THE scale of public anger at fast-track extradition to the United States emerges today after The Times obtained statistics under the Freedom of Information Act.

The Home Office admitted receiving more than 1,000 letters from the public, along with 400 from MPs, about the removal of the former bankers known as the NatWest Three. David Bermingham, Gary Mulgrew and Giles Darby were sent for trial in Texas on fraud charges arising from the collapse of Enron.

The letters were unanimously against the Extradition Act, which lets the US request suspects from Britain without producing evidence. America declines to provide the same co-operation to the UK. The Attorney General?s Office received 259 letters, 13 from MPs. John Reid, the Home Secretary, has declined to answer a question from Nick Clegg, the Lib Dem MP, asking how many objections he had received because it would cost too much to find out.