Jeremy Hunt is ridiculous to even think it’s ‘inappropriate’ for business owners to be concerned about Brexit

Jeremy Hunt should stick to his own brief. How on earth can it be “completely inappropriate” for leading industrialists to warn of impending disaster both to their own companies and to the UK’s economy? They understand, as May appears not to, how closely intertwined our major industries are with partners in Europe, and what practical chaos and economic damage would result from exclusion from the customs union and the single market.

Gavin Turner
Norfolk

The new party of business

Under Thatcher the Tories eviscerated the manufacturing industry (and much else besides) in the UK. Now, courtesy of Cameron, May and the Brexit gang, the Tories are risking massive business damage again.

The question must be asked – are the Tories really the party of business? The evidence suggests not.

For Hunt to suggest that employers should fail to express their concern when a major problem looms is extraordinarily ill-considered.

We now need a party to become the new go-to entity for business – who shall it be?

Steve Ford
Haydon Bridge

The England football team are a joy to watch

The success of the current England national football team has one magic ingredient which has eluded previous generations since 1966 – humility.

All my life I have witnessed England squads with egos so large moons orbited them, marinated in a rich hubris sauce stirred by jingoistic journalism and sixth form media commentary.

In contrast Harry Kane, Jamie Vardy and Jesse Lingard have spent most of their careers being told they wouldn’t amount to anything but loan fodder, inoculating them from others’ expectations and providing a useful dose of Kipling’s If.

How far they’ll go in this or any other contest is frankly irrelevant when such a squad are a joy to watch, which for the paying fans is what it’s really all about. Keep it up!

Mark Boyle
Renfrewshire

The celebrations over England’s football success will soon come to an end

I am all for supporting my country’s football team but all this euphoric nonsense over England beating an amateur team by 6-1 is pathetic. More worrying is the fact that Panama actually scored a goal against England and could easily have scored two more.

The problem with all this hype is when England have to play against a world class team and it will all come crashing down. Then, rather than proper criticism it’s usually a load of excuses.

Christopher Hunt
Winchester

Where is Love Island’s sense of sisterhood?

It’s hard not to rage at the social dynamics of Love Island. The move to bring two new girls into an all couple house meant that if both of the new girls were to stay, a cause they have temporarily sold their life to, they would have to break up a romantic couple.

Of course all the girls marched back to the house on the war path – it’s so painfully formulaic and predictable. Why is it that so far, more women have left the house? When they introduced one new guy, still with an excess of women, the men were obviously much more welcoming save from a poorly set up confrontation with the reigning alpha male.

Why are we staging this to pitch the women against each other and the men to form a strong social alliance? I hope the trend reverses as we go forward, the results will be fascinating, although group dynamics get fixed pretty early and maybe the prevailing tone in both gender groups is irreversible now.

Another disparity is that we are only allowed a hint of body diversity in the men in the form of Dr maybe-it’s-an-act Alex. What about an inch of cellulite or an XXS pair of boobs in the women? Responsibility to our young people aside, I honestly don’t think they would lose viewers, granted they would still have to swish around in underwear. It’s the nakedness we all love, we only have to actively fancy a few of them.

Imagine the validation it would give young people whose minds are reeling at the disparity between their mirror image and what “the perfect body” looks like. The bravery would be shouted from the reality TV rooftops, it’s bang on trend.

Kirsty Bryant
Reigate

Boris Johnson quitting the cabinet would actually be a great achievement, for us

Boris Johnson says quitting the cabinet would “achieve nothing”.

Not so, Johnson. I am sure many think that your quitting the cabinet would remove a hypocrite, an incompetent buffoon and a consummate liar from the cabinet in a single stroke, something which would be of enormous benefit to the entire country. I quote Oliver Cromwell “I beseech you, in the bowels of Christ, think it possible you may be mistaken” – just take your “£350m a week” and go, never to darken our doors again.

John Harvey
Bristol

What would a second Brexit referendum look like?

As the clamour for a People’s Vote grows stronger, clarity is needed on what form that vote might take. Would it be a two-way choice between a bad deal or no deal, or would there be a third option of remaining in the EU?

Would it be a binding vote, or merely advisory, leaving MPs to take the final decision? Despite the impressive turnout at Saturday’s pro-EU march in London, the campaign still lacks coherence. We really don’t want another fudge.

Patrick Cosgrove
Shropshire

Going back on Brexit mistakes

It’s easy to see with hindsight that the 2016 referendum asked the wrong question. If you see a house you like you don’t just go in and sign a contract to buy. You consider the price, structural strength, repair work needed, neighbourhood, local amenities and services, local environment, availability of finance – in short a thorough cost/benefit analysis.

So the question should have been more along the lines of “Should the government explore the benefits and disadvantages of leaving the European Union?”

In that way we could have avoided the pathetic situation of a government negotiating without, apparently, even being clear what it is trying to achieve. And that is why it is so urgent that we the people have a second opportunity to decide whether or not we should continue down the Brexit path.

David Buckton
Linton

A limerick for our times

When our full British Brexit is served
We May end up somewhat unnerved
When we realise that most
Of our bread is just toast
And the egg for our face is reserved.

Andrew Torrance
France