MR R JOHN SMITH asks if I have heard of free speech. Yes, I have, and I have also heard that free speech brings responsibilities which should include some standards of decency and sensitivity regarding the feelings of others.

In this regard, Mr Banfield has, over the years, shown himself somewhat lacking. Mr Smith describes Mr Banfield’s words as sensible. Do we then infer that he also considers it acceptable that the Bible can with justice and truth be described as “a book of fairy tales by slave owning goatherds”?

Tom McCarthy, Gaer Park Parade, Newport