Work ethic

Catriona C Clark’s letter (1 July) is a good example of the split in attitudes in Scotland between those who work and those who don’t. In other words, between those who hold to the traditional, Scottish work ethic and those whose outlook is one of expecting a “money tree” to support their lifestyle.

Ms Clark lambasts the Government at Westminster for wanting to ship “asylum seekers” to “offshore detention centres”. The trouble is that the people she calls “asylum seekers” are overwhelmingly economic migrants from places that are poor, but not at war. These people travel through rich, free, western European countries because they want to get to the “streets paved with gold” in Britain, only to find that it is just the same as Italy, France, Germany etc, but without the good weather. The Government is quite right.

She also espouses a “Universal Basic Income” which she says “the Scottish Parliament

is keen to introduce”. In other words, money for sitting on our backsides doing nothing. Well, if someone else is paying...

The time was when Scotland was a nation of innovators and entrepreneurs who took risks and who invented and created things. People who worked hard. We led the Industrial Revolution and, thanks to the benefits of the Union, we dragged ourselves out of the acute poverty which was our condition hitherto.

However, since our aged industries in the west went down in the face of eastern competition, the Scottish genius and work ethic went with it. Rather than creating businesses, we are holding out our hands for benefits. How terribly sad.

ANDREW HN GRAY

Edinburgh