The half-hearted attempt by Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, to kickstart his ambition to be Prime Minister was blocked on dubious grounds by the incumbent, Sir Keir Starmer.
If they ever agree on a rematch, I hope each of them first looks in the mirror.
Whether deliberately or not, their reflections will show disrespect for their respective important roles of Mayor of Greater Manchester and Prime Minister.
That is highlighted by the photos of them on the January 27 letters page of The Herald.
Both men are well beyond the first flush of youth, yet each seems to be aiming for a macho, tough guy look, which fools no one.
Sir Keir regularly dresses down, in his presumably expensive suits, with a tieless black shirt.
Meanwhile, Mr Burnham mismatches his suit with, of all things, a T-shirt.
At their age, why not dress smartly, with a shirt and tie?
The two men would be well advised to consult President Zelenskyy regarding the importance of sartorial guidance, especially if they ever receive an invitation to the White House, and want to avoid a shellacking from President Trump.
Alan Fitzpatrick, Dunlop, Ayrshire.
More letters...
Andy Murray missed honour chance
An adult version of the Children’s Hearing system could make justice more flexible
Radio bosses must stop tuning out
“We want audiences to feel a warmth in terms of the presentation,” says BBC Scotland boss Hayley Valentine, defending the changes to Radio Scotland’s schedule that others have called cultural vandalism (“BBC boss defends radio show changes”, The Herald, January 27).
What an extraordinary admission, and it made her sound as though she does not listen to the shows she has axed.
Both the Billy Sloan Show and the Iain Anderson Show were warm, inviting affairs, where you knew you were going to get expertise, interesting insights and - best of all - incredible music.
And, as many other readers have noted, just look at the warmth of the listener responses to these shows all over social media.
Worse still was BBC corporate affairs director Luke McCullough, whose comments appeared to suggest that not only had he not been a regular listener to the shows, but that he hadn’t actually listened to what the Scottish Music Industry Association, and more than 300 of Scotland’s most important cultural figures, have been saying about the revamp.
“It wasn’t a new music programme,” he said of the “edition” of one of the cancelled shows he tuned into.
Nobody asked for “a new music programme” because as most of us know already, such shows are variable at best.
What made Iain Anderson and Billy Sloan’s shows special was that they would contextualise new music alongside some of the greatest recording artists ever.
We trusted them to introduce us to music old and new, remind us of old favourites and inform us about what was going on.
We also trusted their reach, where we could hear the views of listeners in the USA, Europe, South America and all points of the compass.
As Mr McCullough would have heard, had he listened regularly to their shows or read the social media posts, Iain and Billy engaged listeners in Scotland, England and far beyond, too.
It’s time for BBC Scotland to start listening so they can fix this absurd mess.
Luke Howe, Linlithgow.
Gimme shelter? No thanks
I have had a horrible grey object called a bike shelter planted outside my flat in Battlefield, attracting graffiti and, strangely, fly-tipping.
The shelter only has six users, and I know they all stay one street away.
I have written in complaint to councillors and MSPs, yet Glasgow City Council officials won’t listen to any of these people who I have been in contact with.
I am sure politicians, or other officials, wouldn’t want one of these things placed outside their front door.
There is also an E-bike hire facility on Pollokshaws Road, which is another waste of council tax money.
Why don’t they cancel these sorts of projects, and invest money into sorting out the basics i.e. fixing potholes and pavements in the city.
Stephanie Smith, Glasgow.
Pubs in danger
The SNP government has increased alcohol tax regularly for a few years now, in a futile attempt to save us from the demon drink. (Whether we need saving or not.)
The party claims the policy is a great success.
However, figures show that, as usual, the situation is more complex than it’s made out to be.
Now the SNP has finally came up with another solution, albeit one I would describe as being rather underhand.
By pricing our pubs ‘out the game’, and forcing them to close, customers will be left with no option but to buy alcohol from supermarkets and corner shops.
Then the government can administer the coup de grace by pumping up the alcohol tax to such a level that it becomes unaffordable.
I certainly wouldn’t put it past them.
Ian Balloch, Grangemouth.
Code red… or maybe green?
I was intrigued to read your inspiring article about kindly amphibian lovers helping toads to cross dangerous motorways without getting squished (“Volunteers help millions of toads to cross roads more safely”, The Herald, January 28).
Furthermore, I was delighted to discover that the humans who perform this sort of valuable work are known as ‘toad patrollers’. How very formal and professional it all sounds.
Furthermore, I learn that in the past half century these charitable people have guided more than two million green hoppers across dangerous tarmac.
As serious as this issue undoubtedly is, it got me wondering… do the toad patrollers carry lollypops, similar to the ones used by lollypop ladies, when they are helping children to cross the road?
On a more serious note, I am concerned that the job of toad patroller could be considered anti-Darwinist. For according to Charles Darwin, it’s a dog-eat-dog world.
Or perhaps I should say a car-splat-toad world.
In other words, it’s all about the survival of the fittest.
If toads are too uneducated to realise it isn’t wise to cross a busy motorway before checking that the coast is clear, perhaps we should let the species go the way of the dinosaurs. (Who were also, allegedly, not very good at crossing roads.)
Perhaps I am being cruel and lacking in compassion.
But surely green-back toads should be able to learn the green cross code?
Karen Muir, Edinburgh.
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