Price to pay for being warmer in winter than summer

• OBVIOUSLY, it’s right that council tenants, especially elderly people and shift-workers, should have access to heating throughout the night if they need it, just as private householders do.
But should it surprise us that climate change is out of control, not to mention fossil fuel running out, if residents – council or private – are complaining about indoor temperatures of 21C and asking for them to be raised to 24C?
The Health and Safety Executive states that the minimum reasonable temperature for an office is 16C; 21C is close to the average outdoor daytime temperature in London in summer, 24C well above it. So do people expect to be warmer in winter than in summer (when communal heating is turned off)?
The government would no doubt fear being accused of “nanny-statism” if it advised people on maximum temperatures, but I can’t believe the Department of Energy and Climate Change would encourage heating at this level.
No one wants to be cold, but we do all need to contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. And yes, I’m wearing two sweaters and two pairs of socks as I type, while my heating struggles to reach 15C.
CHRIS DUNABIN
Highbury Grove, N5

• Certainly, thanks need to go to the Tribune and to Councillor Terry Stacy for the temporary reversal of Homes for Islington’s ‘policy’ of switching off communal heating on council estates at night.  
As a resident of Spa Green, I would like to thank Thomas Cooper, the estate manager, for researching the issue. Without his input I believe Spa Green would be in the same situation as Redbrick estate and others which have suffered the nightly switch-off for years/months. Thomas certainly goes beyond the call of duty as estate manager.
I would also like to point out that HfI is still insisting that the switch-off ‘policy’ has only been reversed during the cold snap. We are waiting with bated breath for the switch-off to start up again. Residents have had no communication from HfI about the switch-off or about any future consultation. 
HfI claims the switch-off is to save energy and thus reduce carbon emissions. I would like an explanation, therefore, for recent work at Spa Green estate which involved a switch from hot-water cylinders, limiting use to around 17-18 litres at a time, to a new system where hot water is free-flowing and unlimited (when it works). 
It seems to me HfI makes up excuses to suit any given situation, often in contradiction of other excuses to cover a different situation. 
ALISON PETERS
Spa Green estate, EC1