25 JANUARY 2003, Page 28

Anti-Tory hysteria

From Mr Ciaran Walsh Sir: I would like to thank James Delingpole (Why I daren't admit to being a Tory', 4 January) for reassuring me that I am not alone. As a 23-year-old postgraduate student, the most depressing trait espoused by my peer group is their steadfast refusal to listen to right-leaning views without the conversation descending into hysterical shrieking about siding with the BNP, etc. It seems that the default political position for members of my generation (from generally privileged backgrounds) is now not specifically Labour or Lib Dem but rather 'anti-Tory'. The fact that when pinned down on matters of policy many happily admit to knowing little about what each party currently stands for seems not to matter any more, and only makes the situation worse.

Being criticised by my Guardian-reading friends for taking The Spectator is one thing, but being criticised by the majority who blindly follow one another around in circles is quite another.

Ciaran Walsh

London N4

From Lady Hogg Sir: If it is any comfort to nice, Conservative James Delingpole (Arts, 4 January), who laments the success of some 35 people as compared with his own, I had heard of only three of them: a criminal, a politician and a media creature.

Elizabeth Hogg

London SW13