Chris Skidmore’s principled stance is a breath of fresh air

Letters to the editor: our readers share their views. Please send your letters to letters@independent.co.uk

After years of gesture politics, it is good to be reminded that parliament is a place where principled individuals engage in mature and honest debate (PA)

How refreshing to hear a politician saying, “To fail to act, rather than merely speaking out, is to tolerate a status quo that cannot be sustained”. The decision of Chris Skidmore to resign the Tory whip over the prime minister’s unprincipled trashing of net zero commitments by awarding further oil drilling licences is an encouraging sign that there are still politicians in office who are prepared to stand up for the long-term interests of those they serve.

After years of gesture politics and short-term expediency by the government, with the prospect of them mounting a long drawn out and duplicitous election campaign, it is good to be reminded that parliament is a place where principled individuals engage in mature and honest debate over serious issues.

Graham Powell

Cirencester

We’ve had enough of overpaid CEOs

Alan Rusbridger makes some salient points about comparative earnings. In the health arena I’d suggest three steps as merely a start:

A scrutiny of the salaries of trust CEOs and a rigorous analysis of whether they are worth it. Ditto overpaid admin and managerial staff below them.

A cap of the amount paid to agency staff set at a figure pretty much the same as if they were employed. I imagine they’d still come to work: everyone has to pay the rent.

The abolition of non-executive directors. My feeling is they achieve virtually nothing: they are certainly never heard of in, for example, maternity crises and other hospital failings. I imagine an old boys’/girls’ club that sucks money from the NHS. The cost nationally must be enormous.

Dr Anthony Ingleton

Sheffield

Older people are struggling with the housing crisis too

Pondering the housing crises, I am surprised no party is considering an approach that would free up considerable housing stock were it to be implemented. That is to help older people, perhaps living on their own, to move from their larger family home to smaller, good-quality housing designed for older living.

This would not necessarily mean a financial handout – many would not need that – but more guidance and help with the heavy lifting (both literal and metaphorical) required to move. It is a daunting experience at the best of times, but when you are older and less certain about things, it is a minefield and super off-putting for people who just no longer have the energy for it.

Encouraging builders to build in the right place (mostly in towns) at the right time for this market would make a big difference.

Laura Dawson

Harpenden

Why are the Tories hanging on?

In The Independent’s Your View page yesterday, Ed Randall and Mike Padgham express views that must echo with many other people’s thinking.

Indeed, the Tory party are so far out of kilter with the aspirations of the people that their policies and governance are both unworkable and unwanted.

For instance, while illegal refugees coming to Britain is an important problem, it should not be number one on the agenda in my view. Our failing economy, law and order, NHS, infrastructure, education, and myriad other things seem to have taken a back seat while Rishi Sunak and his compatriots reduce further our standard of living.

Britain deserves better. Perhaps Keir Starmer’s Labour party will be able to provide stability and sound government for a better future. The Labour Party is showing signs that it will form a mature government, but we need to see their manifestos with the detail of their intentions to make an accurate judgement.

Why are the Conservatives hanging on to power? Their position is untenable, they are reviled, have lost the plot and are simply waiting for the end to happen. Hopefully, this will be sooner rather than later. There is no benefit for the country if they stay in power and the country will continue its descent to the depths of despair.

Keith Poole

Basingstoke