Readers' Letters: Scotland's Triple Crown dream could become reality

Bar a couple of important changes, however, this was the same side that lost in the rain in Rome. Italy were ranked below us at tenth in the world going into the game – and England ranked well above us at third. It’s hard to make sense of it

This perennial question remains: why do we only play this way against England? Ability is not in question. Match mentality possibly is.

Get that right and the possibility of a back-to-back win in Wales, and a home win against Ireland would realise a cherished dream, namely Scotland’s first Triple Crown since 1990. That would go a long way to assuaging supporters on this non-stop rollercoaster ride with Scotland. Hope, dashed in Rome, now springs eternal once more.

Ewen Peters, Newton Mearns, East Renfrewshire

Criminal neglect

In my letter published on 19 February, I commented about the soft-justice aspect of the SNP’s so-called justice system. The same day, at a meeting of the Scottish Police Authority, the Chief Constable commented that of about 300 offenders recently released early in November and December 2025, 71 had already committed another offence (your report, 20 February).

If the SNP wishes to use an evidence-based approach to justice, surely they need no further proof that the policy of releasing prisoners early has failed? It serves only to allow more offences to be committed and more scarce police resources being used to catch and manage re-offenders. The Police Service of Scotland mantra is “Keeping People Safe” and they cannot do this if the Scottish government undermines policing by allowing offenders an easy route to further crime. Police officers are already stretched and the much-trumpeted 2012 SNP promise of 1,000 extra police has long ago disappeared in a puff of smoke.

We all want to help people to avoid re-offending, but the route to that is to have an economy that’s vibrant and growing, and that offers people a chance to work and escape criminality. Again, in that vein, the SNP is to be found sadly lacking, just as it is in so many other matters.

Brian Barbour, Haddington, East Lothian

Russian ban

Are we to assume that some of the great organisations of the world including the UN and now the International Paralympic Committee have been captured by countries that have no understanding of democracy, rule of law or sense of justice.

To allow Russian athletes the honour of representing their country under their own flags and colours as if their country were a pillar of honour and rectitude is beyond the pale, given the invasion of Ukraine a sovereign state.

I find this particularly galling when the same athletes could still attend and race, albeit as individuals or under the banner of a country friendly to Russia. This would be fair to individual athletes who train and wish to compete against the best in the world.

I suggest that the UK has to seriously consider whether, by attending and competing directly against Russian athletes, it is tacitly condoning Russian aggression. Personally, given the decision to allow Russia to enter I would prefer that our athletes compete as individuals rather than representing their country under UK union flag. The thought of the visual spectacle of the union flag raised alongside the Russian flag fills me with disgust.

Obviously I would prefer that Russia was not represented directly in the first place but it appears that horse has already bolted.

A Lewis, Coylton, South Ayrshire

Unclean sweep

Just when you thought the men’s curling in the Winter Olympics could not get even more exciting, the slide tackle was introduced, in the Switzerland v GB semi-final on Thursday.

Grant Hardie, sweeping, took out Yannick Schwaller and VAR wasn’t even consulted!

John V Lloyd, Inverkeithing, Fife

Trump fear

The recent swings of opinion expressed by the President of the USA about the deal being negotiated by the United Kingdom government on the future of the Chagos islands remind rather too strongly of what I observed in my father as he entered his long decline into the dementia which ultimately killed him.

I must confess that the idea that the United States may have handed control of its aresenal of nuclear weapons to someone becoming afflicted in this way makes me feel a little uneasy.

Magnus Peterson, Dunblane, Stirling

Two-tier society

It is claimed that Scots receive a premium of around £2,000 per head of population (ie an increase of around £11 billion a year from the Barnett consequentals) in the annual block grant. This is to ensure that the 25 per cent of Scots living in the 75 per cent of the rural hinterland that makes up the Scottish land mass can receive a similar quality of service as that given to the 75 per cent of Scots living in the Central Belt.

Over the 19 years that the SNP has been in power at Holyrood that amounts to a sum of more than £200 billion, which raises the question as to where has the cash gone, as noted in the article by Rachel Keenan (your report, 20 February).

Can any SNP supporter claim that the medical services in Wick or Stranraer match those of Glasgow or Edinburgh? Motorists can drive on dual carriageway from Dunbar to Greenock. Why therefore is it impossible to match that experience on the A75 or the A9? John Swinney boasts that the freeze on rail fares will save hundreds of pounds for those in the Central Belt. Where is the alternative offer to Scots in Lerwick (the nearest rail station is in Bergen), Braemar, Lochgilphead or Kirkcudbright? Truly a two-tier society under an SNP government.

Ian Moir, Castle Douglas, Dumfries and Galloway

No change

Labour won the last general election upon a promise to “change” 14 “bad” Tory years into good times. We all can see through this impossible claim now.

In Scotland it is the reverse. After 19 years of SNP power it appears from the polls that change is not wanted.

The problem here is that the SNP just cannot keep going on as it is without imploding. It is kicking the can down the road on multiple fronts, from unaffordable public pay settlements and ongoing ferry problems to crises to come over gender and hospital inquiries.

If the SNP wins it will have to face all these problems it has so far avoided but there will be no one else to blame. Taking shots at Westminster is passé. The buck stops with John Swinney and his party. Scotland has lived beyond its means for years. It is now a case of yet even higher taxes, meaningful cuts in public expenditure or both. Will we see “transparency” about this from the SNP before May? If it wins we will certainly see huge problems surface across many fronts shortly afterwards and little help will be coming from Westminster. Be very careful what you wish for.

Gerald Edwards, Glasgow

Country second

An interesting article by Henry McLeish (Perspective, 20 February) in which he raises many points on British politics – one of which being why we stick with the first-past-the-post system, when it clearly does not work in a multi-party set-up. Why we stick with it is simple – the parties who gain from it form the government, and turkeys are not going to vote for Christmas.

This is one of the many faults here – country comes second to party advantage. There was always some of this, but it seems to be getting worse.

William Ballantine, Bo’ness, West Lothian

Nuclear now!

I fear there is no coffee strong enough on this planet that would awaken Stan Grodynski from his insights into how the wind always blows and that the pricing of electricity and gas is all the fault of the “UK government” – yes, that old chestnut (Letters, 19 February).

He also states, without any substantive evidence that modular nuclear reactors (small) are “unproven”(why are the Germans and the Swedes building them then) and that we should be using pumped hydro and battery arrays, because of the “inherent safety/security risks” and the timescale to build reactors.

I may have missed something here, but how long to build a similar-sized pumped hydro scheme such as Cruachan? Am I deluded in thinking that other than Chernobyl (typical Soviet bad practice and maintenance) and the Japanese disaster caused by a tsunami (this can’t happen at Torness as the surrounding area has tsunami resistant infrastructure – as it is obvious there could be one in the Firth of Forth!) there have been no other disasters in my living memory. Get the nuclear building started, get reservoirs built if you want to incorporate hydro schemes by all means, but the bottom line is we cannot be reliant on renewables.

Perhaps a version of the Berwick bank offshore wind farm, if we do have to go down this route, could be plastered all the way down the east coast, taking in the views from “sunny” Longniddry, and await the howls of “not in my back yard” erupt!

The term “dunkenflaute”, in this instance, can be applied to the lights not coming on both metaphorically as well as literally!

David Millar, Lauder, Scottish Borders

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