WHAT A great spectacle the torch procession was through the County and Newport on Friday. It really has achieved its intentions of starting to get people into the Olympic mood as the games draw ever closer. And what an advertising hit for BMW. Every screen in the UK giving uninterrupted coverage of the procession with the big beamer following the torch bearer.

Here we are, the Government extolling the need to promote British Industry and what do the Olympic Committee do, say ‘Up Yours Britannia’ and Jaguar, Ford, Vauxhall, even Toyota, Nissan and Honda which are all made in this country.

Could you ever imagine the Olympic torch procession in Germany or France being blessed with a foreign-made cavalcade?

Not on your life, even if they were offered mega bucks to do it. It would not happen on principle. Who ever thought that one up should be hung, drawn and quartered as a traitor to the country’s manufacturing industry.

Nigel Collins, Longfellow Road, Caldicot