As he launched his party’s election campaign for the local and mayoral elections due in England on 2 May, a little over a month away, Keir Starmer promised that if he becomes Prime Minister after the Westminster general election expected to be held later this year his government will introduce “full fat devolution”. That’s a phrase with unfortunate connotations for a Scottish audience who recall Gordon Brown’s vow during the Scottish independence referendum campaign that the UK would introduce ‘full fat federalism’ within three years of a No vote.
As anyone who has been paying even the most cursory attention will know, the only full fat thing we got from Westminster after the no vote was in the bag was full fat contempt. We got some very trivial tinkering with the powers of the Scottish Parliament, we got English Votes for English Laws, we got the shameless lie that the powers of Holyrood would be legally protected from Westminster meddling. Then we got the Brexit that Scotland didn’t vote for and a Westminster government that used it as an excuse to mount a further attack on the powers of the Scottish Parliament.
The only full fat thing on offer from Keir Starmer is full fat deceit. This a man whose campaign for the leadership of the Labour party was the most deceitful and mendacious election campaign in British politics this century, and that’s saying something given the lies told by the leave campaign in the 2016 EU referendum and the full on hysterically lying propaganda of the original Project Fear during the 2014 referendum.
Those who organised Starmer’s leadership campaign now openly admit that he had no intention of keeping any of the promises he made when he was trying to court the support of the Labour party membership. This is a man who will say and do whatever it takes to get himself into power, he feels not the slightest remorse about lying through his teeth in order to win the power he craves. He did it during the Labour party leadership campaign in the wake of the party’s defeat in the 2019 general election, and he’s doing it again now.
Absolutely nothing that Starmer and his acolytes say now can be trusted, for all that he talks about ‘change’ and about pushing out ‘real power’ to the English regions this is a power hungry individual who craves the near absolute power that the corrupt and dysfunctional Westminster system offers to the leader of the party which wins a majority of seats in the House of Commons and who despite his promises of ‘change’ will do nothing at all to change a system that gives him exactly what he wants.
Starmer promised a “new Take Back Control Act” which he said would set a “presumption towards devolution, and new powers for mayors over transport, skills, energy, and planning, so they can rejuvenate our high streets and generate growth for every town and city – a full-fat approach to devolution,” in England.
Nothing that Starmer will do will enable any other elected body to challenge his supremacy. The promises he’s making to the English regions now are very much in the same mould as the promises Gordon Brown made to Scotland ten years ago. They are insincere and unprincipled and made purely with the goal of securing votes. Once those votes are in the bag Starmer will feel no reason to be bound by them. How many times does the man need to deceive us for people to see what he really stands for. He stands for himself, he stands for his own power, when he says he stands for change what he really means is changing Rishi Sunak for Keir Starmer. That is the totality of the change that Starmer represents.
Once Starmer gets into Number 10 that full fat devolution for the English regions will be run through focus groups and Starmer’s right wing advisors, it will be heavily diluted and watered down in Commons committees. Eventually what will reach the statute book will be the palest shadow, an unrecognisable travesty of what Starmer is promising now, and it will be nothing at all that is remotely capable of challenging the near absolute power that Starmer craves for himself. He is not spending all this time and energy in the single minded and deceitful pursuit of power for the sake of power simply to give it away once he gets it. If you believe he’s going to do that, Gordon Brown has a vow to sell you.
British colonialists expropriated land and resources from colonised peoples in the British Empire with beads, blankets and mirrors. All that Scotland gets from Starmer is a vague hint that there may be a promise of some beads, blankets, and mirrors at some unspecified date in the future.
Notably Starmer has said nothing at all about extending devolution in Scotland, and that is what really proves the insincerity of his promises to the English regions. Extending devolution in Scotland would entail strengthening the powers of an elected body which does have a limited ability to stand up against the overweening power of the Westminster government and the dictatorial power of a British Prime Minister. Starmer is never going to permit that, he is as authoritarian and centralising as the Tories he claims to represent a change from.
However Starmer is quite likely to tamper with the devolution settlement in Scotland and he absolutely will do so if the Labour party makes significant inroads into the SNP’s dominance of Scottish Westminster seats at the next general election. What he will do will be to strip powers from Holyrood and give them instead to Scottish local authorities. Labour will brand this as ‘real devolution’ but what Starmer will really be doing is to diminish the ability of Holyrood to challenge him while giving power to local authorities which are far too weak to pose an effective challenge to the centralising power of Westminster and which are much more likely to be controlled by a compliant and collaborating Labour authority. All that Starmer is really offering is full fat devolution deceit.
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The problem in Scotland is that the Local Authorities are elected by the STV system and the unionist parties can collaborate to keep the SNP out of the administration. Devolving power to Labour and Tory fiefdoms is the plan. But, as you say, he won’t be devolving real power, more like responsibility without the financial power to make real change.
Lesley Riddoch has done some excellent work on showing how Scottish Local Authorities are enormous in comparison to a European norm. They are also relatively powerless.
Highland Council area alone is the size of Belgium.
Classic BritNat tactics of divide and rule, North Britain can’t have it all their own way, England wants some of the money and self determination as well, pah!
Devolution plans have been on the table of England’s government for many years but their fancy no doubt very expensive website that they had only just two or three years ago, has all but disappeared. I wonder who benefitted financially from that lucrative project, hmm. The EngGov have some info about plans for ‘devolution’ for England on their website, it’s all a con of course.
Starmer will use the idea to instil a totally false sense of hope and empowerment in the folks of England, to cushion the blows of their disastrous consequences of Brexit, affecting all the nations of their so called UK. What with the English governments’ ‘freeports’ and Charter cities ‘plan’, folks will need a distraction, because the UK is being sold off, lock stock and barrel to private corporations. The people need a distraction from being disenfranchised, disempowered and basically despairing in a UK that is now a third world poor, unhappy place in which to be trapped.
I hear that one in seven people will be unable to vote in the general election, due to England’s
terrible ID introduction to stop ‘voter fraud’. The UK is run by fraudsters and Scotland needs away from the cabal in London pronto, or be destroyed and your government dismantled, it’s quite simple really.
” That’s a phrase with unfortunate connotations for a Scottish audience who recall Gordon Brown’s vow during the Scottish independence referendum campaign that the UK would introduce ‘full fat federalism’ within three years of a No vote ” – And we may expect ” Look at the small print ” reprising said gentleman in due course…
I watched a most enjoyable and incisive teardown by Peter Oborne a few days back, ah, found it https://youtu.be/8wxV , which brought home how incestuous and distant UK politics has become under England’s hegemonic politics – It’s essentially a stitch-up – The problem for the political and media class is that England’s electorate is finally waking up from it’s ‘Mail’ etc stupor and realising they’ve been conned. Again.
And do remember that “full fat devolution” was on offer previously in England and ostensibly rejected, so what’s next from Starmer, “You vill obey !” ?
The UK’s political and media class are rapidly running out of road…. It’s time Scotland built bridges…
I watched that a couple of days ago too. Excellent critique of Michael Gove and his evil ways. Peter Oborne is very perceptive which probably means his exposure in the British MSM is now nil. He does publish on Middle East Eye.
Example
https://www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/war-gaza-real-extremists-uk-politicians
…and big fat walls.
Good link. Thanks Bob.
In his biography of Starmer Tom Baldwin clearly exposes Starmer’s undemocratic nature .
Baldwin discloses the attempt by Starmer to change the voting system for Leadership contests by dumping the ‘one member , one – vote ‘ system which had elected Corbyn and reverting to an Electoral College format , whereby the Trades Unions would hold the balance of power along with MPs .Knowing the popularity of Corbyn among many ordinary members ( not MPs ! ) he was concerned that a similar popular figure ( not him ! ) would eclipse his ambitions .
This attempt failed but other changes from the system used to elect Corbyn DID favour the Speak Your Weight Charisma of a candidate like Starmer . The rest is history , sadly !
He is an ‘I must win, and at any cost’ type guy. He’s doing huge damage to the UK in his quest for personal power. I’ll put money on him being the last PM of Britain, and he could be the one, seeing it completely break up all in one go.
It’s not just Scottish left of centre unionist voters he’s isolating with his rampant right-wing English nationalism, Wales is showing huge disillusionment too, with certain to vote numbers only a bit higher than England due to Plaid Cymru voters wanting independence. That and Yes to indy levels hitting historic highs. Wales is now where Scotland was a few years ahead of 2014.
It is quite incredible that after 14 years of Tory mis-rule, with them totally on the rocks, Starmer is not riding the quest of a wave, but destroying the Labour party and with it the UK.
And the regime is sleepwalking into this, for it can only see what it wants to see, which is it’s apparent perpetuation in the form of VI numbers.
The total lack of democratic principles of Labour is seen in their excitement at the prospect of a wholly disproportionate number of MPs based on their vote share. Not only that, but Starmer must know his win depends on voters giving up hope and not turning out. He spends enough on polling so he can weather vane his way to the top after all.
One of Starmer’s invisible backers probably watched John Hurt’s 2006 portrayal of High Chancellor Adam Sutler and thought, why not….
English local election campaigns are kicking off, so Starmer is offering the moon on a stick as usual. Free hot St. George’s cross buns and a ‘non-w*ke’ England top to every household. Then if they win, ‘Hard choices means sorry, we can’t deliver’.
As you say, he’ll not devolve any power to anyone, just maybe some responsibility so he can blame others for him messing things up in true Tory style. The way he’s purged his way to the top of Labour shows you he’s a total control freak micromanager.
Tory Red and Blue, yup – they are a shambles in England, and have left a mess. Roll on independence. We can fix all thereafter.
Labour’s Angela Rayner’s in a spot of bother about something, raised by a Tory MP. Annelise Dodds, Scottish born, Oxford Graduate – another one – and Labour MP for Oxford East pops up and accuses Tories of petty politicking. Huh! She should venture north and explain about petty politicking to her colleagues in the northern outpost where petty politicking is endemic and a shared pastime with their Tory/Libdem playmates, eagerly regurgitated by the colonial media.
As an Oxford educated Englishman, Prof C will struggle even more than amateur Scottish me to understand Scots from polling data.
But he’s not deluding himself, and is noticing elephants in the room.
https://archive.is/6v2Dn
He said that… Anas Sarwar and Keir Starmer still suffered from a lack of enthusiasm.
With Starmer expected to win the next election, Curtice said “by the time we get to 2026 the [Labour] party may not be very popular.”
He added that in the UK “for the most part, and this is true in Scotland, Labour are where they are not because of enthusiasm for them but discontent for their opponents, principally the Conservatives”.
Labour are already deeply unpopular. 70% of Scots oppose a UK labour government in polling, and that is far worse than they had ahead of 2011 and 2015.
I sincerely doubt Labour will do anything like as well as they think they will in Scotland even though the Tories will vote for them as an against the SNP vote
Sarwar’s smirky sneer is turning into an angry snarl, he knows it’s not going that well
Quite why anyone in Scotland would want to vote for Starmer’s “Labour” Party, I don’t know. I could understand if they wanted to vote for Sarwar’s Labour Party – unfortunately there is no such beast. Sarwar is operated as a total <strike>muppet</strike> puttet by Starmer.
