You kindly published a letter from me in support of assisted dying shortly before the Holyrood vote in March which defeated the proposed legislation. I am sure that thousands of Scots were dismayed by this decision. What was particularly disappointing was that those MSPs who voted against the bill chose to ignore the wishes of the large majority of Scots who support assisted dying.
My wife and I have just returned from a visit to Bremen where we went to attend the funeral of a very dear friend whom we have known for over 25 years. He was another victim of the terrible scourge that is dementia. Although he had been receiving excellent palliative support in a care home, his end was utterly miserable. In his last few months, he could no longer recognise his family and his friends. As his conditioned worsened, he lost his hearing; he could no longer feed himself; he was unable to move and then he lost his ability to speak. Almost his last words before he slipped into silence were that he wished to die. Mercifully his wish was granted on May 1 when he passed away but he died alone with none of his loved ones there with him for his last moments. My wife and I are heartfelt sorry that such a good life should have ended in such a tragic way.
There are now a considerable number of countries and US states who have legislation in place for assisted dying. To the best of my knowledge there are no instances of vulnerable people being forced to have their lives ended. Assisted dying has been legal in Switzerland since 1941. The strength of public support is tested on occasions, most recently in 2011 when a proposal to end assisted dying was rejected by 85% of those who voted. The Swiss view on assisted dying is that there is a right to "self-determination at the end of life". I would expect similar strong support if a referendum were to held in Scotland. Those MSPs who opposed the bill should have considered this when casting their votes.
Many people are terrified at the thought of dying like our friend in Bremen, in painful and often undignified circumstances. Surely a death at a time of your own choosing, supported by the presence of those you love, is preferable to the misery suffered by so many. Those with religious or philosophical objections to assisted dying are of course entitled to their beliefs but they are very much in a minority and should not prevent a more humane approach to the end of life.
I very much hope that a bill for assisted dying will be considered urgently by our newly-elected MSPs at Holyrood.
Eric Melvin, Edinburgh.
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NHS booking system is a pain
When I read that NHS Scotland was rolling out a new computerised system which would do away with the eight o’clock dash to phone for an appointment to speak to a doctor, I breathed a sigh of relief. No longer would I need to be standing by my phone at a few minutes to eight in order to dial my surgery at exactly eight o’clock, only to find myself at number 31 in the queue. According to the news releases all I needed to do now was to get up even earlier and log on to the surgery’s website at 7.30am and request a consultation.
The actuality is somewhat different. Each time I’ve logged on I’ve been met with a statement stating that capacity has been reached and no further appointments are available. I’m then urged to phone early as appointments quickly fill up! So nothing’s different – other than we have a new computerised system that no doubt cost the taxpayers a fortune and that doctors and staff say is so slow that it is not fit for purpose. Some things don’t change.
Alan McGibbon, Paisley.
Mower nonsense on delivery charges
The grass is growing and I need a new lawnmower, and it’s time to go battery-powered; cleaner than petrol and no trailing cables. After a lot of searching, I settled on the one I wanted and ordered it online from a company (Just Lawnmowers) that describes itself as “The UK’s No. 1 Garden Machinery Website”. Order placed last night and £632.99 paid by Visa, which included a £9.99 delivery charge; order acknowledged immediately and “it's currently being processed through our system”. Then an email this morning saying that “an additional carriage charge of £125 applies to your order” because I live "north of the Border". Wow.
They directed me to their terms and conditions and indeed it does say there that, for England and Wales, there’s a flat rate charge of £9.99, “regardless of the cost, weight or size. There will be an additional delivery charge to all Scottish postcodes”. So you can get a very large and heavy piece of machinery delivered to Longtown in Cumbria and pay less than a tenner, but cross the border to Gretna and a small, light piece of kit will be £125 for delivery. Order cancelled, of course. Is such behaviour common?
Doug Maughan, Dunblane.
Late litter action lament
Yesterday evening (May 24) we walked down Sauchiehall Street precinct about 9:30pm where we passed two men, wearing Glasgow City Council T-shirts, collecting litter. A good move, you might say, but why aren't such people employed earlier in the day with the full means to impose on-the-spot fines on those people who choose to drop litter? Needless to say, there is a significant number of litter bins in that precinct.
Patricia Fort, Glasgow.
A like-hate relationship
I totally agree with Ken Cameron (Letters, May 25). This morning, I listened to a part of Radio Scotland Breakfast. Not only did the presenters witter on at great lengths about their own thoughts and opinions, one of them constantly interspersed these with the word "like".
I cannot recall which of her fascinating life's experiences she was describing but she used the "like" word 12 times in less than a minute. I suspect this is likely to be a broadcasting record.
David Hay, Minard.
The mad dash
On the hottest record-breaking holiday weekend in parts of the UK thousands of people spent at least five hours in their cars queuing up in Kent for ferries to France.
I can’t understand. Why not enjoy the sun at home? Are they so fed up with England?
It’s madness. Maybe the heat got to them.
Andy Stenton, Glasgow.
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