HAVING enjoyed working with David Horton on the council, I was pleased to read his response to my letter (Letters, December 12).

He characterises the conduct of the Lib Dem group as carping from the sidelines – I see it as responsible opposition. The Draft Local Plan needs thorough scrutiny, particularly with regard to the impact of development on the historic environment.

I first met Cllr Horton in 1991 at a site meeting in Scarcroft Road. I was impressed by the care taken to listen to residents’ concerns and the efforts made by the council and the developers to respond to the challenge of the sensitive location, which contained Roman burials.

Before 1990, the perceived difficulties of building in York had resulted in planning blight.

It took a report by the civil engineers Ove Arup to show how to achieve a compromise between the needs of construction and the historic environment.

This provided the foundation for the city’s policy for archaeology, enabling development and archaeological investigation.

After more than 20 years, this policy is threatened by proposals to relax planning controls.

As a teacher and field archaeologist, I have been seen the frustrations and fruits of this process, from the revival of historic buildings such as City Screen and Barley Hall, to the epic community projects at Hungate and Heslington.

Anyone witnessing the joy of villages like Poppleton, Dunnington and North Duffield in exploring their historic identity could not doubt the importance of the policy for archaeology as a cornerstone of the local plan.

Martin Bartlett, Scarcroft Road, York.