While I’m on, testing out my old used to be trusty up and down swivel comfy padded arm office chair which no longer stayed up till I repaired it with a small length of old strong washing machine hot pipe kept “just in case”, over the inner rod to stop it sliding back, a couple of washers from my “that’ll be useful sometime stock”, and to surround that to strengthen it, and also have a secondary stop over the shiny bit just in case, with the aid of just 4 glue sticks [1], there’s some stuff going around that Freeports in Scotland would stop us going back in the EU.
I think this is nonsense – the EU has free zones, and all that would be needed, if anything, I think, is to remove any state aid from our freeports, though I daresay the EU would set a fairly generous time limit for that to happen. Anyways, here’s the EU free xones:
https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/document/download/adcde3a5-4d3b-4c73-b8d2-d0bfd459814b_en?filename=FZ%20LIST%2017%20August%202022_CLEAN .pdf (remove space before pdf)
[1] Just think, I could have spent time putting that on youtube for you to waste 2 hours watching instead of 30 seconds reading an overlong sentence. The wonders of text! And yes, I AM a hot melt glue gun artist. Now now, not THAT sort of artist 😦 Not these days anyway 🙂
The North did not vote for an Assembly.
Scotland voted for Devolution/Independence. That has to be honoured by UN principles of self determination. Or break International Law by preventing a vote for it. A ref, that people want by a majority.
Another lawyer breaking International Law. Illegal wars, redundant weaponry, people sick and dying. Wasting £Billions of public monies.
Scotland can vote the unionists parties out. Including Starmer’s. No opposition.
Och lol. Tories don’t even use the butcher’s apron in areas of the UK with high ethnic minority populations such as Scotland, where most folks are Scottish in (self-identified) ethnicity.
And it absolutely is the far right’s flag; it’s what all the pro-Brexit ‘patriotic’ British parties like the Conservatives, National Front, BNP, Britain First etc use. The British Orange Order love waving it in Scots faces while spitting on them.
Parties that use flags in their materials are right-wing as a rule. It’s only if a country isn’t independent that you see the flag used across the political spectrum in support of independence.
Please let him put jacks through Scots doors. ‘Labour – Make Britain Great Again!’ No, sorry ‘Let’s get Britain’s future back’ which is basically the same thing.
https://archive.is/zkZYi
Keir Starmer faces discontent as Labour MPs reject union jack election flyers
Keir Starmer is facing discontent from Labour MPs over the dominant use of the union flag in election campaign material amid concern it may alienate ethnic minority voters and others.
Concerns were raised at recent meetings of the party’s black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) group at Westminster and also by London members of the parliamentary Labour party. There is also unhappiness among some activists who are reluctant to handle the material.
There was criticism from those at a meeting of MPs from ethnic minority backgrounds, including Starmer’s chief of staff, Sue Gray, and the chief whip, Alan Campbell, of freepost leaflets that were – as one MP put it – “plastered with union jacks”…
…“For a lot of communities we are talking about colours that are associated with the National Front or another far-right group. Using the flag might be great for trying to reach those ‘hero voters’ but why can’t we have segmented branding,” they added, using a phrase Labour strategists coined for the slice of the electorate who swing directly from Tory to Labour and who tend to be more socially conservative and pro-Brexit.
“I can see how it would work in some places but it’s definitely detrimental in university towns, and in heavily BAME seats,” said another MP who attended one of the meetings and who added that “multiple colleagues” had told him of activists refusing to give out the leaflets.
“They just look like union jacks really, with a bit of red on the side. There’s not even a Labour rose. You don’t need to prove your patriotism by wrapping yourself in the union jack,” they added.
*Look like a real Scotch man*
This is the advertising blurb for a baseball cap with a Saltire logo sold by Amazon, needless to say they have received the most scathing of letters with all the relevant information from me on the subject
But that’s not all folks
Amazon were selling another baseball cap with a union flag logo topped by a crown with the letters “London” below it, and this one Amazon describes as the *Scottish flag baseball cap*, my response and barely controlled fury compelled me to once again reply giving a detailed description of flags and countries and who and what they represent
Bad Marketing or deliberate propaganda? we’ll never know
if you look at seller, you will probably find they are from china as lots of clothing items on Amazon are from chinese companies.
Likely they know little about the UK and its political and national makeup.
a lot of Amazons content is in the market place sold by companies other than Amazon, similar companies also sell on ebay.
To check use the seller filter (on left hand menu) to amazon uk and amazon eu.
( i do this for anything I buy so that I know its sourced and sold by Amazon, apart from suppliers/manufacturers like Stella who sell directly from Amazon)
The Welsh take …
Starmer faces Labour unease over use of Union flag in election campaign (nation.cymru)
Nope is the answer.
Which is why I keep saying Sarwar should pray for a Labour loss. If Starmer wins, Scottish Labour are screwed, as is the union.
Why do people think the SNP want Labour to win? Do you think it’s because they believe English Labour a decent, honest, left of centre party that will ‘Give Scotland her future back’? That Labour will open it’s arms to co-operation, granting Scotland devo max and the right right to chose that over indy via iref2? Come on.
Nope, they know a Labour win means independence. Starmer is not only a right-wing weather vane, he’s weak and self-interested. A feeble pushover. The Tories at least do staunchly defend the union, and would carpet bomb us Scots if they could to keep a hold of our lands. Starmer is a pathetic, pretendy patriot who only cares about personal power and glory. Tories love the union jack, Starmer just sees it as a way to get elected.
Maybe saying bye bye to Scotland and all it’s ‘bloody SNP’ voting jocks might help keep him in power if he’s leading the new One Nation Conservative Labour. We should be voting SNP to reduce any majority he has, making Scotland a nuisance to him. The more times we show him up like over Gaza, the better.
https://archive.is/jVzQl
Can Scottish Labour survive a Starmer and Reeves government?
IN an article I wrote for The National earlier this month, I explained why I see Labour winning this year’s General Election yet feel a Keir Starmer premiership is likely to be overwhelmed by crises because his programme for government is not fit for the immense political challenges that lie ahead.
I advised the Yes movement to hold its nerve and use the next 12 months to improve both the case for independence and our strategy for securing it ahead of a golden opportunity to advance in 2026.
He’s right, and he’d not seemingly even aware that it’s looking much worse for Starmer than just ‘not being fit for the challenges’. The polls say Labour is going to get the same support as 2019 – their worst defeat since 1935 – in terms of actual voters, so they will not even have any democratic mandate to rule. One mother of a crisis coming.
Scotland’s voters must use this general election to vote against the Westminster political parties by voting SNP and do not listen to those voices that complain about the SNP *not getting us independence*
Politicians in Scotland cannot *get us independence* we the people do that by constantly voting against English rule
Westminster rule has tried everything to break the Scottish spirit for democracy by using delaying tactics like “Now is not the time” and rigging their own English supreme court to rule that Scots are not allowed to ask themselves a question on the subject of independence “Not allowed”
We are the sovereign people of Scotland, and the people say we want to ask and answer that question, and the way we do that is to keep saying NO to English political parties by voting SNP
Vote against England rule by voting SNP, then and only then by our population’s weight of numbers can our politicians *Get us* what we demand of them
England cannot stand against the consistent majority desire of Scotland, the rest of the world won’t let them
Scots don’t want Westminster MPs now. That’s it, they’ve had enough. Now they want indy.
The only purpose SNP MPs have is denying Scottish unionists a cherished seat in <i>their</i> union parliament. That and being a thorn in the side of English parties that deny Scots (and other minorities) their basic human rights, such as the right to vote for the government of their choosing.
‘SNP – for Scottish independence’ on the ballot please. That’s it. That’s the central purpose of SNP MPs, and by all means at their disposal. Disrupt, embarrass, draw attention to, walk out in protest, vote to withdraw…
Domestic policy is for our own national parliament, not the one for a union parliament Scots don’t wish to be part of.
Of course we don’t want Westminster anymore, but if we don’t vote against it they’ll spin that as happy acceptance of it
I agree, although no amount of spin will change the situation, nor do the union any good going into the far more important – likely defacto indyref – Holyrood 2026.
The long term trend is that we should expect a new record turnout for our own national elections, building on the previous historic turnout set in 2021. That saw the highest ever share for Yes – a majority – on a the highest ever Holyrood turnout, on the highest ever signed up electorate. It signalled Holyrood becoming the most important parliament to Scots, just as polls are showing independence is now the settled will.
My money is that after 2 years of a hated pro-Brexit, sectarian flag waving, English nationalist right-wing Labour government denying Scots the right to vote, we will see a new record turnout and overwhelming vote for Yes. This will come on the back of the lowest ever vote share for unionist parties as a function of the total electorate ever in the coming union elections, as Scots desert the UK political system, boycotting in protest as e.g. voters in Iran are doing. This is what polling is saying will happen at face value.
I bring up Iran as an example of how worthless spin is. The regime is desperately spinning away, but nothing can hide the fact that the lowest turnout ever since the revolution totally undermines the legitimacy of the elections / political system there.
And the English right wing media will make sure every Scot knows that Starmer has no democratic mandate due to the low level of turnout; assuming this comes true. They will attack his administration relentlessly, pointing out that he got no more votes than the disaster of 2019, so has no authority to rule, and instead is a dictator. Which will be true.
The planets are aligning people. Be prepare for things to happen very quickly as the UK constitutional crisis reaches the culmination it has been heading towards as a result of Labour’s last stint in No 10. That was put the SNP in Bute House and led to iref1 after all.
If people in England want to see what Labour’s full fat devolution looks like in practice,all they need to do is look North of their border for an example.
Labour’s representative in Scotland (Broon),promised this but when it came to the pointy end of delivery (Smith commission) Labour vetoed any proposals that would increase the powers of Holyrood.
Starmer isn’t promising anything for Scotland because they already tried that trick and have been found out.
Joke of the day:
England’s rivers and surrounding seawater has polluted fish life with cocaine, Rishi Sunak has ordered a commission to investigate and Michael Gove has bought a fishing rod
🤣
re. Starmer’s and Labour’s Union Flag obsession :
rearrange these words into a well known phrase or saying :
”Scoundrel refuge the Patriotism last is of ”
“Starmer is a flag shagger”
And I claim my £5.
(I was assuming you wanted an anagram …)
Well here’s hoping Starmer’s Labour Tories stick their union flag leaflets through every door in Scotland
I can hear Sarwar’s squealing from my house, “Nooooo! for the love of God please Nooooo!!!”
I was thinking that. Imagine handing out union jack flyers in Glasgow. People will think you are organising wan ae they British Orange Walks.
Stauner eunionjackulates in his pants
Pay out the fiver now
The implications of the British Democratic Unionist party leader Donaldson being charged with historic sex offences may have indirect effects on our our situation.
This is not a good place to be for the main British party in the North of Ireland going into a key Union election, especially with it’s traditional ‘hardcore’ rival British Unionist Voice having, nonsensically, entered an electoral pack with the English nationalist Reform, badly dividing unionism. Potential for vote splitting and abstention from former unionist voters galore now.
British unionism in the NoI was in a mess before the shit hit the fan over Donaldson, now it’s really up to its ears in doo doo, and you can tell the British media knows it.
The 2019 election was seminal in NoI as the unionist parties lost this for the first time in the history of the province. The Irish parties didn’t win though, rather they had 8 to the British 7 seats, with 1 for Alliance, the neutral on reunification but pro-EU, anti-Brexit, socially liberal party.
