Scotland Matters Letters

We are being told that Police Scotland recruitment is being temporarily halted, official courses are being cancelled, training staff at Tulliallan being redeployed, many crimes will no longer be investigated and there is a £19m shortfall. On top of this, according to Federation General Secretary David Kennedy, approximately 60 experienced officers are retiring every month. Police Scotland was the creation of the then SNP politician Kenny MacAskill, established according to him, to create efficiencies and save millions. In reality, the nationalist regime only wanted political control over one chief constable. Now we witness the evidence of another SNP failure. MacAskill has bolted, Nicola Sturgeon has bolted but the disorder, the disarray remains. An apology is in order. Douglas Cowe, Newmachar, Aberdeenshire.

The result in the Hamilton West/Rutherglen by-election surely signals a major change in the future of Scottish politics. Labour secured a landslide over the SNP. The people have spoken! And I forecast that this is just the start of things to come, both at Scottish and UK levels. The Scottish Nationalists have had their day, and their true colours have “come out in the wash’: The good people of Scotland should not be expected to wait until 2026 for the next Holyrood election; the SNP/Green alliance has shown itself to be utterly incompetent in most aspects of Scotland’s devolved powers. The only answer to this dilemma obviously entails holding a much earlier election. It is simply inconceivable that Scotland’s economic, structural and political scenes should be subjected to any further governance on the part of this grouping of proven incompetents. Robert I G Scott, Ceres.

THE by-election is not the end of the SNP. A poll shows the party is on the slide but at the same time, 48 per cent of Scots voters continue to want independence. A new SNP leadership and the end of the Greens would fix a lot of their problems. Observer.

I write to you bemoan the treatment of the arts by this administration. The situation is becoming totally untenable with long-term planning being sacrificed for short-term gain. The Culture Secretary is doing his title a total disservice and he should be cut for someone who has an understanding of this fragile but essential sector. Many of us have, like Sheena MacDonald, given voluntarily of our time to many organisations and to see them emasculated by political whim hurts deeply. We need sustained support to be given to quality organisations, not the funding of one-off junkets. David Gerrard, Edinburgh.

Listening to Rishi Sunak’s upbeat, common-sense speech at the Conservative conference I thought of the similarities between him and Kate Forbes. Both narrowly lost leadership elections despite being the best candidate, rejected by a sullen core cabal in their party. Time will tell if the PM will deliver enough to win the general election, and Friday’s result at the Rutherglen by-election will determine whether Humza Yousaf’s knuckle-dragging indyref myopia and lacklustre performance will propel Kate Forbes into power, enabling her to ditch the Greens and cancel Scotland’s HS2, the ferry fiasco. Both must be worrying Keir Starmer. Allan Sutherland, Stonehaven.

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