Letters: Election moonshine and plastic promises

These letters appear in the 30th April issue of The Independent

Being an American, born and raised in eastern Kentucky, and resident in the UK since 1978, I find the current electoral campaign laughable.

British voters are hearing daily, from the parties that could provide a government, promise after promise, which after being added up cannot be delivered without either great debt or depression-style austerity.

Today’s situation reminds me of the vote-buying in eastern Kentucky during the 1940s, 50s, and 60s. It was simple and direct. The going price for a vote was $5 and a pint of (legal) bourbon or a quart of moonshine (illegal). However since the ballot was secret the candidates could only hope that, after the votes had been bought, the voters were more honest than themselves.

I can remember discussing with a member of a local family that could deliver more than 20 votes their approach to the election. He stated: “We took the money and the whiskey from every candidate offering it and voted for only candidates who didn’t offer bribes, as they were honest men who could be trusted.”

Hopefully the British voters will take this tack, and not vote for the parties who have offered promises which cannot be delivered. However, if the promises continue as they have over the past few days, by voting day there will be no one who fits this criterion.

George D Lewis

Brackley, Northamptonshire

Breakfast time has never been such fun!

I used to get up full of enthusiasm when I was young, particularly when we had a new packet of cereal, as I knew that I had a chance of a “free gift”, which normally took the form of a piece of plastic shaped to resemble an animal or some character from children’s TV. It was an early example of “pester power”, an attempt at innovative marketing by cereal manufacturers.

The fun I had then pales into insignificance compared to my excitement at present. I get up, put on the TV and learn what freebies the political parties are offering each day. It’s great! Tax freezes, wage rises, fare controls, better pensions, utility cost limitations: the list seems endless.

For example, today the Conservative Party has pledged to legislate to fix income tax. And I then turned to its manifesto, only to find no mention of this pledge whatsoever. The question then arises: why are our politicians doing this? They aren’t interested in my excitement as I choke over my gift-free breakfast, and I can only think that they actually think that the electorate is infantile, and will put their crosses against the party which is promising the best goodies.

At least the plastic toys from my childhood did exist, even if they were tacky rubbish. All we get now is promises of tacky giveaways, which will disappear as if by magic at the first hint of economic problems.

John Broughton

Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire

London is a hub of generous billionaires

Hamish McRae is right to acknowledge the tension between the success of London as a magnet for the world’s wealth and people’s concerns about rising inequality (“Can Britain learn to love its richest citizens?”, 29 April).

The Sunday Times Rich List was published alongside the Giving List, which highlighted a positive side to this story. While wealth may be growing, so is generosity. Record numbers of billionaires have donated at least 1 per cent of their wealth to charity in the past 12 months

This chimes with our experience working with philanthropists. As more and more of the world’s wealthiest gravitate towards London, it has become not only a financial capital, but a global hub for philanthropy and social investment.

The UK is one of the best countries in the world to give to charity. That is a success story we should all be able to get behind.

David Stead

Director of Philanthropy and Development, Charities Aid Foundation, London EC4

Countryside for the privileged

David Cameron’s failure to grasp the concerns of ordinary people is highlighted in his manifesto promises on farming and the countryside. His bold statement that “We will be the first generation to leave the natural environment of England in a better state than that in which we found it” is far from the reality.

His determination to tailor the countryside to suit leisure activities of the rich and privileged continues to alienate the people he relies on for the rural vote. Many lives are blighted by the invasion of those with time and money to spare, blasting cage-bred birds from the sky for half the year.

He pledges to continue supporting hunting (there will be a free vote on a repeal of the Hunting Act), shooting and fishing, together with a science-led debate on GM crops and pesticides. The badger cull will continue, although it’s hard to understand why a science-led debate on that issue has been ignored.

He claims he will put pressure on the EU to improve animal welfare in abattoirs, but refuses to install CCTV cameras in UK abattoirs. He will protect religious slaughter, and reduce inspections on farms. And still no mention of a ban on snares.

This manifesto confirms fears for animal welfare and the preservation of our countryside. Mr Cameron has failed to take on board very real concerns of real people, and will surely pay on election day.

Jill Deane

Staveley, Cumbria

City still tainted by huge scandals

The Lord Mayor of the City of London sticks his neck out, asking us to stop bashing the bankers (letter, 29 April). We already treat them very kindly by letting them off criminal trials.

In 2007-8, the whole City, not only the banks, demonstrated their financial incompetence to the world. Ever since, we have had a flood of corruption stories.

So Chinese and Arab financiers must say to themselves: “We always thought they were not as clever as they claimed; but they’ve also shown they are just as corrupt as we are.”

Compensation of £25bn is being paid for PPI fraud, plus tens of billions for other endemic misdeeds, besides tax evasion. Virtually all financial institutions are tainted by these huge scandals. How can the Lord Mayor possibly think that “bad behaviour ... is not the norm”? He’s in denial!

If it is not the norm, why do we all agree the City needs a new morality or culture or “norm”? We need to return to a culture where bankers and others make profits by “looking after the customer’s money”. We must abandon the evil culture where they make profits by ripping off the customer.

When we uncover the last of the scandals, we can stop “bashing the bankers”. Then only can the Lord Mayor and the City start to rebuild their shattered reputation.

Philip Morgan

Winchester

Janner: the case for a trial

It is obviously in the public interest to resolve the truth of the allegations against Lord Janner. But if his mental condition prevents him offering his defence in a criminal trial then he is unfit to plead. There are too many cases where mentally ill or incapacitated people have been sentenced without proper defence. One more criminalisation of the mentally afflicted would be wrong.

This gives weight to the call for some sort of “trial of fact” which would be more like the inquisitorial process of an inquest than the adversarial one of a criminal trial. It wouldn’t be able to reach a criminal verdict or to impose a sentence, but it would provide a judicial forum to determine the facts.

Nik Wood

London E9

German answer to party-list voting

Stephen Johnson (letter, 29 April) rightly points out the flaw in the Additional Member system of election used in Scotland and Wales, namely the risk of MPs chosen from closed party lists being subject to excessive party control. However, the German state of Baden-Württemberg has overcome this problem.

Unlike the rest of Germany, it has done away with party lists, and additional members are instead chosen from among the “best runners-up” in the voting for constituency MPs. This ensures that all candidates have stood for election, and enjoy local support, rather than being imposed by their party’s HQ. This system was proposed for Westminster by the Hansard Society back in 1976, but this has been forgotten or ignored.

Ken Westmoreland

Taunton, Somerset

Tories try to scare the voters

The apocalyptic scenarios of a hung parliament depicted by the Conservatives and their friends in the media and business reflect their desperation. They tried to scare voters with this in 2010, but the hung parliament resulted in five years of stable coalition and an economy nursed back to health.

The Rev Paul Hunt

St Leonards-on-Sea, East Sussex

Maintaining the deterrent

Wouldn’t the best solution be to scrap Trident, but not tell anyone?

Nick Pritchard

Southampton