Red herring
Sir: The right wing mentality of a government floundering from one crisis to another with no clear sense of moral authority dictating its decisions, is. perhaps, best illus- trated by its recent appointment of a committee of inquiry to look into social security abuse.
For years vocal Tories have tried to whip up their supporters. and others, to believe that abuse is widespread and endemic in the welfare services, and this untruth- ful implication is rammed home by the committee's terms of refer- ence. What are the facts?
Investiitations under the Labour government into irregularities in 1969 involved a total sum of less than El million, and this was linked with about 7.000 prosecu- tions. To compare this with sus- pected and proved tax fraud is illuminating and makes my point. In 1966 there were 9.300 'dodging' cases, a figure which rose drama- tically to no less than 31 000 in 1969. Only about £16 million per year from a clearly widesnread, but not always easily proved fraud. was recovered for the Treasury and only about seventeen evaders were prosecuted.
Why is the Government's new committee to he presided over by a son of the late Archbishop of Canterbury, to he excluded from looking into tax abuses when it
ait will have comparatively little work to do in connection with matter already pretty well in hand? I leave your readers, in the light of my remarks, to draw their own conclusions about the creation of yet another 'red herring' to divert public attention away from the shark infested waters in which this Government is trying to make us all swim.
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