COUN PAUL DOUGHTY’S letter of December 5 shows yet again why the Conservatives can’t be trusted to run the city.

Like their friends in government, they simply do not understand the nature of public investment. The return on arts spending, according to the Government’s own figures, is around £4 for every £1 of public money spent.

A floating arts centre would attract more people (including local residents) to the river, a part of the city that is often neglected, and they will spend money in shops, cafés and hotels as a result.

Where private funding needs topping up to make a project happen, that’s a sensible use of money. If the Tories had their way, we would cut everything, making York a dull and miserable place for locals and visitors alike.

You have only to look at the state of the economy, after two and half a years of Tory inspired cuts, to see the results of this Gradgrind approach.

Patrick Kelly, East Mount Road, York.