Letters: Tax hypocrisy

John Swinney should have not apologised for his ignoring the variable tax powers and refusal to pay £7 million to the Inland Revenue as an "administration" fee (your report, 26 November).

The Holyrood opposition parties issuing hysterical cries of injustice are hypocritical and, coincidentally, happen at the same time as the announcement by Michael Moore of more fiscal powers to raise revenue per the Scotland Bill.

Assuming the Conservatives are against tax rises as historical policy and that the Lib Dems are their wee pals, the possibility of Labour raising tax, if successful in the 2011 elections, seems inevitable and will be addedto council tax rises.

As all of this is plain electioneering, I would be pleased to hear from Iain Gray, and his cabinet-in-waiting, their master plan for our future if they gain power, but I fear that this will not happen until after the election, in the same manner as the UK coalition government.

Archie Finlayson

Montgomery Road

Kinross

As an SNP list candidate in next year's election, Alex Orr must toe the party line. However, his letter (26 November) would suggest that even he was taken aback at the apologies from his leaders over the Tartan Tax fiasco.

Can a potential list MSP, as Mr Orr is, really be unaware that the anger of the non-nationalist MSPs in Holyrood had nothing whatsoever to do with whether or not or the option to tax was worthwhile retaining and everything to do with the SNP concealing what they had done or failed to do?

Or implying that they had considered and turned down the option when the option did not exist? That was the crux of the matter. In the same way as the followers of the old communist regimes in the USSR had to reverse opinions almost overnight, so it must be to an SNP activist these days.

Alexander McKay

New Cut Rigg

Edinburgh