Nick Teage, of Stoke Fleming, writes:

I read with some puzzlement that Dartmouth Town Council is planning to permit development on land in the parish of Stoke Fleming and then appropriate the land so that Dartmouth receives the rate revenues.

This appears on the face of it to be blatant expansionism. Why should Dartmouth have the benefit of these rates at the expense of Stoke Fleming?

I do not believe the town council has raised the issue with Stoke Fleming Parish Council. If it feels there is a case for the parish boundaries to be renegotiated, the first thing the town council should do would be to communicate with Stoke Fleming to discuss the situation rather than have its intentions publicised in the press with no prior consultation.

If I built an extension to my house in my neighbour's garden he would, no doubt, have something concise and to the point to say – particularly if I had not consulted him first.

Even if I did pay for the infrastructure myself, I doubt if it would make him a lot happier.

Elsewhere in the same edition of the paper are references to the fact the town council is losing £1,000 a week – one-third of the council's budget – on one building in Dartmouth.

I am sure that Stoke Fleming could find a better way to spend an increase in rate revenue.