ABSOLUTELY pathetic (or should it be apathetic?) This can be the only phrase that adequately describes the total apathy of 70 per cent of the people of Swindon who couldn't be bothered to vote last Thursday.

They have been whingeing about the borough council for months and then, when presented with a chance to change things, vote for status quo.

Just like the national government who have managed to mess everything up in only five years, Labour-dominated Swindon has spent a lot longer making a bigger mess.

Over the past ten years their failures include: The Brunel Centre and House of Fraser deal, the adjacent car park with stress loadings miscalculated by the then borough engineers department; the West Swindon land deal; the failures in education, transport policies including bus lanes and park and ride; failures in social services and general budget mismanagement.

Whatever happened to the big investment from the sale of the Brunel Centre?

Where is a decent library or a Steam Museum that visitors can locate (no wonder it's losing money)?

Where is a theatre for the 21st century?

Then there's the graffiti, the litter in the streets, the rising vandalism and lack of police numbers to deal with it.

As for the councillors they are more interested in scoring political points between parties than getting on with making Swindon a fit place to live.

And it really is time for the Liberal Democrats to get off the fence and make a majority that can get on with implementing a long term plan instead of dabbling, as and when they think fit, in order that they can get another snippet for their leaflets.

Unless the voters in Swindon really are determined to make this a better place to live, I'm afraid we will continue to get what we deserve and deserve what we get.

NEIL BRISTOW

Thurney Drive

Swindon