The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


A wider field of vision

Posted on June 23, 2014 by

Earlier today we reported the Edinburgh Evening News’ coverage of a study by Sheffield Hallam University which found that households across Edinburgh would lose an average of £780 each thanks to the coalition’s welfare cuts, with the worst-affected area – Craigmillar – likely to take an annual hit of £1,240 per household.

craigmillar

Today’s edition of the Daily Record has a prominent feature on the same survey, but chooses to focus on Glasgow rather than Edinburgh, and finds that things are even worse. Households in the poorest part of Glasgow – Calton, infamous for its low male life expectancies – stand to see a shocking £1,760 a year ripped out of their budget.

The Record being the Record, of course, it characterises the cuts – quite correctly – as being the responsibility of the Conservative/Lib Dem coalition. But then, weirdly, it asks a Labour MSP to comment on them.

“Deprived areas of Glasgow dominate the list of worst-hit council wards in the research presented to MSPs on Holyrood’s Welfare Reform Committee. Labour’s Michael McMahon, who chairs the committee, said the findings backed up the stories of hardship being told across the country.

He added: ‘Now we have the evidence that proves it, right down to the electoral ward. From the witnesses that have come before us, we have always known welfare reform is having a disastrous effect on individuals. Now it looks as if this is true for whole communities in Glasgow, Dundee, Fife, the lower Clyde and beyond.'”

And that’s weird, of course, because Labour’s openly-and-proudly-admitted plan for the coalition’s welfare reforms isn’t to scrap them, but to implement them in full and then make even more welfare cuts on top.

We’re not sure why the Record’s unnamed reporter didn’t get round to raising that issue with Mr McMahon. Perhaps he was in a hurry. But we suspect it might be one of those cross-border vortex things again.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email

1 Trackbacks/Pingbacks

  1. 23 06 14 18:59

    A wider field of vision | Scottish Independence News
    Ignored

192 to “A wider field of vision”

  1. pa_broon74
    Ignored
    says:

    Our press corps really are a load of crap aren’t they…

  2. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    Labour have to convince middle England they’re no longer the Brown/Darling fiscal catastrophe. One way is mimic Con/Dem cuts which may or not be working but house prices in London sure are sky high and middle England does like that.

  3. JGedd
    Ignored
    says:

    These strange Labour lizard people just shape shift, hoping that their voters will be confused by their ability to morph into something else and spout attacks on the effects of their own party’s policy ideas on the poor voters. But then the media person is there like the sorcerer’s apprentice to razzle-dazzle the viewing public in case they have a wait-a-minute-moment and spot the costume change.

    JK Rowling couldn’t make it up.

  4. alexicon
    Ignored
    says:

    No doubt labour in Scotland will be shouting from the rafters that the Scottish government should cover the short-fall in benefit cuts from Westminster, knowing full well that cuts will have to be made else where.
    Another thing labour will conveniently forget to tell the voters is that the Labour Party is committed to carry out the very same cuts.

  5. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    They were never asked simply because they know the policy
    labour already, and being the record have attempted to show them in a slightly less tarnished light.

    Record editor – IT AIN’T WORKING!

    They truly are actually worse, at least the rest do not pretend to be socialist.It just shows how labour are serving the people who put them in power.

  6. galamcennalath
    Ignored
    says:

    It is now many decades since ScotLab put Scotland before the party’s fortunes at Westminster.

    Certainly pre McCrone, pre the Feeble Fifty of Thatchers era. ScotLab time and time again have proven they are Scotland’s No1 enemy.

    You know where you stand with the Tories – they have a different set of values which find favour elsewhere. It says quite clearly on the can what it contains!

    ScotLab pretend to be something they aren’t, they pretend to be on our side. They haven’t been for a very long time.

  7. Davy
    Ignored
    says:

    The Labour philosophy keep them poor and lie like shit to them.

    If you don’t like their morals, dont worry they have another set in the back pocket.

  8. allen ralston
    Ignored
    says:

    “Our press corps really are a load of crap aren’t they…”

    you praise them to highly !

  9. Inbhir Anainn
    Ignored
    says:

    Another excellent Wings article and should be considered worthy of being the 2nd Wings flyer for distribution.

  10. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    None of the main UK parties (Lab, Cons, LibDems) have any principles left. Look at the sell out by the LibDems in the coalition. The Labour party are going the same way and have now betrayed the Scottish people the were founded to stand for.

  11. R. Duncan
    Ignored
    says:

    This piece doesn’t surprise me. My only surprise is the fact that it’s been like that for decades in Craigmiller and Niddrie. What did labour do then. Nothing.

    30 Years down the line and it;s the same.

    if we don’t vote YES we can come back to Craigmiller in another 30 years for another photo and it will be a duplicate.

    I can’t understand why folk would vote NO.

    mindboggeling

  12. Papadox
    Ignored
    says:

    SLAB treat their electorate like mushrooms. Keep them in the dark feed them shit, blame everybody else then head back to the trough for deserts. You really couldn’t make it up.

  13. Clootie
    Ignored
    says:

    The Daily Record highlights the disgraceful situation and then try’s to imply it is a Tory/ LibDem failing ONLY. UK Labour(which includes the Scottish wing) voted to support the austerity plan fully and to accept the welfare cap.

    Labour must win the marginal seats to gain power so they simply move to the right.

    The Daily Record wants you to believe that it will be different post 2015. This is false – the same plan will be implemented and the same people will suffer.

    Labour are still saying one thing in Scotland and another in the English marginals.

    In addition I don’t think Labour will win the next General Election – but it doesn’t matter as the poor will get poorer and the rich will get richer.

    People will continue to buy the Record and vote Labour …..because?

  14. Bob Sinclair
    Ignored
    says:

    O/T
    Right on cue I see the BBC is ramping up the ‘threat’ to Scotland from Terrorism on the basis of 1 guy who used to live in Aberdeen. Interesting that this should feature on the news just after a poll showing significant support for YES from the Asian community. The BBC are beneath contempt in this transparent effort to scarespin.

  15. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    If the people who vote Labour read this they shouldn’t ever trust them never mind vote for them again.

  16. Mary Bruce
    Ignored
    says:

    And according to Gideon we’re not even half way through the cuts. And this study hasn’t factored in the £4bn to get slashed off Barnett either, imagine what it will be like when that happens.

    Maybe we could crowdfund Prof Patrick Dunleavy to predict this scenario? He can look at how many jobs will be lost in the public sector, the knock on effect this will have on the retail & services sector, etc. It is a downward spiral.

  17. Walking on Sunshine
    Ignored
    says:

    Seems more like comrades-at-arms-length than comrades-in arms.

    Although it’s now obvious Labour and the Tories are following each other like sheep.

    Their policies at Westminster are indistinguishable.

    At least Labour in Scotland have a simple solution.

    Vote YES and escape Westminster’s clutches for good.

  18. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    This state of affairs raises a number of points I would like to comment on, but I don’t want to influence your perception. So here’s a LIST and you can figure it out for yourselves. 😉

    “He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  19. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “The best books… are those that tell you what you know already.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  20. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  21. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “Doublethink means the power of holding two contradictory beliefs in one’s mind simultaneously, and accepting both of them.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  22. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “Until they became conscious they will never rebel, and until after they have rebelled they cannot become conscious.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  23. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  24. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    “Orthodoxy means not thinking–not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness.” ? George Orwell, 1984

  25. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    Hope you liked my list. 🙂

  26. Pentland Firth
    Ignored
    says:

    The poor of Criagmillar, Calton and elsewhere are, from a Labour Party perspective, necessary collateral damage in their war to win the votes in Middle England’s marginal constituencies required to become the next UK government. Do the voters of Craigmillar, Calton etc understand this? Almost certainly not. Do the Record’s editorial staff understand it? I think they probably do.

  27. Juteman
    Ignored
    says:

    As far as i’m concerned, there are only a few reasons a Labour voter could vote No. Bigotry, ignorance or self interest. I mean ignorance in the true meaning of the word.
    Whole families in the west of Scotland will vote No because that is in their interest as ordinary voters.

  28. Doug Daniel
    Ignored
    says:

    “Now it looks as if this is true for whole communities in Glasgow, Dundee, Fife, the lower Clyde and beyond.”

    What about communities in Manchester, Liverpool and Leeds, Mr McMahon? I’m amazed by this disgusting display of narrow nationalism.

    Labour: we play the “Scottish” card when it suits us.

