My initial reaction to hearing of the Christmas party and the fake news briefing was feeling as if I had been kicked in the stomach (PM accused of lying after No 10 officials caught joking about Christmas party, 7 December). Then I cried. Like the majority of people in this country, I’ve followed the rules from the start. In my 60-odd years on the planet, I’ve paid my dues, I’ve voted in every election since turning 18 and I’ve tried to be decent and honest. My father died of Covid in his care home in Ipswich in April 2020, at the same time as we were being told that there was plenty of PPE for staff (the manager, by contrast, told me that was patently untrue and care homes were left unsupported). I hadn’t managed to see him for weeks and his funeral was a paltry, socially distanced affair with a Zoom wake. We suspect he believed that we had abandoned him as his understanding of the situation was limited, thanks to dementia. This recent turn of events has broken my heart. And it comes on top of endless scandals about tax evasion, dubious awarding of contracts and I am sure I don’t need to add more. I cannot believe that the people of this country, regardless of their political leanings, want to be ruled by such a heartless and corrupt bunch of people. Vivienne Maunder Ipswich, Suffolk • Like many, I feel absolutely sickened by the reports of last year’s Christmas party at No 10 and the government’s inability to own up to it. The leaked video of Allegra Stratton in her practice press conference laughing about it is outrageous. Last Christmas, my daughter, who is a mental health nurse in the NHS, made a 160-mile round trip to spend the day with us and in doing so stuck to the rules. This year, she and her colleagues have been instructed by the NHS trust she works for not to have Christmas parties. They can’t risk an already overstretched workforce being off sick with Covid. She and her colleagues take their roles and responsibilities seriously, unlike members of this government and their spokesperson. Carol Ferguson Thornton-le-Dale, North Yorkshire • The very fact that the hierarchy of the Tory party has not acted decisively to remove Boris Johnson as prime minister is a tacit act of collusion with his devious, dishonest and immoral modus operandi, which shames them all. In effect, it tars them all with the same maggot-infested brush. It’s about time all the opposition parties staged a walkout during a parliamentary session in disgust at being blatantly lied to. News of that would make the entire country sit up, take notice and loudly applaud. Linda Evans London • I’m frustrated that the overarching narrative surrounding the shameful party at No 10 last Christmas seems to be “how come they were allowed a party, and I wasn’t?” A party wasn’t, isn’t, and shouldn’t be desirable with Covid running rampant. Yes, the government – and especially the prime minister – behaves irresponsibly. But that doesn’t mean that the rest of us should too. Partying against the rules is wrong. Assisting the spread of Covid is wrong. Let’s stop shifting the government’s failures to personal grievances surrounding not having the equal opportunity to behave as badly as they do. Their actions are abhorrent – and that’s the end of it. Sebastian Monblat London • Have an opinion on anything you’ve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication.