I was saddened to read Tony Mernagh's article about Toad's Hole Valley (The Argus, November 3).

It is blatantly obvious he wants to see this open space on the edge of our City covered in concrete and steel.

He says most people don't know where Toad's Hole is. That shows how little he understands the residents of Hove. Toad's Hole welcomes both residents and visitors alike into Hove.

Even with the advent of the bypass, the landscape qualities of this area remain substantially intact.

In fact, Toad's Hole has a landscape of some drama with long uninterrupted South/North views and a long sweep of semi-natural chalk grassland.

This is designated as AONB land. The steep Western slope is a site of Nature Conservation Interest (SCNI). Landscape value is one of the main criteria for a National Park and Toad's Hole certainly comes into that category.

The possibility of recreational use is another criteria. Toad's Hole qualifies here too.

Although privately owned, it is a significant de facto access area for local people and should be formalised.

This will only happen if it is included in the National Park. Prior to the construction of the bypass (A27), it was the gateway to the wider South Downs, particularly to Devil's Dyke and the edge of the North escarpment above Poynings.

Through its incorporation within the National Park boundaries, it would, in time, be possible to re-establish this gateway and local people's recreational access to the wider downland through an underpass beneath the A27.

For the last few years it has been shamefully neglected. With the right will on the part of the owner, the council and the police, we could put a stop to this problem.

For Tony to say the policy and resources committee's decision to have Toad's Hole included in the council's recommendations for the park "smacks of scoring points" is an insult.

Myself and my fellow Conservative councillors, along with the Goldstone Valley Residents' Association, have fought long and hard to protect this piece of land which acts as a green lung to residents of the nearby Stanford and Hangleton wards.

During the long, drawn-out debate over what areas of land should be recommended to be included in the National Park, Toad's Hole has been in and out like a yo-yo.

Last February the council voted it out again but that was when the ruling Labour group had a large majority.

This is not now the case. The Conservatives and the Greens have always consistently voted to have it included in the park and now in a council with no overall control, we have managed to get it back into the recommendations.

That is democracy at work, Tony, not point scoring. Nobody could question my commitment to this cause.

I now expect the council to produce a robust case in defence of the inclusion of Toad's Hole in the National Park.

To do anything less would be failing in its duty to carry out the democratic wishes of its councillors.

A half-hearted attempt will not do.

-Councillor Vanessa Brown, deputy leader of the Conservative Group, Stanford Ward