Sir, — There was recently comment in the letters section regarding the introduction of the energy-saving LED street lights.
These are easily identified as the light provided is much whiter than the “old-style” orange ones.
The letter commented on the height of the standards and suggested shorter ones might be more suitable.
My complaint about these LED lights, compared with the old orange ones, is there is a localised pool of light in close proximity to the lamp then a much duller area on the road until one gets closer to the next lamp post. The orange ones appeared to give a much more even pattern of illumination.
Also, the LED ones seem to have individual photocell switches, so instead of a group in a street coming on together, the LED ones are in a random pattern, leading to more uneven illumination.
Alastair Armitstead, Achiltibuie, Ross-shire.
UK Tories must cut Russian ties
Sir, — Struan Stevenson is right to point out the failure of standing up to Vladimir Putin, who has been planning his move to re-establish a totalitarian Soviet Union for many years.
However, Mr Stevenson needs to acknowledge the complicity of the Conservative Party in colluding with Russia politically and financially.
I was shocked when I was a member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe when the UK’s Conservative MPs joined forces to form a group with members of the Russian Duma, who were members of Putin’s party and supported a pro-Putin leader of the group.
I was disappointed when I campaigned to expose the ruthless destruction of Yukos and the prosecution of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, that the UK media and MPs turned away.
I was similarly frustrated that the UK dragged its feet compared with the US and EU member states in adopting the Magnitsky sanctions against the individuals known to be complicit in Sergei Magnitsky’s murder.
For years, the Conservative Party has accepted donations from Russian oligarchs and other Russian sources, and been compromised against taking action against the unhealthy long-term and often dubious engagement of Russian money in London and through the UK financial services sector.
The UK Conservative Party must now end all comfort to the Kremlin.
Malcolm Bruce, Lord Bruce of Bennachie (Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe 1999–2005.)
Goals are nothing but a headline
Sir, — It is utterly devastating to see the report from Audit Scotland in which we learn that 500 excess deaths were “entirely attributable” to the delays to admission at emergency department.
While Nicola Sturgeon tries to bat away the detail in the report, we hear of an ever-increasing backlog of patients and unsustainable spending. The First Minister, however, continues to hail her approach as the right one but tells us she takes the report seriously.
Should I be reassured by this? Why did she think this even needed saying?
Furthermore, she claims that the report says that the SNP government’s ambitions are challenging and will take time to deliver. How many more need to die unnecessarily for the SNP to be held to account for their incompetence at governing?
Their ambitions are not challenging — they are a great headline that she wishes we would forget the minute we’ve been to the polling station.
Jane Lax, Aberlour.