I AM not a constitutional lawyer but from my basic understanding of the current Scottish constitutional position, the Scots do not have to tolerate the inhumane and immoral treatment of the Brain and Monongo families, and others, by the so-called UK Home Office.
The Scottish courts have the power to “derogate” an act of the Westminster Parliament if it is found to be in conflict with the fundamental principles of Scots law. I assume that inhumane and immoral treatment of individuals domiciled in Scotland is not a fundamental tenet of Scots law.
According to Scotland’s legally binding constitution, guaranteed within the terms of the Treaty of Union of 1707, no external institution has any authority over the people of Scotland, and that I assume, includes the UK Home Office.
The sovereignty of the Scottish people and the Scottish Claim of Right were not affected by the Treaty of Union of 1707. The immoral and illegal breaching of Scottish human rights by the UK Home Office, of people domiciled in Scotland and wishing to be referred to as Scottish, need not be accepted meekly by the Scottish people or the Scottish legal system.
However, it remains to be seen whether the Scottish people and the Scottish legal system have the courage and humanity to stand up to the UK Home Office and refuse to allow the inhumane deportation from Scotland of people who have made their home here, embraced Scottish culture and language, and who wish to reside in Scotland and be referred to as Scottish.
The UK Home Office has no right whatsoever to dictate to the Monongo family, or anyone else, that they cannot refer to themselves as Scottish. The UK Home Office is not “home” for the Scots, and never has been. It is a contradiction in terms for the Scots. The time has come for the Scottish people to stand up and be counted and invoke their inalienable rights; but will they?
William C McLaughlin
Biggar
THE Nuclear Free Local Authorities report highlighted by the Sunday Herald at the weekend on the risks posed by terrorist attacks on nuclear plants and shipments of radioactive material calls for the distribution of iodine tablets to the more populated areas of Scotland in addition to those living in the three kilometre radius of nuclear plants.
This is as reassuring as the Government’s “Protect and Survive” advice almost four decades ago on how to survive a nuclear strike when we were told to paint your walls of your house white and hide under the kitchen table.
The saturation of the thyroid with stable iodine will reduce the uptake of the cancer-inducing unstable radioactive isotope Iodine-131, if you can remember where you put the pill or can get access to it in the resulting mayhem of an attack.
The problem is there are no pills to counteract all the other radioactive fission products that will also be present: the highly radioactive Strontium-90 and Cesium-137. All this nasty stuff will be in the air, soil, water supply and entering the food chain. Not to worry. The nuclear industry is safe. Just take your pill and forget about all those pesky terrorists.
The nuclear industry has been involved in this type of deception since its inception and on every continent where it operates: from the cover up of the fire at Windscale in 1957 to the present day. As I write, 12,000 litres of brine are pouring into the abandoned Asse salt mine in Germany which was secretly used in the 1960s to store 20 Olympic-size swimming pools worth of highly radioactive waste. No-one knows how to clean it up but we do know that it will take decades and the cost will run into billions of euros.
A spokeswoman for the UK Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) said: “Duty holders within the UK civil nuclear industry are required by the ONR to demonstrate that they have resilience against a range of external threat scenarios.”
Well thank heavens for that. I feel so much safer now. Now where did I put my pill? I’m off to read another chapter of Protect and Survive and dream about the tooth fairy.
Gordon Murray
Lanark
SIMON Campbell points out (Letters, May 30 ) that although there may be less “inequality” in Finland and Switzerland, this may not have anything to do with their kindergarten systems.
Indeed, it probably does not. You find that people who have over centuries had to battle with endlessly difficult weather conditions and rather limited agricultural potential, such as the Finns, the Swiss and the Scots, are more likely to have an egalitarian approach to life. They have seldom been spoilt by “easy money”. To return to the question of education: we have to be careful not to underestimate the enormous value of normal home nurturing.
In the 1860s and 70s, when women’s movements were getting off the ground, a big demand was that men would be paid sufficiently well to allow women not to have to go out to work when they had young children. This was achieved to some extent during the last years of the 19th century, and the health of the country improved because women could be at home to cook and care, to look after family members when they were ill, and, of course, help children with school work.
Young parents are not often overly confident. When my children were young, I was told by a teacher of many years standing, “it is the home that counts”. I could not readily believe her.We all thought it was the schooling.
Lesley J Findlay
Fort Augustus
We’re living in a Game of Thrones throwback
WESTMINSTER and Whitehall both belong in Game of Thrones. These establishments of a dead empire are more concerned with the retention of power than the welfare of citizens. They are cruise liners that once sailed the globe now trying to do sharp turns in a pond.
The UK refuses to modernise, instead clinging to a dead past, maintaining its monarchy and House of Lords with its ties to the Church of England. Institutions of empire filled with entitled elite, brought up and educated apart from the masses they are supposed to represent. But Cameron and Co only represent themselves and the interests of their kind. Ordinary people are no more than chattel to them.
Mark Harper
Dysart
BREAKING news! As a retired teacher, I am pleased to hear the attainment gap is not caused by us in the education system – phew! It’s the result of poverty. Oh dear! To correct that, we need politicians. We need a maximum wage law and to stop giving away our money to undeserving bankers, company chairmen, footballers etc. Community first, individuals second.
B McKenna
Dumbarton
Scottish Government asks Westminster to co-operate on new post-study work visa scheme
Letters II: Picture an inferno tearing through all of Aberdeenshire ...
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