Iain Duncan Smith’s political record makes him undeserving of a knighthood

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Sir Iain received his knighthood in the new year honours list (AFP)

Since when are deliberate cruelty and incompetence rewarded with a knighthood? Iain Duncan Smith has lived for free at his in-laws’ country estate since 1982 yet has deliberately picked on the destitute, on the terminally ill, on domestic violence and stalking victims, and on many others with his ill-thought-out “bedroom tax”.

He has been castigated by UN human rights observers for his callous treatment of disabled people and by the principled, independent UK Statistics Authority, which found evidence of the fiddling of DWP data to illustrate the “success” of his benefits cap system. It was in fact plagued with confusion, errors, a lack of planning and unlawful sanctions, causing uncertainty and untold suffering to genuine claimants, vast increase in foodbank dependency and proved a wasteful abuse of public money to the tune of tens of billions of pounds.

In knighting IDS, the prime minister displays not just blatant cronyism but also lack of judgment, lack of emotional intelligence and utter contempt for all the vulnerable people that have been adversely affected, driven to foodbank use, to long term homelessness and even to suicide by his policies.

Dagmar Almeida
London, E17​

Referring to Iain Duncan Smith’s elevation to the peerage as a reward for his cruel austerity measures, Margaret Miller asks, “What do you get if you want to reduce poverty?” Answer: you get thrashed by the British electorate, relentlessly savaged by those on your own side, torn to shreds by the media and ridiculed by every pub bore in the country.

Penny Little
Great Haseley​, Oxfordshire

From comments appearing in newspapers this week, it would appear that many people are far from happy with those chosen to be rewarded in the new year honours list. Perhaps the people responsible for deciding who is to be honoured should bear in mind a comment made by Sir Alec Guinness to Sir John Mills: “We are so lucky, not only are we doing what we love, but paid handsomely for our efforts.” Here’s a thought: should people who are doing what they love, and are well rewarded financially for doing it, qualify for an honour?

Colin Bower
Nottingham

Climate in crisis

I am grateful for how seriously The Independent is taking the issue of climate change. There is no question that the need to halt climate catastrophe is the issue of our time – an issue that we can no longer delay or dampen in any way.

All people of Britain – and the world – must take personal, individual responsibility to drastically reduce their carbon footprint by cutting out red meat, ditching their cars and taking trains, not planes. The state has a role too: every city in Britain should follow the example of York, which plans to ban cars from its city centre by 2023. Governments and citizens must work together to tackle the collapse of our ecosystems and the annihilation of our planet. Time is running out.

Sebastian Monblat
Sutton

Brexit illustrated

Would it be possible for one of your statisticians on 1 February 2020 to illustrate using a simplified chart the measurable economic effects of Brexit? A single year – maybe 2015 – could show the situation based on a normal, pre-Brexit situation, with wealth generated from and through trading with the EU and non-EU trading partners, and would, on an annual basis, show the change of the parts and the total as we go forward. Even the most innumerate of us could then look forward annually, on 1 February, to viewing this chart on which we could see how our promised overall growth had been generated by a rapid explosion of non-EU created growth, or otherwise.

Michael du Pré
Marlow

Antisemitism in Britain

Rivkah Brown gave an impressive analysis of the sources of antisemitism, linked to the phenomenon of it being so endemic on the right of society that it is no longer noticed. Chris Baynes tells us that there were more complaints to the BBC about hostile coverage by Tory supporters than by Labour supporters. Can I suggest a similarity? Anti-left-wing bias in the BBC and across the media is now so endemic that we accept it as the natural order.

Joanna Pallister
Durham

I must add just one thing to the accurate and erudite article by Rivkah Brown. I have noticed, primarily on social media, comments stating that the numbers 9/11 amid the vile graffiti in Hampstead are connected to the twin towers attack in 2001.

Kristallnacht,

Robert Boston
Kingshill

The value of the arts

A Picasso painting, Bust of a Woman, hanging in the Tate Modern gallery, has been slashed. It is apparently worth €23m, or should that be was worth. This is worrying. Art and objects of value should be safe and, where needed, be protected. Given the number of recent terror attacks, how does anyone get a knife into an art gallery?

But to me, a more worrying issue is why that painting is considered to be worth so much. People can pay whatever they think something is worth for whatever they want – but that painting would be just as good for $1m, with $20m donated to a hospital and enough left over for a few drinks with friends. Support the arts that give us beauty, but also support hospitals that give us life.

Dennis Fitzgerald
Melbourne, Australia

An ode to 2020

Delay your distress
There's a way
Out of this mess
I have a dream that
We have no leaders
But collectively get
What we get
From the press
Of a handset
For every debate
A yes or no
Will improve 
Democracy's flow
No need to wait
The technology is there
Government by us all
From the armchair
In this 2020 vision
Everlasting referendums
Feed permanent swings
Of the political pendulum
No crap slogans allowed
No post truths (ie, lies)
Set beyond party lines
We unite despite
Our ignorance
Now that's
A head of steam
Of a dream

Neil Armstrong
Newcastle