Sir – So the Leader of EHDC finds it difficult to comprehend the headlines for the council's budget for 2009/10?

Well, I find it difficult to comprehend his version of that budget.

Balanced Budget? The officer report to which Councillor Cowper refers, points out that there is a funding gap of £483,000 in the budget. It says also that "It is assumed that the funding gap of £483,000 will be found."

We can all balance budgets that way, by assuming that any shortfall "will be found". It was that kind of thinking which has got the banks in such a mess. Oh, and the report also goes on to say that by 2010/11 the shortfall will be £500,000 and the following year it predicts £1.3m. It will take a lot of "assuming" to close that gap.

For this year, the report suggests three ways to meet that gap – increase income, reduce expenditure, or use reserves.

Increase income? It is suggested that this could be from increased car park charges – no wonder they introduced charges for Sunday parking. And other charges could also be increased – what price garden waste collection?

Reducing expenditure? Among these potential cuts in service, for that is what they are, whatever Councillor Cowper may claim, are to reduce support for Meals on Wheels, reduce or cease the use of travel tokens, and withdraw financial support for public houses for the provision of public toilets. So, an attack on the elderly and infirm – is that Tory policy?

Use reserves? EHDC general reserves are already at their lowest level for over 12 years, and total reserves (including those earmarked for specific needs) are at their lowest since 2000. Not much room there for using reserves.

Even if the Tories were to raise the council tax by the five per cent maximum allowed by the government, this will still not meet the shortfall. The fact is, that by freezing the council tax for the past three years, the Tories have left themselves with little option but to hike charges and cut services. If they had adopted a prudent policy of raising the tax annually by the rate of inflation (costing the taxpayer about a penny a day), they would have been able to deal with the present difficulties without threatening to cut services for the elderly and further penalising the motorist.

When the Liberal Democrats took control of EHDC in 1991, the council had around £40m in debts. The Tories took back control in 1999, after a campaign in which they falsely accused the Lib Dems of bankrupting the council. Far from bankrupting the council, under Lib Dem control this debt had been wiped out and the council had gained some £25m in investments. So Councillor Cowper's Tories have had the benefit of this investment income plus the obscene profits from car park charges to bolster their budgets.

Yet they are still in a mess.

Peter Rodgers, Singleton Gardens, Clanfield