Current polls have Sinn Fein in the lead, reversing the situation in 2019. So we could end up watching incredible historic events unfold, with the anti-partitionist, anti-sectarian (Irish) parties winning n outright majority of seats. That would shake the very foundations of the union. An earthquake. The pressure would be immense for border poll planning.
English Labour used to back the right of N. Irish people to decide, and had a pact with the pro-reunification SDLP. The Labour of today however is hardcore British unionist. We actually are now in a place where Keir Starmer is effectively siding with the British unionists in N. Ireland. With those butcher’s apron flyers, he might as well be joining Orange Walks in Belfast.
I will keep saying that watch out, the UK may fall apart completely, all in a very short space of time. Our domino is wobbling wildly, but so is the one in N. Ireland. The Welsh one is swaying back and forth increasingly, while even England’s is looking very unsteady, as exemplified by the possible mass election boycott and rapid rise of Reform.
Back in 2014 it was just us Scots rocking the boat. But events since then, notably around Brexit, have completely destabilised the entire UK. A constitution crisis of epic proportions is in the making.
Forgot to say, but if SF win a majority of NI seats, and withdraw from Westminster as they always stand on doing in their manifesto, then Westminster has no mandate to govern the province.
Holy s**t.
If Sinn Féin gets both a majority of seats and votes in the next Westminster election, I’d say Starmer better hopes he loses. Because whoever wins will need to either call a reunification poll (and if lost, have on their record that they were the PM to lose Northern Ireland) or refuse and good luck justifying that to anyone but the British establishment itself.
Anti-partition parties just need one more seat to win a majority for Northern Ireland withdrawing from Westminster.
It would not be a mandate for reunification, but the EU, UN, and US would be all over England re a border poll.
London would have no mandate to rule NI if her people have just elected a majority of MPs on a withdraw ticket under British rules.
Starmer is going to get what he deserves IMO.
In such a case, the only way for London to show such a mandate would be for the SoSNI to call a border poll and for the unionists to win. And I’m doubtful in Starmer’s ability to win any vote where he has to actually win and not count on their opponent self-sabotaging.
After all, last I checked the two best electoral machines in Northern Ireland are Alliance (who would be neutral in a border poll) and Sinn Féin (who would be for reunification).
Latest MRP seat poll from Survation has the SNP winning a crushing majority of 72% of Scots seats.
This is with SNP voters disengaged right now and not, it seems, answering pollsters, boosting unionist party VI shares.
https://archive.is/TU10l
Poll: Conservatives would be wiped out in Scotland at General Election
The poll of 15,029 adults and MRP analysis by Survation was conducted between March 8-22.
All MRP polling consistently shows the SNP winning a overwhelming majority of seats, even post VI ‘drop’ a year ago. Was about 60% of seats post drop, more recently 70% of seats. This when things are bad for them polling-wise.
There are people in Scotland who plan to vote Labour at the General Election who previously would have voted for the SNP. I’m talking in particular about those who support Independence and will choose to vote Labour.
Many of them are doing this in the mistaken belief that this time they can get rid of this rotten Tory government if Labour win enough seats to form a new government.
They are mistaken because the the party with the best chance of winning Tory seats in Scotland is the SNP as they are in 2nd place in every one of these seats with Labour usually a distant 4th. It makes sense then for any Labour voters in these constituencies to be voting for the SNP instead of Labour if their goal is to minimise the number of Tory MP’s returned to Westminster.
It’s a simple fact that voting Labour in these Tory held seats in Scotland will reduce any possible Labour majority at Westminster because if the SNP vote doesn’t beat the Tory vote then the Tory will be re-elected.
There are people in Scotland who plan to vote Labour at the General Election who previously would have voted for the SNP. I’m talking in particular about those who support Independence and will choose to vote Labour.
Polls show this is not the case at all, at least NET. Prof Curtice agrees with me on this.
Lab are operating in a unionist voter pool, and gained from Con post mini-budget. However, they have not won over a single SNP 19/21 voter NET. They only look like they are chasing SNP heels because of low turnout projections due to Yes voter disengagement. That said, we should be encouraging Labour voters moving to Yes to vote for Yes parties, as these having been moving to Yes in record numbers.
It’s the same in England. Labour have exactly the same level of absolute support as the disaster of 2019. It’s just a huge apparent vote boycott / record low turnout projection that is favouring them. So they get have a high share, but of a record low number of voters saying they plan to vote, ergo no mandate.
Personally, this UK GE is a pointless pile of crap now Scots support indy. The result in Scotland will not change anything. So another 72% Yes MPs. So what.
It is our own elections that matter now indy is the settled will. 2026 is our day of destiny.
That said, I would encourage Scots to go out an vote SNP if simply to deny unionists the seats they so deeply desire in their union parliament. And it will be so much fun if Irish parties win in the north of Ireland.
As far as I’m concerned I’d like to see the smirk wiped from Starmer’s face and for Sarwar to be served a large portion of humble pie if they fail to make the kind of breakthrough that some keep trying to persuade us Labour are about to do in Scotland.
I don’t believe this for one second that they will do as well as some are predicting and we want everyone of those voters who voted for the SNP in 2019 to get out there in 2024 and vote for them again.
There can be no denying that if the SNP vote is down on 2019 then some previous supporters of the SNP decided either to stay at home or vote for some other party. If it’s the latter I doubt many of the SNP switchers will be voting Tory.
It might be a good idea to encourage as many as we can to get out and vote SNP rather than describe the election as “a pointless pile of crap”. I do understand the sentiment behind that point of view but for now I think the message would be best to be kept simple.
Get out and vote for the SNP if you want Scotland to be an Independent country. End of message.
Vote SNP for an independent Scotland.
There you are – made it shorter, bolder and centre stage.
It might be a good idea to encourage as many as we can to get out and vote SNP rather than describe the election as “a pointless pile of crap”.
In my posts I consistently encourage people to vote SNP.
The ‘pile of crap election’ is not actually my opinion per se, but the opinion of Scots according to polls and recent election outcomes. It’s one shared by voters across the UK too it seems, being faced with two cheeks of the same erse. We’d better be prepared for a mass boycott as that may be the outcome.
If the SNP go into the election just saying ‘We can be a strong voice in Westminster’ voters will simply think ‘Why are you lying to us? Scots are not allowed to have any say in running the UK!’. This, after all, is why the settled will is now independence (polls indicate). Which is why the SNP need to give up on Westminster too now, at least in the conventional sense of sending MPs to ‘participate’ in union politics, legitimising Westminster rule.
However, if ‘SNP – for an independent Scotland’ appears on the ballot paper as seemingly planned, then that would change things completely. But the SNP would really need to get that message out there. Hopefully the British media would do this for them as it tries to argue a vote for the SNP isn’t a vote for indy, even if it absolutely is because it’s right there on the ballot.
I mentioned the other shadow looming over the UK in the form of a SF victory in the north of Ireland. They will go into the election on a ‘withdraw’ mandate again, presumably. That is where the power of an SF vote lies. If they win a majority and don’t take their seats, Westminster rule of the province is totally de-legitimised. Huge f’n crisis. If they stood on a ‘strong NoI voice in Westminster’ message, them winning could be safely ignored by England. There are stories now appearing where people are arguing that SF should take their seats in Westminster. Bums are starting to squeak.
This election is shaping up to trigger a constitutional crisis across all 4 nations. Which is why it’s exactly the right moment to start putting independence on the ballot.
I absolutely encourage Scots to go out and vote. However, Scots will do as they see fit and that can’t be stopped. I’m not sure what exactly they are going to do. Whatever that is, it won’t be good for the union. That is all that polls are clearly saying right now.
Excellent article by Legerwood of this parish, over on TUS.
https://talkingupscotlandtwo.com/2024/03/30/if-mrs-thatcher-had-not-existed-then-labour-would-have-had-to-invent-her/
It appears that even with the entire British media in Scotland behind Starmer winning the general election and wiping out the dreaded SNP, that dreaded SNP by the British media’s polling companies figures are still predicted to win over 40 seats, my own guess is that’s probably around at least a half dozen light, and by the time the campaigning by the SNP gets underway those numbers may well rise even more leaving *England’s UK of Great Britain Empire of the undying Monarchy* a tad embarrassed
It also appears by the numbers that the position of British nationalism in Scotland might remain pretty much unchanged as Tories vote Labour just to retain a foothold in Scotland and attempt to spin that as a win for Starmer’s Labour with the exact same numbers of unionist MPs they had between them before the election
The only sad downside to this General election seems to be the two Alba MPs who stole the SNP voters trust and time with their defections and refused to stand for re election has annoyed those voters so much they look like being replaced by Labour MPs, (unless Nicola Sturgeon turns up and campaigns there for the SNP) and that folks should be an indicator and lesson to all voters who are interested in independence for Scotland, because as a result of voting Alba it’s going to get you Labour (as planned? who knows eh? but keep your eye on the House of Lords)
So there you have it folks *Vote Alba get Labour* *Vote Labour get Tory* *Vote Liberal Democrat get a bouncy castle and 6 houses built on Orkney*
There was a wholly Scottish poll of just over 1000 people during the week by Ipsos who usually give the SNP much better percentages than the rest of the pollsters.
The only results published from the poll though were those that made the headlines about Yousaf being “more unpopular” than Sturgeon, the other party leaders popularity was measured and some stuff about what was most important to Scots, NHS, Cost of Living etc etc.
There was nothing at all about voting intention in the General Election or an Independence question. I find that really odd and can’t imagine a full scale poll by any company without these questions being asked. Maybe whoever paid for the poll just didn’t like the answers?
They’re a laugh when you think about it, I mean if you try to think of any more popular politician than Nicola Sturgeon any where and you’d struggle, so to say Humza is less popular than she could be said about almost every politician on planet earth
I think they call that *find something that looks negative* to say
I just remembered one poll when Nicola Sturgeon was FM that put her about 60% more popular than the Queen of England
” Maybe whoever paid for the poll just didn’t like the answers? ” – Or the media mafia didn’t…
Not so long ago ALL the media were wailing in chorus about relative public price increase ( Water charges ?) in England v Scotland, but what stuck out was they would only refer to Scotland’s case by the % increase, no mention of the cost… It didn’t take long before someone pointed out why, the Scots were still paying way less than in England….
Normal for Ipsos they run their headline vote intention polling (latest of which came out last month)
https://www.ipsos.com/sites/default/files/ct/news/documents/2024-02/ipsos-scottish-political-monitor-february-2024-charts.pdf
Seperate to their polularity polling which came out last week.
Yousaf the most rated of all leaders. Apart from Sturgeon of course.
This is with considerable Yes / SNP voter disengagement over the past year, so the wind in the sails of unionist parties; at least that’s what polling strongly points to being the case.
RE that MRP poll.
Anyone who thinks a 468/650 (72%) seat right-wing English nationalist conservative Labour majority from 45% of the vote on the lowest turnout in British political history, would do anything other than bring the UK rapidly to an end, needs their head examined.
That would be the greatest democratic deficit Scotland – and the rUK – has ever been subjected to. Labour winning an extreme authoritarian level of MPs on around the same number of votes that cause their greatest defeat since 1935 in the previous election, could not possibly end well. If you think the anti-Labour (Gaza) protests are already big, wait until Starmer was in No. 10 delivering the same Tory austerity as Sunak before him.
Even if Yes Scots stayed at home en masse, allowing Labour to pick up 30% of those that actually did turn out here, 70% would have voted against Labour, making them more unpopular than Thatcher’s Tories (first term, possibly second too if less than 28%).
