Notice board I hate to agree with Fraser, but on ‘hate crime’ I do

● An Evening With Alex Gray is being held at 7pm tonight at Waterstones Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow; and at 7pm on Tuesday, April 9 at Waterstones Kirkcaldy.

The author will be discussing her best-selling series of crime novels staring DSI William Lorimer and giving the scoop on Out Of Darkness, the latest book in the series. To book a free ticket, see www.waterstones.com.

● Edinburgh Science festival runs from this Saturday until Sunday, April 14. See www.edinburghscience.co.uk for programme details.

● Free Highlight Talks continue at the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum, Alloway at 2.30pm on Wednesday, April 3. Gordon Wilson of the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society will discuss The MacGeorge Collection: Scottish Steamers in the 1930s.

● Lesley Riddoch is touring with her new film Denmark: The State Of Happiness. There are screenings at 6.30pm on Thursday, April 4 at Cameo Cinema, Edinburgh; at 7pm on Friday, April 5 at Adam Smith Theatre, Kirkcaldy; and at 7.30pm on Friday, April 26 at Corrie and Sannox Village Hall, Arran. Lesley will be doing Q&A sessions after the screenings. For full tour dates see lesleyriddoch.com/events.

● The Annual Arbroath Rally will be held on Sunday, April 7 at 1pm. Gathering at Kings Gate by the Harbour. March to behind Arbroath Abbey for short speeches. All welcome. Singers, musicians and pipers welcome for pub after.

● A screening of To See Ourselves, Jane McAllister’s documentary about the 2014 independence referendum, will take place at 2pm on Sunday, April 7 at Cameo Cinema, Edinburgh. Each screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director. To buy tickets see toseeourselves. film/see-the-film

AFTER having a good laugh at the unlovely Murdo’s complaint to Police Scotland I took a moment to reflect on the new “hate” crime law and what it will lead to.

I hate to agree with Fraser – whose politics I detest – but both he and Joanna Cherry are not wrong when they suggest this legislation will open a Pandora’s box of malicious and fatuous complaints to the police.

Despite reassurances, I predict that a tiny minority of vocal and aggressive activists will deluge the system with complaints, and that the police will be investigating each one.

I won’t name this aggressive, bullying minority for fear of being the subject of a police investigation myself. That is what this frightening legislation has led to.

Speaking of hate, you do wonder if the thousands who follow Orange marches and sing obscenities about the Pope at Ibrox will be investigated under this new law. That would be a better use of police and court time. Don’t hold your breath.

Jim Butchart via email

I HAVE no problem with people being upset (to any degree) by hate speech, but I do not see how the upcoming Hate Crime Act will help improve matters. I think that we might be about to see a deluge of “complaints” to the police of a somewhat spurious nature. I feel that if a complaint is made and is deemed to be at criminal level then it should dealt with under due process, and the complainant afforded anonymity as appropriate. But should the complaint not reach criminal status then the identity of the complainant should be revealed to the subject of the complaint – this to safeguard against petty complaining. Then any matter not deemed to be at criminal level can be recorded but the subject not named in the records. This would allow for trends to be identified that they may be shown as a societal issue which can be addressed over time. I am of the opinion that there are no rights except equal rights.

M Ross

Aviemore

GIVEN the general tenor of Tuesday’s letters about assisted dying it would seem that their opinion is that no matter what, we should all have imposed on us “a duty to suffer” if terminally ill. To which I immediately think, to what end? To appease who and what? And to what purpose? Why should anyone have imposed on them from others an outright denial of their own autonomy to make their own