I’m afraid blind faith won’t save our planet

MR Capel’s letter of January 14th called for support for our leaders. Whilst admiring the sentiments of loyalty, pulling together and trusting our leaders, I find that I cannot for two reasons.

My first is that the democratic principle of critical thought and debate has to be protected at all costs, for without that there is no democracy.

My second is the word trust. This has to be earned and I don’t see a government I can trust. I can see only self serving politicians whose arrogant belief in their right to rule allows such cronyism, self interest and corruption.

They have only themselves to blame for this distrust through their own behaviours. Of course, there are exceptions.

For example, and what a funny lot we electorate are... each election tax levels are dangled in front of us as an issue, when the rich can afford to dodge it anyway (are you reading this Mr Rees-Mogg?) whereas it makes little or no difference to the ordinary working wage.

Yet when it comes to the spending of said taxes, we seem little bothered until a welfare scrounger comes to light as a suitable hate figure.

Meanwhile we happily subsidise privatised industries such as rail and watch our money sail into the pockets of shareholders for no real improvements. We see it spent on white elephants like HS2 and Hinckley. Mrs Thatcher said we all had the right to own our own home but instead we have a land of tenants and landlords. The potential list is of course endless.

Surely Mr Capel, blind faith won’t save this planet and its species? Transparency and independent scrutiny is the only check to human corruption and hypocrisy that

I know of, and not government controlled watchdogs.

Peter Lawrence

Dursley, Glos