In this season of goodwill, I would like to offer some support to Gordon Brown and his beleaguered Government.

I refer in particular to the constant criticism over the troubles in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Without knowing, we may have an answer right under our noses.

Why not send in a small team of crack troops - I am thinking of a special unit called 'Oxfordshire County Council' which, in just over 12 months, has managed to destroy the town using only two objectives.

Firstly, by installing a new highway system that totally clogs up the roads, making it impossible for traffic to flow and forcing people to stay away from the town.

This then brings in its second objective, forcing people out of the town, preventing local businesses from surviving, and forcing them to close or move, leaving the town centre looking like something akin to Beirut.

So, in a short time, we have gone from a historic town with a good tourist trade, to a town now famous for its ridiculous traffic system and people avoiding it as all they see is the inside of their cars as they sit for ages in endless traffic jams.

TONY THOULESS Abingdon