Sir, – Imagine the squalid scene that confronted the cleaning staff on the morning after a night of drunken debauchery by the inhabitants of 10 Downing Street.
Wine stains on the walls, pools of sick, empty bottles filling the bins and mounds of detritus on the floors.
This is the heart of government, the place where you’d hope for sobriety in the middle of a pandemic, which was effectively turned into a vomit-splattered disco.
The only heroes in Sue Grey’s investigation into partygate are the security staff who suffered considerable abuse when they tried to break up the illegal gatherings and the cleaners who had to mop up. When trying to picture the scenes of all-night boozing, puking, punch-ups , vandalism, and law-breaking, you could not imagine such a scenario under any other prime minister.
This type of situation has never happened under any of Boris Johnson’s predecessors and as such is only influenced by the man at the top.
When that person is Mr Johnson, you get a culture of selfish, arrogant, entitled, amoral narcissistic rule-breaking that combines in the true spirit of the Bullingdon Club, snobbery and yobbery, and caused the office of prime minister to be despoiled.
John Reid, Regent Court, Keith, Moray.
Cherry picking worst of Britain
Sir, – There seems to be a campaign by columnists in The Press and Journal these days telling us how shameful it is to be British; most recently columnists Kirstin Innes , Catherine Deveney and W Dunbar. They cherry pick some of the worst episodes of our history to tell us how awful it is.
Mr Dunbar has focused on our profiteering and causing periodic famines in regions of India. Well there is some truth in that, partly due to dependency on cash crops, but life expectancy improved in India under the British thanks to the introduction of water sanitation, medical campaigns, irrigation and infrastructure creation like harbours, urban development and thousands of miles of railway.
They also clamped down on practices like female infanticide and “suttee”, where a widow was thrown alive on her husband’s funeral pyre. Thanks to a liberal administration via the Indian Civil Service with our judicial system it became the largest democracy in the world and I suggest better than the countries of South and Central America left by the Spanish and Portuguese.
As for paying back colonial debt, you don’t hear the woke brigade mention that Britain spent much of the 20th Century close to bankruptcy as a result of defending democracy in two world wars, our wartime debts only paid off in 2006, within the lifetime of a current school leaver.
You have to take a balanced view. Not much chance of that with these columnists and I shudder to think what the SNP’s school history curriculum says.
What did the British ever do for the world? Rather a lot actually.
Morris Kay, Lochview Place, Bridge of Don, Aberdeen.
Modern prefabs will solve crisis
Sir, – It is not often Allan Sutherland and I agree on any given topic but I totally concur with the views he expresses in his latest letter.
For too long, the housing market has been manipulated to the advantage of the builders and landowners. The selling off of local authority housing stock caused an imbalance in the market, along with the edict that all should own their homes.
Home ownership should be an aspiration but, under the present system, many will never achieve that aim. It is refreshing to see, after a near 40-year embargo on council house building, the practice has been restarted, notably in Scotland.
Like Mr Sutherland, I well remember the post war prefabs. Some even had early forms of central heating and cool boxes. Many long-term residents moved to newbuilds with reticence.
Modern versions are available, built to a much higher standard and could be used to reduce our inflated waiting lists. Regrettably, their life span is significantly less than more substantial buildings, but the cost savings in construction should allow for replacement after, say, 50 years.
A home should be just that, not an investment opportunity, and everyone should have an entitlement to that basic. Whether it is owned or rented is immaterial.
Renting was the norm in the UK for generations for the majority and rents were, in the main, fair and affordable. That is still the case in mainland Europe. Only in the UK have we become obsessed with home ownership.
Ron Campbell, Richmond Walk, Aberdeen.
Indy economics are paper thin
Sir, – Nicola Sturgeon may have fired the starting gun for more months of divisive debate about independence but she was not saying how an independent Scotland would finance itself.
Bear in mind she thinks the £20 million of taxpayers’ money put aside for her proposed referendum is “good value”.
Is it as good an investment as the £300m spent on building – and still unfinished – CalMac ferries? Is it as good as the £580m spent on the Gupta empire with the idea of creating 2,000 jobs when in reality only 50 have materialised ?
What about the £500,000 spent on a publicly owned energy company that never got off the ground? And to cap it all, what about the £30m spent on the recent census which was completed by so few people it was rendered useless ?
Sadly Ms Sturgeon does not get it, and still is claiming she has been short-changed by Westminster when there is a deficit in her economy brought about by her own lack of judgment.
I feel sure Scottish voters will see through the paper-thin concept of an economically viable Scotland and vote to remain in the comfort of British stability.
Andrew Dingwall, Westhill, Aberdeen.
SNP – Shameless No-plan Party
Sir, – Never a day goes by without some blinkered nationalist regurgitating the same old condemnation against our UK – a world-leading, powerhouse nation Scotland voted to remain a part of in the 2014 referendum, and the place where tens of thousands of migrants judge to be simply the best.
Nationalists like Peter E Smith (Letters, June 15) and Alex Salmond are well-rehearsed experts at anti-UK propaganda, but cannot provide a sustainable economic plan for their “independent” but ruled by Brussels Scotland. They are also exceedingly good at waving flags and singing sentimental songs.
The SNP have shown their true colours this past 15 years in control at Holyrood where everything they touch turns to disaster.
No matter how much time and taxpayers’ money they squander bribing and hoodwinking the public, the nats cannot concoct a voter majority for Indyref2 – “a two thirds majority must be achieved before change” says the SNP constitution.
Scotland’s taxpayers and future generations are entitled to much better than a Shameless No-plan Party who hijacked the Saltire flag and are fixated on bombarding voters with unsustainable freebies and nostalgic 13th Century Braveheart claptrap.
For the SNP to disrespect the result of the definitive 2014 referendum, and to keep having neverendums until they eventually win once, is full-blown Mafia democracy in action.
George Emslie, Bridge of Don, Aberdeen.
EV grant finally runs out of road
Sir, – At last some good news. The present grant for electric cars of £1,500 has been terminated.
More than 11 years ago it was £5,000 for a car with CO2 emissions of less than 75g/km. The grant has been steadily reduced over the years from £5,000 to £3,500, to £3,000, to £2,500, to £1,500 and now thankfully zero.
Since 2020, £2.5 billion of taxpayers’ money has been paid. Why have taxpayers been forced to fund those rich enough to buy an electric car?
Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow.
Women deserve better from law
Sir, – following the dreadful Sarah Everard case, much has been promised to improve safety for women.
So what do we discover? A drunken idiot making a nuisance of himself by trying to show how irresistible he was to a group of women in a pub before touching one of them indecently was fined with two months to pay.
How can the poor man afford such injustice? Too drunk to remember of course.
Why was his name not placed on the sex offenders register? When sober the shame of being in that select group might in future encourage him to keep his hands to himself.
Women deserve better from our legal system.
Ivan W Reid, Kirkburn, Laurencekirk.
Alcohol pricing policy has failed
Sir – Minimum alcohol pricing is not working. People with the urge to buy alcohol will always find a way whether is skimping on food or other essentials.
The Scottish Government has been given proof that the consumption of alcohol has not been reduced since its introduction.
The purchase of a drink curfew in shops from 10pm to 10am is also ridiculous because anyone over 18 can walk into a bar or nightclub and buy alcohol outwith the curfew hours.
Finally, the extra charge of minimum pricing goes into the coffers of the supermarkets and shops and not to alcohol or drugs rehab centres.
Don McKay, Provost Hogg Court, Torry.
Shelling out for snail mail
Sir – I am not surprised that Royal Mail keeps having to increase the price of postage.
Courier companies are way ahead of them on deliveries.
I ordered a small item on Saturday June 4, to be tracked and arrive by Tuesday or Wednesday.
Nothing arrived, so I contacted the seller and was told Royal Mail were have a few problems but it would be delivered by Monday June 13, eight days after the Royal Mail promise of a 48-hour delivery.
The package was tracked and in the Royal Mail depot on Tuesday June 7, but could not be delivered until June 13.
Snail mail, not Royal Mail!
Don McKay, Provost Hogg Court, Torry, Aberdeen
Young walkers deserve praise
Sir – Fantastic news the recent Aberdeen Kiltwalk raised £924,000 for almost 285 charities in the north-east, thanks to the 2,300 walkers.
I personally am proud of my 10-year-old granddaughter who did the walk, raising more than £1,200 – and, with Gift Aid and the Hunter Foundation, a lot more.
“Oldies” moan about the younger generation, but there are a lot of good kids out there!
T Shirron, Davidson Drive, Aberdeen.
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