No credit to London for Grangemouth

To state that it was “the Treasury that saved the plant” not only blatantly misrepresents the facts but reveals a sinister lack of objectivity that would seek to deny the general public a fair and balanced understanding of events.

Even those who would consider themselves to have only a rudimentary understanding of corporate financing appreciate that simply providing a loan guarantee, as provided by the UK government, is not the same as providing a loan, as provided by the Scottish Government.

Furthermore, as assessed by Peter Jones (Perspective, 28 October), the First Minister “did play an extremely positive part in resolving the Grangemouth crisis”.

Of course misrepresentation of the success of the First Minister in helping to resolve a potentially highly damaging outcome for the people of Grangemouth and the wider Scottish economy was not the primary goal of Mr Kelly’s article.

That goal was to encourage the elusive Johann Lamont to shed her heavy trade union baggage and back London-driven Labour policies that have now been rejected by most Scottish Labour supporters, in spite of the efforts of Mr Kelly and others.

The dilemma for Mr Kelly is that the more extreme his efforts become to “muddy the waters” while attempting to argue his own very subjective perspective the more likely those same Scottish Labour supporters will come to realise that the expectation of a more equal and fairer society in Scotland within the current constitutional arrangements is simply a mirage.

Stan Grodynski

Longniddry

East Lothian

In his usual weekly anti- Nationalist rant, Michael Kelly seems to be heading off to another planet with his barely believable nonsense.

After going on about the latest statistics he turns to what he calls “the Grangemouth debacle” and tells us that Scotland’s economy depends on its position within the UK. Well, our position within the UK just about knocked Scotland’s GDP down 8 per cent thanks to Comrade Kelly’s Labour Party and their Unite masters.

The Treasury did not save the plant – the Scottish Government could have managed a £150 million guarantee; it is not that much in macro- economic terms.

I do agree with him when he says that Alex Salmond made a “rare gaff” by saying that everyone “pulled together”, but not in the way he means: absent from the battle to save the complex was Mr Kelly’s Labour Party in any manifestation.

He slams Johann Lamont (as if she was Alex Salmond) for not being involved in things. True, but where was the UK’s Ed Balls or Ed Miliband? Ms Lamont takes her orders from London and she is sponsored by the union involved at the plant, Unite.

She kept her head down here, but also with the Falkirk Labour constituency selection carry-on.

Thomas R Burgess

St Catherine’s Square Perth