Readers' Letters: Sarwar should stand up to Starmer for sake of Scotland's OAPs
One has to admire Labour in Scotland’s brass neck. The pledge by the party to bring back winter fuel payments should it win the next Scottish Parliament elections is beyond the bizarre.
Only last month Labour MSPs voted against a Holyrood motion calling on the UK Government to reverse its cuts to the payments, and Scottish Labour MPs at Westminster trooped into the lobbies to support the cut.
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Hide AdI am sure this move has nothing to do with the reaction the party is getting on the doorsteps in advance of three crucial council by-elections, with Labour already suffering recent losses at by-elections in Dundee and Edinburgh.


It has been estimated by the UK Government that an additional 50,000 pensioners will be living in relative poverty next year because of cuts to the Winter Fuel Payment.
As we are hit with plummeting temperatures, Anas Sarwar as Labour leader in Scotland needs to stand up to Prime Minister Keir Starmer now to support our vulnerable pensioners, not potentially wait until 2026.
Alex Orr, Edinburgh
Hypocritical move
Scottish Labour’s decision to reinstate a winter fuel payment if they win the 2026 Holyrood election is abject hypocrisy given it was the UK Labour Government that withdrew the benefit. It is equally hypocritical that the SNP should blame Labour for the policy’s detrimental effects in Scotland as under devolved powers the SNP could have chosen to have kept the payment in the form of their own fuel allowance they were planning. Instead, Finance Secretary Shona Robison stated that her priority was inflation-busting public sector pay increases of around 5 per cent when inflation is running at 2 per cent.
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Hide AdThe latest move by Scottish Labour proves it wants to take an independent stance from its London-based parent. This puts increased pressure on the SNP Government to perform a U-turn and do the right thing by implementing their own means-tested winter fuel allowance. Failure to do so will give Labour a fighting chance of winning SNP and Tory seats in rural Scotland with a large proportion of pensioners. Labour, traditionally strong in the Central Belt and among younger voters, would become a party with mass appeal across demographic groups and geographic areas. A smart move perhaps, but rank hypocrisy nonetheless.
Neil Anderson, Edinburgh
Better together
In my view Scotland should revert to a Labour/Liberal administration at Holyrood following the elections in spring 2026, or alternatively, return to overall control at Westminster. In the global situation there is certainly no place for a cause such as Scottish independence.
In these troubled times it is surely essential within the UK that its economy, defence and international relations remain under the control of the UK Government at Westminster.
The quest for Scottish independence by Swinney, Salmond, Sturgeon and yet again Swinney, et al, has failed. Its place will inevitably appear in Scotland's history books for future generations, such as did the adventures of Wallace and Bruce.
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Hide AdBut surely it is obvious to most folks that Scotland is in a political vacuum at the present time. The so-called Scottish Government is at its lowest ebb; with marked failures in almost every sector, both at Scottish and local authority levels.
The cry for “Scottish Independence” has become slightly jaded as it would appear that the SNP has little confidence left in Scotland's future as an independent country – all down to Westminster, of course!
World events point to uncertain times, and therefore surely the old adage “better together” makes sense, as the UK could well find itself in very dangerous waters.
Robert IG Scott, Ceres, Fife
First-class failure
Noting the news that in the year to April 2024, only a derisory 2 per cent of first-class seats on ScotRail services were taken up, leaving 150,000 seats empty every month, is it not time to question the ability of senior management to effectively manage our rail service?
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Hide AdFor example, Claire Dickie, ScotRail Commercial Director, said that the revenue generated from providing first-class seats is reinvested to deliver wider benefits for all customers.
That, presumably, will include those unfortunate customers who have to endure lack of seating and crammed services right across the network. It would be most informative if Ms Dickie could confirm exactly how much revenue is generated from sales of first-class seats and, more important, how much revenue is lost by allowing 150,000 seats to remain empty each month. Not to mention the overcrowded conditions experienced by long-suffering customers.
It is surely time for Scotland's nationalised railway operator to follow the example of numerous others and ditch, if not all, then certainly the majority of first-class seats on its network, thus freeing up seating for weary standard-class travellers.
David M Steel, South Queensferry, Edinburgh
Spad timing
So the SNP is to make more than a third of its headquarters' staff redundant in what is widely regarded as an urgent cost-cutting exercise.
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Hide AdIt's well-known that they're struggling to attract substantial donations, and declining numbers of members means reduced membership fees. Fewer back-office staff will negatively impact the party's ability to get its message out there, as they still desperately try to convince us that a UK break-up would be just super for us.
So what does the top brass do? They recruit long-term nationalist politico Marco Biagi as John Swinney’s 16th spin doctor to advise him “on political positioning and messaging”. And in case anyone didn't realise it, us taxpayers pay spin-doctors' salaries, not the SNP.
Martin Redfern, Melrose, Roxburghshire
Be vigilant
The ongoing debate about property taxation in the UK reveals a troubling lack of vision from some quarters. Maintaining high levels of LBTT and other property-related taxes is a recipe for economic stagnation. These taxes act as a brake on the housing market, discouraging transactions and reducing mobility.
This not only affects individual homeowners but also has wider economic implications, limiting job market flexibility and economic growth.
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Hide AdWe should instead reduce the tax burden on property transactions, encouraging a more dynamic and efficient housing market. As the great Scottish philosopher David Hume said, “It is seldom that liberty of any kind is lost all at once.”
We must be vigilant against creeping taxation that erodes our economic freedoms.
Alastair Majury, Dunblane, Stirling
Positive tale
Amid all the stories in yesterday’s edition of The Scotsman featuring the Trump family's tortuous relationship with Scotland and the dangerous sabre rattling over the escalating war in Ukraine, it was refreshing and inspirational to read Glenn Campbell's “Me and my brain tumour”. In the TV journalist’s own words, as someone who has made a career of telling other people's stories, it is time to tell his own.
As he says, given the diagnosis and prognosis, his story is a remarkably positive one, recounting his many aspirations, despite the sometimes severe setbacks on the way, including severe epileptic fits.
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Hide AdHis ambition is to climb all 282 Munros by 2028, having managed nine already, and to celebrate his 50th birthday. Who's to say he won't achieve both?
One major part of the article is the role played by the NHS and its amazing staff. It's a timely reminder, when the headlines are all too often about funding and shortages, that the story of our NHS and us is such a positive one for us all.
Ian Petrie, Edinburgh
COP shop?
I would like to add to Alexander McKay's letter on COP 29 (20 November) by drawing attention to something that was mentioned at a parliamentary Defence Committee hearing last year.
A high-ranking member of the UK armed forces was boasting about how he'd attended a previous COP and an official from a Gulf state had come up to him and questioned him about the possibility of buying British fighter jets. This is probably still viewable on social media. Are these COPs just giant networking events?
Geoff Moore, Alness, Highland
Oh blow
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Hide AdNet Zero Watch has just published alarming data released by the Low Carbon Contracts Company. Those of a nervous disposition should look away now. The Beatrice Offshore Wind Farm has become the fourth wind farm to have received more than £1 billion in subsidy payments in just its seventh year of operation. The other wind farms which have received more than £1bn in subsidy are Walney Extension £1.7bn, Hornsea One £1.6bn and Dudgeon £1.2bn. There is lots more in the pipeline. This Contract for Difference is a dripping roast for the wind industry but an albatross around UK electricity consumers' necks.
Whatever happened to the monotonously frequent promises of abundant, reliable and cheap wind electricity for our homes, businesses and industry to drive our UK economy?
It looks like the answer, my friend, is blowin' in the wind.
Clark Cross, Linlithgow, West Lothian
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