The Lord Of The Rings
John Swinney knows the rules. He can’t pretend he doesn’t.
So let there be no mistake: if Police Scotland and the Crown Office refuse to investigate the First Minister’s open public confirmation this week that a serious crime was committed by the SNP over the “ring-fenced” fundraiser money from 2017 and 2019, it will be beyond any fair dispute that Scotland is a corrupt banana republic where the powerful and the elite can simply do whatever they want, as brazenly as they like, and the law will turn a blind, uncaring eye.
That the prosecutorial service of a nation is run by a government minister answerable to a political party leader has always been a source of embarrassment. It makes Scotland look like a tinpot dictatorship, a joke state where a vast, elaborate artifice of pantomime is constructed to disguise the fact that the country is a naked plutocracy.
The dangers are self-evident, but rarely have any leaders in such situations been so crass as to actually demonstrate them with such stark and shameless clarity by freely admitting to serious crimes, in complete confidence they won’t be held accountable.
That’s an opinion increasingly widely shared in Scotland.
That editorial leader from today’s Scottish Sun is speaking for every single person of integrity and decency left in the country. We have prima facie evidence that a crime has been committed – the misappropriation (at a minimum) of well over half a million pounds. We know exactly who did it, and they’ve confessed unambiguously and openly in public, in front of news cameras. Multiple properly-constituted complaints have been filed. And yet despite a five-year investigation, nobody has been prosecuted for it and we haven’t even been given the most cursory explanation of why.
And there are growing suspicions too, that the one person who WAS convicted – over an entirely separate crime which indirectly led from the investigation – might be about to be let off incredibly leniently for it.
Natalie McGarry was sentenced to almost two years in prison for embezzling £25,000. If Peter Murrell is handed a shorter prison term (or even no prison term at all) later this month – with the nation helpfully distracted by Scotland’s World Cup campaign – for stealing more than EIGHTEEN TIMES as much as McGarry did, on the grounds that he’s paid back the money to the people who also committed a crime with it, it will be a scandal of unprecented proportions in the history of Scottish justice, save perhaps the case of the Lockerbie bomber.
It was revealed this week that Murrell’s assets include a £613,000 pension fund. It is entirely conceivable that Murrell’s embezzlement contributed significantly to the size of that fund, which will have earned a very significant sum in interest over the years that he was stealing large amounts.
So by the time you also factor in the selling of all his illegally-obtained trinkets, it’s within the bounds of possibility that even after paying back the money, Murrell will come out of his crimes financially ahead. The SNP, meanwhile, will have been fully reimbursed for its losses and will be the happy recipient of a welcome and substantial unexpected boost to its threadbare coffers.
Unlike Alex Salmond – who Murrell conspired to imprison on false allegations, was found innocent on all charges but left financially ruined by the £500,000 cost of his defence – Murrell won’t even be out of pocket on legal fees. We all paid those for him.
The only people who will have lost out will be the people, supporters of all parties and none, who donated to a fund that was specifically, explicitly, stridently – and criminally – advertised as being for Scottish independence and NOT for general SNP purposes, and instead saw it spent on the latter.
And ever-useless, the Scottish media is allowing Swinney to dodge that issue and focus solely on donations from SNP members – the only donors to the “ring-fenced” funds who might reasonably be imagined to accept the money being spent on broader SNP interests.
(Coincidentally, a study today revealed that less than half of 2014 Yes voters voted SNP at last month’s election, with a whopping 31% of them voting for Unionist parties. “The SNP” and “independence” are not synonyms.)
Operation Branchform made front-page headlines across the globe, so it’s probably not an exaggeration to say that the world is watching to see the outcome of the new complaint lodged with Police Scotland and the Crown Office yesterday.
If there is to be no rule of law for the powerful in Scotland, if we are to be revealed as the only bent dictatorship in the world where the idiot population keeps voting for the crooked dictators of their own genuine free will, then that is something that the rest of the planet will notice, and then turn their faces away from the circus of our shame.
Nothing will convince me otherwise that the mess now in the SNP was orchestrated by the deep brit nat state. They enabled sturgeaon to rise to prominance and power, and she was only too willing to betray for the price of wealth and power.
Thank Heavans for wings and the work STU does. Without him, this would all go unreported.
You’re not a fan of Occam’s razor, are you?
It would appear The Sun is doing their bit, but Yes the man does deserve a lot of credit I’d like to see The Sun and Wings work on this.
Indeed.
How does that old song go….all together now, sing along with Peter;
“…you don’t get me I’m a servant of the union…”
or something like that….
[with apologies to the Strawbs]
If nobody (at the SNP) is charged for the open and shut case of a fraud crime and the convicted perpetrator of the embezzlement crime then we can amend House Jock McConnell’s tagline from 20 years ago thus:
Scotland: the best small corrupt country in the World
The record for 400K is 13 months.
“the country is a naked plutocracy”
Its even worse that that, Rev, for Scotland has all the features of a colony, including a colonial justice system that always protects the interests of the colonizer:
link to salvo.scot
colonizer and collaborators.
