• FROM the moment residents who live in or near the junction of Broadwick Street and Marshall Street received notification last year of a planning permission application for a nightclub nearby, we began lodging objections.

We had very strong grounds. The nightclub was to be situated only paces from three very large blocks of flats, all the residents of which would be appallingly affected.

There were, in addition, two further blocks of flats in Dufours Place and another block in Marshall Street which would suffer.

The block in which I live, in Dufours Place, directly overlooks the site of the proposed club and consists of 72 flats, housing a mixture of residents; from the very elderly to families with young children.

The same can be said of the other blocks around the proposed nightclub, Sterling Court and Marshall House being in the same frightful position as ourselves.

One would have thought such an overwhelming weight of opposition would stop the planning permission in its tracks. It did not.

The planning permission system rolled on and neighbours of mine were astonished to hear that the prompt objections they had lodged had had no effect.

About 10 days ago some pleasant Conservative councillors came around our block to tell us they were proposing that the club should close at midnight. And, of course, we were grateful.

But the club is still scheduled to stay open until 3am and one might ask why the councillors – who clearly cared about us – had not thrown their considerable weight against the club being allowed to open at all.

Its location is totally inappropriate in such a densely residential part of Soho (an area which needs another nightclub far less than it needs a public lavatory) and we have taken the legitimate route of expressing our opposition.

It would appear that, in what I thought was a democracy, Soho residents have, in fact, no democratic rights or voice.

ALIDA BAXTER, W1