  29. TJenny
    Ignored
    says:

    Jutrman – I don’t understand ‘Whole families in the west of Scotland will vote No because that is in their interest as ordinary voters.’ How is it in their interest as ‘ordinary’ voters? Unless you are using ‘ordinary’ in the ‘ordinary’ mum way?

  30. TJenny
    Ignored
    says:

    Juteman, sorry for typo – it’s suddenly gone very dark overhead, now put the lights on.

  31. jon esquierdo
    Ignored
    says:

    It is all about the labour politicians financial interests. Not those of their constituents

  32. JimnArlene
    Ignored
    says:

    Typical Daily Rectum, defending SLab to the last. Time they woke up, and be “Scotland’s newspaper”, not SLabs apologist rag.

  33. galamcennalath
    Ignored
    says:

    Sept 18th is a test for ScoLab. If absolutely none of their MSPs and MPs come out before then for Yes, then they have proven they are all devoid of any decency. They should have no future in Scotland.

  34. TD
    Ignored
    says:

    I said it yesterday – most people in the UK support right wing policies. So of course Labour have to move to the right – otherwise they will never get elected. It is all about gaining power at Westminster. The fact that it is not morally right, or unpopular in Scotland is irrelevant to them. However this does mean that they have to try to pull off some pretty amazing duplicity in an attempt to retain their support in Scotland. And that is what we are seeing. Unfortunately, too many people swallow the Daily Record’s angle – hook line and sinker. All we can do is keep trying to expose the lies.

    No party can honestly argue for the union. The interests of Scotland and rUK are different. Any party that tries to reconcile the irreconcilable has to lie. Or do what the Tories do – give up on Scotland in electoral terms and impose a kind of colonial rule. There is a certain revolting honesty about that.

  35. galamcennalath
    Ignored
    says:

    @TD …. Your last paragraph is absolutely spot on!

  36. Chic McGregor
    Ignored
    says:

    Another outing for an old piccy.

    https://www.dropbox.com/s/grv0n0vzxp2idlh/ArcofAusterityWhy.jpg

  37. BigRik
    Ignored
    says:

    Strange that these areas have been staunch Lab voters for decades… promises,promises 🙂

  38. bobby mckail
    Ignored
    says:

    I grew up right there in that photo, there used to be a bingo, we called it the ‘gaff’ attached to those shops on the left hand side. I used to stand at the window from my house when I was 5-6 years old and watch all the packed to the gunnel’s buses arrive with folk eager to play. This is what Niddrie looked like whilst I grew up in the 70”s I used to go to the local School St Francis which has been knocked down for many years now.

  39. Juteman
    Ignored
    says:

    @TJenny.
    ‘Ordinary’ as in the Labour version.

  40. TJenny
    Ignored
    says:

    Juteman – thought it’d have to be. 🙂

  41. joe kane
    Ignored
    says:

    Down south people are complaining about the lack of BBC coverage for the anti-austerity march in London on Saturday. Some people identified the lack of the presence of Nigel Farage as the main reason it didn’t feature in a BBC news bulletin.

    Up here a Scottish Labour supporting newspaper boycott’s BBC coverage of an interview with Labour’s shadow DWP spokesperson Rachel Reeves who boasted to the nation that she was going to be even worse than the Tories when it comes to austerity.

    So there is the Tories “austerity” and Scottish Labour’s “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Austerity”. It’s difficult to tell them apart except Scottish Labour’s has the biggest stench.

  42. Simon Wicksted
    Ignored
    says:

    I grew up in Craigmillar and it was an area full of good people but bad housing. Local government never cared about trying to get it sorted. Local government was usually Labour.

  43. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    David Clegg at the Record is a disgusting piece of unionist shit.

    He would rather lie to the people of Scotland, than tell them the way it is, rather lie, than tell them the truth about what is going to become of Scotland IF we vote NO (SPIT).

    NO place in an Independent Scotland for David Clegg or that shower of self serving Scottish Labour parasites.

    David Clegg really angers me, GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

    He’s not been on the Beeb for about a week, long may it continue.

  44. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Galamcennalath

    Spot on ref support for Independence from some MSP’s and Scot’s MP’s. If none come over to Yes then they are so much like Curran and the rest i.e. themselves, party and Westminster first and Scotland and it’s people last.

  45. gordoz
    Ignored
    says:

    @joe kane

    Good point – well put !

  46. gordoz
    Ignored
    says:

    @TheItalianJob says

    No Labour MSP’s will be coming out for YES.

    Party first, foremost and always
    Country = Britain

    (Socialist views are no more than optional).

    Scotland is no more than a region of Britian.

  47. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @caz-m

    That’s what irk’s the most their deceit to the poor readers of the DR Who take all of this BS in and will vote no. I know I talk to enough of them and they don’t want to listen to my counter arguments, even when I tell them about the oil. And I should know I’ve worked 33 year’s in the industry including 6 years in Norway and look how well off they all are there.

  48. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    Newsnet reports that UK government propaganda booklet used Green Cross Health symbol without permission and is not normally used for political purposes.

    http://www.newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-news/9361-questions-over-use-of-pharmacy-logo-in-uk-government-indy-booklet

  49. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @gordoz

    Do you know what disappoints me as a life long Labour supporter (no more I may add), I thought come a referendum on Independence a number of a Scotlabs would walk across the floor and support Independence. But no, they are all too ingrossed in their party bubble to even be honest with what they know is right for Scotland and it’s people.

    This is why I can no longer stomach the three main Unionist parties.

  50. Paula Rose
    Ignored
    says:

    (have a look at what Hood is offering on Off-topic)

  51. Grendel
    Ignored
    says:

    It’s confusing fighting a campaign on two fronts, isn’t it?

  52. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    Labour Party Councillor, Terry Kelly, has represented Ferguslie Park in Paisley for decades, and year in, year out, Ferguslie gets voted one of the most deprived areas in Europe.

    Keep them under educated, under fed, poor employment, poor health. Yet they vote for Kelly again and again at every local council election.

    Work than one out.

  53. Finnzz
    Ignored
    says:

    How anyone can vote Labour purely because ‘Their father did’ or ‘We always vote Labour in this town’ beggers belief.

    Luckily the referendum debate is educating us all to their present duplicity.

    Only a YES vote can restore the true values of that party.

  54. Andrew
    Ignored
    says:

    Hi folks,

    I’m not trying to hijack this thread so apologies in advance if anyone is offended. But – any chance some of you kind people could repost this link on your Facebook or Twitter accounts to try and raise a wee bit of cash for the Yes Stirling campaign office?

    http://igg.me/at/Yes-Stirling-Office/x

    We’re still a wee bit short and your extraordinary generosity will make a difference as it has in the past for so many other similar worthy causes on this site.

  55. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    The only thing that will change the circumstances of thousands of Scots living in grinding deprivation and hopelessness, is the political will to bring about sustainable change. The fist step in that process is to vote Yes.

    (Thanks for the earlier edit Rev., I was rushing to make the list contiguous and missed the double-er. Presentation counts, so I hope you have shiny shoes for your next TV appearance). 🙂

  56. Luigi
    Ignored
    says:

    Labour Party Councillor, Terry Kelly, has represented Ferguslie Park in Paisley for decades, and year in, year out, Ferguslie gets voted one of the most deprived areas in Europe.

    The majority of people there probably don’t vote and/or are not even registered to vote. British democracy.

  57. Grouse Beater
    Ignored
    says:

    I recognise the laundrette!

    A smart arse ‘installation’ artist – that’s, an individual who has rejected the skill of drawing and painting for contrived objects of no symbolism or emotion too big for any home – could lift that facade, dump it untouched in the Tate, and win the Turner Prize.

  58. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    Luigi

    And one of the Paisley MPs who oversees Ferguslie Park is non other than Douglas Alexander.

  59. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    Reading bettertogether Lamont and Curran laying on their Scots independence will destroy Scottish ship building. You have to hand it to Labour in Scotland bettertogetherBBC etc, they are utterly shameless.

  60. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    And rancid old progressive liberal Guardian say STV debate “smokes out Salmond” and Bliar Macbloated is thrilled. Thats their man vote no, SeverinCarrell, this time without wig, nice summer frock, calling himself Libby.

  61. John H.
    Ignored
    says:

    caz-m 8.48pm.
    You’ve answered your own question of course.
    The hypocritical Labour party tell the poor sods they’re trying to help them, while all the time the only people they’re helping are themselves.

    Keep them poor.Keep them ignorant.Keep them voting Labour.

