Letter: Countryside march

MANY of the problems afflicting Britain's countryside emerged during, and were partly caused by, the previous Conservative governments.

The paucity of local transport in rural areas is a consequence of the privatisation and deregulation of public transport. The closure of village schools was started under the Conservatives, reflecting their obsession with "cost-effectiveness". The desecration of the countryside by urban sprawl and new motorways or bypasses also derived from the Conservatives' willingness to let market forces run riot.

Why, therefore, did the "non-political" Countryside Alliance not organise marches when the Conservatives were still in office?

PETE DOREY

Bath