IN her determination to condemn Alex Salmond and to praise Nicola Sturgeon, your correspondent Eileen Duke (Letters, March 2) jettisons some basic principles of natural justice in terms of the former and also chooses to ignore at least one serious failure of judgement in terms of the latter.

The complaints procedure which was deemed to be illegal and tainted with apparent bias failed both the complainers and the accused. Unless we have moved to a position where an accusation is regarded as established fact and an accused person is guilty until proven innocent, natural justice surely requires everyone to wait until a case has been subjected to rigorous and agreed due process before reaching any conclusion.

READ MORE: LIVE: Nicola Sturgeon gives evidence at Holyrood inquiry this afternoon

Due to Leslie Evans’s incompetence no such process took place. Ms Duke’s and others’ impatience with pesky due process was also in evidence at the conclusion of the jury trial. The verdict there was met in some quarters with a shrug of the shoulders as if it was an unwelcome aberration, a view exemplified in the execrable Kirsty Wark documentary. So even when due process is adhered to, it can be ignored if it doesn’t deliver the “right result”.

Regarding Ms Sturgeon, she has shown inexplicable misjudgement in not sacking Ms Evans. To preside over such a calamitous policy failure which had catastrophic implications for ALL concerned, not to mention the significant cost to the public purse, yet to suffer no consequences does not inspire confidence in the governance of Scotland.

I am not a member of the SNP but support independence and will do so regardless of transient events. I also hold no brief for and no animus against either Mr Salmond or Ms Sturgeon. I do, however, expect Scotland to be a country in which the principles of the rule of law, due process and justice FOR ALL are applied without fear or favour.

Name and address supplied

I AM disappointed by the criticisms advanced by Barry Hughes from Paisley about the Holyrood inquiry into Alex Salmond (Letters, March 1). He makes offensive and gratuitous remarks about two MSPs, Alasdair Allan and Stuart MacMillan.

I do not know Mr Hughes but I do know the other two. Alasdair is a former National Secretary,  from the Borders, who worked in Alex Salmond’s office in Peterhead; he is the MSP for the Western Isles (cannot remember the Gaelic name) and a minister for some time in Holyrood.  Stuart MacMillan is the MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde;  he is also a piper extraordinaire!  I think his majority is about 8000.

Neither of these individuals are “pathetic”, nor are any of our MSPs, but I know I am prejudiced.

Jim Lynch
Edinburgh

I’M a relative newcomer to Scottish politics as I only moved here a few years ago, and was delighted with the growing support for the SNP. However I have been appalled at the attacks on Nicola Sturgeon not just from the opposition parties but from within the party and from the former First Minister.

With the possibility of independence in view, I am deeply saddened and frustrated by the effect this may have on voters, so to show my support for Ms Sturgeon and the movement I have joined the SNP in an effort to have my voice heard. I have been a subscriber to this paper since my move here and look forward to its coverage of the election win and next referendum, and finally independence!

Name and address supplied

I WOULD like it to be known that there are some (hopefully a lot) of SNP members who are NOT Salmondites or Sturgeonites or members of any other personality “cults” within the party, and recognise this current debacle as an annoying detraction from the main purpose of the party, which is the regaining of control over all Scottish affairs. The re-establishment of Scotland as a normal country (with all its flaws and foibles) was the overriding reason for the setting up of this party and this should never be lost sight of.

Barry Stewart
Blantyre

THE Scottish Tory leader, DRoss, in full coup mode on the instructions of his British Government paymasters and shamelessly calling for the removal of our esteemed FM through a no-confidence vote in the Scottish Parliament even before her attendance at yesterday’s parliamentary committee hearing – absolutely outrageous and such brazen cheek coming from a non-entity of a Tory MP who isn’t even an elected MSP!!

This is all relative to this barrage of Unionist propaganda to derail the inevitable independence that is coming – divide and conquer, eh! Who else amongst the Unionist ranks in the Scottish Parliament is in on this conspiracy, I wonder? And while Dross’s Tory bosses previously threatened to break international law, attempted to prorogue parliament, Patel bullied civil servants into submission ... the list of their offences and breaches of ministerial codes is huge and yet no resignations forthcoming from these Tory charlatans ... but Nicola forgets about a date with Mr Aberdein?

READ MORE: Tories want vote of no confidence in Nicola Sturgeon after legal advice is published

A case of blatant hypocrisy and double standards when pervading Scottish politics with their poisonous speculation and insinuations.

Am I angry regarding these latest Tory-driven incursions to bring down Nicola Sturgeon? Yep, I am seething and I hope thousands and thousands of other Scottish independence supporters and Scottish citizens are likewise LIVID!!!!

I hope The National endorses a line of unification to avert this blatant political attempt to weaken our devolved government and derail the quest for self-determination.

Bernie Japs
Edinburgh