True Nirvana

The words “in their opinion” between the words “if” and “300 years in the Union has rendered an inherently wealthy country an economic basket case” were omitted from my original letter which perhaps caused John Scarlett (Letters, 23 September) to be misled as to my personal opinion.

Certainly it is correct to deduce that I, like many as evidenced by the general election result and recent polls, believe that the Scottish Government has done a remarkable job given the economic circumstances it has faced due to devastating Westminster mismanagement of the UK’s finances.

However, I do not accept, I suspect unlike Mr Scarlett, that the future economic position of an “autonomous” Scotland would in reality be as “poor” as subjectively indicated by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, with estimates based on Office for Budget Responsibility figures constructed under the direction of George Osborne.

That said, it still takes a rather imaginative leap to argue that the success that the Scottish 
Government has achieved to date in combating the effects of “Westminster austerity” in Scotland is an endorsement of our current constitutional arrangements.

Perhaps such a seemingly perverse perspective provides further evidence that “Nirvana” only exists in the minds of those who see no evidence for fundamental change in our society in spite of the pain and distress that surrounds them.

Stan Grodynski

Longniddry

East Lothian