Letters: The SNP’s by-election drubbing was just the latest sign of a party in freefall
SIR – The results of the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election, in which the SNP suffered a heavy defeat (report, telegraph.co.uk, October 6), surely signal a major change in Scottish politics.
The nationalists have had their day, and voters have seen their true colours. Moreover, the SNP-Green alliance has shown itself to be utterly incompetent in most devolved matters.
It is not fair that the good folk of Scotland should have to wait until 2026 for the next Holyrood elections.
Robert I G Scott
Ceres, Fife
SIR – I suspect Labour only won the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election because of the SNP’s downfall, rather than what it was offering voters.
However, I fear something similar may happen in the general election unless the Tories can achieve their stated goals beforehand.
Neil Stuart
Tavistock, Devon
SIR – What a delicious irony to see Humza Yousaf on the front cover of Time magazine being touted as one of the “trailblazers shaping the future”, on the morning after the SNP’s catastrophic humiliation in the Rutherglen by-election.
Time’s up is more like it.
Guy Bargery
Edinburgh
SIR – In 1967 the sitting Labour MP for Hamilton – an uninspiring individual – died. As this was a constituency where the votes might well have been weighed, the Labour candidate in the by-election was even less inspiring, but had obviously worked his way to the top of the pile.
The SNP, by contrast put up a young, intelligent firebrand, one Winnie Ewing. My mother and many other lifelong Conservatives voted tactically, and she was duly elected, heralding talk of a new era in Scottish politics. Come the next general election and Labour, lesson learnt, put up an intelligent and much-respected candidate, who was duly elected.
Nothing is certain in politics.
Urda Cotter
Troon, Ayrshire
SIR – I am a Tory in East Falkirk, where the likely outcome is either Labour or the SNP.
If I were to vote “tactically” in Westminster elections, I could choose between encouraging a Labour majority to “save the Union” (but expect more bureaucracy) or the SNP to avoid Labour taxes (but take the – albeit diminishing – risk of Scottish independence).
For Holyrood the choice is far simpler – to support a quieter voice, through proportional representation, for Conservative common sense without risking a wasted vote. In council elections I have the intermittent opportunity to support a sensible Tory.
Alan Cochrane (Comment, October 6) appears to support tactical voting, but should I vote against Labour or the SNP in Westminster?
Dr Andy Ashworth
Borrowstounness, West Lothian
Cigarette red herring
SIR – I agree with Richard Capstack (Letters, October 5) about Rishi Sunak’s inane plan effectively to ban young people from purchasing cigarettes.
The fact is that the habit of tobacco-smoking has been so demonised that most young people regard it as dirty, smelly and totally anti-social, and are well aware of how unhealthy it is.
They have turned instead to vaping – temptingly flavoured and supposedly cleaner. The urgent priority should be to regulate and restrict the sale of e-cigarettes in order to reduce the number of young nicotine addicts mistakenly thinking they are doing themselves no harm.
Janice R S Sinclare
London N12
SIR – We’ve been told for some time that young people are rejecting cigarettes in favour of vapes, yet the Prime Minister is seeking to ban the former.
Is this simply a smoke-and-mirrors exercise that will allow him to claim success in at least one of his goals?
Cameron Morice
Reading, Berkshire
SIR – I am perhaps the last in a line of contemplative pipe smokers, and see the logic behind Fraser Nelson’s argument (Comment, October 6) that Rishi Sunak’s proposed smoking fade-out is superfluous, given the growing unpopularity of tobacco.
I hope, however, that this trend does not ultimately result in the banning or defacing of portraits of Conservative heroes who were smokers, such as Winston Churchill with his cigar – or Stanley Baldwin, who favoured a pipe.
John Kidd
Surfers Paradise, Queensland, Australia
West Country neglect
SIR – There has been much talk about how the savings from the partial scrapping of HS2 will be spent on creating infrastructure in the North and the Midlands.
What about the West Country? The A303 and the A30 need to be dual carriageways for their entire distance, and the railways require a major upgrade.
If the objective is to unite the country, then every area counts. Furthermore, there are Liberal Democrats circling here, and they must be thwarted.
Neale Edwards
Chard, Somerset
SIR – While many are criticising the Government’s decision not to go ahead with the Birmingham-to-Manchester leg of HS2, there are others, like us, with businesses and homes on the planned route, who are delighted.
In our case, the potential loss of up to 400 acres from our family dairy farm has been a black mental cloud for more than a decade, and the effects will take some while to disappear.
Rather than berating those who have, in my view, made the rational economic decision to cut their coat according to their cloth, we should focus our energies on how we might improve what we already have.
