It is part of the Archbishop’s job to comment on contemporary issues

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Justin Welby has offered a perfect fix for the refugee crisis (Getty)

It has been interesting to see certain members of the more fervid press describe Welby’s sermon as a “rant”: which it certainly was not, and I suspect Rees-Mogg would never dare suggest the Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster would ever misunderstand anything.

Anyway, for better or worse, we have an established Church and I would have thought it was part of the Archbishop’s job description to comment on contemporary issues.

Dr Anthony Ingleton

Sheffield

Contrary to what Ms Patel says, by speaking the truth the Archbishop has indeed offered a perfect fix for the refugee crisis.

However, in a cabinet composed of fools and liars, ably led by Boris Johnson, who have done remarkably well, both professionally and privately, by lying their way through life, they have managed to enrich both themselves and their friends to levels of wealth only Croesus could appreciate. They are, I fear, about to find out the hard way that money doesn’t buy everything that’s valuable.

Liam Power

Dundalk, Ireland

A law unto themselves

I am an Irish citizen with an interest in the relationship between the UK government and the law.  Moving on from Partygate, it appears to me that not only does this government not understand its own laws (despite encouraging seven-year-olds not to have birthday parties, and encouraging neighbours to inform on anyone breaking the regulations until it appears that, actually, saying sorry is all that’s required when caught), it is also confused about the process of lawmaking.  My understanding is that, when a bill is going through the House of Lords, it has not yet passed into law. That being so, it is incorrect to accuse asylum seekers of breaking the law when they arrive in this country.

Having left the EU, the Dublin Regulation which allowed this country to return asylum seekers to other EU countries they had passed through (other EU countries being deemed “safe”) is no longer an avenue open to the UK.  Therefore, until the bill that has returned to the Lords for the third time becomes law, international regulations apply to this matter.  The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 14) states that everyone has the right to seek and enjoy asylum from persecution in other countries. Crossing the Channel by small boat is not yet “illegal”, (as the Court of Appeal found on 22 December 2021) despite this government wishing to make it so – and stating that it is so at every available opportunity.

Furthermore, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Article 98) creates an obligation on all masters of a ship to rescue anyone in danger at sea, such as those in overcrowded, unseaworthy dinghies. Yet this government is instructing naval commanders to turn such people away from the British coastline. A government requiring its military to break international law seems to me to be outside the usual claims of democracy and law and order.

It remains to be seen whether a majority of Conservative MPs might care enough to restore some semblance of these values to British government.

Katharine Powell

Rule-breaking at the top

I had to laugh in exasperation reading Ashley Cowburn in your Easter Monday edition. Incredulous to read Mr Ress-Mogg drawing from the script of Disney’s first Pirates of the Caribbean film, the scene where Keira Knightley’s and Geoffrey Rush’s characters first meet, in defence of Mr Johnson’s Partygate rule-breaking.  

“The ministerial code is not a legislative part of our constitution, it is a set of guidelines produced by the prime minister.”

Stephen Ashworth

Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire

Can we conduct a quick poll among The Independent readers? How many of us crack open the booze at our place of work just to wind down at the end of the day? Funnily enough, the company handbook and the health and safety at work act won’t look too favourably on that practice. What planet are this government living on, it has completely lost its mind.

Paul Morrison

Glasgow

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Blaming teachers

What a brilliant column from Kristina Murkett (No teachers like me weren’t boozing in Lockdown, 18 April), and as a woman who has a voluntary and paid role in education at primary and senior level, I know for a fact how hard teachers worked in the most unprecedented time of the pandemic lockdowns.

It is completely disgraceful that MP Michael Fabricant should cast these aspersions about teachers and nurses, who all went the extra marathon to protect people in their care. Remote learning and classroom bubbles were facilitated with the children and staff in the forefront of educators’ minds, not a sneaky tipple in the staff room. Likewise, medical staff who were completely burned out by the horrendous numbers of victims to this cruel and pernicious virus.

Murkett is right too that if our leaders did not know they were breaking the rules, which for the majority of us who conscientiously tied ourselves in legal knots to understand what was permitted or not, this was the fault of their complicated nature. By mendaciously diverting the blame to hardworking and yes noble men and women, this is outrageous.

It is true too as she states if rules were indeed broken in Downing Street, an initial “hands-up” and contrite approach would have circumvented this dire scandal of Partygate and the public might have been more inclined to forgive if not forget. Instead this has resulted in an shoddy, saving face of a Downing Street-entitled clique that should have known better but patently didn’t.

Judith A Daniels