There is no denying that local authorities in Scotland have been grossly underfunded by central government for years and the council tax system has been crying out for reform. Yet no one at Holyrood seems to have any idea about how to tackle the issue except to pump up the council tax. It seems decades since houses were valued for council tax purposes and the housing market has changed out of all proportion since that time. We need a fair and just system to finance local authorities but the SNP/Greens coalition seems to be incapable of finding one.

Bob MacDougall, Kippen, Stirlingshire

Time to go?

Mhairi Black is a vocal critic of the UK Government in the Commons (Picture: UK Parliament/Jessica Taylor)

The financial picture for young families with mortgages is grim. With the highest interest rates for 15 years and the prospect of even higher energy costs this winter, many face savage cutbacks on essentials to survive. To make things even worse the Scottish Government is proposing to increase council tax banding by a further 22.5 per cent, which could well be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in Scotland.

Moving out of Scotland to avoid the range of higher taxes being imposed by the Scottish Government is now looking like a very attractive plan.

Dennis Forbes Grattan, Bucksburn, Aberdeen

We need a vote now

The SNP got whacked yet again in a council by election, this time by Labour in East Kilbride. They came third behind the Conservatives. Only 26 per cent of voters turned out and the SNP's share, 23 per cent, means that only one in every 16 registered voters could be bothered to vote for them. Scotland is going nowhere under the SNP/Greens. It's time for an election and pro-UK parties to encourage their supporters to vote tactically to rid Scotland of this incompetent nationalist curse

Allan Sutherland, Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire

Target students

On reading various reports of eco-demonstrators who disrupt and impede our right to go where we want and when we want and not be delayed or inconvenienced, I had a thought. People who have lived in Scotland for three years are entitled to free university education which Scottish taxpayers fund. Large numbers of eco-demonstrators are students so if they are found guilty of a demonstration offence, the funding of £9,250 per year should immediately be withdrawn.

Clark Cross, Linlithgow, West Lothian

Stay home

While the right to protest is sacrosanct, did republicans really have to turn up for the “Scottish Coronation”? It was a day for the royalists, could they not have stayed away? Also, why were they given such a prominent position?

William Ballantyne, Bo’ness, West Lothian

Drab doors

The extensive coverage concerning the painting of an Edinburgh New Town front door continues. However, in the late 18th century front doors were painted in dark colours. These were black, dark green and brown and occasionally grained. While Robert Adam did use bright colours, (eg “pea green”) these were for his interiors, and not for exterior doors.

Margaret Campbell, Edinburgh

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Readers' Letters: Scottish Government gets it wrong on council tax