  62. gerry parker
    Ignored
    says:

    Just watched George Galloway in Coatbridge. Just say Naw. Pathetic. But they clapped and cheered.

  63. Stephen
    Ignored
    says:

    Curran and Lamont should be reminded that in 1979 at the devolution referendum, devolution would close the yards, there were 32000 in scottish shipyards at the time, now they are saying that independence will close the shipyards. There are only about 3000 jobs in the shipyards now. 29000 have disappeared under the ‘union’

  64. Robert Peffers
    Ignored
    says:

    When is it going to dawn upon the hard of thinking that there really is no real differences between the main Westminster political parties? Other, that is, than their registered party names and the colours of the ties and/or blouses they choose to wear. They are indeed all, “Better Together”, one with the other at Westminster.

    Another thing I’ve noticed is that they all seem to make the same determined efforts when public speaking to make, musical conductor style, hand gestures.

    In fact these conductor like gestures seem contrapuntally opposed to the verasity of the actual verbal content. That is, the less truth there is in the verbal output the more musical direction is given by the speakers handsignals.

    That is with the sole exception of Alistair Darling who seems more inclined to direct the orchestra by overactive nictitation.

    I wonder if anyone has carried out a scientific study to guage the verasity of a political figure’s truthfulness by the extent of their hand & eye co-ordinated movements? Anyone know of such a study?

  65. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    heedtracker

    There is no where in the UK that is equipped to build the Type 26 Frigates. At this moment in time, BAE have a local, skilled, shipbuilding workforce based on the Clyde.

    That workforce will continue to build the second aircraft carrier sections and another two smaller ships.

    Meantime, Yarrows will be modified specifically for the construction of the Type 26 Frigates.

    So, the trick is to keep Govan going in orders when the aircraft carriers are complete. This is where you could buy out Govan from BAE Systems and turn it into a commercial shipbuilding enterprise.

    Only if we vote for Independence.

  66. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    Still 20,000 working in Norway’s shipyards without the broad shoulders of the UK to blackmail the workers.

    In one of the most comprehensive and inspiring analysis produced on Scotland’s economy, the “Scotland Means Business” reports published today are commissioned by N56, a new business and economics policy think tank. N56 is the geographic latitude on which Scotland sits and these reports highlight Scotland’s economic strength on an international scale.

    http://www.businessforscotland.co.uk/new-think-tank-high-growth-scotland-can-be-one-of-the-most-prosperous-nations/

  67. eezy
    Ignored
    says:

    Alistair Carmichael in front of committee at Holyrood on Thursday to answer to Welfare Cuts.
    How many times will he say,
    “Look, I haven’t seen the report.”

    The Price of Peanuts….

    http://www.eezypeezylemonsqeezy.com

  68. Robert Peffers
    Ignored
    says:

    @JGedd says: “JK Rowling couldn’t make it up”.

    Oh! Yes she could.

  69. Democracy Reborn
    Ignored
    says:

    McMahon et al from Scottish Labour can cry all the crocodile tears they want.

    Here’s the truth though…. in a perverted way, they don’t actually want these shocking deprivation statistics to change. They don’t want to see our fellow citizens who exist on the bread line (& below) being lifted out of poverty, because it’s not in people like Michael McMahon’s interests. As long as the status quo continues, the poor will either not vote or if they do, they’ll vote Labour as they have done for generations.

    It’s now almost 70 years since the founding of the welfare state. The figures in Stu’s piece are a damning indictment of unionism in Scotland. Is it any wonder that the UK is the 4th most unequal society in the developed world? These levels of poverty have existed for decades. How much longer are Scottish Labour going to go on promising the poor of Edinburgh, Glasgow, Fife & elsewhere that their lives will be significantly improved?

    It’s encouraging from the polls that the number of Labour voters prepared to back independence seems to be steadily increasing. Our job between now & September is to keep on reminding others that the UK, & Labour, are past their sell-by date. And expose Labour’s utter hypocrisy of promising one thing to Scotland, whilst at a UK level (which, let’s face it, is all that counts for them) explicitly committing themselves to be even more Tory than the Tories when it comes to the poorest in our society.

    A simple message to all Labour voters : IT IS NO LONGER THE PARTY YOUR FATHER OR GRANDFATHER KNEW, OR VOTED FOR.

  70. Adrian B
    Ignored
    says:

    Something else is starting to come to light. It would appear Glasgow city council is cross referencing council tax records and the electoral roll and threatening to throw people off the electoral register.

    https://twitter.com/mhairi_mcalpine/status/481162615125966848
    https://twitter.com/dtaylor5633/status/481169281443700737

  71. Vronsky
    Ignored
    says:

    No Labour MPs or MSPs will come out for independence. If they do, they will be immediately deselected. I was told this by a LfI activist and it rings true. Surrender your job with that fat salary and fatter expenses on a point of principle? Ain’t going to happen. Remember that most of these people are unemployable outside of politics.

  72. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    Just spent 2 hours listening to the one and only George showing the man as a total charlatan from start to finish, clever but spouts his own version of facts at every turn and the hardcore Labour voters seemed to believe him.

  73. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Sinky

    Yes saw that report earlier today on another thread. The thing is that this should be highlighted on the BBC, STV, MSM for balance. But as we know there is no chance of that. As all big positive reports pro Independence have been suppressed from day one, as all of us here know.

  74. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Vronsky

    Yes that’s the threat to Slab MSP’s, deselection if they dare cross over to the side of Independence. And as you rightly point out they are unemployable outside politics. That includes our MP’s at Westminster too, but they financially have a lot more to lose. So sad.

  75. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    Don’t forget the Westminster Establishment’s part in all this poverty, bigotry, and so on…

    The Labour Party are willing partners in implementing the London Establishment’s policies.

    This poverty is replicated in Manchester, Belfast, Cardiff, Birmingham, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Dundee and many more cities across the UK.

    Labour MPs know of this poverty, but are persuaded to do nothing about it because it is not in the London Establishments best interest to have a fully educated population.

    Shame on you Labour.

  76. X_Sticks
    Ignored
    says:

    @ cynicalH & Gerry

    Just watched Galloway too. I suspect the whole show (including the questions and perhaps even the wee rammy)was contrived to galvanise the labour no vote.

    I really do wonder if George is a member of the british intelligence services. I would explain a lot.

  77. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Caz-m

    So true. You know what makes me so sad is to see poverty. Shame on the Labour politicians who accept this and are party to keeping people in this state of poverty.

  78. gordoz
    Ignored
    says:

    @TheItalianJob

    Totally understand.

    Labour v Scotland (heartbreaking which side they choose).

    Can’t get their mindset at all. They could be in power for years in Scotland.

    But many Labour voters are onto their scam and will vote YES so thats something. 🙂

  79. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    @ caz-m, there’s billions of oil platform construction contracts going to Norway far into the future and its UK oil so its HQ’s in London deciding. When you think of Scots industry used to build, its pretty scary. Instead we’ve shills and carpet baggers with their nonsense on stilts Scottish nation statehood and all of it belching at us from Pacific Quay. You couldn’t invent a bigger farce but at least the North is getting supersonic railways for that grand old working class no borders.com solidarity.

    How come there’s a giant Scotland/England border when it comes to huge infrastructure investment but no border for Scotland and democracy.

  80. wingman 2020
    Ignored
    says:

    It is long past time to reframe what Independence is actually about.

    People need to understand that Independence is a battle of fairness and equality. It is a battle between the rich and the poor.

    Independence is not about NATO, EU, Currency, Pensions, Borders, Tax Powers or Oil.

    It’s a simple matter of does Scotland continue to accept a disproportionate burden of the effects of economic incompetence in Westminster?

    Westminster (Thatcher and Blair) deregulated the banks and caused disaster in this gold plated industry. Simultaneously they used Oil revenue to crush the traditional industries, leaving the regions with nothing but generational unemployment and welfare.

    The money didn’t disappear. It was shifted up and to the right and to the pockets of financiers regardless of what type of business practices they indulged in.

    The gap between the Rich and the Poor widened through the Thatcher, Blair and Brown years.

    Now Westminster wants to continue to take more money from the poorest sections of society, to try to balance the books that were screwed by the banks and Westminster MPs.

    Thatcher, Blair, Brown and Darling were not only complicit but incompetent when it came to managing UK plc.

    Cameron, Milliband and Clegg are way out of their depth. They will implement policies that favour the south. Most votes are gained there.

