Letter: BSE in sheep

Sir: You report that the Ministry of Economy with the Truth - sometimes called the Ministry of Agriculture (Maff) - has sent a "restricted" memorandum to Whitehall departments telling them, in effect, to fend off questions regarding the possibility of there being BSE in sheep. It seems that they have learned absolutely nothing from the severe criticism they received during the BSE inquiry.

The only safe thing to do with Maff is to disband it. Maff has nearly killed off the beef industry in this country. Presumably it wants to do the same with the sheep industry by acting secretively and arousing peoples' fears - possibly groundless - about the safety of lamb.

ADRIAN CROSSLEIGH

Sutton, Surrey