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Public debates on internal issues are almost always counterproductive. My distinguished colleague Peter Coles manifestly thinks otherwise (Letters, September 24). The problems regarding pay and conditions at Nottingham University will be exacerbated rather than resolved if recriminations and dubious analyses are voiced abroad.

The pay restructuring issue is about more than words or opinions - it is about the balance between the right to manage and the right of those being managed to be consulted. The sooner both sides accept this the better.

A solution will be found only when staff are made fully aware of the new scheme and when they feel that their views have been considered in a rational way by the management. Conversely, management has a right to manage effectively. I suspect there are others like me who want answers to specific questions about the pay scheme. I would like to conduct this conversation in private and not via the columns of your newspaper.

Paul M. Mather
Nottingham University