April 29 Letters: Sturgeon and a new breed of politics

IS SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon possibly the greatest threat to Westminster since local Yorkshire lad, Guy Fawkes?

If so, then any political leader willing to form an electoral pact with her would surely run the risk of impeachment or worse.

As Mrs Ramsbottom, the grieving mother in the The Lion and Albert monologue so eloquently said: “Someone’s got to be summonsed!”

From: Peter Bye, Addingham.

NICOLA Sturgeon’s role in the forthcoming election is being overplayed (Tom Richmond, The Yorkshire Post, April 27). The fact is, following the election, all MPs will have to play the cards they are dealt.

The real problem is an individual whose name has barely been mentioned. Len McCluskey, General Secretary of Unite, has already said that he will be the person that writes Labour’s first budget, further commenting the Labour Party belongs to the Trade Unions. After all, this is why Ed Miliband got his job in the first place.

From: Pamela Z Frankland, Hull Road, Dunnington, York.

I WAS in Scotland last year at the height of the devolution referendum issue. Everyone I spoke to bar one young couple and their wee son were against, especially in rural areas.

The lovely, canny Scots, with their good sense voted “No”. I am sure we can rely on them again. Nicola Sturgeon is now promising support for farming, another ploy to get rural votes. It is said that if you fish in murky water you get mucky fish, which we certainly will – the fishy pair Sturgeon and Salmon(d).

From: Brian Johnston, Leeds.

IN what could be the most important General Election since 1945, a new breed of politics could be knocking on the door of Number 10. It is the march of a sinister brand of left-wing populism, born of the recession and austerity. It is being effectively harnessed by Ed Miliband and Nicola Sturgeon together, and is within a whisker of power that could shape our country for years to come.

It is really a revival of 1970s socialism – attacking the rich and wealth creators, slaying the corporate giants and big business, spend, spend with money we ain’t got.

From: AV Kent, St Juliens Way, Cawthorne, Barnsley.

MY wife and I were privileged to hear the new Bishop of Huddersfield deliver the Harold Wilson Memorial Lecture and we felt that your coverage was overall pleasing (The Yorkshire Post, April 24). The last sentence of your Editorial did not do you justice however. It is surely the role of the Church to ask the questions most politicians are not addressing. Poverty in this country remains a real problem and why are food banks necessary? The current Government has avoided this issue for five years.

From: Gerald Hodgson, Spennithorne, Leyburn.

I WAS appalled to read the article by Father Neil McNicholas “Politicians don’t deserve our vote or any respect” (The Yorkshire Post, April 20).

I believe that the overwhelming proportion of politicians, locally and nationally and of all parties, do what they do from the best of motives. We need people to make democracy function and being involved in politics is a very stressful, and largely thankless, task.

It is essential that, as a nation, we give more support to the people who put their heads above the parapet to make democracy function. Just sounding off with abuse de-motivates good people who might otherwise be willing to stand.

From: Brian H Sheridan, Redmires Road, Sheffield.

HAVING read and reread June Warner’s letter (The Yorkshire Post, April 25), I can only conclude that she believes that a good reason for providing shelter for refugees, that is, those who are not economic migrants, is that they are Christians.

Setting aside the assumption that the victims of the Mediterranean boat disasters are exclusively Christians fleeing persecution, this seems to me a remarkably un-Christian attitude. She applauds Nigel Farage for his “compassion” in wanting to provide shelter for “those Christian victims”. This 
is the compassionate soul 
who said that victims of HIV should be barred from entering this country.

Moreover, your correspondent seems to imply that any perceived lack of sympathy is due to this country previously having “opened the floodgates.” I can’t help thinking that by “to all and sundry” she means “to non-Christians”.

From: Peter Gray, Ilkley.

JUST when was Adam a lad? I refer to the column by Bill Carmichael (The Yorkshire Post, April 24).

I am sure that it was before David Austick, owner of a well-known Harrogate bookshop, was elected Liberal MP for the Ripon constituency at a by-election in July 1973 following the death of Sir Malcolm Stoddart-Scott. He held the seat for just six months up to the first of the two general elections in 1974. The seat did not at that time include Skipton, but did cover Otley and Ilkley.