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BULLYING TACTICS HAVE NO PART IN POLITICS
SIR,- I am disappointed at the tone adopted by my Labour opponent for the forthcoming general election in his letter to the Leader last week.
I can only guess from his remarks that he is referring to a recent attempt by local Scottish National Party activists to bully and intimidate a member of my Parliamentary staff which has also featured on your letters page. This deplorable personal attack on a respected Angus councillor has found no support from any politician or any political party. It is surprising then that in the week when Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been accused of bullying and intimidating his staff, our local Labour candidate should jump on to this particular bandwagon.
It is also a disappointment that in the same short letter, he seeks to call into question my 'Christian background'. What he hopes to achieve by this, I do not know, but this apparent intolerance is unlikely to be well received in a community where we have an exemplary record of welcoming and respecting the cultural and religious views of others. I will respect his rights even if he will not respect mine.
Finally, Mr Williams raises the question of Lord Ashcroft and his funding of the Conservative Party. This is no surprise since every Labour candidate is instructed to put this question to their local papers at every election. He should therefore know the answer already. The Scottish Conservative party raises all its finance within Scotland and does not benefit from any financial support from Lord Ashcroft. My campaign for election as the Member of Parliament for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine is well funded through local donations.
In closing, I feel I have to say that in the four previous campaigns I have participated in, no candidate has ever resorted to this kind of unprovoked personal attack. I suggest that Mr Williams would be better advised to spend his time defending the record of the Labour Government, telling us how they will deal with the problems which they themselves have created and how this constituency can be protected from the consequences. By taking this more positive approach, he and I both may contribute to raising the reputation of politicians as a whole.
Yours etc
Alex Johnstone
Conservative Candidate
West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine Constituency
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Weather for Stonehaven
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 9 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 7 mph
Wind direction: East