    So while all the Londoner Luvvies like Boris think that the jam should go to London and will gradually spread out… people in the regions are coming under increasing pressure.

    Most are two or three months salary away from disaster. Many are much less.

    Fairness and equality…. this is something residents of Scotland can work with and build on.

    We cannot build or improve on the manifesto promises and lies that spill so easily from the mouths of the careerist MPs at Westminster.

    I’d rather be poor and have the knowledge that our effort was raising Scotland back up… then be conned by false promises and political chicanery by a Westminster crew who are interested only in London and the South East.

    Westminster doesn’t work for Scotland, because they don’t care about the 10% of the people in the North on less than UK average salaries. They care about keeping the London machine globally strong and their own incomes robust in the South East.

    These videos are old. But they remind us all what is really behind the fight for independence. They cannot afford to lose Scotland. They cannot afford to admit it.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOP2V_np2c0&feature=kp
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AHcfNy1_zqA

    The country was shafted by Westminster incompetence and the regions bore the brunt.
    This is not much different to the King in the old days, squeezing the hard pressed peasants for more tax.

    Residents of Scotland have suffered under the Labour Party’s local political mismanagement. No one has stepped up to say enough Westminster. ‘You are ruining our country’

    And make no mistake, thats whats being done. Scotland is in a very recognisable downward economic spiral overall. We are (have) suffering massive poverty and unacceptable economic migration.

    Our talent flows out. And retirees flow in.

    The population of England and Wales combined almost doubled from 16.8 million in 1851 to 30.5 million in 1901. Scotland’s population also rose rapidly, from 2.8 million in 1851 to 4.4 million in 1901

    Except, now Scotland remains at 5.2 million some 114 years later, while England and Wales is 56.1 million.

    Our country is being asset stripped by Westminster power brokers.

    So people, this Referendum is not about the finer details of politics and economics (despite their importance to everyone) This referendum is about the opportunity to decide how to build a fairer society.

    Do we want to cure this illness that is wasting the heart, soul and being of Scotland…. Or do we think its easier to simply lie down and die.

    There is no place in Scotland’s future for:

    -Poverty
    – Heat or Eat decisions for pensioners
    – Foodbanks
    – Privatised NHS
    – Further Austerity in a country awash with poverty
    – Our people dying on average 12 years earlier?

    The only people who can accept this:

    -are the MPs protecting their status and remuneration (and they are pretending to themselves that they are going it to care for Scotland)

    – are the independently wealthy, who simply don’t want things to change.

    It is time to drive this ‘Fairness and Justice’ stake much further and harder into the cold heart of Westminster politics.

    This Westminster Vampire has sucked Scotland’s blood for far too long and we have stood by and accepted it. Why?

    You tell me?!

  81. Sue
    Ignored
    says:

    OT – sorry Rev, but just wanted to say thanks for training us so well!

    I waited for my UK gov propaganda booklet before reading your debunking of it last week. I wanted to see how many lies and misdirections I would spot, then I read your article to check how I did.

    Pleased to say I got them all but two, so keep up the good work of providing us with the truth, and showing us how to spot the lies.

  82. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    Reference George Galloway. He’s a real mystery to me. Why is he up here making his pitch for Naw. He does have a carasmatic appeal which ensnares people to him. I just wished he had kept his face out of our debate.

  83. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    X_Sticks
    Do he have to be on the payroll? The ‘powers that be’ may just have him by the short and curl-ies. Anyone that sleeket must surely have a few dark secrets?

  84. wingman 2020
    Ignored
    says:

    The day they cried ‘austerity’ and spent millions on Thatchers funeral… was the day Westminster politicians started a chain reaction that will only become obvious with history.

  85. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    Sue

    I never got a booklet, wee sad face.

    Maybe it’s because my front door and windows and car, are covered in evil YES propaganda.

  86. gerry parker
    Ignored
    says:

    @ Sue,
    Agreed, all galloways lies could be refuted by information and analysis that Stu has done for us.
    X_sticks, I’m inclined to think that you’re right about the stage management of the whole thing.

  87. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    Ref Galloway. Real mystery. It sounds like his meetings are stage managed and his demeanor used to appeal to the old labour vote. Dirty tricks to say the least.

  88. Annie
    Ignored
    says:

    Just saw on twitter Glasgow City Council are removing people from the electoral register, it is then up to individual to contact them to get back on. Democracy at work Labour style.

  89. X_Sticks
    Ignored
    says:

    @CameronB Brodie

    I guess there’s all sorts of ways to end up on the payroll Cameron 😉

  90. Sue
    Ignored
    says:

    @Caz-m
    So are ours, but I still got mine. Wouldn’t have thought Yes stickers would have put off the postie. Maybe they are doing different areas on different days?

    Interesting that they left out the “outside the EU” scare. Maybe they don’t want us to think about EU since UKIP did so well in rUK?

  91. stonefaction
    Ignored
    says:

    Just a thought….. hypothetically, if folk were told they had been “removed” from the electoral roll, but in reality they were still on the list, could this open the door for fraudulent postal votes to be utilised in the ‘removed’ voters names, and how hard would this be to detect?

  92. Democracy Reborn
    Ignored
    says:

    @wingman 2020, 10.11pm

    Great post & spot on.

    You have encapsulated exactly what independence means to me.

    Or as Sillars once said, you can either choose to exercise political control over your future, or let someone else exercise it over you.

  93. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    @X_Sticks says:

    @ cynicalH & Gerry

    I really do wonder if George is a member of the british intelligence services. I would explain a lot.

    Never thought about it that way he might be to big a loose cannon for them though. On saying that the British state was fearful of the real left aka Soviet style and he was kicked out of the Labour party still wouldn’t trust him in or out.

  94. Greannach
    Ignored
    says:

    Grandpa, will you and Granny lose out in the Union?

  95. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    We are always behind up next day is three at least it’s why we have longer years.

  96. X_Sticks
    Ignored
    says:

    @cynicalHighlander

    Might not be as loose as he appears. Credentials maybe just too perfect? I could be totally wrong of course 😉

  97. TJenny
    Ignored
    says:

    cH – sorry, you’ve lost me there.

  98. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    George Galloway talks as if he is being held in the UK against his will.

    As if there is no other option open to him. He is the Establishment’s biggest critic, yet he is staunchly against him or Scotland being free from it.

    Weird.

    You don’t think he is an MI5 undercover agent do you?

    He would be an ideal candidate wouldn’t he, with all his Asian and Middle Eastern connections. W

    Worth thinking about.

  99. Croompenstein
    Ignored
    says:

    @caz-m – Whether he is an agent or not he is, at this moment in history, a mouthpiece and a tool of the British Establishment to deny Scotland true democracy

  100. Thepnr
    Ignored
    says:

    I’ve never trusted George Galloway since the first day I met him. This was more than 30 years ago and George had the “honour” of being the labour parties youngest ever secretary in Scotland.

    Anyway I had went along to their office to become one of the rank and file, met George and another gentleman whose name I don’t remember.

    Folled in all the forms, George says something like “it’s a fiver to join do you know that”. “Yes I said and handed over a fiver.

    George turned to his mate and says “there’s our beer money for dinnertime” and both started laughing. I wasn’t happy and depite being a young guy said “that isn’t funny”.

    “Don’t sweat it wee man, we’re just having a joke”

    Never paid another sub to the Labour party ever again.

  101. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    @X_Sticks

    I suppose when one lives in a corrupt state anything is possible but I feel he is to full of himself to get paranoid about. He is dangerous as some people worship his every word and he can fire people up to incite hatred especially religious which we have to watch.

  102. Thepnr
    Ignored
    says:

    Too many spelling mistakes, I’d better start reading my posts before hitting the send button. Dolt!

  103. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    Galloway has also landed a job on the Russia Today TV station.

    The plot thickens, the more you think about Galloway being an undercover agent for the British Establishment MI5/6, the more sense it makes.

  104. KenC
    Ignored
    says:

    Anyone feeling a little jaded at this point, and needing a pick-me-up, should watch “From Scotland With Love”. A film broadcast on BBC2 last Sunday at 10’o’clock, showing in all it’s wonderful glory the one resource we will never run out of. Our people.

  105. RogueCoder
    Ignored
    says:

    GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL ELECTION FRAUD?

    Adrian B posted this a little while back, but doesn’t seem to have been picked up by other posters here – Glasgow City Council are cross-referencing council tax records and sending out letters telling people that if they don’t respond within 14 days they will remove people from the electoral register!

    https://twitter.com/mhairi_mcalpine/status/481162615125966848

    Electoral Reform Society and LawyersForYes have already picked it up on Twitter and saying they are going to investigate.

