Letters: Lack of parking leeway takes chunk out disabled allowance

Published on 29/05/2012 12:00

The New Meanies (Evening News, April 25) are taking on a different role to help raise money for the council by fining illegal bus lane users.

They can also target the disabled who are either able to drive, or have a carer who drives for them. Taking advantage of a small mistake made by one of these very people must be an easy way to raise funds for the council.

I am disabled and I was being taken to the City Chambers by my carer in order to submit forms for the renewal of the Blue Badge for the car I’m driven in. This is in itself an excellent fundraiser since due to the cuts and economies “imposed upon the council”, the Blue Badge now costs £20 when three years ago, when I last applied, it was free.

The car, showing a valid Blue Badge, was parked at the top of Cockburn Street in a space marked “disabled”, but by mistake the boot was over the line at the rear edge of the area.

On returning, we found that we had been issued with a parking ticket.

By doing this, the council has raised some money, but it has also managed to deprive someone reliant on disability benefits of very nearly two-thirds of one week’s incapacity benefit.

Derek Cochrane, Ferry Road, Edinburgh

UK is recognised as Protestant nation

Norman Bonney (Mouthpiece, May 19) ignores his own atheistic standpoint to have a go at the requirement of the monarch to comply with the Act of Union as to her Protestant faith. He conveniently forgets that the UK and others are recognised as Protestant nations, while the Republic of Ireland, Italy, Spain and others are recognised as Catholic.

I note that Mr Bonney is emeritus professor at Edinburgh Napier University, but it seems he has little or no sympathy with the views of John Napier, after whom the University is named. It is on record that Napier was a Protestant, his major theological work being Plaine Discovery of the Whole Revelation of St John.

I would encourage Norman Bonney to repent of his atheism, and accept the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. He will never regret doing so.

Donald Jack, Summerside Place, Leith

Independence raises Eurovision hopes

The repeated failure of the UK in the Eurovision song contest has little to do with the singer or the song, but the country of the entrant.

Year after year we see countries who are on friendly terms with each other awarding each other points in a contest which has become more a demonstration of their political relationships than of talent. Yet it is a damning indictment of the way the UK is viewed in Europe, with few friends but an over-inflated view of itself, that sees it produce such low scores.

An independent Scotland would not only be an entrant to such a contest, but with the retention of the social union, one great advantage for the rest of the UK is that we will be one of the few assured of awarding it high scores.

Alex Orr, Leamington Terrace, Edinburgh

Give catchment school a chance

As the season for the fight for places in particular schools is upon us I am appalled at the lengths some people will go to to secure a place for their children.

I am aware of parents who have had their child baptised for the sole purpose of strengthening their chances to get into a given school. Surely there must be systems in place to stop this manipulation of the system?

Parents should give their catchment school a chance before running off to a so-called better school – many times these more popular schools are so overcrowded that the quality of education must be affected. This is the delayed effect of the school closures throughout Edinburgh a few years ago coming to fruition.

M Cummings, Ravelston Dykes, Edinburgh

Tram works are embarrassment

Now the sun is here it heralds the arrival of tourists to our once-beautiful city. How embarrassing that the streets are riddled with tramworks and it takes twice as long as it should to get anywhere. What must they think?

Veronica Noble, Blackford, Edinburgh