The choices we make
Posted on
March 23, 2013 by
Rev. Stuart Campbell
We suspect that for the vast majority of our readers, it’ll be quite hard to get to grips with the fact that the Scottish Daily Mail intends this headline as a criticism.
In 18 months’ time, Scots will have the chance to decide whether they’d rather spend their money on pay rises for public-sector workers or on tax cuts for the rich and bribes for them to buy second homes and inflate another housing bubble with. We must admit to being quite surprised that there’s a debate about it.
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Thanks Rev for reporting on the DM rants, save us the long decontamination process afterwards.
You must be a very brave man, daring to do such forays into a highly dangerous environment. Hope you use the appropiate protection gear.
Keep up the good work, as without it we will keep living in blessed ignorance of the top 1% intentions.
Well, yes … what do you expect. It’s all part of the “how very dare you!” narrative prevalent in the worst of the tabloids (and some supposedly “quality” papers) in the UK. As you say, do they REALLY intend this as a criticism of the SNP? Obviously they think their readers would appreciate this guff.
Roll on 18th September 2014. Time to be rid of this dysfunctional “union”.
I am confused, Ken Clarke article ‘the UK would be diminished and Scotland would be out there with Iceland & Ireland’
Is it not true that Iceland & Ireland are performing better than the UK?
This is the mail remember. People who receive public sector pay are worse than transsexual gypsy benefit tourists.
I suppose by the use of the word ‘staff’ in the headline, readers are supposed to infer that its SNP staff and therefore a doubly heinous crime.
As usual, it’s rubbish. Increments are not related to performance. They are part of a structure of pay and progression agreed to by the government in partnership with the unions.
Well, it’s been frozen pay and worse pensions enforced by Westminster the last few years. If the SG had tried to do anything else Danny Alexander said he’d penalise the SG financially.
The only thing I’ve heard the SG might do is do the same 1% rise as Westminster proposed for this year, but that is for the TOTAL WAGE BILL, so most will get nothing as I think they plan to use it to raise the wages of the lowest paid
You really have to wonder at the mindset of these people. They actually believe this crap. Makes you wonder how humanity survived never mind evolved. Apparently we have left some behind.
It’s typical of the contrary Scots, though. Whether it’s law, education, public sector pay…they’re always trying to create artificial distinctions between themselves and the rest of the English.
And they’re doing it DELIBERATELY.
Nothing artificial about it, Jiggsbro. It’s clear we have fundamental ideological differences with London that are frankly irreconcilable.
Putting blue water between the Scots and the social cancer of Neoliberalism is only to be encouraged in my opinion.
Laura, it’s kind of true. Iceland and Ireland have better growth figures than the UK (not difficult) but they are both trying to dig themselves out of a bigger hole, so it would be wrong to say they have it any better than us right now. Ireland have balanced their unpopular austerity measures with an increase in exports. The most significant thing Iceland has done in my opinion, is to jail bankers involved in criminal behaviour, and yet much of their current growth is being attributed to another housing bubble so who knows. At least John Swinney appears to have a responsible plan for recovery based around genuine productivity which is more than can be said for Osborne, who thinks the way out of a recession caused by loans in the housing market is… more loans :S
O/T Did I hear on radio 4 at lunchtime that NS wants to have 1 to 1 debate with Cameron ? (might of been AS)
So, modest payrises for the lowest paid, no rises for the better paid, thus reducing the income gap (albeit very modestly). Must be a bad thing, then?
I sometimes marvel at the logic of DM readers. It’s as if they wanted to get rid of all those scrounging public sector workers, such as nurses, police officers, teachers… While clamouring for more front-line staff! You really could not make it up. (Plus I’m sure the DM counts many public sector workers amongst its readers – apparently it’s just the other public sector workers that are a plague on the taxpayer…)
As to Ken Clarke’s comments about Ireland and Iceland… True, those countries have been through very tough times but their economies are reviving, aren’t they? Actually doing better than the UK economy?
Got it slightly wrong, it’s AS.
link to scotsman.com
Erchie Do you have linkes to Danny Alexander threatening the Scottish Government .
The story if my memory serves me right is that he threatened to withhold £100 million if the Scottish Government did not implement the changes to pensions .
The reason I am interested is because the E.I.S have held a strike ballot amongst their members and the E.I.S have stated that it is the Scottish Government that are introducing the pension changes .
I am sick fed up telling my wife that the Scottish Government were forced to introduce the changes or face a reduction in our pocket money .
Silvertay if the following is not what you require there are a few more I can only give one linkie at a time (Idiot me)
link to scotland.gov.uk
The same Ken Clarke who thinks 18th Century Scotland was merely a medieval kingdom?
link to youtube.com
I believe you are right Silvertay. I too remember Alexander threatening the Scottish Government that he’d withhold £100 million from them if they did NOT implement Westminster cuts! As we’d expect not a great deal was ever made about this threat by Alexander particularly by BBC and MSM as I recall.
@ Silverytay
Your memory serves you very well. The Scottish Government were put in a no win situation by Danny Alexander forcing his Government plans through. I have found this short piece, but will link to more if I can find them.
Can anyone else help out here as well – this is a very important matter that needs to be set straight quickly.
link to tes.co.uk
@ Silvertay
Telegraph article outlines (in Interview with DA) UK Gov. plans:
link to telegraph.co.uk
Don’t go by the headline on this one – its clearly misleading, however it shows how the UK Gov. wanted the money spent and the implication for public service pension holders:
link to telegraph.co.uk
Hope that these help.
Many Thanks To all who have replied . It is important that we get the message out to everybody that westminster is blackmailing the Scottish Government into implementing these changes against the wishes of the people affected by them .
Here’s one more
link to newsrt.co.uk
I can give Ken Clark some good news – I’m private sector and have been getting real-terms annual pay cuts for a good few years now, to go along with tax rises. Thank goodness we’re cutting spending elsewhere (presumably) to protect state employees from such a fate.
@silverytay
Even the Express reported it http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/271656/Alex-Salmond-in-pension-threat-row
Your wife is wrong to blame the Scottish Government, she should reserve her ire for Westminster. Do not forget that, if she works in the public sector, that Westminster wishes to pay her less u der a “regional pay” policy
Naebd
The public sector, apart from MPs have had pay freezes these last few years, so by getting any kind of pay rise, evn one lower than inflation, then you are doing better than me.
In fact, if I was in the private sector, not only would I be. Getting a higher salary, I would have had at least one real terms increase, as well as not being subje t to a sé by MOs and the media.
Most private/public sector average wage comparisons are so much bullshit by the way, because the public sector s mainly skilled staff, and the private average includes unskilled staff, so not like with like. If they did that properly, instead of comparhour teachers to zero-hours burger flippers it’d be more honest
@ Mark – thanks for that