IN response to Mubeen Mulla's scathing letter (LET, June 20). Mubeen Mulla cherry-picks the facts that support the council's policy on compulsory purchase and omits important facts that undermine the argument about compulsory purchase and demolition of people's homes.

She seems unaware that there are many similar protests and campaigns against compulsory purchase throughout the UK.

The letter was perfectly correct to state: "Many houses were cleared in the past (60s and 70s)" and maybe believes it is comparing like with like?

The fact is at the same time as the council was clearing housing it was also building them.

Council-owned housing stock in the borough peaked at 15,000 and people in clearance areas were given priority over a very long queue for quality housing that was popular at reasonably priced rents.

All that came to an abrupt end with the election of Margaret Thatcher and Tory governments and predictably New Labour followed with the same or similar housing policies.

We now have a situation where the council has discharged itself of all of its responsibility for housing. It does not own or manage housing.

Nationally, house prices have rocketed largely through this failed housing policy that has produced the smallest amount of rented accommodation in Europe with the government clueless how to generate sufficient new house building.

New Labour still believe they should blissfully carry on with the policy of compulsory purchase as though nothing has changed and believe they have the same moral authority to throw people out of their homes to the uncertainty of housing market forces.

But residents know that they fight their campaign on two fronts as there is another motive for clearing their homes and that is to hand over the land for the academy that will be built on it to the unelected, unaccountable, multi millionaire boss of Capita Rod Aldridge.

Another fact overlooked in the letter.

However the bad news for the council is that people/parent power has already stopped one city academy in its tracks in Islington, London.

Those who support demolition of other people's homes should show some compassion and common sense to the Redearth residents fighting for their homes and their community, against a council determined to replace a failed housing policy with a failing education policy in the Redearth area of Darwen.

DON RISHTON, Livesey Branch Road, Blackburn.