The left should be fighting for proportional representation – not against each other

In 1951 Clement Attlee’s Labour Party achieved the highest popular vote of any party up to that time (a record that stood until 1992). However, the Tories “won” the 1951 election.

In 2005, Tony Blair’s Labour party received 9.6 million votes, resulting in 355 seats in parliament compared with 198 Tory seats.

However, In 2017 Corbyn achieved 12.9 million votes, close to Tony Blair’s pre 2005 “landslide” victories, but “lost”.

In this year’s election, Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party received 10.3 million votes, higher than Blair’s, Brown and Miliband’s votes in 2005, 2010 and 2015 respectively.

One of the main reasons for the post-2010 Labour parliamentary losses was due to the collapse of the Lib Dem vote.

I can understand why the right and centrists want to blame Corbyn and Corbynism for Labour’s tragic losses in parliament, but it is astounding that many on the left are also taking this view rather than campaigning for proportional representation.

Ted Watson
Brighton

Monitoring Tory promises

As a UK citizen, I agreed with Roger Yalden (Letters, 14 December) that the press needs to hold politicians to account for all of the promises made. For a more visual reminder, how about a giant billboard on Big Ben with a bar chart showing the progress of fulfilling each of the major manifesto commitments? Similar to the signs outside churches asking for donations to repair the roof or steeple and a marker showing progress.

A bar chart for each of the big promises (40 new hospitals, 50,000 nurses, 20,000 policemen and of course a trade deal with the EU by January 2020) would serve as a daily reminder to all MPs to focus on what they were elected to deliver. And it could be regularly published by the press and online.

John Fields
Norway

Corbyn was permanently on the fence

So Jeremy Corbyn “has done everything he could”. That’s the whole problem. It was manifestly clear that he could never lead the Labour Party to victory because he could not get off the fence about so many issues.

As a result, I, as a Labour voter for 50 years, face at least another five years before we get a government with any interest in honesty, integrity and equity. I now face a world, post-Brexit, where my children and grandchildren will be less safe and poorer, and with fewer opportunities.

Tim Elliott
Address supplied

Corbyn inspired millions

Adding to the other miseries of the past few years, has been the sheer agony, at times, of watching much of the press do their damnedest to destroy a good man.

Jeremy Corbyn could credibly be described as having “no enemies” back in 2015, when the hard-working backbencher gamely stood as a reluctant leadership candidate, citing the party’s failure to resist austerity.

He went on to inspire millions of young people with the hope of a better, fairer, greener country, and a more peaceful world. There wasn’t anything ignoble about Corbyn’s doomed campaign to reunite a polarised Britain, following the Brexit disaster, and to resist an increasingly rabid right. Yet, for daring to stand against the establishment, and with the oppressed, wherever they may be, this conspicuously kind and gentle human being has been relentlessly and remorselessly traduced.

Throughout all this, and despite the most distressing personal vilification, I have never once seen Corbyn resort to abuse of any kind. He has shown grace under pressure, the definition of courage, and for that, regardless of the outcome, he deserves respect.

Emma Jones
Oxfordshire

Food bank app

I was horrified to learn about the fact that food banks are having to pay £180 to be included on an app run by a newly elected Tory MP. Therefore, I wondered if you would be kind enough to consider launching an appeal, to those who run food banks, along the lines of a comment I have shared on Facebook.

I’m sure there would be people out there who would be happy to help them set up a cooperative.

If you run a food bank registered to this app, why not set up a Facebook group, invite other food banks who use the app to join your group and put a shout out for someone to design an app for you all? Cut out the greedy middle man.

Barbara Neill
Address supplied

Read more

Anger over Corbyn’s claim he ‘won the arguments’ in election