It’s starting to look very much like “the salary has to be seen to come down but we will sort you out with extra pension contributions secretly” has been a conversation.
We also have a HUGE problem with so called Indy bloggers and reporters claiming to hold the moral ground and wanting Independence and yet have decided to misinform rather inform the true nature of the SNP.
Its upsetting to watch crooks claim to be fighting for Scottish Independence, when all they are doing is preventing it for their own ends.
I have no idea why people go out and buy the national newspaper, which in the last 12yrs has done fuck all for Scotland or the cause of Independence. The paper belong to the SNP and we all know the SNP is a unionist party who are prepared to steal money from Independence supporters to maintain the status quo with England.
I posted a video Sean Clerkin speaking to a well informed individual who asked really good question and allowed Sean Clerkin reply.
As far as I’m aware Sean Clerkin and other are not going to let this matter drop. The video has been posted again please take a look its worth the watch.
Stuart you once stated you where going to start doing streaming videos on a regular basis. I really do believe this is essential and would enhance our cause to get the message out their to a different audience. If its a matter of money just ask and it’ll be there.
youtube.com/watch?v=Cip6_O6oLQU
Its a panto and let’s be honest the hero of SNP supporters Salmond groomed the Sturgeon monster to be his replacement so he can take blame as well
The fact Salmond paid for that mistake more than any other person in Scotland, died penniless and with his reputation in tatters probably absolves him in terms of intent. If he had known she was a psychopath and a compulsive liar he wouldn’t have gone along with her being his replacement.
Alex Stood down and it was an open floor for anyone to take over the party, as it happens no one stood against Sturgeon.
Alex Salmond did not have anything to do with it and anyone who suggest he did, needs their head read.
Loney;
That right, aye?
Scotland is no longer the country we would like to think it is.
I made a cup of tea in anticipation of reading this.
I don’t really feel like drinking it anymore.
The last paragraph sums up exactly what will happen: there will be no rule of law for the powerful (I think Murrell will wear a tag for 12 months and nothing more, we will have to foot his legal bill), we will be revealed as a bent dictatorship (plutocracy), idiots will indeed continue to vote for these crooks and the world will look on with raised eyebrows and a mixture of astonishment and pity.
Is there a way of a ref-fund donor making representations to the court to prevent Murrell paying monies to the SNP that likely do not belong to it?
The corruption of the SNP is the direct result of a foreign power’s long-term activities designed to capture the ‘rallying point’ of Scotland’s independence movement and in doing so stall the movement.
The abuse of entrusted power for personal or private gain, often undermining ethical standards, transparency, and institutional integrity is the natural outcome – possibly encouraged, or facilitated, or at the least ignored by Westminster – of placing poor quality, low intellect, criminally minded individuals at the top of Scotland’s government and public institutions.
Individuals who have been told, or led to believe, they are under the protection of a ‘higher power’ than Scotland’s own compromised judiciary or, indeed, the bewildered Scottish people.
Westminster, and the trap of devolved government, sits at the root of everything that is wrong with Scotland.
Scotland is not a plutocracy.
Scotland is not a banana republic.
Scotland is a prisoner of imperial England, a non-self-governing illegally annexed territory, the possession of a foreign power.
Scotland is a colony.
That’s the way Northy. Blind denial in the face of reality.
You have the makings of a good jihadist.
Mr. Beggan, what is your explanation for, firstly, the conduct of electors who support the SNP, secondly, conduct of Scottish Govt. personnel (elected and appointed), thirdly, cinduct of most of the news media in Scotland, all having acted to bring about the circumstances now exposed?
Do you hope that full exposure of the full facts of the Salmond prosecution are exposed?
Do you rule out the possibility that factors mentioned by Alf Baird and Northcode could have played a part in creating this situation?
The analysis made/reported by Alf, Northcode and others does offer explanation of why some people will not acknowledge the possibility mentioned above.
“…Blind denial in the face of reality.”
Indeed… I couldn’t put it better myself – well, actually I could (in both English and Scots), but it would be a waste of words.
Scotland a plutocracy? Well yes, but then Scotland isn’t short of words that could be used to describe its system of government. A quick google gives plenty of examples –
Pathocracy: Government by a ruling elite made up of individuals with severe personality disorders (such as psychopathy and narcissism) who lack empathy, remorse, or moral conscience.
Kakistocracy: Government by the worst, least qualified, or most unprincipled citizens.
Kleptocracy: Government by those who steal and embezzle state funds.
Oligarchy: Government by a small, well connected self-serving wealthy elite
Puppet State: Government that is partially independent but largely controlled by an outside power.
All of them fit
Clip of KIM LANE SCHEPPELE addressing constitutional challenges for Hungary’s new prime minister PETER MAGYAR since taking over from autocrat VIKTOR ORBÁN:
“A SWAMP FULL OF ALLIGATORS”
link to youtube.com
This reeks of coloniser influence through corrupt wannabe politicians in the SNP.
