Political turn-offs that result in low voter turnouts | Letters

It is hardly surprising that there has been a huge reduction in voting by people in rented accommodation, excluded and vulnerable groups, and students (Turnout inequality in UK elections close to tipping point, report warns, 1 January). The Tories introduced voter ID in the face of evidence that voter fraud in the UK is rare. This was a blatant attempt to undermine the basic human right in a democracy: that everyone has the opportunity to vote even if it is just once in every five years.Our politics always fails to deliver for the people who have the least stake in our society and our electoral system continues to deliver disproportionate outcomes, never more so than in 2024. The Tories and Labour are financed by big money and corporate interests that have no interest in the voices of marginalised people

Letters: Andrew Bennett obituary

Andrew Bennett was an independently minded democratic socialist with strong environmental credentials and a dry sense of humour. In the 1979 general election he was defending a majority of more than 1,800 in Stockport North, and I went to campaign for him.At the shops we encountered several mature women of a particular religious disposition who were exercised about the very existence of the Abortion Act. Andrew was known to have supported its passing, and opposed efforts to diminish or tighten its provisions.When surrounded by dozens of loud and excited critics he stood on some nearby steps, silenced the noise by speaking quietly in his rather fluty voice, looked straight at the group and said: “I completely assure you ladies that I respect your views and will continue with all the power at my command to permanently oppose compulsory abortion

Anas Sarwar accuses Scottish government of ‘weakening every institution’

Anas Sarwar has accused the Scottish government of “weakening every institution in Scotland” as he set out plans to revive Labour’s flagging fortunes before the Holyrood elections.The Scottish Labour leader said he would spend much of 2025 reminding the Scottish National party “time and time again of their failures”, while setting out what his party would do differently if it wins power in May next year.Scotland was “stuck in a rut where Scots have to wait too long for healthcare, feel insecure both economically and often in their communities, and fear for the future opportunities of their children”, he told Labour activists at Glasgow University.As Sarwar spoke, his rival John Swinney, the first minister, addressed voluntary sector leaders and policymakers at Edinburgh University as he sought to build a reputation for himself as a consensus builder.Swinney said the SNP, in power at Holyrood for 17 years, had an enviable track record and planned to eradicate child poverty, harness green energy and boost economic growth

Why is Elon Musk attacking Keir Starmer over the grooming scandal?

Elon Musk has reignited a political row about gangs of men who groomed and raped girls in England over several decades.In the past week the tech billionaire has shared a flurry of posts on his social media platform X accusing Keir Starmer and other senior politicians of covering up the scandal.It is the latest intervention by the SpaceX founder in UK political affairs, and his most incendiary yet – even triggering calls for Starmer to sue for defamation. On Monday the prime minister hit back at those “spreading lies and misinformation” and said “they’re not interested in victims, they’re interested in themselves”.Prosecutions for grooming and sexual abuse of young girls in England began in 2010, and the number of known victims is in the thousands

Private sector’s role in cutting NHS waiting lists in England to rise by 20%

Private hospitals will provide NHS patients in England with as many as a million extra appointments, scans and operations a year as part of the government’s drive to end the care backlog.The move represents a significant expansion of the independent sector’s role in helping the health service tackle the long waits for treatment that built up under the Conservatives.Keir Starmer unveiled the NHS’s growing use of private healthcare in a major speech on Monday in which he set out his new elective reform plan to address a waiting list for planned care on which 6.4 million people are waiting for 7.5m treatments

Swinney to warn opposition of fuelling populism if Scottish budget not passed

John Swinney, Scotland’s first minister, will warn opposition parties that they will fuel populist forces if they prevent his budget from being passed this month.In a keynote speech in Edinburgh on Monday to mark the new year, Swinney will say Scottish voters would be astonished and public services damaged if MSPs fail to allow the budget to go through.“We do not have to look far beyond Scotland’s shores to see what happens when politicians and political parties pursue stalemates instead of progress and delivery,” he is expected to say. “It feeds cynicism and disillusion.“If people do not see Scotland’s parliament delivering progress for Scotland’s people – if instead it embarks down a path of political posturing and intransigence – then we run a real risk of feeding the forces of anti-politics and of populism