Scotland Matters Letters

Lean Gunn Barratt (Letters, January 29) is at it yet again saying, without a shred of evidence that Independence will solve Scotland’s problems. It’s as if the magic money tree has grown extra branches! She compares Scotland to countries such as Ireland where the wealth is driven entirely by low corporation tax which attracted many multinationals to use Ireland as their tax base. Contrast that with Scotland and the SNP’s high tax, low growth economy. Scotland needs growth in our economy to provide the jobs and the taxes needed to pay for those who need help, and for the NHS, Social Services, Fire, Police and Education. Scotland under the SNP has consistently grown its GDP at a lower level than the rest of the U K. Fifteen years of total failure. The last thing Scots need is independence and it would be a breath of fresh air if those in favour would just give us three or six months’ peace. That would be taxing for them, but hey – tax is their middle name.
B Barbour, Berwick Upon Tweed.

It is indeed a great relief for Scotland, and most of its people, that we have witnessed the demise of Nicola Sturgeon as First Minister. Her single-minded attitude to the regional governance of Scotland resulted in disastrous policies in most aspects of matters devolved from Westminster. And just how much worse would the situation have become had she, or her co-zealots, ever aspired to create an independent Scotland? We Scots would have found ourselves in an impoverished state – with an economy comparing closely to some of Europe’s weakest countries. Is that what we want for our children, or our children’s children? We Scots are, and have been for centuries, a proud race which has greatly contributed to global development whether that entailed economic, religious or structural matters. But in this modern age, when the UK is no longer a dominant economic or military force, it is important that the nations of these islands continue to form a pact of “togetherness”. Independence as a cause has no place in the UK in today’s world. Robert IG Scott, Ceres, Fife.

We heard Nicola Sturgeon speak yesterday at the Covid inquiry about deleting WhatsApp messages and retaining on a government device only those that were “relevant”. Other Scottish parliamentarians, including John Swinney and Humza Yousaf (now first minister), have spoken in the same terms. Particularly after the announcement that there would be a statutory inquiry, in 2021, this was improper. It was not for those centrally involved in decision-making and policy formation to decide what materials were or were not relevant. That judgment was surely for Baroness Hallett and her court. Jill Stephenson, Edinburgh.

I WONDER how many who supported devolution in 1997 would do so if the vote was repeated today? I was one and now realise my approval was a big mistake. Scrutiny of the Bill was clearly inadequate: Scotland doesn’t present Westminster with an annual balance sheet; lavish overspending isn’t questioned; the flawed ‘never one party rule’ voting system; lack of regu-lar review of procedure and so on. Of devolution’s 25 years, the last 17 have shown just how this lack of checks and balances has been used by the SNP to further its raison d’etre. Devolution was supposed to counter what was once a minority party chas-ing a dream, but lack of attention to detail, compounded by an ever-increasing addition of ‘devolved responsibilities’ by naive UK politicians, has landed Scotland in one almighty mess. The Covid-19 Inquiry has exposed a `warts and all’ administration thriving, not under the Saltire but the skull and crossbones of political piracy, a piracy robbing Scotland of its once world-renowned education system; the work ethic of an ever-increasing number of citizens locked in unemployment in a stagnant economy and creating an NHS unable to cope with 800,000 on waiting lists. It doesn’t stop there: those north of the central belt have been robbed of safe roads whilst islanders have seen ferry services robbed of reliable ships. Scotland once experienced ‘The Age of Enlightenment’ but the SNP has brought ‘The Age of Descent’ as the country sinks into bottom place in many of the areas used to measure a thriving society, including drug deaths, cancer deaths, life expectancy, educa-tional attainment etc. Perversely our administration would have us believe a country, adept at dispensing ‘freebies’ but incapable of sorting what it has broken, is thriving. So the Covid-19 Inquiry may not provide all of the answers we would wish for, but it may light the blue touch-paper of a second Age of Enlightenment. Graham Wyllie, Lanarkshire.

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