Another powerful letter from Chaka Artwell (‘Shortage of Allies’: June 22). One tiny quibble: Mr Artwell identifies the deplorable Lord Patten as “of the left”, which he isn’t and never has been. As for Cecil Rhodes, who has been defended by the Rev Dr Nigel Biggar, Professor of Pastoral Theology at Christ Church, here a statement by Rhodes to the South African Parliament: ‘I will lay down my own policy on this Native question. Either you have to receive to receive them on an equal footing as citizens, or to call them a subject race, Well, I have made up my mind that there must be class legislation, that there must be Pass Laws, and Peace Preservation Acts, and that we have got to treat natives, where they are in a state of barbarism, in a different way to ourselves. We are to Lords over ten. These are my politics on native affairs, and these are the politics of South Africa. Treat the natives as a subject people, as long as they continue in a state of barbarism and communal tenure; be lords over them, and let them be a subject race … The native is to be treated as a child and denied the franchise; he is to be denied liquor also…”

Professor Biggar, presumably a practising Christian, has argued for Rhodes that the cultural, technological, and moral practices of Victorian Britain were “light years ahead” of anything to be found in indigenous African societies of the time. Not very good ethnography, Professor. And very very poor history!

BRUCE ROSS-SMITH

Headington

Another Mr Roper (are they perhaps related?) complains that Layla Moran and the Lib Dems are now irrelevant. Sadly it would appear so, in a country that chose a lazy, sloppy, mendacious charlatan to lead them with his bunch of cronies. Mr Roper seems also to have little idea of how a local newspaper works, but reporting on a local MP seems right in the middle of its remit.

I shall continue to vote for and support Layla Moran, who I definitely would trust to organise a knees-up in a brewery.

PHILIP CRESSWELL

Wentworth Road

Oxford

I JUST wanted to respond quickly to the letter printed on June 15, regarding the comments of how people hated Dominic Cummings for doing what he thought was right, for him and his family in difficult circumstances.

How sad!

If people hate others for not doing as they think they should, our society has no hope!

Hate crimes are not confined to racism and Black Lives Matter, they apply to everyone!

How can people say they hate others, when they do not know them? No matter who they are!

We are free to disagree but not hate!

JENNY COULL

Abingdon