The world's most-read Scottish politics website

Wings Over Scotland


Everyone’s a winner

Posted on July 19, 2013 by

Here’s a nice wee feelgood story to end the week, found by one of our covert field agents this afternoon. (Codename “Maw”.) Despite the extreme financial pressures on the British economy, the UK government has managed to stumble across a significant cash windfall – over half a billion pounds, in fact.

We’ll pass you over to the Fife edition of the Courier for the details.

courier

Other media coverage of the issue appears to have overlooked the lottery aspect entirely. Scottish charities’ share of the money the government has decided to hang onto would have been £44.3m. Have a nice evening, folks – we’re Better Together.

29 to “Everyone’s a winner”

  1. Ericmac says:

    Traditionally impoverished regions spend more per capita on the Lottery.  I have no doubt Scotland falls into this category.  As I have said before, it would actually be interesting to know what proportion returned to Scotland.  
    I bet it wouldn’t be pro rata either on population or spend. 
    The ‘short changing’ of Scotland is systemic in the British system.
     
     

    Reply
  2. Gordon Hay says:

    As well as the 12p/£ tax they also syphon off an unspecified slice of the 28p/£ “good causes” money for the Big Lottery Fund to allocate to public bodies, supplementing (i.e. replacing) public spending.

    Reply
  3. JLT says:

    Unbelievable!
    I think with each passing day, I become more estranged when I see the Union flag. I really feel nothing for the British State now.
    How can this nasty coalition just pocket all of that money, instead of just, say, dividing it up and handing a fair share to each hospital in the land. And these B******s want to give themselves a 6 grand pay rise this year too!
     
    Seriously, how …has it come to this?

    Reply
  4. velofello says:

    I’ve never bought a lottery ticket.

    Reply
  5. Jiggsbro says:

    And these B******s want to give themselves a 6 grand pay rise this year too!
     
    That’s unfair. None of them want to take the pay rise. They all deeply regret that the independent* body that decides these things is forcing the pay rise on them, but what can they do? They’re just going to have to put up with having more money. We all have to make sacrifices and this is theirs.
     
    *Further proof that independence is a disastrous error

    Reply
  6. ianbrotherhood says:

    According to Douglas Walker, this is what Susan Boyle ‘said’ :
     
     
    “We have still been able to retain our proud identity whilst being a part of Britain…
    I share many of the same concerns that other folk do with regards to independence…
    Economically, the costs of change will be vast and money that should be directed into important areas like hospitals, schools and the vulnerable in society will be swallowed by bureaucracy…Many people are struggling to make ends meet — how will they cope if prices escalate because of this change?…Welfare helps many of the most vulnerable in society. I don’t believe you should break what’s working…Then there’s the question of the military — what will become of the regiments?…Another concern is there is nothing in place with regards to the EU, plus there is the question of our currency…We should remain a part of Great Britain and instead of wasting money on this change, we should put it into the areas that need it the most.”
     
    (Walker’s interpolations have been removed, but the emphases retained.)
     
    How much of the above exists in whatever record Walker made during the interview?
     
    Has anyone seen a more comprehensive and lucid summary of the BT ‘position’ previously, even in BT-funded leaflets/Press Releases etc?
     
    We’re expected to believe that Susan Boyle said this off her own bat?
     
    Any real journalist worth his salt should be onto this like a terrier doing what only-he-can-do with a hearth-trapped rat.
     
    (Please, please, pretty-please…let it be Ian Bell on Sunday.)

    Reply
  7. Dee says:

    O/T Caught sight of JL at Glasgow Airport on Thurs afternoon. She was in front of me with her clan going thru security. Dont know where she was going to but she surely deserves a break after giving all those TV and newspaper interviews. (I was going to Turkey.) 

    Reply
  8. pmcrek says:

    Euromillions odds make the UK lottery look like the alamo, just saying.. 😉

    Reply
  9. ianbrotherhood says:

    Just realised I’ve posted (11.28) on wrong thread.
     
    Sorry.
     
    If anyone’s in Ayr town-centre tomorrow, the SSP are joining with No2BT (Bedroom Tax) to collect signatures and do some leafleting later – meet at Wallace Tower, High St, midday-ish. 
     
    You’ll probably hear us before you see us, but don’t be shy – come and talk to us. If nothing else, you can be assured that you won’t be given a sales-pitch and presented with forms asking for your bank details. (We’re not very good at that stuff, but we are good at reminding you why you should – especially now – give more than a flying fuck about ‘politics’.)

    Reply
  10. Ronnie says:

    I’ve been doing the UK lottery, one line, twice a week, since it started.
     
