• CAMDEN is not alone in fighting the phone box menace that you reported in Property News, (Battle lines drawn over phone box bids, June 7).

From Manchester to Westminster to Bournemouth, companies like Euro Payphone are exploiting a loophole in British telecoms law to obstruct our pavements with “phone boxes” covered in advertising.

I looked at the Euro Payphone website (now taken down), and it was just an invitation to advertisers to use their boxes. It contained nothing to help anyone who might want to make a phone call.

Camden Council is quite right to fight these applications, but Camden officers and councillors shouldn’t have to spend their time on this.

Telecoms regulator, Ofcom, should take away the privileges that allow companies like Euro Payphone to put up these boxes without full planning approval.

JOHN SAYNOR
Chair, West Hampstead Amenity & Transport (WHAT)