Can Labour breathe new life into our stagnant cultural institutions?

The animus against the BBC from Conservatives has for many years posed a major threat to the wide range of the broadcaster’s activities, and seriously undermined its political independence.

After an absurd revolving door of culture secretaries – many of whom have done their utmost during their short terms in office to permanently damage the BBC – it sounds as if at last we have in Lisa Nandy a politician who really understands its importance (not to mention the importance of the Arts Council England, and many other aspects of her brief).

Hopefully, she will be able to definitively reform the BBC’s corporate structure and governance in a way that will futureproof its independence, and secure its important role in our national life.

The BBC performs a wide variety of important functions – from producing light entertainment such as sitcoms and game shows to its facilitation of robust political debate, its fearless investigative journalism, its support and promotion of the higher arts, and its preservation of an enormous range of documentary and other coverage of British life, culture and history. In doing so, it presents our nation back to itself and to the wider world.

Gavin Turner

Norfolk

If Joe Biden insists on remaining a candidate, the Democrats could not only lose the presidency on 5 November but also the Senate (33 of the 100 seats will be at stake). God only knows what Donald Trump could accomplish with Congress (the House of Representatives and the Senate) and the Supreme Court under his thumb. Lots of (bad) things, I imagine!

For the good of his country, Joe Biden must become reasonable again and immediately leave the White House to Kamala Harris, for health reasons. The latter can try her luck at the presidency