Letter: The bright side of Scottish politics

KENNY Farquharson wants to be depressed on St Andrew’s Day (Insight, 27 November). The sad thing is that only a Scot could be so blinkered and unimaginative.

He is depressed at “the godawful state of Scottish politics”. I presume that he is referring to the so-called Scottish opposition. Can he not accept the bright spots of a Scottish Government with extremely limited powers which is forcing Scotland to the forefront in a renewables revolution against the opinions of the “Scottish” CBI and the Institution of Civil Engineers – two bodies who must take a major responsibility for Scotland’s economic decline in the latter half of the 20th century.

We have maintained the principle of free care for the elderly and a free education which does not stop at 17 but goes on to university. We have frozen the council tax for all until we can replace it with an equitable system of local income tax. We now have a parliament which is modern, easy to approach and easy to interact with (very much unlike Westminster).

Kenny goes on to moan about the anti-sectarianism legislation. I am sure it is not perfect, but unless he wants sectarianism to continue I would ask him what amendments has he proposed for the bill. The important thing is to have some legislative basis that will relegate the worst idiocies of Ibrox and Parkhead to history.

However, I would like to agree with Kenny on one thing. When a referendum is called, it must attempt to record what the Scottish people want, and if a sizeable minority want fiscal autonomy/devo-max then that question must appear on the ballot paper. Ideally the question should be between independence and fiscal autonomy, but no doubt there will be a few antiquated Tory-Labour dinosaurs who want the status quo on the paper as well. Surely it is not beyond the genius of our constitutional experts to devise something along those lines?

George Leslie,

North Glassock, Fenwick