Should this attack be off topic or is it too vital to ignore?
■ Yesterday’s Metro, page five – the family of London Bridge knife attack victim Jack Merritt ask for his killing, and that of Saskia Jones, not to be politicised and used to call for longer sentences.
On page nine – prime minister Boris Johnson blames ‘lefties’ (despite his party having been in government for nearly a decade) and calls for longer sentences.
Mr Johnson has not a care for the families of the victims, both of whom worked for a prisoner rehabilitation charity. No doubt he would characterise them as ‘do-gooder lefties’. He is not fit to be prime minister, or even an MP. M Reader, London
■ Liberal Democrat Sir Ed Davey says Mr Johnson is politicising the release policy that allowed the London Bridge killer Usman Khan out on early release. He is not – he was purely responding to Andrew Marr’s questions and pointing out the facts of the situation. Let’s not forget that Mr Marr’s questions in themselves are politicising the situation. This is another example of liberals trying to misrepresent the situation to their advantage. That is the reprehensible situation here, not Mr Johnson pointing out the facts. K Beel, Marylebone
■ It is typical political opportunism for Johnson to try to use this tragedy for electoral gain. ‘Lefty’ (ie ‘lenient’) sentencing policy under Labour governments is to blame, he says. This is despite the facts that Labour has not been in office for almost a decade and that New Labour in power was more centre-right than left.
In any case, criminal justice policy in the UK is hardly lenient, despite Johnson’s populist ravings. This is why, despite over 20 years of falling crime rates, our rate of imprisonment is the highest in Europe, just as Tory austerity cuts have left prison and probationary services seriously overstretched. Sian, Bristol
■ It is understandable that politicians look for underlying reasons to explain this latest tragedy, primarily to give us confidence it will not happen again.
Reviewing ‘existing licence conditions of convicted terrorism offenders’ may or may not have any electoral value but it may result in reforms that make us safer.
Sir Ed Davey is right to think about the victims’ families but Mr Johnson is right to think about how to protect civilians. Henry, London
■ Terrorists should get life without parole. These people will always hate and the soft liberals are to blame. Eileen Castle, Surrey
■ You have heard Jack Merritt’s family, Boris. Please respect them and stop trying to gain political votes over this tragedy. Martha, Leeds