SIR – In response to Councillor McCabe’s letter (T&A, October 18), I suggest he refers his complaints to his own Government which has disproportionately cut funding to Bradford District Council by more than £100 million since 2010, equating to £147 per person. I support the call by Councillor Vanda Greenwood, Labour member of the health and social care overview and scrutiny committee in relation to the eligibility criteria for Fair Access to Care Services, as it will allow for further discussion and understanding of the financial context which the Council is operating in.

Financial and demographic pressures mean that maintaining the system as it stands is not sustainable. This is a nationally-recognised issue – 83 per cent of councils now set their care threshold at ‘substantial’.

Coun McCabe’s Government in its own words says: “We propose to set the national threshold at a level which would in terms of its practical outcome be equivalent to ‘substantial’ in the current system”

I welcome an open and honest debate about the issues, but let’s not forget the context in which the Council is operating. If the national threshold is set at substantial it rather makes this a moot point.

Coun Michelle Swallow, Clayton & Fairweather Green ward councillor (Labour), c/o City Hall, Bradford