In the age of spin without substance, I have come to expect the Labour Party to misrepresent anything that is said to further its own ends.

Councillor Sue John (Letters, July 3) does herself no favours by trying to insinuate that the Conservative Party does not believe in society, especially in relation to the issue of housing.

When the Labour Party says society, what it actually means is the State. Mrs Thatcher argued that society did exist but was made up of active citizens, strong families and neighbours who look out for each other.

It is this vision that a Conservative administration would bring to Brighton and Hove. Government at a na-tional and local level must become the servant of the people, not its master.

Society and the people that make it up can either be sustained by the State or undermined.

In the area of housing, while the Labour Party trusts the State to take decisions, we have the confidence to trust the people.

Who knows better about how they should live, how children should be educated and how local communities can work together?

If it is moral disgrace to allow people to have control over their own destiny, so be it.

We have had a Labour government for more than five years and Brighton and Hove City Council has been Labour for much longer.

There have been big promises on housing, crime and the appearance of our city with little delivery.

It is becoming all too apparent that Labour is out of ideas and, soon, will be out of time.

-Jonathan Sheppard, Coombe Road, Brighton