Letter: Where is the freedom we voted for?

Sir: It is complete nonsense to suggest that a Freedom of Information Bill could not be ready in time for the first session of the new Parliament. If Gordon Brown believes that legislation could be ready to change the status of the Bank of England, an event that, unlike the Freedom of Information Act, has not, as far as the public is aware, been many years in the preparation, then so could this legislation.

Many of us, in the absence of proposed policies and measures, would like to feel that the new government is intending to be true to the spirit of its pre-election utterances. These include those of Tony Blair, quoted by Maurice Frankel in his admirable letter (8 May). We need a change of culture, and we need some real democracy.

What have we seen in the first week of the new government? Quite the opposite. The clear message that the Parliamentary party will be controlled from the centre, and that one of the most important moves towards democracy is to be deferred. Is this really what the electorate, in particular the hard-working members of local constituency parties, really voted for?

JULIET SOLOMON

London N10