LEE Morris makes some good points about Tony Blair's legacy in government (HAS, Feb 24), but isn't it sad that free bus passes and TV licences for the elderly are the pinnacle of New Labour's achievements? These are no more than scraps of consolation to the ordinary people who have suffered most at the hands of the Government.

Mr Blair's real mission was to preserve the economic legacy of Margaret Thatcher, while making no meaningful attempt to correct any of the social ills that accompanied it. His whole appeal was that he could be the acceptable, socially-caring face of conservative greed and imperialist belligerence.

A glimpse of Mr Blair's real legacy can be seen not just in the daily news from Iraq, but also in the recent shaming report by Unicef which accused the UK of failing its children, claiming that underinvestment and a "dog-eat-dog" society were key factors.

New Labour has done nothing to tackle the inequality which Unicef cited as a fundamental cause of young disaffection. These are the consequences of the "stable economy" we hear so much about - a shocking indictment of the Thatcherite consensus which has dominated British politics for more than three decades.

David Bates, Billingham, Teesside.