Schools out

Sir: Toby Young is absolutely spot-on in his assessment of the impact of Labour’s plans to put VAT on independent schools (‘Class conflict’, 11 February). Not only will it cost the government money, but it will destroy a sector that is one of the UK’s great success stories. The naive and childish perception on the left is that all independent schools are, like Eton or Harrow, backed by wealthy parents with very deep pockets. The reality is very different.

A significant number of independent schools are really struggling, and several have closed recently. Many schools operate on the margins of profitability or run at a loss. The majority of parents in the sector struggle to find the fees, and an extra 20 per cent will make it unaffordable for most. Some well-researched estimates indicate that 70 per cent of independent schools will close. This is nothing short of an educational tragedy for those many schools that try to offer high teaching standards, sport, drama, music and much else, yet ask nothing from the state. Not only that – there has been a massive effort in recent years for the independent sector to reach out to talented children from all backgrounds to offer a wide range of scholarships and bursaries. They are an engine of social mobility par excellence which the state cannot match.

This is a policy which is economically illiterate, educationally destructive and quite simply an act of political spite which should be confronted head-on by the Conservative party. There are, quite literally, no benefits from this policy, only costs. If this is an example of joined-up thinking and Labour’s policy-making on education, then very dark days lie ahead.

Martyn Thomas
Raglan, Monmouthshire

Grow up

Sir: Douglas Murray’s frustrations with today’s civil servants are not uncommon (‘Where have all the grown-ups gone?’, 11 February). Welcoming respectful challenge and presenting a wider range of options all improve the quality of advice and relationships in Whitehall. A genuine mutual appreciation between senior officials and ministers is a good grounding for more robust dialogue.

However, when we face multiple crises, money is tight and there are no easy choices, relationships inevitably become strained. We should all try to be more aware of the human factor in how we respond to very high pressure. The best leaders are usually those who balance drive and the determination to find better answers with empathy and teamwork.

Struan Macdonald
Hayes, Kent

Remember May

Sir: While Katy Balls has observed the spectral presences of former PMs Boris Johnson and Liz Truss (‘The haunting’, 11 February), there is of course another: Theresa May. Although she has not returned to the political stage, those who voted for her in 2017 are perhaps the largest number of true political ghosts in public life.

Robert Meldrum
East Grinstead, West Sussex

Wishing Bruce well

Sir: In one sentence, my old Conservative Research Department colleague Bruce Anderson (Drink, 11 February) crisply summarises the 18th-century treatise of his fellow Scotsman, David Hume, in the latter’s Of Miracles. ‘There is no route from reason to faith,’ writes Anderson. Hume’s argument, never successfully refuted, is that because it is always possible to conclude that an apparently extraordinary event may in fact have an ordinary explanation (misreport, for instance, or misapprehension), the existence of a deity can never reasonably be inferred.

It’s important, however, to note (and Bruce does not imply otherwise) that this does not show that no God-made miracle could ever have occurred: only that reason alone cannot impel us to that conclusion. Faith must come first. So, a fellow non-believer, I shall not pray for Bruce’s rapid recovery, but merely remind him that taking better care of himself will greatly, and hopefully, assist.

Matthew Parris
Derbyshire

The joy of maths

Sir: I do not believe Anthony Horowitz goes far enough in his support for all students to study maths to 18 (Diary, 4 February). He is right to highlight that mathematical skills will better equip pupils for the future, but they also do much more. They too bring ‘joy, knowledge, and understanding of the world’, as Mr Horowitz’s own character and MI6 employee Alex Rider would have known himself. To work for any intelligence service requires the use of cryptography and data science, both critical for our national security. Children who read the Alex Rider books have their eyes opened to this reality, further proving that mathematics and reading can be skills that complement each other.

Professor Ulrike Tillmann
President of the London Mathematical Society and professor of mathematics at the University of Oxford

Condoling words

Sir: Regarding Charles Moore’s quandary about sending a letter of condolence (Notes, 11 February), perhaps he could write the letter, then photograph it and email it, letting the recipient know he has posted the original. The son can look out for the letter, or just take comfort from the email.

Ray Winstanley
Sheffield

Only in Scotland

Sir: Dot Wordsworth’s piece on ‘outwith’ (Mind Your Language, 4 February) reminds me of a notice displayed in my local Scottish hospital, directed at weekly wage earners: ‘Payslips must be timeously uplifted from outwith the Accounts Office.’ Only in Scotland!

John Burton
Thornhill, Dumfriesshire