YOU reported (EA November 8) that South Swindon's Labour MP Julia Drown thought that Gordon Brown's recent mini-budget was giving help to more environmentally-friendly transport. While there may be an extremely marginal reduction of noxious emissions from lowering the duty on low sulphur fuel and thus encouraging conversion to this fuel in the longer term, the overall environmental impact of the tax changes is to increase the volume of traffic.

Labour does not make environmental policy its major concern as its present policy will increase traffic volumes (as you illustrated the problems in Swindon town centre recently). The effects of global warming are already beginning to bite when we see the increase in flooding. Public transport is becoming more run down and development of alternative, cleaner energy sources are woefully lagging behind the rest of Europe.

BILL HUGHES Secretary

Swindon and District Green Party