The Windrush scandal is one of many 'pernicious, cruel and inhumane' acts of the Tories

In today’s Independent you refer to David Lammy’s reference to the immigration system as “pernicious, cruel and inhumane”. The same could well be said of the benefits denial system, lack of access to housing policy, and indeed of most of our present government’s treatment of its citizens.

Sadly the days when incompetent politicians would do the honourable thing and resign when caught out are long gone – but the public will not forget when they next have a chance to vote.

Mike Margetts
Kilsby

The government’s obsession with documentation hits not just the Windrush generation and not just residency rights. It also hits other minority groups and the poor and elderly, with regard to their voting rights – as pointed out by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (“Voter identity checks may discriminate against ethnic minority communities, watchdog says”). That is yet another way whereby this government is keen to place a bias in its favour at elections.

No doubt if this voting injustice hits the headlines, Theresa May, Amber Rudd et al will be announcing how sorry they are, how very ashamed and so forth – as they stay in power mouthing their commitment to “free and fair” elections.

Why do we put up with it?

Peter Cave
London W1

Your article about the human impact of the Home Office’s hostile environment policy is very sad and thought provoking. The diversity of the individual cases you detail raises questions about just how far reaching the impact of this policy is. As the prime minister and the home secretary apologise unreservedly, I wish I could ask them what they thought the “hostile environment” they sought to create would look like.

In each case described, it seems to me like the treatment of the individuals involved is exactly what you might expect if you treat immigrants and their children as undesirables who have to be purged unless they can jump through administrative hoops to demonstrate their worthiness.

If they now agree that the current situation is unacceptable, then their earlier policy aim demonstrates either an incompetence in their lack of foresight or a callous disregard for the people that make up our society, particularly those less able to defend themselves.

On top of this, for over a decade, our MPs fiercely resisted the call for ID cards to be introduced, consistently arguing it would change the very character of British society. It seems that the main arguments for IDs (ie immigration control of all services) have sneakily been introduced into the system, side-stepping the democratic resistance to them.

Andrew Isaac Meso
Bushey

Much has been written about Theresa May’s “hostile environment” – rightly described by David Lammy as “pernicious, cruel and inhumane” – and the “unintended consequences”. However it is hard to understand, given the advice of ministers at the time, that the consequences were unintended.

Indeed we can see the same government create a hostile environment in the methods set up for disability assessment, not to mention our shameful treatment of asylum seekers at places like Yarl’s Wood. No doubt when we are finally faced with the results of our disastrous decision to leave the EU, that too will be put down to unintended consequences.

G Forward
Stirling

In my opinion, we as a nation are suffering because of one thing. That one thing is May’s inability to admit that she might have got something wrong. We’ve seen it in Brexit and now we see it in Windrush. So every day we are suffering because we don’t have a leader in No 10 (and we’ve seen for months that we don’t have a manager).

Real leadership requires that you admit your errors, and move quickly and openly to remedy them. I worry when such ineptitude is determining our collective future.

Steve Mumby
Bournemouth

For the last three months, we have been inundated with all sorts of correspondence from councillors of every party – as they try to convince us of their undying devotion to the job, the public, the environment, etc, while quietly implying that they are practically a collection of saints.

This however is in sharp contrast with the opinion of the people, who are fed up with their incompetence, laziness, corruption (yes!, even if some dare not call it that), profligacy, cronyism and school-tie deals defying logic, common sense and propriety – none of which solve the problems piling up.

I am fed up with each party’s cosy back-room deals and politicians beholden to several shadowy figures, some of whom they don’t even know.

So, to get out of this quagmire, I would suggest that we all vote for the independent candidates. It may not resolve all the problems, but it certainly is at least a step in the right direction!

But most importantly, we should NOT forget to vote on Thursday 3 May.

Fred Nicholson
Essex

So, millions of voters would consider backing a centre-ground party, (“Millions of voters feel politically homeless and would back new centre-ground party, finds poll​”)? I have good news for them. This party already exists and they can vote for it whenever the occasion arises.

It is called the Liberal Democrats. It isn’t in hock to the unions, it isn’t funded by the bankers and financial institutions, it already has 12 members of parliament and hundreds of local councillors. It isn’t to the right, it isn’t to the left, it supports the right of every citizen to balance the fundamental values of liberty, equality and community and to build a society in which no one shall be enslaved by poverty, ignorance or conformity.

Unfortunately, it is ignored by the press and the broadcast media, who find it easier to pretend that there are only two political parties in Britain.

Its 100,000 paying members and the thousands who support it at the ballot box are being wilfully and deliberately ignored. The speaker fails to call its members in parliament.

This must change.

Richard Fagence
Windsor