    I just stopped.

    Reply
  11. Linda's back says:

    Great article by Gerry Hassan in Hootsman to-day.
    link to scotsman.com
    Not such a good one by Alf young who is very silent about his involvement in Inverclyde.

    Reply
  12. Graeme McAllan says:

    Jiggsbro, it’s hard to feel sorry for millionaires not wanting that pay raise, but they’ll take it anyway 😉

    Reply
  13. Doug Daniel says:

    Off topic, but any nation that can produce a song as brilliant as Musette & Drums by Cocteau Twins is clearly capable of self-government. 

    Reply
  14. Roll_On_2014 says:

    This site is crap for putting URL links on.

    Reply
  15. JLT says:

    Jiggsbro
    But deep down, do they Jiggsbro? If it was added to their salary, are they going to hand it back, or will they verbally protest, but yet do nothing really.
    This is Westminster, the most corrupt building in the whole of Western Europe. I think a few folk here would agree, when it comes to this wage rise, that the Politicians say one thing, but deep down, will gladly take the wage rise.

    Reply
  16. Somebody says:

    The more I hear of pocket-lining UK governments ripping those in-need off, the more I don’t want to be part of said UK. Scotland deserves better.

    Reply
  17. john king says:

    jiggsboro says
    “That’s unfair. None of them want to take the pay rise. They all deeply regret that the independent* body that decides these things is forcing the pay rise on them, but what can they do? They’re just going to have to put up with having more money. We all have to make sacrifices and this is theirs.”
    your right jiggs, we all have our cross to bear, and some people crosses are bigger than others,
    the burden of lifting that huge payrise when inflicting the biggest reduction in benefits in the welfare states history must be giving them all the hives at picking up their paychecks 
     poor wee sowels maybe they could salve their consciences by giving their extra money (they dont need) to a foodbank for the people who like a (free good) eh? 

    Reply
  18. Atypical_Scot says:

    whoosh

    Reply
  19. Peter Mirtitsch says:

    They say they SAVED money allotted for the Olympics??? Remind us again HOW MUCH it was SUPPOSED to cost, and how much it DID cost???

    Reply
  20. Robyn - Quine fae Torry says:

    Does this affect the Euromillions tickets?  Can’t believe they kept all that money.  Greedy barstewards!  DOn’t do the National Lottery but play Euromillions when the jackpot goes into the hundred million plus range.  
     
     

    Reply
  21. pmcrek says:

    I would recommend Mark Thomas comedy product, series 2 episode called lottery. It shows exactly what the “charity” money is being spent on.

    Reply
    • Rev. Stuart Campbell says:

      “I would recommend Mark Thomas comedy product, series 2 episode called lottery. It shows exactly what the “charity” money is being spent on.”

      Tsk. We recommend stuff with links around here:

      link to youtube.com

      Reply
  22. Atypical_Scot says:

    Lottery tax receipts £7 billion. Has GERS missed Scotland’s £875,000.00 cut of this? Or will there be no Scottish lottery?

    Reply
  23. Stuart Black says:

    Gardham through the Looking Glass:
     
    link to heraldscotland.com

    Reply
  24. Stuart Black says:

    Perhaps it’s the heat.  😉

    Reply
  25. Braco says:

    Ianbrotherhood,
    good on you! Hope you have a good day and look forward to hearing how it went.

    Reply
  26. ian mor says:

    John Frum he come!
    Bring many gift for braves. Bring guns of Patriots  (him Solid Snake?) Speak with forked tongue to many tribes
    Seeum story on Bbc.co.uk – Better Together Target Scottish Tribes (in um politics section)
    Me no likeum. Me findum, punchem up bracket real good. Him no takeum piss. Anger great spirit!
     

    Reply
  27. handclapping says:

    No byeline but a good piece for the Courier, perhaps, despite the BTs and ACs, there is hope for journalism in Dundee.

    Reply
  28. Barontorc says:

    Now then Rev Stu, given that a wee chewkie like Lord Leigh can manipulate the Lottery commission to the amount of 7.3 million squids, would it be fanciful to think that there is the remotest possibility funding for the MSM and BT could thereby somehow find a willing donor who’s been the recipient of such public funds? Nobody, but nobody seems to give a monkey’s curse where the money goes.
     
    We’ve already had the experience of seeing ‘blood money’, as it a was labeled going into Darling’s coffers, who then said ‘feck-off’ I’m keeping it. Is this money laundering at a sophisticated level, or am I being over hasty? Full marks to Mark Thomas for digging away.
     
