REGARDING the news that charges will be made to use car parks at Exmouth Hospital (including the Claremont Grove Medical Centre) and Budleigh Salterton Hospital. Does the Devon Primary Care Trust have a policy of transparency? If it does, then Mr Rollason

REGARDING the news that charges will be made to use car parks at Exmouth Hospital (including the Claremont Grove Medical Centre) and Budleigh Salterton Hospital. Does the Devon Primary Care Trust have a policy of transparency? If it does, then Mr Rollason's statement to the press has completely overlooked the projected annual income he intends to raise. Most of the income will be from the health centre visitors, a proportion of whom are those attending clinics run by the nurses, where the guesstimate turnaround averages 16.33 minutes. Doctor's appointments often take longer - would half-an-hour be a fair estimate, Mr R? Whatever, all this will have been taken into account, together with a figure of the percentage of health centre visitors (as opposed to hospital visitors) who have cars and use the 90 spaces in the car park. Comparisons with town centre car parks are not comparing like with like and, struggling to find another daft one, how about Tesco and ASDA using the same principles and charging for car parking on the basis that the health centre does! The report is contradictory. On one hand it suggests a minimum �1.40 charge and, on the other, it says 'in line with town car parks'. Which is it to be? Will health centre visitors have an option of 20p for half-an-hour?Budleigh Salterton Hospital, on the occasions my wife and I have visited the clinic for 15-minute appointments, always has spaces in the car park.Perhaps the full details of the PCT meetings, as presented to their committee members, could be deposited with Exmouth Library for all to read.Brian Worts,(via email)