PLANNING committee chairman Councillor Richard Watson states that "planning authorities have limited powers; they do not have unfettered discretion" (Letters, May 4), omitting to mention that in the case of the Barbican and the Osbaldwick wildlife meadows the planning authority also happens to be the driving force behind the unpopular proposals on council-administered public land.

Your powers should be limited even further with regard to these matters and full public inquiries should be convened.

Interesting you try and hide behind the recommendation of council officers to approve the Barbican scheme. Un-elected public servants are advocates for over-development as it furthers their careers, boosting salaries and pensions.

The announced departure of director of environment and leisure services, Roy "Shoppergate" Templeman illustrates this point, leaving behind York residents with a traffic-congested city well on its way to becoming a 'concrete jungle'. He will not have to live with the consequences of his overdevelopment mania.

Councillor Watson leads us to believe the development at Barbican, Osbaldwick and Fulford "has not been a party political issue nor should it be so", what misleading nonsense.

Prior to the last council elections many political points were made by the Lib Dems when opposing the need for the housing explosion proposed by Labour, concerns which having achieved power are conveniently forgotten. Indeed to force through developments the Lib Dems recently voted to oppose an environmental capacity study, the scrutiny of which would highlight the lunacy of further overdevelopment on the existing road infrastructure.

M Warters,

Yew Tree Mews,

Osbaldwick, York.

Updated: 08:52 Monday, May 17, 2004