    Often wondered why the shareholders of the Scotsman and the Herald were not kicking-up a stushie as their share value and investment plummeted – is there some kind of payolla operating?

    Reply


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.


  • About

    Wings Over Scotland is a thing that exists.

    Stats: 6,790 Posts, 1,222,606 Comments

  • Recent Posts

  • Archives

  • Categories

  • Tags

  • Recent Comments

    • Xaracen on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@Stuart; “The Treaty was entered into without limitation of time and some articles express quite plainly that they were intended…Jul 24, 22:27
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “For general info, here is a link to PROF ROBERT BLACK KC’s presentation about the UNION: Professor Robert Black KC…Jul 24, 19:33
    • Stuart on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Xaracen. 2:14 How wrong can one man be? Well in your case very. Your argument (feeble though it is) re…Jul 24, 18:43
    • Northcode on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “When their buttons and switches and knobs – and they have many – are pushed or flicked or twiddled… they…Jul 24, 18:40
    • twathater on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@ Lorn you said “I believe implicitly, that those men who transgress the rules of normal, decent behaviour have a…Jul 24, 18:14
    • Dan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@ Lorn at 4:15 pm It’s definitely okay to blame the Scots for the prevailing Union, and jist ignore things…Jul 24, 18:02
    • Aidan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@Dan – I mean the cost per MwH quoted as £150, Hinckley Point see originally struck at c.£85. Yeah I…Jul 24, 17:59
    • twathater on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Oh there’s Bastard TAX MOAN back from his holidays in Is rahel, has he been updated on the plans to…Jul 24, 17:56
    • Dan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Chas spotting across the yooniverse…Jul 24, 17:33
    • Dan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Hmm… but when did pretty much anything built in the UK ever come in on proposed cost? HS2, a couple…Jul 24, 17:30
    • Mark Beggan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Hats off to that! Respect.Jul 24, 17:09
    • Mark Beggan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “It’s been a busy week for the Eton rifles. “What a catalyst you turned out to be. Crashed your van…Jul 24, 17:03
    • Mark Beggan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “The favourite rant from the Parasite Class; ” It’s good for the economy!” Who’s economy?Jul 24, 16:55
    • Chas on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Rather than the readers ‘chipping in’ Andy, you could gift him some of yours!Jul 24, 16:35
    • Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “LABOUR MP CALLS GENDER-CRITICS ‘SWIVEL-EYED FANATICS’ A Labour MP has revealed his contempt for those who believe in the reality…Jul 24, 16:32
    • Chas on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Alfie Boy can’t lose. Either we accept we are living in a colony. Or, if we don’t, it is proof…Jul 24, 16:22
    • Lorn on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “I think that it is less that we are colonized than that we have allowed ourselves to be treated as…Jul 24, 16:15
    • Chas on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “It’s competition time. Spot the Loony.Jul 24, 16:07
    • Lorn on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Young Lochinvar: no, decent men did not barge into female spaces in the past, and any who were indecent enough…Jul 24, 16:06
    • Stuart on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Name checking your own homework does not count Professor Baird. Your narrative (feeble though it is) is inaccurate and clutching…Jul 24, 16:06
    • Aidan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Who is “Scotland”, every single person in Scotland who has been polled on the subject, or a tiny bunch of…Jul 24, 14:49
    • James on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: ““Aidan”; “I think we’ve all just got to face up to that fact…” Who’s “we”?Jul 24, 14:32
    • James on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Good old “Aidan”, the true BritNat defender on every subject. Scotland doesn’t need (or want) nuclear, but hey, when did…Jul 24, 14:15
    • Xaracen on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “@Stuart; We are talking of a union of two sovereign kingdoms, neither of which in 1706 owed any obeisance to…Jul 24, 14:14
    • James on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Can you elucidate what these “fish” might be? England has been meddling in Scotland’s affairs for nigh on 1,000 years…Jul 24, 14:01
    • Rob on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “The simple fact is that Scottish politicians have shown over the last 10 years that they are simply so incompetent…Jul 24, 13:54
    • James on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Willie; Witness; your point is made.Jul 24, 13:48
    • Aidan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “It’s a case against nuclear power, I don’t know where she got the numbers from re costs, they seem around…Jul 24, 13:08
    • sarah on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Further to my comment at 11.18 a.m., coincidentally Gareth Wardell, Grouse Beater, has retweeted today the speech that he would…Jul 24, 12:59
    • Mark Beggan on Everybody’s Normal Nowadays: “Put your colonial feet up on the colonial stool. Make some colonial tea and have some Corbyn and Sultana cake.Jul 24, 12:40
  • A tall tale



↑ Top