SIR — I am writing to say how much I appreciated the letter from G Bull entitled "I'm proud to be a Nimby" (Free Press October 12).

I agree totally, as does my husband. We love the peacefulness of West Somerset, the slow pace of life, and the winding roads. We always return here with a huge sigh of relief on the rare occasions when we venture anywhere else!

After many years in London and other cities, it is a haven of peace and quiet, and England as it used to be, with the old fashioned values and courtesies among people and real service from tradesmen, albeit at a slower speed than many from the South East seem to want.

In fact, wide roads were built, we would have even larger lorries thundering along, the accident rate would rise because of the increased speed of traffic, far more coaches would come onto our lovely quiet lanes and pretty old village streets, and there would be more crime because the getaway roads would be easier.

Why can't people see this? I think they all want the quality of life here and the availability of everything they are used to elsewhere.

You can't have both, and what gets sacrificed is always the peace and quiet, because of people's greed.

I actually don't want supermarkets with a hundred different brands of cheese, bread, fruit, ready meals, etc, etc, to choose from – it's overwhelming and totally unnecessary, and rather obscene when people elsewhere in the world are starving.

But if these incomers can't live without that sort of shopping, why do they come here? And why do coaches and lorries have to get bigger all the time, when our lanes and villages cannot do so and we would not want them to - why can't the vehicles be appropriate to the place?

Why do we need to go faster, do more, see more, experience more, own more all the time?

Mankind is the most destructive and greedy species ever known on this planet. Perhaps recent events have brought this home to us as nothing else could. It all has to stop somewhere.

Thank you, Mr Bull, for having the courage to write as you did.

Dr Lesley A M Evans,

Huntscott,

Wootton Courtenay.