I note Norman Baker, MP for Lewes, now wishes us to "pay as we drink" water. This is the stark outcome of his call for compulsory water meters in every home.

Meters are fine for affluent middle-aged people with no children at home. But what about the poor, families with young children, and those with complex medical needs involving constant bathing and laundry demands?

If Mr Baker is really concerned about dwindling water supplies in the South East, he should place himself at the head of our campaign to overturn John Prescott's mad idea to build 648,000 homes here in the next 20 years.

-John Hodgson, Peacehaven