Brian Abbott has made a very well informed response to Hillary Benn's attempted rebuttal of the Corporate Watch/Independent analysis of UK corporations in Iraq. Repairing damage that we caused (20 March 2006) Sir: Hilary Benn's statement, (letters 18 March) that " ... UK aid has helped to seal 4,880 leaks in water pipelines across the south-east of Iraq and has repaired electricity transmission lines from Hartha power station to Basra city, securing electricity supplies for 1.5 million residents", is received by most people in the full knowledge that British and US air attacks caused the damage to power stations and water systems in the first place, which was worsened by the "insurgents" (or, "freedom fighters") the illegal invasion provoked. We are just repairing some of the damage the UK and US did while providing huge profits to US and UK companies, to be paid for by Iraqi oil which will be in the possession of US companies. Mr Benn's claim that, "decisions about Iraq's future and its development are being made by the Iraqi people. To whom they go for help, advice and expertise is a matter for them" is not factual either. Before Paul Bremer, the "Pro-Consul", left Iraq, he pushed through legislation which shapes Iraq's economy as a neoconservative model, committing state-owned industry and its banking system to be privatised and opened up to foreign takeover. Import tariffs were to be set at 5 per cent, which would severely hamper local production, and even the maximum personal and corporate tax rates were to be set at 15 per cent, which would not allow the Iraqis to have a publicly owned health or education service. BRIAN ABBOTT CORK, IRELAND