MADAM, I note with interest that not one county councillor has accepted my recent offer to show where council expenditure could be reduced without detriment to the tax-payer.

Be that as it may, I have now had chance to wade through my council tax information leaflets and have the following comments:

The council has done its best to confuse the tax-payer by changing the presentation of its 'facts'. In 2001/02 there were, according to the council, 5,900 employees costing nearly £97 million: in 2003/04 they state there are 4378 employees costing £104.5 million. This represents an increase per employee of over £7500 in two years.

However, a very recent advert for another council 'spin doctor' states clearly there are 6500 council employees. So, are we funding 5900, 4378 or 6500 council employees?

After all, as nearly half our taxes are paying for council staff costs it would be nice to know, precisely, how many there are!

Perhaps it is even more important for the tax payer to be told precisely what these staff do, particularly all the scores of 'managers' and others who are filling more and more non-jobs!

Last year we were all asked to pay an extra 50pence per week to fund an increase of 300 in West Mercia Police.

It is interesting to note that since 2000/01 there has been an increase in police numbers of 394.

What has never been mentioned in any document issued to me either by council or the Police Authority is why they have seen fit to recruit nearly 400 extra civilians in this same period.

Why has there been a need, every time a policemen/woman is recruited, to simultaneously recruit a civilian to support them?

Is it so that more and more meaningless, jargon-laden politically correct reports can be produced as listed in the West Mercia Police leaflet?

Again, it would be of more benefit to the tax-payer if we were told why it has been necessary to recruit these hundreds of people and what precisely they do.

WTW FREARY,

Station Road,

Credenhill, Hereford.