SO, here we go again with the crazy Council Tax. Not that the Council is crazy - although, sometimes, they do move in mysterious ways - but the tax itself is.

this was a hastily-cobbled effort, put together to replace an equally badly-thought-out, so-called poll tax; which, incidentally, was much fairer than the present system, based as it is on an arbitrarily decided market value of domestic property.

This defies both logic and common sense and is even worse than the original rateable value system, as is the present assessment of the water sewage rate.

Apart from the basic principle of assessment being ridiculous, consider this:

Why should a couple living in property identical to, say, as that of a family of five, have the same Council Tax assessment and, therefore, the same water rate assessment?

There can be no argument to support this system, and, surely, a small panel of apolitical, pragmatic, intelligent and fair-minded people could devise a fairer one.

I would suggest the following be considered:

1. The square footage of floor and ground area.

2. The number of children aged five to 16 years of age permanently resident.

3. The number of adults in permanent residence.

4. The gradual introduction of water meters on all properties. Since all water is treated, we should pay for what we use, as with gas and electricity.

R BRAMWELL, Ormerod Street, Worsthorne, Burnley.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.