Countless thousands of words – indeed, even an entire book – have been written by commentators and pundits right across the political spectrum about the long demise of the Labour Party in Scotland.
It remains to be seen whether the coming election will deliver the coup de grace that pollsters are predicting. Meanwhile, though, readers searching for an explanation but short on free time could do a lot worse than sit through this interview with the Scottish branch office deputy manager, Kezia Dugdale, from today’s Sunday Politics Scotland.
The Sunday Times front page today reports (although in fact we can’t find the story anywhere on its website or in its iPad app) the 8,745th “intervention” by Gordon Brown in Scottish politics, the thing which is at least notionally still his actual day job.
We’re going to need someone to explain to us why even the punch-drunk inhabitants of Scottish Labour HQ could possibly imagine that to be a good idea.
A variant on the story below appears in most of the right-wing press today.
That’s the Daily Mail version, which is the most detailed. The Express’s reporting was similar. But in order to manufacture a grievance on behalf of UKIP and the Tories, every paper which covers the story is required to torture the data beyond all reason.
In the wake of the latest Ashcroft polls, the only line being deployed by Scottish Labour is that the projected outcome of an SNP landslide would be great news for the Conservatives and lead to David Cameron returning in triumph to Downing Street. One would presume, then, that the Tory press is delighted by the prospect.
So let’s check out some stories from today’s Daily Mail and Scottish Daily Mail.
We know we’ve made this point several times before. But can someone explain to us again how there’s no significant difference between the (broad, collective) political outlook of the respective peoples of Scotland and England? Because if there isn’t, doing this kind of thing just doesn’t make any sense at all.
“Scottish Labour” apparently launched its election “manifesto” somewhere in Scotland today. The “leader” of the fringe “party”, Jon Murnaghan or something, seemingly got a bit confused and made a number of pledges regarding devolved issues over which the Westminster government to be elected next month will have no control whatsoever, and would properly belong in a manifesto for the 2016 Scottish Parliament election.
Mr Morley or whatever his name is, who – assuming he wins his own seat – will be an insignificant backbench MP in the event of Ed Miliband’s Labour party winning the election, also said a bunch of other stuff about the SNP being “bad” because they refused to tell him what would be in their 2016 manifesto, further supporting the idea that the agitated branch official had lost track of what year it was.
Those are the words of David Cameron as he launched the Scottish Tories’ manifesto in front of a heavily-vetted invited audience in Glasgow yesterday. They make the pages of a couple of other papers, including the Guardian (which hides them even further down the page than the Sun does), but it’s only the Herald that picks up on their significance, leading its article with the unequivocal lines:
So, let’s just get this one straight, this morning’s English edition of The Sun – two parties with 316 seats are “stealing” an election from two parties with 309 seats?
Want us to walk you through that whole “counting” thing again?
Last night’s juxtaposition of somewhat contradictory front covers on the Herald and Scottish Daily Mail was modestly amusing, but nothing new. We pointed out weeks ago that papers on both the left and the right were – often on the same days – painting the SNP as hand-in-glove allies of either Labour or the Tories according to whatever suited their own agendas, and nothing’s changed in that respect.
But it’s interesting to take a look behind the headlines of the respective stories and see the degree to which the truth can be bent, exaggerated or in some cases simply made up from thin air.
