Word reaches us, readers, that Nicola Sturgeon was “furious” when she joined the most recent meeting of the SNP’s Westminster group by Skype. Her rage was driven by the suggestion that the party should trigger a Holyrood election to act as a de facto independence referendum, a policy we’re reliably told is supported by a number of MPs who are too scared of being browbeaten by Sturgeon in front of their colleagues to actually speak out in favour of it.
(We won’t mention their names at this point.)
Our source mentioned to us that they seemed to remember an interview in which the First Minister had revealed a possible reason for her extreme antipathy to the idea – one for the BBC’s extensive and rather good three-part documentary “Yes/No – Inside The Indyref”, which was broadcast in August 2019 and never seen again.
It’s not available on iPlayer or YouTube, but fortunately we happened to still have the show recorded on our Sky+ box, so we went to check, and lo and behold our source’s recollection was correct. Apologies for the slightly wonky quality of this video, as we had to record it off the TV screen.
You can’t move on social media today without tripping over effusive tweets from SNP MPs and MSPs singing the praises of departed Westminster leader Ian Blackford and admiring all his achievements in the position over the last five years, although weirdly nobody has actually listed any of them.
Or possibly the other way round, we’re not sure. All we know is that we’re always surging upwards and forwards but somehow never actually getting anywhere.
If anyone knows when “this process” will have ended and we’ll get our choice – or indeed what she achieved for Scotland in the Brexit negotiations – do let us know.
It’s more than two years now since we published this article, but it’s worth quickly going over it again, because there’s nothing on Earth more tedious than boneheads on social media going “Oh, you slag off the SNP but what’s YOUR plan if you’re so clever?”, who haven’t bothered to read any of the dozen times we’ve already answered that question since 25 months ago.
This is it. This is our plan. Try listening this time, thickos.
The SNP have been all over the place since Wednesday’s judgement of the Supreme Court. Astonishingly, the party hadn’t prepared an agreed line in the event of the Court ruling against it, with the result that various party figures had popped up with all sorts of different versions of what a supposed plebiscite election would mean.
It’s nice to see the British media (and perhaps, if we might be allowed to dream for a moment, the law) catching up with Michelle Mone.
It’s such a shame nobody did any proper investigative journalism into what a crooked, venal chancer she is before now – seven years ago or even four years ago, say – or the country might have been saved a few billion quid. Ah well, you live and learn, eh?
Let’s get straight to the point: this is a straight-up categorical lie.
Since Wednesday’s events there’s been a lot of chatter and confusion on social media about whether the Scottish Government has the ability to trigger a snap Holyrood election and use it as a de facto plebiscite on independence.
The short answer, as we told you yesterday, is “officially no, in practice yes”. But that needs a bit of further explanation, so as usual let’s do the job of actual journalism that nobody else in Scotland can apparently be bothered to.
Hatey McHateface on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “An article about Homeless Project Scotland: https://unherd.com/2026/01/scotlands-rebel-homeless-shelter/” Jan 12, 09:45
Hatey McHateface on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““disna bather lairnin ony o his host fowk’s languages, neither Scots nor Gaelic” Whoops! Correction required. “disna bather lairnin ony…” Jan 12, 09:22
Hatey McHateface on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Great news, sarah. Personally, I can’t wait until it becomes legal to march through Scotland’s streets, chanting about “rivers” and…” Jan 12, 09:14
Cynicus on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““I might also take the opportunity to draw attention to a recent quality illustrated book investigating the Gaelic and Welsh…” Jan 12, 02:42
Cynicus on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““there’s an oven ready and legitimate Stuart pretender Franz, Duke of Bavaria” ========== Be careful! The Crown Prince, Francis of…” Jan 12, 02:18
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Northcode writes « Tho if a culture had the nature of a coloniser aboot it… then a wid hae nae…” Jan 12, 01:20
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Alf writes: « The point, which you appear to have missed, is that our friend wha comes here tae bide…” Jan 12, 00:59
Alf Baird on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““plummeting” The point, which you appear to have missed, is that our friend wha comes here tae bide notes he…” Jan 11, 23:49
Northcode on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““You’re plummeting, Alf.” Only in your eyes, Gael. And only because Professor Baird challenges your false narrative on the importance…” Jan 11, 22:43
Northcode on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Dinna be daft, Alf. Us Scots fowk be ane o the wrechit o the Earth… ye micht as weel expect…” Jan 11, 21:53
sarah on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “www.scotcourts.gov.uk/livestream/ – to watch tomorrow Monday 12th Jan from 09.30 the Court of Session case of Craig Murray applying for…” Jan 11, 21:50
Tinto Chiel on Off-topic: ““So where is Scotland’s Atom Bomb moment?” At this rate, any century now. The British Brainwashing Corporation and MSM generally…” Jan 11, 21:23
Alf Baird on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““I speak and read three forms of Arabic plus Syriac, French, English, some German, Spanish, Hebrew, Farsi and Turkish and…” Jan 11, 18:30
Nae Need! on Off-topic: “I’m going to add The Alienist to my watch list. Thank you for the recommendation 😉 IMNSHU Pluribus is excellent.…” Jan 11, 17:17
Tinto Chiel on Off-topic: “Hi, Nae Need! It barely does exist compared to the old days 🙂 . I only returned around Christmas to…” Jan 11, 17:00
Nae Need! on Off-topic: “Hello Off TOPICers, I didn’t know this place existed until today. Have any of you watched Pluribus? None of the…” Jan 11, 15:16
Northcode on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “A hiv makkit this short Sunday sermon… First: Ither fowks cultures are mild cuiriosities tae me tho a widnae dream…” Jan 11, 15:01
sam on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “See this? The genetic landscape of Scotland and the Isles https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1904761116” Jan 11, 14:33
Tinto Chiel on Off-topic: “Thought I’d cheer us all up with this uplifting song (before Trump does something really stupid): www.youtube.com/watch?v=TIoBrob3bjI” Jan 11, 14:22
Fearghas MacFhionnlaigh on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “TURABDIN. And my sincere apologies to you for the rather exasperated tone of my initial comment. (Though you will perhaps…” Jan 11, 14:20
Nae Need! on Failure To Learn: “That was one of my first thoughts too. My second thought being about the word ‘failure’. Failure presumes an attempt…” Jan 11, 13:45
Nae Need! on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Having had the time this morning to follow this discussion, I too am in agreement with Aidan and Hatey. Wonders…” Jan 11, 13:39
TURABDIN on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “@ FEARGHAS MAC FHIONNLAIGH, @ ALF BAIRD, @ ANDY ELLIS. COMING FROM AN ANCIENT CULTURE whose language, various iterations of…” Jan 11, 12:40
Andy Ellis on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “@Alf As it happens, this is the only applied theoretical framework explaining Scotland’s colonial condition and urgent need for decolonization:……” Jan 11, 11:59
James Cheyne on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “I agree that a lot of history is bunk, most is just tail spun yarns. The treaty of York 1237…” Jan 11, 11:08
James Cheyne on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “Indeed Henry 111 father Earl of Cambridge, according to DNA does not appear to be his father at all, Ceciley…” Jan 11, 10:47
Hatey McHateface on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: “@Andy Ellis There was more in my original post but it went to moderation. I was writing about the pictures…” Jan 11, 10:34
Alf Baird on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““develop his own coherent theories rooted in our own, unique, Scottish circumstances” As it happens, this is the only applied…” Jan 11, 10:31
Bilbo on Grandpa John’s Nightmare: ““Young women” may well speak for themselves but what they speak about is another thing. The actions of that nutter…” Jan 11, 10:23
