Tag: labour-party

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Ayrshire Labour MPs could easily have voted against ‘plunging a rising number of children into poverty’ with no long term harm to their ‘careers’ or salaries but were too afraid to do so

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In Ayrshire Live on 24th July 2024: New Labour MPs vote to keep two-child benefit cap despite branding it ‘cruel’ previously During the election campaign Kilmarnock and Loudoun’s new MP previously called the two-child benefit cap “cruel”. All four of Ayrshire’s new Labour MPs have voted with the UK Government to keep the two-child benefit cap. Central Ayrshire MP Alan Gemmell, Kilmarnock and Loudoun MP Lillian Jones, Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock MP Elaine Stewart and North Ayrshire and Arran MP Irene Campbell all backed Prime Minister Keir Starmer. https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/ayrshire/new-labour-mps-vote-keep-33314784 Today in the Guardian: Labour restores whip to three more MPs who opposed two-child benefit cap – Labour has restored … Continue reading Ayrshire Labour MPs could easily have voted against ‘plunging a rising number of children into poverty’ with no long term harm to their ‘careers’ or salaries but were too afraid to do so

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Latest of eight bias-free sub-polls has SNP 19 points ahead of Labour, Cons in deep trouble and Reform surging into second place, even in Scotland

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On January 14, 2025, I had the above, based on 7 Westminster sub-polls unaffected by bias, resulting from adjusting the sample to reflect the more than 10 years old 2014 referendum result, still used in all-Scotland polls and suggesting we’re still ‘even Stevens’ (not Flynn) on the yes/no vote while the SNP remain in the doldrums. Today, from YouGov: UK-wide Scottish Sub-poll (214) Regardless of the SNP support not back at full strength, though Op Branchform looks like withering soon, this suggests an SNP wipe-out other than in the LibDem seats. Transferred to Holyrood, I feel sure we can say … Continue reading Latest of eight bias-free sub-polls has SNP 19 points ahead of Labour, Cons in deep trouble and Reform surging into second place, even in Scotland

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A BBC Political Editor’s cri de coeur for the North in response to Labour’s investment focus on SE England contrasts with BBC Scotland’s response …..what was it, anyone?

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By stewartb The Chancellor of the Exchequer’s recent announcement of major infrastructure investments to catalyse UK growth seems to have received little attention from the mainstream media that supposedly ‘serves’ Scotland. However, what’s been lacking here is in contrast to commentary elsewhere, notably in the north of England. An article in Bella Caledonia (February 3) by Neil Blain reflects on the news coverage in Scotland of the Chancellor’s big speech, or rather its near absence from most of the mainstream media in Scotland: ‘Reactions to the Silicon Valley and Heathrow announcements were more evident in England than Scotland, in the … Continue reading A BBC Political Editor’s cri de coeur for the North in response to Labour’s investment focus on SE England contrasts with BBC Scotland’s response …..what was it, anyone?

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‘Good news about SNP’ ban on BBC Scotland Glenn Campbell confirms

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By Liz S So today , so far, in the BBC website on their Scottish Politics page they have found room for the non story that is “No Cat ban in Scotland John Swinney confirms”, as currently it is the third story on that page. Scanning that whole page on the BBC website, and too on their main Scottish page, they have , so far, not managed to find any room for a real political story impacting Scotland. That is where yesterday the GB Energy Chairman, Juergen Maier, confirmed to SKY News in an interview with them that the jobs … Continue reading ‘Good news about SNP’ ban on BBC Scotland Glenn Campbell confirms

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Labour MPs have been mostly supportive of what a Keir Starmer led Labour UK government has being doing

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By Liz S It seems that no matter how much the media here try to protect Labour and damage the SNP well some of the voters in Scotland are making up their own minds about who is really bad and who is really good, and the recent polls for Scotland are telling us that it is not the media who gets to decide this but the public. I see too that we have also reached the point now where some within the media are trying to blame all of these bad polls for Labour upon Keir Starmer as the Labour … Continue reading Labour MPs have been mostly supportive of what a Keir Starmer led Labour UK government has being doing

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The lowest Band D council tax rate in British Labour Wales is higher than the highest in SNP Scotland

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stewartb Worth repeating this from a recent TuS blog post to give another way of setting out Council Tax baselines prior to next financial year’s CT increases across Great Britain. Insights into differences across Great Britain in 2024-25 for the benchmark average Band D tax can be found at https://propertydata.co.uk/council-tax Focusing on Wales where the British Labour Party governs: The contrast between Council Tax Band D rates in Scotland and Wales is quite remarkable! Is this what the British Labour Party would like to see in Scotland after 2026? ‘Levelling-up’ Scotland Labour style? Continue reading The lowest Band D council tax rate in British Labour Wales is higher than the highest in SNP Scotland

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Labour hypocrisy well on-track

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stewartb The Scotrail fare rise is covered on the Scotland page of the BBC News website (January 21). The BBC opened the article to readers’ comments and what a catalogue of evidence-free, statistics-free bile! This is the BBC headline ‘ScotRail fares set to increase by nearly 4%’. (By the way, the ’to nearly 4%’ in the headline could have been shorten to the accurate ‘to 3.8%’.) The article adds: ‘Transport Scotland said a 20% discount on season tickets would continue until September and the travel card Flexipass – which offers 12 single journeys for the price of 10 – has been expanded … Continue reading Labour hypocrisy well on-track

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The evidence says that Anas Sarwar is even less popular than Sir Keir Starmer and that someone like Monica Lennon would lead Labour better

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The Talking-up Scotland fund raiser primarily to enable the recruitment of some research assistance, in order to take pressure off me [74 in June and tiring] and hopefully to further improve the blog, has made a good start. To contribute, only if you can (!) go to: Talking-up Scotland – a Politics crowdfunding project in Ayr by Professor John Robertson By Professor John Robertson OBA Today in the Herald, ‘Scottish’ Labour’s collapse in the latest Find out Now Holyrood poll to 19% in the constituency vote and only 15% in the regional vote, is attributed by Sir Professor John Curtice, to the … Continue reading The evidence says that Anas Sarwar is even less popular than Sir Keir Starmer and that someone like Monica Lennon would lead Labour better

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Scotland has to decide in 2026 whether they will vote for slogans from Labour

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By Liz S Whether Labour are indeed holding off and so preparing to announce benefits for Scotland next year prior to the Scottish election then why wait until then as that surely will be too obvious and also too tactical ? Yes I do know that is who Labour are politically. Though will most of the political damage and the fallout for Labour in Scotland not already have happened by next year ? Many of Reeves announcements, for England, were for the future so why not also include something for every nation within the UK. It also stinks to make … Continue reading Scotland has to decide in 2026 whether they will vote for slogans from Labour

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British Labour Party leaders find ways to excuse their track record in government by reference to external factors when they don’t have the SNP to blame

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By stewartb The British Labour Party’s leader in the Holyrood parliament, Anas Sarwar MSP is quoted in a Holyrood magazine article from February 14, 2024 entitled: ‘Labour unveils new ‘blueprint for economic growth’. It was a fairly typical ‘blame the Scottish Government’ piece useful for illustration. ‘Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar accused the SNP-Green government of “failing” businesses and “choking off opportunity and hurting families and companies in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis and a cost-of-doing-business crisis”. (my emphasis) And: ‘The Labour Party argues that the SNP has failed to grow the economy over its 17 years in government ..’ It’s worth recalling … Continue reading British Labour Party leaders find ways to excuse their track record in government by reference to external factors when they don’t have the SNP to blame