The banks, as well as the Government, need to take responsibility for Carillion

Clearly, the Government must take some responsibility for the problems with Carillion – but shouldn’t the banks also shoulder some blame for continuing to lend large sums of money to the company? Or did they assume that the Government would bail Carillion out and save them losses by doing so? Obviously, the banks have learnt nothing from the financial crisis of 2008 when they lent unduly large amounts to house buyers; the only difference is that now they lend large amounts of money to unsound companies.

Gordon Whitehead
Scarborough

Who is going to run Britain now that Carillion (the company that has been in charge of the UK for the last few decades) has finished asset stripping the UK via multiple colossal government contracts and paying its shareholders and directors gigantic bonuses with UK taxes?

Amanda Baker
Edinburgh

As yet another overstretched mega-firm collapses, we must ask how it was able to run up such massive, unsupportable debt in the first place? Where was the due diligence on the part of the lenders? Why are pension funds included at all – they should be ring-fenced and protected, as they are the deferred remuneration of the employees and rightfully theirs.

Presumably, once again those at the top will walk away unscathed with massive payoffs; you and I, the taxpayers, will bail out the pension funds, and thousands of honest workers will lose their jobs. Vacant contracts for public services and works will be doled out to the next bunch of undercutting sharks to come along, and the cycle will repeat itself.

Mike Margetts
Kilsby

The collapse of Carillion is potentially catastrophic for those who rely on its services. The company employs nearly 20,000 in the UK and has grown fat from numerous public sector contracts in rail, schools and prisons. For example, Carillion is responsible for 12,000 NHS beds – a beneficiary of a twisted doctrine that insists, despite all evidence to the contrary, that private is better than public ownership.

Yet there should be no question of a “blank cheque” bailout of Carillion by the taxpayer so the privateers can continue their insatiable pursuit of profit. The Carillion crisis is yet more proof that free-market capitalism doesn’t work. Carillion must be bought into public ownership without compensation to its shareholders. It must be run as a public service rather than for the benefit of profit-hungry shareholders.

The doctrine that private is “good” and public is “bad” has had its day. RIP neo-liberalism. You won’t be missed.

Sasha Simic
London N16

Thank you, Ukip

There is one thing that we have to thank Ukip for over the years, and that is regular material for letter writers. If one can imagine how many people across the UK write in to one of the national papers, either one off or near daily, to express their opinions on one thing or another!

Without the continuous gaffes, mendacity, pugilism, racism, short tenures, infidelity and frankly some bizarre characters, we might sometimes get writers’ block. Matthew Norman has tipped Neil Hamilton as the new leader – I shall continue on this thread to tip David Icke, now there is a man with credibility!

Robert Boston
Kent

The time for action is now

The magnitude of climate change is dominating discussions globally. Every country is experiencing the effects of floods, drought, hurricanes, storms, mud slides, earthquakes, heatwaves, melting of glaciers and untimely snowfalls.

Having seen the havoc climate change has wreaked in the world, it makes no sense to deny its existence and the consequences of global warming that entail. Yet some sceptics – and even deniers – are in positions of power and influence.

Knowing these facts, President Donald Trump took the wrong step of withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, when the rest of world accepts it. These anti-global warmists are harming the environment through their denial of the facts of global warming.

Global warming trends over the past century are due to human activity. This has been backed by leading scientific organisations worldwide. Global warming is a growing threat to humanity.

Professor Stephen Hawking has long advocated that we’re treating our planet so badly that we will have to leave it soon – within 100 years, perhaps. This human-induced climate change requires urgent action. Rapid societal responses can significantly lessen negative outcomes. The time for action is now, before it is too late.

Baldev Sharma
Harrow, London

People-skills

Yesterday’s letter from Laura Dawson is spot on. The management of people problems is an extremely important skill, and she is right to say that it sometimes comes second in the rush to “get stuff done”, but you can’t get anything done effectively unless you have the skills to manage people problems.

You have only got to look at our politicians to see an illustration of poor people management and the damage it can cause.

Peter Cole
Northumberland