I must take issue with two recent correspondents. First of all, I have to tell Lib/Dem Bill Brison that the vast majority of people are proud of the tremendous improvement in our parks and the wonderful floral displays in the town.

Also I can tell him that we have been very successful in obtaining a great deal of sponsorship from local firms who are also proud to be part of a vibrant, attractive town. They recognise that it makes good business sense encouraging visitors and locals alike to spend their time and money in our borough.

The same points apply also as a response to Tory David Ogden. Instead of congratulating our workforce on the considerable achievements, he complains because all our parks have not yet got green flag' status. I would like to inform him that our park ranger service was recently acclaimed to be in the country's top five. Oh, and one of our allotments got a green pennant.

Like it or not Mr Ogden, Bury has a higher proportion of green flag parks than any other borough. And shouldn't we be praised after being asked to represent the north west in next year's Britain in Bloom?

I must also correct the silly statement about us trying to close the market. Far from it; we wanted to expand it and also obtain extra investment in the borough, bringing new jobs and opportunities.

With regard to finance, I can tell both Mr Brison and Mr Ogden that the average council tax in Bury is well below the national average and certainly below most Conservative and Lib/Dem authorities.

I would add that despite this low spending, we have a high national reputation and excellent inspection results on a wide range of services. These are the real facts.

COUNCILLOR JOHN BYRNE, Executive Member for Environment, and Transport