Just for the record, I am writing following the news focus about my 'Listening to Britain' meeting in Camberwell ('Hammond dregs', 18 March).

While I do not necessarily disagree with the conclusions about that particular meeting, you should be aware that it was not typical. The following week I attended a 'Listening to Britain' meeting in Tunbridge Wells which was attended by about 60 people, including representatives of voluntary organisations, local GPs, hospital doctors and a trust chief executive, as well as local councillors (including Liberal Democrats). That meeting was highly productive and the 'Listening to Britain' exercise overall has provided us with a useful insight into the changing views of healthcare professionals, as the government's own programme evolves and some of the more obscure details of it become apparent.

Philip Hammond MP

Opposition spokesman on health and social services