Despite my ragings at the CA, watching a news report on Channel 4, I have to say that I could identify with some of the issues that some people on the demo were talking about.

Individuals complained about the village post office closing and the lack of affordable housing with rich sods buying all the property. I can sympathize with that last one - priced out of the housing market as I currently am.

However my problem with them is that I think they're just anti-Labour and will vote Tory at the next election. I think if Blair and the left ignore this we, on the left, could be in real trouble.

The CA's populism will gain support, especially from the likes of the Daily Mail and Telegraph, who were on hand to give out free papers yesterday.

I berated a crowd near Waterloo, "Where were you lot during the miners strike and the poll tax" to which someone replied "in court".

We have similar grievancies.

As I battled through the crowds to get to Leics Sq I said "Watch out, socialist coming through" and asked the cops where were there cameras today. I later found out, from the Channel 4 news piece that the police cameras were out but at the front of the demo. The cameras weren't even aimed at the demo. So who were they aimed at? Anti-hunt activists?

What annoyed me most about the protest is that everyone looked quite well off. But as ever I want to find common ground but still I felt real opposition to their march. Perhaps it's just envy. 300,000 and up is some demo. But then again it's only an annual event. We on the left are out in all weathers all year round.

Gary Jarvis