04/02/2004

Freedom of the press is now in the same category as freedom of speech in this very politically correct country of ours.

Lord Hutton has produced a very one-sided report from a very narrow brief. Everything said by the Government and its department he has taken as the truth, and condemned the BBC outright.

If the report is not a whitewash then the question of WMD and the question of their existence in Iraq must be brought into the open with the same tenacious vigour as that used hunting down the BBC.

The Americans have come clean and have told the world that they got it wrong on WMD. Lord Hutton's findings are that the report was not sexed up by Ten Downing Street and that report presented to the British people is an accurate report on Iraq's WMD by our intelligence services.

However, the United Nations inspectorate has been saying for months that they do not exist.

What a mess we now find ourselves in. A report from our MI6 and other intelligence agencies that is now refuted by America and the UN as completely inaccurate. What an embarrassment for our country.

It reminds me of the complete incompetence of our intelligence agencies, MI6 etc in the 1950s and 60s when Kim Philby, Guy Burgess, Anthony Blunt and Donald Maclean, while working for MI6, turned out to be Russia's KGB's top spying ring. It is this inaccurate report which has caused all this trouble.

It is now time to follow the example set by the BBC, and the heads of MI6 and the department involved in this report should resign and save this country any further embarrassment. - Frank Leeming, Derby.

'KELLY'S widow betrayed', 'Whitewash'. These are just a very few of the words that appeared in the headlines of most of the right-wing dominated tabloid press on the day following the publishing of the Hutton report.

Dr Kelly's widow certainly was betrayed and I feel the utmost sympathy for her.

She was betrayed by her late husband who, as a very senior scientist employed by HM Government, sought to communicate with a BBC correspondent behind his employer's back and hope that his identity would not be revealed.

He should have known better but having done so, should at least have been man enough to stand his ground. His widow deserved better.

Lord Hutton is a highly respected legal expert who seemed to be acceptable to all of the parties involved in his report and has produced his findings fairly and impartially.

As so often happens in this type of situation, the losers are now crying 'foul'. If there are any fair minded people reading this letter, ask yourselves what would be the headlines have been in all the press if Lord Hutton's report had blamed the Government or any of its employees. - Alan Benn, Bedale.

I NEVER thought the day would come when I'd feel sorry for the BBC, given the amount of liberal elitist twaddle it broadcasts - but I do now.

Basically the Corporation is being made a scapegoat for the purpose of assuaging Alastair Campbell's massive ego. Everybody knows Mr Campbell's pretensions while in the Government's employ went way beyond what were appropriate to his position, and the BBC is now paying the penalty for having stood up to him.

It is wholly deplorable that its chairman and director-general have chosen to throw in the towel with almost indecent haste, instead of sticking around to expose the Hutton Report for the blatant whitewash that it is.

But I have the gravest suspicions that at that level of seniority things are never quite what they seem. - Tony Kelly, Crook.

FIRE SERVICE

I AM very concerned about the Government's plans to give itself powers to abolish North Yorkshire Fire Brigade authority and replace it with a body based in Leeds or Wakefield.

This will inevitably mean the new fire authority would be less responsive to local needs and concerns.

The new legislation will also involve the restructuring of the fire service. I would support concrete measures that would improve safety and save lives; but I have fears that regionalisation will open the door to possible cuts in local fire services by distant regional officials who do not understand or care for the needs of local people. John Prescott seems to be more interested in his pet project of breaking England up into a series of 'regions' than actually delivering better quality local public services. - JK Summer, Dalton-on-Tees.

I'M A CELEBRITY...

THEY are all at it! Many of the television programmes, even some television news programmes, want the public to telephone in to their surveys, voting for people they want to win something, winning prizes etc.

For a call that is approx 2/3 seconds the charges range from 10p-60p, the telephone company taking 9p/10p and the rest going to the television programme.

Some say that they are sponsoring a charity, as do the I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, who charge 60p per call, but is 50p from each call really going to charity?

Last year the Pop Idol programme charged 10p per call but this year it went up to 25p (9p to the telephone company and 16p to the programme makers). In effect, the public are subsidising these programmes.

When you work out buying your television and the cost of running it, who are the fools? I personally avoid telephoning any of these money making programmes like the plague. - Brenda Tingate, Darlington.

REGIONAL GOVERNMENT

TORY MEP Martin Callanan (Echo, Jan 30) is well off target with his criticisms of an elected regional assembly for the North-East.

The more powers an elected assembly has, the more effective it will be. So Mr Callanan should not criticise when more powers are being proposed. He also shows his ignorance when quoting government ministers about where the assembly offices will be located - that will be up to the elected members to decide.

There will be no need for any new assembly building, expensive or otherwise. With 25 elected members and support staff, there are plenty of existing buildings that could be used.

The main criticism of the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly is the rising costs of their new buildings - a mistake I am sure we in the North-East will avoid.

If the people of the North-East vote "Yes" in October, as I hope they will, the present wasteful and confusing two-tier system of local government in Northumberland and Durham will be replaced by a more efficient and effective unitary system of local councils.

For the first time ever, it will be for the people to decide directly through the ballot box as to what local councils they want.

Far from "ending local democracy", as Mr Callanan falsely claims, an elected regional assembly will bring local democracy to decision-making at present carried out by a plethora of unelected and unaccountable regional quangos. - Coun Chris Foote-Wood, North Region Liberal Democrats.