HAMPSHIRE need to save another £80 million by 2021, according to a Daily Echo article (June 13)

But I was very concerned when I also read that the authority is currently consulting on saving £700,000 by cutting public transport subsidies and switching off street lights.

Not only could this lead to vital bus links being axed but switching off street lights is putting lives at risk and making our neighbourhoods even bigger targets for villains.

Dimly lit streets and footpaths are a happy hunting ground for the criminal fraternity.

They can already roam freely because huge cuts in police resources mean that that police patrols in car and on foot are a rare sight.

In my own area of Southampton it is very noticeable that lighting is being dipped as a cost saving measure and we have had a big increase in car crime.

Switching off street lights is tantamount to handing over your house and car keys to the criminal and is certainly not in the interest of crime prevention.

I hope council chiefs will think again before dimming or at worse switching off the lights.

Name & address supplied