The last tickings of the clock
We almost missed something today because it was hidden behind a bad headline.
One way or another, the current hell of Scottish politics will soon be at an end.
We gave up quite a few weeks ago on any hope of the Fabiani inquiry at Holyrood producing any sort of meaningful results. Partly because it’s been systematically and methodically prevented by the Scottish Government from seeing almost any of the key evidence, but also partly because it’s been, we suspect, hamstrung by the cowardice of committee member Andy Wightman.
Wightman is effectively the casting vote on a nine-person committee comprising four Unionist MSPs who – doubtless with their own motivations – have been trying to get to the bottom of things, and four SNP MSPs who (despite the occasional complaint about obstruction for the sake of appearances from Fabiani as convener) have we’re told unfailingly acted in loyalty to Nicola Sturgeon.
The repeated failure of the committee to either take any meaningful action in terms of securing evidence (such as using its Section 23 powers to obtain communications between Peter Murrell and Sue Ruddick), or to register its dissatisfaction in any way that would resonate with the public (such as their threatened vote of no confidence in John Swinney for repeatedly defying Parliament by not releasing the legal advice, which came to nothing) can only credibly be laid at the door of Wightman.
The formerly Green, now independent, MSP has a track record of bottling difficult decisions, as he tearfully admitted to Holyrood magazine a few weeks ago.
We should declare an interest at this point. Wings has very little time for Wightman, although he’s widely (and quite rightly) lauded for his work on land reform. It’s easy to advocate worthy causes in Parliament, especially as an opposition MSP with no real power or responsibility for anything. The character of politicians is revealed in the tough moments where something actually matters, and Wightman has repeatedly been tested and found wanting in that arena.
He’s also a colossal hypocrite. Earlier this week he threatened his former leader (sorry, co-convener) Patrick Harvie with legal action over some disgraceful comments Harvie had made on ITV’s Representing Borders which – in the most snivelling way possible – implied Wightman was a transphobe.
ITV caved almost immediately and pulled both the tweeted clip and the whole interview section from the broadcast show. (You can still see what Harvie said here.)
But when this site sued then-Labour leader Kezia Dugdale over a very similar smear (in fact a much more clear-cut defamation, as both the original sheriff and three Court of Appeal judges agreed) in 2019, Wightman took Dugdale’s side and even demanded reforms to the law that would have made it impossible for him to threaten Harvie in the way he did this week.
But we digress. With no chance of anything of value coming from the Holyrood inquiry, any hopes of justice have rested on James Hamilton QC’s separate investigation into whether Nicola Sturgeon broke the Ministerial Code over the Salmond affair.
Because Hamilton’s inquiry isn’t public in the same sense that the Fabiani one is, it doesn’t publish the evidence on which it makes its decisions, so it isn’t constrained by the largely bogus restrictions and threats the Crown Office has made against evidence and witnesses in the Holyrood inquiry. Hamilton, for example, is in possession of the written submission of Geoff Aberdein, perhaps the most key witness of all.
On the basis of what facts are already known and accepted by all sides beyond any dispute – namely, among other things, that Nicola Sturgeon met with Aberdein to discuss the case on 29 March 2018, but repeatedly told Parliament that she knew nothing until a later meeting in April – it’s very difficult to see how Hamilton can credibly find other than that she lied to Parliament, a prima facie breach of the Ministerial Code which requires the perpetrator to tender their resignation.
This of course assumes that James Hamilton QC is an honest man. But we’re told by everyone with any professional knowledge of him that he is, and so at this stage we still retain some belief that justice will yet be done despite the massed efforts of the entire Scottish establishment to prevent it.
We cannot, on the basis of her behaviour so far, discount the possibility that even if Hamilton made such a finding, the First Minister would refuse to do the honourable thing. But surely even Andy Wightman and the Greens would summon the courage at that point to call a vote of no confidence to dismiss her.
As we’ve said previously, it’s our view that Nicola Sturgeon knows this, hence the SNP’s extraordinary actions of the past few days, which we believe are a scorched-earth attempt to secure her policy agenda by destroying or isolating dissident voices within the party. As Orwell said in his most famous novel:
But it’s a huge relief to know that we hopefully only have three more weeks to wait to find out, because either way we’ll finally know where we stand and all the stagnant, miserable uncertainty of the last 18 months will be over. Either Nicola Sturgeon will be victorious (and independence will be dead for a decade), or the truth will be.
She may well ‘tender’ her resignation with profound apologies for her ‘forgetfulness’ only for the unionist support on all sides to vote to keep her as FM.
That would seem to be the best way to nobble it. Justice will have been seen to be done, she will have ‘bravely’ expressed contrition, and opposition parties will have spared the rod.
Oh dear.
Not hopeful of any sort of truth from what I have viewed and read so far in the mainstream and what has been released. Nicola Sturgeon could be innocent or guilty, we will never really know as the Scottish Government and their establishment have made it virtually impossible for the public, who they are supposed to be answerable to, to be able to form any sort of informed opinion. The lack of interest by the unionist media says it all as well, what do they know and why are they not digging like they did with MPs expenses, it feels like they are all protecting each other so they can keep trying to fit up an innocent man and maintain the way they like things. I am also alarmed at the many in the yes community who say there is nothing to see move on, really, is the cult of Nicola that strong.
Holyrood Inquiries – my favorite was the Inquiry into whether early discharge from hospitals directly into Care Homes of Covid patients was, in fact, the cause of the high Covid mortality figures in Care Homes.
The Holyrood Inquiry found that there was no statistical evidence to prove that, one way or the other.
When it comes to cover-ups, Swinney and his lawyers are usually dependable.
He also tweeted support for those continuing to vilify AS even after his court verdict. This literally weeks after having won his own won court case (to which I donated). So the legal verdict was ok for him but not AS.
Repeat after me nicla:
I am a pheasant plucker, I’m a pheasant plucker’s son, I sit and pluck pheasants ’til the pheasant plucker comes!
You need to say it very fast and if you make a mistake you go to jail 😉
@Bruce Hosie – as the Rev says, the next couple of weeks will sort everything out. It will hve to be concluded somehow.
Personlly speaking, I see it as quite unlikely, but not impossible, that James Hamilton will have been got at by Swinney and his lawyers. But, we shall see.
Thought we could trust him
@Captain Yossarian,
The investigation into care home deaths were carried out by the Director General of IHI, Derek Feeney. He is a man of great reputation, so much so he was head hunted by IHI to be Director General based in America.
His report simply highlights the truth, that there is no statistical evidence to back up claims. There may be suspicions and theories, but no hard facts.
I of course assume all info was given to him, but I cannot answer for that as a fact.
Well imagine she hangs on and then either through AFI or ISP Alex decides to make a return. Improbable but still possible. What then?
His name and reputation for being the number one indy politico by a country mile will guarantee some seats on the list. Admittedly theMSM and the SNP plus the British state have done everything to smear him. So successful have they been that some of the gullible are willing to turn a blind eye to this corruption.
So Alex and some other real indy folk could be back there – and unlikely but possible again (if enough indy supporters actually understand the voting system) they could become the main opposition and wipe the Tories out of that role.
Now wouldn’t it be interesting seeing Alex at FMQs pushing Nic on independence? I doubt she would hang around for very long after that.
Not much wonder the SNP are going to town on their both votes SNP. Not much wonder the unionists aren’t exposing this. They want to keep their opposition seats.
Feminists this, feminists that!!!!!!!! Every fecking rebuttle of this shite by anyone?? How about people, mostly women who have a modicum of common sense?? Not headline enough for ye?
I am a feminist, who in their right mind wouldn’t be!
People need to revolt, women and men. Christ.
And stop misappropriating the word feminism as if we’re just trouble makers??!!
If Hamilton is honest……
I think this implies that the four SNP members of the investigation are dishonest or corrupt or too cowardly to seek the truth. As they appear to be letting murrell get away with it…..
History will remember them. And hopefully the voters in May if they don’t seek the truth without fear or favour.
Any word on SNP finances ?
Well this FOI request, link to gov.scot gives the impression that we should expect much wailing, tearing of hair and gnashing of teeth. The only thing left to sort out is who will be doing it.
“The foundation of justice is good faith”. Cicero.
… but it feels like a white knuckle ride at the moment.
Stuart,
Do you think some of the recent Video, reversal of Legislation amendments on the Hate Bill, were not only to placate the Tra young team, but also to secure Green backing of there is a vote of No confidence. Their five pluse the SNP’s 61
Would give them the necessary majority?
Ps “so successful have they been” in their efforts to smear Alex. I think its more accurate to say they’ve “been relentless in their efforts”. Sometimes it goes too far and they overegg the pudding. All that “me thinks they doth protesteth too much”.
What’s getting to me is the wheesht gang who know its a crock of poo and corruption abounds, but heh, shut up, it’s for indy. Don’t the idiots know who controls the media and has all the money and all the power? It’s the British state. And shutting up in the face of it is a doomed strategy.
All we have is the truth. But that is mightier than anything else. Deviate from that and without power you are totally sunk
What are the odds that she pretends to tender her resignation but given the proximity to the election, “parliament” agrees for her to carry on until it dissolves?
This of course would give the indy movement a stick to beat the SNP with while facilitating the smooth take over of the SNP “leadership” by the new British state puppet in time for the election.
The puppet will no doubt ensure Sturgeon’s “legacy” continues and no compromising evidence about ex-leaders, ex-SNP executive, ministers, crown agents, plants and current or former civil servants will be released for the next 5 years.
To whom is the report submitted?
Can we be sure that it’s findings won’t be redacted or deemed not in the public interest or some other connivance?
