THE people of the UK are renowned for raising money for charities of all kinds, but in these austere times there is a marked objection to the coerced involuntary subscription to foreign aid forced upon us by the government though taxation.

It would be interesting to learn if there is an act of parliament that enables the government to give away public money as a charitable aid and surely it is time for the public to say if this is acceptable by the way of a referendum especially as we are paying interest on the money the government is borrowing in order to give it away.

This is not sensible economics.

K E G PETERS, Steeple Close, Poole