Councillors Davis and Shaw-Wright and a small number of people associated with the Say No To Transfer group think all council tenants should stay with the council and accept a lower standard of home than can be achieved by transferring (September 12).

That's fine for them, they are not tenants. Neither is the trade union in Leeds whose franking machine was used to post the misleading letters to council tenants.

The truth is that some councillors appear to regard council tenants as second class citizens who should be grateful for the benefit of paying rent dictated by the Labour Government.

Turning to the "super show homes", these are intended to demonstrate the standard of modernisation that will be provided if tenants vote to transfer to Town & Village Homes. The standard is well above what the council is providing and far better than the basic standard the Government and some Labour councillors say we should accept.

Selby District Council's decision to open up show homes is in line with the Labour Government guidelines which say tenants must be given the full facts about transfer. I pose just these questions to the councillors:

Would they accept the basic Government decent homes standard in their homes? Have they actually seen and understood what this is? (A 30-year-old bathroom is good enough under this standard).

Do they think it is right for central Government to take £2.4 million each year from Selby tenants' rents?

Do they think it is right the Government won't let the council build new homes?

Do they think tenants have no right to expect value for money and the highest standards available?

I urge all tenants to visit the show homes and see for themselves

Alan W Hartley,

Selby Tenants Panel Chair,

River View,

Barlby, Selby.

Updated: 11:37 Thursday, September 29, 2005