NOTHING this government does fails to amaze me. With every new policy statement, years of Labour principles are overturned.

Remember in the old days, when grammar schools were classed as elitist and the move to comprehensive education was said to be the way forward?

Now we are told the Government is to introduce 100,000 special places for pupils with above-average needs from the education system. Funny, when I was at school we called those people grammar school pupils. No doubt that Tony Blair's kids are among the 100,000.

The thing which will get my goat most in the run-up to the local elections will be the Labour candidates with red roses in their lapels, saying 'vote for me, I'm New Labour'" when the truth is that the majority will be so far removed from the principles of Tony Blair, it's unbelievable.

Beware, the New Labour tag is for cosmetic election purposes only - the man or woman behind that label is a two-faced hypocrite.

JOHN FARRER, Mallard Place, Oswaldtwistle.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.