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The Herald Scotland

Biological women have been discriminated against

Ruth Wishart ("What a tangled web we weave when we try to define legalese') attempts to clarify the judgment. She rightly condemns our MSPs: 'In truth no Scottish politician comes out of this with much credit." She might have added Westminster MPs to this list. Kevin McKenna ('All civic bodies complicit in The Great Silence') as always refuses to sit on the fence concerning an issue that has caused a psychological civil war in the UK and Europe. His excoriating criticism of every civic body in Scotland is well deserved. I am much more convinced, as Kevin McKenna seems to be, that it is biological women who have been discriminated against for over 20 years, not trans women. It is women who lost their jobs for claiming that they had a birthright. Mr McKenna declares his great admiration for JK Rowling, who 'made a conscious decision to enter the fray, knowing that she would face an onslaught of violent abuse, threat and defamation for doing so'. Doesn't that suggest that women who spoke up for their rights can now live in a world much less cruel than it was before the ruling? Ms Garavelli worries about 'a trans women having to walk into a toilet full of jeering men'. Ms Wishart has a simple solution: she has seen loos with three cubicles, labelled men, women and mixed, so people can choose the one which they feel most comfortable in. But she continues: 'Which begs the question: whose comfort are we talking about? Well, I'd say women and children who until now had to run the risk of visiting a loo in which a man, who may or not present a risk to them – it isn't always obvious – is sharing the space. But then, until the Supreme Court's ruling, civic Scotland and the cowards and imposters who dominate our lives refused to accept that any such risk existed. I'm looking forward to reading the Equality and Human Rights Commission's guidance when it is issued. A few humble pies will have to be eaten to restore women's rightful place in society, but so be it. The guidance is 20 years overdue. Lovina Roe, Perth. Read more letters • As editors of The Women Who Wouldn't Wheesht, an account of the campaign to protect women's sex-based rights, we are saddened by the tone and content of Dani Garavelli's column, not least the assertion that women campaigners now 'hold the purse strings'. Our book explains exactly how the campaign, including the court cases brought by For Women Scotland, have been resourced, which is mainly through modest individual donations from thousands of people from across Scotland and the rest of the UK. However, her inference that the campaign lacked empathy was even more disappointing. We would therefore be pleased to arrange for Ms Garavelli to meet some of the women whose personal experiences were at the heart of the book. These women, whose names and faces remain hidden for very good reason, will be happy to explain directly why they were so relieved by last week's Supreme Court ruling. Susan Dalgety and Lucy Hunter Blackburn, Edinburgh. Norway's advantages Arina Russell's article ('Scotland is no longer a leader on climate change', April 20) is commendable and expresses some valid points. However saying "such as Norway already have the highest number of heat pumps in Europe and consequently enjoy cheaper bills" is a simplistic statement. Norway has a totally different topography compared to Scotland and thus is able to generate 88% of its electricity using hydro schemes, a reliable source of "clean" energy. The rest is mainly a mixture of increasing wind, and dwindling gas and coal. Norwegian domestic electricity prices are much lower than here, averaging 1.35 Krone per KWh, that works out at roughly 9p a KWh including the equivalent of VAT and Standing Charge (based on the exchange rate as I write of 13.86Krone = £1), whereas I am currently paying 25.3p a KWh excluding VAT and the standing charge. Norway has been investing in hydro-electric schemes for decades compared to Scotland and the rest of the UK which was much more dependent on coal-generated town gas and then switched to natural gas using the existing domestic network and building the pipe network from St Fergus and the like. It is important to note that in Norway power generation and distribution is owned by the state (Statnett),which is investing billions in maintaining, upgrading, and adding new hydro schemes and wind farms. Compare that to our fragmented, privatised electricity system. In Scotland the current lack of reliable renewable power generation and distribution, a