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Sir: Toby Young (Status Anxiety, 4 February) makes an interesting observation that both parties have taken the populist view by supporting the removal of Fred Goodwin’s knighthood. Surely the coalition could have made better political capital out of insisting he kept his gong? It would serve as a reminder of the folly of the previous Labour government’s ‘light touch’ financial regulation.
Lest we forget, this laissez-faire stance resulted in city institutions making supra-normal profits, which were taxed by a gleeful treasury. The proceeds were then liberally spent on enlarging the state to unsustainable levels. No, Sir Fred he should remain: a reminder of the greed and complicity of the Blair and Brown governments.
Hugo Machin
Director, Global REITS, AMP Capital Brookfield, London W1
Sir: In the issue dated 28 January, a note at the bottom of my article (‘Give — and you shall receive’) gave the impression that I was paying for the transformation of Auckland castle. It’s true that I was responsible for buying the Zurbarans, but the transformation of Auckland Castle is going to need the work of many hands, many pockets and many prayers. If you can help, can you let me know?
Jonathan Ruffer
JRuffer@ruffer.co.uk
Sir: Charles Moore (Notes, 4 February) suggests that in 1957 the Queen was criticised for choosing North America as the location of, among other things, her first visit to a supermarket. I would point out that at that time, crossing the Atlantic was the only way to visit a supermarket. One of the very first to open in Britain in 1963 was the store in Castleford, the starting point for what became the Asda chain. It traded under the name Queens, sadly not as a tribute to Her Majesty’s US visit, but the name of the converted ex-cinema in which it was located.
William Claxton-Smith
London N5
Sir: Rory Sutherland (The Wiki Man, 4 February) asks why humanity landed on the moon before inventing the wheeled suitcase. The answer is simple. Before the age of mass air travel, potential purchasers of wheeled suitcases used an even more convenient invention: the railway porter.
Mark Sealey
Wiltshire
Sir: I don’t always admire Deborah Ross’s whimsy, but her demolition of the movie W.E. (Cinema, 21 January) was masterful and wonderfully entertaining. Well done! This is the kind of writing that will keep me reading The Spectator for ever.
Norman S. Poser
Brooklyn Law School, Brooklyn, NY
Sir: It is touching that Rod Liddle assumes we humble ‘trolley dollies’ have the authority to cancel a delayed flight or return it to stand for him to stretch his legs (‘They are the masters now’, 28 January). In an industry with an enviable safety record, complacency is no surprise among travellers. However, while most British customers tolerate a safety-related delay with stoicism, may I suggest Rod tries a method of transport that never breaks down and always puts his interests ahead of everyone else’s: walking.
J. Croker
Surbiton, Surrey
Sir: Ed Smith, in his review of Mihir Bose’s The Spirit of the Game (Books, 4 February), writes with absolute conviction: ‘When we read that Arsenal beat Leeds 1-0, at least we know that is what actually happened’. But do we? Is it not possible that Leeds ‘lost’ 0-1 to Arsenal?
William Gaul
Johannesburg
Sir: As Ian Thomson writes (Books, 28 January) Bob Dylan pioneered rap in 1965. The late, great Gil Scott-Heron added some wonderfully literate contributions to the form. But no rapper is ever likely to match lines like ‘the pumps don’t work cause the vandals stole the handles…’. Yup. Rap has a pedigree.
Justin Allison
Dorset
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