Time for Tories to get on with day job and stand up for Scots
GETTING the best deal should be the primary objective of every politician and that is exactly what Nicola Sturgeon has been doing for the last four months, while Westminster still does not have a coherent Brexit plan.
David Mundell could kill off talk of an early independence referendum if, rather than acting like Theresa May’s fluffy poodle, he got on with his day job and stood up for Scotland by telling the UK Government that we voted by a large majority to remain in the EU and demand that the Scottish Parliament has the right to veto a bad deal just as Wallonia did with the EU-Canada trade deal.
David Mundell and Ruth Davidson failed to speak out against Theresa May’s plans to give the City of London, the car industry, Northern Ireland and, no doubt, millionaire footballers, special arrangements after Brexit – but not Scotland, as the so-called equal partner in the UK.
In a recent blog the former BBC journalist, Derek Bateman, recalled that a former secretary of state for Scotland, George Younger, publicly opposed Mrs Thatcher over the closure of Ravenscraig. The current breed of Scottish Tories are not of the same calibre and it will be no surprise when some of Ruth Davidson’s backbenchers implode, displaying the same dysfunctional characteristics as those of Ukip’s elected representatives. Mary Thomas, 27 Watson Crescent, Edinburgh. IT is sad to see someone with the unquestioned ability of Nicola Sturgeon throwing tantrums because she is not getting her own way on certain issues relating to Brexit.
The fact is the people of Scotland voted to remain part of Britain, and the people of Britain voted in favour of Brexit.
Surely the way ahead is for the First Minister to accept we are all living in a democracy and to accept the will of the majority of the people?
It may be galling to accept, but the fact is Europe subsides Scotland, while Britain as a whole makes considerable contributions to the European economy. It is hardly likely, therefore, the EU would welcome an independent Scotland into membership. Let us hope Ms Sturgeon will accept such economic fact and concentrate on running Scotland. WFindlay, Flat 64, Bishop’s Gate, 20 Kenmure Drive, Bishopbriggs. ALL that Ms Sturgeon has achieved with her feigned outrage that the Brexit Secretary,David Davies did not immediately jump to attention when she dialled his hotline is to demonstrate just how little clout she actually has (“Nicola Sturgeon ‘cools’ on Brexit hotline after waiting more than a day for response”, The Herald, October 28).
Blasting this across the media is just an upmarket version of complaining to your relatives that your Scottish “Poonds” were not accepted in a shop in deepest England. Allan Sutherland 1 Willow Row Stonehaven EVERYBODY with a crystal ball knows just what British citizens will have after the UK abandons the EU.
Financial service “passport” arrangements throughout the EU will carry on as before, full access to the single market will continue, but the pesky free movements of people and goods between EU members will not apply to the UK.
The money that was being paid into EU coffers will be spent instead on needy British areas, such as the NHS, and farming subsidies, and subsidising “foreign” manufacturers to keep their enterprises in the UK.
Unfortunately, even after the demob papers are signed next year, what the EU27 will generously let Britain have remains quite unknown.
Those who repeatedly write so insistently that Britain is so valuable to Europe that everything will go Britain’s way, and thus a “hard Brexit” will not happen, could just harden “the usual Albion arrogance” attitudes toward Johnny Foreigner.
Nicola Sturgeon is determined Scotland will have special treatment as the UK leaves, so that we are effectively an EU member on our own while still being in the UK (and thus requiring the UK Prime Minister to push this condition on to the EU27), but she knows it is impossible.
So at any moment we can expect her to announce the go-ahead with full details of Indyref2, the compilers of the manifesto being totally sure we are so well-loved by the EU27 that we will be given an automatic red-carpet welcome as the 28th member, and so are absolutely certain that separation from the rest of the UK will get the votes at last. Bring back Mystic Meg as negotiator! JoeDarby, Glenburn, St Martins Mill Cullicudden, Dingwall, Ross-shire. RUTH Marr accusing a correspondent of a vitriolic attack (Letters, October 26)? “Pots and kettles” don’t have a look-in! Duncan Macintyre, 2 Fort Matilda Terrace, Greenock.