Readers' letters: Rail dispute causes are not so simple

The current rail dispute is much more complex than suggested by Alasdair Murray (letters, 26 May).

Even before Covid, ScotRail received almost £500,000 a year from Scottish taxpayers and passenger numbers dropped by 30 per cent prior to nationalisation, with many almost empty trains.

Although not widely reported, the current offer is equivalent of five per cent for train drivers earning almost £50,000 a year before regular overtime.

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ASLEF can’t admit it, but their members don’t want more drivers as it would cut down on their expected overtime payments.

Also, RMT are threatening to strike throughout the UK but not in Scotland. Unlike the UK, the Scottish government can’t just borrow money to fund a large pay increase as other services will suffer if the union’s demands are met.

All workers are entitled to claim ten per cent to meet the cost of living crisis caused by Brexit, Covid and failed Tory energy policies, which makes it all the more disgraceful that our Labour councillors are doing back door deals with the Tories. Vote Labour, get Tory wasn’t on their election leaflets.

Fraser Grant, Edinburgh.

Labour is not the answer for Scotland

Ian Murray’s claim that Labour will come riding to Scotland’s rescue is ludicrous (News, May 27).

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Labour is poised to be the minority administration on Edinburgh City Council after doing a deal with the Lib Dems and Tories. That’s who Labour really is.

Murray trashes the Tories but then averts his gaze when his party colludes with them to wrest power from the SNP. Labour doesn’t stand a chance in Scotland and Murray knows it, which is why it’s reduced to doing deals with Tories.

And how exactly can Anas Sarwar eradicate poverty in Scotland when 85 per cent of social spending is reserved to Westminster, whose failed economic policies have delivered an economy in freefall?

Since a disastrous Brexit which two thirds of Scots rejected the Scottish economy has suffered a hammer blow from ejection from the Single Market but also it has been saddled with an Internal Market Act that is methodically stripping powers from Holyrood.

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Scotland desperately needs an effective political opposition but Labour’s northern branch lacks the courage to break from its English bosses.

Instead, Ian Murray will don his Union jacket to celebrate the £1 billion Platinum Jubilee while millions live in penury.

Leah Gunn Barrett, Edinburgh.

Time to end MSPs’ severance payments

Taxpayers funded the "severance pay" of the 43 MSPs defeated at last year's elections or resigned. The cost was £2.2m.

MSPs are paid £64,470 yet when defeated or resign they get "resettlement" grants of £32,325 for those with one to six years service and £64,470 for those with 12 or more years' service.

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Surely MSPs are on a fixed-term contract of five years until the next election so there can be no justification for them being entitled to extra money when they are not re-elected or choose to leave.

Clark Cross, Linlithgow.

Poll conundrum

With Westminster in turmoil the nationalists should be charging ahead in the polls but they are not. Instead, if a yes-no question was put to an electorate in a referendum today they would most likely lose by a bigger margin than in 2014.

Why do the SNP not concentrate on sorting out our ferries, railways, shipyards, drug deaths and the countless problems they have ignored for years?

Alexander McKay, Edinburgh.

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