In his understandable concern about the deficit in the local goverment pension fund, Derrick Cockman (Letters, December 7) makes a number of points about local government pensions which need to be challenged.

Firstly, there is no such thing as a "Brighton And Hove City Council Pension Fund". The city council is a member of the East Sussex County Council Fund which covers more than 50 employers in East Sussex and many thousands of its citizens.

All these people need looking after in retirement, Mr Cockman.

Which is preferable? That they are helped by pensions which they have contributed to or that they claim means-tested benefits funded out of general taxation?

Mr Cockman also suggests local government workers contribute nothing to their pension scheme whereas in fact they contribute six per cent of their pay every day, week and year of their working lives - and we will have to contribute to the deficit as well because, guess what, we're taxpayers, too.

In case anyone thinks we are talking about fat cats on big pensions here, I should point out the average local government pension is £3,800 per annum. Yes, it is true we have a final salary scheme, something of which we are justly proud and something which we pay for.

I do not see how it helps workers who have lost such schemes for public sector pensions to be levelled downwards. Final salary schemes are worth defending and Unison members working in local government will fight to defend them.

-Andy Richards, chairman, Brighton and Hove Unison, Town Hall, Brighton