Letters: Sad to see mounted police saddle up and head west

For the past 60 years that I can recall, the mounted police in Edinburgh have been more than capable of escorting and policing state visits, royal visits and many football and rugby matches, without the help of Strathclyde Police.

The senior officers in Lothian and Borders Police seemed to act with undue haste in transferring the mounted section to Strathclyde.

No doubt this has been to the pleasure of that force.

No longer will the people of Edinburgh see the “Mounties” patrolling the streets on a daily basis.

The three months trial period seems to have been a window dressing exercise.

At a meeting with Deputy Chief Constable Steve Allen in April this year, I expressed the above observations and stated I felt this move would come to pass.

Unfortunately I have been proved correct.

Tom Bisset, former mounted police sergeant, Craigentinny Road, Edinburgh

Fix roads before considering bikes

Before anyone in their right mind takes to the bicycle (Capital looks to go Dutch, News, November 14), the roads have to be in a fit state.

At the moment Edinburgh’s roads are atrocious! In a car it is like driving a battle wagon and I cannot imagine how bad it would be on a bike trying to dodge all the potholes and collapsed drains.

Why can’t the council embark on a programme to sort all the major roads in Edinburgh? Not only would it improve journeys, it would enhance the look of the city.

All these patchwork repair jobs and collapsed drains make the place look dirty, untidy and run-down. It seems OK to spend millions on a tram while the roads are in a state of disrepair – you just have to drive along Broomhouse Drive alongside the multimillion pound tram track to see the contrast. Where is the logic?

M Quade, Fairmilehead

Answers from the SNP hard to find

THE interrogation given by the committee of Westminster MPs to Amazon, Starbucks and Google over non-payment of corporation tax was a joy to watch.

It is sad to reflect no Scottish Parliament committee has the guts to do the same over the decision by the First Minister to give Amazon £10 million of Scottish taxpayers’ money.

Why on earth do we give taxpayers’ money to a company that doesn’t then pay corporation tax? Do MSPs not want to know the answer to that question, because I do.

In addition, do all of the jobs Amazon brings pay the living wage, or do we the taxpayers further subsidise the firm with tax credits because it pays its staff so little?

Sadly the SNP now has a majority on every committee and will never ask difficult decisions of the SNP government – as we have now witnessed over the decision by the SNP-led committee on education over the college row.

The main question I would like the committees to ask is, why is the main power the First Minister wants an independent Scotland to have, the power to cut the corporation tax of Amazon, Starbucks or Scottish Southern Energy that announced half-yearly profits of £400m?

With the SNP it seems there are more questions than answers.

Dave Cochrane, Spottiswoode Street, Edinburgh

Give community school it needs

I ATTENDED the first Castlebrae school closure consultation meeting on Tuesday where very strong feelings and the determination of the local community to fight to keep a high school for Craigmillar were expressed.

For very many years a new high school has rightly been the centre piece of the regeneration programme for Craigmillar – a new school to bring new families into the area.

Now there are serious doubts whether a new school will ever be built here. And were the current one to close, would it be fair to send Castlebrae young people to Portobello High School, whose the future is so very uncertain at present?

Green councillors voted against the consultation on closure. Craigmillar needs and deserves its community high school and the city must not let this community down.

Cllr Melanie Main, Greens education spokesperson