Andrea Leadsom doesn’t know what patriotism is

Most Tory politicians seem to confuse patriotism with little Englanderism. Andrea Leadsom appeared to praise the supposed strong negotiating team, which has already been rebuffed twice in the first week of talks. To be honest, there is no negotiating team, since our potential experienced negotiators have now all resigned and we are left with career politicians trying to make sense of the mess in which they have landed our country. Hardly patriotic.

Thank Heaven for strong and stable broadcasters.

Colin Hayward
Hampshire

I have read with considerable disquiet of Andrea Leadsom’s attempt to turn BBC News into a Brexit propaganda machine. She and this Government appear to have forgotten that virtually half the population see considerable advantages in EU membership.

In my view, the patriotic thing is to try and avoid the worst effects of this act of collectively shooting ourselves in the foot.

Roy Bliss
West Sussex

It’s a relief to see celebrities like Ant McPartlin discuss addiction

Demons are demons, no one is impervious to the perils of addiction, not even Ant McPartlin. If you did a survey, you might find out that half the county at this moment in time is suffering.

I suffered the best part of my 20s. I was trying to fit in to something, I didn’t know what it was, and I only managed to escape the pressures of “fitting in”, by intoxicating my body with anything that gave me immunity. I dabbled in everything, but never went the whole distance. It was a tablet here, a vodka there. I was in the fourth division, the Vauxhall conference of addicts, a sprinkle of sea water heading towards a cyclone.

It was easy for me, because I found it to be a justified substitution for that something I was searching for. I was deflowered by temptations charm; its bitter sweet formula that eased my complexities of doubt. In the end, I broke free from its menace. The pressure of being successful managed to mentally tangle me, and I became a dysfunctional liability. The bottle was always within my reach, but my arms were too short.

We are a nation of thinkers, not just drinkers; we express nothing in fear of being perceived as something less than what is accepted. Society has set its standards far too high, and God forbid we weren’t able to reach its expectations. That’s why we hide behind addiction (whatever that may be) because it eradicates us from failure. No one is exempt – not celebrities, royalty, doctors, nurses, the butcher, or the baker – we all live, and breathe under clouds of destruction.

It’s a relief to see celebrities such as Ant McPartlin speak up, and speak out. He's a human being first, and that’s gratifying for everyone else who has suffered, or is suffering, with addiction.

Chris Wild
London

Strong government doesn’t always mean a good government

Much hilarity has been directed at Theresa May’s failed attempt to provide “strong” government. But the desire for strong government has never been questioned. Strong government is not the same as good government. Dictators and despots provide strong government. The main argument used against proportional representation is often that it may not lead to the parliamentary majority necessary for “strong” government. Instead, we alternate between governments of the left and right that implement extreme policies that usually undo those of the previous administration and could never be said to have the support of most of the electorate.

Now we have a government without an overall majority and, at last, some kind of cross-party agreement will have to be sought. Politicians of all parties will have to find some common ground. Is this not how the world works in other spheres – business, communities, at home?

Your report “MPs target immigration vote to block hard Brexit” indicates a welcome move to sensible and collaborative government that is long overdue. Hurrah for weak government!

Felicity Pollard
Isle of Mull

The world wants to know how Grenfell was allowed to happen

Thanks, Patrick Cockburn for your article about the war and how the Brits made it through the Blitz. People from my former home country (Finland) have been asking me, when talking about the Grenfell Tower disaster (which also made the front pages in Helsinki) “This time and age and a country like the UK, how is it possible to happen?”

Thanks to your excellent article, I now have some answers to give.

Anetta Pirinen
Cambridge

Brexit opinions have changed

Theresa May should stop banging on about “the democratic will of the British people” over Brexit, as though she has a crystal ball. She knows only too well that opinions change. Given the false choices offered a year ago, Britons should be asked if they support the Government position at the end of EU negotiations? With another two years passing, we’ll be a lot wiser about what staying or leaving really means.

Stefan Wickham
Oxted