IN YOUR issue of August 13 Diana Wallis MEP expressed gratitude to the European Union for footing the 60 per cent compensation for farmers suffering during the foot and mouth crisis.

Lest your readers should be misled, I must point out that the United Kingdom is the second largest net donor to the European Union budget.

The funds that Brussels is going to pay to the farmers come from British taxpayers. We do not need to be grateful that the EU is willing to give us some of our own money back. Instead, we should ask what happens to British taxpayers' money that is sent to Brussels and is disbursed elsewhere?

W C Harrison,

Queen's Court,

Fetter Lane, York.

...In a recent report LibDem Yorkshire MEP Diana Wallis throws statistics about like confetti as she continually misrepresents the financial situation regarding the EU (NHS needs cash to catch up with Europe, September 3).

If she and her colleagues hate this country so much, why don't they emigrate?

She quotes Denmark as: "The evidence (that) speaks for itself" in supporting her EU membership argument.

She forgets the Danish people said an emphatic "no!" in a recent referendum on EU membership.

She also forgets (again) that the reason we are so short of money to maintain our UK public services is because we have to pay a compulsory membership fee to Brussels to be part of the EU which is four times more than the amount we get back in EU grants.

Which bandwagon will she jump on next to justify handing over control of our country and our money to foreign powers?

Bob Lewis.

Boothgate Close,

Howden, East Yorkshire.

Updated: 10:17 Wednesday, September 05, 2001