The Scheme

[Perdita]

A group of Scottish politicians have tabled a motion attacking the BBC for its broadcast of recent reality show The Scheme.

The final two episodes of the controversial programme were indefinitely postponed after one of the participants was arrested.

The SNP's Kilmarnock and Loudon MSP Willie Coffey tabled the motion against the show with support from Labour's Cathy Jamieson and the Lib Dems' Hugh O'Donnell, the Daily Record reports.

Coffey said: "The Scheme has done nothing but damage the reputation of the town of Kilmarnock and the communities of Onthank, Knockinlaw and Altonhill.

"Local people feel embarrassed and humiliated by elements in these films. It's cheap TV to pick those with serious addictions and chaotic lifestyles and to offer them up for public entertainment, but our whole community is left tarnished."

He added: "I've been inundated with complaints from the people of Onthank about this unbalanced and exploitative programme and I wanted this to be represented to the Scottish parliament.

"I have lived in Onthank all my life and this is not at all an accurate portrait of life there."

[Trinity]

The scheme is cult viewing in Scotland, and I have to agree with the MSP. The housing estate portrayed includes many well cared for houses, populated by people who work hard and do their best in life. Perhaps they do not make good television. Yes, there are alcoholics, druggies etc, yes there are people who break the law and kids who run wild. I would be really interested to know of a town in the UK where you cannot find exactly the same set of problems, I could if I went looking. I imagine the normal folk of Onthank were sensible enough not to want their life documented on prime time TV.

I felt really sorry for the couple who had turned away from the booze and were doing their best to stop their children making the same mistake that they did. (My sympathy evaporated a bit when the kicked their 20 year old son out while they went on holiday and left him roaming the streets - but I could see their point, they wouldn't have had a home to come back too).

My niece and her husband live less than a mile from Onthank. The both work hard and have a lovely home, they are now worried that house prices in the area will fall even further due to this publicity. You will also find that normal decent people will be put off moving to the area and that this 'documentary' may well be a selfl fullfilling prophesy.

[Chloe O'brien]

The reality is that in every housing estate there is good and bad residents. The good hard working residents don't want to be paraded on national tv and there lives would be seen as boring so no tv company would want to film their lives. If the wackos, druggies and wino's that reality tv is interested in. What pi$$ed me off was how well of those taking part in the documentry were despite none of them doing a honest hard days work for years. There's Marvin the druggie who's house was broken into and had his £700 quid telly and play station stolen, Kay who's unemployed but selling her house and buying a new one and the family who battle with booze again unemployed kicked their son out on the streets while they went of to Spain for a holiday. How much do you get on the dole these days?

[Trinity]

My niece has been broken into 3 times, and all the electronic equipment, T.V. etc was taken - she was watching closely to see if any off it was on view in The Scheme, lol.