If Boris Johnson goes, will we finally get a Tory prime minister who genuinely cares? Don’t count on it

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How much longer Boris Johnson will be allowed to remain prime minister is debatable (PA)

How much longer Boris Johnson will be allowed to remain prime minister is debatable. There are only so many times one can blot one’s copybook and, by any standards, Johnson’s book is well blotted. Which brings us to the next question: who will be his successor?

Currently, the top two contenders are chancellor Rishi Sunak and foreign secretary Liz Truss. Liz Truss is someone who as post-Brexit international trade secretary dashed like a fly around the world making deals willy-nilly, whether they were advantageous for homegrown industries or not – and in most cases definitely not – simply so she could advance her popularity with middle England Tory voters.

Sunak, a man worth a guesstimated £200m, infamous for cutting the £20 a week universal credit uplift, which had been in place for over 18 months. Something which was an appalling thing to do and this winter will prove to be a devastating blow to the poorest people in society, who will consequently have to choose between feeding and suitably clothing both themselves and their families or putting on the central heating and affording to purchase the most basic household necessities.

It’s about time the Conservative Party selected and elected a new leader who genuinely cares about everyone in this country and not, as in Truss’s case, solely advancing her own political career whatever the cost; or Sunak’s pandering to wealthy Tory voters and donors in order to curry favour. Basically, neither of them fit the required criteria.

Linda Evans

London

U-turns

The government’s continual inability to govern, as demonstrated by frequent U-turns, reminds me of that great philosopher Groucho Marx. He said: “Those are my principles, and if you don’t like them... well, I have others.”

Robert Murray

Nottingham

A simple new law?

Once again, a vulnerable child (Arthur Labinjo-Hughes) has been murdered, in a particularly long-drawn-out and despicable manner, and accusations are already emerging that the authorities had been amply warned of the risks but failed to act. Once again, we are being told that “inquiries will be held, lessons will be learned and procedures will be changed”, which of course is Whitehall speak for “nothing will be done”.

May I suggest a simpler solution? A change in the law so that in every case where a child is murdered or abused and warnings have been ignored, the local head of social services and local police chief are given mandatory prison sentences in line with those of the perpetrator. This might concentrate the minds of officialdom on prevention instead of inaction.

Ian McNicholas

Waunlwyd, Ebbw Vale

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Routine maintenance

In the aftermath of Storm Arwen, where thousands of households have been left without power for nine days or more, all the attention currently seems to be on mitigation, the speed of response, whether we could have got backup generators quicker etc.

When we debate lessons learned from the event, I do hope sufficient attention is paid to the role of routine maintenance. Many poles seem to have snapped; were these five or 10 years past their “replace by” date? Are there sufficient staff walking the routes in the summer months inspecting and trimming back vegetation where possible? Or have bosses been cutting back on staff, rather than the overgrown trees?

John Bailey

Preston, Lancashire

Good riddance to both

The year 2021 will infamously go down as the downfall of the Cuomo brothers – both former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who resigned over his sexual harassment scandal, and Chris Cuomo, former CNN news journalist, for assisting his brother Andrew on sexual harassment charges. And to both, good riddance.

Finally, CNN did something smart by firing Cuomo, who was not practicing ethical journalism. My hunch is that Cuomo was blindsided by the stunning outcome and is indisputably feeling the sting. Nevertheless, such arrogance and entitlement should not be allowed on national television. There is no doubt that their father, former New York governor Mario Cuomo, taught his sons better and is now turning in his grave.

JoAnn Lee Frank

Florida, USA