POLICE FAITH DIVES: IT'S great to know the police are cracking down on irresponsible motorists. Acting Chief Inspector Mike Grinter, of South Shields police, states that he does not care if it is 3am, people who leave valuables on view in their cars will be woken up and reminded about their responsibilities (Echo, Apr 11).

I know some people would say this could be seen as harassment from the police, but why stop there? What about cracking down on people wearing jewellery in public, thus provoking muggers? Let's protect the criminals from temptation and keep these people off the streets. My faith in the British police is on a rapid decline. - E Adamson, Bishop Auckland.

TEST THE 'HAVES'

MESSRS Blair and Brown have nurtured a long-term pattern of retirement for those without State-protected, early retirement pension contracts like their own.

For these people, creeping poverty brings means-tested benefits which require regular scrutiny of their modest income, savings and spending - if they are willing to submit to it. Many are not and prefer to struggle on, leaving vast amounts unclaimed at the Treasury.

A fair earnings-related pension cannot be afforded, we are told. A land of plenty has been created which secures the best for Middle England, while those at the bottom of the pile have only two choices - take what's left, or do without.

I have an option which would give ordinary future pensioners more hope.

Keep the preferred system of means-tested benefits for those least needing it - those who have gained most in terms of income and assets above agreed levels. They would relinquish state pensions and social benefits, unless they fell on hard times, when they could submit themselves to the rigours of the system for respite.

An increased rate of VAT of, say 25 per cent, could be applied to luxury purchases and ordinary hard-working people could then be given the retirement finance they are surely entitled to. - George Appleby, York.

FOUL WORDS

HAVING suffered your football reporting for quite some time now, I feel that something must be said.

As an ardent Newcastle fan I look forward every week to reading yet another one-sided match report. The final straw though has to be Matt Westcott's article in the Football supplement (Echo, Apr 10) where he brands Boro as the region's top dogs. Surely I'm not the only one who finds this utterly ludicrous?

Boro have done well in a couple of cup competitions, but I don't recall Newcastle ever having this kind of praise lavished on them when they reached the semi-finals of the UEFA cup against Marseilles a couple of seasons back.

The statistics don't bear his argument out. It's true to say Newcastle have had a poor season, but the league table doesn't lie and Newcastle are the region's highest placed club.

If any credit is to be attributed to your sports reporting then this ridiculous fascination with Middlesbrough's cup runs must give way to realistic and independent sports journalism, something which, at the moment, seems completely beyond you - J Booth, Darlington.

PRICES SHOCK

I AM writing to comment about shopping at Morrisons, at Bishop Auckland, on Saturday, April 8. We were shocked at the price rises on most items that we buy every week. Not just 2p - some had gone up between 10p to 20p. The supermarkets think shoppers don't notice, but they do.

Also, after shopping, we filled our car up as we have to do every week only to find petrol has gone up yet again and we want to know why.

In the last month petrol has gone from 86.9p to 90.9p per litre. The public in Britain gets ripped off on most items we buy. Why do we pay such a high price of living right across the board?

Supermarkets are the only winners, not the buying public. We are all angry and sick of getting fobbed off. - David Gaffney, Crook.

THINK TWICE

REGARDING David Cameron's scornful references to UKIP (branding them fruit cakes, loonies and closet racists), I don't think the Conservatives have any room to talk.

Indeed, I don't think they deserve the name Conservative. To conserve means to cherish and protect: cherish and protect, in this context, those things that are most dear to most British people.

Things such as our traditional way of life and its underlying values; our ancient language and culture; our historic towns and cities; our once idyllic countryside and the well-being of rural communities.

The fact is that on all these issues the performance of the Tories over the past 50 years has been abysmal. Just think of many of the things they have done, when they have had the chance, and many of the things they have not done, and then ask yourself: has a party with that record any right to call itself Conservative? I say it's hypocritical to do so.

To those who vote Conservative regularly, I recommend that you think very seriously before doing so again. - Tony Kelly, Crook.

CASH SPINNER

WOULD Ray Mallon (Echo, Apr 7) invest any of his money in a gambling casino or anything else come to that? It is all very well spending other people's money when none of one's own money is put at risk. When Ford Motors decided to build a car plant here in Britain, the prime reason for doing this was commercial convenience, there being a workforce here in this country, next door to Europe, itself a market for cars.

In short, nobody like Ray travelled over to America to persuade Ford to build a car plant here in Britain. Why? Ford didn't need any persuading, the demography, etc. of so doing making commercial sense.

Meanwhile, if businessmen see profits in a gambling casino here on Teesside, they'll take no persuading to go ahead with this project. Just the OK from above. - Alfred H Lister, Guisborough.

AIRPORT SHARES

TO clarify your correspondent's comments (HAS, Mar 31) on Darlington Borough Council's (DBC) shareholdings in Durham Tees Valley Airport (DTVA).

Available to members of the public are audited accounts signed by the Mayor and borough solicitor for 2004 to March 31, 2005. Page 33 of the Statement of Accounts is as follows: DBC holds 6.66 per cent of shares in DTVA, 1,766,667 B ordinary shares are held with a balance sheet value of £1,766,667 and 174,900,000 deferred shares.

For those interested, the borough council has also been awarded a proportion of shares in Newcastle Airport. These have not been transferred to the council. Lawyers will, of course, be working on this. - Valerie Whitby, Darlington.

SELETAR REMEMBERED

ROYAL Air Force, Seletar, Singapore, was one of the most colourful and historic of the RAF's overseas bases. It closed in 1971, but is remembered affectionately by members of the RAF Seletar Association, which was formed in 1997 to bring together any personnel who served or were based at Seletar in any capacity, service or civilian, including families of those based there.

Should any readers wish to join with a view to renewing old friendships please contact me for membership details. - Sylvia Hardie, 25 Cranbrook Drive, Prudhoe, Northumberland, NE42 6QF.

POINT OF CONTACT

The letter headed Detection Offer from Norman Smith, of the Northern England Weekend Searchers, in yesterday's Hear All Sides contained an incorrect telephone number. The correct number for Mr Smith is 07834 652569. We apologise for the error.