Letter: Labour values?

Which is worse: Labour's deputy leader making a crude joke about Danny Alexander's hair colour at Labour's Scottish conference (Letters, 1 November) or the fact that it was greeted with hoots of laughter and raucous applause by the Labour Party members and delegates gathered in the auditorium?

In the Labour Party of old, such a comment would have been greeted with gasps of disbelief and more than a few boos.

What does this reaction tell us about the Labour Party of today and what happened to those "Labour values" we keep hearing about?

Karen Burchill

Warrender Park Road

Edinburgh

Danny Alexander's hair colour is surely a result of his ethnicity. Does it then follow that Harriet Harman's comment were that of a racist?

Had she described the hair characteristics of a black or Asian politician, in her name calling of them, she would probably have already resigned with the likelihood of a police investigation hanging over her.

They do not come any more politically correct or over-zealous than Ms Harman so one wonders why her diversity obsession does not extend to Mr Alexander? Being white? Being Scottish? Being male? Being in power when she is not?

Or perhaps, despite years of denial, she is human and, like all of us, prejudiced about this or that.

Lawrence Fraser

Mayne Road

Elgin, Moray