I HAVE a secret confession to make, and thank God not many people will ever know about this, but I secretly I admire PM hopeful Rory Stewart. But in amongst my admiration is my confusion and terror.

I admire him as he seems to have some decency, some morals and some integrity. An ex-Etonian, and Oxbridge! I thought those were anathema in that type of background? Surely some Eton masters have failed miserably in indoctrinating him and there should be heads to roll for allowing such an error; for decency and morality to exist in one of their old boys!

And he’s had a proper job! I thought having ever had a proper job automatically got your application for certain elite gentlemen’s clubs in London declined? I mean proper jobs are for the ... well you know, for the lower classes.

But he confuses me. What the hell is he doing in the Tory party? Where backstabbing each other and hammering the poor, disabled, vulnerable and disadvantaged in society seem to be party sports. Yet he just does not seem to be into those games (again I blame Eton. They obviously did not teach him to enjoy the same team sports there on the playing fields!).

I look at him, I listen to him and imagine him more risking his life diving into a burning orphanage to save children’s lives than taking part in the national viper competition that is the race to be the Tory party leader and thus future PM (though the vast majority of the “nation” are only onlookers and have not the slightest influence – so for most of us it’s a spectator sport at most. That’s democracy for you!). At least the pensioners not in the Tory party can still watch before they lose their TV licences.

He terrifies me too. If he should ever get elected (and he won’t – Tory plus decency plus morals just don’t seem to go!) he might entice people away from independence and to think “ah, he’s a nice boy, the Tories can’t be that bad after all, let’s give them another chance!”

Nope, better one of the others, one of the total bast... I mean, old Etonians/Oxbridge lot without failings from their Etonian schooling or one of their wannabes, win instead – and remind Scotland just how awful it all is and the sooner we’re out the better!

Crìsden Mac Fhearghais
Dùn Eideann

YOUR headline “Boris Johnson: ‘A Scot should NEVER be PM’” (June 18) due to their “political disability” is a brutal assessment of David Mundell and Ruth Davidson’s political abilities.

I would think that if Boris is elected leader of the Conservative party and then appointed, not elected, as Prime Minister then they and their colleagues should look to pastures new in which to earn their living!

On second thoughts perhaps Boris has something positive to offer Scotland!

Thomas L Inglis
Fintry

BORIS Johnson’s claim that a Scot should never be PM is interesting. Is he going to legislate to prevent it happening?

However, in the current Tory leadership stramash, how does that affect Rory Stewart? He claims he is a Scot and so we must surely expect him to rail against Johnson’s claim!

It will be interesting to see if Johnson in his first pitch on the hustings continues that claim against Stewart’s right as a Scot to be PM. Or will Stewart raise it himself? After all, he laments that independence will deprive him of his “country”!

John Edgar
Kilmaurs

AFTER watching some of the Channel 4 debate on Sunday night, it struck me that the British Biased Corporation have missed a trick here. They could have taken all six of their “friends” to a remote island and named a programme “I’m A Celebratory . . . Get Me In”. Alternatively they cold have gi’ed us all peace and just left them there! Ah well, dream on...

Iain Lyall
Hamilton

I’M embarrassed that my charming Polish postwoman has just had to deliver a glossy A3 leaflet from the “Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy Group in the European Parliament” to my door.

Printed in Bodmin, it is headed “What Scotland really thinks about the EU”. NO to more EU laws, the euro, the EU fisheries policy and of course YES to a United Kingdom.

Inside it is a poster, “BE A BREXIT BE LEAVE R”, with a two-fingered salute, overlaid with a Saltire. On the back is a graphic of a fishing boat and a rant ending in: “Stay out of our waters, our industry and stop interfering”. In the corner is a wee picture of – guess who? – Nigel Farage, group president.

I would really like to know who is paying for this stuff.

Brian Lawson
Paisley

ON Monday I got a leaflet from the EFDD Group (president – Nigel Farage). He claims “Yes to a United Kingdom” in Scotland in a poll of 3000. Well I have news for him. In the Euro election 65% of those who voted in Scotland did so for parties that wish to remain in Europe.

Ian Gilbert
Pitlochry

I HAVE to confess myself baffled at Ruth Davidson’s latest position on a second Scottish independence referendum. She claims that only a single-party majority government would have a mandate to hold such a referendum. Is it therefore her case that a majority government comprising two or three Yes parties would not have a mandate for an independence referendum; and, indeed, ipso facto, that a minority opposition comprising three or four Unionist parties would somehow thus have a mandate for blocking one? The words “Parliamentary democracy” are being asked to do work above and beyond what they were ever designed to do.

Tommy Ball
Co Longford, Ireland