As the civil war for the heart and soul of the Tory party goes on, the only winner is Sir Keir Starmer

Letters to the editor: our readers share their views. Please send your letters to letters@independent.co.uk

At this point Starmer is practically prime minister in waiting (EPA)

With Jeremy Hunt probably the only safe minister, Rishi Sunak’s forthcoming reshuffle is going to be more like playing chess games in a civil war than putting the country first.

Having already lost a good defence secretary in Ben Wallace, who has already announced he’s leaving cabinet and parliament, Sunak’s mega-headache is clear. Does Sunak want a defence secretary to keep the blue rinse brigade happy or does he want a proven servant like Penny Mordaunt who, after years in government, with military expertise, a naval constituency and even an apprentice under David Willetts, is a class act?

Does Sunak want the most ideological and right-wing home secretary in generations to continue to shame our international reputation or does he go for a semi-safe pair of hands like Michael Gove? And does Sunak want to promote the worst deputy party chair ever, dear old dog-whistler-in-chief Lee Anderson, or should he bring in some fresh blood like Alicia Kearns? Either way, as the civil war for the heart and soul of the Tories goes on, the only winner for me is prime minister in waiting, Sir Keir Starmer.

Geoffrey Brooking

Havant

Taking care of number one

We learnt recently that the select committee of MPs, presumably anticipating imminent election defeat, have decided to double the payment they receive when losing their seat, along with the admission that the financial support for high energy costs will not be repeated this winter.

Good to see they are looking after those most in need.

Geoff Forward

Stirling

A fitting end

Chris Stevenson is right, Yevgeny Prigozhin was a tyrant and murderer. As I write this letter, Russia continues to wage an unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine. Each day brings harrowing stories of innocent children, women and men being killed or displaced from their homes and their lives shattered to pieces.

Hundreds of roads, hospitals and schools are targeted daily in senseless violence with the sole aim of destroying the lives of the Ukrainian people.

The Wagner mercenary group was also embroiled in Syria’s and Sudan’s civil wars where neighbourhoods were turned into sites of executions, mass graves and even more extreme violence. Prigozhin deserves his cruel end.

Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob

London

Kicking the can down the road

Whilst the drop in the energy price cap is a positive step forward, the fact remains the new cap is still significantly higher than historic levels. As our energy system relies on fossil fuels, we’re tied to a global marketplace that’s vulnerable to external shocks, political tension and sky-high prices. The price cap is not the problem or the solution just a measuring tool of this dark underbelly.

The yoyo-like nature of bills underscores how urgently we need to transition to a decarbonised energy system and create conditions favourable to home-grown renewables. This is the only way to ensure energy security, increased stability in prices and a decrease in bills.

The current outlook leaves consumers worst off as fuel poverty continues to rear its ugly head each winter. Any further use of the Energy Price Guarantee only masks the immediate impact and leaves taxpayers with a problem for a later date when these funds could be spent on other key public services.

Phil Thompson

CEO of Balance Power, St. Helens

A taste of their own medicine

Jane Dalton’s report on the huge increase in cases of dreadful cruelty to dogs and cats is shocking and absolutely heartbreaking. How any person can be so brutal to a defenceless animal is incomprehensible. Such people are downright wicked. Our animal welfare laws, both for domestic and wild animals, are still nowhere near strong enough either in terms of deterrence or punishment. 

The police often consider animal cruelty cases beneath their notice and the burden falls on the RSPCA. And yet public opinion is consistently in favour of the legal protection of animals. Animal abusers should end up in prison with really hardened criminals – see how they like the fear and violence they have forced their poor animals to endure.

Penny Little

Oxfordshire