent of the population supported the undemocratic cabinet model.

As there was so little support for the cabinet models, we asked permission to administer a "streamlined version of the committee system", which would engage all councillors in the running of the council and would be more accountable to the public.

All members of the Labour group voted against the amendment.

Before voting in the referendum on October 18, the public should consider whether they agree with any form of cabinet system.

Under the pilot of the current cabinet with leader model, only seven councillors out of 49 can speak or vote at cabinet meetings. Under the committee system, we had monthly full council meetings and every member had a vote on planning matters.

Under the cabinet system, full council meetings are held every three months and half the councillors don't have a vote at planning meetings. - Councillor Ben Ord, Liberal Democrat, Spennymoor Ward, Sedgefield Borough Council.

ROAD TAX

IN reply to Frank Headen's letter (HAS, Sept 18) regarding non-payment of road fund tax, the answer is simple. All the Government has to do is to pay a commission of, say £10, to anyone reporting a car with no tax disc.

There are many people, pensioners, unemployed etc, who could earn a decent living for a short period. It would be easy to report to the police the car number which did not show a tax disc.

The £10 could be recovered by a similar fine on the non-tax payer.

Obviously, it would not last long because those who in the past did not pay and have been faced with an extra £10 would soon pay up front when it was due.

Those reporting the non-tax payers would be unnamed. - E Reynolds, Wheatley Hill.

TRANSPORT POLICY

THE road lobby which wants to build another Tyne road tunnel continues to come out with the same old discredited rhetoric of the past, claiming that another tunnel will cut congestion and pollution. These claims are utter rubbish.

Building and upgrading roads doesn't solve the problem of congestion. In fact, it makes it worse. It's the 'M25 effect': more roads lead to more car-based greenfield development of megastores and business parks, which in turn generate more car journeys and more traffic jams, which in turn lead to the road lobby to call for the construction of more roads. Until this unsustainable downward spiral is broken, traffic queues will grow longer and our health and quality of life will continue to deteriorate. - B Atkinson, Friends of the Earth, South Tyneside.

PETER MULLEN

I WONDER what Peter Mullen (Echo, Sept 25) thinks could be achieved by re-arresting scores of IRA thugs? It would mean the end of the admittedly-imperfect ceasefire and a return to death, anguish and hopelessness.

Sinn Fein and the IRA have accepted that there cannot be a united Ireland without the consent of the majority in Northern Ireland, and the Irish Government has changed its constitution to abandon its claim on the North.

These are significant concessions. Progress is now needed on civil rights, policing, demilitarisation and decommissioning. This is negotiation, not appeasement.

I am not suggesting that we should negotiate with the likes of Osama bin Laden. He appears to be evil personified, a homicidal maniac with no concept of right and wrong. Even if he were not directly involved in the attack on America, he shares the guilt of the perpetrators by congratulating them.

Terry Waite, the former envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, has said the only way to defeat terrorists is to marginalise them.

Republicans and Unionists who persist with violence are becoming increasingly marginalised. If we persist with the peace process, they will be defeated. - Peter Winstanley, Chester-le-Street.

HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING

AFTER witnessing Audley Harrison in his fight at the Telewest Arena, I have got to say: All you young lads, join a boxing club now.

This man, after two professional fights against nobodies, is a millionaire with the deal he has with the BBC. I ask you, a millionaire. The world of boxing has gone mad. If this does not encourage young lads to take up the sport I don't know what will. Think about it. What did Audley Harrison show to warrant him making so much money?

So I say to you, get along to your nearest boxing club, dedicate yourselves and who knows where you could go.

If Harrison could do it so could you, but at the very least it would keep you fit and teach you how to look after yourselves, besides maybe making lots of money. - George Rowe, Houghton-le-Spring.

EUROPE

ROBIN Ashby (HAS, Sept 18) prefers German sausage and Belgian chocolate. That's fine. That is his choice. Is that any reason to condemn the British banger and chocolate?

Belgian chocolate is not to my taste, yet I do not condemn it. Labelling on goods is important but consumers will exercise their choice.

What is untrue is his statement that the EU power is, at its lowest level, consistent with open markets. The EU has and is removing power from national governments to Brussels.

The German chancellor has said this must happen if Europe is to be a federal nation. Much of this has not been in Britain's best interests.

Of course, Britain is better off now than 25 years ago but so is every other industrialised nation. This is progress and it has come about in spite of the EU rather than because of it.

Since the introduction of the euro, Britain has done rather better than other EU countries and, while trade with Europe is important, we still do more with the rest of the world.

The majority of people in Britain do not want the euro because this would take us farther under Brussels control. No doubt we will eventually have a referendum when we will be bombarded with propaganda in favour of the euro.

It is to be hoped that this time a true and fair assessment is put to the nation instead of the lies and half-truths put forward in 1975 when we were told the Common Market was purely a trading organisation. - K Peacock, Darlington.