Readers' letters: Offord appointment belittles Scots Tories

The fact that the Tories couldn’t find anyone suitable to become a Scotland Office minister from their Scottish MPs speaks volumes about their abilities (Ian Swanson, News 19 October).

Malcolm Offord

Meanwhile, Lord Malcolm Offord will add to the bloated 830 unelected members of the House of Lords that even dwarfs North Korea’s 687 deputies.

Apart from his Tory donations, Lord Offord’s previous political claim to fame was setting up the “non political, grass roots” London-based Vote No Borders anti-independence organisation and run by the Acanchi PR company since 2012.

In May 2014, Vote No Borders got unrivaled, unquestioning promotion from the BBC, which ignored genuine Yes grass roots organisations.

Funded by London establishment figures, it spent £460,000 in the run up to the 2014 referendum and was later fined for failing to produce its accounts in time.

This strengthens the case for the Electoral Commission, which is currently being emasculated by the Conservative government, to ensure that only those registered to pay taxes and vote in Scotland can donate money to either side in the next independence referendum.

Mary Thomas, Edinburgh.

Price of democracy? That’s £150,000 please

Fantastic article from Ian Swanson, re Malcolm Offord – a Tory politician who failed at numerous Selection processes to get elected (News, October 19).

The solution, give Westminster £150K, get into the unelected House of Lords, then handed a position by BJ in the Scottish Office. True democracy at work.

Roddy Watson, Edinburgh.

Bringing Sir Walter out of the closet

I was amused as usual to read Vladimir McTavish saying 'Waverley Station's toilets must have Walter Scott spinning in his grave' (News, October 16). They are certainly not grand enough.

One detail: there was, in fact, another station named after a book - Westward Ho! in Devon, surely the only one with that punctuation, although frankly Coatbridge Sunnyside merits a question mark most days!

On the question of whether Scott was forgotten in renaming the Waverley line the Borders Railway, I expressed the view in my recent book Scotland from the Rails: A Window Gazer's Guide that it was a better name for what it does today, and should press on pronto to Melrose and Hawick.

Fewer people read Scott for pleasure nowadays - our loss, no doubt. But the restored line to the Tweed still links the Scott monument and Waverley station with his home by the Tweed and add 'you can't get more Scott-ish than that'.

Benedict le Vay, Hants.

Bigger priorities than more cycle routes

I am dismayed after reading Ian Swanson’s article that the council wishes to spend £118miliion on another 52 miles of protected cycling routes (News, 18 October).

The council has failed even under emergency powers to ensure current cycle lanes are free from potholes and blocked drains. As a cyclist this makes them useless and as winter approaches a waste of road space.

Before any new route the council needs to sort out the maintenance of all our roads. More people travel by public transport than cycle, so let us have roads buses can use without damage.

I find no comfort in the fact the Scottish government is 80 per cent funding this grand scheme because as a tax payer my wallet is hit once more.

Michael G Cockburn, Edinburgh.