Readers' letters: Council funding cuts could harm SNP

The SNP candidates standing across Scotland clearly want the council elections to be about anything other than their party’s record in office. And anyone who takes even the most cursory look at the SNP’s record across a range of issues will see precisely why this is the case.

On core council funding, the SNP have presided over year-on-year real-terms cuts, despite the record financial settlement received from the UK Government this year.

The SNP have presided over the worst A&E waiting times on record – and things are getting worse. The Sick Kids Hospital in Edinburgh opened nine years late. Construction flaws cost the taxpayer at least £23 million while the hospital was not in use. Meanwhile, the cost of sorting out the Islands Ferries fiasco is estimated to be £400m of taxpayers money.

Drug deaths have tripled under the SNP’s watch and are the worst in Europe.

In education, there are now fewer university students from the poorest backgrounds. The pupil-teacher ratio is still higher than when the SNP came to power.

Nicola Sturgeon is failing to ensure Scotland’s future energy needs are met by refusing to allow new nuclear power stations like Torness Power Station to be built. And on the environment, the SNP are failing too. Less than half of Scottish waste is recycled.

So much for the SNP being Stronger for Scotland!

Tim Jackson, Gullane.

Edinburgh coalition record of failure

I hope that the Edinburgh public will vote for the party they feel will serve them best rather than the party they may normally vote for now that the council elections are nearly upon us.

SNP/Labour have been in charge too long. Has there been any improvement on their watch?

They have become so complacent that they ignore public consultation results and do what they want.

They have reduced bin refuse services; roads/pavements are an utter disgrace; more speed and bus lane cameras; they want to introduce residential parking permits everwhere along with a work place parking levy and congestion charges for outside Edinburgh commuters.

It’s a total cash racket but they don’t stand up to their bosses in Holyrood to ask for more funding, as Edinburgh is always short-funded.

Change doesn’t happen unless we make it. This election should be about improving local issues, nothing to do with partygate or cost of living as the SNP keep telling us!

Craig Naysmith, Edinburgh.

How land ownership in Scotland could run

There is concern regarding land ownership in Scotland, with about half of all rural land in private hands.

Originally the first owner of a parcel of land must have appropriated it, ie staked a claim. All subsequent owners base their rights to the land on that first claim.

It is reasonable to believe that no one has any basic right to own any land in Scotland; it should be owned on behalf of everyone by the state and occupiers should pay to occupy it.

How can this be achieved? Could the state step in every time property is sold and claim ownership of the land (not anything built or growing on it)? Would the state have to buy the land?

People could be allowed to occupy land provided they pay a Land Valuation Tax to the local authority acting as an agent for the state. This would do away with the unfair Council Tax. What people do with the land would still be subject to planning law.

Is this 'pie in the sky' or a realistic solution to the land ownership problem.

Steuart Campbell, Edinburgh.

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