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| Children must learn how to talk – and also how to speak | Children must learn how to talk – and also how to speak |
| (3 months later) | |
| Eva Wiseman (Up Front, Magazine) proposes that "the ability to articulate ... should be consciously and seriously taught to everybody", recognising that "something is lost when only those who speak well are heard". The decision by the exam regulator, Ofqual, to remove the assessment of speaking and listening skills as an element of the GCSE English examination will exacerbate a situation in which the most privileged children, attending the best-resourced schools, reproduce the verbal confidence of a cultural elite, while the expressive competence of the majority of children is neglected. Political democracy, if it is to reflect a broad and inclusive range of voices, should be actively committed to ensuring that all citizens can speak without fear in any public situation and listen to others without dismissing them because they're not "one of us". | Eva Wiseman (Up Front, Magazine) proposes that "the ability to articulate ... should be consciously and seriously taught to everybody", recognising that "something is lost when only those who speak well are heard". The decision by the exam regulator, Ofqual, to remove the assessment of speaking and listening skills as an element of the GCSE English examination will exacerbate a situation in which the most privileged children, attending the best-resourced schools, reproduce the verbal confidence of a cultural elite, while the expressive competence of the majority of children is neglected. Political democracy, if it is to reflect a broad and inclusive range of voices, should be actively committed to ensuring that all citizens can speak without fear in any public situation and listen to others without dismissing them because they're not "one of us". |
| Stephen Coleman | Stephen Coleman |
| Professor of political communication | Professor of political communication |
| University of Leeds | University of Leeds |
| Leeds | Leeds |
| Mothers don't breastfeed naked | Mothers don't breastfeed naked |
| I welcomed your coverage of the decline of breastfeeding ("Breastfeeding figures fall as NHS budget is cut", News), but if the media really wants more people to breastfeed it should get some decent pictures of breastfeeding. | I welcomed your coverage of the decline of breastfeeding ("Breastfeeding figures fall as NHS budget is cut", News), but if the media really wants more people to breastfeed it should get some decent pictures of breastfeeding. |
| I am tired of close-ups of totally naked breasts, totally naked babies and totally naked other bits of body. These look pretty but the message they give out is off-putting and inaccurate. | I am tired of close-ups of totally naked breasts, totally naked babies and totally naked other bits of body. These look pretty but the message they give out is off-putting and inaccurate. |
| Breastfeeding is associated in the media with the need to be nude, or to wear a soft silk blouse wide open to show a naked bosom. What normal person wants to spend months doing this in public? How many voyeurs might watch and how much offence and embarrassment might they cause? | Breastfeeding is associated in the media with the need to be nude, or to wear a soft silk blouse wide open to show a naked bosom. What normal person wants to spend months doing this in public? How many voyeurs might watch and how much offence and embarrassment might they cause? |
| Breastfeeding needs to be built into everyday life if it is to be successful, and this usually means doing it with clothes on and other people present. Images convey powerful subliminal messages, and ones that turn a normal human activity into an abnormal one are not helpful. | Breastfeeding needs to be built into everyday life if it is to be successful, and this usually means doing it with clothes on and other people present. Images convey powerful subliminal messages, and ones that turn a normal human activity into an abnormal one are not helpful. |
| Sarah Allen | Sarah Allen |
| Melton Mowbray | Melton Mowbray |
| Spaced out in Canary Wharf | Spaced out in Canary Wharf |
| Canary Wharf may not be to Will Hutton's taste ("Give us back our public spaces so we can have access to all areas", Comment) but it is important to remember that in the 1980s the area was behind locked gates, as the once thriving West India Docks had degenerated into a privately owned derelict wasteland. | Canary Wharf may not be to Will Hutton's taste ("Give us back our public spaces so we can have access to all areas", Comment) but it is important to remember that in the 1980s the area was behind locked gates, as the once thriving West India Docks had degenerated into a privately owned derelict wasteland. |
