The Brighton Centre has done a great job for the resort ever since it was opened by James Callaghan in 1977.

It brought back the main political parties - with all the money and publicity they attract. It made Brighton an international meeting place for conferences covering everything from religion to medicine.

With its 5,000-seat main arena, the centre was also able to attract entertainers of a calibre the resort had never seen before.

But the building is now well past its sell-by date and something had to be done. The city council is being bold in saying it will be pulled down and rebuilt.

What is needed now is intelligent co-operation with private enterprise to fill the gaping hole that will be left.

This is a prime site next to an entertainments complex and behind a regional shopping centre. There should be plenty of commercial interest in it.

With the assistance of top architects and designers, it should be possible to create a new Brighton Centre that is both easy on the eye and commercially viable.

But there must be a tight timetable because every month Brighton is without its centre it loses trade and business to rival resorts.

The Brighton Centre has worked wonders for the city and brought in millions of pounds of business. Its successor should do even better.