Osborne’s permission for councils to increase council tax by all of 2% without a referendum if the proceeds are spent on social care (Editorial, 1 February) is even less generous than it looks. Councils with a low tax base and, very often, the highest needs will raise very little. In Newcastle, 7O% of households are in bands A and B. For a council facing cuts of £32m next year, a 2% rise in council tax will raise all of £1.7m.
Jeremy Beecham
Labour, House of Lords
• I’m sure the Royal Navy was well aware of the failures these Type 45 destroyers were going to have (Report, 29 January), as it’s been using the slogan “If you can repair a bike you can repair a Type 45 destroyer” in their recruiting adverts for months.
Steve Knight
Hove, East Sussex
• When asked by Bart whether mind is a system of impulses or something tangible, Homer tells him: “Relax! What is mind? No matter. What is matter? Never mind.” Surely as succinct an answer to the problems posed by Cartesian dualism (The ghost in the machine, 3 February) as any of those proposed by messrs Holbein, Blake or Crick?
Austen Lynch
Garstang, Lancashire
• Proud as I am of my son, Cllr Iain Roberts (second left in your photo, Society, 3 February), he is not the leader of Stockport council, but the deputy leader. The day the photograph was taken, the leader, Cllr Sue Derbyshire, was unable to attend the signing of the devolution document, so her deputy of course stood in for her. Cllr Derbyshire has been leader of Stockport for several years and should be added to your meagre list of women council leaders.
Vera Roberts
Farndon, Cheshire
• To include PG Wodehouse, Terry Wogan and the Grateful Dead in one paragraph (Nancy Banks-Smith, 1 February) must be a first in British and probably world journalism – a truly amazing feat and somehow it seems to make sense.
John Steele
Llandderfel, Gwynedd
• Join the debate – email guardian.letters@theguardian.com
