Sir – What would the good folk of Witney do without the amusement provided by Witney Town Council?

Life would be the poorer.

Craig Murray, once Her Majesty’s ambassador in Uzbekistan, and now human rights campaigner, spoke about his experiences in Witney Corn Exchange.

The town council declared this a political event, and the poster announcing the talk was removed from the Corn Exchange.

So, pronounced the town council, Craig Murray could talk in the Corn Exchange, but this could not be announced in the Corn Exchange.

Negotiations with the town clerk ended without any decision about whether Craig Murray himself would be allowed to say that he was talking.

In the event, Craig Murray spoke without further intervention from the town council. He detailed his objection to the Uzbekistan custom of dealing with dissenters by boiling them alive, a solution surely of interest to Witney Town Council.

And yes, the event was one of a series of talks on matters of public interest, organised by the Green Party in the belief that there are benefits from thinking. Craig Murray is a Liberal Democrat.

Stuart Macdonald, Prospective Green Party Parliamentary Candidate for the Witney Constituency, West End, Witney