IN her regular column Fran Richman - dubbed Worcester Women during the 1997 General Election - takes a look at the war.

Today she looks at issues of trust and deception.

"I think what has come to the forefront in the last couple of days is the power of the media and the spoken word. There is a strong sense of a psychological - as well as a technological - battle going on."

"We have had all the images of the war, with reporting almost reaching saturation point. Now we are seeing the power of words to persuade, with Saddam's rhetoric controlling his people and followers."

"You can see how he uses awe, fear and intimidation to control his men. Even when we see him on television we do not know if it is really him. Saddam's power is in misleading and deceiving other people."

"The British and Americans seem to focus much more on trust. Politically, George Bush and Tony Blair are both trusting to victory, the troops are trusting the Government as well as their colleagues, and the public has faith in the troops."

"There seems to be more assurance and professionalism among the Allied troops because of this trust."

"All I can hope is that the Iraqi people go that extra mile in their trust and support the British and American troops who are trying to free their country."