WE are told there is to be an upsurge in the Tory vote in Scotland. Those who do vote Conservative can do so in the safe knowledge that they will be exempt from many Tory policies. What they will be doing is joining with the minority of Tory voters in England to inflict right-wing policies on the people of England, much to their annoyance, due to the first past the post voting system.

I suggest that those in Scotland voting Tory could show us their principles by doing the following: Each time they get a free prescription they could make a donation of £8.60 to the NHS. Those in receipt of cold weather payments should return the money to the Scottish Government. Those who have graduated and are earning at least £21,000 a year could start paying back their tuition fees of £9,000 a year.

Lastly those of pension age who are unfortunate enough to be getting free care at home because of disability (not just dementia) should start making arrangements for their homes to go on the market after their demise.

Is, as I suspect, the term “principled Tory” an oxymoron?

Myra Gartshore,

16 Barloan Place, Dumbarton.

YOUR article (“SNP slumps to lowest donation of major parties with own MP giving £3,300 total”, The Herald, May 24) claiming a "slump" in donations to the SNP is misleading.

The donations referred to are only those which are required by law to be reported to the Electoral Commission, that is, those exceeding £1,750 to a constituency association or £7,500 to the party HQ. Many thousands of pounds come to the SNP in amounts below these levels from ordinary supporters and business people. With more than 100,000 members, the SNP gets most of its funds from the membership and has little reliance on big donors.

Another relevant fact which your report ignores is that SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon launched an online appeal for funds to promote a second referendum campaign last March. This appeal alone raised a huge amount within a couple of days and has now reached nearly half a million pounds.

Dr Willie Wilson,

57 Gallowhill Road, Lenzie.

YOUR columnist Pinstripe tells how he gets ironic pleasure from the political parties’ manifestos (“I loved Labour’s manifesto, it was wonderfully honest”, Herald Business, May 22). He will be pleased to know that his article produced a similar effect! Under the sub-heading “Telling it Straight” he wrote that the “UK’s annual fiscal deficit and stock of debt are at worrying high levels, largely as a result of the last Labour government’s car crash in 2008”. If he works in finance he must be aware that the car crash was caused by the privately-owned banks’ gross irresponsibility which put the UK economy into danger of economic catastrophe. If that’s “telling it straight”, I wonder what it’s like when he puts a spin on it.

For the record (to tell it straight) the national economy (national debt related to GDP) during Labour’s 13 years in power was always better than was achieved by John Major’s preceding Conservative government. But, to be fair, John Major had to deal with Margaret Thatcher’s car crash.

Hugh Boyd,

65 Antonine Road, Beardsen.