I pass over the comments by Allan D Forrester on the workload and efficacy of our Scottish parliament (Letters, February 23). But please do reassure him that the question of proportional representation is of concern to a great many people other than those involved in politics.

I am tired, sick fed up to the back teeth, to be precise, of living in a Scotland which is ruled at all levels like a socialist republic. Yet again some local councillor in Lanarkshire is sounding off that the introduction of PR will result in some Labour MSPs being unseated at the subsequent election. That that is the precise intention does not appear to have penetrated his socialist skull.

In a perfect world, the number of popular votes received by any party would be reflected exactly by its number of seats in parliament. Until Utopia arrives, or political parties wither on the vine, that happy result may be unattainable, but we can at least strive for the nearest we can get to it. The results produced by the present first-past-the-post arrangement would be laughable if they were not so serious, and the insistence of our socialist comrades that it be not only continued but commended says much for their contempt for democracy.

There is a general assumption abroad that Labour is the Scottish party and that the Tories, Liberals and Nationalists have no support in the country. This, of course, is facile rubbish - the support is strong, strong enough to ensure that socialist fiefdoms are ruled most, if not all, of the time by parties holding a minority of popular votes.

This would not matter, perhaps, if the success level, measured how you will, was so high as to stifle all complaint. But it isn't. A quick glance at Lanarkshire, Glasgow, North Ayrshire, East Ayrshire and other unfortunate communities will quickly show the awful effects of lifelong socialism.

Mr Forrester wants the parliament to be more proactive and reactive, with MSPs having something useful to do. One of the first steps to be taken to achieve this desirable end is for a proper, sustainable, fair and representative system of election to be introduced as soon as possible at all levels of government. So long as the present system of rotten burghs and rotten constituencies obtains, just so long will this fine country be ill-governed, mismanaged and overrun by tattie-bogles masquerading as statesmen.

Alan Sinclair,

40 Switchback Road, Bearsden.

WHEN a source close to Jack McConnell is alleged to have stated, ''But there is no-one in Scotland who believes that the country [Scotland] was better governed two years ago than it is now'', I must insist that said source has little grasp of the English language.

The dictionary defines ''to govern'' as ''to conduct the policy, actions and affairs of a state or people''. There is no doubt that any ''government'' would have greater responsibilities than merely having to decide how financial allocations from a separate source are distributed. Certainly this alleged ''government'' is impotent in relation to almost all matters of consequence related to its people. I could mention scores, but merely mention three of recent vintage: Scottish fisheries, Scottish soldiers in Iraq, asylum-seekers on Scottish soil.

I can think of no suitable single word to describe Scotland's political situation. ''Governed'' is certainly not one, but how I wish it were!

Frederick Jenkins,

The Lodge, Burnton, Kippen.

David Stevenson (Letters, February 23) states that I am ''an apologist'' for the government. Let me assure him that I do, indeed, support the Labour government, and without the need for any apology. We have the best-run economy in Europe, a strong currency, an extra (pounds) 6bn spent on pensioners, a million children taken out of poverty, nursery education for all three and four-year-olds, record numbers in higher education, record investments in the NHS, education, the police and other public services, a national minimum wage, devolved governments in Scotland, Wales (and Ireland if they have the nerve to take it), a reformed House of Lords, historically low interest rates, historically low unemployment and high employment, low inflation and a host of other achievements.

Mr Stevenson alleges that David Blunkett has ''played the race card'', but produces no evidence to support this smear. Gordon McNeill (February 24) detects, on even less evidence, that the Labour Party is, in fact, a fascist party. Maybe, on this evidence, the quality most required by the government's opponents is not intellectual denial, but wilful self-delusion.

Alex Gallagher,

12 Phillips Avenue, Largs.