Irvine Welsh is lost in his own fiction

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‘Trainspotting’ novelist Irvine Welsh said everywhere outside London is ‘like a third-world country now’ (Rex Features)

Talented author Irvine Welsh, at an event marking the 10th anniversary of the independence referendum, said that Scotland’s rejection of separatism was a mistake.

As evidence, he cites that everywhere outside London is “like a third-world country now”. Headline-grabbing – but, in my opinion, elitist and arrogant.

Undoubtedly, in the UK – like all Western countries – wealth isn’t distributed equally, and there’s always work to do. But London has areas of deprivation, too; perhaps just not the parts where Welsh has his second home. His generalisation is crass and inaccurate.

The gist of his argument, of course, is to imply that Scottish independence would have brought massive untold wealth to Scotland; that Glasgow would have become London. Yet, most of us recognised in 2014 that this was a false narrative.

We knew that an economy built on declining fossil fuels was risky. That, without the generosity of the Barnett formula, higher taxation and lower standards of public services were inevitable, irrespective of Brexit.

None of this may be directly relevant to Welsh, who spends much of his time in the US. But, fortunately, the No majority in 2014 had the good sense to reject nationalist dogma in favour of common sense and reality.

Martin Redfern

Roxburghshire

Feel the benefits

Just when the country thought that life was going to improve under a Labour government, Keir Starmer and chancellor Rachel Reeves have knocked any positivity for the immediate future out of the ballpark.

Arbitrarily removing the winter fuel payments from so many pensioners this year is a disgusting and immoral move which will cost many lives this winter. Labour know that – but they have still gone ahead and done it anyway, to save a relatively paltry amount of money.

It is essentially neglect of our elders, nothing more, nothing less.

I never really liked Starmer, and had reservations about the smugly grinning, hardcore economist Reeves. And so it has come to pass that I was absolutely right.

Linda Evans

London

Is Starmer finding it a struggle?

Someone ought to start an appeal. It appears little Keir Starmer struggles to get by on his prime minister’s salary of just £160,000 per annum.

He finds it difficult to buy his own clothes and glasses, never mind paying for a personal shopper for his wife, Victoria!

Could we ask our billionaires to donate some of their untaxed wealth, so that Keir and Victoria can look their best?

It’s important that Keir goes out looking sharp, as he works on cutting winter fuel payments to 10 million pensioners and maintaining the two-child benefit cap that keeps 1.6 million in poverty.

Donations could be sent directly to 10 Downing Street. We can only hope people give generously.

Sasha Simic

Hackney

Finally, a man to smash the gangs

Well done to Sir Keir Starmer for moving at pace to set up the Border Security Command that will tackle the smuggling gangs who trade in the lives of men, women and children across borders.

This is far better than the sticking-plaster politics and dog-whistling that we saw from the Conservatives. Martin Hewitt will do a great job leading from the front.

Geoffrey Brooking

Havant

Off you foxtrot

Amy Dowden is my favourite professional dancer on Strictly Come Dancing. So I was upset by Roisin O'Connor’s report on the ratings for the new season’s first show (“Strictly Come Dancing 2024 viewing figures for launch revealed amid controversy”, Monday 16 September).

Amy has been very ill, and doesn’t need this. I’m glad she and her partner JB Gill, the former member of boyband JLS, are the favourites to win.

Sophie Langan

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