Letter: Glass ceilings

YOUR ARTICLE on the design flaws coming to light in the all-glass structures favoured by some architects was most welcome ("Glass shatters architects' egos", 12 December). This will hopefully allow the Government to rethink the construction of a similar building for the Greater London Authority. Sir Norman Foster's "glass headlamp" structure will place a financial burden on Londoners, especially if maintenance costs spiral out of control, at a time when money is needed to improve our transport system and tackle poverty in inner London. I feel that a brand new building is an inappropriate symbol for the GLA. If the new authority is to make a real contribution to sustainability and urban regeneration then a far more fitting symbol would be to recycle and refurbish an existing building.

DARREN JOHNSON

Green Party candidate

for London Mayor

London SE8