The government says they’re following the science but I sometimes find that hard to believe

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The number of deaths has risen above 30,000 yet this government refuses to take responsibility nor offer an apology for its abject failures.

They constantly claim they are “following the science”. So, the science says forget the elderly in care homes and Bame cultures, does it? The science says deliberately deprive the NHS of funding and staff for 10 years then encourage us to clap for the staff?

Now a narrative is emerging to try and blame the employed for the imminent economic collapse for staying at home for too long. Funny, I thought it was the fault of the unemployed benefit scroungers?

We are celebrating today the defeat of fascism. Do the behaviours I’ve described remind you of a particular ideology at all? We defeated it, now I believe we’re being ruled by it. I will not collude with the hypocrisy of Tory MPs and their voters by clapping some of the people who have suffered most as a result of austerity, ie the people who look after others.

T Maunder
Leeds

Inflammatory language

It is nothing but rank hypocrisy in my view that Boris Johnson – the man who has called black children “piccaninnies” and who’s described what he sees as the “watermelon smiles” of black people and who’s written that Muslim women in burqas look like “letterboxes” and who’s called gay men “bum boys” and who has close political links with the Steve Bannon – is marking the 75th anniversary of the defeat of fascism and praising those who “fought the Nazis with courage, ingenuity and stubborn endurance”.

Sasha Simic​
London, N16

What are we celebrating?

Pardon me if I seem less than enthusiastic about the VE Day celebrations, but I can’t help but imagine that Boris and his coterie dreamed this up, not so much as a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the end of the war in Europe, but more as a jingoistic jolly to mark their huge “triumph” of exiting the EU.

They claim to be honouring those of the wartime generation, but a glance at the news every night showing the steady upward count of deaths of mainly those over 80 in care homes due in no small measure to inadequate planning and lack of essential equipment, shows how much this government really does care about those who suffered the six long years of fear and deprivation during the Second World War.

I hope that this government will be remembered more for their callous and incompetent treatment of those whom they claim to honour rather than the mini union flags waving in lockdown gardens all over the land.

Susan Jarosz​
Melrose

We are easing off already

Boris Johnson is expected to make an announcement on Sunday about how the government hopes to relax the lockdown. I have news for him. It’s happening already. You only have to look at how many cars there are on the roads compared with a month ago, the numbers walking about and the building sites where work has resumed. Just as the public led the way into lockdown while the government dithered and sent out confusing messages, now the same is happening in reverse.

Gordon Elliot
Burford, Oxfordshire

Empathy is key

Congratulations to Holly Baxter on her compassionate, perceptive piece on the Americans who think coronavirus is a hoax. We need to understand where people are coming from before this problem can be addressed.

Joanna Pallister​
Address supplied

Economic woes

Am I missing something? The Bank of England forecasts the worst economic slump this year since 1706 but then says we will “bounce back” in 2021. Ben Chapman, Ben Chu, Michael Jacobs and James Moore rightly question that view and comment on reasons why there could well be a worse recession.

But none of them mention the likely effect of Brexit on our potential recovery. Much concern was being expressed over the adverse impact of Brexit before the Covid-19 pandemic struck: the government has continually stated it will not be asking for an extension to the leaving date of 31 December by the end of June as would be required and yet there is no mention of the almost certain devastating effect leaving the EU will have on our economy struggling to recover from Covid-19 at the same time.

Business still does not know what is required of it in the likely new trading scenario in any detail, border arrangements remain to be settled and implemented and many other serious issues need to be addressed. Surely this will add to the serious adverse impact upon us?

Paul R Draper
Winchester