M McGowan-Scanlon, of Bay View Estate, Stoke Fleming, writes:

I was highly amused to read in that the town council is to enter into secret talks about the future of the Tourist Information Centre, Chronicle, July 1.

It calls it a ‘closed session’, which is a simple way of saying the public is excluded.

Forgive me if I didn’t realise there was a threat to national security or a discussion to be had about deploying the SAS to pacify the violent protests over its future.

Seriously, how ridiculous is this? I understand that the Government will have reasons of national security for holding meetings etc ‘in camera’, but are we truly to believe Dartmouth Town Council has to act in this manner on ­anything at all? What is the point, and how does it help?

This council is already a laughing stock and this only serves to support that view.

We, the people, demand that there are no more closed ­sessions of the council unless the mayor can prove a threat to national security. We demand to know what is going on at all times, or we may feel obliged to support a unilateral declaration of independence from this council. Truly, you just couldn’t make it up.