Sir,

Your picture in last week's Observer of the group of dignitaries standing by some of Tenby's war graves only served to highlight the desperate state of the rest of the old cemetery. Whilst we salute the efforts of the Sea Cadets in clearing the main pathways through the cemetery and also acknowledge the first-class work done worldwide by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, there are hundreds of people buried in the cemetery who deserve more consideration.

Granted, they may not have given their lives in the service of their country, but many gave years of service to the community or to their families. Large sums would have been expended on memorials and inscriptions and their graves would have been tended lovingly by their families as long as they were able, in the hope and expectation that, when they were no longer able to do so, the 'authorities' would continue this work.

I remember how tidy the old cemetery was when I first came to Tenby over 20 years ago, when in the Spring there was a profusion of bluebells, primroses, daffodils, campion and other wild flowers. Now, under the so-called 'Bio-diversity Programme' what have we got - thick, matted grass interspersed with tall, ugly-looking weeds of all descriptions. No flowers to speak of, no butterflies, no bees, no birds singing - just dense undergrowth and bushes growing out of the graves themselves. What a woeful sight! A wildflower meadow it certainly ain't.

So, please spare us any more photo opportunities by the war graves until the rest of the cemetery is restored to a state of which we can be proud. We owe it to past generations, many of whom still have family or friends living in the Tenby area, who must be distressed at the appalling neglect evidenced here.

Janice Gryckiewicz,

Tenby.