THE Bournemouth Air Festival is spectacular and brings in huge amounts of finance to the Dorset area.

In fact, it is estimated to generate about £30 million of trade annually for local businesses.

I wonder why lifelong Dorset residents such as myself see very little back except inconvenience from the show.

Car parks are full, preventing locals from going about their usual everyday activities.

Roads are blocked, shops are packed with people but shelves empty and leisure facilities overwhelmed.

Why does BCP Council allow this prejudice against local residents and enhance the incomes towards favoured retailers, petrol stations, hotels and the owners of car parks to continue?

Our roads are horrific, partly due to the large amounts of tourists visiting.

None of the air show money seems to go towards the maintenance of these roads.

Neither do locals see anything in the way of council tax rebates for the inconvenience of shows and festivals.

I’d like to see an ‘events bonus’ for all long term residents of BCP Council area – compensating them for the inconvenience and prejudice towards certain businesses.

Why should bars, hotels, taxi drivers and restaurants gain from our inconvenience without some type of resident benefit?

I am all for events, festivals and air shows locally, it puts Bournemouth ‘on the map’.

However, locals do need a financial incentive and our roads (etc) maintained to tolerate these events year after year.

STEVE MYCOE Parkstone, Poole