YP Letters: Not convinced by Sir Patrick Stewart and his People's Vote performance

MUCH as I admire Sir Patrick Stewart’s achievements in the performing arts, his performance in supporting a People’s Vote for a second referendum is much less convincing (The Yorkshire Post, May 1). He appears to perpetuate the notion that the EU maintained the peace in post-war Europe. That was Nato and still is. He may also have forgotten that France originally refused to join.

He refers to the driving force of our success into the 1990s and attributes that to membership of the EU rather than Margaret Thatcher. Any success was under Thatcher’s stewardship after she had dealt with decades of industrial strife and was funded by our own oil and gas revenues. It had no connection with EU membership.

On the ‘infamous promise’ of £350m for the NHS, he is yet another who needs reminding we are still in the EU and obliged to continue paying that sort of money for no obvious benefits. Brexit is about recovering it for our own purposes. If the last 40 years of EU membership have been so bountiful that Remainers clamour to stay in, they need to ask themselves why ‘underfunding’ is the daily chant of every public service.

From: Christopher Clapham, Shipley.

IN the referendum, both sides were able to put their point of view. David Cameron stood by his promise and Theresa May has continued the negotiations to honour the result. The voters’ job is over and we must respect their decision, even if we do not like it. Making the Government’s job significantly harder than it needs to be in hope of changing the outcome is not acceptable in country where the ballot box delivers democracy. It is time for us to unite behind our Government to ensure we get the best deal for United Kingdom.

From: Arthur Quarmby, Mill Moor Road, Meltham.

HOW do prominent Remainers envisage the path to Remain? Just tell the Germans we’ve changed our mind?

And is that it? No lengthy and costly process.

If the Brexit terms seem harsh, what would we be required to pay to be allowed to stay in?

A huge sum to compensate the EU negotiators, and an a punitive increase in our presently massive contribution to the EU budget, to ensure that neither we nor any other EU state might ever be tempted to try to leave?

To say nothing of our international humiliation.