WHAT a significant message you published from the German MEP Terry Reinke (Germany MEP sends us back a love letter from Europe, The National, February 15).
Germany has been Scotland’s friend and ally since at least the 14th century when William Wallace sought the support of the towns of the Hanseatic League such as Lübeck and Hamburg and the areas of Saxony and Westphalia.
Sadly Kings and Kaisers and our involvement with England disrupted that friendship for parts of the 20th century, but today it is flourishing and developing again.
In the early 1990s, I attended a meeting of some UK and German politicians in Frankfurt, where there was informal talk if an independent Scottish pound being supported by the Deutschmark. The arrival of the euro overtook these proposals, but they would have easily exorcised all the economic ghosts and ghouls raised by Westminster in 2014.
Today, we must develop every area of contact and friendship with Germany that we possibly can. The fact that a Scots-German politician, the Prime Minister of Lower Saxony David McAllister, may eventually succeed Angela Merkel is very encouraging indeed.
Alan Clayton
Strachur, Argyll
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BETTER TOGETHER 2 WILL HAVE NO 'BIG BEASTS' TO ROLL OUT
KEVIN McKenna asks a very interesting question (Who’s ready to step up and lead Better Together 2?) Just who are the No side going to get to campaign for them?
In 2014, they had a number of prominent Scottish MPs and MSPs they could call on, well-known people who had been around politics for years. Even if you didn’t agree with their politics at least you knew who they were With the LibDems being in coalition, they had cabinet ministers. Labour had MPs who had previously held ministerial positions.
Now who have they got besides the party leaders in Scotland and David Mundell? That lot are hardly a formidable political force on their own, so who else? Jackson Carlaw and Murdo Fraser? Carmichael and Murray? Coburn?
Even if they bring MPs up from south of the Border who will anyone recognise? Nearly all the familiar people from Cameron’s government went after the Brexit vote. Apart from May and Boris, I doubt the majority of voters would be able to pick any of the current cabinet out of a line-up if those in it were wearing blue rosettes.
If Cameron kept away because he was going to be a negative for the campaign what effect would May and Johnson, or Gove, or Rees-Mogg have? For that matter who is there on the Labour side either? Corbyn is hardly likely to galvanise support and, as with the Tories, most of their well-known figures have disappeared from the Cabinet, following the leadership challenge.
There was much talk about Better Together’s “big beasts” in 2014. Even if they wheel the likes of Brown and Darling out again we have seen through their message and they are just going to look like yesterday’s men. Big beasts? They don’t appear to have even any little beasts.
Gail Hughes
via thenational.scot
IT’S a shame this piece was not more serious, as this is something we need to consider tactically. Brown would be the biggest threat to us – his intervention last time was decisive. However, I can’t see him being healthy enough to do it; he hasn’t made many public appearances since 2014.
Now that the Tories are the senior partner in Better Together, it will most likely be Davidson. While she is hardly a threat, remember we have lost to a mediocre campaign chief before (Darling).
Davidson did well at the Holyrood elections because no-one took her seriously. We can’t make that mistake again.
Andrew McPake
via Facebook
LAST Wednesday we had the House of Commons with that massive majority of 372 (thank you Labour!) in the vote to give a third reading to Article 50. The same day the Dubs Amendment was scrapped and the figure of accepting 3000 child refugees was slashed to 350.
Was that sufficient for one day of infamy? No, the UK Government went for broke by refusing to support and guarantee the futures of EU citizens in the UK.
It would appear then that child refugees are no more than casual statistics and EU citizens are clearly bargaining chips to be held at the ready in the months to come when considering Brits abroad. What a shameful period in our history! Both sides of the House appear more interested than ever before in appeasing the Brexiteers, especially with those two by-elections later this month. Should Labour lose one seat to the Tories, that will be bad enough, but to lose two, with the other going to Ukip would clearly signal that they face long years in the wilderness with no hopes of governing.
How much longer then will voters in Scotland believe the posturing of Dugdale and her call for new Act of Union? How long will there be in a belief in Davidson and her ability to flip-flop in line with Tory HQ requirements?
Hopefully, our May elections will send a clear message to the Unionist parties and their HQs and clearly set our direction of political travel.
In the run-up to indyref2, we need to be prepared for alternative facts, Project Fear 2, and, even worse, the resurrection of the Browns, the Murphys telling us we’ll be better off in a Union bent of self-destruction from within. As Kevin McKenna suggested, leading Better Together 2 is potentially toxic for political parties. Our challenge is bigger: ensuring we leave this Union and that the day comes when we can shout the good news.
Selma Rahman
Edinburgh
A FRIEND who is 68 and is disabled and fighting blood cancer received a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions two months ago informing him that his Disability Living Allowance, which he was awarded “for life” is going to be replaced by the Personal Independence Payment. He was awarded DLA after undergoing two thorough medicals carried out by real DWP doctors. Now he has to face a humiliating ATOS assessment almost certainly carried out by a person using the new title of “health professional”.
To claim PIP, he has had to fill out a 35-page claim form. Some of the questions are unanswerable in anybody’s language? It’s disgraceful that pensioners who worked in this country throughout their lives and paid their taxes are now being treated like vermin by this heartless Tory Government.
Only yesterday I watched the brilliant Ken Loach film I, Daniel Blake and was appalled at the way people with disabilities and serious illnesses are being treated in this country in order to pay for the actions of the Tory bankers responsible for the collapse of the UK economy in 2008.
Diane Buick
Lanarkshire
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 hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel