I’m sure that Clive Jones, in his letter (‘Wellbeing takes a hit’, Opinion, January 11) epitomises the views of many: What is happening to Watford?

READ MORE: Overdevelopment will harm our quality of life

Is it a case of the tail wagging the dog with ‘unelected organisations such as the Hertfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership’ steering a ‘developer-friendly’ policy?

Or is it a manifestation of a wider shortcoming in central government policy?

If Brexit has done anything it is to polarise society and reveal the huge gulf between the motive and aspiration of the man on the street and those with vested interests in the commercial world.

But even then the lines are blurred. Who in their right mind wants their back yard carved up and built on?

Who wants to sit in exhaust-filled canyons for hours commuting, asthma inhaler at the ready, wheezing from the filthy fumes?

‘It’s (for) the economy, stupid’ once coined James Carville, Bill Clinton’s campaign strategist in 1992 in his successful bid for the White House.

But is it?

Never mind attacking things of zero value on the balance sheet - green belt, clean air, health and social care (though it’s high time a huge price was attached to them to reflect the cost of their loss), the dash for cash doesn’t come cheap: the yawning queues, delays, dwindling road space undoubtedly, will, like an intravenous virus eat away at the very profit they were meant to create.

Until such time as politicians have the temerity to rip up the economic cookbook (as they did with the greenbelt) so that a value is put on our green space; environmental degradation is costed, whilst the merits of ruthless economic gain is questioned, then yes, quality of life will continue to go down the sewer.

Dave Degen

Whippendell Road, Watford