Letters to the Herald

IN reply to Archie Flockhart's query (Letters, September 2), Angus Calder stood in for me at the launch of our cultural manifesto last April, where we amassed a wide array of the cream of Scottish cultural talent at the GFT, who supported the aims of the SSP. Unfortunately, as I am working-class, I could not attend as I was working.
Not only does the SSP have a cultural spokesperson, me, but we have also actively promoted cultural events. For two years, Colin Fox, now an MSP, has been heavily involved in the People's Festival in Edinburgh. In Glasgow, the SSP is setting up our second People's Party to be held on the first weekend in November. One of aims of both these cultural events is to try to remove some of the perceived elitism which surrounds culture.

Part of the SSP's policies are to open up access to the theatres, etc, by making them more affordable to ordinary people. The truth of the matter is that Britain/Scotland spends less on culture than most of our European neighbours, thus most events are either city-centric or too expensive. Our aim, therefore, is not to keep our "core middle-class" voters happy - even a brief examination of where our core vote comes from would dispel this myth - but to encourage much wider participation in cultural events.

In answer to Mr Flockhart's cheap gibe that we shouldn't bother with manifesto promises as we will never be in the position to realise them: it was also stated that we would never get Tommy Sheridan elected and were never going to get six MSPs elected, until, of course, we did.

Kenneth McEwan, SSP cultural spokesperson, 66 Melrose Road, Greenfaulds, Cumbernauld.

IT is apt that someone with a "first-past-the-post" mentality like Archie Flockhart should shoot so wide of goal when he compares the SSP to Cowdenbeath FC. Our policy of full support for Scottish Opera, he states, is as wildly suppositious as a Cowdenbeath offer of free tickets to supporters when they get into the Champions' League.

But the SSP is already in the Premier Division of Scottish politics - the Holyrood Parliament - and may just qualify for Europe in the coming EC elections. Mr Flockhart chooses not to understand how Scottish politics now works. Because of proportional representation, no party has, or is likely to get, an overall majority. But any item in any manifesto might succeed with cross-party support, as when Tommy Sheridan got through the abolition of warrant sales. In the relevant committee, an SSP representative can realistically hope to win consent to a reasonable proposal. SSP support for the arts in Scotland thus has real weight.

Mr Flockhart does not consider our policy on its merits, but chooses to view it as opportunistic angling for middle-class votes, thus endorsing the pernicious lie that "culture" is a posh preserve. Our fine classical musicians, struggling for low remuneration in an insecure profession, are surely as working-class as anyone else these days. I am very happy indeed if they judge that the SSP is on their side.

I was "acting temporary" SSP cultural spokesperson in the last election - a fact which incites Flockhart to flippancy - because one MSP could not be everywhere at once. Now we have six, I am pleased to be redundant. And more are on the way. Unlike Christopher Robin, though we are "clever as clever", we do not wish to "be six for ever and ever".

Angus Calder, 15 Spittal Street, Edinburgh.