We’ve been quiet today because we’ve been wading through the 80-odd painfully-dry pages of the Labour 2015 election manifesto, folks. It’s a deeply tedious read – screeds and screeds of waffly text about how nice things are nice and good things are good but bad things are bad. A couple of things did jump out, though. Here’s one.
Alert readers will of course recall that the party’s solemn pledge in Scotland is to provide 1000 more nurses (hastily revised from the comical “1000 more than whatever the SNP say”) from the proceeds of the Mansion Tax, even though NHS Scotland is devolved and no Westminster government can in fact hire a single Scottish nurse.
But hang on. Something’s not right about those numbers.
A super-alert reader pointed out something about today’s Sunday Politics that we hadn’t noticed. Before the galaxy-class trainwreck that was the Scottish leaders’ debate, the networked section of the show had a piece on Scottish polling, and our eagle-eyed viewer spotted that the chart of projected seats wasn’t in proportion.
So we measured, and this is what it should have looked like.
With there only having been three hours of the Scottish political party leaders (and Jim Murphy) debating on TV so far this week, and four days to wait for another one, BBC Scotland thought they might need another 40 minutes on this afternoon’s Sunday Politics Scotland to discuss the issues around the forthcoming general election.
It went well, but for busy readers in a hurry we’ve edited the show down to a compact nine-minute cut, which still gets across everything the full version did.
A great example of adult discourse, expertly set. Well done, everyone.
There’s very little actual political news today, so the papers have largely been forced to either basically not have any at all (the Sunday Post and Scottish Sun On Sunday) or make up totally mad stuff for laughs to fill the space.
Ladies and gentlemen, the Scottish Liberal Democrat manifesto 2015:
I voted for this pathetic shower of useless snivellers for 23 years, folks. I’ve learned my lesson. Once again, I can only hang my head and beg forgiveness.
With the “biggest party forms the government” lie now sunk and rusting slowly on the seabed (weighed down even further by polls suggesting that Labour actually will be the largest party even if they lose all of Scotland to the SNP), and four weeks of campaigning left to fill, Scottish Labour have had to grab a hammer, smash the glass on the “EMERGENCY – IN CASE OF DESPERATION” box and clutch desperately at whatever they found inside.
The abject answer is “Project Fear 2 – This Time It’s Full Fiscal Autonomy”.
After this week’s STV and BBC debates, in which the Scottish Labour branch-office manager’s combative performances were favourably received by the Scottish media, Wings exclusively interviews armed-forces enthusiast Jim Murphy for a response to the latest numbers from YouGov, pausing first for the delivery of some refreshments.
It’s worth reminding yourself before you watch this clip from BBC News this morning that the gentleman at the lectern isn’t some rabid Daily Mail columnist, but is in fact the Secretary of State for Defence, Michael Fallon.
The “SPACE MONSTERS!” rationale for foreign policy. Who saw that one coming?
Aidan on Anatomy Of A Grift: “I doubt it, they’ll probably make you drink “James’” bath water.” Aug 15, 15:12
Northcode on Believers In The Ruins: “Here’s another observation following on from my last comment that folk might find interesting… or not. A resonance-chamber collapse is…” Aug 15, 12:12
Captain Caveman on Anatomy Of A Grift: “@Northy Well, if the “chamber has collapsed” as you put it, maybe look to your own personal culpability in that,…” Aug 15, 12:10
Confused on Believers In The Ruins: “question on all our lips : did black einstein FAKE his own death? – he faked everything else … NB…” Aug 15, 11:56
Captain Caveman on Anatomy Of A Grift: ““That’s it, off to the gulag for you CC, reckon you’ll get 5 years hard labour” Ooh, well, I’m quaking…” Aug 15, 11:54
robertkknight on Believers In The Ruins: “Much wringing of hands shall follow. Any death by suicide is tragic – to feel that you’ve no option other…” Aug 15, 11:29
Northcode on Anatomy Of A Grift: “This comment trail is mildly interesting in terms of online space behavioural patterns. Here’s my analysis. Dan’s reply: the mature…” Aug 15, 11:13
Hatey McHateface on Believers In The Ruins: “Aye, Sam, hundreds of thousands of foreign tourists prop up Scotland’s economy every year as they flock to visit our…” Aug 15, 11:03
Hatey McHateface on Believers In The Ruins: “The new Floyd? £20 says that’s where this will go next.” Aug 15, 10:37
Hatey McHateface on Believers In The Ruins: “FOFA as the yoof say. Spend years and every available billion in foreign aid on raining down rockets on the…” Aug 15, 10:33
Aidan on Anatomy Of A Grift: “That’s it, off to the gulag for you CC, reckon you’ll get 5 years hard labour for: – sewing discord…” Aug 15, 10:27
Captain Caveman on Anatomy Of A Grift: “Dan’s still grizzling into his coffee, I see. Good grief, it’s so pathetic.” Aug 15, 09:28
TURABDIN on Believers In The Ruins: “TRAGIC….but a guy «leader of the free west», even more delusional, dangerously delusional, occupies the White House in a veil…” Aug 15, 09:12
Aidan on Anatomy Of A Grift: ““It gets absolutely nowhere because the same obvious disingenuous disruptors just jump in and shite all over it. That’s mostly…” Aug 15, 09:01
Dan on Anatomy Of A Grift: “As Aidan states, the genderwoowoo is one of the most important issues in Scottish politics. I’ve never denied that and…” Aug 15, 08:33
Grace Green on Believers In The Ruins: “You have not read the whole report. The mother reported that on awaking she found the baby purple, and she…” Aug 15, 07:44
Young Lochinvar on Believers In The Ruins: “HMcH @ 2.11 Sorry, but that is as disingenuous an argument as it was when first put about by Unionists.…” Aug 15, 00:59
Oneliner on Believers In The Ruins: “At least 1 of the 56,675 was schooled in covert surveillance.” Aug 14, 23:26
aLurker on Believers In The Ruins: “@sam “Royal Commission on Scottish Affairs 1952-1954 Report.” https://openlibrary.org/books/OL21768224M/Royal_Commission_on_Scottish_Affairs_1952-1954_Report.” Aug 14, 21:56
Chas on Believers In The Ruins: “I will ask again Alf, who would you replace the dozen or so hapless SNP minosters with following Independence. Some…” Aug 14, 21:36
Confused on Believers In The Ruins: “every nite is bonfire night in the g4z4 strip; why oh why did those people build their houses within the…” Aug 14, 21:03
Confused on Believers In The Ruins: “main will one day have to admit to the undeniable logic of every ANGLO subhuman removed en-masse from the blessed…” Aug 14, 21:02
agentx on Believers In The Ruins: ““The former University of Cambridge professor at the centre of a plagiarism row has been found dead. Jason Arday was…” Aug 14, 20:57
sam on Believers In The Ruins: “It’s a reply to your post- “Aidan says: 14 August, 2026 at 11:09 am This was considered by the UN…” Aug 14, 20:53
sam on Believers In The Ruins: “Turabdin, Below you see the reply from Wee Johnny Main. It is a good example of coat trailing, which is…” Aug 14, 20:41
Southernbystander on Believers In The Ruins: “Totally inventing a scenario and then a reaction to it by the person you want to attack, then castigating him…” Aug 14, 20:32
sam on Believers In The Ruins: “I’m very pleased to find my posts annoy you even though that is not my intention, not least because I…” Aug 14, 20:27
sam on Believers In The Ruins: “Wee johnny Main, Your posts are also repetitively boring, always banging on about immigrants. Scotland has always had immigrants. “Using…” Aug 14, 20:23
