Show the red card to players group hug - your views

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Show the group hug the red card

I have not been able to either see or hug my 99-year-old father for a year now because of Covid19 restrictions.

I cannot describe the sadness and frustration that this has caused. So, imagine my anger and disbelief when I see professional footballers ignoring the Covid medical rule not to hug, and then listen to them and their managers say that it is because they are unable to control their emotions after scoring a goal.

Who do they think they are that during such a serious and deadly pandemic, when people are losing loved ones daily, thousands losing their jobs. children's education being devastated and everyone being required to change their whole lifestyle, that not being able to control their emotions after scoring a goal is anywhere near an excuse?

There are daily reports of people being fined and arrested for flouting Covid rules, so why has nothing been done about this blatant disregard of restrictions?

The sports ministers of all UK governments and administrations have ignored this and passed the problem to the football authorities who have been totally ineffective. It is time for the authorities to take a stand.

As there has been numerous warnings about not hugging, now is the time for every player who breaks this rule to be issued with a penalty notice by the police.

I would also suggest that any disregard of the no hugging rule should be considered a red card offence for every player involved. I am sure that club authorities and managers would soon ensure compliance.

Leicester City players and manager have shown that respect of and compliance of the rules is possible.

Players and managers could also benefit from watching one of the world's greatest footballers, Eusebio, whose no fuss reaction to scoring a goal was to pick up the ball from the net and take it back to the centre circle.

Paul Lewis, Guardwell Crescent, Edinburgh.

Accountants more than bean colunters

John McLellan’s opinion, “We need vaccinators not more accountants and spin” (News, January 14) is both inaccurate and ill-informed. The funds spent on KPMG are not for accountants but efficient management of the vaccination programme.

The huge effort required to deliver the vaccinations across the country requires effective programme management and logistics

It is both naive and misleading to suggest that this would be achieved by spending money on “more vaccinators.”

Graeme Forbes, Longformacus Road, Edinburgh.

China should not be welcome at COP26

China promised that its emissions would peak about 2030 and to slash its carbon footprint to zero by 2060.

However China burns about half the coal used globally and is building hundreds of new coal-fired electricity plants.

Edward Cunningham, a specialist on China, at Harvard University, revealed that China is financing and building or planning more than 300 new coal plants worldwide including Turkey, Vietnam, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Egypt and the Philippines, so more greenhouse gases.

China is responsible for 30 per cent of global emissions, so the multi-billions countries are spending on preventing climate change is worthless, since without China reducing its emissions the target of keeping temperatures to a maximum of 2C above pre-industrial levels will be impossible.

China should not be welcomed to COP26 in Glasgow.

Clark Cross, Springfield Road, Linlithgow.