‘Councillor reminds me of Mad Monk’

THE ideological fanaticism shown by Councillor Joe Porter in his letter on Brexit brings to mind a response to another uncompromising Tory of the early 1980s – Keith Joseph, or the “Mad Monk” as he was known for his zeal for the policy of monetarism.

As Industry Secretary Joseph applied a policy which led to the loss of millions of jobs in the industrial

heartlands with implications we still live with.

Labour leader Michael Foot said that it reminded him of a fairground magician who calls for a watch from a member of the audience.

He then covers the watch with a cloth and brings down a mallet on the bundle.

Opening the cloth to his horror he surveys the smashed glass and twisted metal and blurts out “I’ve forgotten the next part of the trick”.

We are now 30 years later in danger of forgetting the next part of the trick as elements of the Tory party are destined to do the same to our industrial base in their pursuit of their extremist principles.

How could we arrive at a position where, to misquote Neil Kinnock, the grotesque chaos where a Tory Government is threatening the integrity of the very union that Joe Porter rightly says is ‘precious’ with Scotland, Ireland, Wales and even Cornwall are reassessing their place in the United Kingdom .

I voted to remain, but accept the result.

However I want a Brexit where we retain close trade links with the EU and where jobs, employment rights and our commitment to working on such important issues as climate change are not compromised. Councillor Bill Cawley Leek West