Women in Northern Ireland need our support for an abortion referendum – no matter our personal views

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I watched part of the debate on abortion in parliament and one of the thoughts that struck me is that we haven’t really moved on from the days of the Suffragettes; yes women have the vote but not much else, especially as far as equal wages for equal work. Why parliament was discussing abortion is beyond me.

The subject of abortion is strictly a matter between a doctor and patient. It is a ridiculous situation we have reached, when a doctor has to put legal considerations ahead of clinical decisions. It is time we got real. Why should I, a 71-year-old male, any priest, any lawyer, any politician, or religious groups have the right to tell a woman what to do with her body?

If we really want a definitive answer to the problem, let us have a referendum of women of childbearing age only. Successive governments have been kicking this can down the road for years because they don’t know what they are doing. As I have said, it is between a doctor and patient only.

Here in Ireland we recently had a referendum on abortion which was passed by a two to one majority. For years we had an average of 3,000 pregnant Irish women a year going to the UK for abortions because the Irish government failed them miserably. The shock and trauma suffered by these poor women at being pregnant and having to have an abortion would cause them untold stress which must have led to a post traumatic stress disorder situation for them.

But on their return to Ireland, those that did return, there was no backup or support, they were left to their own devices. This to me is a national disgrace. As a sovereign country we should not be exporting problems that can easily be solved here. Fortunately the yoke of Rome seems to have disappeared and the modern generation can think for itself.

I do fully understand and sympathise with the No voters, I myself don’t like abortion, but I do not have the right to dictate my beliefs to women. The problem still exists in Northern Ireland and in the absence of an assembly which hasn’t sat for quite some time – are they still being paid? – parliament should order a referendum strictly of women of childbearing age.

It is not a political matter, it is social, and it will not affect the normal business. As said previously, it has nothing to do with politicians, lawyers, the clergy, or other groups, just women of childbearing age only.

John Fair
Castlebar, Republic of Ireland

House of Fraser’s closure makes me despair over the UK economy

If you pay attention there are no surprises. A few weeks ago my partner and I were walking along Princes Street in Edinburgh (down from the hole-in-the-high-street which was British Home Stores). The sign over House of Fraser was broken. It had been that way for a while. My partner said “So, they are in trouble as well”.

We’d been discussing the disastrous UK economy – despite what appears in the media and tumbles forth from the mouths of the Westminster munchkins. Simply adding together the disaster of decades of privatisation (asset stripping) and poor UK management, damage to Britain’s global reputation with everything from a buffoon foreign secretary and ninny secretary of state for defence and contradictory foreign policies to the outsourcing of local and national government (more public money down the private sewer) and now the unnecessary damage and chaos of Brexit and you have a sum with no sensible equation.

Today iconic store House of Fraser announced the closure of half of its stores with thousands of lost jobs.

Amanda Baker
Edinburgh

Hardly a day goes by without news in The Independent and elsewhere of the harm that withdrawing from the EU would do to Britain’s economy. The latest highlighting the dire consequences for the automotive industry.

Perhaps it’s time the Union Jack was hung upside down from government buildings to signal our country’s distress caused by the pursuit of Brexit. One that is more blues than the red, white and blue promised.

Roger Hinds
Surrey

How long before we hit a wall with Brexit?

It has long been my belief that the question of how the UK government can honour its agreement to leave the EU without compromising the north-south Irish border would be the greatest test of their negotiating skills.

In truth, I have long believed that this one issue might well bring the whole Brexit campaign to a shuddering halt. There is talk of “the Irish border question” as being a very thick red line for the EU’s negotiators, but it seems to me that for the UK government’s negotiators, it is much more like a very solid brick wall, and yet I still have not heard the Brexit campaign bus’s breaks screech on.

Just how many Brexit supporters will be on this bus when it finally slams into that brick wall, and what will they do when the wheels fly off?

David Curran
Feltham

The latest embarrassing uttering from the minister for Brexit is worrying but not surprising. As no-one expected the UK to vote in favour of leaving the EU there were no preparations in place, and the situation does not appear to have developed much since.

The least capable member of one of the weakest cabinets ever to mislead the electorate is nominally in charge of the most important economic process that Britain will experience this century, and he is making a hopeless mess of it.

Never in the history of the British government have we been so poorly served by our politicians.

Matt Minshall
King’s Lynn

A second Brexit referendum will only cause more division

As an ardent Remainer I deplore the suggestion for a second referendum. The country is deeply and disastrously divided from the first referendum and whatever the outcome of a second would be just as divided again.

Much better to give parliament a free vote on the final deal with the option of cancelling Brexit if not in the UK long term interest. MPs could make a more informed decision on behalf of their constituents without being accused of “frustrating the will of the people” and hopefully vote for what is best for our country.

Does your local representative have the moral courage to do so? Because this is what we elect them to do. Not vote for the interests of their parties or their own ambitions.

John Mayhew
Address supplied

Rising Syphilis is not the fault of the government

The government can, and rightly so, be blamed for many things but I am at a loss as to how they can be responsible for a rise in Syphilis and other STDs (Syphilis increasing at fastest rate since 1949 “due to damaging” government cuts), even allowing for the behaviour of a certain senior cabinet minister.

Indeed if cut backs have led to reduced testing and diagnosis one would have expected a fall in officially recorded figures.

G Forward
Stirling