24 MARCH 1984, Page 18

The real mother

Sir: The true meaning and, more important, the implications of the phrase 'the mother of Parliaments' may now have disappeared beyond recall. The belief that the phrase simply refers to the seniority of the Westminster body seems so widespread that this letter is probably in a lost cause.

But since Charles Moore is the latest to use the phrase in this way in the pages of the Spectator (`Political commentary,' 3 March) perhaps it is worth one last attempt to recall the original quotation in the hope that he will then, in his new capacity as editor, vet future contributions. What John Bright said was: `England is the mother of Parliaments.'

Christopher Dunkley

38 Leverton Street, London NW5.