Sussex has 80 miles of coastline. Most of it is built up and there are sea defences to prevent houses from crumbling away into the English Channel.

But at Birling Gap, near Eastbourne, the sea has made such inroads over the years that a row of cottages is now in danger of collapse.

A public inquiry opens today into whether sea defences should be built to save the cottages or whether nature should be allowed to take its course.

It's right that an inquiry should be held to take a cool and impartial look at this issue which involves both the homes of people and one of the great landscapes in Sussex.

But logic must be on the side of the National Trust and other countryside organisations who are against the sea wall.

They say in the short term it will simply cause increased damage to the cliffs further along the coast and that in the long term it may not even work at Birling Gap.

There's a world of difference between protecting chalk cliffs in the heart of the country and the sort of lowland defences common in the rest of Sussex.

It's sad that people's homes are affected but anyone living in such an exposed position would have been only too aware for years about the danger.

Even if the homeowners win their planning battle, they are likely to gain a reprieve of only a few years before nature takes her inevitable course.

A good idea Too many parents whose children play truant and commit crimes don't take responsibility for their youngsters. But they will under a new scheme set up in West Sussex.

The youth offending team has set up a network of support groups for these parents to see if they can be encouraged to pay more attention to their children.

It's a good idea to tackle the problem at an early stage by getting mums and dads involved.

Too often, youngsters descend quickly from skipping the occasional day of school into lives of organised crime.

By then it can be too late to help.

Private view Former Sussex University student Andrew Davidson won't mind being in the TV show Big Brother, which films strangers thrown together in a house with no phones, clocks or TV.

Andrew's raunchy reminiscences have already raised a few eyebrows, not least among his parents, and he has brought a stack of condoms into the Big Brother house.

He's already announced that he fancies a former university colleague who's also in the series. Together they may be putting the sex into Sussex.