Sir, – An SNP spokesperson in Westminster said that the Scottish Police Authority is the only territorial police authority that is unable to recover VAT.
There are only two unitary territorial police authorities in the United Kingdom, in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
England, with 39, and Wales with four police authorities are, therefore, compliant in the ability to recover VAT in the same way that the previous Scottish regional police authorities were able to do.
The Northern Ireland Police unitary authority does not pay VAT, however, the UK Treasury recoups this by a reduction in block grant increases.
It cannot be said that the Scottish Government was not aware of the VAT implications in establishing a unitary police authority as there is a plethora of correspondence and documentation in support of the VAT liability position.
The constant carping by our SNP parliamentarians in Holyrood and Westminster, consistently blaming everyone else for all trials and tribulations, real or mostly imagined, embodies the PG Wodehouse quote: “It’s not difficult to distinguish between a Scotsman with a grievance and ray of sunshine.”
Ron Sturrock.
53 Grampian View,
Ferryden,
Montrose.
Deal with Sheku Bayoh case
Sir, – Given recent reports that our Crown Office is “understaffed and overworked”, it beggars belief that our Lord Advocate James Wolffe has spent so much time, money and energy on arguing that Scotland should have some sort of veto over Brexit in the Supreme Court of the UK.
A primary school student could have told him that foreign affairs are a reserved matter for the United Kingdom Government and might have spared his humiliation.
It would be better if he looked in his in-tray and made a decision on how to proceed with the case of Sheku Bayoh, who died in police custody in Kirkcaldy in May 2015.
His family and the public have a right to know the circumstances of his death, and it is completely unacceptable that, 20 months on, we are none the wiser.
Better to concentrate on the day job Mr Wolffe, rather than posture on behalf of your political masters.
Alan Thomson.
Easter Dunochil,
High Street,
Kinross.
Where is the evidence?
Sir, – Philip Kearns’ claim that Christian religious observance is educational (January 25) relies on the assumption that his religious beliefs are correct and, therefore, count as knowledge.
Can Mrs Kearns present supporting evidence?
He argues that “our laws are based upon Christianity, therefore, it is through the Christian perspective that pupils should be led out of ignorance”.
Would he agree then that in countries whose laws are based on Islam, pupils should be led out of ignorance through an Islamic perspective?
He wants people to learn about Christianity through prayer, but true prayer requires belief, so how can it work as an educational tool for non-believers?
Robert Canning.
Secular Scotland,
58a Broughton Street,
Edinburgh.
Scotland’s huge deficit
Sir, – The gap between Scotland’s public spending and tax revenues has widened with the crash in global oil prices, leading to a deficit of nearly £15 billlion.
NHS Tayside has been plunged into a fresh crisis as a report shows it needs to make “unprecedented” savings of £58.4 million following four years of government bailouts.
Auditor General for Scotland Caroline Gardner signalled the board was facing a £11.6m budget shortfall this year, with had no clear plan for how to close the funding gap.
Scotland’s police service is facing a financial black hole of almost £200 million by the end of the decade.
The qualifying age for a bus pass may rise as the Scottish Government tackles the funding gap.
All this adds up to a 9.5 % budget deficit, more than three times the limit required by the EU’s financial stability rules for membership.
This is bigger even than the Greek and Spanish deficits.
Yet it is all the fault of Westminster. Let us write another blank cheque for pairs of rose-tinted spectacles for those who voted SNP at the last elections and let us make sure we get them fitted before May.
The price of wool is bound to rise soon and our economy can look forward to the boost that will come when the sheep are eventually shorn.
Rob Pearce.
6 Southern Close,
Arbroath.
Learn from Theresa May
Sir, – In the UK Government’s green paper on industrial strategy, £170 million is to be injected into technical education in England and Wales by funding new colleges and replacing a large number of courses with fewer, higher quality courses, which it is felt will better meet the needs of employers.
An emphasis on localism with regard to skills and infrastructure spending recognises that what might be appropriate for Tyneside may not be right for the West Midlands.
We are often reminded that one of the benefits of Holyrood is that decisions are taken locally. Fair enough. But sadly, the SNP’s local initiative in technical education is to cut 140,000 college places, closing the door on many returning to education to retrain or upskill.
Regrettably, this SNP policy hits women seeking to return to the workplace after having a family particularly hard.
I’d like to think that Nicola Sturgeon would take heed of this initiative by Theresa May and learn from it, though somehow that doesn’t seem terribly likely.
Martin Redfern.
4 Royal Circus,
Edinburgh.