5 FEBRUARY 1965, Page 13

Office Hours for MPs?

SIR,--The sort of reforms that Mr. Blenkinsop advocates would reduce still further the number of back-bench MPs with continuing first-hand experi- ence of the taking of responsibility outside the purely political field. This may not matter to a Socialist, who can be expected to favour anything that tends to centralise decision-taking, and to discount the value of free enterprise and individual acceptance of responsibility. But surely Leyton has shown that the electors of this country do not want to be represented or governed by political automata?

CRANLEY ONSLOW

House of Commons, SW I