No sympathy for those who break law of the land

Published on Saturday 4 April 2009 10:30

ON Thursday I made a mistake. I read Gina Davidson's column (Nothing wrong in venting anger, News, April 2).

It tempted me to become angry. You see, while I agree with Gina that apathy in the face of injustice is not an adequate response, I don't consider it in the least understandable that people feel pushed to smashing Sir Fred Goodwin's windows.

Nor is it a remotely justifiable response to be part of a mob which attacks the police or smashes RBS windows.

Such action loosens the very glue which holds our society together. Such contempt for the rule of law is akin to using petrol to douse a fire. Let's have no more wrong-headed sympathy for law breakers.

There. Without even being tempted to break her windows or arrange a violent demonstration outside the Evening News offices I have done my inadequate best to challenge her thinking.

Perhaps it wasn't such a mistake to read her column.

Cameron Rose, Councillor, Southside and Newington

Prescription charge is a disease in NHS

YOUR article on prescription charges (Free prescriptions: 'The SNP may have underestimated the cost of its plan', News, April 1) seems not to see the wood for the trees.

I encountered this argument that scrapping charges would lead to an unsustainable increase in demand for medicines many times when I presented my Bill to the Scottish Parliament.

For me the conclusion to draw from rising requests for medicines is that there is significant unmet demand from patients who previously could not afford their prescription.

Indeed as the evidence from the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Kings Fund amongst others shows again and again tens of thousands of Scots are in just such a situation, going without the medicines their GP prescribes for them because they cannot afford to pay (the charge is now more than 7 per item in England).

Furthermore, it is worth remembering that our NHS prides itself on providing universal FREE healthcare to patients.

Prescription charges are therefore a perversion, some may say a disease, at the heart of our healthcare system. Once you start charging people for a service it stands to reason those who cannot afford that charge will go without.

Those who defend prescription charges argue that the sick should pay for their medicines. I would point out that we all pay for our medicines.

We all pay for our health services through our taxes and that is as it should be.

To charge the sick a second time because they are ill was a view the country rejected out of hand in 1947 and continues to oppose today.

The Governments of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have all voted to abolish the charges leaving the NHS in England sadly lagging behind. I hope this is rectified soon.

Colin Fox, Alloway Loan, Edinburgh

Time to invest in our sports stadium

AS a regular visitor to Meadowbank Sports Centre I think the council should pull out all the stops to keep this wonderful and iconic building open and fully operational.

Not only is it a good and well situated leisure centre but it is very much a prestigious symbol of Edinburgh's great sporting heritage and to lose it would be a travesty and a great shame.

Surely if it is good enough for the Royal Commonwealth Pool to be given a state of the art revamp it is good enough and much deserved for Meadowbank.

This would not only restore the building to its former glory but, who knows, it may be able to once again host major international sporting events and I am sure that this along with the revenue and prestige it would bring to the city would be welcomed by all.

Angus McGregor, Albion Road, Edinburgh

Bus changes leave users bewildered

THANKS to the tram works our street recently saw the return of the 24, 34 and 1 bus routes. This gave the people in the Old Town a chance to head east or west without crossing the barriers on Princess Street.

I also noticed that visitors were starting to use this route to visit the Castle – the kind of transport provision that would be taken for normal in most European capitals.

However, I now notice that these services have been routed back to join the rest of the buses in George Street, leaving only the 24 bus on the street.

Public transport changes so often it's no wonder that passenger numbers are falling and that those remaining are confused.

David Gardiner, Lawnmarket, Edinburgh

Brown must think again on funding

The outcome of the G20 summit in London clearly demonstrates that global co-ordination is essential if we are to beat this worldwide economic crisis, but we cannot judge whether the summit has been successful now, but on whether the recession is short and shallow or deep and drawn-out .

Over the last few days Gordon Brown has spoken enthusiastically about President Obama's $787 billion stimulus package, which will support some 3.5 million jobs nationwide. However, there is clear blue water the width of the Atlantic between President Obama and the proposal by Gordon Brown to cut Scottish spending by 1 billion in the midst of a recession.

Another key characteristic of the Obama plan is that the bulk of the additional resources is going to the individual States. The State of Maryland, for example – which has a similar population to Scotland – will receive some 2.6 billion extra funding, supporting 66,000 jobs over the next two years. Contrast this with the UK, where Gordon Brown is proposing to cut Scottish public spending, and it becomes clear that in the wake of this summit he must rethink these deeply damaging proposals.

Alex Orr, Bryson Road, Edinburgh