Surely Peter Osmond and Councillor Peter Berry (Opinion, March 8) miss the point with their comments on the sale of the Adur District Council paintings.

By my estimation, in order to generate interest of £1,200 a year, the council would have to sell the paintings for about £25,000, which would then be placed on deposit to yield £1,200 interest - but, at the same time, the capital would be counted as part of the council's reserves.

Cllr Osmond says the paintings must belong to all the people of Adur.

Yes, they do, as does everything else the council "owns" on our behalf - every council house, public park, stone on Shoreham beach. I only wish people were as vigilant over the disposal of these other "assets".

Whether this is a publicity stunt by Councillor Parkin or not I do not know but it has certainly succeeded in concentrating people's minds on the problems the new administration has faced in setting its first budget.

It was elected last May and inherited the spending plans of the outgoing administration, as the Government never tires of telling us it also did.

I suspect the out-going Tory government left them with a far better inheritance.

-Mrs S Davidge, The Green, Southwick