I have absolutely no intention of embarking on a series of polemics, nor do I want to get caught in political crossfire, but I do wish to reply to San Gwann mayor Joseph Borg's letter in connection with the traffic arrangements in Antonio Schembri Street, Kappara (November 9).

At the meeting called by Chiswick House School on October 2; it was agreed that the school was to use wardens to assist in traffic management around the school.

Therefore, on October 3, I wrote to the mayor and said that Chiswick House School "...will be seeking the services of one warden in the morning and one in the afternoon to make sure that the instructions on the signs installed in Antonio Schembri Street are being observed". This letter was sent by hand to the Mayor, the police and the Russian Ambassador (our neighbour) on October 5.

Also on October 3, Mr Calleja, our premises co-ordinator, called the local council offices to book the wardens for the following Monday and for the rest of that week. Mr Calleja asked how much it would cost and we were given an hourly rate. The local council representative confirmed that the wardens would be sent.

On October 4 a representative of the council called back to say that the wardens would turn up on Monday and that the council were seeing whether the wardens' hours could perhaps be included in their general detail. In fact, on Monday, October 8, the wardens did turn up and we presumed that they would continue to do so and that we would be paying for this service. According to Mr Borg these were in fact covered by the Joint Committee. On subsequent days, when the wardens did not turn up, the junior school headmaster sent an e-mail to the council to advise them.

In the meantime, I have sent an e-mail to the local council offices confirming that Chiswick House School wishes to propose a meeting for all stakeholders and other people who have shown interest in the issue, for us to be able to resolve the difficulties rather than nit-pick on details. I have also confirmed that Chiswick House School is ready to pay for the wardens' time. I have also suggested that we see "the bigger picture" to be able to find a lasting and effective solution. We have therefore started the ball rolling for an Impact Assessment Report on the traffic situation in the area around the school.

I have had very cordial and effective meetings and telephone conversations with the various interested parties and I get the impression that there is goodwill all round. I look forward to working closely with all stakeholders in the forthcoming weeks.