I suppose he is right, but having watched some of this series I feel the BBC appears to be playing up the humiliation aspects rather than trying to explain what makes a good business idea.
Some of the ideas, and the entrants themselves, are frankly laughable, and one wonders how they made it past the screening process.
And when competitors are cross-examined and ejected, there seems to be little attempt at explaining what is wrong with the company. Sometimes it simply seems that a dragon has taken against someone because of the way they look or sound — and when there is a line of questioning about the business, it seems to jump around rather than follow through to a logical conclusion. This may be due to the editing process, but I’d like to see a more orderly dissection of just where people are going wrong.
J Watson
New Barnet, Hertfordshire
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Immigration muddle: I write in response to Christopher Smallwood’s article (“Reserve army can defuse demographic time bomb”, August 27). Much has been made of the benefit to Britain of importing hundreds of thousands of workers from eastern Europe — including the curious notion that these migrants will help to prop up our ageing population in retirement. Surely by then most will have returned home — and the few who stay will no doubt be working in the black economy, so will not be contributing to our pensions.
And what about the loss of skills for British youngsters? Why would any teenager today take up an apprenticeship as a carpenter, plumber or electrician when their adult counterparts are struggling against such low-cost competition? Finally, our politicians tell us this influx of workers is vital for UK growth. But it will change our society for ever, as Trevor Phillips, head of the Commission for Racial Equality, warned recently.
EU enlargement and UK growth may well be noble goals, but let’s not make them own goals.
Ben Barber
Compton, Surrey
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Mobile hell: I cannot believe that consideration is being given to using freed-up frequencies to provide mobile television (“The battle for Britain’s airwaves”, August 27). Quite enough unpleasantness is already caused on public transport by people using electronic equipment in such a way.
Mike Griffiths
Croydon
UK rules: I was interested in your article about the Channel tunnel (“Chunnel cash row threatens freight trains”, last week) but was appalled by your reference to the English government.
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There has not been an English government since 1707. Some people think that everybody who lives in the UK is English, when that is definitely not the case.
RP Richards
Abingdon, Oxfordshire
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