I couldn’t agree more with Tim Ridgway’s assessment that when it comes to travellers, some people in this city have become too tolerant of tolerance (The Argus, September 2).

Tim asks who has decided that immediately evicting groups from land within hours of them moving on will cause more damage than good. The answer is Green and Labour councillors. And Tim is so correct when he states that any chance of a rational debate on how this issue can be dealt with sensibly is immediately obstructed by accusations in the council chamber that talking about the subject is racist.

The fact that many of the trespassers are, by their own admission, just visiting Brighton and Hove because of all its attractions makes it all the more galling for council taxpayers who have to foot the bill for the lengthy eviction proceedings and clear-up costs – particularly when, as Tim also quite rightly points out, the police are able to carry out an immediate eviction at little or no cost using their Section 61 (Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, 1994). In my view, they should make more use of this.

I don’t think Green and Labour councillors, and others, understand just what a big issue this is for local residents.

In my ward of Patcham, it is the number one issue in my inbox.

It is high time the council and the police sat down with the police and crime commissioner to thrash out exactly how this is dealt with in the future because it is a problem that is not going to go away and costs keep increasing.

This is what I suggested at the last council meeting, but the Conservative Group motion was once again outvoted by Labour and the Greens.

Councillor Geoffrey Theobald, Conservative group leader, Brighton and Hove City Council