Unions were responsible for the demise of shipbuilding

As shipyards closed, the unionised workers found jobs at the like of Chrysler in Linwood where they adopted similar practices which ended up with the same closures.

Even today we have still not learned the lessons with the railway network still sending out multi-person teams just to look at a job. In CalMac, the crew of the larger ferries is 28 with the high standard of accommodation requiring an additional deck resulting in additional windage, in turn resulting in more frequent cancellations. The catamaran Arthur augmenting the Ardrossan-Brodick run has just 15 crew and passengers report a feeling of quiet, relaxing spaciousness.

There is hope. I worked in two industries in the last 20 years where the unions were realistic and worked with management to boost job numbers and prospects. If only this had happened in the 1960s then perhaps we would be where Kenneth Ireland would wish us to be today.

Peter Wright, West Kilbride.

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Fatal flaws of Covid inquiry

I AM dismayed by what I've seen of the Covid inquiry so far, both from the media and a quick look at some of the vast number of government documents ("Covid inquiry urged to look at role of jobs on virus spread", The Herald, June 12).

I see little or no emphasis on questioning whether masks actually reduced the spread of pathogenic disease, or conversely whether they increased the spread. Similar for lockdowns. I see no questions as to whether the £400 billion spent by government on things like furlough and Test and Trace could have saved more lives by spending that money on things like cancer and heart disease. And there are many more elephants in the room.

The Government should read the almost-innumerable independent scientific publications that have been published on the matter.

Geoff Moore, Alness.

Read more: We must ban single-use vaping if we are to protect our children

Driven in distraction

YOU recently reported that the number of car deaths in Scotland doubled in a year, rather than falling as promised by political leaders. I think I can tell you why.

Every car I have driven that has been built in the last five or so years has been fitted with a touch-screen control panel for the entertainment, navigation and communication features. This is because a touch-screen is cheaper to fit than buttons and knobs. It is a major visual distraction.

What is the point of banning the use of mobile phones at the wheel if every new car effectively comes with an iPad mounted on the dashboard?

Steve Brennan, Coatbridge.

Give cyclists a wide berth

ALLAN McDougall (Letters, June 13), makes good points regarding the challenges of cycling on a Sustrans path when his bell-ringing is not heard by walkers.

It is not only on Sustrans paths that cyclists’ needs can fall on deaf ears. I welcome the Highway Code update in 2022 which states that drivers should give at least 1.5m to cyclists at 30mph, more when driving faster. It also says that cyclists should ride no less than half a metre from the verge, with no requirement to use cycle lanes.

Thankfully many motorists give cyclists plenty space as they pass them on the roads, but the occasional one does not, with potentially-devastating consequences.

As part of the green revolution I would like to see more cycle tracks, ones that are physically protected from main roads.

Let’s always give cyclists a wide berth on our roads, while working to invent better solutions for the wheel.

Alison Ram, Helensburgh.

Don't despair on sport injuries

HAVING exercised (mainly running and weight-training) almost every day for more than 50 years, I’ve great sympathy for Catriona Stewart and her injuries ("When a sports injury feels a lot like grief”, The Herald, June 13).

I urge Ms Stewart to ignore the nurse who told her that she’d never run or dance again. I doubt they had the specialist knowledge to be able to make that prediction and, if they did, it was cruel to make such a bleak, bald statement. Almost all soft-tissue injuries will heal with treatment, time and corrective exercises.

If Ms Stewart is still suffering from an injury after a year of physio, it suggests she’s doing something that keeps irritating the injury site, or that there’s something else in her musculature that needs working on. It may be, as she herself says, that she just gets back into exercise too quickly. Better to spend an extra couple of weeks building up than overdo it and find yourself back at square one; a lesson I’ve been given many times.

In any event, my best wishes to her for a full recovery. It may take a while, but I’m sure she’ll get back to running and her beloved ballet classes.

Doug Maughan, Dunblane.

Brotherly love

I WONDER how many Worshipful Grand Masters of lodges throughout Scotland would acknowledge the Historic Environment Scotland statement that there is '"a potential safety risk to visitors and staff from unstable masonry at high level", as stated in your article "Revealed: historic Scots sites shut for over two years in safety fears" (The Herald, June 12). If true, I can only urge all brethern to be careful out there.

David G Will, Milngavie.

Vino and veritas

I CAN'T agree that the Bible makes only misleading claims about wine (“Send us censorious, Herald Magazine, June 10). Who would argue with the following?

"Wine cheereth God and man" (Judges 9).

"Wine maketh glad the heart of man" (Psalm 104).

"Let him drink, and forget his poverty, and remember his misery no more" (Proverbs 51) .

"Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities" (I Timothy).

It would seem to be positively sinful to disregard such Scriptural encomia.

Robin Dow, Rothesay.