I was there

I did not put on ceremonial robes, a posh hat and parade up and down trying to look important. I am not a 'civic dignitary', I'm just me.

I go every year, but I choose to stand with the Quakers and their sign declaring that 'War is Not the Answer'.

Coming from a family that was almost wiped out in the Manchester blitz, with members killed in the fighting and having travelled all over the world in war zones, I have come to realise the futility of war.

We should remember and have a service, but if we do, let us not just have a military parade with children marching up and down in military uniforms to honour our servicemen and women who have fallen, but one that remembers all those who have died on all sides.

We need to remember, too, the million upon millions of innocent people who have been slaughtered as a result of politicians' military ambitions.

Wars beget wars in a never-ending cycle of anger, hostility, bitterness and a sense of revenge. Let us always strive for peace as our first option, rather than the gun.

DAVID WILLIAMS (Councillor) Oxford City Council