Sir, – While it is much appreciated that The Press and Journal has rightly highlighted the plight of the historic drovers’ road in Dornoch (September 26), serious safety concerns raised by residents about the plan to funnel cyclists and pedestrians from the Springfield development to the High Street via North Street and Gilchrist Square have been overshadowed.
These ancient streets are very narrow, single lanes shared by pedestrians, babies in buggies, cars, parked cars, cycles, utility vehicles, delivery vans, rubbish collector trucks and occasional fire and ambulance units. There are no pavements.
The Highland Council and the Dornoch Community Council do not, will not, recognise inherent and obvious safety risks of the significantly increased number of cyclists and pedestrians the housing development will generate.
Planned viable and safer options to Station Road have been dismissed out of hand.
Christine Callingham, North Street, Dornoch.
Tax cuts at levels of Blair government
Sir, – WA Ross (Letters, October 3) accuses the Conservatives of only looking after the interests of bankers and millionaires because of their now reversed proposal to reduce the tax rate for top earners.
What Mr Ross (and as far as I know almost the entire media) did not mention was the proposals would have simply taken us back to the same tax regime as during the Blair/Brown years with a 40% top rate.
Also at that time, the big SNP economic plan under Alex Salmond was to slash corporation tax in an independent Scotland.
Nobody accused Messrs Blair and Brown or Salmond of just helping bankers and millionaires.
Keith Shortreed, Cottown of Gight, Methlick.
ETZ plan sullies city’s reputation
Sir, – Panorama’s The Green Energy Scandal Exposed is a lesson in corporate greenwashing that everyone should be mindful of.
However, it is far from the only one in Tory blighted, so-called Great Britain. With Ineos still pretending that fracking is worth doing and transporting its cargoes of doom to Scotland, there’s much climate policy that needs intelligent re-evaluation.
Another more local case in point is the Energy Transition Zone which is clueless and clumsy.
Quite what the assorted local and national governance, who have been publicly backing this latest environmental disaster to sully Aberdeen’s worldwide reputation think they are doing, is anyone’s guess.
The “business case”, is as badly written and poorly conceived as when it divided this city just over a decade ago.
All the politicians have some awkward questions to answer if they really think they are not in the same precarious position as the people who voted the way they did, then and now.
Garrotting gardens doesn’t equal climate awareness.
Ian Beattie, Baker Street, Aberdeen.
Hospitality sector has to raise pay
Sir, – The shortage of staff in Fort William, the Highlands and over the entire country has been a growing issue since the access to cheap labour disappeared with Brexit.
I as a customer, along with many others, appreciate the availability the hospitality industry has to offer.
But there appears to be a lot of carping on about the subject and no action by the industry to solve the problem.
I know there was a Press and Journal article primarily about Fort William but the question I ask is about all areas that have a Job Shop: How many who are able to work are on unemployment benefit?
I wonder why they are not rushing to fill the spots. Could it be the unsociable hours or they are not trained?
No, I would hazard a guess, it’s wages. These are all things that the hospitality industry can do something about.
A hook-up with colleges to run hospitality training courses?
Yes, I know it’s been tried in some areas with little success but on its own it has mainly failed.
The whole industry must project hospitality as a career and not, as the wages suggest, penal servitude.
Live-in staff should be able to do exactly that – live in. The industry should turn unsociable hours into something employees sees as a bonus.
Finlay G Mackintosh, Loch View, Forres.
Crown new King here in Scotland
So the Stone of Destiny is going back to England for the coronation just as we hear the news that Ian Hamilton KC, the former student who reclaimed the stone, has died.
Stolen by King Edward I in 1296 it would be a fitting tribute to Ian if the stone stayed here in Scotland.
The new King could always have a wee celebration here seated on the stone if he wants to be known as the King of Scots.
It doesn’t matter to me but some people seem to be overwhelmed by hereditary heirs, so why not let them be overwhelmed in Scotland.
Herbert Petrie, Parkhill, Dyce.
Why Scots have right to IndyRef2
Sir, – Will someone remind Liz Truss of the fallacy of the “once in a generation” claim on the 2014 Scottish Independence referendum?
By their own actions, the Tories invalidated that claim by promising Scotland the only way to guarantee remaining in the EU was to vote No in that referendum, which they did.
We have now been dragged out of Europe against our will, so we have every right to another referendum.
Alan Anderson, Berrymuir Road, Portlethen.
No change in culture
Sir, – Amid a culture shift by young people aged 16 to 24 in a poll saying they never booze, rejecting alcohol in favour of smoothies and the gym, Aberdeen University (AU) has canned alcohol in favour of cups of tea in the Union Brew pub – I don’t think so.
September 11-19 was freshers week when hundreds of young university and college students descend on the city and go pubbing and nightclubbing. Why did AU and Robert Gordon University (RGU) hire buses to ferry suspected drunken students home safely?
Police carried out “dedicated patrols” in the city (Evening Express, September 26). The ambulance service had a safe triage tent for “alcohol and drug-related jobs” and street pastors were out offering support to young people “who may have had too much drink” (Evening Express, August 19).
If the culture had changed, every avenue was covered after discussion.
Freshers week is a time when young scholars absorb lots of alcohol and gain knowledge of all the best bars and clubs. A bit of naivety from AU and RGU, since this has been happening for years.
T Shirron, Davidson Drive, Aberdeen.
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