Such luxury in a cost-of-living crisis is not the lived experience of most Scots.

Perhaps the FM should have considered the expectations of taxpayers before spending our money.

It's not the first time the SNP have been cavalier with the company card.https://t.co/Kpu2jvssXj

— Jackie Baillie (@jackiebmsp) August 20, 2026

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By Liz S

Jackie Baillie posted this on X on 20 August (based on a BBC article that had a headline “John Swinney defends £45,000 business-class flights to World Cup”).

“Such luxury in a cost-of-living crisis is not the lived experience of most Scots. Perhaps the FM should have considered the expectations of taxpayers before spending our money. It’s not the first time the SNP have been cavalier with the company card”.

Meanwhile I am sure that the same Jackie Baillie was not so ‘concerned’ at these stories:

“Sir Keir Starmer spent £60,130 of taxpayer money on a private government jet trip to watch the Lionesses win the Women’s Euros final in 2025”.

And then there was also this :

“Government data showed earlier travel to the men’s Euro 2024 final in Berlin cost more than £41,000 in flights alone” (also there was Lisa Nandy, the UK culture Secretary and Prince William aka the Prince of Wales, as they too both only favour England so then they too only support their own national side, which is England).

So Sir Keir Starmer used the official government plane to go off on this jolly to support both the English Men’s and the English women’s national football teams , as in the only ones that he , as the former UK PM, always only wanted to support and so then only did support , that is the Lions and the Lionesses.

You only to had to read Starmer’s too many posts on ‘X’ that were both encouraging and also congratulating only the Men and Women’s English football teams to know where Starmer’s true allegiance was, that is as far as UK national football teams were concerned.

Indeed Scotland’s men’s national football team never got any encouragement by the so called UK PM, Keir Starmer , during their time in the 2026 World cup tournament, not even a post by him on ‘X’ commiserating with them when they were sadly eliminated from the competition.

However he, Starmer, did state was that he would “very much encourage Scotland fans to get behind and support England in their World Cup semi-final clash against Argentina”.

So now back to the hypocrisy of the BBC and Jackie Baillie re the FM going to see Scotland in the 2026 World cup , where The National newspaper had a front page headline that highlighted this double standard by the BBC , their front page headline stated this:

“BBC quizzed over lack of reporting into ex PM’s Euro trip”.

So according to Dame Jackie Baillie the FM of Scotland has no right to support Scotland in a major football tournament if tax payers money is used , as apparently what ? –

He, the FM of Scotland, should use his own money to support the country that he is FM of in him travelling to any sporting world tournament that Scotland are competing in ?

BTW didn’t Andy Burnham use the government plane when he flew from London to Glasgow for the opening of the Commonwealth games in Glasgow , I will concede that was in his role as the UK PM.

However Burnham also used it to then fly from Glasgow to Manchester – at the taxpayer’s expense .

It was estimated that “Andy Burnham’s 38-minute private jet flight from Glasgow to Manchester cost taxpayers around £3,000” – also what about the environmental impact ?

This particular visit from Glasgow to Manchester was reported to be his first ‘official’ day at No 10 in the North, so then nothing so urgent that needed such an expense for the tax payers ?

However it seems there is always less condemnation via Dame Jackie Baillie whenever any Labour UK PM uses tax payers money for their convenience, as it is then a case of costs and environment be damned.

Where it is always assumed that the position of UK PM then ‘allows’ or rather ‘expects’ the use of tax payers money to be spent to enable and so then support what they as UK PM’s want to do?

More hypocrisy and double standards in what is clearly an unequal UK State.

(Unequal for all nations outwith England, with the main exception always being the leading political role within England that is the UK PM ).

Liz S

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