  106. Flower of Scotland
    Ignored
    says:

    @bob Sinclair at 7.04pm

    BBC have been pushing the Aberdeen Terrorist story all day! I think that he actually moved down South before he was radicalised. Now Scotland 2014 are running it! It’s off! I only hear the BBC introductions these days and then switch off. BBC is anti Scotland!

  107. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    @TJenny

    Sorry effectively we live in a different timezone re postal/delivery deliveries the next your tomorrow can be up to three days ahead of us teuchters. So I was just being obtuse, that’s me with a strange humour.

  108. TJenny
    Ignored
    says:

    cH – thanks for that, thought I’d gone dippy, 🙂 (Dippier, maybe, even)

  109. Croompenstein
    Ignored
    says:

    George just causes floccinaucinihilipilification of debate and leaves you feeling like you have pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis

    Don’t think those words are even long enough for Gorgeous..

  110. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    @ RogueCoder, voter purge like Glasgow council’s is very similar to legal battles in Florida, with poorest and minorities losing out the most.

    http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2014/0402/Court-rules-Florida-voter-purge-illegal-but-will-it-stop-GOP-voting-tweaks

    This bit of the above report’s within 90 days is very worrying though.

    Occasional voter purges are common and indeed necessary to ensure that only properly registered voters are allowed to cast ballots.

    But the 2012 Florida effort came within 90 days of the 2012 election, sparking charges of underhanded politics aimed at hobbling the Democratic vote in what the Obama campaign deemed a key state.

  111. Bob Sinclair
    Ignored
    says:

    It would be interesting to know who is being targeted by these GCC letters. People on Mike Dailly’s list?

  112. Tom Platt
    Ignored
    says:

    The welfare cuts..bad as they are.. don’t just affect the poorest in our society. The withdrawal of money in circulation reduces growth for everyone.

    It is a sound principle of Economics that the easiest way to achieve real growth in a society is to provide money to the poorest. They have so little that they spend it. Others in society might do things like saving it or paying off their mortgage. Unfortunately for us the reverse is the case also. Withdrawal of benefits will serve to reduce growth.

    The current fragile growth created by the rise in house prices in UK will be stifled quickly by these further cuts in benefits. Osborne knew precious little about economics before he went to No. 11 Downing Street…Mervyn King was worried about his lack of interest in the opinions of other schools of thought…he has learnt nothing since he has been there.

    We need to get away from this monetary madness as quickly as we can by voting “Yes”. It looks set to implode.

    Tom

  113. cynicalHighlander
    Ignored
    says:

    I think that with the SSP RIC canvassing the poorer areas of disaffected non normal voters coming onto the registers has rung alarm bells and they will be trying Labour style intimidation.

  114. Thepnr
    Ignored
    says:

    O/T Just 12 weeks on Thursday we will cast our vote. If you haven’y yet got that Yes sticker or Wings or whatever party supports Independence. I would suggest if you want to win, then get it on now.

    Same goes for the badges, you don’t need to wear a big half crown size to work on your coat as there are smaller more discreet ones but there still noticed.

    There is very little time now, more than two years are behind us, time to get visible and take up the challange.

    Have those conversations folk, and no regrets.

  115. RogueCoder
    Ignored
    says:

    Re: Council Tax letters

    This absolutely stinks of SLAB trying to rig the indyref. The long disillusioned working class that Jim Sillars, Tommy Sheridan, RIC, the Greens, and many others have worked hard for months to engage in the referendum will be hit the hardest. They are more likely to be Yes voters, and more vulnerable to being bullied out by these letters.

    There is no low these people won’t stoop to in order to preserve their gravy train of corruption. I’m incensed – I probably need to stop posting now or I’ll say something unwise that the Daily Mail/Scotsman will scream in another “VILE CYBERNAT” attack headline tomorrow.

    🙁

  116. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    I am convinced there is a central command for the UK media. BBC, Sky and ITV, ALL running with the same identical story of three young Muslim guys who are now in Iraq with ISIS.

    Warmongering and scaremongering UK media, getting us ready for another wee war in Iraq. The British Establishment must pushing this story with all the TV companies.

    They do the same with some shit story that they think will be a game changer in the Scottish Referendum debate.

    I think they call it “Dambusting”

  117. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    Talking of regeneration, I’ve finally gotten around to reading KPMG’s ‘report’ “HS2 Regional Economic Impacts”.

    It begins with a cover note that does not inspire confidence.

    In particular, and without limiting the general statement above, since KPMG LLP has prepared this report for the benefit of HS2 Ltd, it has not been prepared for the benefit of any other person or organisation that might have an interest in the matters discussed in t his report. Nothing in this report constitutes a valuation, audit or legal advice.

    Then opens with a clear statement of intent, in the Executive Summery.

    The project has been peer – reviewed by an advisory panel of independent experts set up by HS2 Ltd to provide advice on the scope, design and delivery of an analytical work programme to explore the potential impact of investment in HS2 on the economy….

    This document provides a summary of the methodology and results of the analysis. It is based on data and assumptions for the full HS2 network (i.e. following completion of both Phase One and Phase Two) and the associated re-deployment of classic network capacity that were used to support the latest economic case for HS2, published in August 2012. The analysis therefore addresses the potential impacts of the full HS2 network, rather than separately assessing the impacts associated with Phases One and Two.

    I thought there was a good chance the calculation of ‘direct’ local benefits would be underestimated. Think of “clustering” and multiply this up to a regional scale.

    2.1 Potential impacts
    2.1.1 There are a number of ways in which investment in HS2 has the potential to affect medium – to long-run economic outcomes.In this section, we describe some of the important economic linkages that it would be helpful to capture in analysing the economic impacts of HS2. However, it has not been possible to capture all of these due to data constraints and the complexity of the analysis that would be required.

    Sections 3 and 4 describe appropriate methodologies which are available and the methodology that we have employed, including a discussion of those impacts that it has been possible to represent and those that could not be represented.

    Yet Sarah Boyack MSP is happy to give her support to HS2, as it will be good for Scotland.

    http://www.kpmg.com/UK/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/Documents/PDF/Market%20Sector/Building%20and%20Construction/hs2-regional-economic-impacts.pdf

  118. R. Duncan
    Ignored
    says:

    As far as i know if you have arrears in CTax and are on benefits the courts take an amount off your benefits at source. Different if your working ,

    The folks on benefits can wait for the dwp letter telling of adjustments to their amount of benefit.Once in arrears its out of their hands,

    Spoke to many who have this arrangement,

  119. R. Duncan
    Ignored
    says:

    meant to add.

    They have arrears but have no choice but to pay. so should be ok for voting as they are paying , even if its arrears .

  120. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    @ RogueCoder, its bully tactics but legally, its disenfranchising voters in Scotland and its probably wide spread within other unionist run city councils.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/post/floridas-voter-purge-explained/2012/06/18/gJQAhvcNlV_blog.html

    This is the Washington Post coverage of Florida and again, note the lists of regular voters but non citizens drawn up by local media and given up as proof of fraud but with serious errors . A unionist lawyer in Glasgow that called Alex Salmond an arsehole online last week also said he was drawing up lists of WoS twitter account followers. So its probable that bettertogether having been researching elections like the US 2012.

  121. Democracy Reborn
    Ignored
    says:

    On topic, just saw a great tweet from a Glasgow Eastender on Radical Indy’s page:-

    “The people of the schemes who’ve been treated like shite for generations. Sept 18 is payback time. Grasp it & get it right up them. Vote Yes.”

  122. Flower of Scotland
    Ignored
    says:

    RT and Aljazeera give another angle to news. I much prefer to watch these channels now!

  123. haud on the noo
    Ignored
    says:

    I posted but it disappeared.. no problem.

    If we are cheated out out of our democracy and right to self determination by agents of the state? Because that is what is happening , let’s not pretend otherwise.

    If we get NO because of lies/theft and deception then people will reject the “democratic” process as an obvious lie and who knows where that path leads. If these b’stards cheat Scotland out of its future, then the future is a m e s s .

  124. Flower of Scotland
    Ignored
    says:

    I don’t believe it! I just posted about RT. I take it all back. They have been got at ! RT just did an overview of the referendum which was incredibly biased towards Bettertogether ! They called us separists! After spending a while on BTs new booklet they allowed Pat Kane about 2 secs to reply. Unbelievable! I’ve been watching RT for a while and they always seemed, if not pro Independence, very fair to us! I’m gutted!

