BORDON MP James Arb-uthnot visited Lucie Law- ton and her family at their home to hear at first hand the difficulties Lucie faces getting hold of books in a format she can read. Earlier in the week, before the MP's March 30 visit, Lucie had visited Westminster in the first ever blind and partially sighted children's mass lobby of Parliament. More than 100 blind and partially sighted children from across the United Kingdom descended on Westminster to demand their "right to read". The children were joined by teachers and parents at the lobby, organised by the Royal National Institute of the Blind (RNIB), as part of the Right to Read Alliance. Mr Arbuthnot said: "It is terrible that some children are being denied the opportunity to something as basic as reading. Lucie told me that at school she doesn't get access to the same choice of books as sighted children. 2008 will be the National Year of Reading and it is vitally important that all children have access to books they can read well before that date. I have already added my name to the House of Commons motion backing the Right to Read campaign and I shall be writing direct to the Education Secretary Alan Johnson MP and stressing how important reading is for the development of all our children. "Children like Lucie set a fantastic example to us all and it is essential that she should have access to school textbooks in a format she can read." The 24,000 blind and partially sighted children in the UK are losing out at home and in school because they can't always get hold of books in a format they can read such as large print, audio or braille. Nine out of 10 fiction books never make it into a format that blind or partially sighted children can read, and very few school text books are produced in accessible formats. Mr Arbuthnot is inviting people who believe that blind and partially sighted children and adults have the right to read the same books at the same time as their sighted peers to add their name to the Right to Read Declaration at http://www.rnib.org.uk/">www.rnib.org.uk/ righttoread. The Right to Read Campaign was launched in 2002 to tackle the shortage of books available to blind and partially sighted people and those with print- reading disabilities. The campaign's aim is for people with sight problems, dyslexia and print-reading disabilities to be able to read the same book, at the same time, at the same price as others. Currently, 96 per cent of books are never made available in large print, audio or braille. People with sight problems often have to wait months and years for even those few books. Audio books available commercially can be four or five times more expensive than the print. Many commercial audio books are abridged. Every day another 100 people will start to lose their sight. There are around two million people in the UK with sight problems - 24,000 are blind or partially sighted children. RNIB is the leading charity working in the UK offering practical support, advice and information for anyone with sight difficulties. If you, or someone you know, has a sight problem, RNIB can help. Call the RNIB Helpline on 0845 766 9999 or visit http://www.rnib.org.uk">www.rnib.org.uk