Scotland Matters Letters

AS THE country with the highest drug death rate in Europe, it looks like we are about to give the green light for ‘safe spaces’ for drug users. What next? Smoking rooms for tobacco addicts or private bars for alcoholics? We should be tackling the root cause of the problem, not making it easier for addicts. Your recent article on the failed American experiment is surely a testament to this. However, our SNP/ Green coalition of chaos seems more intent on headline-grabbing than actually governing our country JIM CARRUTHERS, Motherwell, Lanarkshire.

Let there be no misunderstanding that Scotland needs oil and oil industry jobs as energy self-sufficiency with renewables is still many years away. First Minister Humza Yousaf needs to stand up to the dominance of the Green Party and make it clear to the oil industry that we desperately need oil and gas and the jobs that go with it. The oil industry has made it clear it has many billions of pounds of funds to develop lucrative North Sea fields but they need a clear sign from the Scottish Government that they are not to be dosed down by the Green Party who seem to be in charge at Holyrood. Dennis Forbes Grattan, Aberdeen.

Returning from a short holiday to the north of England, my wife and I stopped in Jedburgh for a while. What a revelation. The town is so tidy, with well-kept grass verges and flower beds and a distinct absence of weeds and signs of decay. It is also a town with a deep history and many attractions. Contrast that with the sight that greeted us as we arrived back in Edinburgh, via Straiton. Here were totally overgrown roundabouts, kerbsides completely silted up, and weeds and litter everywhere. Edinburgh is a disgrace and an embarrassment as Scotland’s international capital. Glasgow is no better. What tourists must think when they arrive here is too awful to contemplate. Can we not match the civic pride shown by Jedburgh across the country? Ken Currie, Edinburgh.

Alexander McKay (Letters, 12 September), is spot on. Penny Mordaunt does her homework well and highlights the disaster that is the SNP Government in Scotland, although I wouldn’t necessarily give her too much credit given how easy a target she has. It’s a pity that the SNP government gets such an easy time from the Scottish media. If they were subjected to the scrutiny the UK press gives the UK Government, more members of the public might realise how little has been accomplished and how much damage has been done by 34 years of SNP rule. I am not defending the UK Government’s performance, but I fully expect a retort from the usual subjects about their performance. True to form, the letters will say something like “it’s Westminster’s fault”, or “if only we had independence”. Brian Barbour, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland.

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