Sir, Despite being a democratically elected representative of Oxford West Central on the county council and Carfax ward on the city council, I have just spent the greater part of an hour standing in the street outside a city council area committee meeting, unable to participate or even stand at the back of the room listening. The meeting was about the planning application to build a new, partly-privatised health centre on the site of the old Radclife Infirmary, to replace local health centres.

The reason I was sent out was that I have publicly expressed my opposition to the part-privatisation of the health service, the increased traffic such a big centre would generate locally, and the problems of accessibility to the centre for local people. Because I have stated these concerns outside of this meeting, I am not allowed to speak or vote on the proposal at city council meetings.

What kind of democracy is it that elects representatives who respond to local concerns, and then does not let them say the same things on behalf of those who elected them in places where it counts?

Sushila Dhall, Oxfordshire Green Party