With more than 2,000 people now waiting on Bradford Council’s allotment waiting list, it is incredible that a significant number of plots are being allowed to go to waste.

But that certainly seems to be the case on at least one part of the district, with 19 of the 81 plots at Bullroyd Allotments, off Allerton Road, not being used.

That must be difficult to swallow for the 31 people who are waiting to get a plot here.

With so many people struggling to make ends meet, it is not surprising more and more want to take on a piece of land and grow their own.

In many cases, this is impossible at their own homes, with little or no garden space available, so these plots are becoming increasingly valuable.

It is selfish in the extreme for people to tie up a plot and then let it go to rack and ruin, to become wasteland, when so many are desperate to be allowed to have one.

It is reassuring that the Council is looking to crackdown on this issue, but sadly the waiting list has gone up since it began this campaign in August.

More needs to be done to ensure those who are not making the most of this precious resource have notice served on them as quickly as possible.

Leaving plots untended and neglected is unfair on those on the waiting list and unfair on those who lovingly cultivate their own allotments.

It is time to weed out those who are allowing such a valuable resource to go to waste and to allow those who will really appreciate it the chance to grow their own.