TOGETHER with a welfare system, universal health care, honest judiciary and government, the abolition of capital punishment is the tenet of a civilised society (Many Scots back the death penalty, September 14). Whenever anyone suggests to me that hanging should return, I usually answer that many innocent people have been executed, and many more would have been but for abolition in 1965.

These include the Birmingham Six, Guildford Four, Maguire Seven, Bridgewater Four, Judith Ward and Barry White plus many, many more. Too many of these people languished in prison for years before the truth was established by honest journalists and lawyers.

Less caring was the antediluvian Mr Justice John Donaldson, who callously said that if the Guildford Four had been hanged it would have been no great loss. Fortunately he is no longer amongst us, but I imagine that some equally obnoxious people in power are.

Not so fortunate were the people who were hanged and later found innocent, including Derek Bentley, Timothy Evans, James Hanratty and goodness knows how many more stretching back into history. The enormous number of miscarriages of justice in the USA is disturbing; but then this is the country which mistreats black people and carries out torture. The great jurist William Blackstone said in the 1760s: it is better that 10 guilty persons escape than that one innocent person is condemned.

Richard Walthew
Duns

MANY congratulations on Nick Rodger’s coverage of the Solheim Cup at Gleneagles (Matthew’s the Cat who got the cream, September 16), as it captures the excitement and outstanding success of the event – considered for a journalist’s prize later in the year?

Golfers and their supporters came from many different European countries played as a team which not only beat the American golfers, albeit by the narrowest of margins, but also displayed great respect for our friends from across the Big Pond.

The American golfers and their supporters were a great credit to their country. Perhaps a lesson for some of our politicians on both sides of the Atlantic?

It must be remembered that the overall success of the Solheim Cup will not be good news for the Brexiteers. The fact that the competition was held at the Gleneagles golf course and hotel complex in Scotland, the European team was made up of golfers from a number of different countries and the captain, Catriona Matthews, is a Scot, makes nonsense of the Brexiteer’s claims that the Scots are useless and want to leave the EU.

The most worrying aspect is that if we leave the EU on October 31, as “promised” by PM Boris Johnson, in the future will British golfers be allowed to compete in the Solheim Cup and will UK venues be considered as appropriate venues? This is a question that could affect other sports including football.

For a PM who can illegally shut down the Westminster Parliament, the banning of British nationals from competing in Europe would pose no problems whatsoever. Perhaps the Europeans will just get fed up with the nonsense and kick us out? I sincerely hope not.

Thomas L Inglis
Fintry

NOW that the deadline for PPI claims is past and the banks can redirect the billions left over from that enterprise into their own coffers, there must be a vast amount of spare legal capacity in the claims firms who have hitherto also had a field day. And no doubt they will be examining future opportunities. May I suggest they could consider class actions on behalf of anyone adversely affected by a No-deal Brexit, whether it be a death caused by lack of medication or medical treatment or the effect of the many other hardships that we are told will follow.

Despite all the warnings, it seems that the UK Government is hell-bent on going ahead with No Deal to ensure the great benefits available for themselves, even if that means flouting the law. After all, a solid gold toilet must be quite expensive and is a necessity.

So it would seem only right that the Prime Minister, the Health Secretary, the Transport Secretary and any other minister in charge of a state department should be held to account for the outcome of their deliberate actions.

After all, if it matters to you, you should make sure that it matters to the perpetrators.

Robert Johnston
Airdrie