I knew from 2019 when I left that party as a member there was something rotten, only now thanks to Stu is more of the truth becoming known.
I left the SNP in 2019, having become sickened by what it had become under Sturgeon. It had become a party of suspicion and scheming. Mirroring Sturgeon’s own nasty personality.
I suspect that the ringfenced money is only the tip of the iceberg. I think that millions are involved and that others apart from Murrell have been taking money from the Scottish people. There have been so many projects that have gone badly wrong that there has been plenty of scope for criminality.
I hate to say it, but I think the best chance of getting to the bottom of this is to involve Westminster. Clearly, none of our institutions can be trusted.
Just wondering, as the items that were taken off the list of goods were mostly items that would suit a woman, were they ordered by NS and paid for by the SNP account?
Maybe that is why the police wanted to charge her.
Sadly, in the UK, politicians are able to tell blatant political lies with relative impunity. The Boris Johnson (lies on the Brexit bus) and Alistair Carmichael (leaks concerning Sturgeon) cases proved this beyond any reasonable doubt. Courts don’t like intervening in politics and take the view that the remedy should be decided by voters at the ballot box. I would be very surprised if action is taken against the SNP for misappropriation of the supposedly ring-fenced fundraiser cash.
If COPFS refuses to investigate, the question becomes whether the Lord Advocate can credibly claim the matter doesn’t meet the threshold —Hint She can’t do that credibly,
given Swinney’s public admission, the documented solicitations, and the specific legal citations.
It would look less like prosecutorial discretion and more like protection.
That is exactly the territory where JR becomes genuinely dangerous to the establishment.
Last JR I funded was Alex Salmond against Nicola. I will support this one too
Gonnae use a Ringfenced crowdfunder if needed. Ironic if you need one to get her in court.
The disgraceful argument that everything they do is aimed at achieving an independence referendum, and therefore they could/can legitimately spend the indyref fund on anything they like, is not an argument that is likely to hold up in court. Everybody knows that’s a feeble argument and I have no idea why they keep regurgitating it.
On that basis, I anticipate they will move on to a new argument along the lines of ‘we will produce the funds when/if we secure an independence referendum’ which of course could only be falsified if a section 30 was granted, etc. And that is, legally speaking, a slightly better argument, even if it leaves open the question of where the ring-fenced money is right now.
As for the topic here and the likelihood of the police opening a new investigation, of course they will.
Just remember that police investigations for the SNP have always served as a sort of sanctuary that allows them to put thorny issues on the back-burner, often for years; so, get ready for that tired old line, ‘we can’t comment on an ongoing police investigation…’
And a police investigation is a better solution for the SNP than any sort of Holyrood inquiry, for other obvious reasons. Police Scotland is basically a tyranny with one head which is a lot easier to ‘influence’ than a cross party inquiry and the many people that would take part in that kind of investigation.
The big added bonus of a police investigation is that it would effectively put major limits on what the general public (and Wings) can say on the subject, and that must be a top priority for them right now, probably the highest priority of all.
For all those reasons, a new police investigation is to be expected.
Interesting that you should cite the Lockerbie case. When I began to look at that I genuinely believed that if it could be proved that the bomb was in the suitcase John Bedford saw at Heathrow, then the legal system would recognise this, recognise its implications for Megrahi’s conviction, and sort itself out. The difficult part, I thought, was proving that the bomb had been in that suitcase.
I know better now. I proved that the bomb was in that suitcase, and all I’ve had is the runaround. The latest move (SCCRC in 2020) was to say that that indeed, if my theory was correct (it is!), that would be fatal for the Crown case. But since the evidence on which I base my conclusions was all before the original trial, that’s essentially irrelevant. You need new evidence to challenge a conviction.
Then they went on to say that in any case, they know something I don’t know, which means that it’s not *absolutely certain* that the bomb was in Bedford’s suitcase. But they’re not going to tell anyone what that is. So go away, annoying person.
I am now completely and utterly cynical. I believe that if someone were to find a long-lost CCTV film of a terrorist putting that suitcase in the luggage container while Bedford was off on his tea break, they’d find some platitude to justify setting it aside. Nothing is to be allowed to disturb the official narrative that Megrahi did it in the airport in Malta. And to hell with actual verifiable truth.
That’s the country we’re living in.
The SNP have become a very corrupt political party. This did not happen by accident!! MI5 will have played a huge part in the downfall of a once honourable political party. All since Sturgeon took over.
MI5 will protect those who corrupted the SNP. A warning shot to the conspirators is that they can make or break at a whim, Imprison indefinately, or, ensure at the very least a lenient sentence with huge wealth at the end of it. All pain for by the way, by the very people who donated to see Scottish Independance!
The brit security forces will be very pleased with their work! Discredit an independence party, have the people loose confidence in the SNP and put Scotlands independence on the back burner. All this whilst the british state syphon of our resources and continue to ingrain the colonial mind set.
Those SNP supporters who continue to support these criminals are almost beyond contempt!