Illustration by John Sadler www.johnsadlerillustration.com 

• I’M thinking legacy here.

The great monuments of the past in our cities included grand imposing town hall buildings – expressions of our collective public services pioneered by (usually unpaid) councillors and aldermen whose long forgotten names still adorn foundation stones in libraries, schools and the like.

Today’s architectural heritage is monopolised by giant companies owned by billionaires and bottom-line obsessives who put profit before the general public good.

Those who do their work for them are expected to wait patiently for a trickle-down that, for many, never comes.

If even half of the grim current forecasts of massive price rises come true, what will our 21st century monuments be?

Will the old St Pancras Town Hall in Judd Street be demolished to make way for London’s grandest food bank?

KW HOWARTH, NW1