I was puzzled and disappointed by your editorial (Oxford Mail, November 2), criticising those councillors who chose to abstain in the county council debate on new housing.

As anyone reading the article could see, they had no choice but to abstain, due to the structure of the vote.

The Conservative administration presented Option 1 and Option 2, and no other alternative.

The only way to register a preference for another option was to abstain -- and this is why we were presented with the rather unusual sight of Labour councillors abstaining with Greens, despite their very different opinions on building in the Green Belt.

Would your editorial team rather that either group had voted for options they did not support?

I trust that you will think about these issues before writing such an inaccurate editorial next time, and that your fire will be concentrated where it belongs -- on a Tory administration that continues to run roughshod over any opinion with which it does not agree, and a Labour Government whose housing policy is threatening to destroy the South East of England.

MATT SELLWOOD (Councillor)

Deputy Leader

Green group, Oxford City Council