Conservatives bodging the nation’s finances

SIR – Isn’t it time for a reality check?

The Armed Forces are being starved of funds while £13 billion is being spent on overseas aid.

The electrification of mainline railway routes has been scrapped while £52 billion is being spent on building HS2.

The NHS, rightly or wrongly, is demanding more money while Britain has agreed to pay another

€20 billion to the EU.

The National Debt has more than doubled since 2010 and a staggering £48 billion is required to finance interest payments this year.

These figures give the lie to the Conservatives’ reputation for financial reliability. They indicate a scarcely credible fiscal incontinence, for which long-suffering taxpayers will ultimately foot the bill. Christopher Gill

Bridgnorth, Shropshire

SIR – Allister Heath spelled out what Philip Hammond, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, should do in his Budget (Comment, November 16).

If previous performance is anything

to go by, Mr Hammond will ignore financial experts’ advice and carry on with his anti-enterprise policies. Simon Lever

Winchester, Hampshire

SIR – To win the voters’ confidence, Mr Hammond should abolish or at least make changes to the current level of inheritance tax. Edward Pryce

Yealmpton, Devon

SIR – Matthew Lynn’s article (Business, November 7) made several good arguments against raising National Insurance contributions for the self-employed. However, he missed a key point: one pound of an employed wage is not equivalent to one pound of self-employed income.

Employees receive considerable benefits in addition to their nominal wage, at no cost to themselves. These include employers’ pension contributions, sick pay, holiday pay and job security. The self-employed receive none of these. Jeremy Thorn

Fairburn, North Yorkshire