Empty promise?

The strongest Better Together argument from outside Scotland should come from Prime Minister David Cameron. Instead, he offers extended powers for the Scottish Government, which he may never be able to implement (your report, 16 May). First, that would require the Tories to be re-elected with an overall majority; second, he would need to remain as Prime Minister. Neither is likely, in my opinion.

He compounds this error by failing to define these “enhancements” to Scottish government, yet he expects Scots to abandon positive self-determination in return for this nebulous – and, frankly, patronising – nonsense.

In truth, he should be asking us what we are prepared to accept as absolute minimum conditions for agreeing to stay in the Union – that mutually fruitful 300-year-old co-operation that has brought us to the reality of burgeoning foodbanks and rampant social inequality.

I suspect he has deliberately left his “peace offering” until too near the actual referendum to allow investigation of suitable “concessions” for retaining the status quo. But one change he could propose at any time would be relocation of the office of Secretary of State for Scotland to the Scottish Government. That would remove the lingering suspicion that Westminster still regards Scotland as some outlying dependency.

Robert Dow

Ormiston Road

Tranent, East Lothian