Letters: Keep your hands off our much-loved Waterworld

Leith Waterworld provides a facility that isn’t available anywhere else in the city, with warmer water needed by infants, young children and disabled people.

It’s a great opportunity to encourage kids to get active at an early age, which in these days of rising obesity is essential.

What’s worse, the council had previously agreed, on an amendment tabled by Councillor Steve Cardownie, to keep Leith Waterworld open until the refurbished Commonwealth Pool opens to the public.

That won’t happen until March at the earliest, so the vote yesterday to approve closure in January means councillors have broken their promise to the people of Leith and betrayed the children from Edinburgh and beyond who use this facility.

Chas Booth, Hawthornbank Place, Leith

Bigotry Bill will lead to conflict

WHAT does the passing of the Bill on bigotry really mean for all of us in Scotland? Is it just another useless piece of legislation?

It has been said people should be punished for their actions, not their opinions. The trouble is that between the lines the two are not always clear.

In some countries bigotry is illegal. But people often say they are only expressing their opinion.

This new legislation is wide open to inciting intolerable behaviour and because of that could also lead to a confrontation between different beliefs.

Chas Dennis, Niddrie Marischal Road, Edinburgh

Tough measures will prevent riots

A REPORT by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary suggests that lethal force could be used if rioting returns to the streets of Britain.

Arsonists and those endangering the public could see the police use rubber bullets or even live ammunition.

The usual suspects are quick to condemn this suggestion and have no thought for the owners of businesses and houses that were burnt to the ground and the innocent lives ruined.

The cost of this mindless rioting and looting was millions of pounds.

To stop any repeat of the August riots a clear warning should be issued now.

A petrol bomb is a lethal weapon and anyone throwing these at the police or emergency services or buildings deserves to be shot by snipers.

Anyone throwing missiles or looting should be shot with rubber bullets. Make this clear now and no further riots will occur.

Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow

Road repairs are a high priority

I WRITE regarding your article headed “Budget cuts leave city roads open to ruin over the winter” and accompanying leader column (News, December 20).

Potholes in Edinburgh will continue to be filled and repaired and budgets have not run out.

While there is a long way to go to clear a backlog of repairs, inherited following 20 years of Labour neglect, the Lib Dem/SNP administration has more than doubled the investment in the city’s roads since 2007.

This increased level of investment has resulted in significant improvement in the condition of Edinburgh’s road network.

According to the Scottish Road Maintenance Condition Survey which independently assesses the percentage of the roads network in need of maintenance, Edinburgh is 11th out of 32 local authorities compared to 31st under Labour.

Road repairs are and will remains a high priority.

Councillor Robert Aldridge, Environment Leader, Edinburgh City Council

Exceptions to the rule for fuel

LIANNE Lodge’s claim (Letters, December 21) that any British citizen aged 60 or over is entitled to receive the Winter Fuel Payment is incorrect.

To qualify this winter, one has to have been born on or before January 5, 1951. Also one needs to live normally in Great Britain or Northern Ireland on any day in the week of September 19–25, 2011. There are several disqualifications, one of which is that you can’t get a Winter Fuel Payment if you move to another European Economic Area country or Switzerland and didn’t qualify before you moved.

Steuart Campbell, Dovecot Loan, Edinburgh