MY old friend Cy Roberts can always be relied on to get to the heart of a problem and his dissection of Maid Marion and her merry men is an example of this. However he does not list her numerous faults and it may be useful to do this.

We have a £1.1 million 'black hole' in the council finances so what does she want to do to remedy this?

Close the outreach offices which are of great help to many; farm out the Link Line which is vital to the aged, infirm or handicapped;  shut the tourist information offices which back the major industry of the area;  spend £400,000 on improvements to the Taj Mahal at Coleford;  and the latest, which leaves me totally flabbergasted, waste £25,000 on publicity brochures the taxpayers have already paid for.

I have long felt there is no place for party politics in local government and think it would be an excellent idea if it was abolished and every councillor voted for the benefit of their electors and not the party. 

I am sure the 'black hole' could be filled by reducing or totally cutting out the cost of Maid Marion and her 'cabinet;'  forget about the projected work at Coleford; forget about the proposal to pedestrianise Lydney;  get rid of a few more of the overpaid and underworked mandarins at Coleford (friend Perrin was a good start although his goldplated pension and other perks are still round our necks).

I could go on but perhaps I have made my point. – B. C. Baker, Allastone Road, Lydney.