FRESHLY published papers from the early 1990s reveal details of meetings between Conservative PM Margaret Thatcher and her recently appointed Chancellor John Major.

Thatcher was angered that Mr Major wanted to axe her most favourite policy the community charge, which became commonly referred to as the poll tax.

The poll tax was a bit like Marmite, you either love it or you hate it.

The rich loved it, because someone living in a Grade II listed mansion paid the same community charge as someone living in a cramped one bedroom flat. This is because the tax was charged on every adult and not through the value of your property.

It left an incredibly bitter taste in the mouth and still does.

When the poll tax was at its height in 1991 my younger brother and I were both working part-time and earning £55 a week.

From that wage we each had to pay the outrageous sum of £8.50 a week poll tax.

This horrid policy lasted just a little over two years. Riots, demonstrations and a general election on the horizon did eventually reap dividends.

The poll tax and Margaret Thatcher disappeared in perfect unison, never to return.

Stephen Dixon, Redcar