AS market manager of the seven-day-a-week city centre market, I have to disagree with Mr Scaife's comments about the commodities on sale at the market (Letters, May 3).

Each to their own opinion but Mr Scaife's comments about "cheap tat, dodgy CDs and mobile phone covers" are unfounded - maybe he is getting confused with a car boot sale.

Market traders buy the same CDs, mobile phone covers and for that matter clothing, socks and boxer shorts, jewellery and the remaining 60 or so unmentioned commodities from the same places as the larger shops. But they sell at a less "marked up" price due to lower overheads.

Is Mr Scaife aware that in some cases specialist commodity stalls that stand in Newgate Market have stock from as far away as Lithuania, Turkey, Bali and Indonesia?

The commodities on sale at Newgate Market are controlled with the same retail regulations governed by the council's trading standards office. Does Mr Scaife think that the council's own market would allow such "cheap tat" and "dodgy merchandise" to be on sale?

It was nice to read that Mr Scaife still thinks highly of the fruit and veg sold in Newgate Market.

The market in York provides the same commodities as the shops but at affordable prices and in most cases with better customer care.

Out-of-town shopping, 24-hour shopping, credit and debit cards and Internet shopping have all made market trading harder. York market being where it is can hold its head above water. However, this is not down to the cheap tat and dodgy lines that Mr Scaife tries to put across.

Maybe 99 per cent of Evening Press readers would agree?

Darren Lovatt,

City of York Council,

Market manager,

Newgate, York.

... MR SCAIFE made ill-informed comments about "dodgy CDs". We would point out to Mr Scaife that we have made a living selling CDs etc to the citizens of York - and to countless visitors - since 1987 and that all the items we stock are legitimate products manufactured by reputable companies.

With his letter, Mr Scaife insults legitimate business people such as us. He also insults the large number of local people who have bought items from us regularly, and he insults the market management when he assumes that they would allow the sale of "dodgy" items on Newgate Market.

While we have every respect for our colleagues who sell high quality fruit and vegetables, a market the size of ours could not survive if it did not offer a wide range of goods.

Pat and David Lindsay,

King Rudding Close,

Riccall, York.

Updated: 11:28 Wednesday, May 05, 2004