THE council's offer a six per cent increase in funding to home care owners is derisory.

Bury is amongst the five lowest paying councils in the UK when it comes to looking after the elderly within their community. Why is it possible for Oldham to pay £300-plus per week and Leeds £340, all within their social services budget allocated to them by the Government?

Councillor John Byrne's (Bury Times, March 28) is incorrect when he says that the extra £100 -- which, incidentally, would only bring our fees up to our true net cost -- would add six per cent to council tax. Where has the additional £9.6 million gone which the Government recently allocated to Bury? It has certainly not been spent on care for the aged.

The fees that we are requesting are exactly the same as Bury MBC have been paying their own council-run homes for some years, whilst at the same time grossly underpaying the independent and not-for-profit organisations.

This Labour council have chosen for far too long to ignore the needs of the vulnerable, frail and elderly members of their community. They must remedy this situation now.

HERZL HAMBURGER,

president,

Heathlands Village,

Prestwich.