| The work of Canary Wharf Group was instrumental in transforming this vast site into a thriving commercial and shopping district – where 100,000 people work and around 30,000 visit every day. Canary Wharf is not only the fastest growing business district in Europe but the surrounding area is also seeing its residential population expand at one of the quickest rates in the UK. | The work of Canary Wharf Group was instrumental in transforming this vast site into a thriving commercial and shopping district – where 100,000 people work and around 30,000 visit every day. Canary Wharf is not only the fastest growing business district in Europe but the surrounding area is also seeing its residential population expand at one of the quickest rates in the UK. |
| Will claims that developers "want to reduce public space as much as they can". In the case of Canary Wharf, this is not true. More than 20% of Canary Wharf is landscaped parks, plazas and walkways, with more than 1,000 trees and 88 floral species; each year 70,000 seasonal plants are planted. In the past year we have added two new parks at Wood Wharf and Heron Quays. | Will claims that developers "want to reduce public space as much as they can". In the case of Canary Wharf, this is not true. More than 20% of Canary Wharf is landscaped parks, plazas and walkways, with more than 1,000 trees and 88 floral species; each year 70,000 seasonal plants are planted. In the past year we have added two new parks at Wood Wharf and Heron Quays. |
| Will is welcome to enjoy our free coverage of Wimbledon on big screens in Canada Square Park, or our free performances by UK and international dance companies in our Dancing City programme. There's free parking at weekends, so Will should have no excuse. | Will is welcome to enjoy our free coverage of Wimbledon on big screens in Canada Square Park, or our free performances by UK and international dance companies in our Dancing City programme. There's free parking at weekends, so Will should have no excuse. |
| Howard Dawber | Howard Dawber |
| Strategic adviser | Strategic adviser |
| Canary Wharf Group | Canary Wharf Group |
| Royally wrong about privilege | Royally wrong about privilege |
| Katharine Whitehorn ("Patriot gains", Magazine) may be right that there's a lot to be said for having a token family to watch that does not involve a film star, a footballer or Homer Simpson; but that's not the whole story. | Katharine Whitehorn ("Patriot gains", Magazine) may be right that there's a lot to be said for having a token family to watch that does not involve a film star, a footballer or Homer Simpson; but that's not the whole story. |
| Would she not join those of us who wish at least to be able to vote for a head of state? The Irish do not seem to have done too badly with that. | Would she not join those of us who wish at least to be able to vote for a head of state? The Irish do not seem to have done too badly with that. |
| From all the articles I have seen from Katharine Whitehorn over 50 years I had been sure that she was fed up with our class system, aristocracy, titles, and all the prejudices, privileges and ridiculous sycophancy associated with our hereditary system. | From all the articles I have seen from Katharine Whitehorn over 50 years I had been sure that she was fed up with our class system, aristocracy, titles, and all the prejudices, privileges and ridiculous sycophancy associated with our hereditary system. |
| Peter Bruggen | Peter Bruggen |
| London NW3 | London NW3 |
| Do calm down, Alan, dear | Do calm down, Alan, dear |
| Alan Titchmarsh (Upfront, Magazine) thinks that the brevity of women's broadcasting careers is acceptable because of their early days "disporting themselves on sports cars". I think he may be confusing serious journalists with glamour models. I don't remember Moira Stewart, Anna Ford, Miriam O'Reilly et al doing any such disporting. So, which is it, Alan – age-related memory-loss, ingrained sexism, or just a glimpse into your innermost fantasies? | Alan Titchmarsh (Upfront, Magazine) thinks that the brevity of women's broadcasting careers is acceptable because of their early days "disporting themselves on sports cars". I think he may be confusing serious journalists with glamour models. I don't remember Moira Stewart, Anna Ford, Miriam O'Reilly et al doing any such disporting. So, which is it, Alan – age-related memory-loss, ingrained sexism, or just a glimpse into your innermost fantasies? |
| Elizabeth Jones | Elizabeth Jones |
| York | York |
| So I turned round and I said… | So I turned round and I said… |
| Perhaps young actors who mumble inaudibly (News, last week) should take lessons from those commuters who have no difficulty in conveying their intimate mobile phone conversations to an entire railway carriage. | Perhaps young actors who mumble inaudibly (News, last week) should take lessons from those commuters who have no difficulty in conveying their intimate mobile phone conversations to an entire railway carriage. |
| Peter Morris | Peter Morris |
| Hove | Hove |
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