Letter: Creative thinking

I have always been a fan of the old adage, "plan for the worst, hope for the best", but I am increasingly concerned that there is no plan (at least one that goes beyond a political party's electoral term). What we're facing has long-lasting consequences and needs a long-term vision (your report, 17 February).

Ringfencing NHS expenditure while slashing education spending is a classic example of short termism and something that will have drastic long-term consequences. Where will our scientists, inventors, engineers and entrepreneurs come from?

Culturally, we need to confront what it means to be successful. Doctors, lawyers and accountants are all worthwhile and essential professions but, by and large, they don't equate to a prosperous society. It's a prosperous society that affords them and not the other way round.

How can it be right that some of our brightest people are sitting in rooms devising complex financial products that don't create any real wealth or lasting benefit for society? You can't expect them to work for free, so how do we get them aligned to a growth vision that delivers prosperity, opportunity and greater security?

I am not saying we should ditch our financial services - far from it. We need them, probably more than ever, but to rely on them so heavily is folly. When will we face up to our love affair with debt and how can this be done without penalising the poorest in society, who, like it or not, will bear the brunt of rising borrowing costs as the UK adjusts to having less, and more costly, money in its financial system?

As Scottish elections loom, now is not the time for political opportunism but courage and vision. Where is it?

Bryan Crawford

Millbrae

Stirling