It's not often that Obiter feels any sympathy for the beancounting profession. So why start now? In a letter sent last month to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, the Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies vented its spleen over the Law Society's audacity in suggesting that legal professional privilege - spot the key word - meant, in most cases, solicitors did not have to supply the Inland Revenue with information on their clients' tax affairs. 'We write to express our extreme concern... unfair advantage... have made a number of representations about this issue... undermine seriously the effectiveness of the legislation,' the CCAB blathered on. And there was more: '... will not create a level playing field... impasse... wholly unsatisfactory... needs to be clarified as a matter of urgency.' All good knockabout stuff as the accountants face up to the prospect of losing a lucrative income stream. The only problem was that when the Gazette contacted Gordon - OK, the Treasury press office - for a response, they came back to say they didn't 'have a trace of the letter' and could we fax it over. Let's hope the Royal Mail or whoever delivered the letter are ready for an earwigging because the accountants are clearly very unhappy bunnies. 'Register our deep disappointment... lost letter... totally unacceptable... no wonder you're not meeting your targets... about time you were privatised...'