The councillors who run Brighton and Hove need to do some serious thinking.

I have always believed that party politics are not good at a local level; party doctrine and ideals invariably cause friction.

During the city’s recent rubbish dispute, political parties followed their own agenda.

In fairness, the Greens received the largest share of the vote in 2011, though I suspect this support was partly out of protest. No party will admit its support was a protest vote; it will claim a mandate to implement its agenda.

The electorate must accept that if it wishes to register a protest vote, it should be aware of the policies of the party it’s voting for.

Upon taking office, the Greens tried to impose “meat-free Mondays” on council employees. They gave a green light to travellers and large-scale cycle lane schemes are causing problems. The refuse strike was poorly handled – a situation worsened by letting unelected council officials handle negotiations. Their only MP speaking out against Page 3 girls while the streets of her local government counterparts were full of rubbish was a terrible spectacle. This was coupled with the sight of the party’s councillor’s standing on picket lines while their leadership opposed the strike.

I appreciate the Greens are a party with little governing experience, but these episodes will long be remembered.

The opposition parties did not distinguish themselves during the strike; they seemed happy to gloat while things deteriorated.

Over the summer, all councillors need to think about the next two years. If the Greens continue to perform badly, opposition parties need to act together. If the Conservative and Labour groups can put aside their differences, there is no reason why a temporary administration cannot take charge.

Richard J Szypulski, Lavender Street, Brighton

I don’t think it is right to abandon democracy in our town halls and hand all decisions over to unelected officers (The Argus, June 26).

With local councils and communities having their funding slashed by a quarter under George Osborne’s austerity cuts, it is surely more important than ever that local people have their say on essential services via the ballot box.

Whether that is through an elected mayor or local councillors rooted in the communities they serve, residents must set the direction for local government as cuts impact on every aspect of council services.

It’s wrong to suggest that political disagreement is just “posturing” and that services continue whoever is in office.

Many residents care deeply about whether their local services are privatised, as the Conservatives want to do, or whether they continue to be delivered in a local and accountable way by councils, as I believe they should.

Council officers are the ones with the skills and expertise to offer alternatives, provide information and deliver solutions, but it must be up to locally-elected councillors, drawn from local residents, to set policy direction and make difficult decisions.

We’ve seen the consequences of the Greens failing to do that, and because of Tory cuts many more tough decisions lie ahead.

Warren Morgan, leader of the Labour and Co-operative Group, Brighton and Hove City Council