The prime minister – and his cabinet – would benefit from some basic ethics training

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The prime minister’s acceptance of generous gifts of clothing from an influential, wealthy businessman and peer is not appropriate (Getty Images)

For a number of years I was the vice-president for a major international energy company, responsible for internal investigations, corruption prevention, and business ethics.

If you hold a position of authority or responsibility, whether in public or private life, and you accept gifts, favours, or services associated or connected with your official duties, and which exceed a nominal value, there is a risk that such transactions will change the nature of the relationship between donor and recipient.

The door is opened to partiality and bias, while the recipient’s ability or willingness to treat the donor in an objective manner is potentially reduced. He may feel obliged to the donor, who may wish to call in that favour at some future point. As with Starmer, there may be no impropriety, but the perception can still reduce public trust.

The prime minister’s acceptance of generous gifts of clothing from an influential, wealthy businessman and peer is not appropriate, and the idea that he would struggle to afford his own business attire is ridiculous. As a trained lawyer he should know better, and should be setting the highest example rather than one which attracts accusations of sleaze.

This has more to do with sound judgement than simply following the rules, although the latter would appear to be in need of improvement, whilst our prime minister and his cabinet might benefit from some basic ethics training.

David Platts

Newark

Reform are not to be trusted

Like the Tory party, Nigel Farage, Lee Anderson and other Reform UK cohorts are simply not to be trusted.

Mr Farage’s involvement in the Brexit debacle is surely enough evidence of his antipathy towards Europe which has caused extreme hardship to British exporters and travellers, not to mention the investments we have lost from overseas. Additionally, he actively supports Donald Trump’s electioneering.

Mr Anderson is really a loose cannon in Reform UK, and seems to share more than a few characteristics with Mr Trump. He surely can’t believe that he has the intellect or answers for any of the ills that the Tories created in their 14-year tenure.

In Mr Anderson’s speech at their conference recently, he stated that the main parties “are scared of us”. I think not. Perhaps the Tories are a little wary, at best.

He also stated that the establishment “want us gone, but we’re not going anywhere”. Quite right. Reform UK will get nowhere while clowns like Mr Farage and Mr Anderson spout such drivel and vitriolic claptrap.

Keith Poole

Basingstoke

What green energy revolution?

Recently, The Independent ran a thought-provoking article by Stuti Mishra which claimed that driving down electricity prices is not all good news. It contained the rather remarkable revelation that “on days when a strong wind or bright sunshine produces excess renewable energy, prices can fall rapidly, especially if the demand is low”. However (and this is the crucial part), “the grid isn’t always prepared to handle this surplus, and the storage options remain limited”. This is quite an admission!

Surely I cannot be alone in finding this situation a perverse travesty of a wasted green energy opportunity: the threat of climate change coupled with the folly of previously relying upon Russian oil and gas should have been sufficient drivers for radical innovations in this sector.

The UK is missing out, not only on the benefits of additional energy security but also the chance to be a world leader in generating sustainable clean energy – an energy option that could potentially make a serious and prompt contribution in mitigating the excesses of climate change.

Nigel Plevin

Somerset

Farage is far from a top dog

Sean O’Grady, for whom I have great respect, writes that Farage “has been knocking around at the top of politics for longer than all his rivals combined”.

I was not aware that Farage was anywhere near the “top of politics”. Nor that he ever had been. I am also not sure that I would consider the sitting and former prime ministers as “rivals” to Farage, who is a consummate political disappointment.

I do know that Farage is a loudmouth; that he cares not one jot for this country and that, in my view, the media should not indulge him.

Beryl Wall

London