LABOUR’S creation of an additional executive member with an allowance of £14,700 beggars belief in these times of austerity.

Although crime and community safety is important, it could be covered by an existing executive member, given that crime has actually fallen by more than 40 per cent in the past four years.

The new Labour administration stated that they would be “led by residents” yet seem already to be totally out of touch with what we are feeling. It is not good enough to say that this will be paid for by reorganising council committees.

If additional savings can be made, these should be going towards protecting front-line services – not to cover the expense of what could be viewed as creating new jobs to look after Labour’s own.

Nick Love, Deangate, York.

• I WAS pleased to see that the efforts of the Neighbourhoods Policing team, supported by the council’s investment in crime prevention, have seen a 41 per cent drop in crime in the Clifton Ward over the past three years (The Press, May 15).

This is in no small way due to the decisions of the former Liberal-Democrat controlled council to invest heavily in crime prevention measures and “target hardening”. This investment has seen major improvements in security, particularly as many back lanes in the area have now been gated.

What is the response of the new Labour administration? To appoint, at a cost of £20,000 a year, a councillor to ‘supervise’ policing activities.

That money would be better spent on hiring another Police Community Support Officer or expanding the target-hardening programme.

Richard Hill, Scarborough Terrace, York.