28 Monday February 21 2022 | the times
Letters to the Editor
Letters to the Editor should be sent to
[email protected] or by post to
1 London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GFcutting the number of civil servants
by any chance be related to the Jacob
Rees-Mogg who has been serving for
the past two years in a government
that has wasted billions of taxpayers’
money on a botched Test and Trace
system, dodgy PPE contracts and
guaranteeing loans to fraudsters?
Professor Trevor Curnow
LancasterSir, Before abandoning national
regulations and standards that ensure
our products are safe and effective,
and dismantling the associated
expertise, Jacob Rees-Mogg would do
well to reflect on how our highly
successful coronavirus vaccination
programme might have played out if
we had had to wait, cap in hand, for
other global authorities to approve
the vaccines that we wanted to use.
Professor Stephen Inglis
Former director, National Institute for
Biological Standards and Control
Linton, CambsSir, Mr Rees-Mogg doesn’t think that
products should have to pass UK
safety tests if they comply with EU
regulations. The conclusion, then, is
not that EU regulations areSturgeon’s shame
Sir, Nicola Sturgeon has at last
expressed concern regarding Scottish
nationalists who have piled abuse on
the BBC journalist Sarah Smith over a
lengthy period (report, Feb 19). Sadly
Sturgeon’s response is both late and
lacking. Rather than accept that sheunnecessary. It’s only that having any
say in what they are is unnecessary.
Of course, people of the right sort
leave that tiresome stuff to the boffins.
Richard Wilton CEng
Charvil, BerksSir, If Mr Rees-Mogg is short of
inspiration in his ministerial role he
might consider re-examining the
manifesto promises made by the
Vote Leave campaign.
John Kerry
Ockley, SurreySir, Jacob Rees-Mogg was absolutely
correct when he said that “I should
get one of those Oddjob bowler hats
from Goldfinger”. The hat was
designed by a Mr Bowler who was an
employee of the London hatter Lock
& Co. It was the original hard hat
worn by workers during the early
Victorian era. Notable wearers were
Butch Cassidy and Billy the Kid, who
adopted the style from British workers
on the early US railroad systems. In
the UK this style of hat was also
popular with boat skippers, to avoid a
bash from the boom.
Paul Jolley
Brixham, Devon
Yare you have itSir, High Society, despite the talents of
Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly, was
essentially a rather inferior remake of
The Philadelphia Story of 1940, in
which Katharine Hepburn’s character
Tracy, with that inimitably tremulous
drawl, repeatedly revels in the word
“yare” (Notebook, Feb 18, and letters,
Feb 19) while reminiscing to Cary
Grant’s Dexter about their boat, True
Love. The sparkle in her eyes as she
does so remains quite unforgettable.
Joseph Connolly
London NW3Sir, The opening of The Tempest
makes full use of the word “yare”
when the Ship-Master calls to the
Boatswain “Good, speak to th’
mariners: fall to ’t, yarely, or we run
ourselves aground.” The Boatswain
calls out: “Heigh, my hearts! Cheerly,
cheerly my hearts! Yare, yare!” One
imagines that the national electricity
companies’ engineers are working as
yarely as they can right now.
Roderick Wathen
Talisker, Isle of SkyePort in a storm
Sir, Lord Palmerston, twice British
prime minister in the 19th century,
once stated that “Britain had no
permanent friends or enemies, only
permanent interests”. With Britain
and Portugal about to celebrate the
650th anniversary of the Treaty of
Tagilde, perhaps English interest in
port wine (“Port dynasty refuses to
wither on the vine”, World, and
leading article, Feb 19) has helped to
create an exception to this maxim.
William Reid
Holmer Green, BucksTreading carefully
Sir, My AS physics class and I read
with interest the benefits of daily
exercise and climbing stairs as
reported in the article “Are you a
super grandparent?” (Times2, Feb 15).
When the researchers stated that
“stair climbing was associated with a
lower risk of mortality from any
causes”, it was queried if this included
deaths from falling down the stairs.
