It is with increasing dismay that I read of the running sore of rubbish collection in Brighton and Hove (The Argus, August 30 and 31).

Frenzied tirades of abuse from the public and the views of ex-boss Steve White, attempting to heap the blame on the workers, won't help.

Haven't we been here before? Particularly disturbing were the venomous views of senior Socialist councillors couched in Thatcherite language.

The only phrase missing from their vocabulary was "the enemy within".

What is to be done? Clearly the public wants a reliable service and the refuse collectors want to get back to work.

The ball rests firmly with the Brighton and Hove City Council and its front organisation, City Clean.

It's no good the management waving a big stick and threatening to bring in the troops or the Government.

There is a first-class example close by. Lewes District Council is not a conurbation but it runs a first-class refuse service with an excellent relationship with the public and a kerbside recycling service.

If it can be achieved here, it can in Brighton and Hove.

But the political elite which runs Brighton and Hove recognises no areas outside its own boundaries - except when it wants to dump its sewage at Peacehaven or burn its rubbish at Newhaven.

-John Hodgson, Peacehaven