Letter: Island records

Sir: Following your recent correspondence, the Isle of Wight is always delighted to be recognised as a unit of measurement. Its diamond shape is so imprinted on the British memory that it is often used to illustrate the size of other islands. 'Malta is half the size of the Isle of Wight' is a good

example.

Whether the world's population could stand on our surface is a question I would rather leave to your warring correspondents, but they should know that our generally accepted statistics are 23.28 miles long by 13.34 miles wide, covering an area of 147 square miles.

Yours faithfully,

JOHN STEWART HORSNELL

Chief Executive

Isle of Wight County Council

Newport, Isle of Wight