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From BBC Scotland yesterday, the above and:
The leader of Reform UK in Scotland has denied fuelling racial tensions with comments he made following a stabbing in Edinburgh. Malcom Offord has been criticised by both Scottish Labour and the Scottish Greens for linking the incident in the Calders area on Monday to a “massive insurge of immigrants”., external Lord Offord said he based his comments on photographs he had seen and claimed statistics showed a rise in crime by people “from foreign lands”. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c78jrn8v8yjo
Puzzling, perhaps not, BBC Scotland fails to offer readers any facts on stabbing and knife crime.
Here they are:
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Talking-up Scotland 
Knife homicides in London increased by 200 a year because of austerity. Tory (Reform) policies. UK homicides increased from 500 to 700. Austerity.
Offord is a complete liar and always quotes the wrong figures. So ignorant it is beyond belief. Milking public funds to lie, lie and lie again. Typical racist unionist. Lies to waste public money. A fraud. 2% of the population in Scotland is black.2% is Muslim.
Scotland’s population has remained 5million from 1900 and before. It dipped in the 1950’s, because of the war? The population only increased to 5.4million, after 2000 Devolution. Scotland needs people. The least densely populated country because of Westminster policies. The illegal Union. Scotland was not treated equally. Migration all over the world. Australia, Canada, New Zealand and America. Scots went all over the world,
The Clearances, higher unemployment. People had to emigrate to find prosperity. Westminster lies kept secret under the Official Secrets Act. The McCrone Report. Thatcher took all the Oil & Gas revenues. Left Scotland in poverty. The Sermon on the Mound. Thatcher lied and lied again.
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I saw online a clip of Offord answering a Q on last week’s Debate night and he seemed quite out of his depth, that is as far answering the Q, indeed it was very uncomfortable viewing.
He said “America’s our biggest ally and America’s the way we stay safe” .
A warped take surely, as most sane people think the opposite is the case, what with a President like Trump, who apparently is so intent on trying to defect attention away from the Epstein files (and him being mentioned in them a lot) that he now has chosen to get his country involved in an illegal war against Iran, together with Israel.
BBC Debate Night posted this about Offord when on their programme last week:
“Reform UK Scotland’s Malcolm Offord says we should “always” support the US “within the realms of legality”, and the UK will be drawn into the US-Israel war with Iran whether “we like it or not”.
(“within the realms of legality” and also “the UK will be drawn into the US-Israel war with Iran whether “we like it or not”, is that not a contradiction as has this so called ‘war’ that he referred to not be noted by many as being one that is deemed to be illegal) ?
Reform UK are big Trump fans, that in itself should make them the kind of (pretend) party no one should vote for anywhere within the UK, never mind just in Scotland.
I suspect for Offord, but also for the real leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage, it is very hard for them both to sound convincing and so then appear honest as (pretend) politicians when they know , as do many of us listening to them also know, that they are (always) lying as pretend politicians.
Has he, Offord, stated yet which constituency in May’s elections that he will stand in as a candidate ?
Indeed have Reform UK announced all of their candidates for the May elections in Scotland ?
I believe there is a deadline for the delivery of nomination papers which is April 1st, somehow that seems apt , as a cut off date for Reform UK candidates.
Liz S
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How many people have seen this about the BBC.
https://youtube.com/shorts/ZHhbbyiVmBc?si=5chwpfsMPY3aN2fH
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Here’s something that is worth looking at as a very much hoped for future trend with Reform UK. (also see Plaid Cymru’s Lindsay whittle win a Senedd seat in Caerphilly in 2025 and Green’s win in the Gorton & Denton by-election in Feb 2026 for UK parliament).
Reform UK lose their first by-election defence in Durham.
Reform UK’s Councillor David Cumming quit in December due to overseas work.
Labour have now gained this seat from Reform UK.
(Seems to be that just as in the 2024 UK GE people tactically voted for Labour to stop the Tories, now it seems that some voters are doing the same in some council by-elections to stop Reform UK winning or to stop them retaining the seat).
Reform UK won Durham Council in the local English elections and the Deputy Council leader for Reform UK in Durham is Darren Grimes, the ex GB News presenter. (also in 2025 Darren’s mother and brother also became Councillors too in Durham in the 2025 local elections in England).
Parody Nigel Farage Blue Sky accounted posted this on the result:
“Why would the people of Durham not vote Reform – what’s not to like about increasing council tax, cutting £12.9m from services, having a Deputy Leader who posts AI lies or a Leader who ran two companies that went bust owing more than £500k in tax”?
