I FEEL compelled to write in response to the letter submitted by Cllr Anstee regarding Amey's services.

I think that before he takes umbrage at criticism levelled at Amey's services he should properly check how well those services are performing, so he can make a considered decision on whether the criticism levelled is warranted.

In his letter he talks about the level of service offered by Amey and the measuring of that service using KPIs.

I have to wonder how low those KPIs are set if he thinks they are performing well. I can offer a clear example regarding the refuse service. My brother's green bin is only emptied on receipt of a complaint. For a number of months now he has not had a weekly green bin collection. He complains that they have not emptied it, they empty it the following week and then it stops again.

Are the number of complaints received about these issues recorded? There must be dozens just from my brother alone, and they did not even bother to respond to his last communication asking to be contacted by someone in authority. We live in a Labour ward, so the complaints about this go to a Labour councillor, and I'm sure we are not the only ones. So is it any wonder that Labour councillors are complaining about the service? Surely they are just doing their jobs by representing the communities that they serve.

So come on Cllr Anstee, as leader of the council I expect better of you than playing the blame game, rather than taking some responsibility and ensuring that the contract that you negotiated actually delivers for the borough you are here to serve.

Name and address supplied