Readers Letters: Labour has fast lost any credibility it had after Starmer's migration speech

In less than a year after their landslide victory, Labour has fast lost any credibility it had, even among its increasingly restless and rapidly more disgruntled back benchers. A new nadir was surely reached in Keir Starmer’s infamous migration speech on Monday, with its far right echoes, followed by the astonishing rebuff in Albania.

Nigel Farage and Reform UK are filling a vacuum at the top, understandably in England as a protest vote, but scarily and unnecessarily, in Scotland too. Farage and his billionaire cronies are very much an English Nationalist Party, hopefully with no real leverage in Scotland.

The only person to come out of all this with any real credit is John Swinney, under whose steady and effective leadership, the SNP are building towards a formidable and credible alternative, as a protest vote, and far more, against the increasingly far right approach, which may be acceptable in Westminster, but has no place in Holyrood.

Ian Petrie, Edinburgh

Price worth paying

Yesterday’s announcement raises the spectre- not denied by the Scottish Government- that the two Calmac ferries built by the state-owned Ferguson shipyard- will end up costing £460 million.

The comparison is made with the identical cost of the massive liner, the Queen Mary II. But even more relevant is the historic cost of the Skye Bridge, built under the private finance initiative.

The owners who took much of the risk were criticised by left wing commentators at the time. Yet we can see that the £33m of tolls plus the £28m paid to buy up the contract was a bargain.

Not only is crossing to Skye now free (unlike Calmac’s ferries), but the vessels used before for the route and then released-the MV Loch Fyne and MV Loch Dunvegan, are still in use, a bonus.

Asking the State sector to undertake construction risk means the taxpayer forks out for a political project, with poor control of costs, timings and specifications. We begrudge the profits of the private sector, yet it more often delivers the goods: at a price worth paying!

Peter Smaill, Borthwick, Midlothian

Keeping lights on

The ‘Between the lines’ article on off-shore wind failed to address the problem that electricity (28p/unit) is too expensive compared to that of gas (6.8p/unit). That is why Scot’s choose gas for 80 per cent of their energy needs and only 17 per cent from green energy. Any Nat5 Pupil studying economics could have informed Jeremy Grant, wind output is not only too dear but, under dunkelflaute weather conditions, it fails to deliver a single unit of energy!

That means further cost to the consumer to pay for a 100 per cent back-up system that will keep the lights on in Scotland. It is called gas turbine units based in England since John Swinney refuses to grant planning permission for a 900MW gas fired plant at Peterhead.

Little wonder the SNP had to scrap the £130 billion project to decarbonise Scottish homes as it would have led to penury as few flat owners could afford the £160,000 price tag for fitting a heat pump.

Scots should take note that, if Ed Miliband suceeds in achieving 90 per cent green Generating in the UK by 2030, just what will keep the lights on when the wind fails to blow?

Ian Moir, Dumfries & Galloway

Trans fear

As a woman, I find the current arguments that pit ‘ordinary’ women against trans-folk abhorrent and disingenuous. These trans-exclusionary women campaigners certainly do not speak for me or most women I know.

These women are afraid of trans women in ‘their space’. They hold the fundamental belief that trans women (born male) are no different to men, ergo ‘trans women must be excluded - like other men - because men are a danger to women’.

The apparent simplicity of the argument masks its assumptions.

The position depends on a belief in ‘biological determinism’ that was rejected by feminists and society at large years ago. No-one seriously doubts that the way we grow up and the choices we come to make affect our behaviour and influence the incidence and nature of violent and sexual offending. Not all men are violent, and violent men can change. And gay men and lesbians show a different pattern of offending than straight men and women. So either biology is not so deterministic after all, or gender/sexual orientation roles, choices and socialisation do make a difference.

It is obvious that trans women are very different from other men: Despite being born male, they have made the enormously difficult step to transition, and have vehemently rejected their birth sex. Like women, they are more likely to be victims of aggressive men than perpetrators.

The current paucity of data about violence and sexual assault by trans women onto (cis) women, has created an information vacuum in which a fear of trans folk can echo. It is the trans-excluding folks “own” beliefs (that trans women are no different to other men) that make them afraid. And it is treating these beliefs as ‘self evident’ and therefore not in need of examination that prevents any reasonable discussion.

Marie G, Edinburgh

Papal power

The Papacy was in the news recently with the departure of Pope Francis, arguably the world’s number one Chief Executive Officer. He ran an organisation with 1.4 billion people in it but got paid only around £25,000 a month, most of which he gave to charity. Granted, he got to stay in a very nice house and it’s a job for life (literally), and at the end of it he gets to stay in an even nicer house, a mansion even, with a responsible landlord in a quiet, well maintained neighbourhood. Would that other CEOs might take a leaf out of his book.

We’ve been hearing about another CEO in the news last week. Serious questions are being asked of Thames Water’s boss Chris Weston about whether or not Thames Water is a failing company following his pleas for leniency regarding fines and penalties as the company faces significant financial difficulties. Financial difficulties? I find that hard to believe when I see that Weston is on a £2 million plus package per annum and the shareholders seem happy. Surely the company is thriving, or am I missing something?

Likewise the Highland Council. We in the north frequently hear how short of money it is for services because the bad people in Westminster won’t give our heroic SNP Scottish Government enough to give to Inverness. But, you know, it must be doing well enough to be able to pay the CEO £184,000 a year, three assistant CEOs £129,279 each a year, and 14 chief officers £109,285 a year, a total of more than £2.1m a year, or am I missing something else? I wonder how many home carers could be employed for even half of that, or pupil support assistants? We might even get a pot hole or two filled.

Depressingly, I’ve no doubt the story is similar throughout all of Scotland’s Local Authorities, but it was only Highland Council that in July 2024 was cited as being the worst performing council area in mainland Scotland according to a Sunday Times analysis.

Nice work if you can get it?

Ian McElroy, Thurso

Water scarcity

The Scotsman is to be lauded for highlighting the issue of water scarcity faced by Scotland. Water scarcity is a global challenge exacerbated by dwindling rainfall, rising temperatures and the perilous impacts of climate change. There are countries like Jordan which is the second most water scarce country in the world and like Bangladesh which despite its water resources are faced with environmental risks such as the monsoon season and flooding that make it susceptible for water shortages. Such global issues are transcendental in nature and therefore they require holistic solutions, global collaborations and shared commitment to sustainability for all stakeholders involved.

Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob, London

Stop stalling

The Scottish government is still dragging its feet in relation to implementing fully the common sense decision of the Supreme Court over women's safe spaces. The SNP and Greens are trying to be politically correct for a small minority which is their "zeitgeist" position. There is a more timeless position however, that of biological correctness which has lasted aeons. Does the Scottish government really think its stance on this matter will stand the test of time, even if it is only until the Holyrood election of 2026 when the women of Scotland will get a chance to have their say?

Gerald Edwards, Glasgow

Pulling teeth

Poor old Anas Sarwar. Scottish Labour came third in last Thursday's Clydebank Waterfront by-election behind the SNP and Reform.

With the Scottish Parliament Hamilton by-election just three weeks away I wonder if he's having flashbacks to his former career as a dentist.

For example he must be “bracing” himself for more bad news, attracting votes is like “pulling teeth” these days and actually winning a seat seems a 'bridge" too far; he just can’t seem to make an “impression” on an electorate that isn’t exactly “enamelled”, sorry, enamoured of his party I bet he'd give his “eye teeth” for some new policies and good news from down south. What's going on there must 'denture" confidence Mr Sarwar.

Allan Sutherland, Stonehaven

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