I FIND myself almost lost for words with regard to the six council delegates off to Cannes for the MIPIM event.

Having just looked at the programme of events that will be taking place (via MIPIM.com), may I ask the delegates which particular conferences they will be attending? "Lithuania, fast forward"? "Serbian Investment"? or how about "Mauritius opens to the world"?

Having perused the itinerary, I could not find one event that could possibly relate to Bolton, let alone its mythical "Cultural Quarter" . . . although I do note there is quite a nice variety of cocktail parties and lunches taking place in some very nice hotels. Still, as Cllr Adia stresses, "it's not a holiday".

And whilst on the subject of the "Cultural Quarter" . . . does anybody else get the feeling this is one big white elephant? From the artist's impression published in The Bolton News, it would seem Le Mans Crescent is to be largely unchanged, apart from the addition of a few tables and chairs and a clear blue sky (which seems to be ever present in all artist's "impressions").

It seems to me to be a case of copying Manchester (they have a Cultural Quarter, we must have one). Surely the money and effort would be better spent on improving our other "Quarters", ie the "Red Light Quarter", the "Almost Derelict Quarter" and the "Getting-Drunk-and -Causing-Trouble Quarter"?

A Martin Elliot Street Bolton