Why did it take 11 months to act, while a 72-year-old next door neighbour went through hell, with deafening music from 8am until 5am, with banging and foul language and people staggering about drunk.

It's fine for environment boss Steve Smith to say this type of action is always a last resort, but the type of people he is dealing with do not hang themselves if you gave them too much rope, do they? Is there no respect for sleep anymore?

A HAGUE, Bellbrooke Grove, Leeds.

Weighting up potato costs

D Birch of Cookridge was complaining about the cost of potatoes at his supermarket (Letters, July 5), but the maths was wrong.

The two potatoes must have weighed .73 kilograms, not .7 grams which is more like the weight of a polythene bag. This equates to 26oz, not 14oz and 10oz, at £1.32, the cost would have been 88p per pound, not 96p. At £1.80 per kilogram, the cost per pound is 82p.

This is still pricey, so if D Birch is mobile, I suggest going to the Leeds markets, where there is a good range of potatoes at much less cost.

BRIAN WILLIAMS, Leeds 11.

Neglect that leads to floods

Having read your article regarding flooding in Leeds I have to say that if you walk around the city you will see storm grates full of silt.

In my street we haven't seen a gully cleaner cleaning the grates in years, all the grates are full to the top with dirt and we have even got weeds growing out of them.

So before you get onto people concreting their gardens, I suggest that you have a word with the council about getting the grates cleaned.

J.M. Rudge-Priestley


We keep hearing about the distress people are still suffering from the effects of the floods of 12 months ago.

I find it hard to believe that the Government of this country can find excessive amounts of money to send to foreign countries for any kind of emergencies that foreign countries suffer and yet do not immediately make sure our own people are cared for.

E ALLEN, Whitkirk,
Leeds.