Sir John Page

Alastair Cooke writes: “Jack” Page (obituary, Nov 5) was the most genial of MPs. He was fond of quoting one of Margaret Thatcher’s Cabinet colleagues who told him: “The reason that you never became a minister is that you make people laugh and then they don’t take you seriously.” But his immense goodwill deserted him in July 1982 when a grave breach of security at Buckingham Palace enabled an intruder to get into the Queen’s bedroom. He was infuriated by the nonchalant way in which Willie Whitelaw, then Home Secretary, explained the circumstances to the Commons. In his diary Alan Clark describes Page as “puce with anger” at a special meeting called by the Conservative Home Affairs Committee. He himself said later that the incident was “the most shocking of his many years in Parliament”. It was only because of his affection for Whitelaw that he decided not to table a motion of no confidence

Lord Cuckney

Lord Luce writes: In your excellent obituary of Lord Cuckney’s very full life of public service in business (Nov 3), you missed one important point. He was severely injured soon after the Second World War in Cairo and suffered intensely from back pain for the rest of his life. He demonstrated to all who knew him that, with courage and determination, it is possible to lead a full life while suffering severe pain.

Rear-Admiral Jeremy de Halpert writes: The extent of Lord Cuckney’s business activities was well reflected in your obituary but may I add one further important dimension to his life. Cuckney’s contribution to the charities and institutions with which he was associated was considerable. He was elected an Elder Brother of Trinity House in 1980 soon after stepping down as chairman of the Port of London Authority. Over the following two decades he played an important part in the charitable activities of the corporation and we benefited greatly from his sharp mind and business acumen.

James Skinner

Conor Skinner writes: Your obituary of my father (Nov 6) did not mention that after returning from Malawi he held high judicial office in the UK, serving as Social Security Commissioner (1986-96) and as Child Support Commissioner (1993-96). Commissioners are judicial appointees equivalent to High Court judges. The omission of any mention of this important phase of his career implies that having fought for independence from Britain and having lived abroad, he simply retired to Ireland after leaving Malawi, which is far from the truth.