St Giles’ bells

would increase energy bills by around 300 per cent as electricity is a highly expensive energy source.

The failure by Holyrood to eliminate fuel poverty by 2016 means the number of Scots living in such poverty will double by 2025. So much for such pledges from our MSPS.

In addition, Keith Shortreed (Letters, 13 December) did not mention that eliminating the use of gas means building an additional 84,000 MW of renewables, as Scots use six times more gas than electricity.

At a capital cost of £5 million per MW installed, this amounts to a bill of £420 billion. Keith Shortreed should ascertain whether Andrew Wilson has included these costs in his Growth Report, since these costs have the potential to bankrupt the Scottish economy. Kirsty Gunn (Scotsman, 11 December) tells us of the bells of St Giles’ Cathedral ringing out ‘Ding Dong Merrily on High’ last week.

It is a good tune for dancing to and goes well on bagpipe, as do tunes from many parts of the world.

I had not known that St Giles now has bells able to play tunes.

It evidently had such in 1707, since we are told that on the day the parliamentary union with England took effect the bells of St Giles sounded the tune “Why should I be sad on my wedding day?”

Whether that union was a genuine marriage is debatable. We may hope for suitably celebratory tunes when it comes to an end.

Given that Scotland is part of the world, they could be of any ethnic or geographical origin.

DAVID STEVENSON Blacket Place, Edinburgh