Brighton Council took a bold decision in the Seventies when it built a conference centre on the seafront.

It cost £10 million and every man, woman and child in the town had to pay £10 a year towards the cost.

But it firmly established Brighton as the leading conference town in Britain.

It had the bonus of attracting top sporting attractions and entertainment to the resort.

Other towns and cities have followed the Brighton example since then.

Some of their centres are bigger and better because they are now more modern.

Brighton and Hove City Council now has to look ahead to the next 25 years.

Does it renovate the centre at a cost of £7 million?

Or should it go for a new state-of-the art building costing five times that amount?

There is no doubt about the answer. Brighton and Hove is a regional city and it has to think big.

Renovating the centre would not put the resort forward and would lead to stagnation. Building a centre as a world attraction would put Brighton and Hove in the lead once again.

It will not be easy even though private rather than public money will be involved this time. It could involve relinquishing some civic control over the centre.

But Brighton has only ever prospered when it has thought big, from the days of the Prince Regent to Sir Harry Preston and Sir Herbert Carden.

It must be bold once again. Future generations will then thank today's leaders for their courage.