Election highlights our loss of dignity

I have never thought of Bill Jamieson as a Nationalist, but the sentiments he expresses in "Time for SNP to rise now and be a proper party again" (Opinion, 14 May) will certainly strike a chord with Nationalists of my generation and persuasion, who have always seen independence for Scotland as a return of the dignity and self-confidence that any self-respecting nation takes for granted.

Unfortunately, the modern SNP lost sight of those attributes a long time ago under its leadership of the past 20 years. The SNP may be culpable of losing sight of its raison d'etre and betraying the long-term interests of Scots, but the main Unionist parties in Scotland are the real culprits when it comes to destroying the self-respect of the Scottish people.

There is not an MP, MSP or local government councillor who belongs to New Labour, the Conservatives or the Liberal Democrats in Scotland who does not share the blame for undermining the self- confidence of Scots. All three major parties should hang their heads in shame for the way in which they have portrayed the Scottish people as a collection of ne'er-do-well subsidy junkies, with neither the ability nor the desire to rise above the level of dependency to which the Westminster government has consigned them.

It would make no difference if the Tories or the Lib Dems did not hold a single seat in Scotland; whichever party forms the government in Westminster – put there by the votes of the English electorate – is also the rightful government in Scotland because that is the price we pay for being a part of the UK.

The sooner Scots are made to face up to the consequences of their peculiar voting habits and the SNP stops whingeing about the Tories having no mandate, then the sooner Scotland as a nation will get the government it actually votes for.

JIM FAIRLIE

Heathcote Road

Crieff, Perthsire

Bill Jamieson gives us an "accurate and truthful" (sic) interpretation of the Scottish vote in the recent General Election.

Firstly, it is disingenuous to assume that the Liberal Democrat vote of 465,471 was an anti-SNP vote or was in favour of a Conservative- Liberal Democrat coalition. To say so is the political equivalent of fantasy football.

Secondly, this was a "general" election. People voted for multifarious reasons: anti-Brown, pro-Cameron, pro-the sitting MP, anti-the sitting MP, disgust at the expenses scandal, etc.

It is in the interests of commentators to pretend that elections are always fought on single issues; this is insulting to readers.

Unfortunately, we appear to have ended up with a coalition which will continue with the neo-liberal nonsense that has brought the western world to its knees and which will hasten the destruction of the environment with its insatiable greed for limitless economic growth in a world of limited resources.

Alex Salmond is right and Bill Jamieson, with his manipulated statistics, is wrong: this coalition's mandate does not stand in Scotland.

DAVID MILLAR

Tytler Gardens

Edinburgh

Bill Jamieson is correct in saying that the SNP is "blinded" when it comes to economic policy.

This is because ultimately with nationalism, politics always triumphs over economics.

There is a nationalist ideal of autarchy or economic self-sufficiency, which erroneously leads to believing the Scottish economy is immune from global market forces.

As countries found in the Asian crisis and like Greece in the present one, even with independence there is no such thing as economic sovereignty.

ELLIS THORPE

Old Chapel Walk

Inverurie, Aberdeenshire