In reply to Henry Law's views on parking permit charges paid by the "privileged" car-owning residents of Brighton (Opinion, March 17), he and others should note that those who choose to run a car are already paying in motoring taxes more than seven times what is spent on roads.

Of the £35.5 billion collected in excise duty, VAT, etc, from road users in 1998/99, only £4.7 billion was spent on improving roads. The remainder was used to subsidise the railways, buses, NHS and - the biggest government expenditure of all - social services.

Mr Law and others who choose not to subscribe to motoring should remember that but for the motorist their council tax would be even higher.

-J Bourne, Hamsey Road, Barcombe