Monarchy is of little use to Scotland in 21st Century

Sir, – Last week I spent two days in the Newbury and Reading area followed by two days in Glasgow and Fife and it was remarkable the difference in attitude between the citizens of Scotland and England to the Queen’s celebrations.

There was a huge order of magnitude, more bunting, mostly showing the Union flag, in the south of England, and this was backed up by footage on BBC South Today, whereas I could count on more or less the fingers of one hand how many houses had bunting hanging outside in Scotland.

For all of them, though, it must have been disappointing that the Queen decided to “chuck a sickie” during part of the proceedings.

Queen Elizabeth is no doubt a fine human being and to be admired for her longevity but for me too many of her offspring are dysfunctional, so is it not time to run down that institution?

At the very least, would even the most ardent royalist not understand that to a single parent in a one-bedroom flat with only a two-ring Baby Belling on which to cook meals, and who has recently had the £20 a week taken away, the money spent on the celebrations seems a bit excessive in current circumstances?

I, fortunately, have a fourring hob but I can’t help but feel that, in addition, the existence of the monarchy, with its attendant honours system and House of Lords, might in part lead to the feelings of elitism that led to Boris Johnson breaking his own laws on parties, and to his guests being disrespectful to the “little people”, as they would see them, who clean and provide security at 10 Downing Street.

Robert Burns wrote about egalitarianism and his line about us all being “Jock Tamson’s bairns” captures that very well, even if it originally had a narrower meaning.

It feels like privilege is being massively abused by Her Majesty’s Westminster Government, quite apart from the mess they are making of running the UK, and this is something that feels very alien to me, and I suspect many Scots.

So is it not better for those in England and us in Scotland – and indeed those in Wales and Northern Ireland if they are so minded – if we tell them we no longer want to be in the Union?

It somehow just feels more appropriate for the 21st Century.

Rab Mungall.

Lady Campbells Court, Dunfermline.