I HAVE no sympathy for Iain Duncan Smith. Where has this mock compassion for the disabled suddenly come from?
I will never forget the scenes last year in the House of Commons when George Osborne announced a crackdown on disability benefits. The camera panned to IDS, who was seen to punch the air in delight and mouth the word “fantastic.” I hope now that no TV channel will reward him with any punditry work and that he disappears into the obscurity he so deserves.
Steve Cunningham, Aberdeen
I NOTE with an abundance of schadenfreude the exit of IDS, but despair of the legacy he leaves in his wake (Duncan Smith quits over disability benefit cuts, The National, March 19). Speculation that he and George Osborne were at each other’s throats leaves me disappointed they never actually engaged in such combat.
With a backbench revolt against Georgie Porgie’s draconian budget, I’ll not be at all surprised if Georgie Porgie doesn’t also run away (sans kissing the girls on the way out) having been forced to make Budget U-turns as his swan song.
Prima facie, we are witnessing a plethora of opposing factions developing within the Tory party. One wonders if “call me Dave” can ever pacify and essentially put Humpty Dumpty together again?
Earlier there were reports that the the country should be prepared for a snap election, and all the indications are that he may well have marched his small majority to the top of the hill, but rather than march them down again they currently resemble a rather unedifying Easter egg race in which many will simply disintegrate as they hit the bottom.
Piers Doughty-Brown, Glasgow
IT’S staggering to think that Iain Duncan Smith (who played a major role in £30 billion cuts from the welfare budget and who introduced the Bedroom Tax and Personal Independence Payments a benefit cleverly constructed to force disabled people off DLA and leave them penniless) has suddenly had a “road to Damascus moment” and found a conscience and is suddenly against welfare cuts.
IDS will live in the minds of disabled people and the families of loved ones like Michael O Sullivan, a mentally ill person who committed suicide as a direct result of his benefit being wrongly withdrawn under Duncan Smith’s brutal welfare reforms. If we lived in a civilised world, Cameron, Osborne and Duncan Smith would be in the dock charged with crimes against disabled people.
It’s obvious to any right-thinking person that IDS has not resigned out of concern over welfare cuts. This man’s motive is all about Brexit in order to force Cameron and Osborne out of Downing Street and replace them with his own cronies Boris Johnson and Chris Grayling.
As the Scottish elections approach we must not forget that New Labour were responsible for opening doors for the Tories by introducing Atos into the welfare chapter, a name that struck fear into the hearts of every disabled person in the UK. And we must also never forget that Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson was a staunch supporter of Duncan Smith’s brutality against vulnerable people. And last but not least we must not forget Lib Dem Willie Rennie who, while his party was in coalition with their Tory mates, also supported the “welfare reforms”, especially the Bedroom Tax.
I hope the Scottish people will remember these heartless nonentities when they step into the ballot box in May!
Louise McArdle, Lanarkshire
NOW I’m not one to say “I told you so,” but on this occasion I did.
I have said all along that Iain Duncan Smith has been cruelly misjudged and maligned by the populace and that time would show what a fine human being he really is, despite being a Tory. And he’s just proved, by resigning from Cameron’s Cabal, that he is indeed the Champion and Defender of the Disabled, a fine, upstanding hero who wants only what is good for the sick and infirm, a man who has fought tooth and nail to make sure they are not simply having their benefits unjustly stolen from them, but behind the scenes he was actually lobbying to have their existing benefits doubled.
He was just being cruel to be kind by telling some to rise, pick up their beds and walk, because he knew they could in fact run if given enough encouragement. So hang your heads in shame, ye of little faith, and give the man a medal, say I, and a huge public apology for ever doubting his decency and humanity.
On another tack entirely, I just wish to remind anyone who has lost a tooth today to be sure to put it under their pillow for collection tonight by the Tooth Fairy, and to also serve notice that the Easter Bunny will be calling soon to distribute chocolate eggs to all good children. And Little Iain first of all.
Robert F Henderson, Fort William
DAVID Cameron may be puzzled and disappointed that Iain Duncan Smith has resigned, but only in the way of a man who probably has more money in his current account than a PIP recipient will ever possess in a lifetime.
John Jamieson, South Queensferry
(TO David Cameron,dressed in toga, entering/exiting stage right) “Beware the IDS of March.”
Richard Easson, Dornoch
Poor effort at justifying a weak Land Reform Bill
ROB Gibson’s defence of the current reforms are a poor attempt at justifying a weak piece of legislation which in itself would have been even weaker if the SNP membership hadn’t forced the issue (Letters, March 19).
For example, If he thinks for one minute that a single penny of business rates will be collected from the biggest shooting estates, he underestimates the amount of money the big players will throw at their lawyers to find another legal tax loophole.
That the responsibility for business rates lies with local authorities, not Holyrood, opens up another whole issue of local interests and pressures. This one aspect of the Bill will have the result of penalising small struggling estates with absolutely zero effect on the major players.
I am heart sick of the Scottish Government hiding behind the stock statement that the issue is “not within the legal competence of the Scottish Parliament”. Get the external legal firms they pay
£10 million to find the loopholes to make the issue competent. After all, they are the same firms who use the same tactic to drive coach and horses through any legislation brought forward.
Aitken Scott, Selkirk
Tories in turmoil as IDS gets stuck in to Osborne
The National View: IDS has thrown a spanner in the works for ambitious Osborne
George Kerevan: IDS resignation is latest salvo in global crisis for neoliberalism
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here