LIKE Carolyn Leckie, I watched the recent David Hayman documentary, The Battle for Scotland’s Countryside (Progress on land reform must not stand still, The National, March 19). While there was much to admire and applaud, there was also a missed opportunity to expose the excesses and abuses carried out by those who own and work for the shooting estates and grouse moors that so wastefully occupy so much of our land.
As with all battles there are casualties, and in the case of our countryside the real casualties are our native species, especially the raptors, and our diverse environment that has been reduced to a monoculture of commercial forestry and denuded uplands.
The matter of Scotland’s feudal-based system and concentration of land ownership in a small number of hands is a national disgrace and one that has no place in a modern Scotland: even less so in an independent Scotland. Unless the Scottish Government takes blatant disregards of wildlife laws seriously and begins to take effective action I, and many others, will defect to the Scottish Greens – as long as they continue to support independence.
The litany of these crimes is ever growing and will carry on as long as estates remain confident that land reform is not a priority of the Scottish Government and that prosecution and enforcement of the law is not high on their agenda.
The figures speak for themselves and can only be described as damning. Of 131 tagged golden eagles in the Highlands some 31 have “disappeared” in unexplained circumstances, ie one-third over 12 years. In one relatively small area, the Monadhliath, 12 have gone missing in seven years. Even on the outskirts of our capital city we have had the recent mysterious loss of Fred, the golden eagle. Surely this is an astonishingly couldn’t-care-less attitude of open defiance, having occurred not in a remote Highland glen but within a short flight of Holyrood. What all these incidents have in common is their close proximity to driven grouse moors.
And now this week we have seen the video of the mass and indiscriminate shooting of mountain hares, despite assurances from these estates that they would exercise restraint. All these activities have the goal of providing a pampered and protected environment so as to maximise red grouse numbers and improve the commercial viability of sporting estates. Unlike its victims, the red grouse has no special or legal protection, just that so effectively provided by those who work on these estates.
In the face of the growing evidence, surely we are entitled to conclude that self-regulation, responsibility and restraint are all concepts which are foreign to these estates and those who carry out their handiwork. It must also be right that we demand more from the Scottish Government. The time has come to get off their backsides and demonstrate that they are serious about land reform of a real and radical nature. It is long overdue that the people of Scotland regain control of their land that was appropriated and stolen by the robber barons of the past.
Our land may have become lost to us, but “this land is my land and this land is your land”. No more gestures, no more superficial changes. For God’s sake give up the forelock-tugging mind-set and get the job done. We could start with just banning grouse shooting, no ifs and no buts.
J F Davidson
Bonnyrigg
I ATTENDED the National Roadshow on Thursday evening in a packed hall in Dumbarton. I have supported The National both personally and through business advertising since its inception and hope to do so in the future.
The most telling contribution of the evening came from a gentleman from the audience who revealed that he was the only one of 24 siblings and wider family members who voted Yes at the referendum. He challenged the panel to have the Yes movement publish a budget so that voters can have the reassurance that on the day after independence their pensions and other public services will be funded.
Regrettably the response was the tired old excuse that the Scottish Government currently doesn’t have the powers to eradicate poverty or levers to transform our economy.
If we are serious about delivering independence to the folk who are not political anoraks and not committed British nationalists, we need an answer to the question: why would a pensioner or person with a comfortable lifestyle vote for independence on a vision?
The hard fact which too many independence spokespersons fail to grasp is that despite the many inadequacies of the current devolution settlement, the Scottish Government has the legal power to eradicate poverty and transform our economic and entrepreneurial performance to become a truly property-owning democracy. We in the independence movement must challenge our government, which it is too timid.
It is the duty of everyone who promotes independence to use every vehicle to undermine the British state. By taking control of what we legally can do, we can undermine the British state by driving the essential wedge between us and the British nationalists – to convert the apolitical Doubting Thomases to take the easy step to vote Yes at the next referendum.
Graeme McCormick
Arden
HENRY Hooper (Website Comments, March 30) is sooooo right. The time for “playing nice” is long since past. While I have the greatest respect for our First Minster and all that Holyrood manages to achieve with the powers they have, when are we going to say to Mrs May enough is enough?
It is as clear as day that this Tory government are going to do what they want, when they want. Scotland’s right to be heard or considered is not an issue for them. Daily we hear of some other decision or action they have taken that heaps insult on to injury, denying Scotland’s right to democracy in all matters on going at this time. Polite words are not enough!
We need much stronger condemnation of false news and a lot more confrontation of the BBC and Westminster’s lies. If this isn’t repudiated as strongly and publicly as possible, the voters at large think it must be true! We also need to publicise Holyrood’s achievements much more. Henry Hooper is right. If the SNP don’t tackle these issues loudly and soon, the next indyref will not succeed.
Marlyn Graham
Stenhousemuir
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