Not such a waste

Clark Cross’s claim of wasted money (Letters, 25 September) was undermined by the Scotsman’s report the previous day that, to date, the formation of Police Scotland has saved taxpayers £330 million. Similarly, Labour’s claims of lower local authority funding fails to mention that, prior to Police Scotland, Edinburgh used to contribute £46m a year towards policing. Last year it was only £2.6m.

The shortage of nursing staff which Mr Cross refers to will only get worse after Brexit and the Tory’s latest proposed immigration rules. Last year Channel Four reported that NHS England was recruiting nurses and care staff in India, Pakistan and the Philippines, via agencies, forking out £5,000 per head compared to £2,500 for EU nurses.

The number of EU nurses applying for jobs in the UK has fallen by 96 per cent and, of course, some have already headed home, which strengthens the case for Scotland to have its own points-based immigration system for key sectors, including our hospitality industry, which is highly dependent on EU workers.

FRASER GRANT Warrender Park Road , Edinburgh