APPROXIMATELY two years ago you published a letter of mine congratulating the Council on the appearance of Bolton town centre and suggesting ways to make is more environmentally friendly. Now that the square is undergoing expensive improvements may I make a further suggestion.

I have noticed that the new paving slabs fronting Crompton Place are already -- in such a short time -- stained and stuck with chewing gum. The menace of chewing gum completely spoils the appearance of all our shopping areas.

One can't help blaming young people for this, as the worst accumulations appear outside the shops they mostly frequent. Until manufacturers can be persuaded to come up with a biodegradable produce (and perhaps a tax should be levied on a non-biodegradable gum by the way of encouragement -- like we pay more tax on leaded-fuel?) what we need to do is start a campaign to get people to bin their gum. May I suggest, as a consciousness raising exercise, a slogan competition.

Here is my own effort, for what its worth, to start the ball rolling.

'Bolton's OK

Let's keep it that way!

Just don't be dumb --

And BIN THAT GUM!'

Ann Read-Powell (Mrs)

Westbrook Court, Grosvenor Street,

Bolton

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.