PITY the poor public. "Vitamin B Heart fear" screamed the banner headlines in the Daily Mail on Tuesday, September 6.

However, upon closer investigation, the scientist involved is forced to admit that the high doses used in the study were twice the potency that can be bought over the counter.

He goes on to say: "There is no need for people to stop taking these supplements that contain the lower doses".

Compare this bit of cheap sensationalism with a recent well researched Sunday Times report (Death of the magic bullet, July 31) that states that prescribed medicines kill up to 20,000 people a year in Britain alone.

I only mention the above because of the recent EU Directive that sought to ban a host of perfectly harmless vitamins and minerals from our shelves. Thanks to the public campaigning vigorously to their MPs, come the August 1 deadline, when many of these products were due to disappear, the Government retreated to lick their wounds, and the public were still able to buy these products.

In a recent interview, Labour MP Kate Hoey was reported as saying: "It was a failure of ministers to stand up for our consumers in Europe that led to this," referring to the speedy adoption of the Directive by New Labour.

She went on to say, the then Health Minister Melanie Johnson didn't handle the situation well, and "this campaign was a big factor in her losing her seat" - whereas the new minister, Caroline Flint is, "much more aware".

Kate Hoey goes on to say: "The EU is an undemocratic institution... and we should take every chance to drive a nail into its bureaucratic structure".

This is just as well, fellow vitamin takers, because the issue of potency levels for vitamins is due to be set by Brussels soon. I wonder what our MP Mike Foster will say?

When this Directive went through Parliament he not only voted for its adoption, he has subsequently defended it.

When challenged in these pages no less than three times to produce any evidence that vitamins are unsafe, he went all quiet.

Challenged again to debate the topic, guess what? More silence. One begins to wonder if Mike Foster reads his local paper.

DAVID BARRIE,

Malvern.