25 SEPTEMBER 1999, Page 41

LETTERS Not-so-brief encounter

From The Rt Hon. Lord Tebbit Sir: Frank Johnson is entitled to have some fun at my expense by misrepresenting my views (Shared opinion, 18 September), so let me make it plain that when I spoke to the Sunday Times about Mr Portillo my support was given in the belief that he had no more than a brief homosexual encounter when little more than a school- boy, which I am told is not that uncommon.

I entered the caveat that I felt Mr Portillo had more problems over establishing his political than his sexual identity. Unhap- pily, what Mr Portillo had represented as the truth was not the complete truth and we now know his deviance continued for almost a decade.

It would be a pity if Mr Johnson's irre- pressibly mischievous humour detracted from the far more important point which he made. As a liberal free-market capitalist deregulator and denationaliser, I rejoice that we have won the battle of economics so decisively. As a result, even under a Labour government the economy is doing well.

Sadly, those who take my view about social affairs have lost the battle. As a conse- quence, while we become materially richer, our society sinks into a moral morass, crime — especially violent crime — escalates, our institutions, from the Monarchy and Parlia- ment to the Church and Marriage, fall into disrepute, 12-year-old mothers are com- monplace, family life is unknown in large tracts of our inner cities, and educational standards have been in long-term decline.

Yes, I can imagine a man with a gay past being elected prime minister. My views of what is right have not changed but society has. However, I remain 'a vocal critic of the permissive society' for that has shown itself to be a sad and mean society.

The difficulty for those of us who are economic liberals and social dirigistes is a mirror image of those who are economic dirigistes and social liberals. We have set loose capitalists to exploit sex and hedo- nism as profitable businesses. Our oppo- nents know that state control of the econo- my gives state control over society. Those who are liberals all through or statists all through may be more consistent, but their societies have little to recommend them in practice.

Tebbit

House of Lords, London SW1