• IT seems reasonable to ask where has Hamish Hunter been these past seven years?

The Conservative candidate for Hampstead Town has the temerity to write to your newspaper (Planning for more officers, Letters, December 7)) criticising Labour on police numbers.

He seems blithely ignorant of the fact it is his party, in government, is slashing £400million from the Metropolitan Police Service’s budget over the next five years, on top of £600million of previous cuts.

Indeed Sadiq Khan, the Labour Mayor of London, has warned ministers that people in this city cannot be kept safe unless these cuts are reversed.

At the general election Labour, under Jeremy Corbyn, made a manifesto commitment to put an additional 10,000 police on the streets.

No doubt Mr Hunter backs this policy and therefore backs a Labour government. He would also do well to consider the political and economic realities on the ground.

Camden has been forced by ruthless Tory austerity to reduce its budget by £70million by 2018; and by 2018/2019 the borough will have seen funding from central government halved.

Hopefully in the weeks and months ahead Mr Hunter and other Tory candidates will take the time to consider the deep suffering their rabble of a party is causing across Camden and pipe down.

Cllr DOUGLAS BEATTIE
Cllr MARYAM ESLAMDOUST
Cllr THOMAS GARDINER
Labour, Kilburn ward