SO, Maggie Maggie May, they have taken her away, and she won’t be in the EU any more, or so the old skiffle song seems to say.

Well, her concept of us being better off in the world markets and taking a more global approach to our trade relations, I found, is a vision for England only, and Scots Welsh and others don’t get a bite at the cherry.

Let me explain. When I worked for the gold, diamond, and copper mines in South Africa and Botswana, part of my job as an inspector/expediter, trouble shooter and international procurements evaluator was to investigate companies local and worldwide as potential suppliers of engineering equipment for our new mining projects.

Local firms were visited and their capabilities assessed and orders placed should they comply with our highest standards of workmanship.

With most of the overseas supply I was obliged to contact their embassies and consulates. As part of this ongoing planning exercise, I contacted the trade and commerce department of the British Consulate in Johannesburg, asking for a list of suppliers of pumps, valves, electrical and relevant engineering equipment.

They promptly and gladly replied, supplying me with a long list of English companies, but with no mention of any Welsh, Irish or Scottish suppliers. I contacted them, politely informing them their list was incomplete, and that perhaps some pages of suppliers had been left out in error.

I was assured that their list was correct and no error had taken place. I told our little English official that he was not a British Consulate but an English Consulate, and to swap his silly Union Jack for the cross of St George.

When I pointed out to him that he had left out two of the largest suppliers of pumps, valves and engineering equipment who were fortunately well-established in Africa already, (no thanks to him or his department), namely Weirs of Cathcart and James Howdens, both from Glasgow, he further shocked me by saying he had never heard of them.

How many potential orders did this little Englander lose for Scottish and Welsh, or Irish companies. Where is the “We’re better together” policy? No, it’s a mind over matter policy: “They don’t mind and we don’t matter.”

As to the nonsense that Scotland is too small a country to have consulates or embassies, only a few streets away from that useless British Consulate were the Irish and Norwegian Consulates, who gave me excellent listings of their suppliers. Both of those countries are smaller than Scotland.

They were there proudly promoting their countries’ products, but only independent countries can do this.

Both became independent just over 100 years ago, to become normal countries with the right to take part on that big world stage, where competition is strong, and to join them in this stage we must first of all do like they did, and become a self-respecting nation, with independence.

To stay a subjugated nation is not a choice worth contemplating Regarding costs to run a consulate, I have queued 15 deep in that same Anglo/Brit consulate in Jo’burg to renew my passport costing today £95 to £150 Quite a moneyspinner for a piece of cardboard and a photo which you supply.

Wouldn’t it be great to see a Scottish flag flying from our own consulates and embassies promoting our nation’s products?

Bring on indyref2 and to those who still want to vote No, remember Churchill’s words: “Any nation that doesn’t stand up for its rights deserves to be crushed.”

I rest my case.
Iain Ramsay
Greenock
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Well done Switzerland for blocking anti-China protest

WELL done to the Swiss Government for crawling before the mighty Chinese Communist Party. Pro-Tibet campaigners in Switzerland have been blocked from protesting at a visit to the country by China’s President Xi Jinping.

Swiss authorities imposed a no-protest zone in Bern, the Swiss capital, which limited where activists could gather while also applying a two-hour time limit.

Human rights organisation Amnesty International added their concern stating: “Bern’s decision to only allow a demonstration away from the view of the Chinese delegation must be viewed as a critical restriction on free speech and assembly rights.”

The Chinese president – who attended a gala dinner held in his honour in the Swiss parliament alongside Swiss counterpart Doris Leuthard and was flanked by armed, masked guards on his journey – is there ahead of the World Economic Forum in Davos.

Xi’s visit is the first by a Chinese president since 1999 when then-president Jiang Zemin arrived in Switzerland where he faced mass protests, including demonstrators who hung banners from rooftops overlooking the Swiss Parliament. Zemin remarked at the time that the Swiss risked “losing a good friend”.

Similar protests in support of Tibet rocked state visits by Xi in Prague in March 2016 and in London in October 2015. Obviously our old policy against racist South Africa of demonstrations and boycotts must have been wrong, and modern Western governments realise that we must put money before ethics, freedom, democracy etc. Congratulations Switzerland!
B McKenna
Dumbarton

OH dear! Today’s issue is a hysterical reaction to Theresa May’s speech. I expected better of The National. Your article (HSBC in move to Paris after May’s speech, The National, January 19) reads like so many about banks, major companies, etc moving from Edinburgh to London if we had had the temerity to vote Yes in 2014.

I listened carefully to what Jean-Claude Juncker said when interviewed and he sounded quite conciliatory to me. Of course, EU grandees have to say any agreement with the UK will have to be less advantageous than that we enjoy at the moment. It’s a negotiating tactic used by both sides.

In answer to Lesley Riddoch (Bargain basement economic future is the stark reality of Tory Brexit project, The National, January 19) setting aside the bombast in her article, I’d like to draw attention to the end of it: “The European Union isn’t perfect. But its flaws are our kinda flaws. The issues it grapples with are largely the issues we also need to tackle.” Well, they’ve been obvious since 2008 and the EU has done nothing to correct them and shows no inclination to do so now. This is what the Brexit vote was all about. Dare I hope that now that all the rattles have been thrown out of prams a more considered response to Brexit will appear in your next issues?
Lovina
Roe Perth

BORIS Johnson says there are countries, such as India, Australia and New Zealand queueing up to do trade deals with the UK. Well of course: they want to increase what they export to the UK.

So get ready for the cheap New Zealand lamb that will drive down the price of Scottish lamb, already suffering from a glut, as, with the UK no longer being in the EU single market, Scotland will struggle to export to Europe. And the bounty will not end there; fish should also be plentiful and cheap with all the North Sea to ourselves and no European market to sell it to.
Roy Bertram
Inverurie

WHY is Kevin McKenna so desirous of having the FM rush into announcing indyref2 (Theresa May is sailing close to the wind with Brexit claims, The National, January 18)? Anyone with a grain of sense would realise the absolutely earliest point it can be done is after Article 50 has been triggered?

Has McKenna not seen the paeans of praise for the PM from the tabloids, regurgitated by the BBC? Only in a very few places are the true consequences of Brexit reported. Most are unaware of the disaster approaching. Until that changes, it makes no sense to act precipitately.
Brenda Steele
Fortrose