We must continue to fund Oxfam despite the Haiti scandal

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Withdrawing Government funding could do irreparable damage (PA)

No doubt Oxfam has serious questions to answer about its staff management, and no one would condone the disgraceful and exploitative behaviour by any of its staff, particularly those charged with implementing Oxfam’s splendid work in poor countries. It has proved highly counterproductive to have attempted to cover up these problems, and to have dealt with them internally to protect the organisation’s high reputation. But, realistically, how far can any organisation with such far-flung activities police the private lives of all its staff or prevent all breaches of trust amongst its employees? People would be quick to condemn a costly increase in bureaucratic controls, when major charities are often accused of wasting donors’ funds on administration.

These revelations will already have affected Oxfam’s fund-raising, and a Government move to withdraw some or all of its funding might catastrophically damage its support amongst vast numbers of small regular donors of whom I have been one for many years. Do we really want to destroy an organisation which for decades has been the leading face of impressive British charitable endeavours in some of the poorest countries in the world?

Gavin Turner

Norfolk

Following the outrageous revelations concerning a small minority of Oxfam staff, the Government will “cease to fund”, charities involved in anything similar. That is a stark measure of double standards.

At the time of the Haiti emergency, a UK inquiry had started into the sexual abuse and exploitation of vulnerable people – mostly women – by literally “hundreds” of police officers. Equally shocking was that despite a number of formal public reports, many senior police managers have failed to put an abrupt stop to the issue, effectively condoning abuse, exploitation and a culture of impunity. Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: “There is no place in the police for anyone guilty of this sort of abuse.”

Funding will be cut from charities which fail to prevent and stamp out abuse so why isn’t the same about to happen with numerous police forces which have failed to stamp out “the most serious form of corruption”?

John Bradfield

Harrogate

No, defund Oxfam before the crisis spreads

It appears that the charity sector is a very cosy little club!

Personnel who transgress, minor or major, are then spirited off to another war-torn or drought-stricken part of the world to carry on with impunity. Maybe they even get a pay rise to go with their untarnished reputation and CV.

The Government has to cease funding these people. There needs to be a wider investigation and individuals need removing from similar jobs. This scandal could get much bigger and more shocking.

Robert Boston

Kent

We must stop Brexit now

The signs indicate that Brexit (and especially a hard one) will mean a weaker economy and less money for public spending which includes the NHS. A weaker economy will result in job losses on a massive scale and food prices and the cost of living will rise dramatically and we will be financially worse off.

The leavers stated that foreigners and immigrants were responsible for the UK’s economic problems. 55,000 out of the 1.2 million staff in the English NHS are EU citizens of other countries. Immigrants from outside of EU countries make up a larger proportion. EU citizens living and working in the UK pay their taxes and they alone contribute £6bn to the economy. Without the overseas employees, there would be a chronic shortage of staff and the NHS would collapse.

In spite of being a passionate Remainer, I am, however, against a second referendum because it would be potentially dangerous. In spite of greater public awareness of Brexit really means. There still might not be enough members of the public to swing the pendulum in the opposite direction. It’s a risk not worth taking. We need to put the brakes on Brexit and grind it to a halt. We cannot entirely depend on the Government to listen to reason and work in the best interests of the country. It has got to come from us. That means, writing letters to and putting pressure on your MPs and engaging with pro-European MPs. Brexit will take us over the cliff edge. It does not have to be this way. Brexit can be reversed. 2018 will be a crucial year and Remainers must act soon because time is rapidly running out.

Nick Rowland

Address supplied

Thank heavens for the voices that are still speaking for the 16,141,241 voters who voted to remain in Europe. Thank heavens for the philanthropists like George Soros prepared to donate money to help those voters’ voices be heard. Thank heavens for strong, clear-minded people like Gina Miller who in the face of inexcusable levels of abuse continue to speak the truth, and remind us that democracy is not a one-day event.

The outcry from the members of the European Research Group and their shady backing group every time there is any whisper of protest against the extreme Brexit they claim “the people” voted for is that of the playground bully. If we really want democracy to flourish in the UK, in or out of the EU, we have to shout louder than the bullies.

Please, let more people come forward to make their voices heard, and let’s expose these Bad Boys of Brexit for what they are: greedy, selfish, Machiavellian members of a shady club with completely unacceptable levels of influence.

Lynda Newbery

Bristol

Let’s give railways the cash they deserve to flourish in the public sector

There has been much talk recently about returning public utilities such as water, electricity and the railways to be nationalised. Of course, most critics of the idea make reference to the appalling state of British Rail at the time of nationalisation and I am not just referring to the curly ham sandwiches.

However, many ignore the fact that at the time of nationalisation the railways were starved of funds by government after government. After all, there are many more votes for new schools and hospitals than there are for a few hundred miles of railway track.

It must always be remembered that the railway network had not recovered from the huge strain placed upon it during the war when maintenance was at a minimum and new rolling stock just not available for obvious reasons. May I suggest that if the railway system of that time had been funded with as much cash as the present railway companies receive, then the picture would have been quite different.

Colin Bower

Nottingham

Time to adopt Churchill and Thatcher tactics in negotiations

We will never earn respect from the EU in the trade negotiations whilst we continue to cower in a corner, taking blow after blow. We must stand up straight and fight back because this is the only language that bullies understand. Churchill and Thatcher must be spinning in their graves!

Brian Rushton

Stourport-on-Severn