SIR – It might interest Terry Tordoff (T&A, July 10), to know that quangos were established in the USA by the private sector.

They declined in the 1970s, but grew again in the 1980s and 1990s. In the UK they are non-departmental bodies that are neither part of a central government nor part of local government.

Yorkshire Forward is a quango (quasi non-governmental organisation) entirely funded by the Government, but has had to make cuts of £40 million this year after ministers slashed its budget.

Worse still, it is being scrapped altogether in 2012, which means, in essence, Bradford will lose millions of pounds for funding projects.

Mr Tordoff says quangos are paid a great deal of money for doing very little. Really?

Well, he must not have seen the schemes affected by the cut in Yorkshire Forward’s budget (the T&A published a list on July 2) who will get zilch after it is wound up.

David Rhodes, Croscombe Walk, Bradford