Get a grip: pensioners are not the enemy of the young

He neglects to mention that the state pension is not a benefit but something we all paid for. Had the compulsory contributions taken from our earnings been handled properly and been invested rather than being used to cover current government spending, we would be receiving significantly larger dividends from that investment fund than the pittance we get currently. Is he aware that individuals in my circumstances who also have an occupational pension may find themselves paying more income tax than they receive as a state pension, so effectively don’t get one?

As regards pensioners owning property, where does he think we got it? By being home owners we have supported the construction industry, the mortgage blood-suckers, we have reduced the pressure on social housing and have contributed substantially to the coffers of local governments in the process. We all still contribute to taxation every time we put our hands in our pockets.

I agree entirely with him that something needs to be done to improve the lives of the disadvantaged in all age groups but I tire of my generation being blamed for today’s woes when we and the generations before us created the fabric of society that the likes of Dr Shabab enjoy. We are not the enemy and someone in his position should know who is.

David J Crawford, Glasgow.

• IT would seem that Rashaad Shabab has set out to create animosity between the generations.

Like many others before him he makes the mistake of trying to manufacture a connection between the value of a property and income when it is often the case that no connection exists. I particularly take exception to his use of the phrases “unearned housing wealth” and “unearned windfall”. There is no such thing as unearned housing wealth or a windfall when one's house is one's forever home. Like many other pensioners, the house where my wife and I live is our home. Its value is a complete irrelevance as it has no connection whatsoever to our income and it does not provide an income.

Despite the triple lock that he appears to disapprove of, the state pension in the UK is still one of the lowest in Western Europe. He claims that the triple lock redistributes income from working households to pensioners. It appears that he does not understand that those pensioners were also once members of working households who paid taxes all their working lives. Dr Shabab needs to recognise that the young taxpayers of today will be the pensioners of tomorrow and so the cycle continues. Creating a schism between the different generations helps no one.

David Clark, Tarbolton.

Monarchy a sign of our folly

THE first part of the article by Roz Foyer regarding the state opening of Parliament by the King ("We don't need pomp to do what's right", The Herald, July 22) encapsulates entirely the crazy country we now live in. This unelected monarch, sitting on his golden throne with this medieval monstrosity perched on his head, indicates the utter folly of our so-called democratic society.

To compound this we have rows of peers comfortably seated bedecked in wigs and ermine; in the meantime our elected MPs are forced to stand, packed in like sardines, at the back of the chamber. This not the state opening of the House of Commons, our real government; the emphasis is the House of Lords which for centuries was the real power in the land.

Recently we had the 80th commemoration of the D-Day landings. A number of the still-living veterans were there wearing a few of their medals and ribbons. Striding amongst them was our King in full military splendour, his chest covered in medals. Medals for what. you may well ask? Was he ever in combat, did he ever lead his troops into action? As a National Serviceman in the early 1950s, 42 of us did basic training. At the end of our two years' conscription only 38 returned for demob. Two were killed in Cyprus and the other two hacked to death by the Mau Mau in Kenya as our country tried to defend its Royal Empire. Enough said.

Eddie Robertson, Loganswell.

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So could I vote Tory?

I HAVE never voted Conservative in my life. I have always believed their policies to be out of touch with the ordinary citizens who often struggle in their day-to-day lives, financially and otherwise.

That said, in your Unspun section today, Graham Simpson ("Scottish Tories need a manager to put them back on the park and get the crowd roaring. It’s a tough gig ...", The Herald, July 23) makes good points in terms of how he would like to see a Conservative government leading at Holyrood, although also acknowledging it won't happen in the next 2026 election.

My concern is what happens when politicians actually attain power. Their words can often become distant memories and differ fundamentally from their actions.

I'd like to think I could be open-minded enough to trust the words and hang my hat on a completely different peg, but, unfortunately, experience has taught that me the truth about leopards and spots.

John O'Kane, Glasgow.

The blame game

IT has become very clear from all of the Government’s announcements since winning the General Election that every ill is the fault of the last Tory Government. Sir Keir Starmer, as highlighted in his vacuous contribution following the King’s Speech, will have a very short time to provide answers and policy solutions to all of these “ills” that beset our country. With just 34% of the vote at the election, further platitudes from the likes of Yvette Cooper, David Lammy, Bridget Phillipson and Wes Streeting simply will not wash.

They will be judged on deeds not words and they should be aware that the clock is ticking.

Richard Allison, Edinburgh.

What would Attlee think?

IT is disquieting and concerning to read of people suffering in agony without access to an NHS dentist ("Rise in patients at private dentists", The Herald, July 22). There are many patients in Scotland who can afford it now opting for private dentistry. Obviously many dentists in Scotland who have opted out of NHS dentistry are now wholly or mainly involved in private work.

One wonders what Aneurin Bevan, a driving force in the original creation of the NHS, would make of the situation today, particularly in the light of his belief that the essence of the service was intended to be free at the point of use and delivery. In fact he resigned from the Labour government of Clement Attlee because he viewed the introduction of charges for dental work and optical services, as well as prescriptions, as a breach of "socialist principles". One is also wondering how such principles as held by Bevan would go down with the leaders of the Labour Party today.

Ian W Thomson, Lenzie.

• HELEN McCardle might follow up her piece by investigating how many of our “local” dentists (like veterinary practices) are owned by private equity groups based in New York or Zurich.

Alex Dillon, Comrie.

King Charles III with veterans following the UK national commemorative event for the 80th anniversary of D-Day in Ver-sur-Mer, Normandy, last month (Image: PA)

An ugly contest beckons

DR Gerald Edwards (Letters, July 23) needs to understand the difference between the revolving door of Tory leadership and the fixed-term presidency of Joe Biden. Kamala Harris may have her potential flaws: Californian, liberal, a woman of colour (only a flaw due to the appalling culture wars) and a confusing speech mode. On the plus side she has had a four-year apprenticeship, an incisive mind, prosecutorial experience (which will petrify Donald Trump), she is socially liberal and a woman of colour, making it more dangerous for Mr Trump to utilise his usual cartoonish attacks.

It may be an open contest for the Democrats would have revealed a “better” candidate, but one without the wider recognition required to win a presidency across America. I fear this will be one of the ugliest contests in modern American history, with migration and abortion among the main topics, but may the best woman win! Then the real battle will commence.

GR Weir, Ochiltree.

•VICE-PRESIDENTIAL candidate JD Vance asserted: “I don’t really care what happens to Ukraine one way or the other” and former President Trump appears ambivalent at best; hardly an affirmation of their proclaimed Christian beliefs or leadership of “the free world”.

Moreover, while not an exact analogy, would they also not “really care” if Russia invaded its former colony Alaska for which the USA paid them a mere $130 million, at today’s prices, in 1867?

John Birkett, St Andrews.