It's official: Tony Blair lives in a parallel universe (No more coded critiques - let's have an open debate on where we go next, Guardian June 27). His assertions of a society in which poverty, social exclusion and all the various symptoms thereof are on the decline under New Labour is simply preposterous.

Here are the facts: Britain has the worst social indicators of any nation in western Europe. We have the highest rate of child and pensioner poverty; the lowest-paid workers working the longest hours; the most underfunded healthcare and education provision; the highest-paid corporate and management executives; and the highest prison population.

Life expectancy for males in the poorest parts of the country are comparable to developing countries, and we hold the onerous title of the most violent society in the western world, according to UN figures.

New Labour, rather than a party of the millions, is a party of the millionaires. Our society has never been more polarised, and fanned by reactionary statements and speeches from Blair and his cohorts, a culture of Islamophobia and vigilantism permeates the police and security services at the same time as our judicial system has come under sustained attack.

I feel confident that all right-thinking people will join me in rejecting Blair's New Labour agenda of social and economic injustice at home, and imperialist adventures and wars abroad.
John Wight
Edinburgh