This weeks letters from our readers

I would like to ask you to drive between Dumbarton and Helensburgh on a Saturday morning when these bunch of clowns ride three abreast, bunched up when there are as many as 30 together.

When you toot the horn at them they then go three to four abreast and cover the full width of the road. Their road sense is abominable.

I am 59 years of age, and I had to sit a road safety test before I was allowed on to my bike.

I was taught to ride two abreast and on any road when cars were nearby we had to ride behind each other.

I think that bike riders should have to sit a road proficiency test, pay tax and insurance to use public roads. Also, if there are cycle paths which we all pay to be built, they should be forced to use them.

I have had to crawl behind these riders most weekends, and have watched them cut up other road users, then complain when a driver nearly hits them through their ignorance.

I think that Gordon Dick needs to look at the road use of cyclists from a driver’s point of view.

Lesley Moan,

via email

I REFER to the claim in last week’s Advertiser by SNP member Vivien Dance that “three of the main parties” had asked her to stand as one of their candidates.

I wish to point out that the Dumbarton constituency Liberal Democrats have never invited Councillor Dance to stand for us.

During the independence referendum, the 2015 general election and the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, it was very obvious that Mrs Dance had aligned herself with the SNP, and so was no longer a truly independent councillor.

Andrew Nisbet,

Dumbarton Constituency Liberal Democrats

I REFER to SNP supporter Councillor Vivien Dance’s column in the Advertiser of January 19, concerning management staff numbers in Argyll and Bute Council.

The fact is that since I was elected the number of executive directors has gone down – from eight to four some years ago, with a further reduction from four to three in 2010.

At the same time the number of heads of service was also reduced from 15 to 12.

The facts are easily checked but clearly Councillor Dance does not believe in letting the truth get in the way of what she writes.

Ellen Morton

Depute leader,

Argyll and Bute Council

WITH the British Red Cross calling the state of the English NHS a “humanitarian crisis” and Tory-run Surrey Council planning to raise council tax by a whopping 15 per cent – just like Tory-run Moray Council threatened 18 per cent last year – it’s clear now what the people of Scotland can expect for their local services if the Tories get to run their local council.

But since Theresa May sounds like she’ll arrogantly ignore a compromise put forward by the Scottish Government to keep us in the single market to save jobs, I wouldn’t be surprised if Tory council candidates think they can get away with treating voters as fools by pretending they support low taxes and efficient public services.

Their behaviour is a clear case of “actions speak louder than words” and their actions show they want to treat Scotland like they did in the 1980s with cuts that damage public services and stealth taxes.

Graham CB Roberts

via email

AS a nation, Scotland hasn’t voted Tory for 60 years and, even despite overtaking Labour, still languish at less support than Margaret Thatcher’s low point.

Yet particularly since the Brexit vote they act as if the people of Scotland overwhelmingly support them and will accept anything the Tory party wants to impose on them.

Before the independence referendum Ruth Davidson promised us voting No means we stay in the EU.

She and David Cameron signed a pledge saying “power lies with the Scottish people... to decide how Scotland is governed.”

Cameron went further by saying “all the options of devolution are there and are possible”, if Scotland voted No.

The Tory rhetoric was clear. Both Theresa May and Ruth Davidson said Scotland was an “equal partner” in the UK.

David Cameron promised “no going back to the way things were”.

But what have they done since winning the 2015 election and the Brexit referendum that puts 80,000 Scottish jobs at risk and will result in poorer living standards as the falling pound threatens inflation?

A referendum that they only held because of splits in the Tory party. A ‘Brexit’ Ruth Davidson said was based on “lies” yet now tells people will be wonderful.

Despite saying a No vote meant power lay with the Scottish people, and that we could have all options of devolution, the Tories voted down proposals by 95 per cent of Scotland’s MPs that more powers should be devolved.

The sole Tory MP from Scotland, as Secretary of State, haughtily denies powers those MPs and the elected government of Scotland wish to see devolved.

We hear a Tory Prime Minister that hasn’t even put her plans to a public vote signal she will ignore the compromise the Scottish Government put forward for Brexit.

Meanwhile, Tory Lords say they want to use Brexit to finish what Thatcher started.

In short the Tories are acting as if they think the people of Scotland will just meekly accept whatever they impose.

Scotland voted No on the promise that the Tories wouldn’t return to the way things were done in the past and on the basis power lay with the Scottish people.

Scotland voted to Remain in the EU and the European single market to protect jobs.

The reality under a Tory Westminster government doesn’t even come anywhere near that.

It is their arrogant actions that are narrowing the choices for Scotland’s future, meaning the only way we can have an equal partnership with the rest of the UK is independence.

The alternative is a future of Tory governments telling Scotland what to do, just like they did in the 1980s.

Andrew Stuart

vie email

THE theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day, on Friday, January 27 is ‘How can life go on?’, raising challenging questions for individuals, communities and nations in the aftermath of the Holocaust and subsequent genocides.

At around 6,000 events taking place across the country, people will reflect upon the horrors of the past and remember those who were killed, while honouring all those who survived and went on, with bravery, to rebuild their lives.

Every January, when we listen to the testimony of survivors, we don’t just learn a little more about the darkest chapters of human history. We are also reminded of where hatred and bigotry can lead if left unchallenged and unchecked.

Today, that lesson is more important than ever, which is why I urge you to attend an event in your community, listed at www.hmd.org.uk.

In our film for Holocaust Memorial Day 2017, Bea Green, a survivor of the Holocaust, tells the story of how she and her father were forced to flee Nazi Germany because they were Jewish and how Nazi law encouraged the humiliation they faced.

Today in the UK such persecution is unlawful, but people still face prejudice and hostility because of who they are.

This Holocaust Memorial Day, let’s learn from the lessons of the past to create a safer, better society. You can play your part by watching the film on howcanlifegoon.hmd.org.uk and sharing it on social media so that Bea’s story is seen by as many people as possible.

Olivia Marks-Woldman

Chief executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust

THE latest official statistics on homelessness in Scotland continue to show a downward trend in the number of people being assessed as homeless.

This is testament to the hard work of the housing sector and its focus on prevention. But an increase in the number of households with children living in temporary accommodation – 3,174 at the end of September last year, a 13 per cent increase on the corresponding number a year previously – is a real cause for concern.

Temporary accommodation is not ideal for any household but can be particularly disruptive for children.

These statistics show the need for a continued focus on providing enough good quality, affordable homes with the right type of support in place to ensure that every household in Scotland has a safe secure place to call home.

Annie Mauger

Executive Director,

CIH Scotland