A Lotto alike
I recently recieved a very plausible letter informing me that I was a lucky £900.000 prizewinner in the International Postcode Online Lottery. My delight was short-lived, however, on discovering the lottery sponsors were subject to a Fraud Alert.
This attempted fraud reminded me of the many similarities between it and the Brexiteers June 2016 EU referendum Leave campaign, which was equally plausible in presenting to the country as a fact the much bigger prize of an additional £350 million weekly to the NHS if we collectively voted to leave the EU. Only after the EU referendum result was announced did we learn that it was an undeliverable fraudulent deception similar to the £900,000 I was promised from another source.
Why would I maintain that the “£350 million weekly for the NHS” is a more despicable fraud than the £900,000 Postcode lottery prize variety? Because the latter fraud appeals to our base instincts of something-for-nothing greed, whereas the former deliberately preys on our genuine fears about our own continued good health and that of loved ones whom we dread losing to illness due to a financially depleted NHS
Who could, with a clear conscience, refuse the offer of an extra £350m a week for the NHS which could, among other improvements, pay for the costly care that may mean the difference between life and
death for someone close to us? The Leave campaigers knew exactly what they were doing by targeting our vulnerable soft underbelly when making the deceitful £350m claim which in all probability swung the EU referendum result in their favour.
It’s also quite extraordinary – and rather disturbing – to see the very different ways in which the two sets of fraudsters referred to have been treated. The anonymous Lottery fraudsters are rightly regarded as amoral common criminals while the EU referendum fraudsters – some of whom are household names who have since been promoted to high office – are feted by many as the heroes who saved us from the grasping clutches of these nasty EU foreigners. They are regularly seen on our TV screens laughing off their previous boasts about £350m a week extra for the NHS and smirking about how clever they were in deceiving so many people.
IAIN M MACDONALD Miavaig, Uig, Isle Of Lewis
The latest attempts by politicians who wish to remain in the European Union to disrupt the current negotiations seems to be utterly fatuous and childish in the extreme. Our First Minister, aided and abetted by the Mayor of London and the First Minister of Wales, seem to think that if there are special arrangements made to accommodate Northern Ireland in the final Brexit deal for the UK then they, i.e. our respective countries, should also enjoy special arrangements. What utter poppycock; do they not realise that the only part of the UK that shares a land border with any part of the EU is, in fact, Northern Ireland, therefore that might require slightly different arrangements to be made.
Of course, the real agenda that they have is to disrupt the negotiations at any cost; to prevent the will of the British people being implemented. These politicians claim to be democrats, respecting the will of the people. If they were serious about this they would respect the will of the
people by backing our negotiators who are trying to achieve a good outcome for the whole country. We are dealing with politicians from the EU who are trying to ensure we are punished for daring to make a decision they do not like. The difficulty over the Irish border is caused by the Irish Government who are part and parcel of the EU. This is all part of the EU tactics to wear down the UK Government and cause as much mayhem as possible
for this country in the hope the electorate puts further pressure on our government. The decision to leave the EU has been made by the people; it is now time for politicians of all parties to get behind our government to enable the best deal to be obtained for the benefit of all. European politicians might respect strength – they certainly do not respect weakness.
LW TURNBULL
Edderston Road, Peebles