I predict that there will be not one honest, principled member of the Holyrood opposition who would be willing to be known as the person who caused Sturgeon’s downfall by calling for a vote of no confidence.
These self serving, bench warmers will always put their own interests ahead of you, parliament or indeed the country.
With an election only 3 months away (assuming Sturgeon doesn’t find a way to postpone it), a vote of no confidence would happen in the middle of a pandemic which the government has responded to, with devastating negative consequences upon the economy.
Thus, many public & private sector jobs have never been scarcer so it is going to take someone with real guts to risk themselves being stripped of their lucrative gravy train ticket by their constituents if the public still feel strongly positive about Sturgeon’s covid response & her persona.
Her actual performance compared to other similar sized countries is quite dreadful but when her benchmark is Boris Johnson, it was always going to be easy to look much better by comparison.
It is no accident she has chosen to put herself front & centre of the pandemic – a blatant attempt at the amplification of her personality cult and it may well work to save her skin into the next term of parliament.
Now, more than ever, since Scotland has enjoyed a devolved government, do we need a strong & principled opposition. It is therefore deeply ironic that Scotland’s aspirations for independence may well be saved, not by the SNP but by unionists.
Strange times indeed.
And of course it is the powerful, in our time that correlates to wealth, who call the tune.
« Billionaires have profited enormously from lockdown, whilst mega corporations are buying out
and shutting down independent stores and farms. »
link to off-guardian.org
I wonder how this great resetting stuff fits into the SNP’s set of CRITICAL values.
Actually those « values » are more than suggestive of the sentimental claptrap dished up in mega-portions by the likes of the WEF and its one world, globalist lackeys.
I think she’ll forget to resign.
Spineless Bastards
It’s a joke. Greens denying science. Where exactly does that leave their raison d’etre?? Raisins in a plastic poke in a cupboard under the stairs??
Reading the Times article from which this section comes, I think this is what the MSM have been waiting for. If Hamilton finds against her, then the onslaught will begin. 50% of folk think if she has broken the code she should go. The Yoons believe her Covid induced popularity is one of the major factors which will lead to a large majority in May.
It is in their interests for her to be taken down, and this, with their recent and belated interest in the corruption scandal, will be the two pronged attack to undermine the SNP. Mr.Salmond’s appearance next week will reinforce this.
It will work. Hung parliament. No Indyref referendum.
Not wishing to cut across the article but does anyone know if the reports that the man arrested for threatening Joanna Cherry is Jordan Henderson the partner of Alyn Smyth MP.
In the absence of confirmation from the Police as to the identity of the 30 year old man it would be unfortunate if it was Henderson. As a trans activist he already has form for being abusive to Joan McAlpine, Joanna Cherry and others whereafter his Twitter account was shut down.
Hopefully, the Police will not continue to withhold details of the man arrested.
it seems the legal eagles are laughing all the way to the courts/banks
the eye-watering amounts of public money being wasted on a daily basis to keep the murrels out of jail is just staggering
had we gained independence in 2014, our own establishment would not have allowed this circus to continue
i am increasingle ashamed at the antics of our elected representatives, who seem reluctant to stick their heads above the parapet (cherry excluded)
or mibbe custer’s last statement says it all
“ye couldnae hit an elephant frae that dist……”
John Swinney only engages with those he can bully and that would explain this poor chaps inclusion on the Inquiry Committee.
He will soon have to explain his actions in front of those he cannot bully and my guess is he will resign first.
Three weeks then….
All you budding playwrites out there; When Scotland has resumed her independence there will be many scripts written for telly and the stage telling the tale of the last few years, so start writing yours now. The jokes will pretty well write themselves ofc. I’m looking forward to The Really Ugly Sisters come panto-time.
Scotland is fucked if justice isn’t done. It’s enraging, and heartbreaking.
There’s an alternative outcome, though, isn’t there, outside of the two suggested here…
The Tories and the MSM (which are more or less the same people with the same agenda) know the truth and at some point they are going to weaponise that truth and use it to weaken the SNP. Interestingly, a good time to do that would be around the middle of March (the Ides of March), allowing enough time for the story to develop and impact on the electorate going towards the election.
I’ve never had any faith in any of the Inquiries, Parliament, or parliamentary procedures, as far as being able to bring down the Government is concerned. And I have zero faith in the Hamilton Inquiry.
I’d struggle to come up with an example of leader or government being brought down by something like a vote of no confidence or inquiry in any western country in the last 70 years. If that has happened, and I’m sure it must have (any examples?), it’s a rare thing.
There really needs to be a spoiler candidate in the Edinburgh Central contest to try to stop Angus Robertson. It’s part of Joanna Cherry’s Westminster constituency so between pissing her supporters off and a spoiler, might he lose…
Also heading towards the millionth comment. Rev Stu, will there be a prize?
Margaret Lindsay says:
4 February, 2021 at 11:48 am
“I think she’ll forget to resign.”
🙂
From ScotGov website
“The Scottish Ministerial Code provides a code of conduct and guidance on procedures for Scottish Ministers. The latest edition was published in February 2018.
The June 2008 edition of the Scottish Ministerial Code introduced independent advisers on the application of the Code.
Where they deem it appropriate, the First Minister may refer matters to the independent advisers to provide advice on which to base their judgement about any action required in respect of ministerial conduct. The findings of the independent advisers are published.
The independent advisers are currently:
Rt Hon Dame Elish Angiolini QC DBE (since August 2011)
James Hamilton, former Director of Public Prosecutions at the Irish Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (since January 2013)”
So the report is made directly to the Scottish government and also published by them.
Let’s hope for transparency.
“Do you think some of the recent Video, reversal of Legislation amendments on the Hate Bill, were not only to placate the Tra young team, but also to secure Green backing of there is a vote of No confidence. Their five pluse the SNP’s 61
Would give them the necessary majority?”
Yes, if the Greens backed them in a confidence vote they’d survive. And you may well be right that that’s part of the reason for recent moves.
“Not wishing to cut across the article but does anyone know if the reports that the man arrested for threatening Joanna Cherry is Jordan Henderson the partner of Alyn Smyth MP.”
It isn’t Henderson, but it is an SNP supporter from Stirling.
Stu, A question for you if I may…
In the case of an interdict (or injunction down there), what actually happens? Does a notification get sent out to all media outlets specifying who must not be mentioned and or the context? Or is it something which gets passed around from journo to journo… psst don’t mention so and so…
Just wondered because if there is an interdict but you didnt know about it, how would you then know that you weren’t supposed to write about it. This is just a general query, not aimed at anything in particular which might, or might not, have happened locally recently.
Second quick question… The comments counter at the top shows just under a millon posts but if you hold the cursor over the comments in the thread it shows around 2.6M. What is the difference between each?
The legal profession in Scotland needs to be re-set from within. That would sound next to impossible at the moment as the further up the legal ladder you go, the more bent they appear to be.
I think we start by bagging the present Lord Advocate who has become a figure of fun and by appointing someone who has no association with Holyrood whatsoever.
It is the public who are paying these lawyers and the public who are presently being shafted by them.
That’s not complex is it?….it’s what most other democratic countries in the world have been doing for centuries.
katherine hamilton @ 11:49
“It will work. Hung parliament. No Indyref referendum.”
Immaterial if ‘real indy parties’ like ISP and Solidarity etc implement a manifesto promise that they will use May’s regional list vote as a plebiscite on independence and then take that indy majority vote to the UN and Council of Europe for recognition.
How fkin thick do you need to be to make a death threat to a lawyer?!
FFS I hope whoever this tit is he isn’t one of their list candidates. Imagine that clown helping to make laws the rest of us have to live by.
Rev
Is there any reason the Twitter link has changes to “Scottish Politics Watch” in the link at the top of the page?
In other news, Ian Blackford has requested that Gregor Townsend puts Finn Russell on the bench for saturday’s Calcutta cup game.
Maybe getting someone else on board too:
link to theguardian.com
The Scottish government said it would study the proposals in detail, but further action could only happen after the election.
Sturgeon won’t do the decent thing and resign. If a VoNC is called (as others here have said) the nodding donkeys in the SNP will back her.
Even Ruth the mooth is currently giving her an easy ride.
I even hear sensible people of my acquaintance saying, meeting on the 29th or 2nd April what’s the difference. They haven’t a clue about the rest of the corruption.
IMHO. What was the result of the threatened walk out of a handful of trans activists? Nikla astonishly puts out a very public video appeal (“many of you I know personally”). Humza (sorry for the “hurt”) rows back on ammendments to the HCB, democratically agreed with the Scottish Government and Jo Cherry gets demoted.
Two birds with one stone and Nikla regains some credibility with the fan boys.
It was all clearly staged.
They are thick that’s the point, but nicla allows for that obvs so long as they hang onto her skirt, or trousers, or pinny, not sure anymore. Have my doubts about her in that respect now.
I won’t be voting SNP at May’s election.
@Hatuey, Callaghan was brought down in 1979, hence start of Labour’s long standing feud with SNP.
@AlaN Mavkintosh,
Difference is probably abuse the Rev has deleted.
‘It isn’t Henderson, but it is an SNP supporter from Stirling’. It’s not big Mags Hainey again…..surely not?
Yossarian,
You need to know what you are talking about. The evidence is that it was staff moving from one care home to another that was the source of transmission in care homes and thus responsible for the loss of life there
AS the arrest is of a bloke from Stirling aged 30 does anyone know how old Leeze is.
Alf Baird
Don’t see it. The B team going to the UN don’t impress me much. At the very least would need to be the Scot Gov to pursue that avenue.
