10 | METRO | Thursday, March 31, 2022
TALK
METRO
Open your eyes, Rishi
■ Chancellor Rishi Sunak claims
that by increasing universal
credit by 3.1 per cent he would
be helping those reliant on
benefits. What utter rubbish.
I found myself unemployed last
October when the restaurant
I was manager of closed down
and I’m now in the situation
where I have anxiety attacks
when I have to put the electric
heater on for a bath. Once all the
bills are paid, I’m left eating only
one meal a day as I simply
cannot afford shopping.
Sugar, bread and milk have
become absolute luxuries for me
and thousands of others in the
same situation.
Come on, Rishi, open your eyes
to the nationwide poverty!
LC, Walsall
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A gentle reminder
that ignorance is
no defence in law
■ As the police hand out fines for my employer’s premises and apart from
Partygate and prime minister Boris the police, no one else will know?
Johnson refuses to acknowledge I’d understand if the events were
whether lockdown rules were broken at somewhere away from a government-
No.10, it’s worth remembering that owned property – then, yes, they are like
ignorance of the rules/law does not any other private citizen. But can you
make you exempt from prosecution. imagine if this approach was adopted in
If you drive 40mph in a 30mph zone, the corporate world?
there’s no justification and you should Dear shareholder, we had some
receive a fine regardless of your money laundering going on – they
intent or belief that you were were fined but no names, no pack
doing the right thing. drill, nudge, nudge, wink, wink,
Tony Howarth, London say no more!
Michael, Pimlico
■ The Met’s finding that
Covid laws were broken at ■ The news about
No.10 during lockdown is fixed penalties being
vindication of the issued to some of
outrage felt by the the Downing
British public. Street Partygate
The initial issuing participants is to
of 20 fixed penalty be welcomed.
.Party’s over?.
notices to Partygate The majority
participants is to be .Boris Johnson. of British people
welcomed. More will followed the letter
probably follow. and the spirit of
However, the denials the law during the
by the PM and other lockdown – unlike,
ministers that any Covid it would appear, our
rules were broken are hypocritical prime
clear-cut evidence of minister and members of
attempts to mislead Parliament his staff.
and also the British public. Parliament was
The hypocrisy of our country’s repeatedly misled when
leaders and their attempts to it was told that none
cover up the truth must now lead of the pandemic rules had
to resignations – they are clear been broken at Downing
breaches of the ministerial code. Street and elsewhere in
Alan Jensen, West Hampstead Whitehall.
We now know the truth about
■ Did I read this right? The Met will those events. Resignations
not be releasing the names of those should now follow. The
they fine for the No.10 lockdown- ministerial code is quite clear
breaking parties. So, as an employee about this and there should be
of government, I can breach a law on no exceptions. Al, Charlton
A low blow but some
good may come of this
■ Linda Simpson (MetroTalk, Wed) is
completely wrong to say she is ‘on
Will’s side’ after the movie star slapped
Oscars host Chris Rock for making a
joke about his wife’s alopecia.
Will Smith resorted to physical
violence in front of a global audience,
wrecking the Oscars. He compounded
the crime by shouting out a string of
expletives at an amazingly calm Chris
Rock, who remarkably took it on the
chin (no pun intended). It’s a sad state
Violence: Will Smith strikes Chis Rock
of affairs when even an Oscars
presenter ought to get danger money. of the distress that can be caused by
Robert Sandall, Clapham jokes about hair loss, such as endured
by Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.
■ While I do not condone violence, Public jibes such as ‘nice hair’ and
hopefully the slap will raise awareness ‘I knew them when they had hair’ (to