  125. thoughtsofascot
    Ignored
    says:

    A bit off topic, but on the subject of labour telling porkies and getting away with it, and its been alluded to previously in this topic anyway:
    http://newsnetscotland.com/index.php/scottish-news/9364–no-campaign-urged-to-drop-discredited-shipbuilding-scare

    Apparently Lamont has been up to her old shtick again of claiming shipbuilding will disappear in Scotland if Scotland becomes independent because the UK does not build ships outside of the UK…um er um…except when it does, like on this occasion:
    http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-17127488

    Now, last time I checked, We’re not flying the union flag over here in the land of the morning calm.

  126. msean
    Ignored
    says:

    After a documentary by their Scottish newscaster,I seem to detect the same from Al jazeera,been got at. Still watch it,but not so often now. Things will only change after a Yes vote,when Scotland can prove it has a voice and runs its own broadcasting and issues its own broadcasting permissions.

  127. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    Tee hee, I’m like a broken record.

    I can’t comment with certainty on the accuracy of KPMG’s analysis of local benefits, but at least they themselves admit it is limited in scope and data. Perhaps the latest research from China could have helped.

    Abstract:
    Improving transportation conditions has long been seen as a practical way for economic development in a certain region. From 2000, China has been expanding its
    expressway network and High-speed railway (HSR) network remarkably. However, studies about infrastructure’s population and economic spatial reconstruction effects are still limited. Moreover, as expressway and HST have many different characteristics, their impacts on regional economic gross value and industrial distribution are consequently different. However, there have been few similar studies clarify the difference between them. This study aims to fill these gaps and furthermore studies the different regional effects led by expressway and HSR. The study firstly reviews literatures studying the relationship between infrastructure and economic development. And then, the study presents an empirical study of Wuhan-Guangzhou expressway and HST projects. Lastly, it discusses expressway and HSR’s effects on population distribution, economic development and industry reconstruction separately.

    4.2 Effects on Economy Strength
    Being similar to population analysis, infrastructure impacts on economy strength could be analyzed from two aspects. Firstly, Table 5 displays each city’s GRP number and Wuhan-Guangzhou corridor region’s GRP proportion in three provinces. Based on the GRP percentage of 8 corridor cities in 3 provinces, we could find that expressway promotes economic development in the long run (GRP proportion increased 1.03% from 2002 to 2009).

    However its short term economic promotion effect is not obvious. On the contrary, HSR clearly stimulates regional economy improvement notably even in a short period. Its operation led to 0.38% increment in GRP proportion in only two years time.

    Why build it unless it will stimulate and support development. My fear is that much of this investment could be diverted away from the less technologically endowed economic region.

    http://easts.info/on-line/proceedings/vol9/PDF/P82.pdf

  128. thoughtsofascot
    Ignored
    says:

    Flower of Scotland:

    RT were never going to be fair. They’re the propaganda channel of the Russian government. Any positive coverage they have given of the Referendum so far is nothing more than a political ploy. They’ll use what they can to attack the UK government and show the UK to be in turmoil, with rebellions everywhere. That’s all we are in the eyes of RT. A convenient rebellion that allows them to get payback for the BBC’s coverage of Ukraine. Portraying the Scottish independence referendum as anything other than a rebellion against the British state would compromise RT’s own positions on events within Russia and its “sphere”

    They are as bad as the BBC on every single account.

  129. Rock
    Ignored
    says:

    Democracy Reborn,

    “On topic, just saw a great tweet from a Glasgow Eastender on Radical Indy’s page:-

    “The people of the schemes who’ve been treated like shite for generations. Sept 18 is payback time. Grasp it & get it right up them. Vote Yes.””

    Very encouraging.

    These are the people who will win us this referendum and we already see that Glasgow City Council has started intimidating them.

  130. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    called the North.

    Oops, T got distracted. 🙂

  131. thoughtsofascot
    Ignored
    says:

    Another thing to consider too is that there is currently a lot of Qatari and Russian money invested in London. Organisations from Russia and Qatar will naturally have a bias towards the viewpoint of London as a result.

  132. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    Accepting that wider impacts are potentially important, what recommendations can be made for improvements in the appraisal of transport infrastructure? Manuals for transport project appraisal can include guidelines for extensions of standard cost-benefit analysis with valuations of wider effects in a methodologically consistent fashion. Research should focus on the development of sound and practical frameworks, not on a search for widely applicable results.

    So if anyone tells you that HS2 will be good for Scotland, they are guessing at best, as the methodology for assessing High Speed Rail’s development impacts is still under development.

    http://www.internationaltransportforum.org/jtrc/discussionpapers/DP200806.pdf

  133. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    The above comment was poorly worded. I should have said assessing transport infrastructure investment, in general.


    The real reasons to value transport infrastructure

    David Pendlebury
    04 February 2014

    Transport infrastructure is not only critically important to the UK’s economy and society, ensuring that places are able to attract the highly skilled, highly mobile workers of the knowledge economy. It also shapes the development of the places in which we live and how we are able to interact with them. Most fundamentally, its provision enables people to live their lives and carry out essential activities related to employment, health, education, or recreation.

    That’s why the planning community is pushing to change the debate around transport infrastructure and how the public values it. After all, planners need to have an ingrained understanding of place and connectivity. So the Royal Town Planning Institute wants to encourage policymakers and analysts to arrive at a better, broader consensus about the real value of transport infrastructure.

    In order to do this, we need to develop a much more holistic understanding of the benefits of such infrastructure, which allows us to move beyond the current narrow or mechanistic methods of evaluating costs and benefits. What are the tangible, visible and everyday benefits that the average citizen derives from transport infrastructure? Such benefits can include; helping individuals to find meaningful and fulfilling employment, or enabling entrepreneurs and businesses to achieve their commercial goals; transforming and regenerating places for the benefit of entire communities through infrastructure-led development projects; and unlocking land for new homes, thereby increasing the housing supply and helping individuals and families onto the housing ladder.

    http://www.fabians.org.uk/the-real-reasons-to-value-transport-infrastructure/

  134. Melvin penman
    Ignored
    says:

    This is amazing why don’t the press and the TV stations highlight this to the people………but I guess ,I already have my answer.

    What happened to the British dividend ,I guess they are taking back before they give it out now……

    If Scotland votes no, we need to seriously consider the long term effects of the Stockholm syndrome.

    It should be renamed the Scottish syndrome !!!!!!

  135. CameronB Brodie
    Ignored
    says:

    I can’t comment with certainty on the accuracy of KPMG’s analysis

    I can’t comment with certainty on the robustness of KPMG’s analysis

  136. JLT
    Ignored
    says:

    Useful information to have, Rev, especially when canvassing. In some of the more ‘Labour’ areas I have visited, there are people that I have come across who are just a hard ‘No!’

    Simply, this information when directed at them might be useful. In fact, I might even print this off and keep a batch when going out so that if someone does say ‘No’ ….’then read this!’

  137. Bugger (the Panda)
    Ignored
    says:

    @Democracy Reborn says:

    The Tories need to create the poor to feed the rich.

    Labour need to maintain the poor as poor to get to power.

  138. Bugger (the Panda)
    Ignored
    says:

    Forgot

    Labour and the Tories are two cheeks if the same arse.

    The Libdems are the plook.

  139. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    Early morning BBC Scotland,
    A Prof from Strathclyde University explains to us that Bannockburn actually helped in forming the Union.!

    FFS, is there nothing sacred from the BBC, anything for the union is all they can think of, they belittle us, our history, anything they can think of. Deliberately to encourage the cringe.

    I am sick to death of them. Roll on SBC!

  140. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    BBC,
    now we are getting how expensive funerals are, the cringe material is spewing out of them constantly’
    This stuff will not end. I am sooo fed up and angry with them.

    This is the Anniversary of Bannockburn.

    The struggle we are going through right now should take some passion from that event, and give ourselves a burst of pride and enthusiasm for the task in hand.

  141. iain taylor (not that one)
    Ignored
    says:

    Good choice of photo.

    Detroit shows us the way ahead.

    Better Together.

  142. Another Union Dividend
    Ignored
    says:

    Here is the BBC news where you live. No mention of the study by Sheffield Hallam University or of the new one of the most comprehensive and inspiring analysis produced on Scotland’s economy, the “Scotland Means Business” reports published today are commissioned by N56, a new business and economics policy think tank. N56 is the geographic latitude on which Scotland sits and these reports highlight Scotland’s economic strength on an international scale. (See Business for Scotland web site)

    BBC Scotland headlined with story on Muslim youth from Aberdeen radicalised but no mention that he moved to Leicester for two years before going out to Syria.

