Letter to Telegraph on honouring traditions.doc

12 March 2007
Dear Sir


Two recent Telegraph articles were of the highest quality, maintaining Britain’s parliamentary traditions at their best; the inimitable Boris Johnson’s on the Appeal Court ruling that Princess Diana’s inquest should be held before a jury; and Lord Goldsmith’s on his Attorney General’s role in the “cash-for-honours” saga. For all his wealth Mohamed All Fayed deserves every sympathy on the loss of his son - but equality before the law is of the first importance, and with good reason Boris argues that a jury inquest will do no more than promote a media circus at vast expense. Can not Government for once heed the voice of the democratic opposition, and can not that Minister of the Crown, the Attorney General, put in hand an appeal to the House of Lords?


Two other articles, however, on Sunday were all too short on the facts: Professor Niall Ferguson’s on Ghana and Jenny McCartney’s on the NHS. The Professor writes of the “lie to the old Leftist claim that Britain was exploiting her colonies.” At the time of Ghana’s independence 50 years ago, Macmillan was Prime Minister and his family dominated the West African educational market, Rab Butler was Chancellor, with his family association with Courtaulds and Lennox Boyd with his Guinness connections was Colonial Secretary - facts that the Professor overlooks. Jenny writes with much truth about the maladministration by Whitehall of the NHS - but fails to mention its financial scandals. Here in Richmond, its Primary Care Trust continues to keep within its budget, save for the £1.5 million “top-sliced” from its total. In neighbouring Kingston, its PCT has been allowed to increase its “overspend” from £7 to £22.5 million. NHS organisations are “under a statutory obligation to break even”. The silence from the opposition is deafening.


I write as a parent carer and as an advocate for people with a learning disability - but also as a “European”, one of only two, with the Daily Mirror’s Hugh Cudlipp, who heard the opening words of Kwame Nkrumah, feet away from the podium, just after midnight, on March 7th 1957.


“Our beloved country is free for ever” - and that is a truth that continues to hold good. Nkrumah was overthrown on a visit to Ho Chi Minh, but where better than Vietnam for a developing country to learn how to make progress?


Britain could do better in honouring its great traditions, that were fostered by my father Cecil King, the newspaper publisher. It could also be humbler.


Yours sincerely








Francis King