Sir: - In a report entitled "Revolt on the left", Marcus Roberts deputy general secretary of Fabian talks of Labour's UKIP problem and it how can be overcome.

To date many senior Labour figurers have been unable to agree on whether a UKIP problem really exists and if it does how problematic it is likely to prove. In this new Fabian report he argues that UKIP poses a clear and present danger (a familiar phrase?!) to Labour's 2015 hopes and if left unchecked could threaten to pull apart the party's historic electoral coalition and challenge it in large swathes of its heartland territory.

Policy - Labour should stress a combination of cost of living rises/price freeze, increasing the minimum wage, capping rent increases with policies that speak to what he describes as UKIP "considerers".

Beyond this Labour should consider promoting more contributions in welfare, ringfence a large number of its proposed 200,000 new houses for local people and switch from EU free movement of labour to fair movement of labour.

The report stresses that there are those in the party who are complacent about the "UKIP effect" . It means that UKIP's powerful and effective narrative ... resonates strongly with with labour's traditional working class voters. It describes five groups of UKIP "considerers": a. struggling families b. blue-collared strivers c. ageing council estate households d. deprived and disaffected voters e. "transient youth". (I am unsure where I fit into this?)

(Wendy Hands)

(Upton-upon-Severn)