Sir: "Our politics would have been far healthier, writes Patrick
Cosgrave (August 31), "had Labour taken a stand for and the Tories a stand against the (Abortion) Bill."
Neater, tidier, simpler, they might have been. But many Labour MPs support Mr Cosgrave's views on abortion; why should they have been forced to outrage their consciences merely because the Cabinet decided to give the Bill time? Many Tories supported the Bill: is it really healthier for MPs to cast votes against their most profound political and religious beliefs?
Dr Cosgrave's argument could be applied to hanging, or homosexual law reform, or Sunday observance, or any of the other issues which cut across party lines. It is amazing that he should wish to see our Parliamentary process made more rigid and more subject to the dictates of the whips.
Andrew Turek 15B Walnut Way, Ruislip, Middlesex,
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