PARTICIPANTS at The Straits Times' 12th annual gathering for Forum writers yesterday were brimming with ideas on how the Forum and the newspaper can be improved. Over 200 people attended the event at the Singapore Press Holdings auditorium in Toa Payoh North. Among them were published letter writers and representatives from the private sector. ST received 26,253 letters in the first nine months of the year, of which 3,938 were published.

The top five hot-button issues this year were the National Library Board's children's books saga where more than 130 letters were received within two weeks, private health-care costs, the CPF Minimum Sum, the Health Promotion Board's FAQ on sexuality, and Causeway tolls.

CAROLYN KHEW