Now this really is getting off-topic but I want to answer some of the
points raised. The county where I live subsidises cities. I am not
making that up, it is a fact. I pay the same taxes as anyone else but
the amount of tax-payers money spent per head in the cities is much
higher than in the country. That's why, though I pay very similar
council tax rates, I get much poorer services like roads, policing and
education spending. Central government support is much lower.

Lets take a parallel example - television reception. It is thought
proper that the whole country should get a television signal. Some areas
like hilly and coastal regions couldn't do so without local relays
serving a small number of people. Do we complain about the extra cost?
Does the relay user pay a higher licence fee? No, we accept the premise
that it is an essential service. Do we object that electricity users in
the country have to be provided with long lines at extra cost? No of
course not.

Happily I ignore the ad hominem attacks. If you can't win the argument,
then attack the person. Such tactics have always been looked down on.
Similarly the PC word 'offensive' should be struck from the dictionary.

Peter Scott