Sir, David Mundell offered the SNP a massive open goal when he challenged them to outline what changes they’d make to the welfare system if given the opportunity.
Any other party would have leapt at the chance to outline their plans to help people back to work and support society’s most vulnerable.
Instead, the SNP’s Dr Whiteford was left mumbling about the need for more powers with no idea of how they would be used.
Similarly, on Monday Ian Murray gave the SNP an opportunity to have their full fiscal autonomy policy evaluated by a truly independent panel of experts.
The backing of such a group would have made full fiscal autonomy all but certain.
Rather than backing the proposal, however, the SNP group in Westminster chose to work “hand in glove” with the Tories to block Murray’s amendment.
Stewart Hosie, the SNP deputy leader, had to fall back on nationalist rhetoric to distract his core support questioning SNP policy in such a way was “talking Scotland down”.
Both these episodes show that the SNP group in Westminster has no real aim other than to manufacture grievances in order to bring Scotland closer to a second decisive referendum.
Is this the stronger voice for Scotland we were promised?
Dr Scott Arthur 27 Buckstone Gardens, Edinburgh
Time for action against terror
Sir, Living in the village of Bankfoot Perthshire brings me closer to the effects of the tragedy in Tunisia than many.
It truly sickens me to see the response of our so called leaders in Westminster.
What do they do?
Hold a couple of Cobra meetings then send Theresa May to Tunisia to lay flowers.
The Tunisian government has closed down 80 mosques in retaliation.
The least Cameron should do is close down all mosques in Britain connected to radicalisation.
He keeps on saying that Islam is the religion of peace while the fact is that 95% of all conflicts today involve Muslims, including many Muslims slaughtering Muslims.
Mr Cameron, you need to grow a bit of backbone and retaliate.
Margaret Thatcher would have.
Appeasement did not work before the Second World Warand it won’t work now.
Britain needs action, not words.
T Gardner Main Street Bankfoot
Engaging with the process
Sir, Ms Uprichard’s disdain for Fife Council planners, councillors and, indirectly, the democratic process, is well documented and her letter (June 30)is but a further example.
My advice to her would be to learn how to make good use of it (the democratic process).
Perhaps she might benefit from an examination of the context re Cupar North.
I’ve been a Councillor for the Cupar Ward for some eight years and at different times the Labour Party, the SNP and the Liberal Democrats have all endorsed the inclusion of Cupar North in the Fife structure plan/local development plan.
I’ve never supported the Cupar North proposal, and I believe I am at one with the majority of those living in Cupar.
That said I reckoned that while I had little or no chance of removing Cupar North from the local development plan because of the aforementioned support from the three biggest political parties on Fife Council, I could get their support on important aspects surrounding the proposal
by reminding them of the original “selling points” around Cupar North the key one being the completion of the relief road within five years of the first completed house.
This “condition” has now been built into the development plan and was supported by all councillors at the executive committee of Fife Council.
It is my view this is a crucial “condition” in that it gives the community of Cupar some comfort that if the Cupar North proposal goes ahead then there will be a relief road within five years, which will protect Cupar.
On the other hand, if the Cupar North consortium is unable to provide the relief road in the aforementioned timescale then we will have to look for a different solution to meet Cupar’s housing needs.
Either way, Cupar is better off than it was a month ago.
Ms Uprichard also made mention of concerns around the impact the Cupar North proposal would have on the NHS provision in the Cupar area.
Over the last few months I have had several discussions with Councillor Laird (Fife Council’s planning portfolio holder) around this issue the upshot being a recent meeting involving the three Cupar Ward councillors, Fife Council planners and officials from NHS Fife.
At that meeting, the planners advised that land around Adamson Hospital would be designated for future NHS need, and just as importantly the NHS officials explained the potential for maximising, expanding and extending the NHS capacity at Cupar Health Centre.
This will be communicated to the Cupar community over the next few months.
