I WOULD like to commend Sharon Griffiths for her article “Getting dangerously close to the Thought Police” (Echo, Jan 28), in which she comments on how everyone is spying on their neighbour and nothing is private any more.

The mirthless world of political correctness has taken over and is destroying the lives of anyone seen as a transgressor.

Andy Gray has been sacked for his boorish comments – but we were not supposed to hear what he said.

What he, or any of us, has to say in private is just that -– private.

Comments made for public consumption like those of David Baddiel, who called the late Norris McWhirter a “brownshirt”, deserve to be vilified, but they are not.

The real damage becomes obvious when you look at cases such as that of Roy Amor, who allegedly killed himself after becoming very distressed for being suspended from his job over a joke with a friend.

The private joke was snooped upon by a PC vigilante, who gleefully exposed it to the world.

As a result, Mr. Amor is now dead.

What is worse, the inappropriate -– but private – joke, or the subsequent ruthless victimisation?

Dave Brothers, UKIP, Durham.