I AM saddened and disappointed by Councillor Keith Burrows decision to publicly deride me over the issue of disabled parking bays, when, last Wednesday, I presented my 465 signature petition requesting a residents' parking scheme around Northwood Hills station.

I read out a letter from a disabled lady who lives in Ferndown, who experiences difficulty exiting and accessing her house because of communter and commercial vehicles parked for days and weeks outside her property.

Mr Burrows thought it was clever to ridicule me by suggesting I did not understand that she could be provided with a disabled parking bay.

What does surprise me is that Mr Burrows in his capacity as cabinet member for planning and transportation, does not know the council's rules on the provision of disabled parking bays.

If a disabled blue badge holder applies for a disabled parking bay and they have a driveway and garage, then they do not qualify.

Councillor Burrows - this lady does not want a disabled parking bay, but simply to be able to manoeuvre her car in and out of her garage, without hindrance or interference of her sight line by parked commuter and non residential vehicles left in the road.

If you really want to help and give positive assistance instead of trying to belittle an elected local councillor, can I suggest you support my long running campaign to enable the Reverend Kenneth Limbert, who lives in York Road and suffers the worst of all, disabled parking.

Mr Limbert is over 80, his wife is severely disabled and confined to a wheelchair.

Repeated requests for a disabled parking bay are regularly refused on the grounds of having a shared driveway.

A shared driveway makes it impossible to open the car doors to enable his wife to be put in the wheelchair. Having to park in the middle of the road does not help.

I am thick skinned enough to treat your sarcasm with the contempt it deserves; it is a pity this administration has to be shamed into maybe actually taking some action, as I have drawn this resident's plight to the attention of the public.

COUNCILLOR DAVID BISHOP (IND.), Lichfield Road, Northwood Hills.