“SCOTLAND is the third worst country in Europe for excess Covid-19 deaths” is the straw that those who seek to undermine the performance of the First Minster and the Scottish Government are now desperately trying to grab as support for independence continues to grow, even through this tragic pandemic.
The fact that England is the worst country in Europe is ignored, as is the fact that the UK death rate overall (population basis) is amongst the highest in the world. So why, with Nicola Sturgeon consistently acting relatively earlier than Boris Johnson, consistently making better decisions such as not relying on an app on which to base our test and trace approach, and overall being generally more cautious, has Scotland not done vastly better when compared to countries with similar populations such as Norway and New Zealand?
READ MORE: Covid vaccine: Nicola Sturgeon's honest approach is 'key to successful roll-out'
The first and obvious reason is that Scotland does not control its international borders. A second is that besides the Scottish Parliament not initially having the authority to introduce emergency lockdown measures, it does not control the major economic and welfare levers necessary to support businesses and sustain jobs while implementing public health restrictions (the UK Government has persistently denied it the power to independently undertake commensurate borrowing).
A third is that not only were PPE stocks run down or expired across the UK, as identified by the Cygnus Report, ten years of austerity had crippled large sections of the NHS and our care services with staff numbers short (even in Scotland with generally higher levels of pay).
READ MORE: Covid nurses struggle with anxiety and depression
A fourth is the UK Government’s dogmatic and seemingly corrupt reliance on private companies for delivering everything from PPE (some of it unusable) to a billion-pound test and trace system that fundamentally has not been working, as evidenced by “UK labs” directing people to testing centres hundreds of miles away while many others waited more than a week for test results.
A fifth and basic indictment of the UK Government is that the deprivation that arose with the de-industrialisation of Scotland’s Central Belt has not been seriously confronted by successive Westminster governments over decades, and even though
Holyrood governments have attempted to address some of the more pernicious issues, with limited powers it has not been able to overcome more deep-rooted problems that have left many people more susceptible to the devastating effects of Covid-19. In Scotland there have been no major UK infrastructure projects comparable with the Channel Tunnel, London Crossrail or HS2.
In spite of what often seems to be implied by the BBC and the London-centric media, the people of Scotland are not stupid in repeatedly voting for the SNP – most in our country now realise that independence offers the opportunity for Scotland to join countries like New Zealand and Norway in charting a socio-economic course determined by our own citizens, not by an absent, arrogantly self-obsessed and grossly negligent “partner”.
Stan Grodynski
Longniddry, East Lothian
KNOWING the UK Government’s tragic record on control of the pandemic, to which they have made scant reference throughout, it was frankly depressing to see Matt Hancock gleefully boast that the UK was first in the world to announce approval of the vaccine.
However much approved vaccines are to be welcomed, to be first into the lifeboat of salvation from their own stupidity does not instil confidence!
Tom Gray
Braco
THE regional mayors in England have sent this note to Rishi Sunak: “As regional mayors we urge Rishi Sunak to step up support for people this winter.” The context is the worsening situation in the country.
Will he respond? After all, the governments in Wales and England have been writing to the Chancellor about discussions on budgetary matters for the forthcoming financial year and his office has responded that “he is too busy”!
It seems that the UK Government, which has the responsibility for reserved macro matters, is failing in its actions and, even worse, in its fundamental attitude. Or will he respond only to the English mayors?
Perhaps, we should change the pronunciation of UK, “YooKay”, to “Yuk”?
John Edgar
Kilmaurs
I READ with great joy and some relief that Her Maj and Prince Phil will be spending “a lonely Christmas at Sandringham” with just the two of them. So which one of them will be washing the dishes and which one will be cooking the Three Bird Roast out of Aldi? A “lonely Christmas”, aye right.
Robin Hastie
St Andrews
I’M really looking forward to herd immunity.
Mike Herd
Highland
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