Sir, – Arriving in Dundee as a medical student in the 1960s, I soon became used to hearing stories about the inefficiency of the local council and lack of foresight in their planning.
The destruction of the city centre and replacement with tacky buildings was only a start. The tall, unsightly council tower could well have been a joke in a satirical cartoon. Examples of corruption by some local councillors were rife. In the most recent decades there has been no sign of corruption.
However, the recent decision to give permission to build an office block in the centre of town impinging on the visual impact of the V&A Museum and Discovery Quay came as a reminder of the short-sighted stupidity of the current local authority decision makers. Office buildings are empty on the road into Dundee and other plots are available.
The site is closer to the airport than the centre of town and access and parking for cars is obvious. Prestigious companies already have offices there.
I suggest that successful companies don’t need a spectacular view for their staff to work efficiently.
Dundee is seen by many residents of other Scottish cities as down-market and unworthy of the V&A. Sadly, this type of council short-sightedness may well prove them to be right.
The location and climate of Dundee can’t be bettered by any city in the UK.
Sadly, the local authority – on which there are elected members who lack the imagination to enhance our city – remains pathetic.
Dr Anne Smith, 19 Hazel Drive, Dundee.
Thorny issue of Scottish barley
Sir, – A. A. Bullions of Leven commented on the state of barley use by Scottish brewers and distillers (Letters, December 23).
If the correspondent’s postgraduate student had dug a little deeper she may have uncovered further information, which is known and detrimental to our farmers in Scotland.
I will refer them to past editions of the Farming Matters supplement of The Courier. In the September 5 2015 edition it was stated that Scottish farmers were receiving up to £20 less per tonne for wheat.
Why? Well, the distillers said Scottish wheat was of inferior quality for them and they were using GM maize.
In the January 23 2016 edition further information showed that another iconic Scottish whisky was being produced from French maize instead of Scottish wheat, again for quality reasons.
A disturbing fact emanating from all the above information is that the crops deemed better than the Scottish crops are GM grown.
It would seem we are not allowed to grow GM crops here but it is OK for others to benefit financially from growing, exporting them and then undercutting our farmers, so that we can use them for brewing, distilling and baking etc.
The Trades Description Act should be invoked if any of those producers should claim their products to be 100% Scottish. Careful wording on their bottles would have to say only, “Brewed or distilled in Scotland” or otherwise make no claim to be a 100% Scottish product.
Would that induce them to use Scottish farmers’ wheat? No doubt, they would be able to buy a way around it.
Now, before anyone says that GM crops are dangerous for us to consume, let me point out that there is no danger to human consumption. We are eating our daily bread, cakes etc made from GM flour. The objections to GM crops are because of the unknown effects that cross-pollination would have on our indigenous plant life.
Until this is resolved to everyone’s satisfaction (there will always be doubters), we will continue to spray our crops with dangerous insecticides.
Just watch our farmers in their air-conditioned cabs and wearing face-masks and ask yourself, “Would I want to breathe in this stuff?”
We have not been told how much of those insecticides we are digesting when we eat our food. Will we ever? The effects on wildlife, especially insects, could be one contributor to the decline in our bee populations and hence the pollination of our plants. Research into selective insecticides should be a priority.
I know from laboratory work the dangers of working with insecticides and we will have to make up our minds, which is the lesser of two “evils”: GM crops or insecticides?
I am using the word “evil” reservedly!
Bill Stirling, 7 Shireway, Alloa.
How Scottish is our whisky?
Sir, – It would be interesting to know the extent to which Scottish-grown barley is used by whisky distillers (Letters, December 23).
It was certainly the case in previous years that due to climate and growing conditions supplies of barley best suited for malting were sourced from England.
There used to be a substantial traffic in bulk trainloads transported from the likes of East Anglia to places such as Dufftown for distribution to the Speyside distilleries, although I am uncertain of the extent to which this rail traffic continues today.
The rail waggons were often identified by the brand logos of distillers well known in Scotland.
Iain Abbott, 16 Ward Rd, Muthill.
The two stories of oil profits
Sir, – I was interested to read the other day that the Norwegian Oil Fund has now reached $1 trillion, approximately £750 million, and theoretically owns 1.3% of every company in the world.
Now, most of the oil in the North Sea is in the area between Scotland and Norway, both sectors have been producing since the mid-’60s, yet all Scotland has to show for this wonderful natural asset is a share of the UK National Debt of £1.75 trillion, more than double the Norwegian savings.
Scotland and Norway are both small countries, geographically fairly similar, yet Norway ends up with the biggest investment fund in the world, a fund which will cushion the country for generations to come, while Scotland shares a massive debt.
How has this come about? The answer is obvious: Norway is an independent nation, in control of its own affairs.
And Scotland is not.
Les Mackay, 5 Carmichael Gardens, Dundee.
Blocked sign on the A9
Sir, – I am writing to complain about inaction over a tree obscuring a road sign.
I made a complaint to a representative from Bear Scotland during a community council meeting over two years ago about the tree obscuring the Gleneagles/Glendevon sign on the A9 southbound carriageway, just south of Auchterarder.
During the summer months it is worse, as the leaves restrict the view even more.
I have also complained to local councillors over the last two years and nothing has been done.
Just on November 30 2017, on the A9 south at Auchterarder and Gleneagles, they were cutting grass with machines right up the bankings; also, on December 14 2017, I came out of Perth around 11am, it was snowing and four men with strimmers were cutting grass up to the boundary fences.
This time and manpower would have been better used to put salt on village and B roads.
I see Perth & Kinross Council want to spend £160,000 on road signs to include Gaelic. This would be better spent on repairing roads.
And as for spending £190,000 on the Christmas lights switch on, why do they not do the same as Edinburgh Hogmanay Party and sell tickets for it?
David M Mclaren, 1 Gilmours Avenue, Blackford.
Do we want snow or not?
Sir, – For weeks now people have been hoping and praying for a white Christmas, and when they get snow they are moaning that it is a menace. Why don’t they make up their minds?
Alister Rankin, 93 Whyterose Terrace, Methil, Leven.