Charles Hutchings
Teacher, Enniskillen Royal Grammar
School, Co FermanaghCorrections and
clarifications
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London Bridge Street, London SE1 9GF
NHS chief ’s salary
Sir, The news regarding Amanda
Pritchard’s salary (“NHS England
chief paid at least £55,000 more than
her predecessor”, Feb 19) is
particularly galling for senior NHS
consultants, most of whom have
trained for 15 to 18 years before their
appointment. It is increasingly clear,
despite what the NHS has said, that
executive pay does not depend on
performance or efficiency. This is
especially pertinent because senior
consultants’ pay tends to range from
£120,000 to £140,000. Consultants
arguably employ greater skills with
more accountability and responsibility
on their shoulders, yet this has not
been reflected in their salary size or
growth. Instead of highlighting a
20 per cent reduction in executives’
salaries since 2018, the NHS should
devote more of its energy to increase
consultants’ pay, while directly linking
both salary sets to productivity.
Marjan Jahangiri
Professor of cardiac surgery
London SW7
Rees-Mogg’s promise to cut civil service jobs
Sir, Apparently the new Brexit
opportunities and government
efficiency minister, who has been in
office for ten days, already knows how
to take his new department forward
(“Rees-Mogg wants to cut 65,000 civil
service jobs”, report, Jan 19). Yet his
ministerial experience is confined to
an undistinguished time as leader of
the Commons. Perhaps it would be
better if he would reflect on his time
there. We have 650 MPs and almost
800 sitting members of the Lords. I
dread to think how many aides,
advisers, researchers and other
assistants they have. On most days
both Houses are sparsely populated.
Many members hardly attend or
speak in debates and turn up to vote
only when told to by the whips. Most
seem only to trot out their party line
on any issue that arises. Let Mr Rees-
Mogg start his efficiency drive closer
to home, in parliament. When he has
done that we might be more inclined
to take his criticism of Whitehall and
the wider civil service more seriously.
Terry Clancy
Wigston, LeicsSir, Would the Jacob Rees-Mogg who
wants to save the taxpayer money byTaxing questions
Sir, It is rare to see a young columnist
who accepts that baby boomers did
not necessarily have it all. Thank you
Imogen Tew (Money, Feb 19). One
aspect of the 1970s and early 1980s
that I never see mentioned is the fact
that the basic rate of income tax
ranged between 30 and 35 per cent.
Elizabeth Clarke
Sheffield
from the times february 21, 1922NIGHT CLUB
RAID. DRINKING
AT 1.50 AM
thetimes.co.uk/archiveAt Bow Street Police Court
yesterday Mrs Kate Evelyn Meyrick,
47, of Devonshire Street WC, was
charged with selling intoxicating
liquor without a licence at the “43”
Club, Gerrard Street, W, and 15 other
persons were charged with being on
the premises for the purpose of
illegal dealing in intoxicating liquor.
They included Mary Meyrick, 21,
daughter of Mrs Meyrick, Eric
Gordon, 26, club manager, and
George and James Heath, brothers,
doorkeepers of the club. The two
last-named were also charged with
obstructing the police. Mr HerbertMuskett, prosecuting, said that the
defendants were arrested at 10 to 2
on Sunday morning at premises
where an unregistered and
disorderly night club was carried on.
The police, suspecting illegal
drinking, had obtained a search
warrant, which was executed by Sub-
Divisional Inspector Best, Sergeant
Goddard, and other officers in plain
clothes. When they arrived, the
Heaths, who were outside in the
street apparently keeping watch,
referred the officers to an address
opposite, and said, “Get your tickets
over there”. The Police then forced
an entry to the club, whereupon
George Heath put out his foot to trip
Sergeant Goddard, and James Heath
struck him with his fist. The
defendants were found drinking in a
small room about 9ft by 7ft.
Observation had been kept inside
the premises by police officers, and
evidence would be given that
intoxicants had been habitually sold,by Mrs Meyrick, her daughter, or by
Gordon. Inspector Best, giving
evidence, said that the room was
packed, and some of the occupants
had to leave before the police could
get in. There were nine men
(including two police officers) and
five women, all either drinking
whisky or with glasses in their
hands. One man, who was drunk,
became violent when asked his
name and address and tried to fight
his way out. His conduct produced a
general uproar, and it became
impossible to obtain the name and
address of anyone present. When
Mrs Meyrick was charged, she said.
