CONGRATULATIONS to Martin Vander Weyer (letters April 12) for objecting to what is now known in local political circles as the Keith Orrell Ego Trip Broadsheet.

For some years now and quite contrary to my wishes, I have been subjected to copies of Focus and Ryedale Recorder, pushed through the door by some faceless wonder who never bothers to knock.

I have known copies of Focus that mentioned Keith Orrell's name 17 times. The issue of Ryedale Recorder delivered November 16, 2000, mentioned his name 16 times, plus featured nine separate photographs of this king of the personality cult. Are there no other Lib-Dems in Ryedale prepared to put a stop to this egoism?

But the more serious point in Mr Vander Weyer's letter is of course that a vote for the Lib-Dems under Charles Kennedy's leadership, is a vote for Blair. Is that what the public of Ryedale want?

Kennedy sits on the opposition benches in the House, but spends more time in side-swipe attacks on William Hague than he does the Labour Front Bench. The most telling statistic of all is that throughout this Parliament of nearly four years, Lib-Dems have voted with Labour in more than 85 per cent of all divisions.

Please, Mr Orrell, get off the ego-train and give more editorial space to your colleagues and less to yourself!

Updated: 13:45 Thursday, May 03, 2001