Sir - The city council has rejected the application to build 519 temporary car parking spaces for the period of the rebuilding of the Westgate car park out of 881 applied for. This has been rejected quite understandably because it would be on much used green space, but why not site it on the Worcester Street car park?

This decision suggests that city councillors need to be reminded of two fundamentals.

First, elected representatives of all parties are there to represent everyone, including businesses. Second, businesses serve several economic and social functions. They employ, they supply goods and services and they attract visitors in competition with other towns and cities.

The council accepted the need for off street parking when it approved the application for the 1,335 places in the new Westgate car park (compared with the present 1,345). It is therefore illogical to reduce the number of spaces even further during the re-building because the need will remain.

A reduction will help to deter visitors from coming to Oxford in preference to the welcoming Reading, Milton Keynes, Cheltenham and so many others. Once lost, they are very hard to win back.

Unfortunately logic appears not to enter into these decisions. If it did, the new Westgate car park would be larger than the old one because the new shopping centre will be considerably larger and will attract more shoppers.

To offer park-and-ride spaces instead is unrealistic because they are not like for like. They are suitable for those working in the city, but not for shoppers carrying voluminous and heavy purchases, especially older but not disabled people.

J Blok, Oxford