ONCE again our local MP, Conservative Mel Stride, uses his Benchmark column (Times, February 7) to engage in party politicking, rather than keep us, the people who voted for him, in touch with what he is doing to represent us. 

I am one of a great many local folk who have no issue with the moral argument for equalising the size of Westminster constituencies, but am glad the Government's gerrymandering was voted down.

Why?  Because despite claiming they wish to see equal sized constituencies the Tories refuse to use actual population figures to re-draw the boundaries. Why would they do that and pick instead a measure that does not represent the actual population of the various areas of our nation? 

Indeed, as those folk who voted Conservative at the last election because they were fed up with New Labour's political spin will be realising, the Tories are as bad, if not even worse, for obfuscating than the previous Government.

Before Mr Stride indulges himself in any more party grandstanding perhaps he'd like to justify to us why it is reasonable to redraw constituency boundaries on statistics that do not represent the actual population of the country?

Dave Goodwin

Sticklepath