Letter: Why Scots bases?

For months we in Moray have been campaigning against the threat to close both RAF bases here. Now the possibility has been raised that Leuchars might be sacrificed instead of Lossiemouth (your report, 22 November). Why should either go?

MoD spokesman Nick Manning said at the weekend that the defence review had decided that Kinloss and two other RAF bases across the UK should close. If three bases have to close over the whole of the UK, why should two of them be in Scotland?

Closing two Scottish bases would leave just one to protect the northern approaches. Scotland has just over one third of the land area of the whole UK, and much more than half of the sea area.

We have oil, gas, fishing, transport and increasing renewable energy to protect, and smuggling of people, arms, drugs etc to control.

There is no defence justification for closing any of the Scottish bases. If three must go for cost reasons, why not three out of the much larger number in England?

John Smart

Kinneddar Street

Lossiemouth, Moray