Letters | 29 June 2017

The Tory quagmire

Sir: While the media has been preoccupied in divining what went wrong with the Conservatives’ appalling election result, Fraser Nelson (‘What are the Tories for?’, 24 June) neatly perceives some of the more obvious causes.

Quite what possessed seemingly intelligent people to come up with so many half-baked ideas that found their way into a poorly thought-through manifesto is beyond comprehension. To witness the volte-faces was truly nauseating and not worthy of a party with such a long and distinguished record in government. The quagmire Mrs May finds herself in bodes poorly for both Brexit and a host of pressing domestic issues.

The Tory party have an enviable economic story to tell — one that should be trumpeted from the rooftops. At the same time, there should be a concerted effort to shine a searchlight on the absolute financial lunacy of Corbyn’s promises.

Hosing down the electorate with meaningless slogans has proven to be a woefully inadequate and inept strategy to win an election. Facts and costed policies are what the electorate want.
Alexander McKibbin

Ringwood, Hants

Potterverse perversion

Sir: Lara Prendergast exposes the peculiar political convolutions of the millennial Potterverse and its creator (‘Harry Potter and the millennial mind’, 24 June). The virtue-signalling virus has infected their brains and ‘confunded’ them. Gellert Grindelwald or Voldemort would have seen a wizarding version of the EU as an ideal vehicle to covertly take over, and the Ministry of Magic would eagerly sign the UK up. It is true Dumbledore is no Farage. He is perhaps more a Tony Benn — he would instinctively understand the antidemocratic nature of the beast.

Back in the muggle world, as a Surrey resident and Leave campaigner, I know that most of Privet Drive voted Remain, and Uncle Vernon is much too thick to see through Project Fear. Theresa May as Umbridge? Possibly. May has none of Umbridge’s sadism but Dolores Umbridge would definitely be an arch Remainer.