Sir: As a member of the working class, I resent Terry Dicks's imputation that I am an "arty-farty" type who indulges in "corporate entertaining" (report, 16 October). Classical music and theatre are my interests, and I rejoice that some of my pounds ...

Mr Caldwell - the very image of a businesslike bureaucrat - is mildly optimistic that Mr Dorrell can achieve his savings. "It would help if the enormous burden of reporting to the centre could be reduced a bit," he says, wryly. Working from conspicuo...

Sir: As you suggest, Derek Lewis's record as director general of the Prison Service is one of considerable achievement. Contrary to the public image, performance has improved in many areas, and Mr Lewis has given highly visible leadership. Although t...

Sir: So, unbelievably, yet another IVF unit has recently opened in London. I did not refer to my colleagues at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in my article ("NHS patients deserve the best", 6 October), but they make my point so eloquently (Lett...

Sir: Could the Home Secretary give us an example of a "policy decision" taken by him, in which there was at least the possibility of it turning out badly? Having overall responsibility for policy seems to have meant no more than saying to Derek Lewis...

It is gripping stuff, but the central public policy question remains the same: does Britain have the best possible arrangements for supervising its banks? It has to be recognised that no system will be flawless. A clever fraudster will always be able...

Sir: In 1889 Aeneas Murphy, a navvy from County Mayo who for 40 years had "made a bit on the side" in Liverpool and London as a bare-knuckle fighter died of a heart attack shortly after his last contest in a St John's Wood field. Murphy, my grandmoth...

Sir: With regard to your article about the fate of rabbits on the Isle of Man ("A tale of Flopsy, Mopsy and public enemy No 1", 13 October), the disappearance of the old Rangoon Corporation following the Japanese invasion and occupation of Burma in 1...

Sir: There is a real difference between time-honoured and charming dialect usage, as valued by Pam Ayres (Another View, 13 October) and many others, and the creeping bane of the new illiteracy. Forms such as "should of", "might of went", beloved of t...

Fukuyama's book is about what he calls "social capital". This means the social, as opposed to merely economic, structures that make successful societies. Trust lies at the heart of these structures, since it smooths the operation of society, lowering...

Sir: If the death of the young boxer James Murray on Sunday morning helps to bring this nation to its senses, and makes us realise that boxing is merely a legalised form of manslaughter and not a sport, then maybe his death was not in vain. It is abo...

In half a million British households, as the nights draw in, people will presumably be sitting down to Tuscan White Bean Soup with Frizzled Shallots and Pancetta, they'll be tucking into Red Onion Tarte Tatin, calling for more of the Spiced Lambrusco...

It took me several minutes' hard thought before I stumbled on the fallacy in this idea, but even after spotting the fallacy I still like it. It comes from Paul Dickson's The New Official Rules, the great guide to life that I referred to yesterday and...

Sir: After reading Pam Ayres (Another View: "Permit me my wrinkles", 13 October), I was reminded of an exquisite piece of conversation I overheard in August between two birdwatchers at Spurn Point on Humberside. First birdwatcher: "I've just seen a r...

This warm and dreamy national emblem still survives largely intact across much of the country - but it is looking increasingly faded and ragged. The fields are bigger because many of the hedgerows have either been grubbed out or ruined through neglec...

At one level this is sensible. The old doctrine was that, in Aneurin Bevan's phrase, ``if a bedpan is dropped, the minister will hear of it''. Taken seriously, that would produce deafened, overwhelmed ministers, drowning helplessly in the minutiae of...

Here was a contest with one candidate in which many hapless voters were invited to mark their papers without the least privacy. Its outcome was celebrated with the intimidatory tattoo of Kalashnikov fire familiar at occasions of spontaneous public re...

Sir: Although it is not our practice to comment publicly on applications under consideration, Colin Brown's article ("Philip wades into battle for lottery cash", 16 October) about the National Maritime Museum's application should not go unanswered. T...

Sir: We are glad to hear that the Government wants to help genuine refugees (report, 12 October). However, the announcement by Peter Lilley about the withdrawal of social security benefits for asylum seekers gives every appearance to the contrary. Ma...