Intolerant cultures

SIR – Stephen Hall, writing from Australia (Letters, July 24), reflecting on his experience of low levels of anti-semitism in London in the 1980s, says: “I don’t understand how this monster has come crawling back.”

The answer, if one may discuss it openly these days, is obvious. Two generations ago, say in the 1960s, the English nation, with its Judaeochristian heritage and unbroken progression over nearly 1,000 years towards democracy and human rights, had a culture with a remarkably high level of tolerance, which was almost certainly unique on the planet.

Since then the people who run both main parties have celebrated the development of a number of large parallel cultures from many parts of the world, which do not aspire to the levels of tolerance that England once had. In fact some have a high level of anti-semitism embedded in them. Is this the outcome our political masters with their vision of multi-culturalism sought? Or is it all in the realm of unintended consequences? Dr Peter Grey

Hurley, Berkshire