Letter: Disabled, not ill

Sir: You confuse "mental health" and "learning disability" ("Peers challenge Blair again over welfare reforms", 9 November). Mencap is a charity representing the needs of people with learning disabilities, not people with mental illness. Learning disability is caused by damage to the brain or by genetic conditions. Down's Syndrome is perhaps the best known form. This is significantly different from a mental illness such as schizophrenia.

BRIAN RIX

(Lord Rix)

President, Mencap

London EC1