Power grab is just the start

Sir, – The level of acrimony and division following the unprecedented powergrab by the Conservatives at Westminster points to a fundamental and irreparable breakdown of the United Kingdom.

The ripping up of the devolution settlement is among the most ignominious events in the history of the Scottish Parliament.

No amount of Tory spin can dispel the nauseating stink that pervades every aspect of this decision. Nor can Tory propaganda conceal the widespread sense that, with Brexit, the country has embarked on a path that will lead to a disaster of unimaginable dimensions.

Brexit will lead to a government of the rich, by the rich, and for the rich. It will see ultra-right ideologues appointed to oversee programmes and social services that they have devoted their political efforts to destroying.

Working people will pay for huge tax cuts for the super-rich and a massive military build-up through the gutting of public education, the NHS, benefits and pensions.

The “Hard Brexit” faction anticipates the revival of a mythic past. A land where the basest prejudices are cynically encouraged and essential democratic rights are trampled upon.

In this context Holyrood can’t be allowed to resist. This is why the Tories are stripping away these powers.

It’s clear that all the promises made by the unionist parties were bare-faced lies. Independence is the only way forward for Scotland. Alan Hinnrichs.

Gillespie Terrace, Dundee.