Letters: Don’t hound dogs off the beach, put them on a lead

I live just minutes from the beach, and for the past 14 years frequented it with my two dogs who sadly are no longer here, but it has always been spoiled by certain individuals with out- of-control dogs off leads and running riot.

At certain times of the day side-loading vans park up with up to ten or more dogs. These are so-called professional dog walkers, and I can see why it would be intimidating for people with kids or people out looking for a quiet peaceful walk.

The problem will not be solved by having certain parts of the beach banned to dogs.

The solution is easy, all dogs should be on leads. This would eradicate out-of-control dogs being able to run up to children and other people who are considerate and have their dogs on the lead.

Emma Anderson,

Portobello , Edinburgh

Ring-fence funds for the council

The letter by Katie Reid  (January 24) certainly sums up this present administration pretty well.

The ability to provide the basic services we are paying for is way beyond the administration’s ability, yet it manages to organise festivals, employ endless consultants, build trams no-one wanted, and for what reason? Certainly not for the benefit of the public.

The endless waste of public money has gone on for years in this city and will continue unless something is done at Government level.

What would go a long way to stop this abuse of public money would be the Government passing legislation whereby the money the council gets from both general taxation and the council tax, be ring-fenced only to be used on providing the basic services this council finds so hard to provide. How it finds the money for its additional activities is, frankly, its own problem.

If any council cannot clean the streets, empty the bins, repair the roads and pavements and have a proper maintenance system in place, then it should not be allowed to waste our money on any of its more grandiose ideas.

David Black, Kenmure Avenue, Edinburgh

Road now like a patchwork quilt

In October and November a large section of Gorgie Road was closed, to allow for  resurfacing.

After almost two weeks the road was fully reopened, and looking brand new!

However, in the past few weeks the pristine road has been dug up three times! The road now looks like a patchwork quilt.

Surely any work should have been carried out when the road was being resurfaced, not weeks after.

Alun Thomas, Sinclair Close, Edinburgh

Lords reward for Scots Tory failure

The Conservative Party at Westminster led the verbal charge against the overpaid bankers and financiers, failed businessmen and senior civil servants, trumpeting that failure must not be rewarded (although they did damn all about it once they were in power).

So why are they working on Annabel Goldie’s elevation to the House of Lords?

How can they justify a promotion and lifetime’s reward for someone who oversaw the extinction of the Tories in  Scotland?

One rule for them, I suppose, and another for the rest of us.

David Fiddimore, Nether Craigwell, Calton Road, Edinburgh

Why not ban the pedestrians too?

As Spokes, the apologists for pedal cyclists, are seeking to ban all traffic from Princes Street (News, January 28) apart from trams and their accursed velocipedes, I’m surprised that they aren’t also asking Edinburgh City Council to ban trams in view of that curious fatal mutual attraction between bicycle wheel and tram track which seems to lead to nothing but spills, thrills and insurance claims.

Bearing in mind how often I see narrow misses between irresponsible pedestrians and the furiously riding generally unilluminated pedalists represented by Spokes, perhaps pedestrians should be banned as well.

After all, if it saves one  cyclist . . .

John Eoin Douglas, Spey Terrace, Edinburgh