SIR - Successive British governments have cheerfully sold weapons to almost anyone who would buy them. Prime Minister David Cameron recently toured the Middle East with a team of arms salesmen.

The Coalition Government, while severely cutting public services at home, is intent on selling more weapons abroad. Only last year, 50British arms producers attended an arms fair in Libya.

These arms fairs are elegant events with smart suits and wine. Supported by svelte young women in tight dresses, the arms salesmen conclude deals worth millions, and express the fervent hope that their user-friendly equipment will give complete satisfaction.

No mention is ever made of the shrieking hell these products are creating, with dismembered bodies and mutilated children. Like the slave trade two centuries ago, Britain’s massive involvement in the arms trade is a shameful blot on our national character.

Arthur Wright.

Pen Tirion,

40 Townsend Avenue,

Seaton