UK is sleepwalking into an epic constitutional crisis. Labour need to win a narrow majority on a strong turnout UK-wide. They also need a strong turnout in Scotland and comfortably into the 40% bracket share of the vote here to be turning the tide. This is the total opposite of what polls predict.
Indeed, Starmer’s Labour look like not losing the general election by losing more votes than they have ever done before, what they can’t do is actually win the thing by weight of voting numbers for themselves
In England it’s looking like General election? who cares, we hate you all but somebody’s got to lose more, so the least hated loses less and calls themselves the winners
It’s almost Putinesque, Starmer wins England even when he loses
I hope The Monster raving Loony party takes this opporchancity to field lots of candidates
Unsurprising.
https://archive.is/ckCID
Labour membership falls by 23,000 over Gaza and green policies
Labour has suffered a sharp fall in membership over the past two months following controversies over its policy on Gaza and its U-turn on green investment, according to figures released to its National Executive Committee (NEC). The drop of more than 23,000 members comes despite the party holding a commanding lead in the opinion polls, which suggests it is now seen by the wider electorate as ready and able to form the next government, after 14 years of Tory rule.
It’s not just about Gaza though is it – Labour and Tory alike are going to be demolished at the next GE because the electorate don’t matter to them except on leaflets with relentless hyperbole..
So once a Labour always a Labour is no more
Success!!! All Starmer needs now is longer hair and a frock and he’s the full Thatcher
he’s got a uncanny resemblance to the comedian Dick Emery,
you are awful Dr Jim, but I like you.
latest poll has snp on track for 42 seats and to stay 3rd party in westminster.
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/mar/31/survation-poll-analysis-general-election-conservative-party-tory-mps
https://www.bestforbritain.org/spring-2024-polling
The problem of Tory voters moving to Labour in Scotland.
Tory voters are apparently about to ‘make Scotland Tory free’. 🙂
Fact of the day.
In the two most recent MRP polls, one from Find Out Now (fieldwork ended 12th February) and the other from Survation (fieldwork ended 22nd March), the SNP got 40/57 and 41/57 seats respectively. They’ve not had over 40 seats in an MRP poll since Sturgeon was still leader.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_polling_for_the_next_United_Kingdom_general_election#Seat_predictions
Incidentally, this number of seats is consistent with full Scottish polling when you account for Green tactical voting etc (there’s no way 5% will vote Green under FPTP, if simply as they’ve no Green standing).
That’s right, when the SNP are at low point in the polls due to Yes voter disengagement (the evidence says) – around about 3 points lower than 2017-19 mid term levels – they are still predicted to win 70 odd % of Scottish seats in an epic, crushing victory right up there with what the media is saying Starmer will get. That and Yes is in majority. Of course in deluded Brexit Britain speak, Starmer on 70% of seats is ‘a commanding, nae insurmountable lead’, whereas the SNP on the same and Yes in majority is ‘Scots coming home to Labour and the union’.
Think what might happen if polls pick up for the SNP like they did ahead of 2011, 2015/16 and 2019/21, when voters engage. At some point the ballot papers will start dropping through letterboxes…
Remember, the SNP has become ‘the natural party of Scotland’ and can be expected to remain so until independence.
Scots will never come home to Labour. Those days are past now and in the past they must remain.
The problem for unionists is that they are divided, and that’s breaking up the UK.
Starmer is attacking the Tories rather than uniting with them like the days of BetterTogether, putting the union at risk. At the same time, the Tories have made such a mess of their time in office, they are sending voters to Labour, potentially allowing the SNP to ‘sneak in by the back door’ in current Tory seats.
Unionists voters are about to ‘make Scotland Tory free’ according the last MRP poll. That’s doing the SNP’s bidding.
Oh the irony.
Here’s some analysis from Survation of what their MRP poll results show when you take a closer look.
https://www.survation.com/what-we-can-learn-from-our-latest-mrp-and-what-we-cant/
A very interesting read.
What should worry unionists is the SNP still being projected to win a crushing 41/57 = 72% of seats while the polling winds are so heavily against them.
The low turnout projections are disproportionality favouring unionists, if simply because these are the unionist’s own British elections for their British parliament. The elections that matter the most to them. The SNP are on just 3.2% of the UK total in this poll. They got 3.0% in 2017 and 3.9% in 2019 for reference. So the share is not that high, but it results in another epic majority of MPs.
As I’ve been saying in various posts, Labour have gained a little in Scotland, specifically from Con post mini-budget. Unlike in England where these gains have been subsequently lost to Reform, here Tories are sticking with Labour as the ‘anti-SNP’ ticket. No SNP have moved to unionist parties NET, and overall the total unionist vote appears lower than 2019 as a share of the total electorate. That would be expected as part of the multi-decadal decline of unionism in Scotland.
Anyway, for current low project turnouts, the gains from Con do put Labour in contention in some Lab-SNP marginals, mainly in their past heartlands of the central belt. But at the same time, it wipes out the Tories in Tory-SNP marginals such as the borders and NE. Ergo, it’s unionist voters that are planning to ‘Wipe out the Tories’.
If turnout projections rise – which we’d expect them to at least a little as they always do if they are low in the run-up to a vote (if they are very high, they may drop back, like in 2017) – then it will all be to the benefit of the SNP. After all, turnout directly correlates with SNP share. High turnout = SNP gains, low = unionist gains.
Still, 72% of MPs would be a stunning victory and would most likely be a bigger win that Starmer gets UK-wide.
Yey! Someone else has spotted it.
https://archive.is/XL6vX
Britain is usually excited when it boots out a tired old government. Not this time
Why are so many voters so unsatisfied with Britain’s main parties? In the opinion polls, despite Labour’s strong lead, their combined support is low by historic standards. Barely two-thirds of people say they will vote for them. One poll from this weekend predicted the Conservatives’ worst ever election result: only 98 seats. Meanwhile Labour’s membership is falling fast. Also, unusually, the main parties’ leaders are unpopular at the same time. While Rishi Sunak is one of the least-liked prime ministers ever, Keir Starmer looks likely to succeed him with his personal ratings firmly negative and trending downwards. The unacceptable replaced by the unpalatable.
This is not how Britain is meant to move towards a new political era. In the run-up to 1964, 1979 and 1997 – our three most mythologised modern changes of government – there was widespread excitement about the administration in waiting…
Putting aside the dubious questions of myhtology maybe, just maybe, British electors don’t think that Starmer would mean a new political era but rather more of the same. Odd that Mr. Beckett didn’t think of that one but rather went for complaining that it isn’t how it’s supposed to go.
P.S.: But then I’m talking of a journalist who, when adressing the fourth modern change of guard he discussed, grumbled that Clegg leading a then resurgent LibDems meant the upswing wasn’t solely for Cameron’s Tories.
What these numbers also show is the attitude towards Scotland and its people, basically if Starmer got say 38% of the entire English vote they would call that a landslide and a mandate to govern the entirety England’s UK, but if the SNP get 50% of the vote in Scotland they say it means Scotland isn’t interested in independence because a small percentage in a bigger population is more important than a bigger percentage in a smaller country
Maybe they don’t teach percentages in English schools, just big number counting
One of these special moments when Scotland isn’t counted as a country but a regional colony of England, like with Brexit
Some truth from the Daily Fail for a change.
“Some” being the operative word.
Systematic blocking and defunding of grid upgrades and interconnectors connected to power in Scotland by Tory politics was the principle driver for the current situation, ” regulatory and planning failures ” is the standard Tory retro-excuse for when their chicanery goes pear shaped.
“the UK is a wind super-power” and “renewable electricity from Scotland, where most of it is produced“
So WHICH country actually is the ‘wind super-power’?
Precisely the point.
Also, as others have pointed out, if we could manage our own affairs that “surplus” electricity could be heating and lighting homes, hospitals, schools and every other institution and running trains. That would further reduce the carbon footprint. No need to waste it.
i read SSE report on future generation.
they gave 3 scenarios all of which included electrification of all railways in scotland with hybrid or battery for those few lines that cant be.
report also looked at moving to electric heating and industry moving away from gas and prodicing green hydrogen.
so most of that extra production will not be wasted and any surplus can be used for hydrogen production. Which can either be exported or turned back in to energy for Scotland.
Precisely. Apos I didn’t see your comment before making the same point myself.
full report here…
https://www.ssen.co.uk/globalassets/about-us/dso/ssen-shepd—final-v3.pdf
👍
Extra cable lines are being introduced to get £Billions of Scottish renewable energy transported south. With no extra remuneration for Scotland. Bills in Scotland are higher despite Scotland being in surplus and nearer the source. The companies wanted to charge Scotland less, Westminster would not agree.
The South are getting £Billions of cheaper Scottish energy with no recompense for Scotland.
The Westminster energy and fuel policies are a disgrace. Spending £Billions decommissioning Nuclear. Wasting £Billions on nuclear projects. A total waste to line Westminster politicians pockets. The Tories and their associates borrowing Chinese money which has to be repaid with profit. Invested in appalling schemes and total waste. Scottish economy has to pay the price for Westminster total failure.
Right, time to start bombarding the police with vexatious hate crime claims folks.
Let’s not disappoint the BBC.
And who the hell is Joe Regan anyway? A friend of former Scottish Labour leader Ricardo Leopold?
The Energy costs situation in Scotland is ridiculous. More than 20% of my Energy costs in this latest monthly billing period are for Standing Charges which have just increased today by more than 1p per day per fuel (Gas and Electricity) We are basically paying a premium to pay for Energy Companies that went bust which is absolutely disgraceful. Scotland has some of the highest energy costs while we have in many ways benefit the best Energy resources
That should have said provide the best Energy resources.
It was always going to be a scam – Essential utilities such as gas, power and water are effective monopolies, there can be NO competition in the real sense of a ‘market’, so they had to create the imitation of it one.
I did think for a moment when Labour came to power, they might correct the generation-consumer map because so much had changed, but not a bit of it, market socialism had come to town, cashflow is king, with a golden parachute for failure…
I never tire of repeating that there are NO standing charges in Romania NOR are there different rates according to where you live – In my area it’s Eon the german giant, but in the EU they are kept on a short leash…
If you oppose this type of thing, vote for Starmer’s Labour.
https://archive.is/ZBZOC
All Scottish benefits to increase from today as Government pledge takes effect
All Scottish benefits increased in value on Monday, as the Government’s budget pledge takes effect.
It was announced in December the Government would uprate benefits by 6.7% from April 1 for the next financial year – in line with consumer price index inflation in September of last year.
The increase means the Scottish Child Payment increased from £25 per week to £26.70 per week, while the Adult Disability Payment rose to £184.30 per week.
According to the Scottish Government, the increase cost £370 million.
“Our investment in social security helps low‑income families with their living costs, enables disabled people to live full and independent lives, and supports older people to heat their homes in winter,” said Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.
I think we may have got one over Scotland in our ability to strengthen our borders with (read, ‘against’) our neighbours:
Welsh and English nationalists unite to reinstate Offa’s Dyke
(Published this morning.)
