Lawrence Brewer must have a very strange sense of humour to find Labour’s pledge to repeal the “bedroom tax” hilarious (Letters, April 18).

The disastrous effect of that tax on many vulnerable people is now well documented – and is far from being a joke.

Even Tory grandee Lord Tebbitt has warned it could cost his party votes.

As I said in my original letter, I am proud that the Labour Party leads the fight against it.

And since Mr Brewer is concerned about the NHS, I am also proud that during the period of the last Labour government we had the shortest waiting times since NHS records began, saw new medical schools (like ours in Brighton) to train the doctors of the future, built new hospitals (like our children’s hospital) and that the NHS employed 89,000 more nurses compared with 1997 when Labour was elected.

Incidentally, I notice Mr Brewer didn’t attempt to defend the “bedroom tax”.

Purna Sen, Labour Parliamentary candidate for Brighton Pavilion