COUN Orrell is wrong (Letters, July 3). He has repeatedly claimed the only way to revamp York's swimming pools is with Barbican sale money. He insists we must accept poorer swimming facilities at the Barbican to squeeze every last penny from this sale.

This claim is designed to convince York residents they have no choice and must accept a basic community facility, rather than seizing our once-in-a-lifetime chance and building a first class county-standard pool.

But there are other options. Major works can be funded through asset sales. In the four years of the last council more than £15 million was raised from such sales, and Labour used some of this cash to improve leisure facilities for York residents, such as parks, playgrounds and libraries.

The Lib Dems could use some money from future sales to improve the city's pools. Labour intended to do just that, and we had already allocated £1 million from sales for the work at Yearsley Pool, recognising that the Barbican redevelopment alone wouldn't cover the costs of all three pools.

More importantly, Government borrowing restrictions are about to change enabling councils to borrow more money to invest in important schemes from next year.

Because the pools project is a long-term programme taking several years, the council could use these new rules to invest in our swimming pools.

Coun Dave Evans,

Labour spokesperson for resources,

Gray Street, York.

Updated: 11:18 Wednesday, July 16, 2003