IT certainly seems that there is a general lack of empathy in today`s society as suggested in Neil Mackay`s excellent article (“Joker is the greatest and most dangerous film ever made”, The Herald, October 8.)

In the past three years of political Brexit mayhem we have become accustomed to the concepts of the backstop, proroguing, redacting, fake news, tweeting, and binary choices, amongst others.

The political debate itself has been carried out in a world of spin, blame and divisiveness, and real debate has been replaced by sound-bites such as surrender, betrayal and “taking back control”.

However, long-held concepts such as honesty, openness, negotiation, compromise, justice and empathy seem to be in short supply.

History will not look kindly on this period of British (and American) democracy; perhaps in parallel with the Extinction Rebellion we should have an Ethics Rebellion.

Hugh Phillips,

Bothwell.

BORIS Johnson is preparing to claim any general election win as a democratic mandate for leaving the EU with a bad deal or No Deal.

But in general elections no party ever gets over 50 per cent of the votes cast. Due to the first past the post voting system, one party often gets a big majority of MPs on a minority of the votes. So it won’t be a mandate from the majority of voters.

The main Leave campaign in 2016 promised on its website that if we left the EU we would “still be part of …a free trade zone stretching from Iceland to the Russian border” and that “we will negotiate the terms of any new deal before we start any legal process to leave”.

But that didn’t happen, as Single Market membership requires maintaining Freedom of Movement for EU citizens.

Some voters only voted Leave because they believed these claims; they would not have done so if they had known that we would have major restrictions on trade with the EU, let alone No Deal.

Given the two per cent margin of victory, this would have been likely enough to reverse the result.

So the 2016 referendum only gives any democratic mandate for leaving with no more restrictions on trade with the EU than we have as a member.

Neither Nigel Farage’s Leave campaign nor the main one mentioned No Deal even as a possibility, even once.

For Johnson and Farage to claim it is a mandate for leaving with a limited deal or No Deal is like dodgy car salesmen advertising a brand new car and then delivering an unsafe rust-bucket and saying, “You agreed to buy it”.

So any hard or No-Deal Brexit would require a majority vote for it in another referendum on the deal, or No Deal, versus Remain.

Those who claim to speak on behalf of the 17.4 million Leave voters, without having asked them all if they are still happy to Leave if it is a hard or No Deal Brexit in another referendum, fool no one but themselves and some fanatics.

Duncan McFarlane,

Braidwood,

Carluke.

THE Irish Government appears somewhat hypocritical in expressing concern at possible post-Brexit border controls after it was they who instigated such controls at Dublin Airport, where UK arrivals used to walk from plane to street with no request for any ID.

Following recent rebuilding of the terminal, I was shocked to find that all UK arrivals are now directed through passport control. Whilst I initially managed, after lengthy debate, to use a bus pass, I was left in no doubt that on any future visit I would be required to produce a passport or photo driving licence.

So much for the Common Travel Area!

John Hein,

Edinburgh.

I AM responding to the letter by John Ross (The Herald, October 8) on the Brexit referendum and us only having the option of In or Out without any specification on what each would offer.

The In option was quite clear in that there would be a status quo, however the Out was like agreeing to the terms and conditions section on any insurance policy, hire-purchase agreement etc. without giving it even the slightest perusal.

Why even consider suing Johnson, or even Cameron, for that matter? We only have ourselves to blame for accepting a referendum on the simplistic terms given - and the Out voters for allowing it to go on that basis.

George Dale, Beith, Ayrshire

CRITICS of Boris Johnson’s Brexit proposals include most business groups and parties in Northern Ireland. who are concerned that the reintroduction of a hard border will disrupt the all-Ireland economy and give the IRA an infrastructure target.

He has already been told by France and the Netherlands that his plans are unworkable. Now, in an ominously frank exchange with Angela Merkel, he has learned that keeping Northern Ireland in the EU customs territory is a “necessary condition”.

For what it is worth he has promised not seek an extension to the deadline but for all his bravado and threats to “die in a ditch” he is running out of room and may in the end have no legal options left but to revoke Article 50 thereby cancelling Brexit.

Rev Dr John Cameron,

St Andrews.