Was Rotherham council’s political prejudice to blame for the persecution of Ukip foster parents?

An investigation should determine whether Rotherham Council played any role in the persecution of Ukip-supporting foster parents

SIR – The news that social workers in Rotherham have accused Ukip of being “racist”, and have used this as an excuse to deprive two Ukip members of the three children they were fostering (report, November 23), will horrify and disgust every decent person.

If these social workers were acting on their own initiative, Rotherham council has a duty to discipline them and apologise to the foster parents. However, no apology or compensation could adequately comfort the children.

But if the social workers can prove that they were acting on instructions from higher up, the matter becomes far more serious. For that would support the suspicion that this appalling act of political prejudice was a deliberate – and possibly illegal – attempt to discredit the Ukip candidate in next week’s by-election.

The council must act immediately to appoint an independent authority to uncover the truth.

Richard Shaw

Dunstable, Bedfordshire

SIR – Rotherham council seems to have forgotten the first principle of foster care: the needs of the children come first.

After seven weeks in one home, these children were then moved to another. This was not a carefully organised change, with preparation and planned visits; it was sudden and abrupt. What distress this must have caused the children.

Foster homes that can take three siblings at a moment’s notice are few and far between, especially those that can take a young baby as well. Given this fact, Rotherham council should have been supporting this family all the more. The council, because of its prejudice, has caused great distress to these children.

Jane Condon

Marlborough, Wiltshire

SIR – At the last election, Gordon Brown labelled a lady “bigoted” because of her challenge to him on Labour’s appalling immigration policy. Ed Miliband, that party’s current leader, recently acknowledged that the Labour government did get it wrong on immigration, and that he would do things differently if in power now. That’s to say, in effect, that all those migrants that shouldn’t be here wouldn’t be here. Hardly a racist position, is it?

So will he now deal with his own Rotherham Labour council and its social workers, who have openly demonstrated their own brand of bigotry – on spurious political grounds – towards a couple shown to be perfectly capable and suitable foster parents, but who simply hold their own political opinions?

Rob Mason

Nailsea, Somerset

SIR — Would Joyce Thacker, the Rotherham social services chief who removed two children from their Ukip-supporting foster parents, take similar action to prevent children from being fostered by members of the Socialist Workers’ Party, which calls for revolution and supports law-breaking by its members?

Michael Stanford

London SE23

SIR – My father’s family is German. I was brought up in a bilingual household, which could add French and Italian to the mix. My favourite city is Rome, with Munich and Prague not far behind. The Italians are probably my favourite people. My first girlfriend was French, my second American and Jewish. My Arab father-in-law’s family are Moroccan Muslims.

I regard the EU as undemocratic, dangerous, and bad for Britain. Since none of the mainstream parties offer any hope of withdrawal, I have long toyed with joining Ukip to have my voice heard on this one vital issue. It’s a good thing, then, that when my father fled East Germany, he didn’t settle in Rotherham.

Victor Launert

Matlock, Derbyshire

SIR – As I understand it, one may openly support the Monster Raving Loony Party and still look after foster children in Rotherham, but not Ukip.

Donald Woods

Chester

Blow to the EU budget

SIR – You report that the EU budget talks broke up without agreement, due in part to Britain rejecting the proposed seven-year budget (November 23).

No doubt some people will say that David Cameron has struck a blow against Europe. He hasn’t. He has struck a blow against socialism in Europe: the over-centralised mentality of the bureaucrats who run it, which is divorced from the real world.

Our European colleagues should be grateful to David Cameron. It takes a real friend to tell you when you are wrong.

Stephen Reid

Basingstoke, Hampshire

SIR – The EU should stop moving parliament to Strasbourg once a month, and use this saving to reduce its budget.

A W Biggs

Letchworth Garden City, Hertfordshire

The rating game

SIR – Jeremy Warner notes that Britain may be the next country to be stripped of its AAA credit rating, after France was downgraded to AA+ last week (Business, November 22).

To put some numbers to these rather opaque credit ratings, this would mean – according to Standard & Poor’s system – that there would no longer be a 1 in 6,667 chance of Britain defaulting in the next year, but only a 1 in 5,000 chance.

Charles Pugh

London E1

Pet doctor

SIR – Tim Stafford Thornton (Letters, November 21) wonders whether he should take his troublesome knee to the vet instead of the doctor.

