Sir, – As we watch the inevitable demise of Prime Minister Johnson we should bear in mind that it was the Tory party who cheerfully made him their leader.
They forced on the rest of us this corrupt and immoral government made in the image of its leader.
It is the Tory party that must take responsibility and they should be made to pay at the ballot box.
Johnson may be the most prominent “bad apple” but the Tory party looks rotten to the core.
Brian Batson. Lour Road, Forfar.
Luckily Scotland has a way out of Westminster’s mess
Sir, – Has the UK Government ever been in such a mess?
The Tories repeatedly talked the talk about levelling up the north (of England) – even appointing a levelling-up minister. They had, over a few generations, destroyed the industrial heartlands of northern England and this was their opportunity to finally fix things.
Then, with one fell swoop, they break three headline manifesto pledges which will undoubtedly hurt the north the most – namely cancelling HS2 to Leeds, increasing NI contributions and abolishing the pension triple lock.
What is the point in making serious manifesto pledges when they are broken so freely?
We then have a bunch of unprincipled, dishonest morons, many of whom are involved in law-making, repeatedly breaking the law at a time of utmost crisis by turning Downing Street into party central.
This was when decent law-abiding people were being forced to FaceTime loved ones in their final hours and the country was in a period of official mourning.
These moronic, patronising, condescending hooray Henries see themselves above the rest of us and they even sneer at senior party colleagues, dismissing them as “lightweights “ or simply as being from “Elgin” as if it was some far-flung planet.
Surely these people have no conscience and they have plumbed new depths in terms of government behaviour.
Fortunately, the people of Scotland have a promising, viable way out of this cesspit of corruption and lies.
A way that is already recognised by the vast majority of our younger voters and increasing numbers of our older voters.
Stewart Falconer. Glenisla View, Alyth.
Scottish Tories have much to think about
Sir, – The Tories are pinning all their hopes on the Sue Gray inquiry they have mentioned almost constantly.
They obviously believe that this whole farce will have a finding of no rules broken under her investigation.
The interesting part is what will happen to the Conservatives in Scotland when he is cleared?
The Westminster system under this lot is the laughing stock of the world. It’s time for the Conservatives in Scotland to ask themselves what the point is of supporting a union that pays no attention to you and, worse still, treats you with utter contempt.
Bryan Auchterlonie. Bluebell Cottage, Perth.
SNP gone quiet on PM’s resignation
Sir, – Despite growing public disgust, the SNP seem to have stopped demanding Boris’s resignation in the last few days.
Perhaps they’ve realised, with council elections in 100 days, replacing their main electoral asset with Rishi Sunak could be a disaster.
As the new broom who found the money for the furloughs and vaccinations, he’d be an asset appearing with Douglas Ross, especially if the Tories (and, I hope, Labour and LibDems) positively campaigned to transform local government in Scotland and highlight the SNP’s failings.
Just for starters there’s the shocking decline in education, local services missing £350m in council funding, looming council tax rises and train fare rises and services cut from 2,400 to 2,100 when the SNP-Greens take over ScotRail in April.
Perhaps this is what Douglas Ross was thinking about when he called for the PM’s resignation last week?
Allan Sutherland. Willow Row, Stonehaven.
Tory prime minister ‘must be statesman’
Sir, – We need a Conservative prime minister who acts like a statesman, looks like a statesman, unites the United Kingdom and can stand up to the SNP for the damage it has inflicted on Scotland.
A new broom is required and Michael Gove is the man to do it.
Douglas Cowe. Alexander Avenue, Kingseat.
Prime Minister coat hanging on ‘shoogly peg’ – despite Government spin
Sir, – Readers prepare yourselves to be spun as the Johnson team in Westminster announces a raft of new policy initiatives including operations “Save Big Dog” and operation “Red Meat”.
These two programmes, are being rolled out to invigorate the UK Government in its Global Britain aspirations. Believe that if you want, or if you can swallow another whopper.
It is highly likely that these policy initiatives were developed last year, and are being rolled out now as a smoke and mirrors defensive action, to protect the Johnson organisation.
Operation Red Meat describes the additional actions targeting illegal immigrants crossing the Channel seeking sanctuary and peace in the UK; where, as another commentator describes, “Nelson’s Navy will be deployed to turn back these immigrants”.
This is to keep his ERG supporters on side, particularly since last year’s immigrant influx was huge, and government initiatives didn’t work.
Operation Save Big Dog is a plan to throw Downing Street officials under the proverbial bus, for allowing the frolicking that took place in No 10 during the Covid lockdown. After all, surely a civil servant should have intervened and told a government minister that they should not be encouraging socialising, within the building? Aye, right.
The Priti Patel bullying history and Johnson’s previous behaviour shows that the government ministers wield tremendous power. Standing up in public and criticising their decisions and behaviour will break one or more civil service codes, leading to jobs put at risk.
So the Johnson coat is on a shoogly peg, and we await to see the goings on and doings in black and white in the Gray Report.
Alistair Ballantyne. Birkhill, Angus.
Ex-publican Gray must raise the bar
Sir, – Sue Gray, the civil servant investigating lockdown parties, is a former publican who seems to be an appropriate person for the serving of alcohol at No 10 parties.
However, press leaks indicate Gray will clear Boris of outright criminality as she is being manoeuvred into a report that is politically survivable for him rather than one the public expects and deserves.
This chimes with tactics to raise the bar of her inquiry to a higher level, as for the likes of past miscreants Professor Neil Ferguson and Matt Hancock who both resigned, eventually.
Nonetheless, her previous inquiries included allegations Damian Green MP had lied about porn on his House of Commons computer for which Theresa May, then PM, sacked him, and Andrew Mitchell MP who allegedly insulted police at Downing Street, known as “Plebgate”, and subsequently resigned as chief whip.
However, more indiscretions by Johnson have come to light so he should also be in her in-tray.
He announced on March 16 2020 that all travel must stop and people should stay at home, which included no visits to second homes whether for isolation or holiday.
Johnson issued rules for the public while making others for himself.
He regularly visited his second home, Chequers, when he commuted back and forth after telling the nation to stop travelling.
The press got a whiff of this but No 10 denied the accusation, then refused to answer and only after staff at Chequers contracted Covid did they eventually admit this was indeed the case.
The pattern of Johnson’s evasiveness continues.
Gray does not have the power to sack her boss so must be replaced immediately by one who can, a judge. Problem solved.
Ian Wallace. Chapman Drive, Carnoustie.
Cabinet makes case for new meritocracy
Sir, – You would think that, out of the 50 million or so adults in the UK, we could find a more suitable person to lead the country than Boris de Pfeffel Johnson.
But of course that discounts the anomaly in the British political system, indeed in all the higher echelons of British life, that the top dogs – with some honourable, or possibly dishonourable, exceptions – must come from a certain strata of society, almost certainly having attended an elite school, and preferably one of two universities.
This is compounded by the fact that this clan generally associate, almost exclusively, with others of their kind, not to mention marrying and procreating within that same limited gene pool.
It’s aye been thus, but never has the inadequacy of this system been so transparently revealed as in our current incumbents.
Surely it must be now clear to all that a more meritocratic system of government is desperately needed.
Les Mackay. Carmichael Gardens, Dundee.
PM Johnson must ‘resign forthwith’
Sir, – Boris Johnson must resign forthwith as prime minister and leader of the Conservative parties.
Alan Woodcock. Osborne Place, Dundee.
