No change to our Commonwealth status

Sir, – I refer to the letter published on the subject of Scottish participation in the Commonwealth Games if, as an independent country, we should decide not to have the Queen as head of state, Last games for Scots? (May 21).

This is just another example of the drivel being circulated by those against Scotland becoming a normal self-governing country.

In the current Commonwealth more than half the members are republics which do not accept the Queen as Head of State. The list, therefore, is very long, so I shall only give a few examples: India, Pakistan, South Africa, Singapore, Cyprus and Malta.

To confirm the true state of affairs, at the 2007 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala, Uganda, the issue of membership was considered in response to an application by Rwanda – a country that had never even been a British colony – to join the Commonwealth.

The committee issued a statement saying changes to constitutional status would not change Commonwealth membership.

The “Kampala communiqué”, as it was called, was issued on November 25 2007, and stated:

“Heads of Government also agreed that, where an existing member changes its formal constitutional status, it should not have to reapply for Commonwealth membership provided that it continues to meet all the criteria for membership.”

Thus, what Ms Sanders avers in her letter is entirely untrue. Cllr Alan Grant. Perth & Kinross Council, 2 High Street, Perth.