From UK polling Report (YouGov) this morning, the above overall results, with the SNP down only one overall. Based on this poll, the SNP are predicted to win: Banff and Buchan (Con, Duguid) Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (Con, Lamont) Dumfries and Galloway (Con, Jack) Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (Con, Mundell) Moray (Con, Ross) West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Con, Bowie) and to lose: Airdrie and Shotts, Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill East Lothian* (Alba, Macaskill) Glasgow North East (Anne McLaughlin) Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath* (Alba, Hanvey) Midlothian Rutherglen and Hamilton West (Independent, Ferrier) https://pollingreport.uk/seats Continue reading Latest Westminster poll has SNP beating Jack, Ross and Bowie and be only 1 down overall

By Alasdair Galloway Not content with objections to getting the Civil Service to fulfil its customary role of supporting their elected government, Foulkes is intent on stopping “illegal” International spending by the Scottish Government, according to the Sunday Herald this morning (https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/23763615.lord-foulkes-challenge-illegal-overseas-spending-snp-ministers/). The cost of maintaining Scottish international offices in 2022/23 in China, the USA, Canada, France, Ireland, Germany, Belgium and Denmark was £7 million. Foulkes considers this ultra vires.   Indeed, the report quotes him as having a 5 point plan:  1. Follow up the Simon Case Review to find what action has been taken  2. Challenge the spending on … Continue reading Foulkes – Dinnae say you weren’t warned 

By Alasdair Galloway I see from the National that George is up to his old tricks of making life more difficult at every turn for the Scottish Government, which in the political arena is fair enough. The role of the Opposition is after all, to oppose, but the reality of George’s recent interventions is that they are very dangerous. He is quoted on Twitter/X: “When @UKHouseofLords returns on Monday I will be intensifying my campaign to stop illegal spending by @scotgov.” There are two obvious problems with this. First that campaigning for independence has been an SNP staple since it … Continue reading George Foulkes’ recent interventions are very dangerous

By cuckooshoe In the Scotsman 31 January 2009: TEN thousand Scots schoolchildren are being educated in crumbling and condemned state schools that will not be rebuilt for many years because of chronic cash shortages. As you can see from these two paragraphs, even then the (minority) SNP Scottish Government made the right call – Major councils and teaching unions laid the blame for the crisis at the door of the Nationalist government, claiming its dogmatic refusal to accept private finance was consigning a generation of Scots children to miserable schooldays and sub-standard education. A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “The Scottish … Continue reading Crumbling schools – 14 years ago SNP minority government rejected Labour PFI schools contracts that had encouraged the use of cheap concrete

Continue reading Great Christmas idea for a member of the paper generation!

The Sick Rose By William Blake O Rose thou art sick.  The invisible worm,  That flies in the night  In the howling storm:  Has found out thy bed Of crimson joy: And his dark secret love Does thy life destroy. A poem for a reading in the Rutherglen Labour Party meetings? Labour loses nearly 100,000 members and makes £5 million loss in 2021: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/labour-membership-loss-accounts-deficit-b2146691.html Continue reading O Labour Rose thou art sick

Even the Herald is covering the story of Frank McAveety, former Scottish Labour minister is the subject of a formal complaint over alleged bullying and misogyny. BBC Scotland News and BBC Scotland Politics are both ignoring it. The Herald also covered David Graham, a Scottish Labour councillor arrested and charged over allegations of child grooming. It’s just business, I guess. BBC Scotland did eventually report it on their website but kept it low profile with no photograph and, to my knowledge, kept if off broadcasts. There is a by-election campaign underway in Rutherglen and Hamilton West. Labour stand a chance of … Continue reading The the bully and the child groomer – BBC Scotland shield Labour in run-up to by-election

In response to the SNP plans to increase taxation for the better off, in order to improve public services and for the ring-fenced NHS funding promise that averted the junior doctors’ strikes, UK Labour convenor in Scotland and beneficiary of his mother’s low wage food production business, Ana Sarwar has come out against fair taxes in a sad attempt to win more former Tory voters. Here is the answer to his notion of ‘families’ being hammered: On average, the devolved income tax and benefit measures introduced since 2017 will decrease Scottish households’ incomes by £210 (0.5%). However, new benefits and … Continue reading Taxation – Scottish Labour follow their millionaire leader to the right to attract the wealthy

In the Guardian but nowhere or low down on the screen, on BBC England or BBC London or, of course BBC Scotland: Junior doctors and consultants in England will strike on the same days together for the first time in the history of the NHS, in a dramatic escalation of their bitter pay dispute with the government. The British Medical Association blamed ministers’ refusal to negotiate over doctors’ salaries for the union’s decision to organise stoppages involving both groups of medics. The joint action will reduce hospitals and other services in England to providing Christmas Day levels of care for four days … Continue reading As junior and senior doctors in England strike together for first time in NHS history, BBC Scotland looks for something, anything to avoid the obvious fact – SNP Government works!