Kemi Badenoch's reshuffle has done nothing to energise the Tory brand

Telegraph

7 days ago

SIR – Reform UK's recent fiscal swerve to the Left opened up a space on the Right for Kemi Badenoch to grab.
She could have achieved this through her changes to the shadow cabinet (report, July 23). Instead, she chose to invite the arch-liberal centrist and aspiring Conservative leader Sir James Cleverly back into the tent.
Bob Lyddon
Wells-next-the-Sea, Norfolk
SIR – Sir James Cleverly is a well-known Tory wet and supports Britain's membership of the European Convention on Human Rights.
His promotion by Kemi Badenoch confirms that the Conservative Party has learnt nothing from its crushing general election defeat.
David Saunders
Sidmouth, Devon
SIR – Sir James Cleverly's return to the shadow cabinet not only highlights Kemi Badenoch's lack of political flair and vision, but also confirms beyond any doubt that the Tories are a spent force.
Let us not forget that it was Sir James who, as foreign secretary, naively reopened the Chagos dossier – among other blunders.
Jean Maigrot
London SW6
SIR – I have had many conversations with fellow Conservative Party members since last year's bruising defeat.
Even now, more than 12 months on, there remains widespread dismay at some of the decisions made during our time in government – and, in many quarters, outright anger at the lack of decisive action taken on a host of issues that matter deeply to voters.
To stand any chance of regaining power, the party will need to put forward an unapologetically bold and wide-ranging set of policies that address public concerns. The problem is that I simply can't see it happening. And if I – a paid-up member of the party – feel this way, I struggle to see how we can expect to win back the confidence of the wider electorate.
James Luke
Steeple Ashton, Wiltshire
SIR – The existence of a Right and a Left in the Conservative Party, split over matters such as the ECHR, is a fundamental barrier to its recovery.
It's all very well being a broad church, but the party consists of too many agnostics and atheists. No leader can square this circle. The answer is not to keep changing the leader, but to change the party and reset it according to conservative values. This would mean a significant slice of the parliamentary party moving elsewhere.
Currently, the Conservatives are offering no alternative to Reform UK, never mind opposition to the Labour Government.
Another harmful tax
SIR – You report (July 22) Angela Rayner's suggestion that councils should be able to tax visitors' hotel stays in order to cash in on Britain's tourism industry.
This is both dispiriting and completely unsurprising. The Labour administration seems to have no other idea than to levy extra taxes, oblivious to, or unconcerned about, the economic damage such short-term expedients are likely to cause.
Mart Ralph
Salisbury, Wiltshire
SIR – The focus on a 'tourist tax' is a red herring when the 20 per cent VAT rate on hospitality and tourism services already creates a significant tax burden.
All the major European destinations have much lower VAT rates than the UK. Adding a new tourist tax, on top of our high VAT, would be a devastating blow to our competitiveness. It would deter visitors, hurt local businesses, and ultimately reduce the total tax revenue generated by tourism. Instead of considering new taxes, we should focus on creating a more competitive tax environment that supports our hospitality and tourism sectors.
Kate Nicholls
Chairman, UKHospitality
London WC1
Orgreave inquiry
SIR – I am a blue-collar trade unionist and I agree that the country doesn't need an inquiry into the Battle of Orgreave (Letters, July 23).
If the Left were real friends of trade unionists they would be pressing for a revival of at least a niche coal-mining sector in the UK, to include coking coal mines in Cumbria and South Wales. This industry could support our defence industry and green technology, given that railways, nuclear plants and wind turbines need high-grade steel – and high-grade steel needs coking coal.
John Barstow
Pulborough, West Sussex
SIR – I was a young district nurse in 1984, and as such had to travel past Longannet power station in Kincardine, Fife, to visit an elderly lady to administer her insulin injection. However, 'Arthur's Army' of Yorkshire miners parked their bus across the lane I needed to access.
Though my Mini clearly stated 'Fife Health Board', a baying crowd of men started to rock my car backward and forward, and stand in my way across the road. Terrified and alone, I put my foot down and accelerated away, running over several toes.
So don't tell me police used undue force in their attempt to clear the strikers.
Taught a lesson
SIR – John Frankel (Letters, July 22) asks when schools became political.
