AT the time of writing, Boris Johnson looks like being the next Conservative leader and therefore the next Prime Minister.

A decision not made by the country, but by the Tory party members, about 120,000.

Johnson has said that if he is Prime Minister he wants to cut income tax for those earning over £50,000.

The Tory-imposed austerity over the last nine years has resulted in massive cuts in the number of police officers, the closure of police and fire stations, the slashing of grants to local councils affecting social care, parks, environment, public transport etc. It's a long list, yet Johnson wants to ignore all this so as to cut taxes for the comfortably off.

What has also been hammered are the cuts to legal aid. Under the Tory government the Ministry of Justice has lost over a quarter of its budget. The result? Thousands of working people on low incomes are denied the right to a fair trial. Poor legal aid rates are devastating the criminal defence profession. There has been a decrease of 30 per cent in the number of firms providing criminal legal aid.

All this does not concern Johnson. Cutting taxes is top of the list. Justice and the rule of law for those without the funds to pay for it is unimportant for Old Etonians.

Eric Hyland

Harwood