SMOKING BAN: IT IS strange that, in the debate over a total smoking ban, The Northern Echo seems to be unbalanced and biased in favour of the hysteria and fanaticism of the no-smoking brigade. I wrote a good letter pointing out how passive smoking is being used as ammunition and is being hyped out of all proportion for these control freaks to get all their own way. Comprehensive tests taken in smoke-filled pubs have proved the weakness of this passive smoking theory. With all the hard drug addiction in our society and alcoholism rife today, also the potential dangers of terrorism and global warming, these control freaks should just get their priorities in order and leave grown up people to make up their own minds. - Joan Lawler, Newton Aycliffe. LONDON MARATHON IF you've won a place to run in the Flora London Marathon 2006 why not spread the happiness that bit further by running in aid of deaf children? Three babies are born deaf every day and 90 per cent of deaf children are born to hearing parents with little experience of deafness. The National Deaf Children's Society (NDCS) is the leading UK charity supporting deaf children and young people and we'd like your help to support our vital work. Sally Gunnell, former Olympic athlete, explains: "Deaf children face challenges every day. Choosing your own challenge, especially running, is a great way to raise money for NDCS. "Supporting deaf children and their families is incredibly motivating and will keep you training until you finally cross that finishing line - you'll be surprised at what you can achieve. With your help, NDCS can work towards a future without barriers for every deaf child." Please accept the challenge and run the 2006 Flora London Marathon in aid of deaf children across the UK. I look forward to hearing from you. - Alex Brooks-Johnson, NDCS Challenge Events Fundraising Manager, events@ndcs.org.uk tel: 0870 774 2444. CHILDCARE BILL All children should get the best start in life and that is what the Childcare Bill is about. The Early Years Foundation Stage is based on common sense and learning with enjoyment. The Early Years Foundation Stage is not about teaching and testing tots in maths and English, it's about learning through play. It will involve observing and encouraging a young child's development through play, songs, reading stories and drawing for example - with the full involvement of parents - and reflecting the way that children learn best. Our Childcare Bill will help every child in the country - especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds - receive the care and attention they deserve in their early years so they can grow and achieve their potential. And for those children in families where no-one is in work, childcare can help at least one parent return to work. It's about giving parents real options in balancing raising children with work and family life. We are not taking away childhood. We want childhood to be good for every child. If parents do use childcare, they can be confident it will be high quality, that their child will be safe, cared for and can grow and develop. These are crucial years in a child's development and all children deserve the best start we can give. Our £17bn investment in early years since 1997 shows our commitment to this. - Beverley Hughes, Children, Young People and Families Minister. RAF LEEMING I WOULD like to express my anger at the comments of Councillor Carl Les (Echo, Nov 18). The RAF leaving the area has caused a lot of speculation as to what the future holds for those of us employed at Leeming, especially us civilians. As a resident of Bedale, rather than a sigh of relief that the Tornado would not be replaced, I am totally disillusioned that my local councillor has helped jeopardise our jobs. I have been informed that local politicians near airfields around the country were fighting tooth and nail to keep the RAF and jobs in place in their areas. As the Harrier replacement is destined for Scotland, why can't the Tornadoes deployed there come to Leeming? Or do our local politicians prefer the idea of Londoners moving to the relocation hotspot of Bedale, maybe they're frightened noisy aircraft might put them off. I hope the many other residents of this area who have links to Leeming remember the nonchalant attitude of councillors who were elected to represent the whole community when it comes to the next local elections. - R Parker, Bedale. BUS SERVICES From any religious, liberal, socialist and humanitarian viewpoint, the first duty of our elected representatives is to support and improve the well-being of their citizens. Durham County Council leaders have, apparently, cast aside that principle in order to fund flagship enterprises which can inflate their egos and perhaps gain them a place on the honours list. The whole reason for subsidising bus services is to make them available to sparsely populated areas and the council is denying many people access to normally expected facilities by withdrawing subsidies and telling us that we are not cost-effective. They have spent vast amounts of our money on buying the refurbishing Durham bus station, at the same time denying us the use of it. More money has been poured into the park-and-ride projects. The council's tongue-in-cheek policy of encouraging more people to use buses while removing these same buses leads me to the conclusion that the real aim is to force people to use their cars, thus ensuring the success of the park-and-ride scheme. The lack of buses means that free travel for pensioners will not be available in rural areas, another saving for the council from non-cost-effective old people. In view of your previous campaigns against injustice I hope that you will support this condemnation of the council's actions. You are our only mouthpiece. - JW Scott, Kelloe, Durham. PAROCHIALISM I WAS pleased to see that Alan Milburn foresees the region "fading into parochialism" (Echo, Nov 18) though I would not have used the word "fading". Some of us are hoping to maintain parochialism, which is organising at grassroots level. Grassroots are what develop new businesses and decide our culture for the nation's benefit, if supported by the Government instead of being marshalled into meaningless groups for the convenience of politicians and beaurocrats. - Derek A Smithson, Middlesbrough. NICE MOVE MAY I say thank you to all of the kind, caring people involved in the moving of patients from Louisa Wing of Stanfield House in Stanley, to Apple Tree Villa, Earls House, Durham. Their hard work and thoughtfulness was much appreciated by me as the sister of one of the patients. Thank you. - M Shirley, Torquay.