As a dustman in Brighton and Hove, I would like The Argus to publish photographs of the front of the block of flats mentioned in Barbara Davidson's article (August 20), then you might not be so quick to condemn.

It is obvious this is a hard-hat area, as is every other property in the city that has a scaffolding around it.

I am sure The Argus, as a newspaper of the people, does not expect the refuse workers of the city to put their health and safety at risk.

Believe me, if we took a member of the Health And Safety Executive around some of the back alleyways and basements of Brighton and Hove, there would be a lot more bins in the city that would not be emptied.

As a workforce, we appreciate the problems the residents have.

After all, we are also residents and pay our council tax. Surprise, surprise - we don't get our bins emptied all the time either.

We would ask residents and The Argus to appreciate our problems, too. After all, as refuse workers and residents, we all have to live in this city and we all see the problems.

I don't see why it should be on an us-and-them basis.

-G D Beech, banjo_daddy@hotmail.com