Letters

I HAVE read and re-read your editorial comment on the National Lottery (Echo, Dec 20), and I agree wholeheartedly with every word of it.

As a staunch supporter of the Labour cause, I am particularly concerned that William Hague has been presented with a genuine opportunity to make political capital from a "broken Labour promise", although, with his party's track record in Lottery sleaze, I doubt whether he will seize the opportunity.

However. All is not lost. We, the Lottery customers, have in our power, the ability to bring about intervention from our government, in correcting the grave injustice dealt to Sir Richard Branson by a faceless and unaccountable Lottery committee.

All we have to do is limit our Lottery ticket purchase to one ticket only, or better still, no tickets. - A Benn, Bedale.

I DISAGREE with your comment on Camelot running the Lottery (Echo, Dec 20). The important factor is the money raised for good causes. It is clear that, after two attempts, Sir Richard Branson is unable to prove his ability to match Camelot's efforts, despite not making a profit.

Camelot has proved its ability over the last six years. The main thing now is to prevent Blair and Brown dipping their grubby fingers into this coffer. Lottery funding is for causes that are not provided for out of Government funds. It is not intended to save the Government money on things that we pay taxes to provide, such as the NHS and education.

These are government responsibilities and should be funded by Government revenues. After all, these two politicians threw more than enough Lottery money at the Dome. - RM Kelly, Ouston, Chester-le- Street.

HIGHWAY FUNDING

YOUR anger in Boost bypasses A1 and A66 (Echo, Dec 15) is misplaced and misinformed.

You say that the A1 and A66 did not receive money in the recent local transport plans allocations. Of course they did not. The A1 and A66 are trunk roads and are therefore funded through the Highways Agency rather than through the mechanism of the local transport capital settlement.

The settlement allocated money to highway authorities on the basis of the plans they had drawn up for their areas. You are right that we did not approve any major capital projects in North Yorkshire - for the simple reason that none were bid for by the authority.

In fact, North Yorkshire did very well out of the final settlement, receiving £20.95m for 2001-2, a 147 per cent increase on last year's allocation and the third highest in the region.

This is an unprecedented level of funding, amounting to at least £100m over the next five years. It seems churlish to be "disappointed" by this. - K Hill, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions.

RAPID REACTION FORCE

THOSE concerned about the impact of the proposed Europe Joint Rapid Reaction Force on Nato might care to note a recent report from the House of Commons Defence Select Committee on Kosovo operations.

"Europe has no really effective Suppression of Enemy Air Defences (capability) and won't until some are acquired. The Secretary of State (for Defence) agrees that without US support, Europe is hamstrung."

UK military doctrine is based on the assumption that apart from low level peace enforcement, any major military operation will be a coalition one, and will involve the US.

The military and governments understand this only too well. Nato assets and planning systems will be needed for the JRRF to succeed - which is why it is stressed that it will only operate when Nato as a whole is unwilling to act.

To become independent of Nato, the force would require massive injections of cash - something all European governments will be unlikely to countenance. - R Ashby, UK Defence Forum.

THE GOVERNMENT

I CANNOT help but think the Government has got its priorities wrong.

We've just had the last Queen's Speech before the General Election. The NHS is in crisis, police numbers and morale are low, the railways are in crisis. Rejoice!

They're banning fox hunting. How many extra policemen on the beat? How many more operations will result from such a ban? "A lot done, a lot to do" rings a little hollow. - W Wearmouth, Eastgate.

PETER MULLEN

HOW much longer have we to put up with the nonsensical rubbish written by your right wing vicar Peter Mullen each Tuesday?

I find it rather strange that you should choose a clergyman to write a political column. His writings prove that he has no knowledge of politics. I do not think that he knows much about religion either. - V Griffiths, Peterlee.

EAST HOUSE

I HAVE been sent a copy of the Eye in the Sky From the Past aerial photograph of the River Skerne area of Darlington town centre (Echo, Nov 24).

The large house in the picture was known as East House and was where I was born. It is now Charlie Brown's garage just off the ring road in Haughton Road.

My grandad moved there when he came from Middleton-in-Teesdale as a young man, and my dad lived there after he married my mother. We had geese, chickens and pigs, and even sold coal from there at one point. - JA Short (nee Hall), Maida Hill, London.

FOX HUNTING

HAVING witnessed the scenes outside the House of Commons and listened to some of the debate within it, I am amazed that no one has stated that the fox is an extremely cruel killer which will kill all the poultry in a poultry shed for the sheer joy of the killing. It will kill eight or nine lambs with the same fervour. If MPs do not know this they should.

There is no hope for the abolition of the "hen battery system" in such circumstances.

Any idea that the fox is not a serial killer is quite facetious.

That is the hub of the matter. - J Woodrow, Harmby, Leyburn.