SIR – I read the story you covered relating to the Fernhill Heath traders (November 24) with great sympathy.

It’s not a new grievance. Tradespeople from the Tything and Bath Road have protested vigorously in the past when road works, admittedly necessary, significantly affected their trade.

It is quite unacceptable that such intrusions should be allowed to take place without compensation. Traders adversely affected in this way should be entitled to compensation for their losses based, for example, on their previous two years’ audited accounts, or some other quantifiable criterion. The National Grid, Severn Trent or whoever else does such work should then build this into the contract price as a genuine expense. Simple. It would not disadvantage the contractor, all who tender for such work would have to include it. So Peter Luff, get on with it instead of writing letters which don’t even begin to tackle the problem. As for you Mike Foster, this would have been a far better use of your time than your time spent over foxes. You were elected to serve the people of this city of ours, not all and sundry within the forest.

Neil Humphries
Worcester