THE saga surrounding the building of two Calmac ferries at Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow seems to go on for ever with each new chapter heralding yet more disclosures of mismanagement and incompetence. With the ships four years behind schedule and likely to cost at least two and a half times the original price tag, the Auditor General's recent criticism of the lack of safeguards to shield public finances in the event of non-delivery or delay in building the vessels points to the SNP administration playing fast and loose with public money and throwing good money after bad.

The lack of proper records means that the taxpayer will probably never know the truth about the shenanigans which went on behind the scenes. Islanders desperate for even a basic ferry service have been badly let down by the Scottish Government, but we are fortunate that Government incompetence on this occasion has been confined to providing two car ferries and our ministers have not had the opportunity to show their complete lack of expertise and incompetence in running an entire independent Scotland.

Bob MacDougall, Kippen.

EU GIVES US MORE SOVEREIGNTY

ALEXANDER McKay (Letters, March 20) contends that "the kind of 'independence' the SNP peddles is utter nonsense and a complete pipe dream". Is he suggesting that Belgium, Austria, Portugal, Finland and all the other independent nations which make up the EU are also peddling utter nonsense and a complete pipe dream?

As a member of the EU, Scotland would have to give up a little sovereignty; as an unequal member of the UK, Scotland gives up most of its sovereignty and has no power of veto, unlike the position Scotland would be in as an EU member.

Ruth Marr, Stirling.

ROSS'S FM CLAIM IS LUDICROUS

I WONDER how many readers with an IQ greater than their age in years choked on their porridge when they read that Douglas Ross told the masses (not) of sycophantic acolytes at the Conservative Party conference that the silent majority would elect him as Scotland’s next First Minister ("Ross claims ‘fed up’ voters in silent majority will make him FM", March 20). Are we living in the same dimension?

Bearing in mind the recent opinion polls that suggest the Tory vote is going backwards either Mr Ross cannot understand statistics and therefore shouldn’t be in politics, or if he can understand statistics that’s even more reason he shouldn’t be in politics. Perhaps he should concentrate on running up and down on the sidelines in as a minor official in football matches taking instructions from his boss in the middle of the big game; mind you that’s what he does at Holyrood. Perhaps he is suffering from stress and needs a break from the rigours of being king of a very wee castle, poor soul.

David J Crawford, Glasgow.

rUK SHOULD BUILD ITS OWN NUCLEAR BASE

DR Jonathan Eyal uses a misquote to attack Nicola Sturgeon on no-fly zones ("Defence expert: FM virtue signalling with ‘irresponsible’ no-fly zone remark", March 20). She stated (with others in the US and Europe) that a no-fly zone should not be taken off the table, not that one should be instituted; a difference in emphasis perhaps too subtle for Dr Eyal to follow.

Defence Minister James Heappey has suggested a chemical attack would cross a “red line”; but the West has allowed Russia to use these weapons (in Syria) with impunity before, and any Nato reaction would also risk a nuclear confrontation. The real virtue signalling was the signing of the Budapest Memorandum where the UK and the US (not Nato) guaranteed Ukraine its sovereignty, but then reneged in 2014.

Dr Eyal also thinks an independent Scotland should host nuclear weapons on behalf of the former UK. Could I remind him that the submarines, missiles and warheads are entirely built, maintained and refitted outside Scotland? If an exceptional treaty obligation similar to the Budapest Memorandum was again signed by the former UK, then Scotland could find itself in the firing line, even though it had no dog in the fight. I suggest to Dr Eyal that if London wishes to maintain its status as a nuclear power, then it should be building a submarine base, warhead storage facility and loading jetty somewhere within its own territory.

GR Weir, Ochiltree.

BREXIT IN OPERATION

NOBODY should be surprised at the behaviour of the parent company of P&O Ferries towards its UK employees ("P&O sacks 800 staff after receiving £15m Covid aid", March 20). The messages that came from the Westminster Brexit cabal, in a constant competition to outdo the Ukip-driven benefit promises expected from Brexit, gave a strong indication that employee rights would be up for grabs in Brexit Britain.

The owners of P&O Ferries have just confirmed that anyone who wants to disregard employee rights will be able to take full advantage of this broken Britain.

Ian Waugh, Dumfries & Galloway Indy Hub, Dumfries.