Vets are allowed legally to treat humans although doctors cannot treat animals. In my experience, vets offer the efficiency, pragmatism, charm, humour and common sense so often lacking in the NHS.

Elaine Griffin

Bassingham, Lincolnshire

Making history

SIR – Inspecting the display of Christmas merchandise in my local Marks & Spencer, I noticed a kit to make a model Spitfire. Turning the box over I was astonished to read: “Made in Germany”.

Ralph Stobbs

Banbury, Oxfordshire

Climate cash, please

SIR – As government representatives from 194 countries arrive in Doha (Comment, November 24) for climate-change talks, the realities of this changing climate are being felt more starkly than ever before.

This year has seen a record reduction in the Arctic ice sheet, droughts in the United States and a child malnutrition crisis in west Africa made worse by soaring temperatures and declining rainfall.

It is estimated that every year for the next decade, 175 million children will be affected by sudden climate-related disasters. Children are, therefore, bearing the brunt of the impact of climate change, despite being the least responsible for it.

At the Copenhagen climate talks in 2009, the world’s governments undertook to provide $100 billion a year by 2020 to tackle this crisis, and to set up a Green Climate Fund responsible for spending much of this money.

The British Government committed short-term aid money to help vulnerable countries affected by climate change, but it is yet to say where its long-term financial commitment to the fund will come from. The Government must ensure that the fund is operational in 2013, pay its fair share to the fund and use the Doha talks to push other countries to pledge contributions.

Lord Ashdown

President, Unicef UK

David Bull

Executive Director, Unicef UK

Mark Makepeace

Chief executive FTSE

Marc Bolland

Vice President, Unicef UK

Cathy Turner

Vice President, Unicef UK

Dimitri Zenghelis

Chief Economist, Cisco Climate Change Practice

Simon Reeve

Journalist and broadcaster

Tim Jackson

Professor of Sustainable Development, University of Surrey

Professor Adel Sharif

Centre for Osmosis Research & Applications, University of Surrey

Dr Lorraine Whitmarsh

Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research

The BBC’s new boss

SIR – For those of us who love the Royal Opera House, Lord Hall’s appointment as the new director-general of the BBC (report, November 23) is a huge loss.

Not only has Lord Hall enabled artistic leadership to flourish, he has done a huge amount behind the scenes to encourage and inspire a new generation of arts leaders, a legacy that will benefit Britain for years to come.

The organisational model at Covent Garden is unique and Lord Hall will be a hard act to follow. We can only hope that whoever is appointed can build on what will come to be regarded as the glory years.

Richard Hamilton

London SW1

SIR – This new man at the BBC looks promising. For a start, he wears a tie.

Adrian Williams

Headington, Oxfordshire

Police did the job without looking like RoboCop

SIR – As a former London police officer, who was in uniform for much of my 30 years’ service, I strongly endorse Brigadier Maxwell’s support for Norfolk Police’s decision to revert to a more traditional appearance (Letters, November 23).

A wise old sergeant once taught me that “to look the part”, smartly dressed in full uniform, brought a certain gravitas to most situations. He was right. We were still able to work our beats, drive cars and (occasionally) chase suspects without the need to look like RoboCop.

I wonder if officers realise how intimidating they can appear. I do not underestimate the dangers that the police sometimes face, and accept that protective equipment is essential in certain situations However, a primary role of the police must be to communicate with the public they serve. Anything that can help the police achieve this is to be encouraged.

Aidan Thorne

Bushey, Hertfordshire

SIR – I served in the Metropolitan Police for 30 years. During most of my service, officers dressed in a smart uniform with a collar and tie.

I have been present at the scene of a robbery and witnessed a uniformed police sergeant die from a stab wound. I have attended the post-mortem examination of a murdered police constable and had bullets handed to me by the pathologist from his body. It is impossible to say, but my feelings are that if those officers had been armed, or dressed in more protective clothing, they might have been alive today.

Paul Penrose

Helston, Cornwall

SIR – The Chief Constable of Norfolk is to be congratulated on recognising the importance of a smart, respectable uniform for his officers. The purpose of the police uniform is to make officers easily recognisable to the public and command respect in that uniform from both the public and the officer wearing it, without having a militaristic effect.

The suggestion of adopting a universal, high-visibility tunic to replace the collar and tie seems equally misplaced, making police officers look little different from a wide variety of other workers.

Raymond D Cox

Coat, Somerset