When or if Cupar North proceeds, it will do so only with key protections to the community of Cupar: 1) the completion of a relief road within five years of the first completed house; and 2) an NHS provision that has the capacity to meet the needs of the local community.
The timescale associated with the relief road will ensure the consortium either put up or move on.
Ms Uprichard might well be advised to engage with the democratic process no-one can get everything they want, but if a conciliatory approach is adopted success is achievable.
Councillor Bryan Poole Cupar Ward 21 Fife Council
A true measure of poverty
Sir, Social scientists in the 1960s claimed that people are poor if they live in a household with below 60% of median earnings, regardless of their quality of life or access to essentials.
As Frank Field observed this wholly arbitrary figure means 2.5 million of our children “live in poverty” and we are attacked by UN worthies from the likes of Brazil.
But this “statistic” under-reports benefits, ignores differences in regional costs of living, the black economy and the consumption of benefits in kind or public services like the NHS.
The UK is trapped by a statistic deliberately rigged to ensure our public policy’s leftist bias leading to Gordon Brown fatuous commitment to slash “child poverty” in half by 2010.
For the sake of the genuinely deprived, we need a more realistic measure of poverty and must make a clean break with the failed welfarist consensus of the past half century.
A genuine measure of absolute need would consider whether a household has access to a basket of goods and services agreed to be the minimum necessary in our present state.
Rev Dr John Cameron, 10 Howard Place, St Andrews
Dogs a bigger threat than guns
Sir, The new Scottish law requiring an air weapon certificate is expected to come into force next April.
A licence will cost £80.
Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Wayne Mawson said: “The vast majority of people who own air weapons in Scotland are law abiding citizens”.
Tory MSP Alex Ferguson cited figures showing air weapon offences represent only 0.06% of all reported crime in Scotland.
There have been more deaths and serious injuries caused by dogs.
One could say: “The vast majority of people who own dogs in Scotland are law abiding citizens”, so it is logical to admit that there should be a compulsory dog licence of £80.
Clark Cross 138 Springfield Road Linlithgow
A very welcome assurance
Sir, I am grateful to the assurances, in my brief absence, from messrs Clark and White, that Scotland is not turning into a one-party state, it just seems so to those who are not of the SNP persuasion.
Anthony Garrett. 1 Royal Terrace Falkland
Encouragement is needed
Sir, While enjoying a meal in a city restaurant, a smartly dressed male teenager, entered and asked a supervisor if there was any possibility of a job, of any kind, and was asked “Have you got a CV?”, to which he replied “No, as I don’t leave school until next week”.
The staff member then told him that without a CV there would be no job.
As he walked away, I have never seen anyone look so dejected, but how can anyone have a CV if they are still at school?
A wee bit morecompassion andcourtesy would nothave gone amiss.
John McDonald, 14 Rosebery Court, Kirkcaldy
Greek tragedy a German export
Sir, John Cameron’s latest racist diatribe against Greece is poor, even by his low standards.
Between 1999 and 2007, when the Euro was first introduced, the German economy had very little growth.
This led German banks to lend to Greece in order to create export markets for German goods.
Rather than see German banks pay the price for such bad decisions, Angela Merkel has decided the Greek people should pay through relentless, merciless austerity.
Greece originally failed to meet the convergence criteria for Euro membership yet, it the right-wing New Democracy government colluded with international banks to cook the books to gain entry.
The result of these policies have been catastrophic for Greece.
11,000 people there have committed suicide due to austerity.
The crisis is the outcome of reactionary austerity policies pursued by the European Union in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crisis, which have slashed workers’ living standards and undermined economies across Europe.
Greece is currently being punished by the EU for voting in a government they international financial oligarchy disapproves.
Its also being used as a warning to others in Spain and Italy.
No doubt John Cameron approves of the methods being applied to strangle Greece as he lacks empathy.
Alan Hinnrichs 2 Gillespie Terrace Dundee