So, we are saying Humza has given the trans lobby the green light in return for the Greens supporting Nicola on a V.O.N.C?
Spells the demise of the Green vote Id think.
Age of Leeze
130 years……looks like it…..how do you do a sick emoji on this site?
@Sam – Statistically, there was no evidence for that either Sam.
katherine hamilton @ 12:33
“would need to be the Scot Gov to pursue that avenue”
You mean the (devolved) UK Scot Gov, a colonial administration apparently run by UK agents?
You might be waiting a while….
Mags Hainy is a man then??
@David Holden,
40′ s.
Big Mags Hainey is no longer with us. She has gone to Heaven
(Raploch in the sky)
When are we likely to hear the result of the Craig Murray trial and also the Keatings case?
“Those who make peaceful revolution impossible will make violent revolution inevitable.”
I’d say trying stitch-up Alex Salmond, destroying the SNP from within and let’s face it probably cheating the 2014 referendum (you have to be very suspicious now seeing just how low they were prepared to go) is pretty much thwarting democracy.
If we did really win it in 2014 it would sure explain a lot of what have seen this last six years. The systematic destruction of the SNP and attempted destruction of Alex Salmond. Strange to do that after NO won…
The SNP was fine while it was deemed no real threat. 2014 scared the shit out of them (and maybe a lot more than we realize) and so suddenly Salmond and the SNP become a major ‘threat to national security’ unleashing the spooks to deploy every dirty trick.
If Sturgeon is just a petty vindictive woman unaware she was being assisted at every step by the secret services in the destruction of the SNP then she is a truly tragic character.
I actually think that is worse than her being a rat. I still favour the simple rat explanation because even if she was fooled at first she had plenty chances to escape the trap she was in later on and at every one she escalated it further.
Oops comment fell into moderation there, no idea why.
Ellie, good call, forgot that one. There wasn’t any sort of scandal or anything involved, from what I can gather, just the usual Tory-Labour ding dong stuff…
I’d rather rely on the good-will of scorpions and vipers than on the likelihood of the Scottish establishment doing the right-thing on behalf of the public-good.
If not brought-to-heel, the interconnected nature of the establishment, a category only fleetingly reckoned by many, will render Scottish independence as a misshapen abomination.
Sturgeon won’t resign. She will brazen it out, the report will be buried, scoffed at, undermined and never made an item of public concern. And her minions will be active in suddenly finding other ‘headline’ issues to feed to the media, while trolling anybody who dares criticise the sainted leader during a pandemic blah blah. They have all got form, they have resources and they consider themselves above and beyond any public accountability or scrutiny.
Alf Baird
Yup, pretty much that one. That’s the one we’ve got for good or ill.
It’s astounding
Time is fleeting
Madness takes its toll
But listen closely
Not for very much longer ….
Hatuey, true no scandal but could have been SNP called VONC but Thatcher’s had precedence. Not something I’ll forget after engaging with Cllr Terry Kelly on Heralds comments in the distant past…………….
Pardon my cynicism but she’d be obliged to tender her resignation to the First Minister. What if the First Minister refused to accept it?
Eh, eh?
Sadly I think you may be right ian mac
Just like to point out that on the day when the female politician who receives the 2 most amount of abusive Social Media Messages (the first being Dianne Abbott) – is the victim in abusive/threatening messages that have resulted in a male being charged, (in addition to having to stay in a place of safety while Police make enquiry) and her boss, a so called Feminist, makes not a single comment about it on her twitter feed.
Do neither Blackford or Sturgeon understand that as line managers/ Party Leaders – they have a duty of care?
And with regards the identity of JC’s assailant, Police will not be providing it because they never do… but if there is an application made to keep the name from the public, I would suggest it is to the potential detriment of the public safety and other women for that to be granted.
Males who are abusive towards women, tend to show a pattern of this behaviour and inflict it on many woman victims, not just one.
I’m sure Rape Crisis will be issuing a statement of support for JC, speaking out about male violence towards woman in all its forms…. any minute now…
Mac
Nicla has been proven to be a nasty, jealous, self serving cunt and if people can’t see that then there’s no fucking hope. FGS plain as the nose on anyone’s fecking face
I wonder if David Harvie and Patrick Harvie are related?
@Daisy Walker,
Along the lines of “She brought it on hersel”
Yeah. Plenty of exposure re Alex. Double, double, boil and fucking trouble.
DISGUSTING
Harvie relations. Yep
On September 20th 2018 Andy Wightman tweeted to say how proud he was at last to hold an Irish passport. To use a military analogy, he’s the sort of officer who makes sure he has a way out to safety while the Scots in the trenches must suffer because they have no where else to go.
Whatever Andy Wightman believes, he does not stand with the Scots. I sincerely hope the Highlands gives him short shrift indeed.
At least with the’78 World Cup debacle, the brutal truth was laid bare for the whole world to see by Cubillas and his team mates| no such luck with this latest manifestation of how farcical Scotland’s representatives can be!
No duty of care for Joanna or Joan. FFS empress has no clothes on. Nicola Sturgeon has pinned her self on the mast in full frontal. SHE HAS TO GO ALONG WITH THE REST OF THE LIARS AND GROVELLING ARSEHOLES.
They are treating Joanna as if she has already left the party.
re: Daisy Walker at 1:13 pm
I find the SNP MP/MSP’s silence utterly disgusting, during Brexit when that female Labour MP recieved death threats every minister in the UK+Devolved legistlatures spoke out and publicly condemned it, yet now that one of their own MP’s has recieved further threats and a suspect has been arrested over it the SNP’s silence is damning, not a single one of them offering any sort of public support over it.
As for Blackford, he only cares about the trough he feeds from, he won’t step out of line or he’ll be the next on Nicola’s chopping block.
I think you will find that all of the SNP MP/MSP’s who exert any volume of control over SNP minister’s positions are all in Nicola’s pocket one way or another and are keeping ‘wheesht for indy’, which is a nice cover story for ‘stay in line or your next’.
I wouldn’t be surprised that when the dam breaks, and I have every faith that it will, that all of those who are acting on every whim of Nicola’s will turn tail and they will start the blame game in a bid to cover their owns arses, careers and positions at the trough.
I never once thought the SNP were capable of any of this until everything the party did turned into all about Nicola and not about Independence.
I have been a life long SNP member, but they won’t be getting my ballot this year, at least not with the Murrell’s anywhere near the party.
@Daisy 1:13. I think that this is one of the most damning observations on how vile and corrupt this SNP cabal has become.
She and her little troika of hick wannabe political players have completely detached themselves from even the semblance of doing their actual job.
Everything is the game now, so all of their thoughts and behaviours are predicated on that.
It has probably not occurred to Sturgeon to make any statement, as it’s not in her personal interest to do so.
They’re in a fever dream of their own making. It’s only a matter of time as to whether they implode and can be removed, or they explode and the party as it stands is done.
Totally O/T,
But is anyone else having issues with accessing the site?
Phone: time outs and black pages (Vodafone),
VPN connections are variable, even one back to a private one was a bit ‘off’.
Is it the volume of traffic, or is someone trying to DDOS the site?
link to twitter.com
Is this person havering or has it been pulled?
Talking of the Fabiani whitewash, do you think Queen Nicola will be diagnosed with Covid 19 a couple of days before her expected attendance? I wouldn’t put it pass her or “hubby”. It seems to be the rage nowadays when senior politicians face difficult situations
I we can see from Salmond, a person proved innocent can still be seen as guilty in the media and by extension the public.
Then a person found guilty can also be exonerated where inconvenient findings can be ignored as irrelevant.
She will be ok. All these cut out masks of Nicola (and Boris and others apparently) are available in schools. So everyone can wear one and say “I’m Spartacus”.
Denise
Yep think that’s the way it’s going.
Of course.
Because she’s probably the best and nicla doesn’t like that.
I just hope and pray (I’m not religious, but just wonder what to do, apart from take up arms) that SENSIBILITY will prevail.
What a fecking shite show.
Leeze Lawrence is circa 37/8
katherine hamilton
Not sure why you said: “going to the UN don’t impress me much”?
Where else is there for Scotland (even a ‘B team’) to go when holding a democratic majority in favour of independence in a plebiscite election?
@ Mac at 12.45pm:
“I’d say trying stitch-up Alex Salmond, destroying the SNP from within and let’s face it probably cheating the 2014 referendum (you have to be very suspicious now seeing just how low they were prepared to go) is pretty much thwarting democracy.”
Do you remember all the on-line polls prior to the 2014 referendum which put ‘Yes’ massively ahead of ‘No’? That included polls on pro-‘No’ web-sites and in right-wing, anti-independence newspapers. I never saw a single on-line poll that didn’t show an overwhelming majority for ‘Yes’. I still have screenshots of many of the on-line polls from 2014 to prove it. I find it impossible to believe that ‘No’-supporters were somehow uniquely incapable of voting in these polls.
Another thing that has always seemed highly suspect to me is how the areas with the highest support for ‘Yes’ – Glasgow and Dundee – had the lowest turnouts. Given that all the popular enthusiasm and passion in the campaign was demonstrated by the ‘Yes’ side, why would ‘Yes’ supporters be the least likely to vote? That too, I find impossible to believe.
And I know this is purely anecdotal, but with one single exception (a Tory-supporting cousin), everyone I knew – friends, family and on-line acquaintances – supported independence. How there came to be a majority for ‘No’ was and remains an absolute mystery to me. Where were all the marches and rallies for ‘No’? They were conspicuous by their complete absence. And that’s to say nothing of all the suspicious goings-on during and after the referendum count, with blank-backed ballots and bags of binned ‘Yes’ votes and whatnot.
