SIR, Please can I express my thanks to all parliamentary candidates and members of the public who attended the NHS meeting and hustings in Peebles on Thursday, April 16. I hope that all involved found it a useful and interesting experience.

A few people expressed disappointment about the following issues: firstly, that there were only about 50 people present and many more might have liked to attend. It is unfortunate that the event was not more widely publicised, but please be sure that this was not for want of trying.

A second disappointment was that our incumbent MP David Mundell did not attend, he was apparently in Glasgow for an STV debate that evening and he was certainly missed. As sitting MP and representing the current party of government it would have been very helpful to have had his input into the discussion of the NHS’s future.

There was also some concern expressed afterwards about some disruption and heckling that all came from one small group in the audience which included a current elected Scottish Borders councillor.

As all the heckling came from supporters of one of the candidates and was aimed exclusively at one other candidate and his party, it seems to have been motivated by party political allegiance rather than as a response to the discussion actually taking place.

For my part, I much appreciated the input from Jody Jamieson, the Green candidate, who urged all involved in the debate to adopt a constructive tone and look for common ground on which to move forward. I would certainly hope that, in any future hustings, people take part with an open mind, are prepared to listen to all candidates and also allow the rest of the audience to hear their views.

Finally, I have heard expressed wishes that more hustings take place. The election is now nearly upon us but this is perhaps something we can all contribute to in future years.

There is nothing to stop any group or individual from organising such meetings by booking a venue, inviting election candidates and publicising the event locally - and even a nominal entry fee or donation should cover the costs of hall hire and printed posters if needs be.

As with many things, if you think something should happen, try to make it happen instead of waiting for someone else to step forward.

The meeting was organised, paid for, chaired and filmed by local volunteers and special thanks goes to all of them. For anyone who was unable to attend, the film of the meeting can be accessed at http://livestream.com/accounts/12676305/events/3915917.

I am, etc.

Tim Clancey Innerleithen SIR, Please can I express my thanks to all parliamentary candidates and members of the public who attended the NHS meeting and hustings in Peebles on Thursday, April 16. I hope that all involved found it a useful and interesting experience.

A few people expressed disappointment about the following issues: firstly, that there were only about 50 people present and many more might have liked to attend. It is unfortunate that the event was not more widely publicised, but please be sure that this was not for want of trying.

A second disappointment was that our incumbent MP David Mundell did not attend, he was apparently in Glasgow for an STV debate that evening and he was certainly missed. As sitting MP and representing the current party of government it would have been very helpful to have had his input into the discussion of the NHS’s future.

There was also some concern expressed afterwards about some disruption and heckling that all came from one small group in the audience which included a current elected Scottish Borders councillor.

As all the heckling came from supporters of one of the candidates and was aimed exclusively at one other candidate and his party, it seems to have been motivated by party political allegiance rather than as a response to the discussion actually taking place.

For my part, I much appreciated the input from Jody Jamieson, the Green candidate, who urged all involved in the debate to adopt a constructive tone and look for common ground on which to move forward. I would certainly hope that, in any future hustings, people take part with an open mind, are prepared to listen to all candidates and also allow the rest of the audience to hear their views.

Finally, I have heard expressed wishes that more hustings take place. The election is now nearly upon us but this is perhaps something we can all contribute to in future years.

There is nothing to stop any group or individual from organising such meetings by booking a venue, inviting election candidates and publicising the event locally - and even a nominal entry fee or donation should cover the costs of hall hire and printed posters if needs be.

As with many things, if you think something should happen, try to make it happen instead of waiting for someone else to step forward.

The meeting was organised, paid for, chaired and filmed by local volunteers and special thanks goes to all of them. For anyone who was unable to attend, the film of the meeting can be accessed at http://livestream.com/accounts/12676305/events/3915917.

I am, etc.

Tim Clancey Innerleithen