SIR – My colleagues and I have been saying for some time now that the Government reductions for councils are not the apocalypse that many councils would have us believe.

I note that Councillor Dave Green, the leader of Bradford Council, says that my views regarding the Council still having waste and duplication to remove, are farcical.

I also note that many members of the public who write to me, and the opinion column in the T&A (June 27) agree with my view that there should be more co-operation among the five West Yorkshire councils to remove duplication.

While I have known for some time that public opinion is with me on this, I regret to state, yet again, that very little progress will be made in the near future, not because it is impractical, but because the five West Yorkshire Labour leaders cannot work together effectively enough to do it for the benefit of the county’s council tax payers.

Millions of pounds could be removed from council costs, without any need to cut services.

I expect needless cuts to frontline services but not HR, accounts, legal and other functions shared, rather than duplicated. I will leave readers to identify the real farce.

Councillor Glen Miller, leader of the Conservative Group, c/o City Hall