YOUR correspondent Les Cox (Letters, December 17) rightly condemns a society where foodbanks are a necessity for some people to survive.

The people affected are, in the main the poor, the unemployed and the disadvantaged. These people are often subjected to welfare sanctions where, for the most trivial of reasons, any payment from the state is cut off for what can be a very long time. In these circumstances they either face the humiliation of visiting a food bank or starving.

Within our society the gap between rich and poor is enormous. The poor are near to starvation while houses are being bought and sold by individuals for millions of pounds. In Scotland recently one house sold for more than £3m while in London any amount up towards £100m is paid. Our welfare and taxation system cannot be justified in any circumstances where these inequalities persist.

The SNP Government tries to do what it can within the powers it has but they are very limited, particularly on welfare. It mitigated the Bedroom Tax but cannot affect the majority of other welfare decisions. The Smith Commission, driven by Tory and Labour holding a veto, brought forward proposals for some minor improvements but there is nothing in that report that will make any substantial difference to what life holds for the poorest in our society.

In the end we must aim to change the setup in Scotland so that we can make these decisions for the good of all of our people.

DS Blackwood,

1 Douglas Drive East, Helensburgh.