Mind the gap

One firm lays off a couple of hundred, another takes on a couple of hundred. Not long ago a food firm closed with 1,700 jobs lost, and the Grangemouth refinery laid off hundreds.

Employment may be rising overall (your report, 17 July), but private employers – often foreign-owned – still do their own thing, linked to what subsidies taxpayers contribute.

Working folk on the lowest wages have to get taxpayer support too, and the inadequate minimum wage continues to perpetuate this.

Some councils and employers have moved to the “living wage”, currently £7.65 per hour, as their minimum wage. This is all to the good, but the gap between rich and poor, highlighted all the time by the SNP, still remains.

It is long past time the SNP set out in detail its proposals to rectify this. Continuing to hide behind the mantra that Scotland is a wealthy country and thus will do well means little unless the additional benefits reckoned to come from separation are clearly spelled out.

Vague generalities have no substance, and are a lousy guide to making such an important decision.

Joe Darby

Dingwall

Ross-shire