Readers' Letters: It’s wrong to let Catholic schools discriminate

All Scottish schools must be equitable when it comes to taking on staff, says reader (Picture: Adobe)

Is there an injustice built into the education system in Scotland? Do Catholic teachers enjoy better access to teaching posts than non-Catholic teachers?

There does seem to be an unfair imbalance in so far as Catholic teachers have open access to both the denominational (Catholic) sector and the non-denominational sector, where the Equality Act ensures equal access. Non-Catholic teachers have open access to only one sector, the non-denominational, since there is a special opt-out in the Equality Act which allows the Catholic Church to discriminate in favour of Catholics and against non-Catholics.

Both sectors are funded from the public purse and so should be equally accountable. Last year the Assembly in Northern Ireland voted to remove the opt-out in order to ensure full equality of opportunity across the two sectors. Therefore it is an open question whether Scotland should also remove the equivalent provision here.

Humanist Society Scotland (HSS) is trying to establish how much discrimination against non-Catholics is being encountered in the Catholic sector. HSS provides thousands of non-religious people with wedding and funeral services all across Scotland each year, but it also exists to defend the rights of non-religious people and ensure that traditional religious privileges do not extend so far that the non-religious suffer injustice.

Les Reid, Edinburgh

Good energy

There was rejoicing in Scotland at the announcement that Rosebank oil field has got the go-ahead to start development, which is great news for Scotland and the Scottish economy but, more importantly, for the North Sea workers. This decision is an important one that will give the oil/gas companies confidence in investing in the North Sea for the future and securing employment for thousands of offshore workers and economic security for there families.

Dennis Forbes Grattan, Bucksburn, Aberdeen

Don’t rejoin, rejoice

There are two things that stand out in Peter Glissov’s letter on independence (24 September).

Firstly, all the papers he seems to have read are pro-independence and give a naturally well-formed idea of how easy it will be. Has he read any other papers written by experts too (of which there are an abundance) that state that, in Peter's own words, independence will be an unmitigated disaster for Scotland?

Then he parrots the old remainer line that Brexit is an unmitigated disaster for Britain. Has he not read all the latest reports about Germany – the powerhouse of Europe – now being in recession, while Britain is not? Has he read about the euro being propped up again by the ECB? Has he not read about our unprecedented number of trade deals with other countries whose GDP outshines the EU by magnitudes?

The only duping with superficial slogans, half-truths and lies was done by the anti-Brexit people and is still being done now by the rejoiners – a small minority these days and getting smaller. Only 3,000 people turned up to a rejoiner march in London last Saturday – and a third of them were children dragged along by their parents!

Then we have to put up with the fact that Scotland voted not to join the EU. No, nor did London and, for all I know, Rutland. But the nationwide vote was in favour of leaving, regardless of the antis.

Mike Covington (an ex-pat Scot), Paphos, Cyprus

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