HANS Hammerschmidt complains about ‘Police operation’ signs in Between Towns Road (itself a bit of a porky, at least nowadays), despite there being no evidence for this for a fortnight.

It must be an undercover one then.

As for “Police follow this vehicle” proclamations on cash delivery security vans, the law of averages would suggest this is occasionally correct. I always assumed it was a misspelt or badly punctuated imperative.

Anyway, I hope that he is not insinuating that there is anything stupid or dishonest about our local constabulary.

My having introduced him to Diogenes, Hans cynically asks why we learn to read – in order to have a full appreciation of the Oxford Mail, of course.

On the subject of education, surely it matters little what the revised GCSEs are called. What’s in a name as Charlotte Dickens enquired? Apparently, just about any modification would be an improvement.

I am a shade worried that some of those on the Arts side will have trouble grasping a numerical, rather than alphabetical, grade classification, especially in reverse order, but I dare say some of the pupils will be able to help them out there.

On a more serious note, though, everything needs to be “more challenging, more ambitious and more rigorous” (Gove) throughout the whole educational process.

An ever-increasing amount of undergraduates, or percentage of those taking first-class honours, is by no stretch of the imagination indicative of a first-class system.

DAVID DIMENT, Riverside Court, Oxford