HOPEFULLY the book referred to by Bill Jacobs, which has a contribution from Jack Straw, "The Men who made Labour" will contain more facts and give an accurate reflection as to how the Tory domination of politics in Blackburn was broken in the early nineties, than his article in the LET (May 4), The article ignores a major event which happened in 1903 which no doubt made the difference between losing the Blackburn General Election campaign in 1900 and winning the seat for the forerunner of the Labour Party, the Independent Party candidate Philip Snowden in 1906.

It was the decision of weaving manufacturer Bannister Brothers to prosecute Blackburn Weavers Union for "illegal picketing".

This established the Tory party as being regarded as the party which allows workers to be prosecuted for defending their terms and conditions of employment.

It led to the historic decision by the textile workers Trade Unions to successfully back the campaign to get Philip Snowden elected in the 1906 General Election.

Whether Jack Straw agrees that point is doubtful as, throughout his political career since 1997 in government, he has presided over the most restricted anti-union laws in the western world and is on record a supporting the continuance of many of the employment laws introduced by the most extreme right wing Conservative government in the last 60 years.

He is quoted as saying in the article "Snowden... part of the creation of a truly great instrument of change."

Many of us would agree with that statement. But what will they say about Jack Straw?

That he complemented that instrument of change or sabotaged it?

DON RISHTON, Livesey Branch Road, Blackburn.