Readers' Letters: Alex Salmond achieved much and his dream won't die

The unexpected death of former first minister Alex Salmond continues to dominate The Scotsman’s postbag.

Yet another giant of the Independence movement passes before the dream is fulfilled.

Condolences to Moira Salmond and all the family at such a sad time. A sad time, not just for the Independence movement, but also for Scotland. My memories of Alex Salmond go back some 50 years, seeing a young committed Scottish Nationalist take to the rostrum and fire up the Independence movement. Inspiring nationalists to take to the streets and challenge voters, something he never shied away from himself.

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And what about all the achievements of the governments he led? No tax on the sick in Scotland with the abolition of prescription charges in 2011; no tuition fees for our students at university; committed Scotland to go on the road of renewables; and securing a government with an overall majority at Holyrood, something that was deemed to be impossible under the additional members system.

Alex Salmond was the man who won Scotland an Independence poll, notes reader (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)Alex Salmond was the man who won Scotland an Independence poll, notes reader (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)
Alex Salmond was the man who won Scotland an Independence poll, notes reader (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

We must also give Mr Salmond credit for achieving the 2014 referendum. I feel that, like many of us, Mr Salmond never quite got over the disappointment of the result. Alex Salmond did for the Independence movement what Jimmy Reid did for the Trade Union movement, took it to a whole new level, a level that got the public listening and a level that brought the public with them. In ending, I must quote Mr Salmond and attribute the words to the Independence movement going forward: “The dream will never die.”

Catriona C Clark, Banknock, Falkirk

Titanic doubt

I think even the late Alex Salmond, not best known for his reserve or lack of self-admiration, would have been embarrassed at some of the descriptions he has received since his death. “A large fish in a small political pond” would have perhaps described him better. At least he believed, really did believe, a belief I am certain none of those who followed him shared.

Alexander McKay, Edinburgh

A choice to ‘sleep’

It is said that Bing Crosby was once asked how he would like to die. Keen golfer Bing replied that he'd like to drive a ball right down the middle of the fairway and then collapse. I don't think he got his wish. Alex Salmond's death has shocked us all by its suddenness. He had just given a rousing speech to a conference in Northern Macedonia, sat down to lunch and suffered a fatal heart attack, so sudden that he didn't suffer.

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We all have to die. We don't have a choice, but we should have a choice as to how and when we die. I agree with Christine Jardine (Perspective, 14 October) when she says palliative care is not always enough and there should be the choice of assisted dying. At a time when assisted living is enabled by medication, prolonging human life, surely that option should be available.

Ian Petrie, Edinburgh

Nothing new

It must be terrifying living in the world inhabited by Joyce McMillan (Perspective, 11 October). She clearly believes the alarmist spin about “climate change” and seems to think that those who have not been taken in by this strand of thinking deny the reality of that fact.

The thing which may be news to her and those who subscribe to the theory that “we're all doomed”, as Private Fraser used to say on Dad’s Army, is that there always has been climate change. It is nothing new. When “global warming” became a bit of a problem because the global temperature didn't play ball and continue to warm at the end of the Nineties a new name simply had to be found and, what do you know, we got “climate change”. Deny that, you sceptics, the alarmists challenged. Well, that's a bit difficult, in fact. It's like denying that water is wet.

The problem comes with the actual facts of the matter being altered in order to meet the requirements of the alarmists. You know, like altering charts so that the Medieval Warming Period vanishes in your “hockey-stick chart” to show global temperature going off like a nuclear missile in the late 20th century. I would suggest Ms McMillan and her fellow travellers read up about the University of East Anglia “Climategate” scandal, which was very rapidly disappeared by “the Blob”, and see how we are all being manipulated.

Peter Hopkins, Edinburgh

Serious energy

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There were some profound observations by Peter Hopkins on the Great Green Electricity Swindle (Letters, 11 October).The West handicaps itself by closing down fossil-fuelled power stations while constructing inefficient, brutally ugly wind turbines and pylons everywhere, desecrating spectacular landscapes and harming sensitive ecosystems.

If we’re really serious about reducing carbon emissions (as well as keeping the lights on) we had better start building lots more nuclear reactors – fast. Meanwhile, certain other powers laugh up their sleeves at us as they merrily pursue their oil, coal and gas-fired ambitions for economic growth and – in Russia and China’s case – territorial expansion.

Mr Hopkins points out that “the only way of achieving net zero is to stop doing anything productive. The result will be that China makes everything and it is well on the way to doing that.” A sobering thought indeed. He adds that “a group of Marxists has very effectively undermined thinking in the west.” These people would doubtless welcome global domination by Beijing, even though their comrades in the Chinese Communist Party wisely dumped Chairman Mao’s economic theories decades ago.

Time to stop pandering to the unemployable Greta Thunbergs, Patrick Harvies and Lorna Slaters of this world and start hedging our energy security bets before it’s too late.

Martin O’Gorman, Edinburgh

Energy optimism

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With high energy prices rising further this winter, Scottish households, pensioners in particular, must question whether the cost of energy transition is worth the proverbial candle. Significant economic benefits, however, are emerging upstream at source: major new investments in grid-storage infrastructure vital to the transition to net zero are being undertaken by renewable energy giants such as Norway’s Statkraft. Attracted by a favourable regulatory environment and the availability of suitable sites with connection to the National Grid. Statkraft is currently undertaking several hydro projects in Scotland with an investment potential of at least £2 billion.

Scottish entrepreneurship has played a vital facilitating role. Speculative investments by far-sighted developers such as Hamilton-based Intelligent Land Investments (ILI) Group have paved the way via strategic site acquisition and preparation for storage technologies (eg Pumped Storage Hydro & Lithium-Ion Batteries). This activity has been underway for around ten years – often well in advance of need.

While offering the prospect of high returns, the profile of these investments is inherently very high risk – indeed, high risk “in extremis”. With only nine people employed at its HQ, the ILI Group is a rare example of international business giants standing on the very able shoulders of a local small micro business (ie employing fewer than ten people), thereby helping the green economy to develop further and faster, and to confirm Scotland’s place as an attractive investment hub for renewables. While the new structure for “Zonal” pricing proposed by government may help, the expected price benefits from renewables are not going to show up in household energy bills any time soon. For hard-pressed consumers the pain of energy prices continues!

Ewen Peters, Newton Mearns

What’s the point?

Just lately our walk outings have centred on the lowland areas of Scotland to reduce our carbon emissions through car travel. We have changed the high rugged hills of the north for the more gentle rolling hills around Leadhills, Wanlockhead.

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The immediate surroundings of these villages are still scarred by their industrial past of lead mining in particular, but as nature gradually reclaims the extraction scars and buildings they become less intrusive but a fascinating reminder of industrial heritage of past days. On the tops of these hills there are still large vistas to enjoy. To the east the large bulk of Tinto and to the south, vast arrays of wind turbines fill the view both immediate and in the distance.

While pondering the new industrialisation of Scotland with huge wind turbines it occurs that while previous centres of industry gathered people, housing and employment, these turbines do absolutely nothing for the people of Scotland. The sad fact is they produce marginal employment, do little in the way of creating wealth for the country, actually penalise its people and job-creating businesses through the almost extortionate cost of power. Given all this, one has to wonder why the present government is hellbent on trebling wind power generation capacity.

As a country that produces approximately 1 per cent of the global output of carbon one has to ask what is it that drives this almost manic drive of politicians toward the magic goal of zero carbon. Can it be that because we now have this target enshrined in law, coupled with lawyers in places of power, it has become an unstoppable movement ie it’s the law therefore we have to obey? Very sad, really.

T Lewis, Coylton, Ayrshire

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