SIR, Since writing to you last week about council media policy threatening freedom of speech, another worrying example has been drawn to my attention. I have been shown a letter in which a council official rebukes one of our councillors for going public with their views. This behaviour is deplorable. One can understand that officials may be irritated or embarrassed when it is suggested that not everything in the council-administered garden is perfect, but they shouldn't try to close down debate. Hacking has taken on a new meaning. Officials who try to chill our public life are the new hackers – they are hacking away at our community's freedom to live a well-informed public life. Charles Boase (Monmouth)