Letter: Pressing matters

It's a matter of concern because any democracy needs a strong opposition. It will take at least six months for the new leaders to be elected and publicised to the wider Scottish public. In the meantime, the majority SNP government can surely put through all the measures it was prevented from doing when it had minority status.

More than that, it might be able to have constructive talks with Westminster about the best way to hold the referendum on independence. A practical agreement could help settle the matter for generations.

In the meantime, the challenge for the opposition parties is clear. Their new leaders must be seen to be in control of their parties' destinies. Annabel Goldie of the Conservatives was the star performer in an otherwise pedestrian election campaign. But she was hampered by simply being the leader of her group of MSPs, rather than in overall control of strategy. Iain Gray was too often seen as simply the spokesman of Labour's London HQ, leading a disorientated group of Holyrood MSPs.

The Scottish Liberal Democrats' Tavish Scott did not seem to know how to handle the burden of the coalition agreement.

Autonomy should be watchword for the new opposition leaders, because the alternative is a long, long time in the political wilderness.

Bob Taylor

Shiel Court

Glenrothes

As the heads roll for the opposition leaders and they send their English masters north to investigate, do they really not understand why they lost and will continue to do so?

The only party to have the boss in the country is the SNP; we don't vote for absentees. Until there is a true Scottish Labour Party, Conservative Party or Liberal Democrat Party which actually has Scotland's interests at heart, they will always be mistrusted. At the moment there is only one party truly interested in the Scots. It really doesn't need much investigating.

Iain Campbell

Logiealmond

Perthshire