SIR – Chancellor George Osborne’s offer to West Yorkshire to have more control over its own affairs is an admission that the Tories were wrong to abolish the Metropolitan Counties in 1986.

These authorities, which included West Yorkshire, had democratic control of the Police, Fire Services and Public Transport but were replaced by unelected quangos.

The County Councillors elected their own leaders, no talk of an elected Mayor in those days, but their abolition meant that today we don’t have elections every four years and was condemned not only by Labour politicians but by leading Tories such as Edward Heath.

John Appleyard, Firthcliffe Parade, Liversedge