Britain’s media are working desperately hard to redefine the hate crime law into an anti criticism law
Almost every *news* report is framing this as a law against criticism *in your own homes* pile of nonsense, and using one of Britain’s leading well known twitter nutcases to promote it for them, along with poor old Elon Musk who at any other time is regarded as a loony by Britain’s media, but in the case of the hate crime law Musk has suddenly become the fount of all legal knowledge
Anybody can criticise anything, there’s no law against it, what the law says is, you’re not allowed to “stir up” hatred against whatever it is you don’t like, which is why we see outside our Scottish parliament a whole load of confused and deliberately put together for political reasons just plain old fashioned troublemakers hoping to get themselves arrested so they can get on the great British media like some of them were probably paid to do
The game of these people is immediately given away when you see banners waving like Wings over Scotland the well known Tory internet blogger from Bath who pretended for years he was a supporter of independence for Scotland but since his plan in collusion with Alex Salmond to destroy the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon did not succeed has since admitted the truth of his actions, and now he’s just a regular unpleasant individual
The hate crime law does not mean hordes of police will invade anyone’s home, bug their phones or demand stop and search to be carried out upon them, it means do not organise hatred against others or the cops will be having a word with you, it’s really that simple
Perhaps Britain’s media should be the ones being more careful about the way they carry out the government of England’s instructions in Scotland, and maybe that’s what worries them more than anything else
Yep – James’s original article ” Scotland’s new hate crime law… in 90 seconds “ appeared at the crack of dawn, and dawn responded ‘I’ve a f…n headache’. The subtitle was ” The BBC’s James Cook breaks down the debate over a new hate crime law in Scotland which has been causing a stir. “
I regret my comment at the time on his/this article “If anyone knows about causing a stir, it’s James Cook…”, I should have gone very much farther…
Reprising his earlier promotion on the BBC’s UK website, we now have the developed ” Scotland’s new hate crime law takes effect amid free speech row ” with the subtitle ” Police say they expect a flood of complaints but the government insists the act provides protection “… Anyone else else detect the distinct aroma of Eau de Latrine ?
How the other half lives eh ? The news where you are is what I say it is ? Shafting the populace in your desire for a gong, a mere bauble to accompany your latest suit, is not a good look for an “impartial journalist” ? ….
My apologies to moderators, but if this arsehole really want’s to move to London I’d guess hundreds of thousands would turn out tomorrow to load the van, and not say a word….
It turns out that the legal advice Wings sought on the Hate Crime Act was from Axiom, whose most senior advocate is Roddy Dunlop KC. So not an opinion to be sneezed at!
Territorial extent is discussed mostly on page 6 of the images (jpgs) on wings website:
https://wingsoverscotland.com/a-thousand-paper-cranes/
Very interesting too, it does seem that the Act can register worldwide in theory though not much in practice except in extremes.
Perhaps the Act should have had a specific territorial definition in the Act (perhaps S.4). It will be interesting to see if there are any judicial reviews when the extent is considered internationally rather more than in a wild DM headline.
Meanwhile I look forward to the creation of a Bill and Act of the Scottish Parliament which is totally within its legislative competence but has worldwide scope regarding the issues of the ability to test the self-determination of its People, and implementation of that will as demonstrated by the test (a referendum or perhaps even, a de facto referendum such as the GE).
And you have to wonder – is “International Law” really so ineffective?
Wings? Who cares what a Tory supporter in Somerset thinks ?
exactly!
Yes, an England loving Tory from Somerset really has his finger on his pulse of the Scottish nation.
As I said before, all the right people are up in arms about the prospect of stirring up hatred against minority groups being a crime. Campbell is case in point.
And the motive must hatred / attempting to stir that up or it’s not a crime.
I quote our FM, who gets his fair share of racist hatred from brits, including death threats etc.
https://archive.is/MMgey
‘What I would say is the threshold of criminality in terms of the new offences is very, very high indeed. Your behaviour has to be threatening or abusive and intended to stir up hatred.
“And I’ve asked this question of many people who’ve opposed the act: ‘Can they give me an example of behaviour that is threatening or abusive and intends to stir up hatred that they don’t think should be prosecuted?’ And no answer comes.
Campbell found a nice little earner in stirring up hatred against trans people, so I can see why he’s worried.
By contrast, I’m known for being pretty forthright expressing my opinions, but since I don’t hate any minority groups, I’m fine. I don’t hate so you don’t see that in my posts.
What the likes Campbell, Fraser etc fear is that they’ve been indulging in incitement of hatred towards minority groups for donkeys ages. It’s who they are. But they knew they’d not have their ear felt. Now they might find the police having words with them, which is exactly what should be happening.
And if the police judge no crime has occurred, nothing is recorded against the accused. Just a stat is added to the excel sheet so they can keep tabs on whether reports are on the rise / wane, which groups feel they are being targeted etc, all to improve the policing of such things.
It’s a ‘Me too’ moment for all those who’ve suffered abuse but felt nothing could be done about it so have not reported it.
https://www.advocates.org.uk/
“The Faculty of Advocates is the professional body to which Advocates belong. The Faculty exercises regulatory responsibilities under powers delegated to it by the Court of Session under the Legal Services (Scotland) Act 2010.”
Who is the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates?
“Roddy Dunlop KC is the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates.”
UN charter. People have a right to self determination and self government when people vote for it. International Law. Members have to conform.
Scotland got Devolution because Scotland had (has) less democracy than Eastern bloc countries achieving self determination and self governance. Westminster unionists had to comply or be out of the EU (UN).
No UN member has to right to block it. Scotland just needs to vote for it. Vote out the opposition. Vote out the unionist Parties. No opposition. No one to stop it.
The police arrest then investigate. SNP policy. The Police should investigate then arrest. Instead of arresting innocent people. Keep them on remand too long. Criminalising people. They can lose their job. Wasting public monies.
There should be a caution for mild misdemeanours. Not criminalise people. Too many people are in jail. Too many are on the spectrum, without diagnosis and any support. Too many addicted to drugs. They should be in proper rehab facilities. More cost affective and efficient.
There already are ‘breach of the peace’ and other Laws that could (can) be enforce. Without increasing crime Laws for abuse. ‘sticks & stones’ etc. Names will never hurt. A few swear words when people are angry and lost their rag. Over reaction.
pop 2% Muslim. It would be difficult to find someone to insult.
Women who co habit, the majority not have equal rights. They have to put in a claim within a year 1/3. There is little legal aid. It can cost £thousands. Abused women have to stay in unsafe, unhealthy places because they do not have equal rights.
Letting agencies illegally demand 6months upfront rent plus deposit. Even from people (women) with good credit. Leading to homelessness.
Names will never hurt. A few swear words when people are angry and lost their rag. Over reaction.
– I usually have little time for the woman, but try telling that to Diane Abbott.
Breach of the peace was and still is the most non specific law on the planet and far and away more *dangerous* in its interpretations (being totally up to any police officer to decide what is and isn’t breach in his/her *opinion*) therefore breach of the peace is not a law but a guidance without boundaries
This law has got sod all to do with Muslims or any other religion, those characteristics are already protected, this is about *stirring up hatred* against any group or individual
There’s a massive difference between not liking something and stirring up hate against it, do get with understanding the programme, and stop doing the Tories work for them by deliberately misunderstanding it
Fiona and Marlene tell us what is coming up in April from the Indypodcasters. They have a conversation with Gordon McIntyre Kemp and the Believe in Scotland and Pensioners for Indy March.
They have the Conventions for Scotland and Wales as follow up action after the next GE.
Details here:
So much for Sarwar as FM in 2026.
https://archive.is/78YPX
Anas Sarwar snubbed as Scots ‘prefer Douglas Ross’ for first minister
The survey, commissioned by the Alba party, asked a representative sample of 1112 Scottish adults: “Who would make the best First Minister?”
Across Scotland as a whole, Humza Yousaf remained ahead with 25.8% of support.
He was then followed by Ross, Sarwar and Alba leader Alex Salmond grouped together at 18.2%, 17.1% and 15.4% respectively.
The only way to explain how the hell you get this weird result is:
On that last point, if Scottish Labour have lost their population share, they’d be down nearly 2k members in a couple of months. That would be 12% of the last reported number I can find which is Feb 2021.
There you go, skier. These are the latest membership figures and they show a downward trend:
“In February 2021, the membership figure was down to 16,467.[2] Leaked figures obtained by the Daily Record in February 2022 showed that nearly one third of Scottish Labour members were in favour of another Scottish independence referendum. Asked whether “in principle” there should be a referendum on independence, 30% agreed and 57% disagreed.[25]“
Scottish Labour – Wikipedia
Ok, mental note to read article fully and not do stats using phone calculator while cooking.
The poll was thus for preferred FM:
25.8% SNP – Yousaf
18.2% Con – Ross
17.1% Lab – Sarwar
16.5% Grn – Harvie & Slater
15.4% Former SNP -> Alb – Salmond
7.0% Lib – Cole-Hamilton
This totals up as (ex DK):
57.7% Pro-indy FM
42.3% Pro-union FM
So another ‘bad’ poll for indy or something like that.
A survey commissioned by the Alba party kinda says everything you need to know
It should read *An advertising campaign to get Alex Salmond noticed* revealed that this survey could get him in the paper
Noticed as less popular than Ross and Sarwar. That’s not something to advertise.
And Salmond stepped down to focus in his RT programme rather than independence.
Folk in Scotland are going to have to understand, whether they like it or not, is that there are now no politics in Scotland anymore except for one
Independence or not independence
Those who are against Scottish independence will oppose and disagree with every single proposition, law, bill, word or piece of legislation that the SNP bring forward, so know the British nationalists by their words
All TV and print media, the English government, Tory, Liberal Democrat or Labour opposes Scottish independence, and no country ever to have the desire for democracy or to leave the British empire has ever been treated differently, not so many years ago England’s government would have sent their army in to murder us for our opinions and yet they have the brass necked temerity to use their media to misrepresent Scottish opinion and law simply because in this day and age they cannot murder us
If any British Nationalist can name one single country where British forces did not murder the indigenous people for being against British rule I’d very much like to hear which country that was
Why not start with our own country of Scotland and maybe our nearest neighbours Wales or the Republic of Ireland and work our way around the world to find this British magnanimity, good will and democracy of which they speak
C’mon opponents of independence name one country, just one single place on this planet who’ll testify that having British rule over them was just ! Grrreat ! and not a soul was ever murdered for not liking it
1
So that poll has:
41.2% want an SNP FM
18.2% want a Con FM
17.1% want a Lab FM
23.5 DK
ex DK, that’s 53.9% wanting an SNP FM unless there were other options.
53.9% Spookily around the same percentage and rising as wants independence
As per above, post-cooking, I checked and it’s actually as per my above comment:
https://tinyurl.com/2y3fj4wr
This totals up as (ex DK):
57.7% Pro-indy FM
42.3% Pro-union FM
Yes, that looks about right for indy.
But folks, Sarwar behind Ross is totally nonsensical. It needs explaining. Labour have been polling well ahead of the Tories in Scotland and UK wide, and Sarwar used to do ok before Starmer went right wing, dragging the former down with him. Last VI polls had them stuck in the post-mini budget low 30’s like they got in 2011. I’d expect Sarwar to get close to that wanting him as FM, as that’s what you are voting for with a vote for Labour in Holyrood.
This says something is up, like oversampling of Con 2019 and Labour taking hits in the background. ‘Scottish’ Labour have just likely seen 2k members quit in protest at Starmer’s right wing Gaza bombing backing union jack Toryism, maybe disproportionately more given they’re more left than England labour.
