A LETTER about the European Union I wrote a few weeks ago generated a lively response, yet very few replied to the point I made about the nature of the debate.

I believe that criticism of political institutions is not only healthy but essential. Whitehall has been condemned for years, and these days Brussels creates plenty of opportunities for critics.

In fact, some of the strongest words I have heard recently have come not from eurosceptics, but from European Commissioners like Chris Patten and Neil Kinnock and I pay credit to their efforts to bring about improvements. The European Union is founded on principles which the British hold precious: a partnership of nations working together to promote democracy, individual freedom and justice; to settle disputes by peaceful means and to encourage both economic prosperity and environmental sustainability.

The goals are ambitious and not easy to achieve, but this is why more than a dozes countries are queuing up to join and why the three major political parties in Britain, including the Conservatives, are firmly committed to Britain's membership.

Yet in my postbag I have letters from people who say that the European Union is a 'Jewish Conspiracy' and others who call it a 'Vatican Plot.'

Someone has just described it as 'totalitarian' in what I take to be a comparison with Nazi Germany or the Communist Soviet Union.

These letters sit alongside the many serious concerns and valid criticisms which need to be addressed. To my mind, they are completely over the top and nutty.

CHRIS DAVIES, Liberal Democrat MEP for the North West of England.