Geri on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “Nae Need, I think the next generation won’t be as daft – especially given world events over food & energy…” Apr 1, 20:42
Nae Need! on Clocks And Calendars: “Geri, You do make me laugh. Lolz, I’m finding it quite funny being a cave dweller. Now, just for shits…” Apr 1, 20:37
Captain Caveman on Clocks And Calendars: ““I see yer drooling in anticipation..” Um, hardly. It’s not like you have credible information to back up your outrageous,…” Apr 1, 20:31
Nae Need! on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “I couldn’t agree more, Sarah. Of course its a false construct. It’s an absolutely, almost fantastical, ridiculous situation. But having…” Apr 1, 20:08
Nae Need! on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “Holyrood is helping no one, Alan. I think I’ve reached my tolerance limits. my patience limits . . . get…” Apr 1, 20:00
Young Lochinvar on Clocks And Calendars: “4 subs; of which 2 are write offs, 1 is undergoing major surgery while 1 (the very very rusty one)…” Apr 1, 19:55
robertkknight on Clocks And Calendars: “As “basket cases” go I recon the UK has the EU beat, and well beat. As for the the Scottish…” Apr 1, 19:48
Northcode on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: ““People must remember that Holyrood is a Colonial Administration… Scotland must gather 57 pro independence candidates, either party or standing…” Apr 1, 19:43
Nae Need! on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “Geri, I understand all that, but it’s no gonna happen 😉 Not in our life times.” Apr 1, 19:35
Geri on Clocks And Calendars: “Cave dweller, I see yer drooling in anticipation.. It’s delicious to watch.” Apr 1, 19:25
Geri on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “Nae need It is a simple fix but no one is willing to do it so far. Alex had a…” Apr 1, 19:11
Northcode on Clocks And Calendars: ““…the choice to vote Liberate is by definition illusory…” But the choice isn’t illusory; Scots are free to choose whichever…” Apr 1, 19:06
Nae Need! on Clocks And Calendars: “Geri, wtaf? You’ll be delighted to know, that having given up entirely on the realistic prospect of Scotland becoming a…” Apr 1, 19:00
Nae Need! on Clocks And Calendars: “Alf, I agonised over the EU ref. Cause of the fishing industry. Coming from a small fishing town in Scotland,…” Apr 1, 18:54
Nae Need! on Clocks And Calendars: “Fknell, that’s hilarious :-)) I’d go with the FES.” Apr 1, 18:48
Captain Caveman on Clocks And Calendars: “…. So no details on TEH ASSASINS of “independence supporters” then. Imagine my surprise pal.” Apr 1, 18:39
Alf Baird on Clocks And Calendars: ““vision of Scotland as a maritime nation” This should be uppermost in our minds, as maritime trade is fundamental to…” Apr 1, 18:38
Geri on Clocks And Calendars: “You worry about yer own mental wellbeing. What on earth would possess a Yoon to continually visit a Scottish independence…” Apr 1, 18:30
Alf Baird on Clocks And Calendars: “The UN approach is just as much for the benefit of Scots like you, Aidan, to help you and other…” Apr 1, 18:29
Aidan on Clocks And Calendars: “That’s good news Alf – so what are the UN currently doing with this information? When can we expect a…” Apr 1, 18:11
Nae Need! on Let’s Call The Whole Thing Off: “Sarah, thank you for replying to me. But you may not feel thankful for my response 😉 I’m gonna have…” Apr 1, 18:05
viscount ennui on Clocks And Calendars: “Much respect Alf Baird in terms of his aspirational vision of Scotland as a maritime nation. Not sure that the…” Apr 1, 18:01
Aidan on Clocks And Calendars: “I’m just feeding back to you the inevitable implication of your own statements, if you can’t stand by them then…” Apr 1, 18:01
Alf Baird on Clocks And Calendars: ““Scotland is an oppressed country with its people subjugated” Yes indeed, but thankfully this information has now been transmitted to…” Apr 1, 17:40
Jamie on Sicknote Slippers: “Aidan – To be clear, the SNP are not only irrelevant to independence, they are corrupted beyond repair due to…” Apr 1, 17:37
Northcode on Clocks And Calendars: ““…Liberate are just another English construct totally captured and serving the interests of the coloniser…” I cant’ decide whether you…” Apr 1, 17:26
Alf Baird on Clocks And Calendars: ““the SNP is undeniably dead” Yes, more or less, as the dominant national party elite co-opted by colonialism suffer from…” Apr 1, 17:24
Alf Baird on Clocks And Calendars: ““the new thinking has yet to be imagined” Not quite, some of us Scots and other oppressed peoples are already…” Apr 1, 17:19
viscount ennui on Clocks And Calendars: “I attempted to join the Flat Earth Society and the SNP today. Much easier getting into the SNP although both…” Apr 1, 17:18
TURABDIN on Clocks And Calendars: “It took the events of Easter 1916 to kickstart Irish politics which had fallen into the same doldrums as in…” Apr 1, 16:40