Without regular Scottish polling from all the pollsters, it’s hard to know.
But if I was Sarwar, I’d be focussing on the enemy; the party that is damaging Scottish labour and Sarwar’s ratings. I’d be attacking them or at least looking to break ties. That party is of course English Labour; the biggest threat Scottish labour face going into this election.
If you think of British nationalists as being generally racist then their preference for DRoss rather than Sarwar makes perfect sense
A bit of anger, a bit of hate stirring then. Abbot is no longer in the Labour Party. A bit of anger, hate stirring. Goes around and around. Could not even defend because of restrictions from the Party.
Gaza genocide denied by Unionist Parties. They will have to charge themselves. The Police cannot decide. They control the Police. Round and round they go.
Everyone has a different interpretation. What offends? and what does not. Already Laws to comply for abusive behaviour. Without people being recorded for non crimes. Illegally.
Do not reply with anger and hate? The morality Police. The religious police. The commandment broken all the time. ‘Thou shalt not kill’. Or bear false witness, the Police as well.
JK Rowling the first to try and waste police time with spurious hate crime claims.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c51j64lk2l8o
These people totally obsessed with trans folks are so weired. Perverted too given the central focus on what’s between people’s legs. Imagine wasting so much of your life with such an all consuming obsession over a minority group. She’s actually now demanding the right to incite hatred towards minorites. That’s what the law protects against, so if you oppose it, that’s what you want to be able to do.
if she cleary incites hatred towards my transman nephew, l’ll report her. How on earth would it not be right to do that in a civilised society. My nephew has the right to not suffer public abuse and discrimination simply for not matching right wing Conservative stereotypes. As does everyone.
JK Rowling has no time for the SNP and is so against Independence that she donated £1 million to Better Together in 2014 and was their largest donor.
https://news.sky.com/story/jk-rowling-gives-1m-to-keep-scotland-in-uk-10401326
The ITV good morning, which I was unfortunate enough to catch part of, had a segment dedicated to dissing the new bill and the SG. They we’re busy telling us what we wouldn’t be able to say when the broadcast was cut, presumably because what they were saying was presumably not allowed under current laws in the UK of England.
Golfnut
Hate crime law in England & Wales as defined by the Crown Prosecution Service:
Hate crime
The law recognises five types of hate crime on the basis of:
Any crime can be prosecuted as a hate crime if the offender has either:
Or
https://www.cps.gov.uk/crime-info/hate-crime
Aye. JK should watch out in case police in England feel her ear.
But then the comments she made were not clearly aimed at inciting hatred (which is why, I understand, the police said nobody complained = beamer for her and the BBC etc), they were just to waste police time and get her face on the news like somehow her views are important. They’re not. She loves the sound of her own tweets, but statistically, they are worth 1/5,454,000 in weight. The vast majority couldn’t care less what a right-wing conservative Tory who moved to Edinburgh from England thinks. The BBC thinks we idolise these ‘pillars of britishness’ for some bizarre reason.
Just because she successfully ripped off The Worst Witch and has made millions out of amassing kid’s pocket money in her mansion, doesn’t somehow make her view on the subject more important than that of e.g. a transman quietly going about their lives and not in the internet 24/7 dog whistling about non-trans people. Which is where Rowling gives her prejudice away; she never e.g. mentions that transmen outnumber transwomen. It’s always gas lighting about transwomen (as, due to her sexism, that prospect is perceived as a better way to make people see trans folks as a threat), specifically cherry picking very nasty people (which make up a small proportion of every human group, including women) like Isla Bryson as ‘as an example of trans person’.
She’s certainly not motivated by care and respect for trans people who are, in the main, harmless humans like the rest of us, that’s for sure. No, her obsession seems pretty unhealthy and offensive if not actually criminal. She’s not quite as batshit as right-winger extraordinaire Graham Linehan has become on the issue, but close as minority group obsessed ‘get our country back’ keyboard warriors come.
On this topic, as someone who supports GRR, I am right behind hate crimes on the basis of sex being added to the list, which the Scottish government plans. That way women are protected against hate crimes for this characteristic too. However, it should not only be misogyny, but must vitally include misandry too. It must apply equally. Both sexes treated the same under the law is the only way to ensure equality of these. Broad brush derogatory comments directed towards ‘women’ or ‘men’ as groups are both equally wrong, particularly if the motive is to incite hate / fear.
Here is an example of what is considered a crime under the act. Making an embarrassing bigot of yourself like Rowling isn’t criminal by contrast.
JK et al. don’t want this sort of thing dealt with:
https://www.copfs.gov.uk/publications/hate-crime-in-scotland-2022-23/html/
There is a reason the this new act, as the graphs show.
All part of the right’s increasing focus on identity politics given the abject failure of their economic polices, which have led to stagnation and soaring inequality. So now it’s a ‘war on w*ke’ as they try to stay in power. They have successfully incited hatred as you can see.
An example of a hate crime happened yesterday to the First Minister.
Humza Yousaf condemns racist graffiti targeted at him near his Dundee home
o/t but Tom Farmer getting his dig in about tax this morning – reduce tax he says people will come and invest he says – given Scotland already does better at inward investment than their Uk counterparts is tax really the issue? People looking for a Scottish weighting due to higher taxes but nobody spells out that Scotland has the highest average wage in the UK, we have a significantly lower average house price and significantly lower council tax, any newby coming to Scotland able to buy a property will have a much lower mortgage rate for a comparable house elsewhere in the UK, that alone wipes out any tax discrepancies and in addition we get free eye tests, no bridge tolls, no prescription charges, the best health service anywhere in the Uk – yes we may be higher taxes but we get a helluva lot more for our taxes than they do elsewhere in the UK
Free university education – no tuition fees – worth c. £9000 a year.
free personal care for the elderly, highest no of police officers, gos and dentists per head of population, and a government that does give a 💩 about Scotland unlike the opposition parties that only dance to Westminsters tune.
That take calls to mind Sarwar’s stupid complaint that Holyrood was too concerned about social policy and not enough about economic policy in that it’s a nice soundbite I guess but it’s hopelessly superficial. For one thing, I’m pretty sure companies don’t look only at the tax rate when deciding where to invest: otherwise the government could lower to nothing the taxes in Thurso to have it get all the investment.
Given that the UK of England great British government has the power to strike down any piece of legislation or law in Scotland it doesn’t like why didn’t Alister Jack in his high Ostrich feathers position of governor general strike down the hate crime law in Scotland?
And the answer is: this is an election year and they need to create a wedge issue with which to attack the SNP, the British media are always willing to misrepresent and misreport any information they’re told to, and now they have a willing patsy in Scottish government hating British nationalist children’s author Ms Rowling to help
“Stirring up hatred” which is the point of the law has been deliberately drowned and avoided amongst Ms Rowling’s high pitched squealing around her sexual preferences obsession
Now if JK Rowling wants to stand on a street corner with big banners indicating that she wants people to join her gang in her personal hatreds then she’d be committing a crime, until then she’s just a wealthy noisy wee wummin who could be a drunk after a party and is annoying to listen to, and you just get told to go home by the cops and stop being so silly, for that minor offence
The people who are the problem are the great British media who are the ones sailing very close to the wind in how they’re deliberately misreporting a law for the purposes of stirring up hatred towards Scotland’s supporters of independence
And that’s when you begin to see very clearly this is an anti SNP political campaigning tool for the British nationalist cause of their continuing ownership of Scotland
I mean if the English government can block Scottish legislation on glue then they could have on this, they blocked recycling didn’t they? Free speech is it? they took Scotland to their supreme court to legislate that we the sovereign people of Scotland were not allowed to be asked a question that we want to be asked, free speech they say? don’t make me laugh
Get your own house in order England, you’re a transparent joke of a country
Offensive language. Some people would take offence. A police report could be made. Misogynist and insulting. ‘Wee wimmin at a party who is whining etc ‘ An offence under the hate Bill. Stop giving offence
Block legislation on glue.
I find it ironic, definitely hypocritical and even slightly funny that a woman (JK Rowling) who became a multi millionaire on the back of writing and selling loads of children’s books about a child/young man/wizard who was mistreated and othered even by members of his own family just for being different thinks it is ok to be so anti trans and the Hate Crime Bill . I do remember certain religious organisations decried her as a Satanist because magic was a common theme in her books. The fact she is a major celeb now does not give her the right to try to bully the Scottish Parliament regarding legislation. However I am sure if Starmer the fascist becomes PM she will parking her rear on a bench in the House of Lords soon probably sitting next to Lord for Fecks Sake (Foulkes) I will take no lessons from her or Elon the idiot Musk. Their sense of entitlement is palpable. I do not like fundamentalists religious or otherwise but I do think there are a couple of people on both sides of the trans debate who don’t do compromise but really need to grow up. One of them is J K Rowling.
The Survation tables for their big MRP poll have been published and if I was Sarwar I’d be very worried about the coming General Election. As you’ll know this poll has the SNP winning 41 seats, Labour 14, Lib Dem 2 and the Tories 0.
The reason that Sarwar aught to be worried is that of the 14 seats they are predicted to win, the Labour lead in vote share over the SNP who are in 2nd in 9 of those seats is a tiny amount of less than 3%. In 4 of them it is less than just 1% of vote share, in effect all 9 seats could very easily fall to the SNP leaving Labour with a maximum of 5 and the SNP on 50.
Whatever the actual result turns out to be on the day I am certain that it won’t be a landside for Labour or a crushing defeat for the SNP.
You can download the excel file of the tables at the following page:
https://www.survation.com/what-we-can-learn-from-our-latest-mrp-and-what-we-cant/
From the national (Ross Greer):
“Green freeports ‘could block an independent Scotland from joining the EU’”
No. No they couldn’t.
If, like me, some folks don’t understand the purpose and present situation with regard to Freeports and Free Zones (EU) etc, here’s a good rundown. Our local LibDem MP is awfy keen on one in the Cromarty Firth!
https://www.taxwatchuk.org/freeports/
Draw your own conclusions.
He is my Regional Msp and I don’t believe a word he says. He seems to think turning East Dunbartonshire into one massive cycle lane would massively decrease global warming. Wrong!!!
The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 applies equally to those who go way over the top supporting it, as it does to those who go way over the top opposing it.
I had to read this post a few times to try and understand it, but still don’t really.
Of course the law applies to both Hate Crime Act supporters and opposition. However, as those opposed to the act don’t share any common protected characteristic, I can’t see its supporters ending up in trouble for ‘inciting hatred towards people based on a protected characteristic’.
There’s just really no meaningful correlation between any protected characteristic and opposition in the way there is in reverse. Opponents / critics are of all nationalities colours and creeds, both sexes etc. By contrast, said opponents typically have been spending their time being variably unpleasant to one or more groups / individuals specifically based on a protected characteristic.
While opposition can’t be linked to any protected characteristic, the correlation is political, particularly party-political. Opponents tend to be more socially conservative and, in then main, centre-right party supporters.
However, saying stuff like ‘Tory wankers’ about Act opponents is fine as party political affiliation is not a protected characteristic. At least not yet in Brexit Britain. Wouldn’t surprise me if British government / ‘permitted party’ criticism does become illegal the way things are going! England is already cracking down on free speech in the form of marches / protests. If JK wants to march against trans folks, she’d be safer doing this in Scotland where her free speech is protected. 🙂
Transparent
All the flak for the Hate Crime Bill ( passed by 82-32 in the Scottish Parliament ) is currently directed by the Unionist media and some politicians down south at the SNP and its leader .
