Sir - Under your headline Councillor in court over mess (Report, November 9) the Green group leader Craig Simmons is quoted as saying "Labour talks the talk, but when it comes to it, their own councillors aren't serious about the environment or about the neighbourhoods in which they live".

This could be described as a case of the sprout calling the broccoli not green enough!

Those readers who live in East Oxford, an area entirely represented by Green councillors, are resigned now to walking along whole streets where the front gardens are (towards the end of a fortnight) totally dominated by unsightly and insanitary rubbish. Some Greens have made it very clear to us that the "environment" which they talk so much talk about is The Planet, not the neighbourhood in which we live. This is fine for future generations, but we have nonetheless got to live here now, and an adequate refuse collection would not actually do The Planet any harm.

Of course, the East Oxford Parliament (all Green, and excellent at talking the talk no doubt) can do nothing, because recycling, inadequate refuse collection, building inadequate council coffee shops (Report, November 9), environmental health, and so much else besides is uniquely in the hands of Jean Fooks. That's democracy, folks.

Reassuringly, Craig Simmons has pointed his "finger of blame" at Ms Fooks over the Redbridge coffee shop incident at least, but he seems much less vociferous about her rubbish policies proper. Let's hear clearly what the Greens would do about the current dreadful refuse collection in some parts of Oxford if they were actually in power, or allied to Labour in power.

Roger Moreton, East Oxford