IAN Kilpatrick's characterisation (Letters, August 15) of borough councillors as Johnnies-come-lately to the battle of the Grenofen Gateway is disappointingly ungenerous. also ironically misplaced, as I shall now show.

As I explained to your readers in my last letter on this subject (in June), I had to 'pull' the motion that I had down for Partnership Committee on June 10, which would have restored two-way traffic, because Mr Kilpatrick and county councillor Roy Connelly had allowed themselves to be drawn into agreeing (albeit reluctantly) to minor modifications short of restoring two-way working at a meeting that I wasn't told about.

Your readers may think that it had been cobbled together at county hall as a direct result of my having put down my motion and with the express intention of undermining it.

Far from 'coming out of the woodwork after three years', Tavistock's borough councillors did everything possible to prevent the 'gateway' from being installed in the first place and are on record as having used every subsequent opportunity to get rid of it.

I have been very appreciative of Mr Kilpatrick's campaign. It helped the case a lot. It is a sad irony, though, that I have had to seek borough council's support for a second time this year because I was not tipped off about the semi-secret meeting that sabotaged my last attempt.

Roger W Matthew

Town and borough councillor

Currently vice-chairman, West Devon Partnership Committee