US Edition
SIR – When my great-grandfather, Sir Frederick Jones, founded United Steel Companies (of which Scunthorpe was a part) in the early 20th century, one of his reasons was to ensure a continuing supply of high-quality, weapons-grade steel for the armament industry after the First World War.
If the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe are closed (“Selling British Steel was industrial self-sabotage”, Business, April 1), the UK will have no option but to import supplies, probably from China, which leaves the country in a disastrously vulnerable position when international tensions are growing and we are actively expanding our defence requirements. Should the unthinkable happen and we have to face up to Russia, can anyone imagine that China would continue supplying us with this vital commodity?
To preserve our military standing in the world, it is imperative that we maintain a robust armaments industry, which includes keeping our own supply of raw materials. If a British company will not take over Scunthorpe, there is no alternative but to nationalise it.
Sir Frederick is probably turning in his grave – but I think he would agree with me.
Graham Barber
Sudbury, Suffolk
SIR – British Steel is yet another example of how our industrial assets and heritage have been sold off to asset-strippers or dividend profiteers. When will this end?
Robert Barlow
Pulborough, West Sussex
SIR – Although an opponent of nationalisation in principle, I agree with the possible state ownership of the Scunthorpe blast furnaces.
Politicians must accept that, without steel, no manufacturing or construction – of medical instruments, major bridges or military equipment – would be possible.
The so-called alternatives – electric arc furnaces – do not make steel, they recycle scrap. What’s more, the importation of large quantities of steel cannot be relied upon in this uncertain world.
This is the final opportunity. Action must be taken to save British steelmaking, before it’s too late.
Ken Simpson
Northampton
SIR – A defence industry that requires imported steel, along with a net zero energy strategy that depends on imported oil and gas, put this country at serious risk of relying on the enemy in times of war.
Add to that the decline in farming home-grown food, the outsourcing of strategic infrastructure and utilities to foreign ownership, and uncontrolled immigration, and Britain appears to be in a weak geopolitical position relative to the rest of the world.
Where is the joined-up thinking the Government’s policy? What of its responsibility to keep us safe?
Tony Cross
Sevenoaks, Kent
SIR – The need for Britain to rearm has become very clear in recent weeks, but it is equally clear that we have limited financial resources to do so.
We can argue endlessly about government waste, the welfare bill and the cost of supporting illegal migrants, but above all it is ludicrous net zero policy that is inhibiting us. The billions of pounds dedicated to achieving net zero could be spent on defence, while ditching the targets would boost energy security and domestic food production, both of which would be decisive were we to be faced with the challenge of an aggressor.
Moreover, rearmament is compromised by pension providers’ commitments to “ethical investment” – at a time when the defence sector is booming. These are frightening days. It’s time to stop the virtue-signalling, and for everybody to understand that such luxury policy positions are no longer affordable.
Georgina Stanger
Caerwent, Monmouthshire
Trump’s tariffs
SIR – President Trump is becoming dangerously autocratic, and continues to offer unsolicited advice to this democratic island (“Trump: No free trade without free speech”, report, April 1).
Inviting him to visit the King was foolish, and such flattery will be regretted. It’s time to reassert our dignity and self-reliance in a troubled relationship.
Cameron Morice
Reading, Berkshire
SIR – Despite Donald Trump’s admirable work exposing corruption and waste in US government finances, he is in grave danger of igniting serious trade wars (report, April 1).
Just as the Ukraine war has driven Russia into military and economic alliances with China, Iran and North Korea – to the detriment of the West – President Trump’s tariff wars are creating an unlikely alliance between China, Japan and South Korea, who have combined to respond to them.
Japan and South Korea are seeking to import raw materials for semiconductors from China, while China is also interested in purchasing chips from Japan and South Korea, as they agree to strengthen their supply chains in response to US tariff threats.
The Trump administration has recognised the repercussions of the Ukraine conflict, and its effect on US defence and European economic interests. But there is little point in solving that crisis only to court a worldwide backlash to trade tariffs.
Rodney Atkinson
Stocksfield, Northumberland
Aussie refuse rules
SIR – We in Britain should look at how rubbish collection is done in Australia (“Bin strike council begs No 10 for help”, April 1).
In Melbourne, regular collections are made by a single driver, who doesn’t even leave the wagon. Bins lined up on the roadside are lifted by a hydraulic arm and tipped into a side opening, before being replaced. The truck then goes to the next property. In apartment blocks, a row of 20 bins line the road, to be emptied and replaced in minutes.
