Sir, – Dundee is and will always be home for me, despite currently residing in Fife.
However, I have recently been shocked by the state of Dundee during my visits home.
The Oor Wullie trail was hugely publicised and ultimately very popular. However, when I took part with my family I couldn’t believe the state of the road up to The Law. The weeds were shocking and breaking through the tarmac while preventing visibility on the descent.
I just assumed it was probably a one-off but on dropping my daughter off in Charleston, the field or park area between Charleston and Menzieshill was in a similar state of disrepair.
A more recent visit to Camperdown Park prompted me to make contact with you as the boating pond was dry, with weeds showing a presence yet again. Fences were damaged and vandalised and the park was poorly maintained in general. A poor effort by the city council of late.
David Beveridge.
Lamond Drive,
St Andrews.
Our troops deserve better
Sir, – It is no surprise to learn of the fight our troops are in with the Ministry of Defence; nuclear veterans have been in this fight for more than 60 years.
These young men were sent into highly radioactive contaminated areas without any protection, and now, they are told they failed to return their radiation film badges.
There is no legal aid provided for them, and when they request any information to assist in their cases, the requests are classed as vexatious and they are refused answers. The Ministry of Defence appears to have hired a group of misinformation experts in its freedom of information department.
I have an SNP Member of Parliament and wrote to him around two months ago requesting he asks the Prime Minister for a public inquiry into all aspects of the British nuclear tests. As yet, it appears he has not received a reply.
Dave Whyte.
73 Blackcraigs,
Kirkcaldy.
Labour can redeem itself
Sir, – The proposal to keep Glenwood library in the west of Glenrothes open in some form will be warmly welcomed by the community in that part of the town (September 22).
As usual, however, the devil will be in the detail of the agreement struck by the local residents’ groups and Fife Cultural Trust on the way forward. Most people will be quite happy if they can go in, borrow a book, use a computer and get general queries answered.
Some serious questions will have to be asked about whether professional staff will be on hand to make sure this happens and keep systems up to date. Equally, the security of the staff who remain and the volunteers who help them will have to be given high priority. A vigorous public information exercise will need to be carried out to show how the character of the library will change if more and more community groups are to be given access to it.
This has not been the most edifying spectacle in the history of Fife Council and the local cultural trust. The savings proposed for the closure of Glenwood library are only a fraction of what the local authority and trust have spent on a new office in the north of Kirkcaldy and an archive system.
Labour, in particular, has paid a heavy political price for its indifference to the needs of people in the west of Glenrothes. It has the chance to redeem itself now by working with the local groups to make sure the new venture is a success.
Bob Taylor.
24 Shiel Court,
Glenrothes.
Dangerous manoeuvres
Sir, – My sympathy to both families connected to the fatal crash near Lochearnhead on the A85 last week. We travelled that road the day before, making our way from Perth to Oban. On numerous occasions we were overtaken by groups of motorcycles, travelling at crazy speeds, my estimate close to 100mph, while overtaking.
The overtaking was taking place on blind bends, and was particularly bad along the A85 at Loch Earn, and also on the incline up Glenogle. The police had stopped a group between Crianlarich and Tyndrum, as there was a huge gathering of motorcyclists at The Green Welly at Tyndrum.
This crazy overtaking took place to a lesser extent between Tyndrum and Oban.
On the return journey, just after Dalmally, a group of three overtook us on a blind bend. The first one was confronted by an oncoming car, and cut in sharply just in front of me. My wife screamed, I braked sharply, and he just made it.
This was the closest shave I have experienced. I was also towing a caravan.
It is time the police took a more proactive interest in the speeds these motorcyclists travel at. Not only are they putting themselves in danger by their actions, but also putting in danger the lives of other innocent people.
P. McCormack.
Errol.
Government responsibility
Sir, – Dr John Cameron is right to say that immigration benefits the UK economy, but I wonder if he realises the extent to which circumstances which are beneficial to the economy are not necessarily beneficial to citizens?
My working life was spent in the construction industry, and my company worked the length and breadth of the UK. It was frequently necessary to send squads of workers to sites far from home, often for quite protracted periods. During these times they would stay in B&Bs, or for longer stays, they would rent a flat or house on a short-term basis.
Squads of foreign workers would do the same, but once established they would cram in large numbers of their colleagues.
As they all contributed to the rent, their costs, per head, were minimal. They were – nearly – always good tradesmen, they worked long hours and their spartan lifestyle reduced their living costs and allowed them to undercut UK workers, who had to support homes and families. They were good for the economy but bad for the UK workforce.
People trying to get back into employment after a period on benefits are also badly affected. We have all heard of the “benefit trap”, where families lose all benefits if one family member goes back to work. No one is suggesting this is the fault of immigrants, but people returning to work from a spell on benefits rarely receive high wages, and a family that suddenly finds that one income has to pay for everything is not helped if wages are depressed by immigrant labour. Again, the economy benefits, but not the UK worker.
I do not know what the answer to all of this might be. Immigrants are not bad people, they mean no harm, they are simply trying to make a living. But when we consider what is good for the economy, we should perhaps bear in mind that the first responsibility of any government is to look after its citizens, and it is surely reasonable to suggest that a successful economy should do that.
In this age of mass displacement of people and widespread terrorism, border control is not a sop to xenophobia, nor is it a symptom of “incoherent Brexiteering”, it is an essential precaution. UK workers, especially those in low-paid or insecure employment, are absolutely entitled to expect that their Government will protect their interests, and are equally entitled to vote in an election or referendum in the way they believe is in their best interests.
A good start would be to rigidly enforce the living wage for all employees, with severe sanctions against employers using cheap labour. Until that is done, immigrant labour will continue to simultaneously boost the economy and damage our vulnerable citizens.
Graham M McLeod.
61 Muirs,
Kinross.
Why is it only us?
Sir, – Where will all the electricity come from when vehicles, gas cookers and gas central heating are replaced by electric vehicles and appliances?
Whitehall’s eco-zealots decreed gas hobs, cookers, fires and boilers are to be phased out within 15 years.
This was what the Government’s Committee on Climate Change (CCC) agreed after promising to slash CO2 emissions following the Paris Climate Change Conference, despite the UK having only a 1.3% of global emissions. Scotland’s is 0.13%.
China, the world’s biggest polluter and India, the third largest, are building even more coal-fired plants. Why should Britain be the only country in the world to have a legally-binding Climate Change Act when the rest only give promises which are easily broken?
All is not lost, however, as I expect the Scottish Government to step up to the mark and announce that it is planning to build another 30,000 wind turbines to provide the much-needed electricity and will export to England provided Scotland is immediately granted independence without any referendum.
Clark Cross.
138 Springfield Road,
Linlithgow.