Party members pass judgement on Redwood

From Mrs Janet Todd

Sir: May I congratulate you on your leading article (28 June), in which you point out that John Redwood's figures do not add up. This was agreed with some embarrassment by three eminent economists in a television programme last night. The tax cuts and other popular measures he proposes are to be paid for by cuts in local government spending and "waste".

The appalling election results in England, Scotland and Wales last May seem to be the main reason for the backbench unrest that the Prime Minister is seeking to quell. It would hardly be sensible for Conservative members to support a contender who promises inordinate tax cuts which would inevitably result in swingeing local government economies.

Waste has, as you remark, been on the Tory agenda for nearly 20 years. At first, it looked as if it could be the country's salvation, but after years of government effort we see that there are limits to what can be done without a lowering of standards and a vast increase in redundancies.

It is typical that Mr Redwood's manifesto makes no mention of how to deal with unemployment. To many people unemployment is the important political issue today, not only because of the vast numbers of unemployed, but because of the fear of unemployment that hovers like a spectre over the working class and the middle class alike.

The prospect of Conservative members voting against Mr Major or abstaining is one that most reasonable party members deplore. It is the Conservative members of Parliament who are on trial; if they fail the test, they will find themselves out of office, due to their own hysterical efforts to keep their seats.

Yours faithfully,

Janet Todd

Councillor (Conservative)

Oxfordshire County Council

Oxford

28 June