Living next door to the United States can be tricky

Donald Trump issued a warning to Mexico and Canada that trade tariffs of 25 per cent would be imposed on their goods when he returns to the White House (“Can Keir Starmer trade his way around Trump’s tariffs?”, Thursday 28 November).

The US president-elect has threatened both neighbours that unless they take immediate steps to quell the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs such as fentanyl crossing into America, he will impose these crippling tariffs.

Before he gets into the White House, he has caused much agitation and confusion in political offices and corporate boardrooms across Canada, where the current daily trade back and forth on the US border amounts to about $2.5bn.

His threat reminds me of a speech given by Pierre Trudeau at the Washington Press Club when visiting with Richard Nixon in 1969. Canada’s former prime minister famously quipped how “living next to you is like sleeping with an elephant. No matter how friendly and even-tempered the beast, one is affected by every twitch and grunt.”

By comparison, the current Canadian PM, Trudeau’s eldest son, Justin, gives speeches that are usually a sad and sorry collection of ums, ers and ahs, as he fumbles to make a point.

Bernie Smith

Parksville, Canada

I have a strong suspicion that the majority of people who signed the petition calling for another general election also voted for Brexit (“Who are the 2 million people demanding a general election?”, Tuesday 26 November).

If so, logic says that they would also support another referendum on EU membership. I wonder…

Tim Sidaway

Abbots Langley, Herts

I know that “Hague beats Mandelson” makes for a good story (“William Hague beats Peter Mandelson to become Oxford University chancellor”, Wednesday 27 November). But, in the interests of accuracy, I think that you should tell readers that the contest for the chancellorship of Oxford University wasn’t even close.

Mandelson was trounced by Hague, with Mandelson coming a distant fourth in the final round of voting, ahead only of Dominic Grieve. It most certainly did not “come down to a fight between the two political grandees”.

Please don’t let your desire for a good headline and story get in the way of the facts.

Robin J Bulow

Clacton-on-Sea

It is standard practice for SNP MSPs and other separatists to claim that, in the words of the Harry Enfield sketch: “Oh, yes – everything’s better in Scotland.”

They claim, particularly, that the Scottish health service “outperforms” the NHS in the rest of the UK (“‘Warning lights flashing’ for NHS as thousands wait more than eight hours in A&E”, Tuesday 19 November). Higher staffing in Scotland has not led to better outcomes.

The new IFS report tells us that “in Scotland, almost all measures of NHS performance have worsened over the last year […] but in England, most measures have improved”.

Instead of attempted grandstanding about alleged Scottish achievement in this area, we need improved performance and higher productivity. But I doubt many of us will be surprised if, come Budget day, all the SNP does is throw yet more money at the SNHS without requiring any meaningful reform.

Jill Stephenson

Edinburgh

When I hear views about assisted dying, I wonder why I should be able to choose when to die when I didn’t choose to be born (Letters: “Religion has no place in the assisted dying conversation”, Wednesday 27 November).

As an Indian, I believe life is suffering, or dukkha, so I am expected to get on with it.

Kartar Uppal

Sutton Coldfield