JACK Croysdill, the local Labour Party spokesman, is like the man high up in a tree, sawing away at the branch on which he is sitting, while rejecting all other people who tell him the obvious.

He boldly rejects all criticism of his town hall colleagues and puts it all down to what he quaintly calls, my using "a vitriolic pen". (Letters, April 4).

Against all evidence to the contrary, he would have all and sundry believe that the present Labour/Lib-Dem council is doing a great job of running the town. It is plain to all the electorate that there is a marked absence of basic hygiene on the town's streets, and as for public conveniences, many are so filthy that they've had to be shut down.

Can my critic point to any other town in Britain, let alone a holiday resort, which like Blackpool is being brought to its knees by a council which employs such dirty standards? In spite of all this, Mr Croysdill gushes and gushes over our ruling councillors who repeatedly show themselves not to be up to the job, and in spite of the masses of money they receive.

Blackpool has more money brought into the town than any other resort. It is financed by those who invest in the town, from the guesthouse owner right up to the larger hotelier. That, in fact, is many millions of pounds. In addition, the council benefits from millions upon millions in government grants which flood into the town hall.

Add to this, the 30 per cent increase in local rates over the last two years, and it may be seen that our Labour/Lib-Dem councillors have a sizeable chunk of dosh falling into their laps.

Ah, but what of their financial abilities when it comes to using all that money for the benefit of town and its people?

Well, they certainly weren't in the front row when financial aptitude was being given out.

They are so skint that of the education grant they receive to pass on to Blackpool's schools, they retain part of it for other purposes.

My detractor's colleagues, however, have managed to find a large sum for their most favourite of projects -- enormous rises in councillors' monetary allowances.

(The opposition group, to their credit, have refused to be part of that shameful abuse of power).

No matter how much money they are given to run the town, they'll never be any different.

Another matter on which the Labour spokesman may wish to comment is the minuted meetings in the town hall which expose his colleagues as operating outside the financial safeguards of the Local Government Act.

Peter Roscoe,

address supplied.