Michael Laing says: 1:46pm
“And I know this is purely anecdotal, but with one single exception (a Tory-supporting cousin), everyone I knew – friends, family and on-line acquaintances – supported independence. How there came to be a majority for ‘No’ was and remains an absolute mystery to me”.
maybe all the people you know share your views? and the people who don’t you don’t know, because you avoid each other?
It’s a bit like the idea of confirmation bias. maybe yes people are more motivated, no people have other things to get excited about.
But surely they can have his report redacted?
Ask for an extended launch date?
Call him some kind of Phobe and have him struck off.
Alter legislation that he has to be a disabled or black or Asian or a Trans to do that job.
If all else fails, it Wisnae me!
I’ve lost faith in every aspect of authority in the UK
Old Alex will keep his head when all others around him are losing theirs.
We have a rancid government and a rancid legal profession. Roll-on Tuesday and we will all find-out how bad it really is.
We’ll all hear it from the organ-grinder himself.
Why the hell is the SNP supporter from Stirling having his identity protected by the crown office?
There was an interesting letter in ‘The Globe’ here in Vancouver.
Apparently one of the alphabet ladies is threatening to release a transcript of a recording she took, when interviewed by the ScotGov investigator who must not be named.
If she waives her right to anonymity in a ‘tell all’, the outcome will be fascinating.
“There was an interesting letter in ‘The Globe’ here in Vancouver.”
Can you get us a photo/scan/link?
The spineless politicians Wightman who on occasion writes a good book, has decided to move to the Highlands and stand as an independent.
I say to those folk in the Highlands what need of you, for another spineless trougher in the form of Wightman.
“ Do neither Blackford or Sturgeon understand that as line managers/ Party Leaders – they have a duty of care?”
Neither are good line managers/leaders.
Hamilton, if its the same guy, gets a good write up here, apparently he’s the go to QC to prosecute serious sexual offences.
link to 9sjs.com
@ avocado devil at 1.56pm:
I know that. That’s why I stressed that my point was purely anecdotal. However, I didn’t choose my friends – and obviously couldn’t choose my family – on the basis of whether they were pro or anti-independence. If there was a genuine anti-independence majority, I would have expected that to have been reflected amongst the people I know.
In the meantime, all appointees at the Holyrood Inquiry are doing just enough, just enough, to give the impression that they will affect the outcome.
What leverage does Swinney have on Jackie Baillie?…… I wonder.
Just out of interest, what are the “legal issues” that prevent the inquiry considering the Aberdein evidence?
“Just out of interest, what are the “legal issues” that prevent the inquiry considering the Aberdein evidence?”
link to wingsoverscotland.com
“Ministers who knowingly mislead the Parliament will be expected to offer their resignation to the First Minister;“.
It’s entirely possible that NS will say that she never knowingly mislead Holyrood!!
“It’s entirely possible that NS will say that she never knowingly mislead Holyrood!!”
It doesn’t matter what she says, it’s what James Hamilton says that counts.
After much reflection I have decided that not only will I vote ISP on the list vote, but I will not vote at all for SNP on the main vote, nor will I vote for any other party. Voting for SNP at the moment is something my conscience will not allow as I would be condoning their misuse of power and I cannot and will not do that. It is time for independence people to abandon the SNP for the utter failure they have become. It needs to go through a cleansing before it could ever again be fit for purpose.
Didn’t think Andy Wightman was member of Committee. I thought Green Party member was Alison Johnstone
“Didn’t think Andy Wightman was member of Committee. I thought Green Party member was Alison Johnstone”
It was. Then he replaced her after she had to go for an operation. BE MORE ALERT.
Jacqueline McMillan says:
4 February, 2021 at 1:22 pm
Harvie relations. Yep
Any proof?
They look similar, and seem to come from roughly the same neck of the woods, right age to be brothers, but I can’t find any evidence to confirm yeah or nah?
Well, that’s incredibly optimistic, that things will all be done and dusted and no more uncertainty in a few weeks,,, I think there will be enough things revealed for there to be changes, and things will move on, but with politics there always seems to be unpredictable shifts,,, I’m not expecting total clarification on all matters, is what I’m saying.
The James Hamilton inquiry – the one that has James Hynd, original author of the Procedure to ensnare Former (Alex Salmond) Ministers, working for it? where Leslie Evans said that “no” there was no conflict of interest there at all? But that aside, I think it will be hard pushed to find anything other than the FM has broken the ministerial code – but maybe primarily because of what you’ve published in your blog Stuart, and perhaps due to some integrity in James Hamilton (but that’s not guaranteed).
The Fabiani inquiry has been greatly hobbled – in some ways, also partly by the other inquiries – James Hamilton is looking at the ministerial code, so they have no drive to investigate it, and the Laura Dunlop review of The Procedure (which is still there totally unchanged after all this time after being deemed unlawful by Lord Pentland!) which is used as an excuse to delay analysis of why it’s still a live procedure. But I don’t see it as a complete whitewash – or I hope not, I haven’t written it off anyway – even if the most they do is recommend a judge-led inquiry into the matter – maybe have Leslie Evans et al suspended if it can. It might not get to the bottom of the wrongdoing by the actual perpetrators, but they could put enough pressure on – the threat of criminal prosecution – to make disappearing into obscurity a preferable career move for many of them. A further inquiry, maybe the best outcome in the long run, will just drag things out, and can’t be relied on for resolving current, urgent, issues though.
We’ll have to wait and see I guess,,,
Denise says:
4 February, 2021 at 2:01 pm
Why the hell is the SNP supporter from Stirling having his identity protected by the crown office?
I don’t know so I’m just speculating but from JC’s Twitter there appear to be other enquiries ongoing. I wonder if that has something to do with them keeping quiet just now. Or maybe their Daddy is influential and in a position to ask for things to be kept low key.
Anyone else get the feeling that the Cherry thing will result in the absurdity of her being disciplined or suspended for not dealing with it through the internal complaints procedure.
I see Daddy Smith has also received a threatening email. Just to clarify, I believe this is 100% genuine and not a defection tactic from JC’s experience.
@Mac, 12.45
let’s face it probably cheating the 2014 referendum
Exit polls are the key to determine if an election was honest and a check to ensure that the count was honest. The 2014 referendum did not have an exit poll so there is no “probably” about it.
Betsy @2.20pm.
Betsy.
I usually find that once the person has made their first court appearance, that their name usually makes its way into the media, but that’s not always the case.
.
Stuart,
I very rarely disagree with your analysis. In fact all of the above is pretty much spot-in.
It’s your penultimate paragraph my friend…
“All the stagnant, miserable uncertainty of the past 18 months will be over.”
Much though I would wish your words to be true, I spent an hour on the telephone with my solicitor this morning. Many years ago we had a massive dispute with the LabLib Scottish “Executive”. We were told our case was a difficult one and expensive. Long story short, we went ahead. Eventually we won. The reason I mention that is the David Clegg/Daily Record/ScotGov’s leaky little snitch have a similar set of legal flaw lines that we can address to obtain satisfactory relief from a duty sheriff.
Stuart, I despise injustice. Take the politics out of this, the amateur dramatic Borgen loving Birgitte Nyborg fangirl wannabe that is Nicola Sturgeon. There is a simple way to remove her imposter syndrome problems. She will go the way of Margaret Thatcher. A self agrandised towering political figure having a pity-greet on the road out of Downing Street. Theresa May had that awful exit and the fake cry as she was booted out. Sturgeon will be giving a similar speech on the steps of Bute House and rightly soon. But that is all political theatre. There must be consequences for when people in high office do what so many of us suspect Sturgeon and her cowardly, inquiry-avoiding partner may have done. Putting the politics aside…
What we have, is a legally responsible “directing mind” somewhere in this Bourach who tried to frame an innocent man.
They miscalculated massively and Sturgeon’s cabal could have dropped the political assasination of Alex Salmond, but instead were prepared to see a man that had devoted his life to a principle of Independence go to jail for fake charges of attempted rape. The treacherry (sic) of Nicola Bloody Sturgeon who was shown nothing but kindness in being mentored for the top job she coveted is up there with the very worst of humanity. History will judge Sturgeon harshly in ways that are yet to unfold.
That woman has done more damage to rape victims than the already colossal distress she has caused Alex Salmond. The reason is that fake-rape allegations result in obvious prosecutorial problems of the future for cases where the rape allegations are based on truth.
No, Stu., much though I would desperately want to agree with you to have all this over and done with, Nicola Sturgeon has irrevocably passed the apex of her career. She is now headed inexorably for her nadir. She has a legal reckoning headed her way..
I hope James Hamilton QC is a person of integrity. In spite of the Peter Cherbi legal list of shame, hubris, perversion and dishonesty amongst that profession.
But if justice is not done by Fabiani. If it is not done my James Hamilton, there are those in civic society, and forgive me for being less than civil, but those of us who say: “Fuck this for a game of soldiers”; we then put our money on the table, or as my counsel said earlier today, put his account “in funds” to the tune of xxx thousand pounds and initiate one of a multitude of legal options.
Alex, if you are reading this, I watched my friend Jack McConnell when he had to confess to trousergate. Worse, I watched Bridget. She had done nothing wrong and had to endure Hell for her husband’s political future. Jack had done something wrong.
But Alex, you have done nothing wrong.
I’ve witnessed you at close quarters when so many folk wanted that selfie with you. Men know when other men are “that way”: I mean overly familiar with the opposite sex, they know what they see. I was trained very well at Tulliallan to see this behavior. I see you. You are not and never have been of that ilk. That’s why a lot of us are so furious. We know when we see…
An innocent man.
