Readers' Letters: What a shame civil servants must go back to office

Mr Kerr wants them in the office for two days a week. Only two days? Many civil servants still work solely from home.

Many complain about the cost of commuting and concerns about finding childcare or caring for pets. Poor darlings, welcome to the real world where those in the private sector are not nearly as well paid or pensioned and have to travel in all weathers to get to work on time.

Keep it going Stephen Kerr, the public are behind you.

Clark Cross, Linlithgow, West Lothian

SNP arrogance

John Swinney backs Stephen Flynn in the ferry gas leak row, saying that nobody is perfect. Absolutely pathetic. Flynn is an experienced politician, quite full of his own self-importance, with time in Westminster and Holyrood, yet he turns up to be questioned by a committee and denies knowledge of the gas leak.

If true, he isn’t in control of is brief and should be dismissed. If, as seems to be the case from a Freedom of Information request, he was either briefed or had the opportunity to be briefed but instead walked into the committee to wing it and did a Michael Matheson – “it wisnae me, it was my kids, I was on FaceTime to them”.

He denied knowledge of the incident and was not in control of his brief, yet he is a senior politician with responsibility for a critical part of economic growth in Scotland!

I cannot imagine, in my case, going to a company audit committee and not being absolutely on top of my topic, so that I could answer any question that might be posed. Personal professional pride would demand no less.

That the First Minister defends Flynn says as much about his judgment as Flynn’s. The arrogance of unbridled power knowing the sheep will continue to vote for you irrespective of how badly you perform.

Scotland deserves better. We Scots deserve better. Two decades? It’s time for change.

Brian Barbour, Haddington, East Lothian

Trump’s triumphs

Hot on the heels of winning seven wars, bringing Greenland into the fold and absolutely, single-handedly almost tripling the price of oil, the deal maker of the century now sets his eyes on Ukraine.

I’m not sure whether Ukraine is included within the seven wars he has won but the answer to winning this Russian terrorist attack against Ukraine is to lose the Ukraine President and have terrorist Vladimir Putin select a new one who can do a deal to end the war.

Of course, if you have no principles there is little compunction with doing a deal with a person who also has little in the way of principles, hence the deal with Russia to import diesel to keep the motors running in the great USA.

We have to wonder what ordinary citizens feel about this deal and I suggest that they must be despondent that this great nation could suddenly find itself cosying up to a country when until very recently they were exporters of the black stuff! Surely the enemies of the West must feel a frisson of excitement as they watch this sad tale unfold and wonder if this is the right time to strike against Israel, USA and the unholy West in general.

We have to wonder how much more damage this person can do before having the reins of power stripped from his hands.

A Lewis, West Linton, Scottish Borders

Needing nuclear

So Ian Waugh (Letters, 10 October) thinks he speaks for all of Scotland on the matter of nuclear energy ? The rather long waiting list for nuclear scans at DGRI would refute that, and of course the people of Annan and surrounds were dancing in the streets when their reactor was shut down, leaving hundreds jobless – weren’t they?

Let me make it clear that the modern world simply cannot do without nuclear, so I do wish that educated people would stop treating it as some sort of witchcraft. Nuclear waste is the most often quoted scare story. There really is no great problem with this. Finland has just about completed its own facilities for long-term storage whereas we, the original developers of commercial nuclear energy, have as yet no such system, mainly due to people of Mr Waugh's persuasion – ban a development, then moan that it does not exist!

A McCormick, Terregles, Dumfries

Scare story

Labour MP Brian Leishman made a statement that building new nuclear plants would “make Scotland a target for Putin”. Are readers to understand that he thinks that unlike the rest of the UK Scotland would not be targeted regardless? I think not.

Or, was he seeking a dramatic fear-based headline to ensure publication of a set of assertions that don’t stand up on their own merit?

Kenneth Macfarlane, Edinburgh

Fitting tribute

Glasgow's new status of Nelson Mandela is a reminder of a person who remains a human inspiration for peace, freedom, forgiveness and solidarity. Mandela's fearless and tireless determination to dismantle systemic oppression, prejudice and inequality, at great personal cost, should inspire us to strive for a world in which human beings are free to reach their potentials irrespective of colour, race, gender, ethnicity and religion.

(Dr) Munjed Farid Al Qutob, London

Lauding Laurent

May I offer a sincere congratulation to Heart of Midlothian football player Laurent Mendy, for finally managing to score a goal that Scottish referees, linesman nor VAR could find any excuse to declare as offside or a foul to the other team.

Mark Boyle, Johnstone, Renfrewshire

Write to The Scotsman

We welcome your thoughts – NO letters submitted elsewhere, please. Write to [email protected][email protected] including name, address and phone number – we won't print full details. Keep letters under 300 words, and in the body of the email – no attachments – and avoid 'Letters to the Editor/Readers’ Letters' or similar in your subject line. If referring to an article, include date, page number and heading. No poems or open letters.