    Much prominence given to BMA saying NHS has been on a five year car crash although did mention the much better situation in Scotland.

    Rounded up piece on Bannockburn, with Unionist historian claiming Bannockburn paved the way for the Union.

    This Unionist view to feature on Morning Call
    Call 0500 92 95 00. Text 80295.
    Email morningcallscotland@bbc.co.uk

    Might like to point out the background to the Treaty of Union and England’s attitude to an independent Scotland..

    The Scottish Act of Security of 1703-4 allowed for the Scottish Parliament to choose a different monarch to succeed to the Scottish crown from that of England, if it so wished. This meant that the Act allowed for the Scottish Parliament to initiate an independent foreign policy during an era of major European warfare, the War of the Spanish Succession.

    The English response, the Alien Act of 1705, threatened that all Scottish Estates held in England by non-residents were to be considered as alien property in law unless the Scottish Parliament had entered into treaty negotiations by Christmas Day 1705.

    In addition, an embargo was to be placed on major Scottish products being imported into England. This was at a time when it is estimated that almost 50% of Scottish exports, mainly linen and black cattle, were destined for English markets.

  143. Croompenstein
    Ignored
    says:

    Scots Wha Hae it’s Bannockburn 700 noo’s the day and noo’s the hour to return to sovereignty and end the union to become a full and equal partner state in the British Isles. 🙂

  144. Caroline Corfield
    Ignored
    says:

    Al Jazeera was set up with help from the BBC originally

  145. Dorothy Devine
    Ignored
    says:

    looks as though the entire media has been told to indulge in confidence bashing no matter how ridiculous or unreasonable.

    I do hope they know just who it is they are making look ridiculous ad unreasonable or are they not that self aware?

    Perhaps they could take a wee peek at circulation figures and viewing figures.

    AlJazeera has some sort of tie up with the USofA .If I am correct then I would also be correct in stating a load of their journalists voted with their feet and left in protest.Ah! Integrity eh?

  146. Macart
    Ignored
    says:

    Yeah, Labour who have had the run of the Scottish electorate for decades apparently have had nothing whatsoever to do with the current levels of poverty and deprivation enjoyed by so many.

    A big boy did it and ran away.

    Reconnect with the people? Discuss real issues? Have a f***king dialogue?

    Perhaps when they own up to their own culpability and apologise unreservedly to the electorate.

  147. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    According to recent YouGov, just 11% of Labour voters think Miliband is a strong leader, and 51% say he is weak. Only 16% think he is “an asset” for his party; 43% believe he is “a liability”. A mere 14% think he “looks and sounds like a prime minister”, while 70% disagree. Just 21% think he is “up to the job”, while 60% do not.

    Asked who has been the best Labour leader, only 2% name Miliband, half as many as for Neil Kinnock, the loser of the 1992 election, and just one percentage point ahead of Michael Foot, who was beaten by a landslide in 1983.

    The complaint that lingers, though, is that Miliband cannot explain his ideas to voters in language they understand. Just one in four voters thinks he is “in touch with ordinary people”, while 56% say he is “out of touch”.

    John Denham, Miliband’s former parliamentary aide, has privately said that workingclass voters “don’t believe they are in any story that Labour is telling about the future of this country”. He told an event earlier this month: “If they’re not part of our story, I don’t know what the Labour party is for.”

    A Labour frontbencher said: “We communicate in a language most people neither speak nor understand. It is the language of the Westminster bubble. Ed is surrounded by people who have not lived ordinary lives but have lived in the Westminster bubble.”

    The critique also applies to Miliband, who worked as a researcher for Harriet Harman and special adviser to Gordon Brown before becoming an MP.

  148. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    The BBC/Scotland is turning into the biggest recruiting agency in the UK for young Muslims to join their fellow Muslims in Iraq and Syria.

    The BBC/Scotland tell you of ISIS websites site to visit for more information on how to join. They show you videos of UK Muslims that are already out in Iraq, encouraging their fellow Muslims to come on over, which the UK Government told them not to show.

    The BBC /Scotland will then run a story in a few weeks time of the sudden increase in young UK Muslims heading out to Iraq.

    I wonder where those young Muslims got their information from, it couldn’t be the BBC/Scotland by any chance, who beamed it into their homes on every news bulletin.

    I think this will backfire on BBC Scotland. They are trying to create the “safer in the UK” picture. But people watching and listening to BBC Scotland and who are an undecided voter, will probably say, no more wars in Iraq for me, I’ve had enough of wars, and turn their vote to a YES.

    Pathetic, disgusting BBC/Scotland.

  149. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    And the infighting begins over Labour’s last Westminster hurrah candidate selections in Edinburgh.

    http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/equalities-champion-slams-labour-party-shortlists-1-3454441

    That will mean even fewer of the payroll out campaigning with the Tories between now and September.

  150. Helena Brown
    Ignored
    says:

    @ Sinky, well we saw that here in Fife, my constituency has the most incompetent person in the shape of the much maligned Cara Hilton, any one heard anything more about her abuse problems?

  151. John H.
    Ignored
    says:

    @ Helena Brown
    What abuse problems Helena?

  152. Helena Brown
    Ignored
    says:

    Glad I am writing this here and not on the Guardian where all the right wing looneys live nowadays.
    Firstly we have a certain woman in the shape of Thatcher for our current level of Welfare, she put more people onto welfare than anyone else, well until Tory Mark 2 came along. I would take issue with Simon on that all the people of Craigmillar were good people but most were in work until that besom came along. If anyone taught people to live on welfare it was the Tories, but then watching them work on the NHS England you can see how well it all works. You make things bad, then you point out how bad it is. Then you abolish it. This morning it was the woman with the boob job who now gets a taxi paid for by the NHS (I think, I got to the point where I had given up on life) to take her child to school?
    Thank you Nana, for the article on Miliband,you won’t see that anywhere in the press.
    Labour are a bunch of useless tossers but they are the Establishment useless tossers and so must be protected. but because of that how do you tell those who never read anything but the Daily Record and that from the back page.

  153. Helena Brown
    Ignored
    says:

    The abuse she was getting, John remember all the fuss about her kids being abused online. Not heard a word since. She never went to the Police as far as know.

  154. K1
    Ignored
    says:

    I think Helena is referring to this John H.:

    http://wingsoverscotland.com/cybernats-and-phantoms/

  155. Debbiethebruce
    Ignored
    says:

    @les wilson

    Join the BBC protest on sunday,2pm I think,and tell them what you think of them(maybe on a banner?)

    They are not fit for purpose quite honestly,totally biased,failing to follow up news stories that matter(such as the protest in London),they should go after a YES vote.The lot of them!

  156. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    Herald reports that the taxpayer is having to bail out the Stirling Armed Forces Day farce by £160,000.

    Don’t see why the Scottish government should have paid £80,000 of this for a politically motivated event which sought to undermine the previously arranged and government supported Bannockburn event.

    The Stirling Tory and Labour councillors who secretly begged David Cameron to hold the Armed Forces Jamboree should be surcharged for the shortfall.

  157. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    “Man gets stuck inside a statue of a vagina in Germany”

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/27971248

    I’m sure there’s an Ed Milliband joke in this story somewhere.

  158. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Debbiethebruce says:

    “They are not fit for purpose quite honestly,totally biased,failing to follow up news stories that matter(such as the protest in London),they should go after a YES vote. The lot of them”

    The way the BBC is reporting in Scotland and especially the missed pro Independence news is totally beyond any understanding. But we know why. This is why the SG approach to devolve the BBC to Scotland was refused by Westminster. They knew a lot of untruths would be exposed to the masses.

  159. John H.
    Ignored
    says:

    Thanks Helena and K1.I had forgotten about that nonsense.I think I’m suffering from referendum fatigue and information overload. (Wee sad face)

  160. Jim Marshall
    Ignored
    says:

    Labour have a record of leaders who were unelectable. Gaitskell,Foot,Kinnock and now Miliband. They are no threat to Tory/Ukip no matter that they adopt right wing policies to suit middle England. Independence is the way for Scotland.

