BOURNEMOUTH'S 200 year history maps an ever present battle between the progressives and the reactionaries. Maybe,within reason, that’s no bad thing?

However, over the last few years the reactionaries have been far too much in the ascendancy.

Our town has reached a sorry state when our local paper pictures beaming councillors celebrating the destruction of a £13million pound building ,built for indoor leisure purposes. Funded by private investment ,the biggest private investment in the town’s leisure amenities, ever – bought back and demolished by the funds of the council tax payer.

Our council leader writes that Bournemouth cannot “buck the trend”. Surely , every country, city or town which is successful does exactly that ?

To try to ensure the prospects of good jobs and quality of life for our children and grandchildren I hope that, once we have finished celebrating our moving backwards 20 years, the whole conurbation can start move forward together, preferably as one city .

Surely we can aspire to better things to celebrate and start to punch our weight in this ever smaller and competitive world. The natural assets put us in a fantastic position to do it.

Areas are always on a track of “moving forwards or moving backwards” – I believe the lack of inward investment over the last decade or so (other than for more and more flats) tells its own story.

Unless we want to revert to a retirement town with fewer and fewer amenities?

Hopefully, after this ongoing demolition (the Winter Gardens and the arts ,the BIC swimming pool and now the Imax building) the destruction can stop and we can start to build up our area .

Time for the progressives to speak up.

ALDERMAN DOUGLAS EYRE, Kirby Way, Bournemouth