Dear Editor, No one could disagree on the importance of defeating terrorism nor the controversial nature of Government plans to allow people suspected of involvement in terrorism to be held in custody for 42 days before they are informed of any charges. Therefore I would like to agree with Mr Minnis (letters, Post May 31st) that an informed debate on the question is desperately needed.

Unfortunately his argument against the civil liberties campaign Liberty does nothing to inform such a debate. His thesis that some countries who do not allow excessive periods of detention without charge have other problems with their legal processes may be true.

However, this does not change the fact that no comparable country detains people without trial for the period proposed by this Government nor does it justify extending pre-charge detention periods here.

Indeed no argument in Mr Minnis' letter justifies the increase in pre-charge detention; I would suggest this is because none currently exists.

No legal case has been abandoned because of lack of time and alternatives to detention without charge exist where cases are complex or potentially involve a number of accused.

This has been pointed by Liberty and, as someone who is proud to have worked for Liberty in the past and who is currently member, I might be expected to take their side.

However it has also been pointed out by, amongst a growing list of others, the Parliamentary Select Committee on Home Affairs, the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights and the ex-chief constable of the West Midlands Geoffrey Dear.

Mr Dear correctly described this move as the best recruiting sergeant Al-Qaeda could dream of.

Bad laws make difficult situations worse, they do not solve them. I am glad that organisations like Libertyexist to point this out and I am sad Mr Minnis prefers to attack them rather than address the problem.

We desperately need an informed debate- perhaps it is time for The Birmingham Post to host it?

Yours sincerely

Douglas Jewell

Oxford Road, Birmingham.

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The day John's Egyptian birds made an emergency landing

Dear Editor, Like most of the Birmingham and West Midlands business community, I'm sure, I am so sad that John Duckers is leaving your august publication.

I have been privileged to know a long line of 'Post' business editors over the last 40 years and John must figure among the best.

That he wrote without fear or favour is uncontested but behind that droll sense of humour as John Bright's vicar on earth was an undiminished sense of integrity and fair play.

When he felt there was a need to speak out he did so and made many a chief executive wince.

He also had a crusading zeal if he felt it was necessary.

For my part I have many unforgettable memories to demonstrate the earlier points I have made but none more so that in 1990 when John was among several senior journalists I took to Egypt on behalf of Tarmac plc.

Tarmac was involved with the Cairo main drainage and sewage contract which involved sinking huge silos into the ground and eventually not only giving the city a clean water supply but also preventing something like 200 sewer floods a week.

John was the first to descend one of the huge shafts and inspect the work that was going on some 700 metres down and his quick quips were at the heart of some hilarious conversations well into the wee small hours.

The next day on our way to see another aspect of the project we got stuck in traffic for what seemed to be an eternity. I opened the window of the car in which we were travelling and began chatting to a Muslim woman in purdah who had about six pigeons tied together on her lap.

She smiled benignly and proceeded to hand the pigeons over to me - and our driver said we should accept them as to give them back would be insulting.

However as soon as I had I taken hold of the string by which they were tethered the pigeons flew into the back of the car and landed in Duckers's lap by which time the taxi carrying the Muslim woman had now moved off out of sight

Duckers said he had never had so many 'birds' on his lap and you can imagine how the conversation went from then on.

Suffice to say that at a suitable location outside the city half an hour later we let the pigeons go free - not that any of us fancied pigeon pie anyway.

And so John we must all salute your efforts on behalf of Birmingham and West Midlands industry and commerce and wish you every success with the rest of your career.

Ken Jackson

Sandon, Stafford.

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Get in some training now

Dear Editor, I agree with resident smoothy John James about Post Business Editor John Duckers taking early retirement that it is the end of an era (Post, May 30).

How will the licensed trade in Birmingham cope? That one is easy to answer! Now that Duckers is working for Andy Skinner, part of his job is to buy the rest of us drinks. After all, what are PR people for.

John will still have to take some stick from readers whenever Moseley play Coventry or Bees.

Us at Fortress Butts will enjoy drinking him under the table. So John better get in training for the new season.

Yours sincerely,

Chris Youett, Spencer Avenue, Coventry.

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Why there is still good news about fuel prices

Dear Editor, I have a simple question to everyone moaning about petrol/diesel fuel prices going up. If it's really so expensive then why is it that traffic, car and lorry use is seemingly increasing year on year? If something becomes truly expensive then it becomes less affordable and therefore less used?

Sure costs are increasing but what that can and should do is to reduce car use, promote car share, eventually put more freight back on to rail (with the right incentives) and hopefully it will benefit all of us, including the planet.

COLIN TROTH

Birmingham.