11 JULY 1998, Page 24

Laboured advice

Sir: I suppose, even though he used to work for the Labour party, some of Mr Hill's advice (`Your turn to do the business', 27 June) to the Conservative party might have been well meant, but he rather gave the game away when he described Alan Dun- can as a joke. Surely this is the clearest evidence we yet have that the Labour party knows that Mr Duncan can land a punch on them, and that he and Ann Widdecombe are proving a highly effective shadow health team.

Anthony Cavendish

Redlands, Sherfield-on-Loddon, Hampshire