THE letter you published on Friday from Graham Smith of Arbroath is unhelpful to the cause of independence, in that it is simply factually WRONG.

He claims: "In past elections minor parties have never reached the 5% of the vote ... the Green party has been campaigning for many years now and even now, they have only recently broken the 5% barrier."

He is factually wrong because he conflates breaching the 5% barrier in a constituency with achieving it nationally. It’s the constituency which counts. Here are the facts:

In 1999, the Scottish Greens won one MSP, Robin Harper, the first Green politician elected anywhere in the UK.

In 2003 it won seven MSPs.

In 2007 this declined to two MSPs, but it gained several councillors.

In 2011, it retained two MSPs.

In 2016 this increased to six, now five, upon whom the SNP government depends to retain a pro-independence majority.

In 2021 I’m confident that Green MSP numbers will increase; polls suggest it will reach two figures for the first time.

READ MORE: Anything other than an SNP majority will simply be ignored

The only certain way to increase the number of pro-independence MSPs is to vote SNP for the constituency, and Green for the regional list. We can’t afford the luxury of getting this wrong by backing unproven new parties.

The recent plethora of "pro-independence" parties largely comprise people lacking political experience and stature. Voting Green on the list is the only way to increase the independence majority at Holyrood this critical year.

Dougie Harrison
Milngavie, Glasgow

I DO wish The National would be more sensitive when compiling its headlines. "Decommissioning role for Ross" followed by "Fond farewell to Holyrood" in Sunday's edition isn't for the faint-hearted!

Kenneth Burnett
Dyce, Aberdeen