ENGLAND FOOTBALLERS: I HAPPENED to be at Redworth Hall on Monday at around midday, and saw a group of about 12 England supporters, obviously waiting for the team coach to arrive with pens at the ready for autographs.

They were very orderly, and were overseen by three security staff and two police officers. I decided to wait, just to see what happened.

Half an hour later, the coach arrived and the whole squad dashed inside as quickly as possible, avoiding any eye contact with the fans. This appeared to be a pre-planned course of action.

Later in the day I read The Northern Echo, to find that this had also happened the day before.

What is going on with these people? Is it not an obscenity that they can earn three times the national average annual salary in one week? - Geoff Carr, Darlington.

ON Saturday I travelled from South Shields to Hurworth to see the England football team train.

I managed to get there all right. The only problem was we were not allowed within 200-250 yards of where they were training.

During the training session a lot of other people complained to the stewards about this problem.

When the England bus passed, none of the players smiled, waved or even acknowledged their fans.

I travelled two hours to get there and back, and for what? - Faye Snowdon, South Shields.

EUROPE

ALL the spin, hype and organised deception cannot disguise the sad fact that Britain now has an elected government that has but one objective, namely the surrender of every vestige of our national sovereignty to the European Union.

Yet again we are invited to believe that there is a battle of wills going on between Prime Minister and Chancellor regarding the European single currently. Nothing could be further from the truth. Both Mr Blair and Mr Brown are ruthlessly determined to push us into the euro and bring about Britain's demise as a free independent nation state.

The recent pretence of Cabinet discussions following the publication of the volumes of Treasury verbiage on the so-called five economic tests was quite simply a shameful act of public deception.

There never were five economic tests, there is only one test. Could Blair ever win a referendum on euro entry? The answer is emphatically: no.

There could be no better example of the sheer arrogance of this quisling Government that in their outright refusal to give the British people a referendum on the EU constitution, which Blair is in an obscene hurry to sign.

Readers will recall that this document, which essentially gives Brussels control over every facet of our lives, is referred to as merely a tidying up exercise. The gesture of contempt for the people of our country will, I am certain, prove to be Blair's nemesis. - Dave Pascoe, Press Secretary, UK Independence Party, Hartlepool Branch.

PETER Troy (HAS, June 6) claims that the Ernst & Young survey proves that inward investment will not suffer if we stay outside the euro. The survey, however, proves exactly the opposite.

While Britain still receives more foreign investment projects into Europe than any other country, the gap between Britain and all the countries in the eurozone is growing. When the euro was launched we received 28 per cent of all projects, compared to 49 per cent for the euro-zone countries - a gap of 21 per cent. In 2002, this gap had grown to 26 per cent with Britain receiving 19 per cent, and the eurozone 45 per cent, according to Ernst and Young.

Foreign investment brings prosperity and jobs with it for the long term. It also brings more trade, which has always been a vital part of our economy.

If we had been in the euro from the beginning we would have benefited from at least £12bn more trade each year, according to research by economists from the Inter-American Development Bank.

It is quite simple. Overseas investors think Britain is less attractive outside the euro. - Hugh Morgan Williams, North East in Europe.

RAY MALLON

I TAKE exception to Ray Mallon's column (Echo, June 6). He is mayor of a Northern town that suffers a degree of crime, drug abuse and anti-social behaviour unlike that suffered by the cities that he admires and covets.

He wants to bring longer hours and more teenagers into a town centre already saturated with pubs and clubs and which on most evenings is a no-go area for sensible, adult social drinkers.

He then criticises the very police force he resigned from, having accepted a number of disciplinary charges.

Without that inquiry Cleveland Police would probably have more funds to clear up the streets Mr Mallon claims are neglected.

How the bobbies on the beat must feel watching this turncoat can only be imagined. It's time Mr Mallon saw his town for what it is. - William Fisher, Darlington.

HAVE the Mayor of Middlesbrough's recently-found chains of office restricted the oxygen to his head?

Newcastle, Manchester and Leeds are all huge, cash rich cities with the heritage and history to exploit.

Middlesbrough is a town with serious deprivation often highlighted by the media as a perfect example of Northern sink estate culture. We have drugs, prostitution, binge drinking, the lot.

Mr Mallon is sitting in his office like King Canute, anti-social behaviour lapping at his feet. - Joe Wellthorpe, Middlesbrough.