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The Herald Scotland

Glasgow has shown a sad lack of ambition with George Square proposals

The cost at £2.5 million was apparently deemed to be too high. Many millions of pounds have been spent on the hard landscaping required for the Avenues project which rumbles on and doesn't seem to have caught the imagination of the populace. I would argue that a fountain or a "wall of water" is fundamental to the success of the enterprise and a real justification for the redesign of this prime civic space. Once again the planners have shown a real lack of ambition for the city by denying it a feature that would provide a vibrant, visual asset long after Glasgow's 850th anniversary celebrations have been forgotten. David G Will, Milngavie. Zonal pricing is common sense ScottishPower and SSE's outcry against zonal pricing ("Kate Forbes slams 'damaging' North Sea profits tax", heraldscotland, May 14) and demands for 'simplicity' in the CfD scheme reek of self-interest disguised as public concern. Keith Anderson of ScottishPower's claims of a £30 billion investment threat, alongside Alistair Phillips-Davies' recent alarm over ScotWind projects, are classic scare tactics. Let's be clear: they're defending a pricing system that props up their profits while offloading costs onto struggling households and businesses. Equally disingenuous were Kate Forbes's new-found concerns about the 'damaging' impact of the UK's windfall tax. Zonal pricing is simple common sense: where energy is abundant, bills should be cheaper. Norway has proven it works – investment thrives, and consumer costs drop. Yet ScottishPower and SSE cling to a rigged system that inflates prices nationwide, shielding their margins from genuine competition. Mr Anderson's plea to avoid 'tampering' with a 'working' system is absurd. Working for whom? Certainly not the 6.5 million UK households in fuel poverty or the businesses fighting to stay afloat. Their warnings of higher costs are baseless fearmongering. Zonal pricing would cut bills where renewables flourish, reflecting real supply and demand. More importantly, a balanced energy policy – one that includes renewables alongside North Sea oil and gas, as well as coal – would reduce dependency on costly imports and stabilise prices. This is the only path to genuine energy security and affordability, not endless Contracts for Difference handouts to intermittent energy sources. If Ed Miliband backs zonal pricing, it would be his first sensible decision amid his bonkers Net Zero policies – policies that stifle North Sea oil and gas while increasing reliance on foreign imports, forcing the public and businesses to pay a premium compared to similarly placed countries. Enough is enough. Ian Lakin, Aberdeen. Read more letters These TV ads are disgusting Adverts at regular intervals are the price we pay for commercial TV. Those commercial breaks allow us to skip off into the kitchen to make the occasional cuppa. There have been times when the adverts on show have had an entertainment value with their subtlety, humour and clever use of language. Recently however our screens have been flooded with a spate of adverts which bring with them the cringe factor thanks to the coarseness and crudity in which they are couched. In particular I would like to point out those adverts which deal with female incontinence deodorants and indigestion remedies. Not one of them is characterised by subtlety, light humour or clever wordplay. Rather they are explicit in the extreme, leaving nothing to the imagination with their brash, bold and bald language. Is there anyone else who shrinks with disgust when those adverts occupy the screen to induce the cringe factor in the viewers, a reaction I imagine may well be more widespread rather than restricted to my prurient personality? There have been memorable adverts which have lived on in the national memory thanks to the smart work of those trying to capture the attention of the viewing audience for the products on display. Have those days now receded into the past and are we to be left exposed to more of the current crop of adverts which leave the TV audience cold? Do those productions exemplify the collapse of standards in public life, which is increasingly evident in all facets of our nation? Denis Bruce, Bishopbriggs. An offer easy to resist A wee word of warning to fellow readers considering disposing of "unwanted items cluttering your home". An advert I saw stated "Free uplift and a fair offer". Sounds good, however, on the "fair offer" issue, a variance of opinion may arise. In my case, I submitted medals (six), Scottish bank notes (two), watches (10) and cigarette card sets (two). In my own estimation of the value of total goods was between £400/£500. I received a call one week later. In a very civil manner the rep remarked on the good condition of many of the items (for example, the medals being worth £50-plus). Finally, when pressed he made an offer of £75 (all inclusive). A derisory offer to end a promising exchange. Hopefully my great expectations consignment will be returned to me intact ASAP. Allan C Steele, Giffnock. Keith Anderson of ScottishPower (Image: PA) Banking? What's that? May I add a necessary addendum to Ian McConnell's rose-tinted writing of his younger journalist years following the Royal Bank of Scotland ('The tumultuous tale of a great Scottish hope', The Herald, May 16)? When the Royal Bank of Scotland imploded (and it self-imploded) not a single member of its board was a professionally qualified banker, not even its managing director – who had been appointed by his predecessor in his own image. Enough said. Graeme Smith, Newton Mearns.