I WAS interested in Burton's Bytes (Echo, Mar 22) about broadband and if it told the whole story I would undoubtedly sign up for it.

But as with so many of these bargains there is a catch; in order to get the £14.99 service it is necessary to take some of ntl's other services, which pushes the cost up to £29.98! Until this changes I shall have to make do with the present slow access to the Internet. - Peter W Elliott, Eaglescliffe.

METRO

THIS spring will finally see the opening of the extension of the Metro Railway System to Wearside, fully 22 years after the system was inaugurated. What a shame that it has taken so long.

If one looks at a map of North-East England, it is easy to spot that there are either lines still in use or tracks of disused railways which could be adapted for use by the Metro. It could be extended to Washington New Town, Blyth, Bedlington, Ashington and Newbiggin, to Morpeth and to Ponteland.

Indeed, there is surely a case for an integrated public transport system, including conventional railways, to take in the whole of our region, all the way from Northumberland to Teesside.

If you go to Glasgow and look at a map of the huge railway system in the Strathclyde area, then you can easily see how far we are behind our potential for clean, efficient railway-based public transport in our region. And we were the birthplace of the railways!

What is needed for the Metro to fulfil its potential as a regionwide transport system is co-operation between political and civic leaders. Perhaps we will have to wait for the establishment of a powerful, democratically-accountable, directly-elected regional assembly for that to happen and the Metro System to reach its true potential. - Peter Sagar, Heaton, Newcastle.

RICHARD NEALE

IN 1974, the Health and Safety at Work Bill was passed by Parliament making us all responsible for our safety and the safety of others while at work. It says employers and managers had a particular responsibility for the safety of people visiting their premises.

Despite these principles, away from public gaze ministers and civil servants colluded to deny the public this protection. They decided to exclude patient protection from clinical incompetence and, more importantly, from the management of clinical incompetence.

My complaints to the Health and Safety Executive, North Yorkshire Police and the Crown Prosecution Service over Richard Neale and his employers stem, not from malice or any financial interest, but from a conviction that the Friarage Hospital would not have employed Neale if the responsibilities for his clinical governance had been fully accepted locally.

In short, had managers at the Friarage and the Yorkshire Regional Health Authority known they were criminally liable for his clinical incompetence under Section 3 of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act, the scandal would not have happened.

As a direct result of my complaints, the Health and Safety Executive is reviewing the policy. I hope it sees the historical consequences of its failure and moves quickly to restore the full protection Parliament intended in 1974. - John R Bacon, former mayor of Northallerton (1983), Richmond.

CONSERVATIVES

WHEN Margaret Thatcher first stood on the steps of 10 Downing Street she said: "The NHS is safe in our hands... No one would have remembered the Good Samaritan if he'd only had good intentions. He had money as well... There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families."

We now have the Tories saying they must look after the underprivileged and the poor! As one old enough to remember Lord Hailsham donning a cloth cap and going on a tour of the working class areas of Britain and, much later, Michael Heseltine also donning a cloth cap and touring the riot-torn areas of Liverpool, I ask: how soon will we see Iain Duncan Smith donning a cloth cap and proclaiming the old Tory phrase: "We are all working class."? Can a leopard change its spots? - Name supplied, Darlington.

LABOUR

THE most disappointing aspect of Labour's second term is Tony Blair's slavish adherence to the policies of George W Bush.

With the Americans apparently hell bent on bombing Iraq, it is incumbent upon Mr Blair to join his European allies and distance the UK from this bellicose attitude. All the Arab countries are also opposed to Mr Bush's plans, which would prove disastrous. It is high time Labour MPs rein in Mr Blair and point him to where our future lies - Europe. - Hugh Pender, Darlington.

GERMAN POWS

I am researching female prisoners of war with particular emphasis on German POWs. I understand that Windlestone Hall, near Rushyford, was a POW camp for German women and would be very grateful for any information. I am also interested in hearing from British women who were held captive. - Ruth Atkinson, 5 Blackhall, Fir Tree, Crook DL15 8DN. E-mail: ruthy57