I DO think that Mollie Bennett (Letters, January 14) has missed the point and the tactics regarding the forthcoming referendum in the Falkland Islands as to determining their future arrangements.

This Government has always believed in selfdetermination for those areas not within mainland UK, evidenced by the mid- 1980s poll in the Falklands on the same subject (94.5 per cent in favour of retaining the status quo).

Similar polls have been held in Northern Ireland regarding acceptance of the Good Friday agreement, and of course in the not too distant future, in Scotland.

The Labour party did, however, under Tony Blair in 2002, ‘negotiate’ a position of joint sovereignty with Spain over Gibraltar, a proposal that was put to the people of Gibraltar, resulting in 98 per cent voting to remain within the UK.

Tactically, this is probably a clever move as President Kirchner in Argentina is under significant internal pressure with the unions and their economy, and is clearly trying to divert the attention of the country’s citizens from these matters on to the Falklands.

The question being put to the Falklands people has been formulated by the Islands Legislative Assembly and if, as expected, the islanders vote overwhelmingly to retain their current status, we can tell Argentina from a position of strength, to go away.

MICHAEL FORD, Warsash.