  161. Another Union Dividend
    Ignored
    says:

    Sunday Times had a couple of articles on Miliband losing the plot but don’t expect to hear about it on BBC Scotland.

    http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/Politics/article1425467.ece?CMP=OTH-gnws-standard-2014_06_21

  162. No no no...yes
    Ignored
    says:

    @caz-m 9.30am

    Found this Ed Miliband link
    http://awkwardedmilibandmoments.tumblr.com

  163. Sinky
    Ignored
    says:

    no no no Yes

    Do you have a link to Miliband holding up copy of the Sun proclaiming “This is England”?

    We should hold this up to welcome Miliband to Scotland later this week.

  164. Robert Peffers
    Ignored
    says:

    Had a wee shake of my head at the TV slot showing reporters with taped up mouths making their protest at the sentences passed upon the jailed Al Jazera foreign reporters.

    As the Scottish media have had their mouths taped up for decades – how did they manage to register their protest?

  165. No no no...yes
    Ignored
    says:

    @Sinky 9.48am

    When you type in Ed Miliband sun photo to Google images, there are heaps of photos. Thought this one gets the point across about a vote for labour, especially in Scotland:

    http://pbs.twimg.com/media/BqA_M5qCIAAirVS.jpg

  166. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    No no no…yes 9.42am

    That’s an awful lot of Ed Milliband pics.

  167. Cath
    Ignored
    says:

    “He is the Establishment’s biggest critic, yet he is staunchly against him or Scotland being free from it.”

    Yep, been thinking something about GG really doesn’t ring true at all. He is definitely a UK establishment mouthpiece. Whether he’s an agent or just a useful idiot, who knows or cares?

  168. galamcennalath
    Ignored
    says:

    George Galloway called Nicola Sturgeon ‘Thatcher in a kilt’. Evidence, if it were needed, that he hasn’t got a clue what’s going on around him.

  169. caz-m
    Ignored
    says:

    galamcennalath
    George Galloway called Nicola Sturgeon ‘Thatcher in a kilt’

    Surely you mean “Agent George Galloway” of MI5/6.

    I would watch what I tell wee George from now on, it’s all getting recorded.

  170. No no no...Yes
    Ignored
    says:

    caz-m @10:08

    Interesting article, especially this bit, “Mr Alexander accused Mr Balls of plotting the U-turn while he was on a trip to America.”

    What was wee Dougie doing in America, here’s a clue: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British-American_Project

    A couple of select quotes:

    “..network as committed to “grooming leaders” while promoting “the leading global role that [the US and Britain] continue to play”

    ”’The UK nominees are interviewed and tested: there are competitive debates, management games and personal presentations”

    So wee Dougie ‘s mission is to pander to the US, that explains his gushing admiration for the president’s comment about the Union.

    Members include Jeremy Paxman, James Naughtie and Lord Robertson. What a team!

  171. desimond
    Ignored
    says:

    Where’s Margaret Curran to tell us all how Labour are working so hard to protect the vulnerable?

  172. No no no...Yes
    Ignored
    says:

    @desimond 10:51 am

    Big Mags Curran is still recovering from getting a hard time from Gordon Brewer on Sunday Politics.

  173. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    All tv channels carrying the Queens visit to Belfast today, as usual the Union jack in high prominence as it is everywhere to the point of pain.

    Of course every event is covered in the flag, maybe just people, particularly a large amount Scots are getting totally fed up with it.
    We have the astonishing anniversary of World war 1, who ever celebrates the start of a War is beyond my understanding. The end, certainly, but not the beginning.

    Then we have the outrageous “Forces Day” organised by Stirling labour coalition on that Council. Shameful, when it is designed to wreck the anniversary of Bannockburn.

    There is no depth to where the Unionist conspiracy against Scottish Democracy will not sink.
    We need to stay focused and we need to win, that is our answer to all of this utter crap.

  174. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    Anyone notice when Current was interviewed by Brewer that she
    is,well, starting to look like Jackie Bailey?

    Just saying!!

  175. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    @Les Wilson

    Exactly my thought who celebrates the start of any wars. No one. All done this year to deflect from the Independence debate and to keep UK patriotism at a high as we go to Sept 18th.

  176. Colin
    Ignored
    says:

    Just got my wee booklet from the kind and caring tory gov.
    I was rather surprised at how tame it is, all lies and rhetoric that has been debunked a hundred times over.

    Stuart will have fun with it no doubt 😉
    Now what was the bitter together freepost address again?

  177. heedtracker
    Ignored
    says:

    Carpet baggers and hucksters like Galloway and the BBC in Scotland, or this?

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsiVjvN5I74#t=40

  178. TheItalianJob
    Ignored
    says:

    Oh and doesn’t the Queen come upto Rosyth in July to name the 2 aircraft carrier.

  179. alexicon
    Ignored
    says:

    George Galloway called Nicola Sturgeon ‘Thatcher in a kilt’. Evidence, if it were needed, that he hasn’t got a clue what’s going on around him.

    A bit rich coming from a ("Quizmaster" - Ed) in a cat suit.

  180. Chic McGregor
    Ignored
    says:

    @Les Wilson
    “Early morning BBC Scotland,
    A Prof from Strathclyde University explains to us that Bannockburn actually helped in forming the Union.!”

    Aye and Wallace was a unionist as well. You have to worry for their inner well-being.

    Just attended a debate for schools here in Kirrie, and Jenny Marra, amongst a load of the usual unionist nonsense, told the kids, without even a hint of blushing, that the best way to get rid of Trident was to vote No.

  181. Luigi
    Ignored
    says:

    A Prof from Strathclyde University explains to us that Bannockburn actually helped in forming the Union.!”

    Apparently, the victory enabled scotland to stay free and join the union, centuries later, as equals (ahemm), unlike those resentful Irish, who were actually conquered and forced into the UK.

    So, there you have it – Bannockburn was a great victory for the union.

  182. Les Wilson
    Ignored
    says:

    Luigi says:

    Hi, The reason that this Prof was wrong was that Bannockburn resulted in our Country being free. If we had been defeated it is unknown but unlikely we would ever have been free.

    Therefore there would have been no need for a Union at all, as we would have been, exactly what the English wanted, a Northern Shire of an enlarged England, and that would have been even worse for us.

    The Union itself came about with collapse of the Darrien Scheme, which was aided and abetted by who? England.
    They threatened us and banned cross border trade, or at least threatened to.

    Allowing only the bought elites to vote, and not the rest of the Scottish people caused mayhem on the streets.
    Yet, we were sold because some wealthy people lost money.
    So, they lost money, and sold a Nation.

    The Union came about by subversion, cheating, and bribery.
    These were the real cause of us being conned into the Union.
    The Prof is right only in the fact that there was a country called Scotland to deal with, or we would have been an English shire.

    However, the full explanation is the relevant one.

  183. gerry parker
    Ignored
    says:

    @
    Colin.
    Better Together
    ?FREEPOST RTAU-ZCRB-TELS?5
    Blythswood Square?
    Glasgow?G2 4AD

    I keep it handy for sending my own copy back, but I haven’t got mine yet.

  184. gerry parker
    Ignored
    says:

    Sorry about the formatting, ignore the ? marks.

  185. bald eagle
    Ignored
    says:

    jackie bailey is mags current in drag

  186. Footsoldier
    Ignored
    says:

    The truth is there are only a few proper journalists left in Scotland. What we mostly have are word presenters who simply rehash what others have said and more often than not, to a specific agenda.

    An example, probably the worst example, is the Scottish Daily Mail and articles by Alan Roden. That he and his employers truly hate Alex Salmond, the SNP and Yes campaign is readily understood; it’s a free world. Unfortunately this hatred blinds them by concealing facts that don’t fit in or twisting facts to benefit their stance.

    I did reluctantly buy the SDM previously as my wife liked the crosswords etc but enough is enough and it’s goodbye to them because of their distortions and deviousness. A newspaper that espouses a No vote I can live with providing there is balance. Voting No is a respectable viewpoint as is voting Yes.

    Scottish newspaper sales are declining because of online alternatives. I believe the Scottish newspaper industry is hastening its demise with the unbalanced reporting of the referendum. I for one, always an avid reader of newspapers, increasingly look to the internet for the truth where I can find a variety of sources for information and make my own judgement. No longer do I trust what newspapers say.



Comment - please read this page for comment rules. HTML tags like <i> and <b> are permitted. Use paragraph breaks in long comments. DO NOT SIGN YOUR COMMENTS, either with a name or a slogan. If your comment does not appear immediately, DO NOT REPOST IT. Ignore these rules and I WILL KILL YOU WITH HAMMERS.




↑ Top