Drive for a new referendum won’t fix fault lines in Tory and Labour parties

Calls for a second EU referendum, whether on Brexit terms or as a result of the Leave campaign rule breaking will not resolve the fundamental fault lines that exist in the UK Conservative and Labour parties.

This was illustrated when four or five Labour MPS voted with Jacob Rees Mogg and let Theresa May off the hook thus allowing her to hand the UK negotiations over to Brexit extremists leaving us with a hard Brexit without any parliamentary scrutiny( Scots man, july 18). they were joined by all the Tory MPS from Scotland in opposing a customs union or Norway-type “soft” Brexit and ignored their constituents’ vote to Remain.

Lib Dem claims of competence were destroyed when their two leading MPS, Vince Cable and Tim Farron, failed to appear at Westminster for the knife-edge hard Brexit vote on 16 July. Also, no Labour, Tory or Lib Dem MP supported SNP amendments to allow our Scottish Parliament a say on trade deals and tariffs involving devolved issues.

The OBR has warned that Westminster austerity measures must continue for 50 years to rescue UK finances and, as the Growth Commission highlighted, under UK control Scotlandisunder-performing which will continue to be the case unless a change is made. The Growth Commission ignored oil revenues yet there is at least 20 billion barrels of oil to be recovered which at $75 a barrel would bring massive benefits to the Scottish economy.

Therefore Scotland has nothing to fear and everything to gain through taking the opportunity to escape Westminster lunacy by voting for self-government in a meaningful referendum.

MARY THOMAS Watson Crescent , Edinburgh

Liam Fox is widely reported as saying that, when you lose a general election, you accept the decision and tell yourself to try harder next time.

He uses this argument to reject the idea of a second referendum. There is a difference, Mr Fox. A general election is held every five years, you get a chance to change your mind. So, two years have now passed since the referendum and we can’t change our minds? Leaving the EU is for a generation or more, not until the next election. We don’t have the luxury of choice.

It has been suggested that there is now a wide disconnect between the voters and their representatives in parliament, that where the voters are by majority Leavers, MPS are by majority Remainers. Would a fresh general election resolve the matter? If only! Our firstpast-the-post system is guaranteed to entrench an unrepresentative parliament, as it always has, and ensure that the views of a huge number of voters are ignored.

A second referendum is not only desirable but fully justified and democratic. It is not for government or parliament to ratify such an important decision but a properly informed public.

TREVOR RIGG Greenbank Gardens, Edinburgh