15 full polls in a row now, since the beginning of June, with an average lead of 7.5. The latest follows Panelbase in early November at 11% and is the highest since the previous Ipsos MORI poll at 16% In the Holyrood constituency vote, there’s an SNP lead of 33%: And in the list vote, it’s 25%: Continue reading Second poll in a row with more than 10% lead for yes and 15 in a row since June

I know, Marr’s assault on the First Minister was after this poll but he and umpteen others have tried it before and I love this shot where he does an impression of a death camp commandant I feel I’ve seen in some film. You remember the gist of the attacks from the teams at the Herald, the Scotsman and the UK press – Those stupid Jocks still support the Nats even though their performance is no better than in England. Backed up with some selective stats, they slaver in the direction of an ever-patient FM. Boy are we stubborn. See … Continue reading SNP reputation not Marred by Marr’s smears

With another gleeful image choice from the lad (16) who find them, in between taking his acne pills, the Herald’s Tom Gordon attacks the Scottish Government’s plan to give £500 to NHS and care staff, using the rarely read Fraser of Allander Institute’s latest, to damn the initiative: SCOTLAND’S leading economic thinktank has issued a stinging critique of Nicola Sturgeon’s plan for a tax-free £500 coronavirus bonus for NHS and care staff.  The Fraser of Allander Institute said the First Minister’s plea to Boris Johnson not to tax the money was muddled, would reward the rich more than the poor, and was … Continue reading Baby Box 2 campaign launched!

In June, Welsh Labour made the above promise. By August, the bonus was taxed by the UK. In Scotland, the planned bonus led Ian Murray, Labour/Scotland in Union, to scoff, ignorant of the full facts: The Herald’s Tom Gordon joined the scoffing, the next day: Was the Welsh Labour initiative ‘overtly political’ or just deserved? Is there an equivalent there to the Herald or to Tom Gordon? Do they have a spotty lad to find photos for them, like the above? Continue reading £500 bonuses in SNP Scotland and Labour Wales

Cheered by the lack of mass cheering he usually has to suffer watching the First Minister’s audience at the end of the SNP annual conference, BBC Scotland’s ‘Chief Political Correspondent’ quickly tears up one of the SNP pamphlets prescribed by his GP, and scours around for evidence that, maybe, just maybe, he can hear the sound of dissent leading to ‘SNP Civil War’, YEAH! We get one or two SNP MP’s tweeting impatiently about Indyref2, the NEC elections which might put a bit of pressure on the leadership and Alyn Smith’s disappointment, but little evidence of the SNP civil war … Continue reading Glenn Campbell: One more wish-fulfilment dream interrupted by cold reality

The SNP conference has been decidedly cool on the idea of a freeport in Scotland and the Trade Secretary, Ivan McKee, has described it as a distraction from ‘other bad stuff going on in the trade arena.’ The two Fife politicians referred to above don’t seem to surface in the actual report. The Scottish Conservatives leader has been pushing for the establishment of a free port in the North-East of Scotland, for some time now, despite the clear evidence in a House of Commons Briefing Paper that they simply transfer business away from other areas and, according to the Royal … Continue reading Drug trafficking, money laundering and lost tax revenue: The Tory plans for a freeport in Scotland

Today’s daily update is for Piers Morgan and, of course, Andrew Marr. Oh, and that Dan Whatsit on BBC Breakfast. The Covid death rate for Scotland, for yesterday (above) was much lower than in the rest of the UK and has been for two weeks, as it was for most of the pandemic period. All graphs: https://www.travellingtabby.com/uk-coronavirus-tracker/ Continue reading Tiers for Piers: SNP Government still saving more lives

It’s Neil Mackay again! I know, leave ‘im ee’s not warf it! Oh OK, just one more time? I’m completely aff the Scotsman now so I need to chew on something. Today’s twaddle: THERE’S one of the SNP top brass I’m friendly with, and not so long ago they brought the MP Joanna Cherry up in conversation apropos of nothing. She must have been playing on their mind. “It’s all about Joanna,” they said – with an acid-drop hiss which made clear they wouldn’t be inviting their party colleague around for Sunday afternoon tea any time soon. Cherry, they felt, … Continue reading Ooooh, did you hear about…?

I only joined the SNP on retiring, in 2016. I’d been sympathetic to the idea for most of my adult life but working with young people in education, I felt it was unethical to be party member. There is no way that party membership will not affect your thinking and then your teaching and research. For all of that time my teaching and research was ‘critical’. That meant taking nothing at face value and insisting on evidence and the constant improvement of the pursuit of evidence. Now, the brutally exploitative nature of imperialism and capitalism in which we all live … Continue reading Really? That’s what you think? I despair of such mean thoughts

THE numbers of women dying with dementia at home has risen by 75% according to figures which have been attributed to over-stretched health and social care services during the pandemic. Figures suggest significantly more women have died with the disease outwith care homes and hospitals than in previous years. The Herald’s Caroline Wilson opened with the above and I thought, wait, do the ‘concerned’ think we should have put more into care homes, to infect or to get infected? Confusing me a little, the report then seems to be about excess deaths in care homes. So, is the point really, that there … Continue reading Damned if they did damned if they didn’t?