Rod Beardsell
Nantwich, Cheshire
Overpriced pints
SIR – I have loved pubs all my life, but I will not mourn their closure (Letters, March 29). If they shut due to customers being unable to afford to drink in them, owners will know how those of us struggling to make a living feel at no longer being able to drown our sorrows with mates over a pint.
John Kennedy
Hornchurch, Essex
Bedside manna
SIR – When I was Hollywood editor of the TV Times, I had to be filmed presenting an award – and making a short speech – to Richard Chamberlain (Obituaries, March 31).
I was so nervous that, on the eighth take, he quietly poured me a gin and tonic, and whispered in his best bedside manner: “This might help.” It did. Job done. The irony is that the award had to be returned to be inscribed, and he never got it back.
However, he truly was a gentle, soft-hearted man. I remember him telling me how, in the days before television remote controls, he watched a long boring programme because he didn’t want to get up to change the channel and disturb the kittens that were sleeping on his chest.
Lesley Thompson
Lavenham, Suffolk
Plastic disposal
SIR – In the food trade, the use of plastic (Letters, April 1) is inevitable, as it is the only product that prevents deterioration. Much can be recycled, but instructions are often confusing. Phrases like “can be recycled where facilities exist” help no one. As a senior Tesco employee has said: “If we want fresh food, plastic is here to stay. It’s how we dispose of it that is the problem. Incineration, widely used in Scandinavia, is the obvious solution.
Duncan Rayner
Sunningdale, Berkshire
SIR – We have volunteers who clear up rubbish on our lane. Yet invariably, by the next day, plastic bags and takeaway containers are strewn everywhere. Our roads are dumping grounds.
Julie Jones
Narborough, Leicestershire
Hereditary males
SIR – I agree with Sir Michael Ellis’s defence of the hereditary principle in the House of Lords (Comment, March 30). He cites our monarchy, cherished family firms, political and military families as further examples of genes being passed down to serve communities. However, extolling the virtues of succession, he fails to mention that females are excluded from the 92 seats occupied by hereditary peers in the Upper House. Does he only support the hereditary principle if it applies to males?
Helen Nall
Hoveringham, Nottinghamshire
Treated with contempt by water providers
SIR – Like Robin Nonhebel (Letters, March 28), I wonder what I am getting for my vastly inflated water bill.
Until recently, we didn’t have a water meter. One was fitted, against our wishes, by our provider. I had no doubt that it would increase our bills, which it did. However, our last “paper” bill showed that we were using enough water “to fill more than 10 baths a day”. We were also told that we were using “142.18 per cent more water than the average, similar-sized household”. How does the company know the size of our household? Now that our children have left, there is only my wife and me. I have tried to estimate our water usage, and can’t get close to the quantity we are being charged for.
If we believe that our meter is faulty, we can apparently ask Affinity Water (our provider) to test it. If we’re wrong, we will be charged another £70.
Geoff Riley
Saffron Walden, Essex
SIR – My water bill is going up by 60 per cent. I am on an “assessed charge”, as it has not been possible to install a water meter. I tried to phone South West Water about this recently, but found that I was 98th in the queue.
When is someone going to tackle the unfairness of such rises in payments, and the inability of monopoly services to respond to customers efficiently?
Linda Hughes
Newton Abbot, Devon
SIR – The state of Britain’s water supply and sewage treatment is a national disgrace, and I have no doubt that management and shareholder interests have been put before investment and customer service.
However, it should be noted that, in 1989, the year the water companies were privatised, the population of the UK was 57 million. The network could never have calculated a rise to 69 million people by 2024, or that the majority of this population growth would take place in areas where there was already high demand from outdated infrastructure.
Since no government since 1989 has put sufficient money into our disintegrating public services, it is reasonable to assume that the appalling situation we face in the water industry wouldn’t have been much different if the companies had remained in the public sector.
Peter Little
Herne Bay, Kent
SIR – There has been much talk recently about water supply problems in England. I hope due consideration has been given to installing water storage tanks beneath all new properties.
Rain water and grey water could then be collected and used for flushing lavatories, which accounts for about a third of all supplied water. Flushing with drinking water is ridiculous.
Richard Fullard
Poole, Dorset
SIR – I’ve stopped putting water in my whisky.
Brian Farmer
Carmarthen
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The decline of British steelmaking is a disaster for national security
Plus: Trump’s tariffs; Australian refuse collection; overpriced pints; disposing of plastic; hereditary principles; and rising water bills