Check those voting figures – 82 v 32 ! This is NOT an SNP Bill but a bill passed by the clear majority of the Parliament : most SNP , most Labour , all Libdems and Greens .
Regardless of your opinion on the rights and wrongs of this legislation , it is clearly a Scottish Parliament decision , so why the opprobrium on ONLY the SNP ? ( rhetorical , of course ! )
It is the SNP that is being vilified by the English media and some publicity-hungry celebs and a PM desperate to deflect attention away from the numerous ”small boats” that are daily undermining his only policy , Rwanda !
Why are there no Labour MSPs stepping up to support the Bill they voted through ? Why is that publicity hound , FOI request –Cole-Hamilton , not appearing on BBC to get his face on the telly endorsing what he and his entire party ( of 4 ) backed to the hilt ?
Answers on the back of a Harry Potter First Edition to ….Unionist-R-Us !
Spot on
Tonight on Reporting Scotland at 6.30pm started with a report on the Hate Crime Act. At the very end of the report it was mentioned that they could not get a comment from Labour.
If you cannot stand the heating keep out of the kitchen. Many rights and privileges come with some disadvantages. On balance the rights and privileges outway any disadvantages or graffiti. The world will never be perfect in every way. Unfortunately for many. The majority.
There are already far too many in prison. The highest number in Europe. Half are on the spectrum with a lack of filter and proper support. They should not be in prison they should have proper support in diversity. They are the ones who are likely to have meltdowns – shout or swear and call people names. Our of frustration and anxiety. In situations they find hard to control. Without any understanding.
Too many innocent people are on remand. Losing jobs etc. Being punished when they have committed no ‘crime’.
The other half in prison are there because of addiction problems without support. Addiction problems are linked to crime. Much crime is committed by people under the influence. They should be in total abstinence proper rehab facilities.
Crime is a gender issue. Most crime or criminal activities are committed by males,.usually under the influence of mind enhancing products.
The only reason there are any opposition parties in the Scottish Parliament is because of d’houdt
FPTP every member in Holyrood would be SNP. D’Houdt imposed by unionists without a mandate to try and keep control.
First preference (SNP) votes go in the bin to let 3rd rate losers in with a few hundred votes. Total manipulation. There is a quota. Unionist joke
I’d say Holyrood’s MMP is progress on Westminster’s FPTP: the SNP didn’t get an absolute majority in Holyrood but then it didn’t get an absolute majority of the votes either, so it fits (last I checked it got something like 49% of MSPs for around 48% of the votes cast). The unionists parties have voters, quite a few of them, so it’s only fair they have MSPs too. Whereas Westminster’s system produces absurdities like Blair getting 60% of MPs on 40% of votes or so.
it’s the list vote that is a mess. A quota. So SNP votes do not count. Once the Quota is reach. (Of any party). A false provenance because they are not included. They go in the bin. They do not enter the equation. So the figures appear to comply by elimination of many votes.
A self fulfilling prophecy to try and match proportion of the votes. Not democratic or realistic to not include votes.
Unionist system introduced without a mandate. Hidden flaws. To try and increase unionist support. Gerrymandering. The majority of voters support FPTP for good reason.
The LibDems and AV did not go well. They mucked up the economy, as well. Austerity for 14 years caused by their betrayal and policies. People cannot heat and eat because of their lies.
The problem with defending pure FPTP by saying that MMP doesn’t include votes is that FPTP is the system most guilty of that: e.g. half the LibDems votes were wasted all along the 90s and 2000s (they were routinely pulling 20% of the votes for 10% of MPs) and since Clegg crashed the LibDems in the coalition even more, proportionally, are. The SNP was routinely wasting half its votes too.
One can defend FPTP on basis of fostering a link between MPs and their constituency, or for simplicity but as more democratic? Johnson enjoyed a 55% of MPs or so on less than 35% of votes since when is that democratic? MMP certainly needs improvement but at least it doesn’t lead to that.
As for the referendum, the LibDems really screwed the pooch: for one thing, AV doesn’t help for proportionality of the house, it helps for wasted votes, that’s a different concern. For another, give as prize for your allegiance a referendum on a screwed up version of something you want since ages and let your partner campaign against in the bargain? Since when is that good bargaining?
Sorry, less than 45% of votes: I misread the table. But still, how is it democratic to go from minority to comfortable majority by the magic of FPTP?
Well this is embarrassing.
Shockeroonie – she’s totally free to be something of a bigot. Nothing has changed. As long as she’s not deliberately trying to ‘stir up hatred’, she can be the modern equivalent of the ‘racist… homophobic uncle’ of days gone by if she likes. Just as long as she doesn’t step over the line.
https://archive.is/S9YAP
JK Rowling won’t be prosecuted after police look into complaints about social media post
In response to the police’s decision on Tuesday, Rowling tweeted: “I hope every woman in Scotland who wishes to speak up for the reality and importance of biological sex will be reassured by this announcement, and I trust that all women – irrespective of profile or financial means – will be treated equally under the law.”
Lol. Tactic admission she was talking absolute shite and just basically wasting police time.
Ok, now we are all reassured, we can move on while Rowling continues to rant about trans folk from her laptop into the wee small hours tag teaming with Linehan, Murdo Fraser and Stuart Campbell about who can come up with the greatest level of fact free, dog whistling hyperbole.
She is implying that she was given preferential treatment based on her high profile and wealth. As such she is also implying that any ordinary woman saying what she did would have been prosecuted.
She really is a piece of work
[…] Source […]
Ally ‘#Bettertogether’ McCoist says he genuinely plans to stir up hatred based on a protected characteristic. One for the police to watch.
Supporting Celtic isn’t a protected characteristic, so I’m guessing he plans on stirring up hatred using British religious sectarianism and / or anti-Irish sentiment in this case.
https://archive.is/gy9Dj
Ally McCoist: ‘Hate crime law is madness, I’ll be breaching it on Sunday’
Contrast a Scottish Rangers supporter in the form of e.g. singer/songwriter Amy MacDonald, who penned ‘The Green And The Blue‘. If she can cheer on her team without breaking hate crime laws, why can’t ‘#Bettertogether’ McCoist?
Ex footballers are long and well known to be the go to figures for expert advice on points of law and the judicial systems of all countries
Scotland is served particularly well by these sectarian bigoted experts
There does seem to be a general correlation between bigotry / racism etc and a lack of intellect.
I note that intellect – or lack of – is not a protected characteristic.
Does Mr McCoist think only Scotland has hate crime laws?
Extracts from: ‘Joint statement on Hate Crime from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and National Police Chief’s Council (NPCC)’, October 2023.
‘Hate crime legislation was agreed by Parliament against a background of rising discrimination and prejudice. The law reflects parliamentary intent to support victims of hate crime – ordinary people who experience criminal behaviour involving hostility and hatred based on who they are. The law covers hostility on the grounds of disability, race, religion, sexual orientation and being transgender.’
Later in the same statement: ‘The police and the CPS treat hate crime as a priority crime. Following the Report of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry, we agreed a common definition of hate crime ..
“Any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice, based on a person’s disability or perceived disability; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation or a person who is transgender or perceived to be transgender.”
The statement also has this: ‘We are proactive in the investigation and prosecution of hate crime. The police will investigate the evidence of such hostility where a crime has been reported, or the police believe the offence may have involved hostility towards one or more of the grounds described in law. Where there is sufficient evidence of such hostility, it is more likely that a prosecution will be in the public interest. A successful prosecution will also attract an enhanced or increased sentence from the court. Victims are also entitled to enhanced rights under the Victims’ Code.’
Adding: ‘There is no ‘hierarchy’ of hate crime. We fundamentally believe that everyone shares a right to live free from hate crime, regardless of the individual characteristics targeted.’
More from the legal system in England and Wales:
UK Government Statutory Guidance on Non-Crime Hate Incidents: Code of Practice on the Recording and Retention of Personal Data (accessible) 3 June, 2023. (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/non-crime-hate-incidents-code-of-practice/non-crime-hate-incidents-code-of-practice-on-the-recording-and-retention-of-personal-data-accessible )
‘7. Non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) are recorded by the police to collect information on ‘hate incidents’ that could escalate into more serious harm or indicate heightened community tensions, but which do not constitute a criminal offence.
‘8. NCHI recording stems from the murder of Stephen Lawrence in 1993. The 1999 Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report called for Codes of Practice to create “a comprehensive system of reporting and recording of all racist incidents and crimes”.
‘NCHI recording has since expanded to cover all the protected characteristics covered by hate crime laws in England and Wales: race, religion, disability, sexual orientation and transgender identity. This data is vital for helping the police to understand where they must target resources to prevent serious crimes which may later occur.’
Later in the guidance: ‘A non-crime hate incident (NCHI) means an incident or alleged incident which involves or is alleged to involve an act by a person (‘the subject’) which is perceived by a person other than the subject to be motivated – wholly or partly – by hostility or prejudice towards persons with a particular characteristic.
“Hostility” and “prejudice” have no specific legal definition. Hostility represents the legal threshold for prosecuting hate crimes in law, whereas prejudice only features in NCHI recording. For the purposes of NCHI recording, either factor may be present, in line with the ordinarily understood sense of these terms.
‘The Crown Prosecution Service state that, for hostility, “we use the everyday understanding of the word which includes ill-will, spite, contempt, prejudice, unfriendliness, antagonism, resentment and dislike.”[footnote 13] The recording authority should give due regard to the CPS’s definition when considering whether hostility or prejudice has been exhibited.’
Ally states : ”If I’m honest I am not a bigot – absholutely ! Neither are my 48,000 fellow songsters who are shimply , if I’m honest , paying tribute in song to their heritage . Absholutely ! We have nothing against the Fenian hordes – we just think we are better than them – if I’m honest !””
Alex Salmond’s Alba agrees with Rishi Sunak GB news Talk TV and all the right wing media apparently, so that definitely puts Humza on the right side of history
The Labour party voted for this too, Ooh, and the Liberal Democrats, Ooh, and the Greens, but well, SNP bad don’tcha know
According to all those media it’s only us separatists that don’t object to this law, it appears Alex Salmond isn’t a separatist then
Wee secret? we know
Being charitable I think spending so many years heading a ball when playing football has damaged his thought processes
‘Absholutely !””
usually if superally tried to heid the ba, it hit his shoulder.
A clip from ‘Freedom for Scotland’ centred on a BBC News interview https://youtu.be/H8hk2LZRc84 , refreshingly honest and straightforward, as opposed to the contrived guff from BBC Scotland et al.
Stills at the beginning and end of the clip are worth freeze framing to appreciate the Hate Crime Bill is not an outlier, and how Holyrood voted on it, giving a very good idea of who is behind the propaganda….
The Tories really are a despicable and devious shower Scotland could well do without…
The Law is totally unenforceable. A total nonsense and waste of time. There are already Laws to cover offence and they are not enforced for logistical reasons. Just unaffected propaganda. A total travesty of the justice system. A total waste of time, and monies, and totally non enforceable. Looking for scapegoats. A cover screen.
Women who cohabit do not have equal rights or get legal aid. To stop abuse.
The Rangers fiasco, the show trial, and the Campervan scandal wasting £millions of public monies.
