Letters to the editor

Led by Design Champion Cllr Daniel Moylan Kensington and Chelsea Council (RBKC) chose a firm of architects with no apparent previous experience of road building to design the revamped Exhibition Road.

Choosing Chinese granite blocks each laid by hand the cost of the 19,400 sq m new road is £22.5m ie a staggering £1184 per sq m - almost ten times the average of £128 per sq m for granite in comparable schemes.

Experts say more than 4,000 people die in London each year due to the effects of toxic air.

Children and older people are especially vulnerable to illnesses caused by pollution including asthma and lung disease.

London faces a big fine from the EU if the situation does not improve - our air is so dirty it is illegal.

Thank you for your balanced coverage of the decision by the Council's Cabinet to offer the Design Museum a loan ('Council puts business before people in need' 25 November 2011).

As June Knight acknowledged, we want to help the Design Museum in part because it will bring more visitors to the area and secure the High Street's viability, as well as increasing employment.

I am writing on behalf of the Meningitis Trust in response to the news that a student living in the IES halls of residence in Manresa Road, Chelsea, was taken ill at around 9.30am on Wednesday (23) and sadly died of meningococcal disease.

Our thoughts are with their family and friends at this difficult time.

If anyone needs our emotional support, we will always be here as a listening ear, at any time of the day or night - we don't want anyone to suffer alone.

It is easy for the local Labour group to propose motions that have, on the face of it, popular appeal ('Council will not rescue Good Fairy', 1 July).

However they do not have the responsibility of making sure the Council can meet its responsibilities to protect vital local services through these current challenging financial times.

I was pleased to be able to hear at first hand the issues raised by residents at the public meeting about the proposed Kensington Aldridge Academy and leisure centre project.

Your report highlights important questions about funding and design issues for the academy and clearly much work needs to be done before either the school or leisure centre can become a reality.

Mr Taylor is wrong. All our staff and councillors have had their pay frozen.

The council chief executive will shortly become chief executive of Hammersmith and Fulham for no extra pay but half the cost for the Royal Borough as we will share his salary.

On March 8, I wrote to Sir Merrick Cockell, leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council (RBKC) suggesting that consideration be given to a consultation aimed at reducing the number of councillors by a third - from 54 to 36.

This would produce worthwhile savings in the estimated annual cost of councillors of £1.2m.

I am writing to give my full support to the proposal to create a Crossrail station at Kensal Green.

The case for the station is overwhelming and it would transform the area for residents and visitors alike.

We write as concerned residents of Kensington and Chelsea, living in the borough for over 25 years, at the impact and consequences of the deep and unfair cuts in social services provision for the elderly, frail, mentally ill and vulnerable members of our community, that use day centres, carers, and outreach workers.