But still Sturgeon and her cabal, aligned strangely in a pact with the Devil of a Sturgeon-favouring mainstream media seek to defy the court ruling and continue to attack your character and reputation for their own mendacious ends.
From what I see you have gone through three years of unlawful, illegal Hell. It cannot be easy on Moira and the family.
As the Romans were reputed to say: “In order to kill the politician, you must first put his reputation to death.”
The BBC and ugly enough, the whole phalanx of the mainstream media still traduced your reputation, even when found not guilty by an impeccably chosen court, fairly weighted to be gender balanced.
I’ve donated enough money to political parties to last a lifetime. Now some of that money goes to the lawyers and not just to stop this endless nightmare as Stuart terms it.
I left a good job in the police out of stomach-churning disgust of a bent sergeant and a corrupt inspector. Fortunately there are a lot of decent cops about. But when a police officer, or law officers such as some of the ones orbiting Humza Yousef conduct themselves in the case of the Rangers malevolence, then it is time to say…
Enough.
We can wait to see what the Fabiani Inquiry brings out, if it isn’t euthenised by lowbrow politicians of the most shameful order before Holyrood is dissolved.
We can wait for and study a reputation-defining report by Mr Hamilton.
History will judge James Hamilton QC on the legal integrity of his report on this matter.
But there is also another element. Politicians often appear to think the voters are just fodder for the ballot-box every four or five years and can be ignored in the space between elections.
Sadly for so many politicians, such as Jeffery Archer etc all., they discover that prison is an option open to them if the infraction is serious enough.
Well, to whoever has their fingerprints on this Scottish national disgrace, from bent politicians to weak and/or corrupt police officers; from self-obsessed student politico trans lobbyists to questionable lawyers and all manner of lowlife actors in this Shakespearean nightmare, some of the audience are trained to see you. They are trained to remedy injustice and they have the wherewithal to see justice done.
Stuart, this ain’t over. Not by a long shot. The bigger the injustice, the greater and more dramatic the fall.
Denise says:
4 February, 2021 at 2:01 pm
Why the hell is the SNP supporter from Stirling having his identity protected by the crown office’
Not sure if this is what is happening Denise. The Police and PF do not release names of accused – it’s bad practice. If directly asked, they will confirm or deny, eg, ‘is it true that you’ve arrested Joe Bloggs today for xyz?’ They will reply Joe Bloggs has been arrested in relation to enquiries for xyz and a report has been submitted to the PF.
What might be happening though, is that the court has been approached on behalf of the accused and saught an interdict preventing the press from releasing the name… and I’m not sure they will be able to enforce that at trial.
If the accused was held in custody and has appeared at court today, the possibility exists the trial has been heard in camera, he’s plead guilty and his next appearance will be for sentencing.
Given the nature of the offence, if that has happened, one would expect the court to have released him with specific bail conditions on him – and once again that places the function of the criminal court at odds with any confidentiality interdict.
Problem we have is lockdown. So there is no public scrutiny of the courts. Much easier for them to have wee private trials without even the press knowing about them.
The principle – and it is a legal precident – that it is not enough for justice to be done, it must be seen to be done, has never been more apt in light of malicious prosecutions, and politically motivated persecutions by law enforcement officers when there was no case to answer.
Or we could have the usual, and the media is not going to touch it, because the person may have close associations with a prominent member of the SNP who they do not want to tarnish.
Lots of different possibilities.
I think the inquiry report will be very critical. There is no way you can say anything else about a process that was against all best practices; ignored advice from WM and from the police; was clearly designed to ‘get Salmond’; which ignored legal advice and went to the COPFS (not the police) against the wishes of the complainants. And lost loads of cash. It’s a complete bin fire.
One thing I wonder it’s always assumed the complainants came forward, but did they?
Both complaints were on file
Did it go something like this:
NS – I want Salmond out of politics for good.
McCann – I have this complaint (false) been waiting for a chance to deploy it
……
NS – I’m thinking of a retrospective complaints process obviously sex harassment is rife – Aamer Anwar says so – and there’s Mark MacDonald
LE – there is a complaint on file …..
NS: and the party has one is two enough?
I also wonder how a complaint to the party got into the hands of the civil service
@Michael Laing (2.05) –
If we’re doing anecdotal stuff, here’s another one, and I’ve never mentioned this before, not here or to anyone else.
Following the horrible indyref result, the SSP group I belonged to regrouped pretty quickly. We met on the Sunday, all still hungover and grieving. It wasn’t a formal meeting, just gathered in a pal’s house, but good to see and comfort each other. We got back to ‘normal’ business a fortnight or so later and our first meeting back was the biggest attendance I ever saw for our branch, fifty+ bodies (mostly guys for some reason) packed into a small lounge. It fell away after that but numbers were still good getting towards Christmas, when we had a public meeting in Irvine, at a community centre (forget the name).
I can’t even remember now what the meeting was about, but when we got to the Q&As this guy asked Richie Venton (the main speaker) something about the referendum. Richie answered but the guy wasn’t happy, insisted that he be heard. The chair (who was, as it happens, hopelessly pissed most of the time) tried to get the guy to stop but he wouldn’t. ‘I’ve been sitting here listening to you all pontificating for th past hour, so now you will listen to me…’ Not angry or bad mannered but very sure of himself, relaxed, with an excellent speaking voice.
I should point out that none of us had ever seen this guy before. He was a big bloke – big head, big hands, just ‘big’ generally – and very well spoken, but you could tell he wasn’t a native speaker. His clothes were immaculate. Shoes looked custom made, cracking jacket and overcoat, cloth looked good enough to eat. He was early middle-aged I guess, looked extremely fit. Perhaps ex-military? In any case, he assured us, almost as an aside, that we had won the referendum ‘hands-down’. ‘You won it by a landslide.’
No idea who he was. We never saw him again and our branch slowly dwindled thereafter, eventually being infested with RISE roasters who claimed all the officeholder positions and led us to a calamitous performance in the 2015 GE.
I’ve never forgotten that big dude and often wonder why he even bothered to attend such a small meeting. I didn’t get the feeling he was even a Yes/indy supporter, more that he was disgusted that we didn’t even know what had happened and was trying, for reasons unknown, to warn us. (It’s just occurred that he may have attended because he knew Richie Venton was going to be speaking – no-one else with any public profile was there that night.)
There are probably hundreds of stories similar to this one. Whether or not we’ll ever make sense of it or find out the truth? ach, who knows. I can only echo your own experience – certainly, in the final weeks of leafleting in and around the Three Towns, Ayr and Irvine (including Kilwinning FFS!) our best estimate was that, overall, 80%+ were intending to vote Yes. I guess all the ‘Nays’ just kept themselves to themselves, eh?
Isn’t ‘Leeze’ an SNP supporter from Stirling?
…
Police Scotland are mandated to investigate matters neutrally and without prejudice. Instead they contributed to the media mayhem by making comments defaming a man who although innocent of any crime was arrested and charged with 18 incidents of “threatening and abusive behaviour.” He was then held in custody, untried and without the option of bail.
link to caltonjock.com
Would the person charged over Joanna Cherry appear at Stirling Sheriff Court? Court rolls are available online for tomorrow.
@ Rev Stu 12.15.
My money is on the wolfie mammoth from Sterling.
This from Craig Murray
Craig Murray
@CraigMurrayOrg
·
1h
The Crown Office is protecting the identity of the 30 year old man charged with threatening Joanna Cherry.
The Crown Office ludicrously prosecuted Mark Hirst on the same charge, but over the Salmond accusers. They actively promoted Mark’s name to media.
The Crown Office stinks
Wee Child @2.50pm.
Here are the court rolls for Stirling, however if you don’t know the persons name it kind of pointless.
link to scotcourts.gov.uk
See exchange here.
Its one fkn bad day when you agree with Lord Snooty.
link to parliamentlive.tv.
Hope the link works.
I don’t hold out much hope of Hamilton’s report being a resignation matter for Sturgeon. If it just reports about the Aberdein meeting taking place on the 29th Sturgeon has alreday covered that. She can’t be accussed of miss-leading parliament on a meeting taking place when she already corrected herself in front of parliament at what she would describe as the earliest opprotunity.
For Hamilton’s report to cause a resignation it would need to conclude that the Aberdein meeting was SNP business being conducted on Scottish Government premises or that the Aberdein meeting was an organised meeting at the FM’s request where the subject matter showed direct involvement by Sturgeon in the Salmond enquiry.
Thats a high bar without corrobation from more than just Aberdein. Aberdien can confirm the meeting took place which Sturgeon does not deny and give his view of the content and purpose. The content and purpose will be what Sturgeon denies and that will be a high bar for Hamilton to dispute without corrobation from more than just Aberdein.
Sturgeon has already laid the groundwork for this defence in some of her statements which have weasly words as per this description link to caltonjock.com
If the enquiry and Hamilton’s report don’t clearly point the finger at Sturgeon then the press will write it as though Salmond was the bad guy after all and Saint Nicola has been through torture for nothing.
Hi Alf
No not at all. But I doubt >50% of Scots will vote for list parties, plebiscite on their manifesto or not. They can’t get a majority of seats that way. So I’m not really sure where you’re going with this. Dead end, I think.
The trouble with the 2014 referendum and exit polls was the amount of postal voting. Even then the poll taken after that showed a majority of Scots in Scotland claimed to have voted YES also showed that the result in Scotland alone was closer to the 48:52 EU referendum result.
Also bear in mind that there would be a lot of votes cast in the run up to polling day that would reflect the state of play then.
