I HAVE read with interest reports in your paper of Hertfordshire County Council plans to scrap Watford Council and to create a single mega council in Hertford for over 1.2 million people across Hertfordshire. This council would be the biggest in the UK and have a population similar to that of Northern Ireland.

As a Watford resident, I am really worried about these plans and what they might mean for our town. Whatever you think of Watford Council, there can be no doubt that decisions about the future of Watford need to be made locally in our town by people who live locally and understand the issues we face. The idea that all decisions made about Watford can be made in an enormous council in Hertford, with little or no input at all from Watford residents or councillors, will mean our town will lose out.

The issues that affect somewhere like Watford, one of the most urban areas in the country just outside of London, are completely different to those that affect rural areas around Hertford, Buntingford and Royston. I worry that a single council for Hertfordshire will lead to our town's voice being completely lost. If I have an issue I need sorting out, I can walk or drive quickly to the town hall, or speak to one of my councillors. If we were to lose our council, many residents, particularly those without a car, will not be able to get to Hertford to get answers to their problems.

This is also the wrong time to be thinking about these changes. Everyone's efforts must be about working together to prepare for a potential second wave of coronavirus and get the town moving again, not trying to scrap councils during a time of crisis.

The MP for Watford must do the right thing and put Watford first. He needs to oppose these plans that will mean many Watford residents like myself will lose our voice. Many of us will not forget it he continues to sit on his hands.

Watford Council has been a massive part of our town for nearly 100 years. Let's not lose it now.

Shabir Hussain

By email