AS A Hillingdon resident of long standing, I would like to condemn the scale of the cuts in the borough finances.
At a time when one in five young adults in the UK between the ages of 16-24 is unemployed, I find it scandalous that there will no more Connexions (Employment and Education Service) in the borough after March 31.
This is the service most likely to secure jobs for the young. Furthermore, there will be no more Hillingdon Music Service, which has thrilled budding young musicians in schools and given children the opportunity to learn to play an instrument.
Music is one of life's pleasures and this savage cut amounts to serious deprivation. The leader of the council sees fit to criticise Hillingdon Music as 'inefficient'.
I see no evidence for this view, when the annual concert in the Ruislip Barn is crowded to the rafters and demand for learning an instrument is high.
What will my granddaughter and many hundreds of other children do now? The short-sighted policies of the the council proceed. They are not even prepared to claw back nearly £2.5million lost to the Icelandic banks.
This money alone would pay for the Connexions service and kickstart Hillingdon Music.
So I say 'shame on you' to the council. You have no thought for the future of Hillingdon youth and any musical aspirations that our young people might have.
IAN HERNE Hercies Road Hillingdon
