R W Carden (Letters, December 2) refers to a number of cities and towns which had their own police forces and fire brigades.

Is he not aware before and after the war, Brighton - then a county borough - had its own police force, both foot and mounted, until 1964?

Brighton then lost its county borough status as a result of local government reorganisation.

I recall that a group of Jarrow (or Welsh miner) marchers was escorted by Brighton Police as far as the borough's eastern boundary (then Rifle Butt Road), where escort duty was handed over to police from another authority.

Prior to 1964, Brighton Police were second to none. In the summer, it was "shirt-sleeve order" - with distinctive and gleaming white helmets - but not now.

It was also innovative. It introduced traffic control signals rather like railway signals.

These were controlled by a constable on a permanent stand in the centre of cross roads.

The officer operated switches which raised or lowered the stop-go signal arms. All this was years before traffic signals as we now know them had been thought of.

-R J Sharpe, Sunnydale Avenue, Patcham