Sir, Dundee Labour’s housing spokesperson Councillor Gordon recently remarked that he was “staggered” by the scale of the bedroom tax crisis in Dundee. He is right to be concerned as 3,300 Dundonian households are affected by this policy.
You would have thought that as Labour MPs such as Margaret Curran have described the bedroom tax as “cruel” and “nasty” Labour would be quick to promise its repeal, yet they have not.
It has been suggested this tax could breach human rights legislation and as such it would not have got off the ground at the Scottish Parliament as the Human Rights Act is embedded in legislation. So, if social security was devolved, we could then act to protect our most vulnerable citizens and surely the Labour Party would be happy with that; particularly when Cllr Gordon believes “devolution was designed for moments like this”.
Yet Cllr Gordon’s party recently voted against a motion at a Dundee City Council housing committee which asked that social security be devolved to the Scottish Parliament.
So, as I understand it, Dundee’s Labour Party think the bedroom tax is “cruel” and “nasty” but they will not support an independent Scotland in which Nicola Sturgeon has pledged to repeal it. Also, they won’t commit their own party to repealing the tax should they be elected to power in 2015 and they will not support the devolution of social security to the Scottish Parliament where the tax could be repealed right now.
I have written to Cllr Gordon asking that he clarify Labour’s position and asking that he supports the SNP in calling for the bedroom tax to be repealed. I am sure Dundee’s citizens would appreciate a united front.
Councillor Kevin Cordell. Depute Convener Housing.
Being British has real worth
Sir, I realised my correspondence of May 25 would ruffle a few nationalistic feathers so I feel I must, once again, rise to the bait!
Nowhere in my original letter did I describe Scottish history as “tosh”. I described Mr Clark’s view on Scottish education as “tosh”. A subtle difference.
Regarding Mr Rollo’s interpretation of my views on European history, the erstwhile enemies I mentioned were the fascist regimes my late father, an enlisted man, left his wife, children and homeland to confront and defeat.
Simple arithmetic deduction tells us that Mr Rollo was not around during those terrible times. I recommend he looks up the meaning of erstwhile!
Curiously enough I am pro-European as I believe a little lateral thinking may lead on to the conclusion that European wars are now a thing of the past.
Finally, in reply to his oxymoronic jibe that I am a “Union Jack waving nationalist” and to correct any more misleading interpretations of my beliefs, I state that I am pro-British, pro-European, anti-Scottish Nationalist and 100% a Scotsman.
In global terms being British really does mean something.
James Davie. 33 Aberdour Place, Barnhill, Dundee.
Where will it all come from?
Sir, I have read with interest about how green the potential biomass plant is. Yet no one can say where exactly we are going to get the trees from; whose land we are going to destroy.
A tree takes 12 years to mature for our use and only one tree can take up that space in the 12 years.
How much land are we going to deforest for 12 years to feed the biomass plant? An area the size of Tayside? I’d love to know. If another two or three plants are to be built, where are they going to get their trees from? Our source will only do ours, surely?
Are we so arrogant to just take it from other countries so long as our land is green and full of animals?
Biomass requires total stripping of all wood for fuel so there will be no shelter for insects, birds and animals, thus no animals, in the area once it has been stripped.
Gordon Fotheringham. 1 Woodland Way, Kingoodie, Dundee.
Religion is for the individual
Sir, The United Kingdom is known worldwide as a Christian country and people from all over the world have arrived to live in Britain and benefit from the religious and social tolerance so hard fought for by the citizens.
My belief is that we should give daily thanks to our respective gods for the tolerance of our society, but sadly we are experiencing troubled times when a new generation feels the need to form groups in order to change our lives and culture, running the risk of losing the religious and social tolerance we cherish.
The concern now is that they are influencing the state to interfere with the country’s religious beliefs and morally oblige the Christian church to provide a form of acceptance for relationships which they and other religions do not condone.
This backward step may encourage converts to seek Christian acceptance of their behaviour and therefore insult Christianity along with many other religions.
Christianity is a corner stone of the state but the state should never be encouraged to legislate for the Church.
Religion is for the individual.
Alan Bell. Roods, Kirriemuir.