Inequality

Bob Holman, author of Woodbine Willie: The Unsung Hero Of World War One argues (Sunday Herald, Essay of the Week 30/03/14) as Britain commemorates the centenary of the beginning of the First World War that “… in a class-ridden Britain, privately-educated recruits were often promoted well beyond their capabilities – and the lowly troops paid for their mistakes”.

He further states, “Today, 100 years after 1914, material and social inequality still dominates Britain. The gap between rich and poor is widening… The Westminster Cabinet is virtually a club for former public school boys.”

He concludes: “I do not believe that greater equality is possible until these powerful positions are open to all. One reason I will vote for independence is that if a new Scottish Parliament reflects the present one at Holyrood, then its contingent of MPs will have social diversity.

“It is much more likely it will combat inequality than Westminster. I want a government that rests with the people, not with public-school elite. The lesson from the First World War is that inequality led to many more deaths than necessary and ensured that the rich remained rich and the poor gained little.”

There is, in my opinion, no need to go further back in history than this to find a better reason for voting Yes for Scottish independence on 18 September 2014.

George W. Pottinger
Isles View
Hamnavoe