Darren Grimes admitted to using an AI-generated photo in a post about other local authorities “shipping” families to the region.
He wrote that “southern councils were moving “problem tenants, recent refugees and homeless families” to the region.” “He linked the issue to Durham’s social housing waiting list”.
“Grimes used a photo of a group of South Asian men in tracksuits next to a coach in a housing estate”.
It seems that for some voters in Durham that with Reform UK in charge they have seen first hand just how incompetent they are when in charge, but also it has been reported that in Durham “there will be changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme – meaning people on low incomes would lose their previous exemption and most residents will have to pay at least 10% of their tax bills”.
Remember Reform UK campaigned in the 2025 local elections in England that they would not increase council tax , but in many councils that they now control (won) in England since 2025, they intend to do that very thing that they said they would not do.
So it seems that broken pledges are their thing too, and many people thought it was just Labour who specialised in broken pledges.
Hopefully we will see a similar (downward) trend in May in the Scottish elections with Reform UK not being as successful as they assume that they will be , but TBH it seems that the media in Scotland also hopes that they , Reform UK, will find some success in our elections in May too !
Liz S
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I have some recent emails from ‘Amnesty international UK’ in Lonodn, and they are telling wee porkies about Scotland.
Here’s what they are saying..
”The 2021 Scottish parliamentary election was shaped
by the profound impact of the Covid-19 pandemic as
parties outlined their visions for recovery. Since then,
inequality has deepened and living standards have
been hit hard, leaving many without access to the
basic rights essential for a dignified life.
As we approach the 2026 Holyrood election, global
challenges resonate locally”.
”The Scottish Parliament elections on 7 May are a critical moment for human rights in Scotland. Against an international and domestic backdrop of politicians and others exploiting fear, division, and misinformation, we must make sure that Scotland’s next government and parliament puts human rights at the centre of all that it does.
Too many people in Scotland are being denied their rights. Too many are living in poverty, or in inadequate or insecure housing. And too many communities are being demonised simply for being who they are. This election can help to change that.
That is why on Wednesday 1 April at 7pm-8.15pm, Amnesty International UK and the Human Rights Consortium Scotland will be hosting an online Human Rights Hustings, offering you the opportunity to press candidates from each of Scotland’s major political parties on the human rights issues that matter most”.
They go on and far as I can see, they are saying Scotland is an utter basket case, no human rights and off the scale levels of poverty, children being left to starve etc. I haven’t had time to email them back yet, but I notice they say Scotland’s major political parties…when in fact Labour, Libdems and Tories are not Scottish parties.
I do worry these organisations based in England are misinforming people about Scotland, and possibly somewhat partisan into the bargain, given their narrative about Scotland being such a basket case with the current government.
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Hi ArtyHetty, I thought that there was a Amnesty International based in Scotland , so I looked it up and they do indeed have an office in Edinburgh, which they state on their website was established in 1992.
They, Amnesty Scotland, also refer to the 2026 Scottish elections and state that:
“Across Scotland, we’re seeing the same challenges hitting people’s lives. Too many people are being denied their rights. Too many are living in poverty or in inadequate or insecure housing. And too many communities are being demonised simply for being who they are. This election can help to change that”
“The 2026 elections can be a moment of possibility in Scotland. It is a chance for candidates and party leaders to focus their attention on what people want – practical action taken towards building a more just Scotland for all”.
People in Scotland want to see a fair and decent society where nobody has to struggle for the essentials. A human rights bill that will introduce strong legal protections for those everyday rights is a vital step in achieving that future
(I copied and pasted the above and they , on their website, added the words in bold for emphasis, not me).
I agree with them that “People in Scotland want to see a fair and decent society where nobody has to struggle for the essentials”.
But how much can the Scottish devolved government achieve when both their funding and their powers are being reduced ?
They also state that they want “party leaders to focus their attention on what people want – practical action taken towards building a more just Scotland for all”
“Party leaders”?
Surely they know that all policy from Labour, Tory & the Lib Dems for matters within Scotland is not decided by branch office managers but is decided by their respective HQ’s, who seem to be more concerned with matters elsewhere within the UK , specific to one nation only within the UK.
Also they , Amnesty Scotland, do not offer any current examples of where the Scottish government have at least tried to “build a more just Scotland for all” and they also fail to recognise the limitations that the Scottish devolved government have while still being a part of the UK State.
We need organisations like Amnesty International to stop all of the spin and instead focus upon what factors are really preventing more progress being made upon human rights in Scotland , instead of lazily dragging in a government in Scotland who constantly have to mitigate the mess made by UK government bad policies and decisions.