different social structure and attitudes and different housing standards all possibly add to the reason for Norway having more heat pumps and cheaper bills, a much more complex answer than Ms Russell's simple statement infers. So I suppose it's rather ironic that the Norwegian state can afford this investment in renewables as the Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund is built on the back of nearly 50 years of oil and gas production. Malcolm Vie, Near St Cyrus, Angus. New ferries not green I read with interest Vicky Allan's article ('Alarming report claims Scotland's economy 'could be bankrupted' by climate change inaction', April 20). I quote: "An economic report had laid out the devastating impact climate change could have on the Scottish economy if mitigation measures are not pursued. Not tackling climate change, it says, could leave Scotland between £30 billion and £140bn poorer by 2035, and 'bankrupt the Scottish economy'." Acting Minister for Climate Action Alasdair Allan tells us in the piece: 'The Scottish Government continues to drive climate action that is fair, ambitious and effective at addressing the scale of the emergency which faces us. We will carefully consider its recommendations.' CalMac has chartered the MV Alfred as a stopgap to try to maintain some credibility as a ferry operator whilst its CMAL assets wither and die from old age. The Scottish Government-owned CMAL regards such catamarans as the work of Old Nick himself as the Aldred consumes six tonnes of diesel per day. The "ambitious and effective" solution are apparently the eco-ferries Glens Sannox and Rosa, championed by no less than Nicola Sturgeon as the greenest ferries ever to ply the waters of Scotland. But what of their daily fuel consumption? They burn 19 tonnes of diesel and 20 tonnes of LNG per day on the same route. I'm with Vicky. Peter Wright, West Kilbride. The MV Glen Sannox (Image: Gordon Terris) In defence of Russia Tim Cox (Letters, April 20) claims that Russia is ruled by Nazis. This is grossly insulting to the Russian people, given that Hitler was bent on genocide against them. It is true that Stalin's USSR supplied the Nazis when Britain stood alone, but that is semi-understandable given our Establishment's hatred of the Bolsheviks for having overthrown centuries of largely tyrannical monarchy, latterly the Romanovs. In 2018 BBC's Newsnight reported on fascist elements within Ukraine's notorious Azov Battalion, but since Russia invaded in 2022 to defend their own folk in the Donbass, the West's mainstream, singing for their Nato/EU supper, have desisted from further investigation. George Morton, Rosyth. • Tim Cox claims that "the Nazis of Russia" never thank the British merchant seamen [of] the Arctic convoys". In fact they do. Andrey Pritsepov, Russian Consul General, has said: "It is important both for Russia and the United Kingdom to preserve memories of this most heroic page of our wartime alliance as a tribute to the veterans for the sake of future generations". The Russians also awarded the Ushakov Medal to scores of men who served in the Merchant Navy and the Royal Navy in the 78 Arctic convoys. A list of recipients can be seen on Wikipedia's Medal of Ushakov page. The next time Mr Cox is in Scotland he should visit the Russian Arctic Convoy Museum up at Loch Ewe and see for himself a time when Russia and Britain were allies not enemies. William Loneskie, Lauder. Change laws on rugby scrums The women's Six Nations Scotland v England game did not make easy watching for a Scotland fan. It was never going to be easy for the Scottish girls to contain the bigger, heavier, stronger English pack and almost every scrum with an England put-in led to an England penalty and a major gain in territory. Penalties should be awarded for a deliberate breach of the laws of the game, such as going offside. It hardly seems fair to be penalised for being outmuscled. Winning the scrum brings its own rewards. It would be fairer if a free kick were awarded instead, without the option of a repeat scrum. The team awarded the kick would then only be able to kick directly to touch from its own 22 and would not get the throw-in. Penalties should only be awarded for deliberately collapsing the scrum. Many of Scotland's problems in the men's Six Nations stemmed from scrum failings which may have arisen from the absence of Scott Cummings' power in the second row. Scrums were originally devised as a means of restarting the game after a knock-on or forward pass. They are an integral part of the game but have become far too much of a deciding feature. Ronald Cameron, Banavie.