SURELY the continuing miserable Unionist whingeing against the SNP should now cease following the recent Westminster GDP figures and the fact that unemployment in Scotland has fallen to an all time low; well below that of the UK (“Scots jobless total falls to lowest level in 25 years”, The Herald, July 13). In exposing the prophets of doom these figures show the Scottish economy growing four times faster than the rest of the UK, despite biased Unionist media talking down Scottish business.

This is an extraordinary performance given the fall in global oil prices, the ongoing Brexit fiasco and the fact that Holyrood does not have complete control of Scotland's economy. Consequently the gain to Westminster's Treasury is Scotland's loss and only fuels its resolve to keep Scotland in this disunited kingdom.

Since 2007 when the SNP took control of Holyrood, with a world recession taking hold, these figures demonstrate the strength, resilience and growth which has developed in the Scottish economy over the last extremely difficult decade and no amount of Unionist spin from David Mundell and the Scotland Office can deny this. Certainly the parliament "day job" has been attended to by the governing members of the SNP, unlike their Tory counterparts who mostly have one or more jobs outwith their primary parliamentary responsibility.

However by far the best way to continue to grow Scotland's economy, in a sustainable manner, that benefits all the people of Scotland is for an independent Scottish parliament to hold all the levers of economic control. There is now a fundamental inevitability in the principle that Scotland's future should be firmly in Scotland's hands.

Grant Frazer,

Cruachan, Newtonmore.

THE SNP will naturally be celebrating the lower unemployment figures as yet more "proof" of its successes in the economy. It will delight in comparing the Scottish and English figures. As is its norm, it will not be advertising the fact that there are 6,000 fewer Scots in employment than this time last year and that there are 65,000 more Scots who are economically inactive. The SNP have a credibility problem. They only select the figures that suit them.

This may give the SNP a perceived short-term political gain but the more important underlying trend is not healthy. Despite the SNP denials, the threat of another independence referendum is holding Scotland's economy back as is its desire to wreck Brexit. There is still a gaping hole in Scotland's finances and no amount of spin or relaunching of failing strategies will repair the damage done by the SNP’s lack of a viable economic policy.

Dr Gerald Edwards,

Broom Road, Glasgow.

NICOLA Sturgeon and the rest of the SNP establishment are usually prompt to blame pretty much every piece of poor Scottish economic news on Brexit. But will the welcome news that Scottish unemployment figures have dropped to a post-recession low also be “blamed” on Brexit? I doubt it – and rightly not.

The reality of course is that, to date, Brexit has yet had little impact on any aspect of the UK economy - positive or negative. The exceptions are that some export businesses have been assisted by the weak pound and some importers of raw materials have been damaged by currency fluctuations.

The SNP Government's delight in citing Brexit as responsible for every Scottish economic woe these days is beyond ridiculous. The causes are more nuanced and multi-layered.

Ms Sturgeon's team of 13 tax-payer funded spin-doctors need to up their game - right now, it's way too clear Ms Sturgeon can't wait for Brexit to fail so she can demand an independence referendum.

Martin Redfern,

Merchiston Gardens, Edinburgh.

WHATEVER the rights and wrongs of the Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign on women's pensions, there can be little doubt that the SNP has made huge political capital out of the issue. I attended a hustings event before the Scottish election in 2015 when Jeane Freeman, our current Minister for Social Security, waxed lyrical on the iniquitous behaviour of the Westminster Government in relation to this, and indeed all other benefits. This was, of course, before she decided that the whole area is too difficult for her and postponed taking responsibility for devolved benefits for a further three years.

The SNP has repeatedly hidden behind the fact that state pensions are a reserved benefit and it cannot increase them or change the pension age. But it repeatedly fails to mention the powers it does have, powers which could resolve the problem for the women affected.

Since September 2016 the Scotland Act 2016 clearly gives it the power to top up existing reserved benefits, which includes the state pension. If they chose to do so, they could recompense the women who have lost out once they qualify for a pension. Alternatively, they also have the power to create new benefits and section 26 of the Act specifically allows it “to meet a short-term need”. This pension issue is clearly a short-term need as it will resolve itself as the pension ages synchronise.

If Ms Freeman still finds this all too difficult I am happy to help. Can I suggest she creates a new benefit called Transitional Pension Entitlement, or similar, and pay it on a sliding scale based on individual accrued loss? A simple algorithm based on date of birth would generate the payments. Simple.

On this issue the Waspi women are entitled to tell the SNP government, put up or shut up.

Carole Ford,

132 Terregles Avenue, Glasgow.