Big bill to pay

It was unfortunate that the talk given by Sally Thomas of the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations at COP26 was drowned out of the Scottish media and hence failed to be given a mention by Joyce Mcmillan.

Ms Thomas pointed out that the £33 billion project initiated by Patrick Harvie MSP to replace every gas boiler in Scotland with a heat pump will cost Housing Associations £11 billion yet, because of the dire state of the Scottish economy, the public purse can only underwrite less than £2bn of that sum with no indication of how the Asssociations can obtain the outstanding £9bn.

There was also no hint from the Green minister of where private homeowners will obtain the remaining £20bn costs of the project or the fact that this is merely the initial phase of a £150bn Green Revolution. Note that £150bn is around 100 per cent of Scottish GDP and will be an even higher percentage once the closure of Grangemouth slashes over £50bn from Scottish GDP.

The increase in renewable generation to charge electric vehicles and power heat pumps comes with a £300bn debt. Whilst the capital will be raised by energy companies hence not a burden on the public purse the expectation of a ten per cent return by these companies on the investment means ever higher electricity bills for Scottish consumers.

Time therefore to accept that, whilst Alex Salmond may have claimed that “rocks will melt in the sun before the Indyref2 vision fades”, Ms Thomas is correct in noting the debt problems facing the Scottish economy. The deluge of red ink arising from the Snp/green alliance projects to reach net zero means that independence is sunk for the next 30 years until the COP26 debts have been repaid.

IAN MOIR

Castle Douglas, Dumfries and

Galloway