The party is now primarily a vehicle for processing cash and funnelling it to carefully selected and ideologically vetted activists, mostly from the fundamentalist youth wing, who are given well-paid jobs working for MPs and MSPs or parachuted into council seats in return for their unquestioning loyalty to Nicola Sturgeon.
And at this, it must be admitted, the SNP is still a highly effective operation. Which is fortunate, because without UK government money it would be bankrupt.
Above are the Electoral Commission’s donation figures for the third quarter of 2022. They note that 100% of the SNP’s reportable income for that period came from the UK government’s coffers – a trait shared with Plaid Cymru, the SDLP and the DUP.
Given that three of those four parties are nationalists committed to removing various constituent parts of the UK, one might almost be tempted to commend Westminster’s generosity. But perhaps it knows exactly what it’s doing.
We imagine people may wish to read the Alba Party manifesto.
It can be downloaded by clicking the link above. Had we formed our own party it’s pretty much the manifesto we’d have written, and we especially endorse the gorgeous pooch on the front.
We suspect he’ll surprise everyone and the information WILL be released, because according to analysis by Craig Murray it’s actually completely useless, and the Scottish Government has undeniably been red-hot when it comes to deluging the committee with vast screeds of junk documentation it hasn’t asked for and doesn’t want.
By coincidence, that same Craig Murray will go on trial in Edinburgh tomorrow for his liberty, for the crime of allegedly telling readers of his blog the truth about the shameful failed conspiracy to imprison Alex Salmond for crimes he didn’t commit – a conspiracy, remarkably, for which nobody has yet been held to account in any way despite the most obvious of grounds for suspicion of perjury, and which the Scottish Government is still frenziedly trying to conceal.
Speaking of liars, we thought it was probably time to update the list below.
There’s been a lot of talk in the last couple of weeks about the SNP NEC, the rather secretive body that controls the operation of the party (and therefore also in effect the Scottish Government).
Extraordinarily, even if you’re a party member there’s no way to access a full list of the 42-member committee – something which for pretty obvious reasons of basic political transparency and accountability ought to be recorded prominently on the SNP website, let alone available to rank-and-file members.
(Ordinary party members aren’t even permitted to see the minutes of NEC meetings, which are restricted to NEC members.)
In the light of several news stories today, we thought it’d be useful to keep a record of which organisations and individuals had now publicly expressed strong reservations or outright opposition to the Scottish Government’s alarming and deeply illiberal proposed new Hate Crime Bill, and which had expressed support.
We had an interesting exchange with Scottish Labour MP Paul Sweeney this week on the deathless lie that is the “fiscal transfer” – the £10bn or so that Unionists rather startlingly insist the rest of the UK generously donates to Scotland every year out of the goodness of its heart, just for the pleasure of our company.
As you can see, the debate was of a high intellectual standard.
It’s probably overdue that we start collecting these together. So here’s Sir John Major on the Andrew Marr show yesterday, explaining why a “once in a lifetime” referendum should in fact be held again because its outcome was determined by something that turned out to be untrue.
