Workers have lost love for our cultural heritage

So, Sir Keir Starmer puts the Portrait of Shakespeare in Downing Street in stock a little blow for our cultural heritage!

Just as Boris Johnson conjured up the image of the fiery Falstaff, a party man if ever there was one, Starmer also illustrates the portrait of the charmless and rather weak Judge Shallow from the Shakespeare canon.

It is not too late for our Labor leaders to connect with our culture. Or have they chosen to forget our literary heritage in favor of stealth taxes and the impoverishment of workers?

This reminds me of the controller in Brave New World forbidding copies of the bard's works, except that he kept one for himself. But I doubt Starmer would be interested.

Marguerite Rossini

Essex

A connected watch could save my life

Obviously, Dr. Anthony Ingleton is lucky not to have diabetes (Someone to Watch Out for Me, Letters, October 20).

I have suffered from type 1 diabetes for over 45 years and I can confidently say that the recent development of smart watches and mobile phone apps that monitor blood sugar levels has truly changed my life.

I no longer have to fear any activity, stress or temperature change without carrying a set of test kits with me. I can just look at my phone, as can my family members, to see that I'm okay. And if it doesn't, these apps can give me an early warning to do something.

Anyone who has dealt with a friend or family member experiencing hypoglycemia will appreciate the significantly improved control this technology offers. For people with diabetes, smartwatches help prevent the long list of side effects we might otherwise expect.

Emma Thompson

Leicestershire

Making McDonalds Great Again

Donald Trump took time off to work at McDonalds (Is this the publicity stunt that gets McDonald Trump the White House?, News, October 21).

He could seek permanent employment there if his current application fails in November.

There are even a few McDonald's characters he could fill the role of. Maybe the Hamburglar, who tried to steal an election in 2020, or Grimace, the well-meaning simpleton. Or even Ronald McDonald himself, a clown in yellow.

Denis Fitzgerald

Melbourne

Bishops have no place among lords

The introduction of legislation to remove the remaining 92 hereditary peers from the House of Lords is to be welcomed (hereditary nobles have sat in the British Parliament for centuries. Their time may be up, News, October 14).

But a very simple next step would be to remove all 26 bishops of the Anglican Church. Known as Lords Spiritual, these individuals are automatically entitled to sit and vote in the House of Lords.

Their role is active and influential in the development of laws. Not only do they speak, vote, and serve on committees like other peers, but bishops are also subject to a number of privileges. They enjoy a privileged right to speak compared to other peers. When a bishop wants to speak, the others are supposed to give way.

Our legislature is the only one outside Iran that automatically includes religious representatives. The bishops represent nothing other than the Church of England, an anachronism in an increasingly secular society.

There should be no seats reserved in Parliament for any single religion. The current provision constitutes a flagrant violation of the principles surrounding freedom of religion and belief, as well as equal treatment before the law. With the removal of hereditary peers, the continued inclusion of bishops becomes even more bizarre.

Alex Orr

Edinburgh

Why all these attacks on inheritance taxes?

It's a shame that The IndependentMedia coverage of expected changes to inheritance tax in the Budget has, so far, contained no positive reflections on such proposals (Inheritance tax to rise in Budget as Reeves plans to hit the well-off, News, October 19).

When 90% of the country's wealth belongs to the richest half of the population, how can this change if wealthy estates remain in families in perpetuity?

Current rules allow children of two parents to inherit at least $650,000 tax-free, wealth unimaginable to most people.

Perhaps the unpopularity of inheritance tax among the 95 percent of the population who will never have to pay it is explained by the incessant negative reporting in the media.

Martin Collinson

Address provided