30 JANUARY 1993, Page 27

Sir: Jack Holland writes that 40 million people in the

USA claim to be of Irish descent and that therefore the USA could bring pressure to bear on British policy in Northern Ireland. What he excluded is the fact that the same survey showed that less than 50 per cent of the 40 million were of Irish/Gaelic persuasion and that the majori- ty in the USA claimed to be Scotch/Irish the same roots as the British majority in Northern Ireland!

John D. Taylor

House of Commons, London SW1