All that said this is yet another reason the unionist parties want a boycott as it’d invalidate any exit poll unless the turnout was so high it became nigh impossible to deny who had won.
In a vote of confidence can the votes of Mark MacDonald , Joan McAlpine , Derek Mackay and Alex Neil be counted on ? For various reasons these players could tip the balance against Sturgeon.
Alf Baird at 1:41
….unless they do to us as they did to Palestine.
For clarity, it is not the PF’s job to release to the media, the name of the accused in the JC offence.
As it is high profile, they will not do it, in case some daftie decides to take the law into their own hands and do something stupid.
But it is interesting that the media don’t already have it, and are not releasing it themselves, which could be indicative of some form of interdict protecting their identity, having been taken out. That is civil law.
The accused is facing criminal charges, anonymity for the accused in a case like this is contrary to the public interest.
Unless he’s been to court today and been released on bail, then the likelyhood is he’ll be up at court tomorrow. Quite an expensive undertaking to take out an interdict that can only reasonably be expected to be enforced for 2 days…
This rather looks like the media is doing all the discretion all on its own.
Shockingly I’m not seeing any words of support for Joanna on twitter, from fellow SNP MP’s (other than those who have already done so) – Tommy Shepherd, Philipa Whitford – your silence is deafening.
If nothing else comes of this, then it will identify the SNP MP’s and MSP’s who are still worthy of our votes and those who are not.
SHAME.
I have not a shadow of doubt that if the boot were on the other foot, Joanna Cherry would have been first in the que to defend you.
The point of a list party, if they are honest, is to have a chance at playing kingmaker. The Greens, with their gender politics, do so at the moment.
The point about being able to self-ID to the lead position on the lists is more than just gesture politics as they wouldn’t ordinarily have a chance given current polling. However if something unexpected happens and some scandal like was whipped up around Neale Hanvey was to be revealed concerning the constituency candidates then they could be in with a shot. The brief would be along the lines of don’t vote for X and use your list vote for the SNP. I know it sounds a bit paranoid but the speed of the response to Neale Hanvey cries out inside job.
An ideal scenario would be either an SNP majority reliant on List members or minority needing both those and the Greens. Not for independence obviously but for their own agenda.
One of Daddy Bear’s cubs causing him embarrassment perhaps?
There’s trouble bruin.
Gesù Cristo what an utter shitshow. That the Sturrell Medieval Court can hang on to power. Let us hope not.
Eh many of us at Yes Scotland HQ, Hope (the irony) Street were aware. Aye few, any? have spoken out I have, don’t give a flyer.
Me a punk born 1962 and I care about my country.
But this has to be sorted.
Aye there you have Alex Salmond’s former right hand people;
Stephen Noon in a Canadian Buddhist Monastery eh and bloody Kevin Pringle in the pay of fucking Charlotte Street Partners. Cunt. Hey I sat opposite him for months, always thought he was a stab in the front type, no longer sure.
Ian Brotherhood
Just to throw some fuel on the fire over fraud in 2014 this is worth a read, link to archive.is
It’s long but definitely worth your time – if only to see how any referendum can easily be subverted.
The comments are worth a look too – I found a link to the original document there, link to docs.google.com
Reference the court list.
For information if the crime locus is considered to have beein Stirling, then judicial area is Tayside, Fife and Central – so if you think you might recognise the name, you will have to check the courts for Perth, Dundee and Kirkcaldy… not sure if Forfar and Dunfermline will also have courts listed.
And it gets a bit more complicated, because, the locus for the crime could also be deemed to have been whereever JC was when she first read it, so maybe even Edinburgh judicial area.
katherine hamilton @ 3:00
“They can’t get a majority of seats that way”
Securing a majority of seats in a non-sovereign devolved/colonial assembly does not necessarily lead to independence.
However, a majority of the people voting for independence in a national plebiscite would normally be sufficient for the people to declare independence.
Good speech from Rees Mogg condemning the threats to Joanna Cherry. Fair play to the guy even though it sticks in my throat.
Meanwhile still not a word from her own party’s leaders. In public anyway although I’m SURE they’ve consoled her and offered their full support in private.
@ianbhood 2.38
interesting story; it squares with my own feelings. The trigger for me was 3 things – no exit polls, no photography and postal ballots being mixed back in with the normal ballots rather than counted separately. If you were going to rig it, these are exactly the rules you would put in place. Ruth Davidsons cunty smirking face on count-night, like she was laughing inside about a joke she couldn’t tell anyone – that was the final straw; I think 2014 stank and I don’t care what anyone else says.
That on the day after – everyone – seemed utterly depressed, was odd; at least half of folks should have been happy. It occurred to me that in all the voting I had ever done, I had no guarantee my vote had ever been counted, or counted correctly, and if I was suspicious for any reason, no recourse.
If we ever get another referendum I am photographing my ballot paper and putting it on the internet. Fuck the rules. Even better I will put my vote on the blockchain.
The matter of Trump losing and his claims of postal vote fraud – both helps and hinders; bags of material on methods and also, statistical indicators, things to watch out for, but at the same time since everyone hates Trump, no one will entertain that his allegations have any merit. There is a deep principle here – no one should be allowed to cheat – think how much better the world would be now if Al Gore had had the balls to stand up to Dubya; once the neocons controlled foreign policy, the world burned anew.
If you consider the security at any casino compared with an election, it’s all a joke; but how much is country worth compared to a casino vault.
Aye Kapelmeister,
Police may have indeed arrested a 30 year old man for threatening behaviour of a frightening sexual nature against Joanna Cherry. But they’re not giving out names.
Could it be daddy bear Alyn Smith’s live in cub Jordan Henderson who has previous form for maligning Joan McAlpine and Joanna Cherry. Maybe we shall hear in the Daily Record. Or maybe the perpetrator will remain anonymous.
Or will threatening behaviour be downgraded by the Crown Office to a communication offence. We will all have to wait and see. Don’t have a lot of faith in Police Scotland or the Crown.
Daisy Walker says:
4 February, 2021 at 3:18 pm
“Reference the court list.”
Thanks Daisy – I’v no idea how these things work but I knew about the court lists,having followed them for certain cases locally.
orri @ 3:08 pm
“The point of a list party, if they are honest, is to have a chance at playing kingmaker.”
The constituency and regional list votes are separate and measurable national votes. Either may be used as a plebiscite on independence, if such a policy is contained within a party’s manifesto. If a majority of the voters opt for such a policy then that is the democratic decision of the people.
First time poster after years of reading Wings.
Lets hope the truth and justice prevails with James Hamilton.
@Michael Laing
The NO camp all obviously knew they had ‘won’ it at 10.01pm. I turned off the TV at 10.15 in disgust as I knew we had lost from all their faces. I also knew it had to be rigged somehow.
Never understood why so many independence supporters just meekly accepted it all. It was so dodgy on many levels.
As my dear old dad said to me the day after… “Even if it was a YES it was always going to be a NO.”
They just cheated, does anyone really think they would not if they felt the union was actually threatened. That is f**k all to them. They kill people FFS. Rigging a wee referendum is bugger all to them.
Looking at all of it I think destroying Salmond and the SNP was just Phase II. They are now dismantling the SNP, trying to salt the ground so nothing grows back. What they did to Salmond was theatrical so over the top… hmmm we really did win didn’t we.
They have never played fair and they never will.
ALISON BALHARRYat 3:13 pm “Stephen Noon in a Canadian Buddhist Monastery” –
Stephen Noon is a former senior special adviser to Alex Salmond. He is NOT a Buddhist -he is a JESUIT – The Secret Service of the Vatican -https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com/Jesuits%3A+The+Vatican%27s+Chief+Assassins
link to jesuits.ca
Well, I truly have enjoyed being depressed beyond belief at each new revelation proving just how crooked, stupid, broken, and wasted the legal and political establishments on this tiny, hostage-to-lunatics country are. Coming over to this site today, the words: “Whit depressing pish ur we gonnae be getting hit wi the day?” inadvertently left my lips.
Right now, we truly are a mad-person-run banana republic, with no end in sight. No fucking chance in Hell will Nicola Sturgeon stand down. She’s clawed her way up the greasy rewarding pole of absolutely corrupting Machiavellian power since she was 16 years old. Trying to destroy your mentor is a cold-blooded, reptilian, hateful, evil act that betrays a woman without conscience or scruples, not the full shilling. So anybody who thinks she will stand down just because her sordid, filthy corruption has been exposed…has another think coming.
She’ll brazen it out, just as Trump did for four years, asset-stripping America for his own gain, and that of his friends, as he did so. For Nicola Sturgeon to give up power would require a repudiation of everything she has worked her whole adult life to grab and jealousy clutch to her proprietorial bosom. Look at how she has destroyed politics, and faith in it and the SNP, in this country. You think those are actions of somebody who is going to ‘do the right thing’? Dream on. The lady’s not for turning. And, in her deluded mind, Scotland needs its wee Imelda Marcos surrogate mammy. We would be nothing without her.
As we are now. And potentially always will be.
Al-Stuart @ 2:28
Very interesting.
Though I’m thinking ‘immunity from prosecution’ and with Osborne’s ‘arms’ of the British state in Scotland seemingly being run by ‘agents’ this perhaps explains the lack of any prosecutions?
@Orri,
There were no Exit Polls conducted at the 2014 referendum.
link to theguardian.com
Dave Beveridge, Rees-Mogg couldn’t care less aboot Joanna Cherry. He’s marking her out as a potential convert unionist with Tory support, giving her the mark of Cain, sowing more internecine dissension. If she got hit by a car in front of him he would not blink an eyelid. Reward the driver, more likely.