The dualling (from one up, one down to two up, two down) of the West Coast lines from Crewe to Manchester, Crewe to Scotland and Crewe to Holyhead would enable faster express trains to overtake commuter and freight trains, and free up capacity. It might not be cheap, but it could prove a viable alternative.
John Edge
Middlewich, Cheshire
What’s behind this knockout crop of conkers?
SIR – I see that the Woodland Trust has said that the warm summer is why we have a particularly good crop of conkers this year (“Heatwave is a smashing time for conkers”, report, October 6). I would also put it down to no late frosts and good fertilisation in the spring.
John Winder
Cromford, Derbyshire
Phones in Parliament
SIR – If politicians wish to ban mobile phones from classrooms (Letters, October 6), perhaps they should set an example by banning them from the Commons chamber during debates.
Maurice Burbidge
Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex
Deserted banks
SIR – Martin Moyes (Letters, October 6) discusses the problems with unmanned railway stations.
The same goes for banks (if you can find one at all, that is). There are often no serviced tills, just a selection of indoor ATMs.
In Salisbury recently I called into my bank’s branch in the city because I needed some ￡5 notes and ATMs don’t dispense them.
I was told there was no longer a till service, and if I wanted ￡5 notes I would have to go to the branch in Southampton, some 25 miles away. When I pointed out that this was closed for refurbishment, the assistant was unable to suggest an alternative.
Kevin Liles
Southampton
Anti-social heat pumps
SIR – I have great sympathy with Dr Nigel Downes (Letters, October 6), who lives next-door to a noisy heat pump.
I too live in the country, where one expects peace and quiet. On one side of me there is now a ground-source pump, and on the other an air-source pump. One is on at night, and I am constantly woken not only by the sound but also the vibration, which is even worse.
Jane Faire
Fakenham, Norfolk
Bedbug-buster
SIR – Your feature (October 5) on bedbugs and how to deal with them did not mention diatomaceous earth.
This wonderful substance is the remains of microscopic algae. It’s a powder that you put behind cupboards and around cracks and crevices where bedbugs might be hiding. If it gets on a bedbug it will lead to the critter’s demise through dehydration.
Unlike the common bedbug spray treatments, diatomaceous earth is not poisonous; nor can the bugs build up an immunity to it. Having been battling bugs in my flat, I can heartily recommend it to anyone else in a similar position. It’s also orders of magnitude cheaper than heat or spray treatments.
Alistair Hankey
London SE5
SIR – During my National Service in the Suez Canal Zone, we would take the metal-framed beds from our tents into the nearby desert, douse them with gasoline – and, hey presto, no more bedbugs.
John Lynes
Brixham, Devon
Guests with EVs
SIR – Stephen Woodbridge-Smith (Letters, October 5) asks about the etiquette when hosting guests with an electric vehicle.
The answer is fairly straightforward. Provided the wiring of his house meets current standards, he can allow them to charge their EV by plugging into a three-pin socket. The amperage will be limited, however, meaning that his maximum rate of charge will probably be about 2.2 kilowatts per hour.
A typical EV has a battery capable of holding up to 64 kW of energy, which provides a range of about 250 miles. Mr Woodbridge-Smith’s guests should be able to calculate how many kilowatt hours of electricity have been used to recharge the EV from its dashboard display. Meanwhile, he can see from his electricity bill how much he pays per kWh and thus work out what to charge his guests.
Most people will be pleasantly surprised at how economical EVs are to run, provided you charge them at home.
John Griffiths
Hythe, Kent
SIR – I would welcome visitors in advance and ask them to make sure that their car is fully charged upon arrival, adding that the nearest charging point is to be found at Tesco.
Janet Croome
Truro, Cornwall
SIR – As the driver of an electric car, I find Mr Woodbridge-Smith’s query superfluous.
When visiting friends, should the need arise to charge my car, I would offer to pay them for the electricity used if they are willing for me to charge it at their house. The alternative of charging it at a public point is always available.
I would not expect my host to pay to run my car, any more than I would expect to pay to run theirs.
Liza Fell
Cabus, Lancashire
SIR – Mr Woodbridge-Smith should offer to charge the car and decline payment, thus enhancing his relationship with the owners. Importantly, his visitors will then have no reason to overstay their welcome because of a flat battery.
Colin Cummings
Yelvertoft, Northamptonshire
Kinder, gentler drama
SIR– Is it possible for a drama not to involve crime and murder?
Suggestions on a postcard to television producers, please.
Ginette Whitehead
East Horsley, Surrey
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