Readers' Letters: It's time to get tough on Scotland's young criminals

One retailer described this as “anarchy and blatant looting”. The continual lenient treatment of young criminals by the Scottish Government, the police and judges has led to a surge in crime and violence. Belatedly, 170 have been charged – but will they be punished? The public deserves better. The judiciary must be told to impose meaningful jail time on these criminals, not fines, which are never paid anyway. Three years sounds about right. No jail space? House arrest and tagging would work.

Clark Cross, Linlithgow, West Lothian

Better ways

The evidence from the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, estimating the additional cost to the NHS of treating the 262,000 pensioners impacted by the cut in winter fuel payments, illustrates the naivety in Labour continuing the Tory austerity agenda.

The cost to the NHS of treating these individuals has been estimated to be more than £169 million a year and exemplifies the damaging impact of continuing with an economic programme of swingeing cuts.

Reductions in public expenditure and investment at the wrong time in the economic cycle are counterproductive, inhibiting growth when it is desperately needed, and increasing the size of the debt relative to economic output.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves intends to fill the financial black hole through a combination of cuts, including those to the winter fuel allowance, as well as cutting capital investment programmes. However, there are alternatives. Borrowing big to invest as part of a modern industrial strategy is an entirely mainstream alternative, as promoted by the likes of leading economists John Maynard Keynes and Joseph Stiglitz.

We need to invest heavily in the new technologies and infrastructure that will drive growth; however compared to the EU and the US our programmes to date have been pitiful.

If the Labour government wish to grow the economy, the current approach being taken will do nothing to deliver this and will only serve to damage it further. It is very much a case of more continuing pain, for less gain.

Alex Orr, Edinburgh

Self-interest

The Aslef union rightly put forward legitimate reasons as to why the Scottish Government should reconsider its stance on restoration of peak-time rail fares.

However, what Aslef fail to recognise is that they are a major contributor to this situation by inflation-busting pay awards to train drivers in recent years. Their salaries are well out-of-step with many key positions in the public sector which demand far more rigorous training needs linked to a high pressure job environment, such as police, teachers and nurses.

Aslef really does need to look beyond their self-interest.

Alastair Neilson, Edinburgh

Smash and grab

I share Brian Monteith’s view of Rosie Duffield’s resignation from the Labour Party (Perspective, 30 September).

It is a rare thing, nowadays, for an MP to resign on a point of principle, but Ms Duffield said what we are all thinking right across the political spectrum.

When Keir Starmer was elected a close Scots friend, like me a lifelong Conservative voter, agreed: Starmer is a moderate; a safe pair of hands. How wrong could we be?

The Prime Minister and Chancellor Rachel Reeves have made several huge miscalculations; the main one being that the pensioners would quietly lie down, without protest, when they cancelled the winter fuel payment.

If these two had not accepted gifts from major Labour Party donor Lord Waheed Alli when they are already wealthy – an act of huge hypocrisy – the nation might not be up in very vociferous arms having discovered that our new political leaders do not have principles and are in it for what they can get.

Even Gordon Brown didn’t engage in such blatant smash and grab policies.

Doug Morrison, Tenterden, Kent

Christmas bonus?

Amongst all the controversy surrounding the withdrawal of the winter fuel payment, has there been any announcement regarding the £10 annual Christmas Bonus to pensioners?

Surely if anything is to be withdrawn it is this paltry amount, which probably costs as much to administer as the actual payment.

Or is it just being quietly forgotten about?

Anne Pennington, Eskbank, Dalkeith, Midlothian

Keep alcohol ban

I read with interest that SNP MSP George Adam thinks it is a good idea to reintroduce alcohol at football matches and has some backing from his colleagues (your report, 27 September).

His reasoning that it will bring extra finance to the clubs in question is sound enough. However, the other side of the coin is that unlike rugby supporters, who in general know how to behave, a large number of football supporters get tanked up before the game and end up causing trouble. .

Seriously, introducing alcoholic to such people, what are our elected members thinking about? He obviously has a short memory, or was not about when alcohol was banned. The ban was introduced for good reason – surely our minority of football supporters can do without alcohol for two hours of an afternoon so that the majority can enjoy the games in relative peace.

Michael Fraser, Tullibody, Alloa

Into the light

It was depressing to read two reports of sexual abuse, in the Roman Catholic Church in Belgium and, historically, at Edinburgh Academy (your reports). Perhaps the whole sorry mess was summed up best by Pope Francis's words, “evil must not be hidden; evil must be brought into the open”. The problem is precisely that it has been hidden, and unacceptably, quite possibly still is. Human nature being what it is, there will always be people who abuse the privilege of power and, just as sadly, more than the bishops prepared to cover up for them.

Abuse of any kind must be brought out into the open, not just historically, but as it happens, whether in church or in school, and, all too often within families. Victims are often too traumatised to speak out and so it's up to the rest of us to bring abuse into the open, on their behalf.

Ian Petrie, Edinburgh

Apply pressure

Amidst all the furore, particularly from left-wing leaning politicians, about Israel's campaign in Lebanon an important point seems to have been neglected. Lebanon has its own government which is not simply Hezbollah. The primary cause of the destruction in Lebanon is because no one in that country's administration appears to be able to hold Hezbollah to account.

This is not Israel's fault, but Israel is nonetheless the target for Hezbollah's missiles. The world is a strange place these days when all the blame is being heaped upon the victim and few want to accuse the perpetrator. If the world really wants this all to stop, put the pressure on Iran.

Gerald Edwards, Glasgow

Free ride

Your report highlighting the tram company's cumulative losses (25 September) provoked a number of comments which seem to wish the trams away. While an inexcusable number of things went wrong during the construction of the first phase to York Place, and the extension to Newhaven still has a long way to go to make it as smooth running as promised, it is worth looking at a few figures more closely.

There were no losses in the first two years, because CEC paid for track maintenance and didn't charge an asset fee. When this was quite rightly changed, it became clear that the truncated route to York Place could never make a profit. Hence the extension, which, as reported, vastly increased passenger numbers and to some extent the fare box. The tram business plan is based on this trend continuing, eventually reaching breakeven and paying back the loan over a long period.

The problem is that the increase in passenger numbers includes concessionary travel for over-60s and under-22s. These are difficult to measure and not reimbursed by the Scottish Government’s Concessionary Travel scheme. In other words, the huge increase in passenger numbers does not produce a commensurate increase in the fare box. In addition, the trams have failed to achieve the projected end-to end-travel time and punctuality, primarily because the promised hi-tech signalling is still not ready. The absence of integrated ticketing between buses and trams and far too few interchanges further deter patronage growth and thus endanger the long-term business case.

Harald Tobermann, Community Councils Together on Trams, Leith, Edinburgh

Save museum

Regarding the closure of the People's Story Museum in Edinburgh (your report, 30 September), is it not possible for local trades unions to contribute to its survival; either financially or, better still, in personnel. Retired members could give visitors first-hand knowledge, as at Newtongrange Mining Museum.

Margaret Campbell, Edinburgh

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