'Next four years will be a political minefield for China and EU' - Your Letters: January 13

Now the dust has settled and the USA electorate has voted Donald Trump into the Whitehouse for his second term as 47th President of America, out of the two he was my preferred choice, the next four years will be a political minefield for China and the EU.

For Great Britain, it's squeaky bum time for those so-called politicians we have today, haven't got the brains they were born with, you don't undermine people in public you might have to talk to in the world of diplomacy. The present Labour Party front bench are thick, and that's been polite.

Now moving on to the EU. As everybody should know by now, I absolutely loathe it, from the day I was born (that's another story) the voters in the EU countries are also moving to the far right they have had enough of the liberal wokey left governments, their economies are stalling big time.

Back home Rachael Reeves and her recent budget will kill British industries, put up food prices, and there will be job losses in the pipeline. Our farmers are up in arms and rightly so. And finally with Trump going to put up tariffs on China/EU goods, hopefully not us, I can see factories moving to the USA where they wont be taxed to death. We are in for a rocky time.

Ron Goodall, Wordsley 

ELECTRIC CARS ARE JUST SHOCKING

We are told that we will shortly have a choice of vehicle to travel round in, as long as it's battery powered. Well let's look at these wonderfully under performing vehicles.

• They're heavier than an equivalent carbon fuelled device. Meaning more wear on roads, more potholes for us to negotiate?
• More tyre wear from these vehicles' weight.
• How long will the battery pack last? And cost of replacement currently rather high. In fact it's been said by both motoring organisations and economists that if you have, say, a five year old vehicle needing new batteries, scrap it, it's hardly worth the huge expense of replacement.
• Manufacture of EVs uses a lot more power and money to build.
• Batteries. Use what are called 'rare' earth's and metals. Rare is a good word, because there's not a lot of them around. Never mind the damage to the planet getting them. And who seem to be getting control of where this stuff comes from? Rumour has it that it's the same place Covid originated. So we'll have to stay especially friendly with there then.
• Can our electricity supply industry cope if we all were electric? Sadly no. And lots more pylons to scar our countryside. Ahh, you say, what about solar and wind power? Solar's great when the sun shines. Not too good if it doesn't! Wind? Can't be too strong or too weak. Oops! Nuclear - at least 10 years to build and get operating. We've got one being built - very slowly at least one more planned. Not enough. Wood burning like at Drax? Not green and pollutes as bad if not worse than a 'dirty' coal fired power station.

So come on all you woke, greens and other net zero zealots. Answer those points, please. Your answers may give me even more amusement that Mr Millibean's fight a few years ago with a bacon sandwich. But somehow I doubt it.

M Gough, Wombourne

VEGAN HEALTH DEBATE IS WRONG

In reply to the letter from Jennifer White of PETA. The number of health issues attached to a vegan diet far exceed the list she provided as a reason for not eating animal protein. She should know that it is highly processed meats full of chemicals that are the ones to be avoided.

Where does she get her 'facts' about meat eating causing Alzheimer’s? As for cholesterol, the most misunderstood substance on the planet, the majority of cholesterol is used in the brain and nervous system for building important synapses and nerve fibres. Cholesterol is so important that your liver produces it. It is oxidised cholesterol that is bad, and it is oxidised by too much starch and sugar in your diet. The low fat diet promoted since the faulty studies in the 1960s has undoubtedly done more harm than good.

Human teeth and digestive system are obviously designed for a omnivore die (otherwise we would have three stomachs full of bacteria like a cow - and produce vast amounts of methane). There is a reason that animal protein is 'first class' and vegetable protein is 'second class'. Changing to a vegan diet is hardly 'upgrading' your diet.

Chris Smith, West Midlands

LABOUR IGNORING RURAL COMMUNITY

Family farm tax, the abolition of country sports, abandonment of the chalk stream recovery initiative, development of the green belt.

Why is the Labour Party so out of touch with the countryside and the people who live in it?

David John, West Midlands

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