Problem with vote rigging is you need the evidence there and then and you need to get the official enquiry going there and then.
If not then you can never prove it.
What you can do is ensure UN observers are fully involved in the next one.
I think Stu made reference earlier that JC’s assailant is not the delightful Jordan.
If someone is familiar with the entourage in Stirling a name might jump out at them from the court listings. There are not too many names to go through, between 10 – 20 for each court/day. And most can be excluded straight away.
@Stuart MacKay (3.17) –
Haven’t seen that before, thanks, just about to have a shuftie.
Just saw Grousebeater tweeting that Murrell will be appearing before the committee on Monday. Anyone else confirm?
Alyn Smith now declaring he reported someone to police for “threats of violence” against him. Apparently the person told Smith in an email that “you don’t know what i’m capable of”. Smith has also made some phoney excuse for waiting until now before making it public knowledge.
Personally i think this stinks of a childish tit for tat by Smith and says more about him than he realises. I also feel stronger due to this that the scum arrested for real threats against Jo is in some way connected to Smith &/or the SNP.
The SNP is indeed a suffering beast needing put out of its misery and the Murrell’s are the ones guilty of abusing said beast.
Nothing new on Murrell’s Twitter, but there never is.
He has this as his headline for his family and very few other followers
F.Is for avoiding the Facts
A- is for Arse covering
C- is for criminal Collusion
T- is for Taking liberties with ring fenced Indy funds
S- is Solicitors fees
Ian Brotherhood @3:40
Murrell appearing Monday
link to twitter.com
Stuart Mackay @3.17pm.
Thanks for the very interesting link.
I read in the National newspaper weeks ago, that during the 2014 indyref, that no one was allowed to check that the ballot boxes were empty before voting commenced.
From an article written and published three weeks ago. The thrust becomes more relevant and urgent by the day. Alex could become the leader of the official opposition in Holyrood after May 6th putting the question of independence front and centre. Go for it Alex:
Reinforcing the results of the December 2020 poll by the same company and all seventeen previous polls by various polling organisations the political party support heading into the May Scottish Parliament elections is a stark and unmistakeable message. The SNP, the party of independence, is in line for a stunning victory and an outright parliament majority on the constituency vote alone. The poll predicts the SNP will hold 71 seats while the Tories will lose 14 and be reduced to 17, Labour will lose 3 and be reduced to 21 and the pro-independence Greens will gain 5 and rise to 11 seats. The SNP outright majority will be 13 but on independence issues the majority will be 35 with Green support.
These results will be even more significant if a viable independence supporting alternative party or grouping able to appeal to SNP voters to give them their 2nd votes can be established. The Greens support for the controversial Gender Recognition Act and reluctance to support grassroots independence campaigns means they are unlikely to attract more than a few percent of SNP 2nd votes. However, a credible organisation declaring for independence as a priority could not only attract significant votes from SNP 1st supporters, it could actually attract enough votes to decimate the number of unionists elected and become the official opposition in the Scottish parliament tasked with ensuring SNP leadership delays in pursuing Scottish independence are not tolerated.
Alex Salmond Led Party Could Become 2nd Biggest in Holyrood
The exciting Action For Independence (AFI) initiative appears destined to be blocked by the unionist Electoral Commission which is determined to prevent sensible tactical voting in May that could evict so many useless and unproductive unionists. But a new party seeking only 2nd votes led by former First Minister Alex Salmond could sweep up independence supporting 2nd votes and form an official opposition in Holyrood with the sole focus of achieving independence. No more delays, detours, or prevarications. A parliamentary grouping devoted to deciding how and when we secure our independence would focus minds and remove forever the futile and subservient tactic of seeking permission from Westminster to consult the Scottish people about leaving Westminster.
link to sptnkne.ws
The 2014 result was essentially in line with what the polls were predicting in the weeks before the vote. And it looks like the polls didn’t pick up on the voting intentions of postal voters.
If I was inclined to call it rigged, I’d look to the role of the media and the vow.
Spilled milk under the bridge though…
SNP chief executive Peter Murrell set to appear in front of Alex Salmond inquiry on Monday
link to archive.is
@Yossarian
This
link to theguardian.com
Questionable issues at Indy Ref 1.
I am always reminded of an incident at my polling station.
I was going to be first in and a small gathering came behind me.
An older chap came up to the locked glass school door and knocked on it.
I thought he must be an official of some kind.
A man inside seemed to know him and allowed him entry.
As I watched him speak to a second man inside, he turned
and revealed he was eating a NO rosette.
I banged on the door and demanded to speak to the Polling Manager.
He came and I demanded why he had someone inside influencing the vote
when that was illegal.
He went in spoke to the guy, explained what I said and the guy headed out
quite angrily and said to me “Your lot have already lost”?
I know it’s not enough to take further but he said it with the conviction of
someone who knew it for a fact rather than being very hopeful.
He was dress well like a country Laird or retired military officer.
He fitted the profile where you would expect Him to be a rampant Tory.
Something there was never right?
He shouldn’t have got in, he shouldn’t have been in with that Rosette, who was it he knew in there and what was he there to tell them and why didn’t he stay to vote while he was there.
Any minister breaching the coee must tender their resignation to the First Minister.
Must said offer be accepted?
In the event of the FM breaching the code, who do they offer their resignation to? Themself?
Edit: breaching the “code”.
Alyn Smith if he did attempt to make a criminal complaint for the phrase, “you don’t know what i’m capable of” as being threatening or abusive, is simply too stupid to breath.
‘you don’t know what I’m capable of’ – is an open statement that could mean absolutely anything, from baking a cake to going to the Police, to writing a strongly worded letter, etc.
Alyn Smith is in the House of Commons in a job that overseas the drafting and scrutinising of laws that affect us all – and he’s too stupid not to be able to work out the above falls short of criminality.
Well I’m guessing if any serving member of SNP MP’s does turn out to have close associations with JC’s assailant – absolutley no-one is going to be surprised if it turns out to be Daddy Bear.
This reeks of deflection, of, ‘I’m a victim too’.
BUM rags shat all over Scotland’s 2014IndyRef and every day of the week they continue their campaign of destroying Scotland’s prosperity & future for upcoming generations.
Yet there are still so-called indy supporters aiding & abetting them by posting direct links to their rags/articles/websites etc. It’s the same arseholes all the time, and some with more than one account.
Utterly disrespecting the majority on here who go out of their way to archive links etc. If yous think you’re getting at me then think again, yous are crapping all over Scotland, fools.
Weak piss graudnian article on land reform (severin c), future land sales “might” have a “public interest” consideration (so, if you urnae selling, just holding on to it, you’ll be okay) – with a couple of decent paragraphs
.. case for introducing much more stringent tests in Scotland was because its LANDOWNERSHIP LAWS ARE THE WEAKEST AND LEAST RESTRICTIVE IN EUROPE, not because the country is at the vanguard of best practice.
A previous SLC study found that Scotland, and by implication the whole of the UK, was an OUTLIER IN EUROPE. Countries such as Finland, Austria, Sweden and Switzerland have LIMITS ON THE SIZE of country estates; licensing laws; STRICT RESIDENCY RULES; or prior approval for sales to FOREIGNERS.
comedy fact : while hyper rich danes own loads of Scotland, Denmark has strict laws about land ownership, primarily aimed at stopping “all the germans coming over and buying up all the beachfront property”. Racist cunts these danes – shurely they should welcome the “new danes” as danish. Danish, German could I tell the difference?
It’s all a bit of a tease anyway as I think the SNP put the Duke of Buccleuchs “lad” on the land reform committee.
Lady Dorians decision on the Peoples Action on S30 will be published at 12 noon on 5th Feb at link to scotcourts.gov.uk
source: link to twitter.com
” Republicofscotland says:
4 February, 2021 at 3:51 pm
Stuart Mackay @3.17pm.
Thanks for the very interesting link.
I read in the National newspaper weeks ago, that during the 2014 indyref, that no one was allowed to check that the ballot boxes were empty before voting commenced.”
i was an agent at my local polling place and i was invited in to see all the empty boxes before they where sealed.
extraordinary claims need extraordinary evidence. wah wah wah doesnt help much tbh
Covid stats latest- Every day Bojoland’s total cases creeps
Closer to the Russian total of just over 3 Million Vs
Team Bojo just under 3 million.
The Russian population is 80 million more but yet another incompetence
record will be claimed by the end of the week.
Another Bojo second today.
total global death stats show
Mexico’s massive population had a greater daily number today.
Bojo has soared through the 110,000 death total now and has 20,000
up his sleeves for when the excess numbers are tallied.
Even without them, England, who tells us we are no good, incompetent even
will have their very own 100,000 Covid death tally for the weekend.
My, My. and there was BBC Scotland news with Unionist party reps all worried as
they knew someone who should have been vaccinated by now but who hasn’t received a letter.
Great to know we are only one off target of 4 million.
Ian B, Stuart Mackay, I have dug back through my old emails and found this. I just had a look and the post is still there. It is a FB post by a guy who seems to be a stats geek, and his calculations show that the Indy Ref was quite unlike any other vote and gives the distribution curves of them all and you can see what he means. Now I dont really understand this stuff, but if anyone out there does this sort of stuff, can they have a look and distill it a wee bit.
link to facebook.com
A wee excerpt from one of his comments…
“People are fuzzy, If you want an extra 10 SNP votes, you need to attempt to turn out greater than 10 real voters because they won’t all vote and they won’t all vote the way you want, even assuming your knock sheet is up to date. Stuffed ballots contrast massively, because to turn out 10 SNP votes you need stuff exactly 10 ballots, and you conceal the activity from the opposing voters in precisely the way that you don’t when you’re door knocking. The people whose doors you aren’t knocking may be influenced to vote by the opposition wandering about with clipboard knocking up their neighbours.
