I read my copy of Your Dorset last week with the banner headline ‘We’re listening to you’. In it was a summary of the recent survey to identify the services we value most.

The first results showed that one in four of us found no increase in council tax acceptable, and a further one in three could only tolerate a 1% increase.

We are already paying handsomely for these services – a third of my State Pension already goes on council tax. So the first message is ‘No increase in council tax’.

We were also asked to rate the services that were most important to us, albeit from a list presented by DCC.

The results were:

1. Roads are in good condition.

2. Helping older people to live at home longer.

3. Having your bins emptied and recycling collected.

4. Dorset’s exceptional natural and historic environment.

5. Rural buses and transport.

DCC helpfully showed a pie chart of how our money was actually spent for the year 2012/13. More than 60% was spent on ‘Schools and other children’s services’ which did not feature in our top 5 priorities. Only 8% was spent on ‘Highways and Transport’. which includes both priorities 1 and 5.

So the second message is “redistribute our money so that more is spent on Highways and Transport”.

In a rural county with a high percentage of elderly people these messages should be no surprise. Unfortunately DCC has a captive customer base. If it were a private service company in competition with others and failed to provide the services required it would simply lose its customers.

DCC please get back to basics, teach our children the three Rs, respect, morality and social awareness, and fix our roads and increase subsidised public transport.

All we can do is to make our priorities known and hope that candidates stand for the next council elections with a manifesto in line with what the majority wants.

Chris Manning, Bindon View, West Lulworth