Danger of the Government feeding on a vicious circle of restrictions

sir – Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister, should hear alarm bells ringing from the Conservative Home article by James Frayne on which you report (October 1).

Mr Frayne went on to say: “Ministers have created a vicious cycle of opinion: they’re artificially pumping up support for tight restrictions, then reading the polls telling them the public want tight restrictions, then further extending support.”

This circularity in the propaganda of fear emanating from the Government has got to be broken. The Prime Minister must use his innate optimism to reassure the public that coronavirus can be lived with and avert the coming economic disaster.

Michael Staples

Seaford, East Sussex

sir – In his biography of George V, Kenneth Rose wrote that in 1915 Lord Kitchener gave Lord Esher an account of a Cabinet meeting.

“After a long debate the Prime Minister said to the Cabinet: ‘Please remember that in an hour’s time I have to tell the House of Commons what the Cabinet has decided.’

“There was silence for a minute or two, and Balfour said: ‘You had better tell them that the Cabinet has decided it is quite incapable of conducting the business of the country and carrying on the war.’

“No one having made any observation upon this, the Prime Minister asked: ‘Am I to say that to the House of Commons?’ Upon which, Balfour observed: ‘Well if you do, you will at any rate be telling them the truth!’ ”

No change in 105 years.

Timothy Morgan-owen

Melbourne, Derbyshire

sir – Wednesday’s Downing Street press conference on the pandemic was notable for the lack of up-to-date information on the state of the economy. In fact the Prime Minister did not answer, at all, a direct question from a journalist on the economy.

There were plenty of graphs on the health effects of the pandemic but a dead silence on the devastation (which includes effects on health and wellbeing) caused by the loss of jobs.

Boris Johnson, Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance are assured a pay cheque each month, but many are not. Rishi Sunak, the Chancellor, has done a sterling job to support employment but this cannot go on indefinitely. Gail Brown

Kidderminster, Worcesteshire

sir – It has taken the Speaker six months to state that the Government is treating Parliament with contempt. Was he self-isolating all this time? Duncan Carse

Launceston, Cornwall

sir – We own a second home in Conwy, which we are now, once again, not allowed to visit. We could, however, rent a holiday cottage on Anglesey and drive past our second home on our way to stay.

Tina Berry

Worsley, Lancashire