Peat offenders
Dr Matt Aitkenhead criticises Ken Cox for advocating the use of peat for growing young plants (Letters 9, August) and considers such an act to be a criminal offence.
I couldn’t agree more, but he seems to be rather selective in his choice of offenders. What about wind farm developers who tear up peat in much greater amounts and fill the earth full of environmentally unfriendly concrete to support their turbines in order to line their own pocket? Should they all be convicted of gross criminal damage and given a life sentence for the harm they inflict on the environment?
I’ll leave everyone to come to their own decision on that.
Aileen Jackson, Uplawmoor, East Renfrewshire
Fuel poverty
Why is it always the least well off in society that take the hit?
First we have the threatened removal of the £20 per week uplift in Universal Credit for the vulnerable and needy, many of whom are in the position of claiming benefits for the first time in their lives as a result of the global pandemic.
This is followed by the phased removal of the furlough scheme, putting jobs at great risk, with no security of employment and subsequent income.
Now we hear that with colder weather just around the corner, the energy regulator Ofgem is raising the price cap for domestic energy to cover suppliers’ extra costs (Scotsman, 7 August). Raising the price cap on energy bills will result in typical increases in excess of ten per cent, or approximately £140 per household per annum.
This does not seem a large amount. However, if you are being affected financially by the removal of the £20 per week uplift in Universal Credit or employment insecurity or you are dependent on your local food bank, this increase to your energy bills will be massive, especially with winter just around the corner.
Fuel poverty is a misery and has devastating consequences for households – it affects your mental health, your physical health and presents you with choices, heat or eat. This devastating news from the energy regulator Ofgem needs to be called in by the Westminster Government. The Chancellor must take decisive action, action that will allow households to have some form of dignity as winter approaches.
Catriona C Clark
Banknock, Falkirk
Energy bills
In the Scotsman of 7 August, Kate Morrison, the Citizens Advice Scotland Fair Markets spokesperson, stated that higher energy bills seem driven by increases in fossil fuel costs, which explains why we need to switch to low-carbon heating. Can she explain why replacing gas (4p/unit ) with low-carbon heating (18p/unit) will lower energy bills for Scottish consumers?
Ian Moir. Castle Douglas, Dumfries and Galloway
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