IT seems the change to the religious curriculum in schools now being considered is the latest move by the Government to 'dumb down' standards.

The decline in church attendance coincides with the lowering standards in school exams, entrance to university, morals, respect for others and commitment.

While many atheists, agnostics and humanists are good people, it is the Christian tradition which gave us our culture in this country. We lose it at our peril.

All Government departments should read Gibbon's Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire.

Bridget Newton,

Wolsey Drive,

Bishopthorpe, York.

Updated: 11:12 Wednesday, February 18, 2004