Assertions, not facts

Brian Nugent, (Democracy in action; SN 3/7/14) would need to read a dictionary and search the definition of both ‘democracy’ and ‘landslide’.

First, just to refresh Brian’s failing memory Steve Webb categorically stated “there were still questions over which government would pay the pension” in an independent Scotland.

So once again he asserts, rather than stating facts, when he says a Scottish government will pay the pension after independence.

What Brian fails to mention is that many of the EU countries have earnings-related state pensions, so not exactly a level playing field.

Neither does he say that in an independent Scotland we will move up that league table of pension payments, or that we will receive an earnings-related pension.

In fact he doesn’t tell us what our pension provision will be after formal independence and that is because once again he, the SNP and the Yes campaign do not know.

What we must not forget is that come 2017 or about the time the YESNP claim independence will be finalised, the UK state pension will be worth nearly £2,000 a year more and unlike everything Yes, we know that.

Real democracy in action is the UK government agreeing that the Scottish electorate should have the right to decide their own future, especially as the Scottish electorate did not give the SNP a mandate to call this referendum.

Altogether 23 per cent of the total electorate voted for the SNP, 77 per cent did not – that means that 3.2 million voters did not wish to go down this road, but the 902,915 who did are doing their best to drag us there.

Whether we look at percentages or actual numbers there is no way Brian’s claim of a landslide for the SNP is true.

Gordon Harmer
Brae