I was at boarding school in the early 1960s, and by far the best teacher taught history. Unfortunately, one of our history trips included a visit to a friend's house, where we were shown a promotional film for the 'ban the bomb' movement. We were left in no doubt that our teachers agreed with the views shown. Once a few parents became aware of this, the history teacher was sacked.
Rachel Jameson-Till
Etchingham, East Sussex
SIR – During a lesson at the local grammar school I attended in the 1970s, the English mistress stated that The Daily Telegraph should be closed down.
Adrian Bone
Cranbrook, Kent
Unrest in Essex
SIR – It is worrying that Essex police have admitted escorting members of the pro-migrant activist group Stand Up to Racism to an asylum hotel at the centre of days of unrest (report, July 23). This group has shown that there are people in this country who think the influx of illegal immigrants should be condoned and supported.
The unrest has nothing to do with racism, but much to do with criminality on a massive scale – worthy of widespread condemnation.
Meanwhile, ministers appear to think they can stop the boats with words alone. I fear for my country.
Carole Doggett
Milford, Hampshire
Today gets tough
SIR – The newest Today programme presenter, Anna Foster, is a welcome addition, combining excellent knowledge and forthright interviewing.
Prior to her arrival there had been an increase in petty pleasantries and personal chatter between presenters.
Her recent lambasting of David Lammy, the Foreign Secretary, was a brilliant example. Long may she continue to outwit political interviewees, who are too often let off the hook when they fail to respond to direct questions with straight answers.
Dr Paul Veale
Bath, Somerset
Seaside Shakespeare
SIR – There was a magical moment at a performance of Macbeth at the Minack open-air theatre in Cornwall one lovely summer's evening (Letters, July 22).
The trees of Birnam Wood arrived by boat across the sea, with the actors brandishing large branches before coming ashore for battle. Wonderful.
Pam Booth
Hathersage, Derbyshire
SIR – When a local cinema announced it would be showing a film of Romeo and Juliet, the school at which I then taught welcomed the opportunity to clarify the meaning of any parts that some pupils might have found difficult to understand.
I remember thinking it was a rather disjointed version of the play. The reason for this became clear when the boy next to me exclaimed: 'Ey, sir – I thought he was dead.'
He should have been. It was Tybalt. The reels were being shown in the wrong order.
Hartlepool, Co Durham
Girlguiding traditions worth keeping alive
SIR – I have mixed feelings about the introduction of 72 new badges to be awarded to members of the Girlguiding movement (report, July 22), including ones to recognise having a good night's sleep, laughter and dancing.
It is right that Guides move with the times, that badges reflect important issues of today, and that there is something to interest all girls. However, as a movement we should not forget our history, values and skills acquired over 125 years. When I became a Guide they were called proficiency badges, and we learnt new skills and improved others. We had to earn them and were proud to receive one.
The Guide movement should march forward without forgetting its heritage and raison d'être.
Christine Doughty
Nottingham
The pensions time bomb has already gone off
SIR – When I was an actuarial student in 1988, the firm I worked for produced a paper entitled 'The Pensions Time Bomb', examining the unsustainable funding model of the Basic State Pension (where today's workers pay, via taxation, for today's pensions) and the decline in final-salary pension schemes.
The key message was that, if urgent action was not taken, the pensions system would be broken within 25 years. This did not anticipate Gordon Brown removing the dividend tax relief on pension schemes in 1997, which only accelerated the decline in final-salary schemes. Today, almost the only people to benefit from such generous pensions are public sector workers.
The Basic State Pension was set up in 1946, when retirement typically lasted only about five years. Today it can last well in excess of 20. We were concerned about these issues 40 years ago, and I find it deeply depressing to hear that Liz Kendall, the Work and Pensions Secretary, is only thinking about tinkering with the current system (report, July 22) many years after our predicted 'pensions time bomb' has exploded.
Ian MacGregor
London N2
SIR – I allowed myself a rueful smile when I read that the Government wants people to pay more into their pension funds (report, July 21). I am now 79 years old, and paid into a pension from the age of 18.
Unfortunately, chancellors of all political stripes seem to regard pension funds as their personal piggy banks, to be robbed as and when required – a trend started by Geoffrey Howe in the 1980s and continued by Gordon Brown in 1997.
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