Low-life Politician of the Day

Most readers have probably come across the case of Carl Lewis, the man who is being taken to court by the Commission for Racial Equality, for organising a petition against the creation of a gypsy encampment in his neighbourhood. Now, via the Devil's Kitchen, I read about the equally disgusting treatment meted out to retired soldier Jake Reid, after he sent an e-mail to Dundee's lord provost, Labour councillor John Letford:

Mr Reid had sent two e-mails to Lord Provost Letford after being outraged by Mr Letford's failure to properly address the Queen during a royal visit to the city. He headlined his e-mail "Dundee and Dignity", and wrote: "Sir, You are an embarrassment to Dundee, when will you resign?"

Days later, a riot squad arrived at his door and ordered him to stop sending e-mails to the provost.

Mr Reid, 56, said: "I e-mailed the lord provost as a citizen of his city after I was embarrassed at his handling of two recent events. There was the official re-opening of Baxter Park, which Her Majesty the Queen attended, and Provost Letford mumbled, 'I'll now ask the Queen to open the park'.

"He has no protocol, no awareness of how to be around dignitaries, and I was embarrassed. It was the same thing at a recent veteran's parade in Dundee."

When he failed to receive a reply, Mr Reid sent a second e-mail to Lord Provost Letford, quoting A Man's A Man For A' That.

But Mr Reid was shocked when riot police suddenly arrived at his home in Dundee.

He explained: "Out of the blue, there is a knock at my door and the police are standing there, complete with a riot police van. The cops asked me if I had sent two e-mails to the lord provost.

"I told them that I had and they told me not to send him any more e-mails. But I said, 'Don't tell me not to write to an elected official'.

"When he retires I will stop, but not before."

I'd say that an "embarrassment to Dundee" is a fairly apt description of Letford. How else do you describe a politician who sets the police on those of his constituents who send him critical e-mails? Well, I suppose that a few terms do spring to mind, of which "self-righteous scum" would be among the more temperate...

As for the police: they have apologised, for all that that's worth. In the meantime, I would advise anyone in the Dundee area who has had their home burgled to send their lord provost an abusive e-mail: at least then there's a chance that the police will actually bother to come round.