Boris Johnson, in his appearance before the privileges committee, showed the public exactly what they had voted for and why he was such a damaging choice. He is literally incredible and, as their elected leader, it reflects on his Tory party.
The winner of the referendum of lies in 2016, the election of lies in 2019, and master chef of the oven-ready deal left the proceedings along with other attendees to vote on the Windsor Framework. He was one of 22 members of the Tory party – including former leaders Liz Truss and Iain Duncan-Smith – who voted against the motion.
We see yet another U-turn in action, and an effective return to a beneficial status quo for what has become a privileged part of the union. It is a repair necessitated by Brexit that Rishi Sunak has commended as the best of both worlds for Northern Ireland, and parliament seems to agree.
Being in both the UK and EU internal markets was once the norm for us all. The Tory party is now being smothered on all sides, and even from within, by the fallout from their Brexit, the spluttering embers of damaging and painful untruths.
A major part of the oven-ready deal was reversed by a large majority effectively placing the Northern Ireland economy back in the EU with its trading benefits. For the present, the rest of us can only envy the arrangement. The whole of the country needs the benefits. Complete the job.
David Nelmes
Newport
We have to change our voting system
In his recent letter about Donald Trump and Boris Johnson, Geoff Forward wonders “what can be done to stop them from getting elected again”.
How about changing our voting system? I suggest we dump the “first past the post” voting system in favour of “party percentage proportional representation”.
With FPTP we have only one party/person to vote for. With PPPR, 4 constituencies are combined into one voting area to give the voters a choice of 4 “same party” candidates, and this would allow voters to choose a different candidate than last time to have their vote. The “price” of a seat would be 25 per cent of the votes, and the most popular parties and persons would be returned. With one vote on one voting paper, the percentage of seats would match the percentage of votes, and the voters would get what the voters voted for.
John Davies
Bury St. Edmunds
When will these rebel MPs wake up and smell the coffee?
I must say I relished Tom Peck’s recent column. When will these MPs wake up and smell the coffee? Their espoused Brexit isn’t working and never has. Instead, they go rogue with the Windsor Framework and declare that it isn’t worth the paper it is written on.
I would perhaps marginally give them a smidgeon of credit if Brexit has been an astounding success, instead of the dampest squib known to man and beast. Mark Francois always sizes up to the camera, speaking forcefully and we are all supposed to cheer and state “my word these people know what they are talking about”.
Of course, the usual suspects voted against Rishi Sunak’s new deal on Northern Ireland; anything slightly proactive and persuasive is total anathema to them. As for their esteemed “star chamber” of lawyers, I hope they’ve got them on a no-win, no-fee basis!
What is it with this group, who won’t see the wood for the trees? I suggest they climb down tout suite and finally, pretty please, get real.
Judith A Daniels
Norfolk
We can all do something to help the NHS
Living with the recent memory of a global pandemic we have all been reminded of our own mortality and the value of healthcare. In the UK the NHS is almost a religion; we live by the dogma that healthcare is free at the point of access.
I graduated from medical school a decade ago. I am an anaesthetic registrar and still a junior doctor. I was at the pointy end of healthcare working in intensive care during the pandemic. It was harrowing and hard but we knew it was temporary and we hoped the end would bring change.
In the past year or so Covid statistics have seamlessly transitioned into waiting lists and staff have been left reeling in the aftermath with barely time for a loo break. Patients arrive with more advanced diseases, operations are hampered due to a lack of equipment caused by supply chain issues, and we are often just making do. It is distressing for staff and patients alike.
There is a sense of swimming against a waterfall. Those of us at the beginning of our careers have no choice but to keep swimming. Senior colleagues who are tired of swimming risk drowning and have crawled to the banks to dry off. Those who are thinking of jumping in are looking at the rewards; rising loans, eroding pay, unsociable hours, jobs far from home, and years and years of commitment and are unsurprisingly looking to the beach.
Who can help? The government? Yes. We need fair pay and good working conditions to maintain staff morale and numbers. But you can also help. As an anaesthetist, my non-medical friends often joke that I give a syringe of that white stuff and listen to the beeps until the surgeon finishes. While I admit that is occasionally partly true, more frequently we are battling patients’ medical conditions and critical illnesses in the face of major surgical insults.
We are often the first people to be called when someone is medically very unwell. Like in a pandemic, for instance. We can provide invasive organ support until that patient gets better, but the patient must get better themselves and that requires them to be fit.
I therefore see first-hand the impact that lifestyle-related diseases, such as obesity, lack of exercise, and so on has on patients and their outcome. And recent reports suggest that the pandemic has made our society significantly unhealthier. This only makes the waterfall stronger. So please help turn down the tap, enjoy life, but make sure the NHS only needs to be there for you when you really need it.
Dr James Evans
Bury St Edmunds
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