Where's the morality in attacking the old instead of the rich?

Mr Mackay quotes that "a 1% wealth tax on the richest 1% would raise £25 billion a year". But the Government chooses instead to attack pensioners so it can save £1.4 billion ("Starmer hit by bruising backbench rebellion on winter fuel", The Herald, September 11)? There is absolutely no logic and certainly no morality in that decision. There are many other sectors of society and business which can afford to contribute much more without suffering than pensioners.

But then, did you really expect a knight of the realm to fight for the interests of the common people against the elite establishment? By their deeds shall ye know them. Not by words such as those of Anas Sarwar, "read my lips, no austerity under Labour". George Osborne's years of austerity proved it's the financial strategy of a zealot or a fool. Why on earth is Labour choosing to adopt this cruel and nonsensical policy: "Let's penalise the poor and give our super-wealthy mates a free pass, maybe we'll get an invite onto the super yacht"? Be in no doubt, Labour's austerity is coming for you. Unless, of course, you're wealthy.

Sandy Slater, Stirling.

• I SPOTTED a headline last week about the rich threatening to leave the UK if they had to pay more tax. Neil Mackay mirrored my reaction to this yesterday.

At a time of proposed austerity the rich will not be affected, unlike the impoverished. Now the retired have to lose their £300 winter fuel allowance too.

Attendance any day earns our lords and ladies more than that. It is only half of the cost of a luxury pair of ladies shoes.

When we talk about a levelling up process we think of more industry and infrastructure for poorer areas. We should also aim at a freeze or reduction of grants and new projects in the wealthy regions, in particular in London and the Home Counties.

How much money does one person need to have a comfortable life? If you won the lottery how much would you need? Second homes when others have none would embarrass me and I don't need more or bigger cars to make potholes either. (The rich don't use public transport so its defects don't affect them either.) Neil Mackay is right when he wants the rich to pay more tax, if only to respect this country which they share with us lower classes.

JB Drummond, Kilmarnock.

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Voters have been duped

SO now we know: all six of Glasgow’s newly-elected Labour MPs decided to put party and their own careers ahead of the welfare of their elderly, vulnerable constituents. I’d say “shame on them” but I doubt they have any shame.

No doubt they will spout the party mantra of “tough decisions” to justify their votes. Strange how their leader wasn’t prepared to make the “tough decision” of not awarding inflation-busting pay rises to certain heavily-unionised sectors. I guess non-unionised pensioners were just an easier target.

With such a large majority in Parliament, it is now apparent that the way is clear for this Government to continue attacking the most vulnerable in our society if that is the easiest option for them. There must be so many Labour voters now feeling completely duped.

P McDermott, Glasgow.

• SO all but two of Scottish Labour’s bravehearts voted to remove funding for pensioners’ winter fuel payment from the Scottish Government block grant.

This should provide an opportunity for their colleagues in Holyrood to take some responsibility for the consequences.

Cameron Crawford, Rothesay.

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• THAT old Glasgow song, “ You canae shove your granny off the bus” must surely be reworded: “Your granny has been thrown under the bus.”

Maybe we should have asked more about the significance of "Change".

Bill O’Hara, Banchory.

Selective statistics

AS a counter to the withdrawal of the winter fuel allowance the Labour Party is loudly proclaiming that pensioners received an increase of £900 in their pension from April 2024, thus making them better off even with the removal of the winter payment. In typical fashion they ignore the effect of inflation and don’t say that this is the maximum increase and only men born after April 5, 1951 and women born after April 5, 1953 are eligible to receive it. For those unfortunate enough to have been born before these dates the increase is under £700.

This means that the current pension for older pensioners is £8,814 compared to £11,502 for the younger ones. The Labour Party talks about being open and transparent but the use of selective statistics suggests that it is not going to be any different from other political parties.

Alan McGibbon, Paisley.

So easy to spend our money

THE bad news from Sir Keir Starmer is that, due to a black hole of debt of £22 billion, the winter heating allowance is to be withdrawn except for those elderly on pension credit. The good news, though, is that the hole could have been even deeper or wider had the previous government gone ahead with Boris Johnson's wheeze of building a tunnel or bridge between Northern Ireland and the UK. Where were those billions to have come from? And how many in the Tory ranks said "Boo" to the idea?

As it was, only £100,000 of taxpayers' money, yours and mine, was spent on a feasibility study which concluded that this was not a viable proposition. Perhaps the fact that the Irish Sea had been a dumping ground for unexploded weapons and other assorted potentially-dangerous material should have put paid to the idea at an even earlier stage.

Big spenders. How easy it is when it is taxpayers' money that is being spent.

Malcolm Allan, Bishopbriggs.

Taxes used in a Ponzi scheme

I KNOW it's old-fashioned, but a lot of people think that they paid taxes, on their income, expenditure, capital gains and inheritances, to level the playing field and make sure that we all had a chance to be part of a secure and sustainable society.

They thought that decent pensions, cradle to grave health and social care, accessible justice, defence, decent housing, transport and education would be well funded and available to all, given the vast sums paid into the scheme.

Apparently not. Our taxes have been used to finance daily government expenditure: a Ponzi scheme. The billions we paid in have all been spent.

We hear people suggest that "free" prescriptions, health care, college and university education, baby boxes, travel for the old, the young and asylum seekers, housing benefit, what used to be called family allowance (paid to women) and cold weather payments are not affordable. These are not "free", the recipients have paid for them in advance all their lives.

All we want is our money's worth. We have paid for all of the above, we set them up, we put them in place, so now, why should we be convinced that all the profits for running our utilities, like rail, buses, power, the internet, education, health and gas, should be going to foreign companies, many of them state-owned, but not by our state?

AJ Clarence, Prestwick.

Police in Glasgow's George Square last Saturday, dealing with rival protests on immigration (Image: Newsquest)

We must stand up to racism

GRAEME Johnston's letter (September 10) on the topic of immigration and rival demonstrations in Glasgow misses the point and purpose of protest.

In recent weeks we have witnessed a series of racist and violent attacks upon communities, property and the police, mostly in England and Northern Ireland.

Thankfully, the call by far right groups for a gathering in Glasgow was met by counter-protestors, whose purpose was to peacefully but vocally draw attention to the poisonous presence of racism in the UK.

The anti-racist gathering outnumbered the far right group by around 10 to one, which most certainly reflects the "majority of Scots".

If Mr Johnston is "tired of seeing these protests" then he can ignore them, turn off his TV, or leave. But I am sure he does not speak for the "majority of Scots".

He insists that "honest, transparent dialogue is needed". That dialogue will not happen while racist thugs are rampaging through the streets of Britain.

Those who stand up to racism are on the right side of history and are entitled to voice their views. Doing nothing is not acceptable.

"In the end we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends": Martin Luther King.

Kevin Orr, Bishopbriggs.