OUTRAGE WAS OVERDONE

WAR in Ukraine; Covid still rampant; so what do you choose as your lead story? A comment made on social media in 2015 by a council election candidate (“SNP stalwart in ‘disgusting’ anti-Semitic comment row”, March 20). A strong front-page headline, but the story on page 2 didn’t live up to it.

The bit that did shock me was the photo you published of a middle-aged man and a young girl, both holding assault rifles. You identify the man as an “Orthodox Jewish weapons dealer”; is that anti-Semitic?

Claiming to be outraged seems to be the default position for many who engage in debates about all manner of subjects. It’s an attempt to damage those who disagree, throwing mud in the hope that some of it will stick. Given the importance of some of the issues involved, it’s a pity they’re reduced to political point-scoring.

Doug Maughan, Dunblane.

* YOUR main headline talks of a "stalwart in 'disgusting' anti-Semitic comment". You would have been better saying just "anti-Israeli" (still clashing with the bogus IHRA definition). You ignore the fact that Israel has already killed 15 Palestinians this year, two juveniles, and "detained" hundreds.

Meanwhile, having made two contributions to Ukrainian appeals (one to DEC Christian Aid, another to a Hungarian church) and favouring further sanctions and arms for Ukraine, I note that Ukraine has consistently backed Israel against the Palestinians. Perhaps Ukraine will have some idea now what it's been like to be in Gaza too often.

Bob Philip, Falkirk.

NO NEED TO PAD NEWS BULLETINS

SINCE March 7 ITV News has been a one-hour weekday bulletin from 6.30pm. Many welcomed this development as ITV, with nothing like the resources of BBC or Sky News, has a well-deserved reputation for exclusives and insightful reporting. It was the TV broadcaster which exposed the mock Downing Street press conference during the Christmas season and, later, the Partygate one last April on the eve of Prince Philip's funeral.

This is the biggest ITV News expansion in 20 years. It is pouring millions into the project with 27 new journalists, producers, camera operators and video operators. It is having new correspondents for Scotland and Wales, is producing more content outwith London, and has the base of a 3.2 million audience, the most popular commercial TV news service. It is impartial and independent and not so easily leaned on by the UK Conservative Government.

The problem, so far, has been the fact that the one-hour bulletin has had very blatant padding. One obvious case is the weather; which has now been dumbed down to a song and dance segment. The public wants a detailed analysis of UK weather. Gone is academically-qualified meteorologist Lucy Verasamy, replaced by rather Marmite presenter Alex Beresford, who chunters on, unnecessarily, about lambing, the Northern Lights or even the weather abroad.

There is no need for padding. In Israel it could examine the Family Reunification Law, one of the most racist and discriminatory laws in the world affecting 30,000 Palestinians. Or it could highlight the draconian laws by Israel to steal Palestinian land, illegal under the Oslo Agreement 1993.

It could cover North Korea, which has stepped up launching parts of an ICBM, prohibited by the UN. It will soon have one which can reach the US.

Then there is Iran, which regularly fires ballistic missiles as a warning to Israel, but only the one landing by the US Consulate in Iraq's Erbil got much coverage.

Closer to home it could focus on the lorry tailbacks at Dover, now visible to space satellites, or the new EU entry/exit system with biometric tests at the border soon. How about the UK desire to change the Northern Ireland Protocol or the devastating impact Brexit has had on Scotland's GDP?

An ITV News bulletin certainly does not need the current padding.

John V Lloyd, Inverkeithing.

WAR MAKES NET ZERO IMPOSSIBLE

NET zero? The Ukraine war changes everything. The EU is to classify gas and nuclear as clean energy. UK oil and gas drilling will be allowed on national security grounds. The Oil and Gas Authority is considering extending the use of two fracking sites in Lanarkshire.

Germany is to restart its mothballed coal power stations. Europe is importing more coal. China's and India's coal consumption is escalating. Russia and China are to build a pipeline taking Russian gas to China.

There are no reliable renewable sources for electricity generation. Only gas, coal and nuclear can instantly react to demand.

The Ukraine war created hundreds of thousands of tonnes of emissions and rebuilding will create even more. Global net zero is now an impossible green pipe dream.

Clark Cross, Linlithgow.