I READ with interest a letter from Anthony Howarth (LET, January 5), lots of conjecture but very little fact or substance.

Who exactly are these unelected Commissioners in Brussels? I was under the impression the British had the biggest representation of Commissioners in the EU.

What are the policies these Commissioners "regularly" decide and which countries do they make adhere to these policies?

I cannot imagine anyone in Brussels or Strasbourg forcing the Italians, the French or the British to accept any policies that bypass their elected governments.

Mr Howarth also mentions "own Governmental European lackeys," what does this phrase mean and who are these lackeys and why do they wish to "introduce regionalisation by the back door?"

On many occasions I have seen contributors to this page complain about the possibility of regional government becoming a reality. Why are they so against regional government?

Taking into account obvious scepticism about the abilities and motivations of local politicians, logically the introduction of regional government would remove power from central government and give more power to local people.

I live in Switzerland, the most successful democracy on this planet. This democracy is totally founded on regional government with a system of referendum for national issues. Each Kanton sets its own tax levels and organises its own services such as the police force.

Switzerland has a Prime Minister, but he has about as much power as the Queen does in England. Many countries have successful regional governments; it is national governments that cause most problems.

Perhaps Mr Howarth would prefer to keep The House of Lords, the useless retirement home for failed politicians and unemployed landowners.

A couple of weeks ago we witnessed the farcical Honours List, Bruce Forsyth honoured for services to "tap dancing," Tom Jones knighted for services to "hip rotation," Gordon Ramsay for services to "expletives" and some bloke got an award for inventing snail soup. Why perpetuate these obsolete institutions and practices? Perhaps Mr Howarth would prefer to keep the old retirement home going, but surely a far more sensible and relevant alternative would be regional government.

As usual the egotistical politicians would spend billions on new buildings to satisfy their self-manufactured status, but eventually regional government should bring the decision-making processes to the regions that are specifically affected by those decisions.

KEN HOLDEN, Hubersdorf, Switzerland.