OH how I despair. Yet another would-be politician who reads what they want in any situation.

Sean Harkin (Letters, July 6) asks how Gareth Tidman could compare Cllr Barbara Ronson to Margaret Thatcher. Well, if he'd bothered to read the article properly, the first line said, "They were both the daughters of shopkeepers, but THERE THE SIMILARITY ENDS". To me, that means he wasn't comparing the two.

And exactly how bitter do you have to be to rant about the personal profile Gareth Tidman wrote.

Likewise, he goes on and on about the "excellent"-rated Labour Council. What he fails to recognise is that the ordinary voter on the street does not agree it is "excellent" and that is precisely why the electorate got rid of them. Far from the "you'll soon realise" attitude, maybe he would be as well to be humbled by the experience and explain how they are going to change.

Basically, Mr Harkin, your letter simply says that the Labour Council did nothing wrong and were excellent. This is clearly not what the public thinks, and telling us it is so won't make it so. Do politicians ever learn anything?

Kathy Gee

Pinfold Close

Westhoughton