This Russia ‘dirty money’ shames Tories as ‘Londongrad’ links exposed – Yorkshire Post Letters

IT’S all very well for Bill Carmichael (The Yorkshire Post, February 4) to get into a rhetorical lather about a special hell for Vladimir Putin and his henchmen, but, confining ourselves to this world, we ought to look at complicity nearer home.

How Putin has lost the faith of Russia’s soldiers as Ukrainain war becomes the world’s worst nightmare – Colonel Bob Stewart

The British sanctions after the invasion of Ukraine fell well short of those imposed by the US and the EU, and the Government has been foot-dragging ever since.

Putin must face Nuremberg-style war crimes trial as Russia escalates slaughter of the innocents in Ukraine – Bill Carmichael

The explanation lies in the well-paid fifth column of lawyers, accountants, estate agents and PR types that the Putin crowd retains to look after its laundered wealth in “Londongrad”.

More specifically, since Boris Johnson became leader, the Conservative party nationally and at constituency level has received almost £2m from donors who have made money from Russia or have alleged links to the Putin regime.

The figure can only be an estimate – but the secrecy allowed these people is a major part of the problem, and one of the reasons that attracts them to the UK. What might they hope for in return? For a start, precisely this foot-dragging.

From; Ken Cooke, Ilkley.

HILARY Andrews (The Yorkshire Post, March 3) churns again the hoary old chestnut about democracy and the EU. How many repeats does it take to convince Hilary that the EU is far more democratic than Westminster?

Our archaic First Past The Post voting system – in Europe shared only by Belarus – nearly always results in a government with only around 40 per cent of the popular vote. On top of that, we have the entirely unelected House of Lords, a chamber stuffed with political favourites, including a Russian oligarch, the Baron of Hampton & Siberia, Evgeny Lebedev.

Hilary also needs to be reminded that the Astra-Zeneca vaccine was developed whilst we were still a member of the European Medicines Agency, despite which the UK today has the dubious honour of having the third highest death rate from Covid in Western Europe, and nearly double that of Germany and the Netherlands.

From: Anne Stewart, Helmsley.

AS well as sending money and wanted items, do the people of Yorkshire think it a good idea to put up the Tour de Yorkshire bunting, which are in the Ukrainian flag colours, to show our support?

From: Dick Lindley, Altofts, Normanton.

NOW that we and the EU are finally having to face true economic cost of relying on the present Russian government for much of the energy needs in Western Europe, I hope that the green campaigners and their allies realise that many of our citizens will be unable to afford rising energy costs as a direct result of their opposition to fracking, coal mining and oil wells in the North Sea,

There is no doubt that their actions will result in the rest of us having to pay astronomical prices just to keep ourselves and our families warm during the winter months. Sadly the present government is not helping at all with its idiotic Net Zero targets.

It is especially sad to me being a lifelong Tory who had hoped that common sense would determine this Government’s energy policies.

For goodness sake, let’s start fracking, coal mining and drilling new oil wells in our territorial waters and give our citizens reliable and affordable energy.

From: Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow.

THOSE of a green persuasion want to ban gas and nuclear and rely on wind turbines. The website grid iamkate shows that for the last 12 months gas supplied 39 per cent and nuclear 16.5 per cent of the UK’s electricity but wind was only 19.8 per cent. The answer, my friend, is not blowin’ in the wind.

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