Who in hell do the owners of the Palace Pier think they are?

The West Pier is still - even in its current sorry state - a national treasure, a listed structure and one of the jewels of Brighton.

That its present condition is the result of three decades of indifference, in-fighting and apathy on the part of local government and local residents alike is neither here nor there.

It is still an acknowledged masterpiece of engineering and design the world over.

For the Noble Organisation to claim its revival will be unfair competition is ridiculous.

For nearly a century the piers existed in "competition" with each other.

I don't recall hearing that either of them was ever in danger of bankruptcy as a result. In any case, it is always being preached to us that competition in business is healthy.

Without wanting to sound snobbish, the Palace Pier in its present incarnation, together with the rather tacky Noble amusement emporiums, adds nothing to Brighton's reputation.

I do agree with Nobel director David Biesterfield on one point, although not for the same reasons. What is happening with the West Pier is indeed a scandal.

It is a scandal that nothing has been done for nearly 30 years to stop the decline and collapse of this beautiful and majestic structure - probably, after the Pavilion, the most frequently photographed site in Brighton and Hove.

When I left Brighton nearly 30 years ago, the West Pier had not long been closed to the public and the newly-formed Save the West Pier campaign was making vigorous efforts on the old girl's behalf.

It is depressing, having returned again to live in the town of my youth, to find the battle still ongoing, the same apathy, the same people bleating about it not being worth it and the same vested interests fighting to prevent the pier's restoration.

Surely the recent collapses and subsequent fires should make the worthy folk of Brighton and Hove only more determined to save this fragment of our joyous heritage?

-Stephen Warden, Mile Oak