Sir, I write in response to your article in Thursday’s paper regarding creating a database.
There has been a huge amount of scaremongering on this issue so let me set the record straight.
We are not and we will not create a new database.
We are proposing to improve the completeness of a database that has existed since the 1950s.
This is about identity verification not about handing over data to public bodies.
Through verification, organisations can make sure they have the accurate and up-to-date information they need to deliver services.
Only a limited amount of data would be shared to check that the data held is current.
Medical records are not part of the register and there are no plans to share medical records.
We will listen carefully to all consultation responses, and decisions will only be taken after full scrutiny by parliament of any eventual proposals.
That is the principle upon which our govern-ment is run and will remain so.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney.
More draconian EU legislation
Sir, EU zealots are proposing to outlaw halogen light bulbs by 2016 and replace them with LED lights which they say will save energy.
LEDs, however, are very expensive and do not work with dimmer switches and certain electrical wiring systems.
More draconian EU legislation.
Replacing halogen bulbs will cost the average household £300 plus electrical wiring changes.
These highly paid officials justify their existence by claiming they are “saving the planet”.
The EU have already banned incandescent bulbs and high wattage hairdryers, lawnmowers, smart phones, kettles and vacuum cleaners claiming this will reduce the use of electricity.
In fairness they may be belatedly realising that with the closure of coal plants, gas plants and even nuclear that there will be far less electricity available and that unreliable wind turbines will never keep the lights on.
My garage is already stocked with “banned” bulbs and halogen ones will soon be added.
Clark Cross. 138 Springfield Road, Linlithgow.
Easily proved by cherry-picking
Sir, The directly opposing letters from Mr Hinnrichs and Dr Cameron (Wednesday’s Courier) on the subject of sea ice shows yet again that anything can be proved by cherry-picking facts.
The few things we know for sure include:
1. The climate has always changed and will continue to do so.
2. For the last 50,000 years there has been a repeating cycle of hot and cold spells. Nothing currently happening lies outside the natural variability of that process.
3. There is no concrete evidence that CO2 has any effect at all on global temperature. In spite of all the theories and computer models Mother Nature is stubbornly refusing to co-operate.
The doom and gloom of climate change science is a political and religious movement now worth billions to its protagonists.
The real world problems pollution and over-population are being ignored by this psuedo-science
Bill McKenzie. 48 Fintry Place, Broughty Ferry, Dundee.
Big Six failing consumers
Sir, High energy bills are a big problem for many people locally, especially at this time of year; 1.6 million children in the UK live in fuel poverty; and this winter one older person will die of cold every seven minutes.
Meanwhile, the Big Six energy companies are making billions in profits and have failed to pass on recent cost-savings.
It’s clear that privatisation has been a disaster yet our government is using our aid budget to promote this failed approach in countries like Nigeria, where the result has been higher prices, blackouts and job losses.
We can and should use aid money to improve people’s lives. But this will only happen if it’s used in the right way. For example, in Bolivia and Costa Rica, energy co-operatives have provided electricity in rural areas where previously it wasn’t available. It’s high time our politicians realised that the power of the Big Six is failing consumers in the UK and stopped supporting the same failed model abroad.
Paul Micallef. 36C Seafield Road, Broughty Ferry, Dundee.
Fife monthly bin pick-up
Sir, Fife Council has become the first local authority in the UK to announce a trial of monthly bin pick-ups. This is not only shocking but unhygienic and will lead to fly-tipping and separate trips to the dump by fed-up householders, that means more fuel usage and more CO2.
Bin collection is one of the basic services taxpayers expect in exchange for their council tax. Fife Council says it has to reduce the scheme to reduce landfill due to the punitive EU taxation.
The solution is to vote for a party which wants to leave the European Union and put a stop to this landfill nonsense and other issues which infringe on local democracy.
Dan Arnott. St Brycedale Court, Kirkcaldy.