BILL Miller, MEP, attempts to present New Labour's action on tobacco advertising as a great victory for Europe (September 27). The truth is that it was a shameful sellout to Bernie Ecclestone for a #1m donation to New Labour which he then got back.

I was an MEP from 1994-99 and as vice-president of the Health Intergroup was closely involved in the struggle to reduce the death-rate from lung cancer which kills 500,000 Europeans every year. New Labour in Opposition was committed to a Europe-wide ban; indeed, I chaired a meeting of the Intergroup where Kevin Barron, the Labour Shadow Health Spokesperson, gave a clear assurance that Labour would ban tobacco advertising. Interestingly, he never got a job as Minister of Health - perhaps we now know why.

When New Labour changed its line to weaken the directive and support a long exemption for Formula One everyone in the European public health movement was disgusted and the Commission, the Council, and the Parliament were astonished. The story is that Tessa Jowell, the Minister of Health, had her brief rewritten from Downing Street in the middle of the negotiations. All the Labour MEPs knew the score but were told by Millbank to keep quiet as ''Formula One was very important for Britain''.

As we now know from Andrew Rawnsley's new book, Blair was terrified that the Ecclestone donation would finish him politically. Yet his Government faithfully carried out Ecclestone's wishes in Europe and exempted Formula One from the ban. It was an early sign that New Labour has more interest in the interests of big business than in the health of the people. No rewriting of history by Bill Miller can change that.

Hugh Kerr,

Mintaro Mews, Mintaro,

South Australia 5415. September 30.

THE thundering bureacratic lunacy which has come into play following on two E.coli outbreaks in the last 50 years defies belief. Hundreds of small family firms are now threatened with extinction because they do not have licences and some of them have been selling meat for generations. Yet the Government sees no problem in allowing shops to sell cigarettes which have killed infinitely more people in the same time, or accepting donations to promote advertising for cigarettes in motor racing, which has also killed infinitely more people in the same time.

In the same way as cigarette packets carry a warning, which has been a complete failure anyway, why cannot the butchers who do not satisfy the Government's so-called standards exhibit a similar warning and let the public decide what they want to do? Or, as usual, do the politicians know best?

Iain Sutherland,

18 Smith Terrace, Wick. October 2.