THE underlying current of Conservative unaccountability continued last week, with Priti Patel cancelling her appearance at a committee meeting in Westminster. She was due to answer questions on the Johnson administration’s very despicable Rwanda deportation scheme. She has offered to reschedule for September, when possibly she will be out of a job and the follow-on administration will be fighting to fix the unfixable.
Gone from this archipelago will be any notion of a union by consensus, gone will be the trust between Downing Street and the EU, gone will be the last ember of the so-called special relationship between number 10 and 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue – an accord only ever thought special by Churchill, and by his successors.
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The economy is tanking and productivity collapsing, and as we head into winter our most vulnerable will have the stark choice of heat or eat. I wonder then what those affected will think of the cash wasted on the Jubilee, the money spent on nuclear arms and aircraft carriers and all the public funds squandered during the pandemic. One very cursory read of the National Audit Office report on the MoD also makes for horrific reading for anyone concerned. It shows how the Conservative and Unionist Party have looked after the defence of the realm.
Basically, every Tory excess from history has been amplified by the populist administration of Johnson. Such has been his calamity in government it is hard to see how anyone of those standing can take on the job. How can they be untainted by Johnson as each and every one of the candidates knew about him, supported him, enabled him?
Good folk, I would suggest that our only escape from the clutches and excesses of the imperial leaching is for our independence.
Cliff Purvis
Veterans for Scottish Independence 2.0 and SNP Armed Forces and Veterans
JIM Taylor is correct in his critique of Lindsay Hoyle (Letters, July 18).
I would go further to suggest Hoyle has allowed the House to descend into little more than a stage on which clown Prime Minister Johnson could vent his spleen in whatever way he chose, honestly or otherwise, against whoever had the temerity to ask a question. All of course to the instant chorus of approval from those around him.
What Hoyle did by his reaction to the two Alba members last week was show what a coward he has been over the past two-and-a-half years. He has not maintained order since day one, and waiting until two known reactionary individuals made their point then blasting them as if an extraordinary occurrence in this most extraordinary meeting place under his chairmanship was a rare occurrence.
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Worse still, it took the Tory party members to rebel against their loose-canon leader before the Speaker had the courage to suitably act – as it happens against the wrong culprits.
The only other instance I recall was the condemnation of SNP leader Ian Blackford for, I think, calling someone a liar. Now who would that be, if not he who is widely acknowledged to lie on a daily basis?
What a pathetic and disreputable institution that House of Commons has become. Its demise in current form and content can’t come soon enough.
Tom Gray
Braco
SO the show rolls on with the Tory party pageant of political hopefuls parading their credentials in 50 shades of Thatcherite grey with no thought given to the concerns of others outwith the confines of the calculating, self-interested, self-serving interests of middle England.
The value of the Alba stramash was to highlight for Scots that they are mere spectators in the process of the continuing imprisonment of Scottish democracy.
For many people who lent their vote, the sanctimonious, acquiescent behaviours of the SNP contingent give the lie to a united front for independence and the Alba protest is in marked contrast to the same old sanctimonious bleating of Blah, Blah, Blackford.
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Why oh why can’t we be biased in our own collective self-interests and our pursuit of independence as time and again the Rule Britannia brigade demonstrate they have nothing but contempt for their neighbours in North Britain, with the SNP having a ringside seat at the gig?
When all others are looking out for their own interests – even the hear-no-evil, see-no-evil, speak-no-socialism evil, three-flags Labour party – we need to seize opportunities to get on the front foot.
We’ve had the latest refusal of a Section 30 request. Are we going to prostrate ourselves in front of whoever is anointed as the latest leader of the Conservative and Unionist party and ask yet again for permission to vote for independence?
With the whole world watching this Westminster pantomime of democracy, we need to stop jousting with the British constitution and Westminster’s conventions and make every effort to tell our story of constitutional imprisonment.
Scotland says enough, our time is now, so let’s pull together and get this done.
Iain Bruce
via email
IS Glenda Burns speaking for Alba when she affirms their “action” is, as I thought, about their effort to weaken the SNP?
Archie Drummond
Tillicoultry
THE long-drawn-out farewell to PMQs has finally arrived for Boris Johnson. Sitting on the “green benches” surrounded by his so-called loyal colleagues, the picture looked surreal! But it was
his closing comments from the dispatch box that intrigued me. He mentioned that during his reign as PM he had helped achieve “a realignment of UK politics”, “transformed our democracy and restored our national independence”.
Interesting that he should highlight democracy and national independence. The very sentiments of the government at Holyrood.
Catriona C Clark
Falkirk
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