Why is our government being made liable for all of the bad decisions and policies being made at WM by a UK government ?
Why indeed, as yet again that, as a situation, is par for the course.
Liz S
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Thanks Liz. Totally agree, these organisations and charities are either ignorant about devolution and limits on policy etc therefore or choose to lump Scotland in with terrible English government policies, so, even appearing to be partisan.
I did see Amnesty international UK are registered in Scotland as a charity, but their official organisation is not registered in Scotland, just England and Wales. I sent them, via bluesky, a link to TUS, and also linked the SNP government 100 positive policies put in place, that vastly outshines, and mitigates against English government austerity, and English government’s deliberate neglect to improve the lives of the people they are meant to represent. Maybe it would be interesting to attend the hustings in Scotland that Amnesty are hosting soon…not sure I could bear to hear the lies of the English parties though.
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“I did see Amnesty international UK are registered in Scotland as a charity, but their official organisation is not registered in Scotland, just England and Wales”
I didn’t notice that , many thanks.
That might then indeed count for their lack of knowledge on Scotland only matters and also as you rightly say , that would then also account for them choosing to wrongly “lump Scotland in with (all of the too many) terrible English government policies” too.
🙂
Liz S
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Step 1 – make a racist comment. Step 2 – deny you are a racist.
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Many Charities deny the facts or over state. They want more money for their coffers. Often from Government funds. They run down Scotland to get funding from Westminster. If they disobey Westminster their funding can be cut.
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Since we are talking , or rather writing about, Reform UK.
Then seems fit to also note something in relation to the Tory party, especially as some within their ranks have defected to Reform UK.
BBC Website 6 March headline under UK Politics page:
“Tory peer quits after Lords probe into PPE deals”
“Tory peer Lord Chadlington is to quit the Conservatives and retire from the House of Lords following a recommendation he be suspended from Parliament for a year”.
“It comes after an investigation found he breached the Lords code of conduct over his role in assisting a subsidiary of a company he chaired to secure contracts to provide personal protective equipment (PPE) during the pandemic”
“Although the peer had initially been cleared in two previous investigations, a third probe was opened due to new information coming to light”
“The investigation, by the Lords standards commissioner Martin Jelley, followed a complaint that Lord Chadlington had referred a supplier, SG Recruitment Ltd (SGRL), to the government’s ‘High Priority Lane’ for PPE contracts in 2020”.
“SGRL, which was awarded contracts to provide PPE during the Covid crisis, was a subsidiary of a holding company, Sumner Group Holdings Ltd (SGHL), of which Lord Chadlington was a shareholder and non-executive director”.
“The commissioner (has) launched a third probe after concluding that evidence submitted by Lord Chadlington to the Covid inquiry presented “fresh evidence” of his contact with ministers and advisers during the pandemic”.
“In a report published on Friday the commissioner found the Tory peer had committed three breaches of a Lords rule banning peers from providing “parliamentary services in return for payment or other incentive or reward”.
“This included introducing SGRL’s chief executive, David Sumner, to Lord Feldman, then an adviser to the health department on procurement, and contacting then-health secretary Matt Hancock to obtain the personal contact details of another adviser, Lord Deighton, for Sumner”.
“He was also found to have breached the code by advising Sumner on how to approach Lord Deighton”.
“In addition, he was also found to have breached the code by failing to fully co-operate with the two previous investigations, and by failing to act “on his personal honour”.
So then he , Lord Chadlington, is stepping down from the HOL’s, so then what punishment will there be if this third probe finds any impropriety via his actions, if , it is indeed found to be that he breached the Lords code of conduct.
Honestly this (pro) UK politics seems to only want to administer punishment and consequences to some within politics , as in the supposed #SNPBAD, while others get off Scot free, or rather not a case of ‘Scot free’ ever.
Blue tents for some while discretion for others……..(did you see the detectives at Mandelson’s house and also at Mone’s house…no blue tents to be seen….or indeed none at Prince Andrew’s former gaff either).
Also why is Lord Gove, formerly known as Michael Gove , now a guest on various panels of UK TV political programmes, when he was noted as being involved, via email contacts, in some of the ‘High Priority Lane’ for PPE contracts in 2020″.
Especially when it was reported by The Guardian newspaper that “Michelle Mone (had) contacted senior government officials, including Michael Gove and Lord Agnew, using personal email addresses in May 2020 to recommend a consortium, PPE Medpro, for PPE contracts”
Speaking of Michelle Mone , what the H is happening with her case via the National Crime agency and also with her peerage ?
UK party political scandals fizzle out……so where is the justice in that .
Liz S
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