Election sums

Ian Lewis’ criticism of Derrick McClure’s arithmetic regarding the voting at the last Scottish Parliament election has a whiff of desperation about it (Letters, 1 June). However, let’s take it at face value.

Mr Lewis says that 1.7 million people voted for the SNP and 2.2 million voted for the other parties combined.

That means that 43.59 per cent of those who voted, chose to support the SNP and the combined support of all the other parties garnered 66.41 per cent. Thus the SNP was able to pull off the result that was not supposed to be feasible under proportional representation as ­envisioned by the Constitutional ­Convention.

I don’t remember how many other parties participated in the election. Perhaps Mr Lewis would like to inform us?

Douglas Turner

Derby Street

Edinburgh