It was interesting to read Lord Bassam's view on Brighton and Hove being awarded City status.

Of course he kept his cards close to his chest and we are expected to believe the game was one of chance, just as we will be expected to believe it is our choice if he is elected Mayor.

Many people remember Lord Bassam as the man who turned Brighton into a refuge for squatters.

Now we are listed as a city, will our council start at the bottom and spend some money on homes for average folk and forget the boys at the top who are making all the rules?

All the fuss about city status means nothing to ordinary people. Most of us are fed up with being treated as though we had just stepped off the banana boat.

Give us a break. Make our city one to be proud of. Clean our streets and bring them up to the spick and span area of the Pavilion and the Dome. Forget the tourist attractions for a while.

When the Queen visits in the spring I am sure she would be quite amazed at the condition of some of our back streets.

-Jane Summerfield, Ashton Rise, Brighton