IN his otherwise concise report on the proposal to incorporate Edinburgh’s historic Royal High School into a hotel complex Martin Hannan repeats the developers’ claim that ‘a poll of 5,000 people across Edinburgh found 93 per cent in favour of the plan.’ (Major blow to plan for hotel on Royal High School site as Edinburgh council planners say its design is too modern, The National, December 12).

The statistical improbability of such a claim should invite us to consider it with more than a degree of scepticism, particularly since the agency involved in collecting such data was contracted to do so by the developer concerned.

Methodology and motivation are critical to any poll’s reliability, and while there may be no reason to doubt the general integrity of the company the very fact they were hired by the promoters of the scheme invalidates any claim to impartiality. It would be interesting to know the precise nature of the questions put to the respondents in this case. In the USA such surveys tend to be described as ‘hired gun polls.’ In any event, it is possible that this project could be doomed on a single point of law. In 2010 the developer was chosen by the council as its preferred bidder after a competitive selection process. The winning submission was for a £35 million ‘arts hotel’ of a comparatively modest scale. The proposal now is for a much enlarged £75 million international luxury hotel – an entirely different outcome. Not only would other entrants to that original competition have legitimate grounds for complaint in the matter, it is also difficult to see how such moving of the goalposts can possibly be compliant with binding European competition and procurement rules.

David J Black, New York


SO there have been over 2,000 objections to the hotel proposals but 93 per cent of the public polled were in favour? Hmm. As Mark Twain said, ‘facts are stubborn things, but statistics are pliable’.

Sam Lowry, Cambuslang


MARTIN Hannan writes:”The developers were last night pinning their hopes on councillors setting aside the officials’ recommendation at their meeting next week – a rarity in local government in recent years.” The planning committee said no to the St James hotel/turd, and were ignored by the council, so they have previous – and very recent previous at that.

Windy Horace, via thenational.scot

Councils must protect vulnerable children

SCOTTISH Government figures which indicate 22.5 per cent of pupils in Scottish schools are recorded as having Additional Support Needs (ASN) are very concerning and show a strong need for the protection of funding to this sector. With the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) warning that councils could face up to half a billion pounds of budget pressures in the coming year, we have written to all council leaders as they look to set their budgets, seeking the protection of funding to services addressing the needs of those with ASN. As we know, the cost to society of failing to adequately support this vulnerable group far outweighs any potential budget cuts. Reduction in individual support to children with challenging behaviour can result in severe disruption to mainstream classes. In this context council education departments have also highlighted an increasing number of children with complex needs and the consequent pressure on special school places. It should also be noted that this is set against a background of the number of teachers consistently falling, from 54,347 in 2008 to 50,717 this year. Urgent action is required to ensure that those children and young people with ASN are provided with adequate support, delivering the best possible outcomes. And the first step in that process is for councils to protect funding to these vital services, which addresses the needs of the most vulnerable in our society.

The Scottish Children’s Services Coalition: Sophie Pilgrim, Kindred Scotland Tom McGhee, Spark of Genius Duncan Dunlop, Who Cares? Scotland Stuart Jacob, Falkland House School Niall Kelly, Young Foundations

WITH all the noise and smoke coming from the ‘blame-throwers’ that have been deployed since the Forth Road Bridge closed I haven’t heard a single word of gratitude spoken and so I’d like to put the record straight (Councillors who postponed Forth Road Bridge repairs until 2016 are blamed for closure crisis). We are incredibly lucky to live in a country where we have skilled people who can build and maintain such amazing structures and who rarely, if ever, get acknowledged. I’d just like to say thank you for finding the faults with the bridge before anyone was injured and for working so hard to fix them. Thank you for keeping us safe all these years. Although it is important to get things moving by the new year please make sure you take some time to be with your loved ones this Christmas. If we can’t get our priorities right at this time of year when can we?

Roger Hyam, Edinburgh

NALOXONE is a drug which can save a person’s life if they have overdosed and there has been an opiate involved by reducing or arresting the respiratory system.

The Scottish Government has been very proactive in trying to make this widely available for people at risk of overdosing. However, there is still lack of co-ordination in getting the message out there. For example, Know The Score’s call handlers don’t seem to know much about it. They have to deal with calls from concerned relatives who would welcome the information from a substance use adviser, telling them that they can get training in using Naloxone and overdose first aid also. People should know about this life-saving intervention and how to get trained in administering it, but there seems to be few outlets for this. I was in a chemist today and I asked if they would consider getting Naloxone posters on the wall or leaflets, to inform people about its existence and I was told that there was no room and that the NHS authority has the remit for literature. This is not conducive to spreading the word about a very effective life saving intervention. I ask would this be acceptable if it were an intervention for asthma, to not promote it at every opportunity in places where people who are affected by asthma were likely to be?

Peter McDade, Glasgow

TO THE relief of those with a financial interest the climate conference in Paris reached agreement which seeks to keep global temperature rises by 2100 to “well below” 2C above pre-industrial levels but to strive for 1.5C.

Pledges already given will not meet the 2C target by 2030. Developing countries were opposed to any outside monitoring of their pledges. However 134 developing nations are “happy” with the deal. They are happy because they will get a slice the annual $100 billion Green Fund, funded solely by developed countries, to help developing countries cope with climate change and adjust to a low-carbon economy. How much will instead be syphoned off for personal use?

Clark Cross, Linlithgow

MY apologies to Alex MacMillan regarding Tyson Fury (Letters, The National, December 12). I hadn’t intended to be obtuse. I spent 50 years working in an industry as often the sole woman outside the office staff. I know what male chauvinism is like. They weren’t misogynists. It was simply part of the culture they lived in. I always felt the best way to deal with it was to show that I could do the job as well, if not better, than any man. Ignore it and the perpetrator is more offended. But the real point of my letter was to say I thought Tyson Fury was fairly inarticulate in expressing his beliefs. In Matthew 5:17 Jesus says ‘ Do not think I have come to abolish the Law (Leviticus) or the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.’ I know that a large part of today’s society would not accept this but many of us still believe that we can’t cherry-pick which bits of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments, we accept. Surely we can disagree whilst still treating each other as civilised beings? I know little about the award mentioned so am in no way capable of saying who might be a worthy recipient.

Catriona Grigg, Embo

THE judges said it: “An unimpressive witness”; “a lack of candour”; “at best disingenuous, at worst evasive and self-serving”; “a teller of blatant lies”. Hmmm! The lad obviously has something. I fancy high office beckons for Carmichael at Westminster. Peter Craigie Edinburgh Regarding Gordon MacIntyre-Kemp: Finland’s basic income: a test case for our global economic future? (The National, December 11).The biggest clue to why it won’t be implemented in the UK is in the article – “bypassing the private banking sector”. That will not be allowed. Great idea, but if the rich can’t get richer, it’s not going to happen.

Iain Bell, via thenational.scot

ON Saturday you published a survey on what Scots left out for Santa (No surprise for Santa this year, The National, December 12). Could I offer the following as a warning not to leave out so-called ‘warming’ drinks as the consequences could be dire. No Drink For Santa

Why does Santa look so merry?

Has he mixed the port and sherry?

In his sledge is he pie eyed?

Could we see him breathalysed?


Called into court and duly tried,

Found guilty and disqualified

What a shock for girls and boys,

If he was banned from bringing toys.

So when he battles through the drifts,

Delivering you your Christmas gifts,

Don’t leave him vodka, gin or whisky

Leave him milk, it’s much less risky.

Jim Gibson, Selkirk