Today’s letters to The Courier.
Sir, – I was dismayed to find out that the request made by the Guardian newspaper to read correspondence made between Prince Charles and various cabinet ministers was vetoed by the Attorney General.
This is a breach of the intentions of the Freedom of Information Act and should not be allowed.
We should all get to know what is in these letters, especially as his views and beliefs expressed in them could seriously damage his role as a future monarch.
If that is the case we, the public, should demand to know these views, in the country’s interest.
Remember this man’s oaths and promises mean nothing to him as was proved when he took his marriage vows when he married Diana Spencer, swearing in front of billions of people, in a church, that he would honour and protect her while Camilla Parker Bowles was standing just yards away.
If we had a democratically elected head of state I don’t think he would be the people’s choice.
Alister Rankin.93 Whyterose Terrace,Methil,Leven.
A staggering revelation
Sir, – The admission from the SNP Government that it has never sought legal advice on whether an independent Scotland would be an automatic member of the EU is a staggering revelation of what many suspected all along.
Earlier this year, Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, told me that after an exhaustive search of their files, not one of the 27 EU commissioners had been able to trace a letter from any Scottish Government ministers or officials seeking advice on Scotland’s position in the EU, post-independence.
The SNP pointed to advice from ”eminent legal authorities” who insisted Scotland would be treated as a ”succession state”, enjoying a smooth overnight transition to full EU membership as a new, sovereign nation. The fact that ministers have since spent thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money to obscure the absence of formal, authoritative legal advice is unforgiveable.
It is obvious why the SNP has sought to avoid asking the hard questions all along.
Ministers have been crippled by the realisation that an independent Scotland would have to apply to join the EU and go through a tortuous accession process taking up to two years; that our farmers would face a lengthy hiatus during which they would receive no Single Farm Payments from Brussels; that our financial services sector would be left in limbo to await Scotland’s compulsory absorption into the beleaguered Eurozone and that inward investment would come to a standstill as the prospect of new border controls between Scotland and England loomed.
Now that the government is getting round to requesting legal advice, the people of Scotland deserve to hear the unabridged content of any answers from Brussels without any further delay.
Struan Stevenson.Conservative MEP for Scotland.
Friends of the people?
Sir, – As if this country was not suffering from more than enough of doom and gloom, a letter is produced by a representative of Friends of the Earth (October 18).
For years the public have had to observe the regular literature from the above organisation. Where does the collated money come from? Their latest words being: ”Scotland benefits from such a rich and abundant array of renewable energy resources.”
It would be a pleasant change if the policy was transferred from ”Friends of the Earth” to an updated innovative constructive policy of ”Friends of the People”.
Harry Lawrie.35 Abbots Mill,Kirkcaldy.
Just a soft soap PR exercise
Sir, – I do not think David Cameron’s ideas regarding making prison pay go nearly far enough. It is nothing more than a soft soap PR exercise in favour of criminals.
Prison should be tough and act as a deterrent rather than be concerned with the rehabilitation of the offender at great cost to the overstretched public purse.
There are people in prison living a life of luxury with widescreen TVs in their cells, access to gyms and free food and not having to worry about rising heating bills that law-abiding, tax-paying citizens can barely afford.
And, of course, if prisoners feel there is any sense of injustice, they proclaim their human rights while the victims seem to be forgotten about.
It is time to get tough on crime and prisons and stop focusing on the prisoner.
Focus on the victims instead.
Gordon Kennedy.117 Simpson Square,Perth.
Passport poser
Sir, – In all seriousness, what will happen to our citizenship and passports upon Scottish ”independence?” Will we cease to be able to travel through England or the rest of the UK without identification?
I do not wish to renounce my citizenship within what will remain of the UK, but will I therefore be granted a Scottish passport also, or be faced with a horrible choice between the two?
These and many more questions remain unanswered.
Richard Smith.Dundee.