7 SEPTEMBER 2002, Page 26

Wales for the Welsh

From Mr Nicholas Bennett Sir: Despite Jan Morris's attempt to disguise her view that the Englishman should not buy a home in Wales ('Go home, Englishman', 31 August) as cultural patriotism, one has only to substitute 'English' with 'Jew' or 'Black' to understand why many of us find the current anti-English attitudes expressed by some in Wales and Scotland deeply offensive and unpleasant.

The histories of the four countries which make up the United Kingdom have been intertwined for many centuries, and a substantial proportion of the population, including my family, have forebears from all parts of the UK. It is ironic that Jan Morris mentions the Eisteddfod which this year took place at St David's in Pembrokeshire. Much of Pembrokeshire has traditionally been known as 'Little England Beyond Wales' ever since the Norman Conquest, and English has been the principal language for most of that period. At what stage does a settler become a native in Jan Morris's eyes?

Nicholas Bennett

(Conservative MP for Pembroke 1987-92), Bromley, Kent