DEAR EDITOR - I attended the recent meeting in Droitwich where the application for the proposed Waitrose supermarket was on the agenda.

As a resident of Droitwich, with no political or other connections to this application, I went to the meeting to observe what I thought would be a demonstration of democracy in action.

How naive can a man be ?

I came away saddened by the demise of what I thought we Brits were most proud of - namely 'democracy.'

I shall treasure this word for a long time, as it certainly did not arise at this meeting, or perhaps matters were predetermined?

Roll on the next ballot box

H R Brennan,

Laurelwood Road,

Droitwich Spa.