Readers' Letters: UK should be like Switzerland and focus on financial services

The City of London already provides 22 per cent of UK GDP, and is at the heart of our prosperous south-east, which has become increasingly detached from the rest of the UK. Indeed, since our de-industrialisation, the rest of the UK has no part in the lives of most London and Home Counties residents and businesses.

London’s GDP for 2023 was £618 billion, which accounted for 22.3 per cent of the UK’s total GDP, according to the Office for National Statistics. As a region, the south-east produces a quarter of the entire UK's economic output.

This trend should be pursued on a UK basis and financial services in the form of providing a home for money on a global scale should be our aim for the future.

The care and management of money – whatever its source – will always be in demand and would bring north and south together again as a jointly productive nation.

Malcolm Parkin, Kinnesswood, Perth and Kinross

Breaking ground

Rachel Reeves is right to emphasise the importance of the construction industry. However, if the UK is truly to benefit from proposed new AI data centres and the £150 billion investment from the United States, multi-billion pounds of UK investment in infrastructure will be required to match and allow this investment to proceed.

If this is not done, the question is, how long will the interested US investors be prepared to wait before UK can provision the doubling of our energy and water systems needed for this new technology? Certainly not for the decades currently estimated to rebuild the grid and new nuclear power stations and provide new reservoirs and pumped storage.

The proposed investment may disappear like snow in the sun unless a vast infrastructure investment and build is urgently undertaken. Can this even be made possible? Even in Scotland the massive base load tidal power of the Pentland Firth has been left underdeveloped whilst only one of our six pumped water storage sites, at Corrie Glas, is currently under construction, despite the fact that these systems are eminently financiable.

The jury is out as to whether UK’s politicians will work with the financial, construction and energy industry businesses to drive forward the new AI industry and its data centres.

Elizabeth Marshall, Edinburgh

No more excuses

The recognition of a Palestinian state is a gigantic step in the right direction. However, this remains ink on paper.

There are no words left to describe the unspeakable anguish of Palestinians in Gaza. Gaza has become a living hell and a moral indictment. Children are starving. Children are dying. Their legs and arms are being amputated without anaesthesia and disinfectants. Gaza has the largest number of child amputee anywhere in the entire world.

As an occupying power, Israel has a moral and legal obligation to allow humanitarian access into the occupied Palestinian territories and adhere to international humanitarian law. There can be no more excuses for more bloodshed and suffering.

Dr Munjed Farid Al Qutob, London

Friends like these

John Swinney is becoming extreme. Sir Keir Starmer makes history with UK recognition of a Palestine state. Not content with Starmer’s already stilted position on Israel, Mr Swinney demands even more draconian action such as increased sanctions (your report, 22 September).

Foreign policy is not a particular skill of the SNP. Mr Swinney's recent forays in that area have resulted in net zero for the Scotch whisky industry. Israel is Mr Swinney’s bête noire so he has to go further and faster than Labour to appease the left.

Scottish and UK politics are taking on the look of a massive left versus right boxing match. The left sees a chance to score points by attacking Israel. The right is, in essence, coming to its aid. This shows up dramatically how broken UK politics is.

Based upon the attitudes of both the SNP and Greens, if Scotland was to gain independence, it would not just be opposing Israel, but England and the United States too. Is Mr Swinney contemplating calling upon the extreme leaders in Moscow, Beijing or Tehran for the near immediate help an independent Scotland would need?

Gerald Edwards, Glasgow

World leader

John Swinney insists on poking his nose in where it will usually be ignored but makes him feel important. His constant badgering of the media and Holyrood about Palestine and Israel has become boring.

Now he is hailing the UK Government recognition of Palestine as a state. That is also pandering to the voters and it runs against the grain of disagreeing with everything Westminster does.

It’s just as well we don’t have any problems of our own in Scotland, I’m not sure John would be able to cope, him being so busy fixing problems thousands of miles away.

Ian Balloch, Grangemouth, Falkirk

Lowest of the low

I do not know where you found Jenny Lindsey, an absolute gem of a writer, whose contributions by the week, are hitting the nail on the head harder and harder.

The latest (22 September), exposes the disgrace that is this SNP regime, law breakers and basically intransigents with regard to the rule of law in our nation.

They wold much rather pontificte on Gaza, Israel, Donald Trump (when not jumping into bed with him) and world affairs (nice to have Humza Yousaf interjecting on our toxic society) and fail to deal with real law from the Supreme Court re women’s spaces. If there is toxicity in Scotland, and yes there is, It is crealted by this showboating bunch of delinquents at Holyrood.

The sink to the lowest of the low is accelerating at a speed beyond belief. Should this mob get in again, then I would suggest we are pandering to more delusional people per head of capita then anywhere else in the western world.

If this should happen, in the words of Duncan Bannatyne on Dragons Den: “I’m out!”

David Millar, Lauder, Scottish Borders

Human rights

Nigel Farage is doubling down on plans to control immigration into the UK – and as we know from experience plans are only as good as the legislation that underpins them!

What has continually stymied our government’s hands in control of immigration numbers has been the continual blowback from human rights lawyers using the courts and European human rights to ensure that most who arrive on our shore illegally can claim asylum and in due course, gain settled status and then are able to bring in family members.

Given the numbers quoted recently, in good weather up to 1,000 migrants are crossing the Channel daily in small boats. Yes, we have Labour’s one in one out agreement with France but at present with, I believe, three flights and three people returned to date the omens are not good.

Our answer has to be a UK Human Rights Act and the sooner Mr Farage publishes Reform’s version for debate and agreement ready for implementation the more likely his party will move from noise to serious contender.

Of course, the Conservatives should also go down that road and if they pip Reform with their proposals they will start to look like a serious option for government again.

A Lewis, Coylton, South Ayrshire

Sturgeon is history

I am very tired of reading letters about Nicola Sturgeon, the latest being from Jane Lax (22 September). Sturgeon resigned as leader over two years ago and by her own admission is not planning a return to frontline politics. Her memoir is selling at half price at my local bookshop and when I jokingly asked my father whether he wanted a copy for his 90th birthday he said he would not want to be put through the pain!

Ms Sturgeon recognised that she was a “polarising figure” and that was one reason why she resigned. If she wants to cash in and wind down as a public servant, as most political leaders unfortunately do, there is little anyone can do to prevent that. The best way is just to ignore Sturgeon and not give her any more publicity.

Neil Anderson, Edinburgh

A&E crisis

Your Scottish nationalist correspondents like to boast about the success of the NHS in Scotland, particularly in contrast with results for the English NHS. The Scotsman’s report and comment (23 September) on the excess deaths caused by long waits in A&E departments is a useful antidote to that complacency.

Trying to deflect from this, as Neil Gray, MSP, predictably does, by claiming that Scotland ‘outperforms’ England and Wales, is insulting to overworked staff and to patients who suffer long waits in A&E in all jurisdictions. But cherrypicking statistics out of desperation to show that, as Harry Enfield’s ‘Dougal’ used to say, ‘Everything’s better in Scotland’, is, as a former senior consultant, Dr Neil Nichol, has said, ‘like comparing apples and oranges’. It involves sleight of hand.

The fact is that A&E waits are longer than they should be across the UK. It would be better to address the very real problems involved than to demean staff in some parts of the UK by using selective statistics and political prejudice.

Jill Stephenson, Edinburgh

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