Which is, of course, totally different to Scotland being told to vote No in 2014 in order to stay in the European Union, because [REASONS TO FOLLOW AT SOME POINT]
DaveL on A Stitch In Timing: “I was put in mind of ex Lord Advocate James Wolfe and his malicious prosecutions concerning the football people too.…” Feb 6, 03:38
Cynicus on The Marshalling Plan: “‘On 16 March John Swinney will give a keynote address followed by a panel with Kate Forbes and “networking with…” Feb 6, 01:42
Cynicus on A Stitch In Timing: “barelybare says: 5 February, 2026 at 10:24 pm “Is Gordon Dangerfield still the solicitor?” =========== “I would like to offer…” Feb 6, 01:24
willie on A Stitch In Timing: “Sold a bummer by the judiciary it seems. Or was it more the case that the assurance that Section 170…” Feb 6, 00:24
barelybare on A Stitch In Timing: “I am having trouble understanding how Section 170’s imprisonment condition could cause Mark Hirst’s action to be thrown put, but…” Feb 5, 23:56
Jay on A Stitch In Timing: “Re-read Rev. Stu’s article. Think i have the answer.” Feb 5, 22:54
Jay on A Stitch In Timing: “Is ‘The.Ciminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995’ legislation prepared and passed by the Parliament in Westminster? Which Parliament can enact amendments…” Feb 5, 22:31
barelybare on A Stitch In Timing: “Is Gordon Dangerfield still the solicitor? This blog post https://gordondangerfield.com/2022/02/27/mark-hirst-v-chief-constable-and-lord-advocate/ nearly 4 years old(!) suggests he felt assured that Section…” Feb 5, 22:24
GM on A Stitch In Timing: “I agree with with everything you wrote there Lorna. (Although It is just plain wrong that the legal process can…” Feb 5, 22:14
ALANM on A Stitch In Timing: “The treatment of Enoch Burke at the hands of the Irish State is evidence enough for me that Scotland had…” Feb 5, 21:22
Campbell Clansman on The Marshalling Plan: “THIS is the real SNP–shaking down people who want to do business in Scotland. At £750 per person: “The SNP’s…” Feb 5, 21:10
Campbell Clansman on A Stitch In Timing: “Mark Hirst HAS been punished. Not with imprisonment, but with the malicious prosecution itself, and the 4-year legal fight (undoubtedly…” Feb 5, 21:05
J Robertson on A Stitch In Timing: “Completely agree Lorna” Feb 5, 20:52
Young Lochinvar on A Stitch In Timing: “The Royalty, Scottish nobility, the Church of Scotland and the Scottish legal community; the main players in 1707 of ensuring…” Feb 5, 20:33
Lorna Campbell on A Stitch In Timing: “Dear Lord, will people stop trying to blame everything on England and take responsibility for what is happening in Scotland?…” Feb 5, 20:32
Hatey McHateface on A Stitch In Timing: ““It’s like someone committing a vile and vicious murder and then when found guilty the judge says there is nothing…” Feb 5, 20:28
J Robertson on A Stitch In Timing: “If it has taken in excess of 4 years to bring a case for malicious prosecution to court this is…” Feb 5, 20:16
PC Foster on The Marshalling Plan: “So heartening to see the EHRC intervene in the way that they have.” Feb 5, 19:34
Hatey McHateface on The Marshalling Plan: “Here’s one you can write on the side of a bus, BB: “Just 3 months left to save our NHS”…” Feb 5, 19:08
Hatey McHateface on The Marshalling Plan: “Ah, c’moan noo, Fearghas. Take away his antisemitism and what’s he left with? Just rabid anti-Englishness, enthusiasm for gas chambers,…” Feb 5, 19:02
Willie on A Stitch In Timing: “The decision shows you vicious, malicious politically motivated prosecution can be mounted against selected individual and thereafter, when the prosecution…” Feb 5, 18:53
Disgruntled of Dumbarton on A Stitch In Timing: “I thought the HRA meant judges could turn the law as written on its head if it breached someone’s human…” Feb 5, 18:04
Tartan Tory on The Marshalling Plan: “Yes Iain, I will be voting for an English Nazi party. I’ve spoiled all my votes for almost the past…” Feb 5, 17:50
Cantankerous Skank on The Marshalling Plan: “That comment about (do do do the funky) Given being given a place on a law course with bad grades…” Feb 5, 17:37
Sven on A Stitch In Timing: “John Burns @ 16.42. Obviously inspired by their succes with the Fur Farming prohibition Act of 2002, our devolved administration…” Feb 5, 17:06
John Burns on A Stitch In Timing: “Only the SNP could bring a bill before the Scottish Parliament to ban something that doesn’t exist in Scotland (…” Feb 5, 16:52
Andy Wiltshire on A Stitch In Timing: “I’m almost tired of being tired of being outraged. It really seems that there is nothing that can actually be…” Feb 5, 16:38
100%Yes on A Stitch In Timing: “It make you wonder if the incompetence of justice system in Scotland isn’t being done by design, in order to…” Feb 5, 16:28
Jesus H. Cunt on A Stitch In Timing: “Scots law, along with Scottish institutions and Scottish democracy, is being deliberately and systematically undermined and discredited in plain sight…” Feb 5, 16:28
