SIR – Regarding Maggie Thatcher’s recent funeral, I have read of people objecting to the expense of it all.

The 4,000 extra police get excellent wages and their overtime would be at the most for a day or two. The MOD personnel involved in the funeral did not get overtime. The MOD get their pay whether they do unpleasant tasks or do nothing.

When I did National Service we did some unpleasant work, like unloading open top railway carriages, attending a dock strike and dealing with grass and woodland fires, and no overtime or extra money was paid.

The civil servants and military commanders who organise all military parades in London are all well paid and do an excellent job. Their organising is the envy of many countries.

It costs the country nothing to close a road which can be done by council employees erecting signs and pavement barricades. And there are plenty of alternative routes in London.

Funeral expenses are usually paid from the person’s estate and do not fall on the taxpayer, and people attending a funeral pay their own costs.

W Robinson, Manor Close, Bradford