Many people hate politicians for being misogynist, bigoted, racist and ruining people’s lives. They want to charge people with hate crimes. More need to sort themselves out.
Sturgeon keeping a low profile again. She does this a lot by speaking out, doing interviews, tweeting, coming to work every day to speak in the chamber etc.
This contrasts people who figure there is a good chance they will face charges, so step down in anticipation of these.
https://archive.is/sBbKh
Nicola Sturgeon intervenes in debate over assisted dying bill
“I have been determined, this time, to consider the issue afresh, and to consider all the different arguments with an open mind.”
She went on: “I had expected this time, if I am being frank, to find myself swaying in favour of the legislation. I believe that we all deserve as much agency as possible over our own lives and, in theory at least, I understand the argument that this must entail, in some circumstances, the right to decide when to end our lives.”
“Yet so far, despite my expectations, the more deeply I think about the different issues involved, the more I find myself veering away from a vote in favour, not towards it.
“I worry that even with the best of intentions and the most carefully worded legislation, it will be impossible to properly guarantee that no-one at the end of their life will feel a degree of pressure, a sense that it might be better for others for them not be here – even if their loved ones try to persuade them otherwise.”
As a liberal (and agnostic), ostensibly I support the principles of the bill. However, I get her point.
We unfortunately live in Scotland run by Britain / England where life is cheap and the Westminster government / right wing media would happily see people ‘costing taxpayers money’ disposed of as quickly as possible. I can very much envisage pressure being put on those close to end of like to ‘stop sponging off the state and take pressure of the NHS’ etc. That is the direction of the UK.
I will watch the debate closely, judging the final bill on its merits, but hmmm, maybe it is one for when we are independent and Scotland controls her own destiny, as her people do theirs. A Scotland which respects her people and their dignity at all stages of life.
The subject is complex in the extreme, but I suppose the danger lying in wait behind the bill is normalisation, and where you have that normalisation it follows that professional business involves itself for financial profit for providing that service, such a business will argue they can provide more professionalism, more caring, better surroundings and all the advertising that comes along with that
Are people in Scotland ready to have a Dignitas opening soon near you? because despite all the promises and good intentions, that’s what’ll happen and do they want it
Create a need and the ambulance chasing shysters slide themselves into the financial void to fill it, we see it every day with despicable wee * caring* lawyers making TV shows from other people’s misery, and even if they’re not miserable the lawyers will make sure they end up looking that way for the cameras, the worry I have is assisted dying (although I agree with the principle) will attract the bottom feeders turning it into something we might not want to look at and certainly won’t be proud of if it happens
Where there’s money to be made it’s the public we’ll hear screaming when someone screws us, then we’ll need protection from the very *caring* shysters that inserted themselves into folks bank accounts to make the end of our lives as *Dignified* as they possibly can
I shudder to think of the advertising campaigns to come to the peaceful beautiful surroundings of wherever in Scotland for this service, like some sort of holiday advert with tranquil gardens an indoor pool and Michelin star restaurant
The principle is born of good intent but the implementation is fraught with horror, no matter how many safeguards are promised or intended
I, too, am in two minds about this legislation. It has to be remembered but is frequently forgotten that not everyone is surrounded by ‘loving family’ who are ensuring absolutely that all is happening within strict legal guidelines in accordance with the patient’s own signed and sealed wishes and that there is no ‘jiggery-pokery’. There are many older people in particular with no family whose end of life care decisions will have to be in the hands of outside agencies such as friends, solicitors or other advocates, even with the relevant Welfare Power of Attorney in place, who may not necessarily, for various reasons, care to respect the last known wishes of the patient if they are no longer able to express their own wishes. In other words, the patient would have to be ‘of sound mind’ at the end as well as when (and if) they signed up.
With the best will in the world, even the toughest legal guidelines can be circumvented when you have no one who really cares enough to stand by you or stand up for you.
Which is not to say I don’t sympathise fully with the folk who wish to be able to make their own decisions, but it’s a frightening minefield for some of us. In The Netherlands there were 8,720 assisted dying stats (about 5% of total deaths) recorded in 2022, and the numbers are rising year on year.
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1363041/netherlands-euthanasia/
The current situation is that many people die in distress or severe pain
Many of us will have lived experience of this
Any bill which allows dying people the right to choose a time which meets their own particular needs – can only be welcomed
Whatever the merits or otherwise of Scotland passing into law an Assisted Dying Bill , what passes for the UK Government at the moment could step in and block the bill – as they have done on two occasions recently with other Scottish legislation .
Tellingly , they did NOT intervene in the Hate Crime Bill . Either they did not have grounds to object ( probably ) or they hoped that it would generate ( with the help of useful unionist idiots ) unfavourable media attention . ( However , given that the UK media does not do anything other than unfavourable comment when discussing Scotland’s Government , it was a given that they would condemn its actions on this Law.)
Regardless of the merits of legislation it is abundantly clear to anyone with half a brain ( McCoist ? ) that the UK Government does not care a jot about whether Scottish legislation has any bearing on the rest of the UK but will use any and every opportunity to attempt to undermine Scotland’s duly elected Government .
Only time will tell whether the UK Government decides to use the Assisted Dying Bill as another line of attack on the SNP- despite the fact that many other MSPs within the Scottish Parliament , from ALL parties , will be supportive of this Bill . If it suits them electorally then it will be an SNP Bill , regardless of who supports it !
I believe the English government did not block the hate crime law because they thought they could use it to make political campaign capital out of it, other stuff that they block is just sheer bloody mindedness because they can
Scotland has one politic, freedom or bondage and which will it be? the English government’s interference is all about keeping hold by pretending Scotland is stupid and it’s all the fault of the SNP, that’s why they keep the other parties out of it if they vote for these things, because that’s admitting their own colleagues are stupid too
You’re only stupid if you vote SNP according to the English government, if you vote for the union party then you’ve come to your senses and wised up
Patronising bunch of merchants
“A SCOTTISH Government minister [Trade Minister Richard Lochhead] has denied that green freeports could threaten the prospect of an independent Scotland rejoining the European Union.“
https://archive.is/TiCPo
Exactly.
Whether freeports are a good idea or not is another matter, but those who try to use invented nonsense to make a case against them, are idiots.
As regards the Hate Crime Bill, the BBC’s ‘red button’ news headlines is reporting that since Monday, 48 hours ago(!), Police Scotland has received over 3,000 hate crime reports. ’A large number’ (unspecified) were about a speech made in 2020 by Humza Yousaf about white people in prominent public roles.
Does that sound remarkably orchestrated to anyone else?
The Community Safety Minister says people are making ‘fake and vexatious complaints’. MMmmm. Wonder who might be behind the majority of these ‘complaints’?
The Forres Gump ?
It shows how ridiculously weak and pathetic the English government is when their own country is literally collapsing in on itself that they employ great amounts of time making up propaganda trying to convince people of how bad Scotland is by trying to divert attention away from what they’re doing, instead of employing these people’s time to fix the mess they’re in, and the mess they’ve made of everything, except making money for themselves
Sunak talks about backing free speech yet took Scotland to England’s supreme court to deny Scotland the right to ask itself a question
Isn’t asking a question free speech? of course it is, but it’s the answer to that question that Sunak says isn’t free speech
Sunak like the rest of them is a pathetic squint of a wee man
Who could possibly have predicted it would be right wing British unionists wasting / using up police time with the hate crime act? Fraser, Rowling, McCoist, racist graffiti writers… now anti-Scottish white supremacists of some form (I think we can speculate the complainers are unlikely to be Scottish indy supporters)!
This attack line is already backfiring spectacularly. The BBC has been desperately trying to sell the idea that Yes folks will be overloading the police with vexatious claims around the law and trans people, but of course it was always going to be the union jack bigots doing the time wasting as they try to keep this anti-Scottish attack going. That and of course GGR-support was completely cross party cross-Yes/No.
And it is anti-Scottish, for example Rowling made the Scotland vs England aspect of it a key point of her arguments, i.e. her, an Englishwoman in / travelling to Greater England’s region of Scotlandshire having her freedom restricted by a (cross-party) Scots law inflicted on her by Scots! And she did so even though England has it’s own hate crime laws, which she and the English media don’t mention of course.
https://archive.is/76X6j
Police receive complaints over four-year-old speech by Humza Yousaf
A number of complaints have been made to police in relation to a four-year-old speech made in parliament by Humza Yousaf following the introduction of a controversial new law.
The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act came into effect on Monday, consolidating existing hate crime legislation and creating a new offence of stirring up hatred against protected characteristics.
A 45-second clip of a lengthy speech Yousaf made in June 2020 following the murder of George Floyd gained traction online last year after the owner of X, formerly Twitter, Elon Musk had replied “What a blatant racist!” in response to a post by a prominent right-wing social media account.
The video had been shared by similar accounts in the months prior.
But a fact check carried out by the Reuters news agency had concluded that the clip misrepresented his comments…
…A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We have received a number of complaints in relation to a speech in the Scottish Parliament on June 10, 2020.
“Earlier complaints regarding this matter were assessed at the time and it was established no crime was committed and no further action was required.”
Betcha absolutely nobody gets arrested under the law for simply being an offensive bigot. Nope, it will, as planned, only see those clearly inciting hatred in the dock. The right-wing dog whistlers like Rowling have been ‘reassured’ they can keep hating on minorities publicly.
There will be a lot of police time wasted on this by British unionists until they realise how everyone is totally noticing this.
My husband likes to watch A Different Bias, with someone called Phil. i just eavesdrop usually while I’m reading or cooking. Phil is very Labour but in the past wasn’t too bad to listen to. Recently he has become very pro Starmer, who can do no wrong. Also I think he is worried/panicking about the SNP as he hardly ever mentions them, but his last couple of videos he has mentioned them often, and not in a good way. Made me smile
Yougov have a new MRP poll published today that looks ridiculous in comparison with Survation. This one has the SNP winning just 19 seats. Labour on 28 and the Tories and Lib Dems on 5 each HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
Honestly I have never read of anything so ridiculous in my life, these people need to find a new job as at least one of them is totally and utterly wrong.
https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49061-yougov-mrp-labour-now-projected-to-win-over-400-seats
Some of the predictions are laughable, in Red Tory Ian Murray’s seat of Edinburgh South they have Labour taking 69% of the vote share, in 2019 he got 47.7% so this poll is saying his vote share will increase by 50%.
A joke of a poll that will be found out when the time comes.
I reckon we’ll be seeing quite a few of these *influencer* polls in the coming months
It’s a complete joke but a pathetic one.
Apparently there will be massive losses in England by the Tories including many of the big wigs who are currently Ministers. In Scotland though the Tories will hang on to 5 of the 6 seats they won in 2019 despite the fact that this poll has Reform winning 10% to 14% of the vote share in every one of these seats.
In fact, this poll assumes that the Greens and Reform will be standing in every Scottish constituency which is in cloud cuckoo land territory.
This caught my eye from this:
https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/49061-yougov-mrp-labour-now-projected-to-win-over-400-seats
“Vote intention derived from our MRP will look different to regular headline vote intention figures published by YouGov because the MRP model probabilistically matches ‘missing voters’ (i.e., those indicating they do not currently have a vote intention) to similar respondents who do express a vote preference, rather than excluding them from the estimations.”
and also these – “Methodological changes“.
Hopefully Scot Goes Pop will shed some light on it.