“I don’t sell it. I give it away.” The
Magistrate granted a remand on bail
in the cases of Mrs Meyrick, Miss
Meyrick, Gordon, and the two
Heaths. The other defendants, who
pleaded “Guilty”, were fined 40s.Nato and Russia
Sir, Regarding your report “Promises
to Moscow after Cold War come back
to haunt western powers” (Feb 19), I
can confirm that a number of
American officials involved in the
Baker-Gorbachev negotiation in
February 1990 have recently
confirmed the truth of the account
given by Gorbachev’s interpreter,
Pavel Palazhchenko. James Baker
made no promises regarding Nato
expansion into Poland, Czechsolvakia,
Hungary et cetera, only that Nato
infrastructure would not be moved
into the territory of the former
German Democratic Republic.
Robin Knight
Moscow bureau chief, US News &
World Report 1976-79; London W4Changes at Lord’s
Sir, Last week we announced that
matches between Oxford and
Cambridge, and Eton and Harrow
would no longer be played at Lord’s
annually (“Old boys are stumped by
loss of Lord’s”, report, Feb 16, and
letters, Feb 17, 18 & 19). The decision
was the culmination of a
comprehensive review of the games
we stage at our main ground. As we
are limited in the number of days of
cricket we can accommodate there, we
have focused our attention on
widening access to the days we do
have available. Our key priority is the
provision of high-quality pitches for
our most high-profile matches. We
also believe in providing “a route to
Lord’s” for talented cricketers to play
at the home of cricket, having earned
their seat in the dressing room via
their performances in competition
with a wide variety of other teams.
GW Lavender
Chief executive and secretary,
Marylebone Cricket Club has a responsibility to try to control
this conspicuous minority of her
supporters, Sturgeon calls for a cross-
party response. Is she serious? These
nationalists are lobbying for her cause
— the cause she leads and champions
every day. Now is the time for her to
show leadership and address this issue.
Martin Redfern
Melrose, Roxburghshire
Whistler mural
Sir, I remember eating in the Tate
Britain restaurant 20 years ago and
shuddering when my eyes alighted on
the detail of the black child on a lead
like an animal among the landscapes
in the Rex Whistler mural. No one
should have to eat under such a
disgraceful image. But I also wonder
whether Tate is ascribing too much
artistic dignity to Whistler’s interior
design by proposing to turn the
restaurant into an art space with new
works commissioned to engage with
the racist imagery (report, Feb 17).
Maybe the offensive elements in the
murals could be painted out and the
rest left as what it really is: wallpaper
in a restaurant.
Lucasta Miller
London NW5Bird-scaring boys
Sir, Another literary bird-scarer
(Nature Notebook, Feb 12, and letters,
Feb 14, 16, 17 & 18) was the
ten-year-old Joseph Andrews, of
Henry Fielding’s novel of 1742. Like
Jude’s, his tenure of office was brief,
“his voice being so extremely
musical, that it rather allured the
birds than terrified them”.
Crow-scaring is surely as old as
farming but it looks like it was on its
way out by the 1870s, Thomas Escott
noting in 1879’s England: Its People,
Polity and Pursuits that “bird-scaring
is now generally done by inanimate
scarecrows”. Even so, in 1896
Sir George Clausen RA captured the
grim reality of the job with his
painting Bird Scaring, depicting an
ill-clad young boy, half-starved and
half-frozen, deploying his clappers in
the grey light of a March dawn. The
social commentary was evidently lost
on the Times critic (“The Royal
Academy”, report, May 25, 1896), who
called the painting a disappointment,
observing that “the boy’s figure is
simply ugly — there is no other word
for it”.
Eugene Suggett
Dorking, SurreyReforming the Met
Sir, Professor John Adair (letter, Feb
19) is a highly regarded leadership
guru and is correct to point out that
simply replacing the commissioner of
the Metropolitan Police will not bring
about a desired force-wide change of
leadership. An overall strategy is
indeed required at all levels, but itcannot copy the military approach, as
he recommends. Unlike our armed
services, all police forces have to yield
to local and regional civil appointees,
many pursuing sociopolitical agendas
tempered with sometimes challenging
cultural dimensions. Effective leaders
depend on dedicated followers, ideally
with a clear sense of pride. However,
anything even resembling esprit de
corps will be intolerable to those who
exert so much control over the Met
(similarly in all forces), because it will
be mistakenly seen as elitism, leading
to misplaced devotion and closed
ranks. What is essential for our
military will regrettably be for ever
elusive in our civil police, who
understandably have to maintain a
very high level of local accountability.
Peter Power
Retired senior Metropolitan Police
officer; Lyndhurst, Hants