This known feature of stuffed ballots skews the data in a remarkably similar manner to how the SIR results are skewed.
Fundamentally, the question is, given this skew in results is trivially explainable by fraud, if it’s not fraud, what is it? And why does whatever non-fraud phenomenon it might be appear in no other ballot in the set?”
Just a wee comment on an earlier quote about Dundee and Glasgow having lower turnout percentages! Could that have been because they were massively both promoted as YES cities and that the No voters realising their vote was academic just didn’t show? So 100% of eligible YES voters against say 30% of NO voters reducing the overall %.
@ Daisy Walker at 2:56 pm
It seems Smith has made a complaint against someone of a similar indecent.
The man would do anything to get his picture in a paper(IMO)
The National readers are treating Smith with the reverence he duly deserves
I am well aware that there was no exit poll. The thing to remember is that the polls during the campaign may only have been taken within Scotland. Hence my mention of the post poll that showed the far closer result here than in the UK as a whole.
There’s a reason the unionists play the blood and soil card as an accusation and as an attempt to widen the mandate. They gain leverage over those born in Scotland living in the rUK, if there wasn’t enough already, to vote NO for fear of a modern “Alien Act” reminiscent of the way EU citizens were treated. I think 60% YES is a bit excessive but it definitely means you need a good few % in had if your polling is based in Scotland alone.
Also the NO side were “cheating” regardless of what they claim. They were keeping track of the postal voting and using that to feedback into their campaign. Although Darling might have had a fit of conscience in wanting the official one stopped.
Both those factors meant that there’d be an inbuilt bias towards NO in the postal vote. Which would render any exit poll a dangerous thing to hold.
This time it’s far worse as should we actually get as far as a referendum the result is a foregone conclusion. The only counter to that is a boycott to explain away why it’d be as high.
In three weeks time the truth about the lies might be known, but that isn’t a good reason to wait to campaign for candidates that:
* Will be dependable regarding delivering independence.
* Stand on a manifesto to make the may election an election on independence.
* Will be dependable regarding negotiations after the vote for independence.
* Will not be a science denier.
Make sure the candidate is electable
It is referred to as election because it is you (and other voters) that elect the government, but only to the extent that the candidates is already preselected.
So make sure they are!
INDEPENDENT says @ 4:46 pm
Just a wee comment on an earlier quote about Dundee and Glasgow having lower turnout percentages! Could that have been because they were massively both promoted as YES cities and that the No voters realising their vote was academic just didn’t show? So 100% of eligible YES voters against say 30% of NO voters reducing the overall %.
No, because their vote went towards an overall total. An individual No vote in Glasgow could just as easily have been said to have been cancelled out by one in the Western Isles.
What was a bit strange was the final Yes % in each city. I expected it to be much higher.
Confused
“Denmark has strict laws about land ownership, primarily aimed at stopping “all the germans coming over and buying up all the beachfront property”.”
Jings, just as well Denmark is still not occupied by the Germans as in WWII; if it was then they might still be sent their meritocracy from Berlin and be forced to learn only German in schools, not Danish.
Name (required) @4.18pm.
I’m pretty sure this is the article.
link to thenational.scot
Trying to understand all this is like trying to understand the investigations into who assassinated JFK.
@ Daisy at 4.05
Definitely a #MeToo
link to twitter.com
Alyn Smith
“However, Police Scotland said the message sent to Mr Smith showed no evidence of criminality”.
possible incoming lentil attack Stu…
link to twitter.com
“It has been drawn to my attention that claims have been made on a blog that alleged failings of the Parliament’s Salmond Inquiry are somehow my fault. I refute these allegations utterly and, once again, am taking advice.”
aye right
The SNP have instigated a massive push for postal votes in the May election. I don’t know if it’s nationwide but I received the form in the post a few weeks ago. They are also holding meetings at branches advocating both votes SNP on top of all the usual advertising for 2xSNP. The SNP manifesto will not be published until April – almost definitely after the last date for posting (6th April). I don’t know yet what to do with my constituency vote. It depends on what is in the manifest so that rules out a postal vote. I decided ages ago that my 2nd vote will be ISP. However for the ISP to get a list seat the SNP probably need to win the constituency. Do I hold my nose and give 1st vote SNP or spoil my paper? It really depends on what’s in the manifesto. No way can I vote for the GRA reform or the Hate Crime Bill as they are proposing. My SNP membership is hanging on a thread – at the moment I plan to keep it till renewal time (June) so that I can take part in any votes that come up.
i
@Ian Brotherhood 2.38: interesting story and reminded me of a strange incident on the evening of 18/9/14.
After the extremely weird decision of Yes HQ that afternoon to cease “knocking up” and ordering us to smile inanely outside polling stations and “prepare for a historic night” (what can I say?), I reported for duty at a church hall that evening.
This guy turned up and told me he had been sent by The Hub to help me until close of poll. I had never seen him before in any canvassing in August or September: clean cut, polished shoes, Barbour jacket, Scottish but middle-class sounding. I immediately thought “military” or “police” and was puzzled.
About 9.40, I’d had enough and asked my new friend if he minded if I went home (I’d been out since 8 in the morning) since we had no further traffic. He said no problem and said he would hang around until the boxes were taken up to East Kilbride for counting (I was unaware of this detail).
The first branch meeting after the referendum, the hall was packed with over 100 new members and who did I see up the back but my big pal, dressed similarly. I asked around the folk I’d canvassed with and no-one recognised him and I never saw him again, though each year after that we had elections of one kind or another and the usual leafleting and canvassing were going on.
Hindsight suggests Alex Salmond should have insisted on exit polls to show up postal vote pochling but for some reason this was not done.
Och well, we were fecked then and we’re fecked now, it’s just that it’s the SNP leadership who are doing it.
Six wasted years none of us can get back.
SNP politicians are supine heel hounds.
Welcome BTL @Iced Cooly says at 3:27 pm
MSM. Which news should we totally ignore and which news should we fully believe? I wonder if there is anything worth reading or viewing in MSM these days.
Michael Laing. I have similar questions and more over the Biden ” victory”.
I have always considered the 2014 referendum to have been rigged. Apart from the more obvious manipulations by the media, it really comes down to the saying that “it’s not the votes that count, it’s who counts the votes”. And as it was the apparatus of the British State that was used for the referendum, it was the British State who ultimately counted the votes. There was too much disparity in the voting data for it to have been a fair referendum. Perhaps another reason why we need to go down the plebiscitary election route and not the referendum route.
TS
I agree that would be the way forward.
@msdidi
The SNP manifesto will not be published until April – almost definitely after the last date for posting (6th April).
I think 6th April is the deadline for returning the application form for postal voting, not the deadline for returning the ballot paper:
Application deadline in Scotland
The deadline to apply for a postal vote for the elections on 6 May 2021 is 5pm on Tuesday 6 April.
link to electoralcommission.org.uk
The SNP can shove their manifesto where the sun don’t shine as far as i’m concerned
I will not be voting for them at all, my votes will be going to any non unionist party but them, they are toxic and an insult to my intelligence
Lets get rid of them all at the coming election, you know it makes sense, so do it
Sylvia says:
4 February, 2021 at 3:27 pm
ALISON BALHARRYat 3:13 pm “Stephen Noon in a Canadian Buddhist Monastery” – He is NOT a Buddhist -he is a JESUIT – The Secret Service of the Vatican –
Ah yes, you are indeed correct, my bad but I thought Jesuits were ok? thinking of Óscar Romero in El Salvador BUT I am an atheist,so not really an area of expertise.
Prediction for the content of James Hamilton’s report.
REDACTED
PS: An’ if ye read this, Jimmy Wollfe’ll hae ye up afore the beak afore ye can say ‘Jings! Crivvens! Help ma boab!’ (An’ dinnae mention it tae Wee Eck).
.
Peter Murrell has been tellt: Get yer baldy wee erse back here ya smug pie-faced dinner and take the Oath again. .
link to bbc.co.uk
Under threat of a Vote of No Confidence in yer ither hauf.
It’s more a bit bizarre to accuse Andy Wightman of “bottling” a decision when he resigned promptly after the vote.
If we’re going to attack MSPs for taking the time to think about their actions & their consequences – eg an assistant could lose their job in the middle of a covid pandemic – we might as well not bother with independence. The kind of Holyrood Wings is promoting – full of furiously stupid Nigel Farage types incapable of questioning their own beliefs – won’t be capable of delivering a better future.
This is particularly important with sex & gender. These are extremely difficult issues where we have to find a delicate balance between (apparently) conflicting rights. It’s virtually impossible to find a consistent, morally principled position which doesn’t offend someone.
“It’s more a bit bizarre to accuse Andy Wightman of “bottling” a decision when he resigned promptly after the vote.”
The fuck use is that to anyone? That’s like apologising to someone right after you’ve shot them dead.
I don’t know what “use” that will be.
That depends what you want the Scottish parliament to deliver on sex/gender issues. There will be other legislation and other votes.
It depends if, in Holyrood, you want the kind of people who are prepared to put their own beliefs & principles ahead of party & career interests. Signposts v weathercocks, as Tony Benn put it.
I really, really think that for non religious people, such as myself, the following now needs to be the lawful affirmation in Scottish courts and parliament proceedure from now on…
‘Get yer baldy wee erse back here,
ya smug pie-faced dinner,
and take the Oath agin!
D’ya wee wanker!
If nothing else it would show the court meant business.