Why is it not illegal for Matt Hancock to enter the jungle?

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Over and above his massive fee, he will garner fans, he will be the centre of attention and he will thereafter be a celebrity. All while not doing his paid job as MP (AFP/Getty)

Bless Graham Norton for his effective takedown of Matt Hancock. However, the Matt Hancocks of this world will never go away as long as they get what they so desperately seek: attention.

Millions of viewers, even those who revile him, will watch him on I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here! Over and above his massive fee, he will garner fans, he will be the centre of attention and he will thereafter be a celebrity. All while not doing his paid job as MP.

It’s pointless to ask why this is not illegal or at least significantly consequential because who makes the rules?

Amanda Baker

Edinburgh

The real crisis is worldwide

Current prime minister Rishi Sunak had to be persuaded to attend Cop27 after an outcry from ordinary members of the public and his dramatic U-turn. He had, until then, considered himself too busy to attend and was “focusing on depressing domestic challenges”.

Apparently, he did not consider attention to the coming climate chaos to be as pressing as his need to impress his supporters. His environment secretary Teresa Coffey defended his initial decision, saying "the big push happened last year in Glasgow", appearing to infer that Cop27 in Egypt is not important.

As might be expected, last year’s Glasgow gathering made headlines around the world, and expectations were high. It seemed that a turning point in realisation of the seriousness of the changing climate had at last been reached.

Yet, in the year since then, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has thrown the global pattern of “endless economic growth” creating “wealth for all” into complete chaos, prompting a significant return to generation of electricity from fossil fuel. The UK in its relatively new post-Brexit position as an aspiring global superpower, as well as showing a minimal sense of urgency, seems determined to dig up ever more oil and gas and to make decarbonisation very much more difficult.

The situation is at the point of no return. So far it has been too little too late. If no meaningful climate action takes place very soon the whole planet is faced with a very uncomfortable future.

Let no one say that we were not warned.

Steve Edmondson

Cambridge

We need the arts

Julia Bell’s excellent piece about upcoming cuts in arts funding in higher education reminds me once again of the short-sightedness of our government towards the arts. I do wish they would embrace the famous quote by Mae Jemison, the first black female astronaut to travel into space: “Science provides an understanding of a universal experience. Arts provide a universal understanding of a personal experience.”

Kartar Uppal

West Midlands

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Regional accents are something to be proud of

I found Harriet Williamson’s article referring to pronouncing Southwark in south London incorrectly amusing. I grew up in Deptford and went to school in what is now Southwark. I and many others, including my wife’s family who grew up in Southwark,  pronounce it as it is spelt. Only later, much later, did I discover I was supposedly pronouncing Southwark incorrectly. By then I was in the civil service and those around me had been to university. I still pronounce it as it is spelt.

I say one should be proud of their regional accent, regardless of what the powers that be might say. Call it part of levelling up.

R Doyle

East Sussex

Brexit is done, now we’re doomed

Perhaps Boris Johnson’s slogan needs a slight amendment to something like “we got Brexit done and we are now done for”. The news that we, unlike the EU, are unlikely to get a trade deal with Brazil is just the latest bad news resulting from our disastrous decision to leave the EU. Hardly a day goes past when we don’t hear of another damaging consequence of our leaving, and as yet I see no evidence of all the wonderful opportunities we were promised.

G Forward

Stirling