John Sharp, the SNP candidate, has won the Elgin City South council by-election following the death of the Independent Councillor, Alastair Bisset.
The SNP claimed 32% of the vote with Independent candidate Mr Simpson 25%, Labour 17% and the Tories 10%. Swing from Labour to the SNP was 6%.
Is this a trend that is set to continue, wiping Labour off the Scottish political map, or is this a result that is unique to the North-East where the SNP tend to do well?
Only time will tell.
Report
Discussion
Friday, 15 February 2008
Sunday, 10 February 2008
Can Wendy Survive?
I am going to see the Smashing Pumpkins at the SECC on Tuesday night. Although it is the fourth time that I have seen them, I have been counting down the days ever since I got my ticket.
It looks like we are also counting down the days to the end of the tenure of the fourth Scottish Labour leader since devolution. Wendy may have won a moral “victory” this week, but it is a bit like your team winning the final game of the season when you are already relegated and are facing the prospect of administration.
No sooner had the verdict from the Electoral Commission come out, than the Sunday Herald are reporting that Gordon Brown is about to hi-jack Wendy’s Constitutional Commission. Now Labour made a big thing about this at the time, but now Papa Broon wants to downgrade it to a review or a working party. And he wants it to be led by Westminster.
If that wasn’t enough, Wendy has had to do a bit of moonlighting as a plumber. For the amount of leaks that are coming from Labour at the moment are enough to keep anyone busy. The latest shows that a Shadow Cabinet minute shows that the tactic of reading a pre-prepared loyalty script to selected journalists has been a successful one.
Yeah, right!
Then there was her well documented performance at the vote on the Scottish Budget. Having put forward an amendment to the budget, which was accepted by the SNP, she and her colleagues then failed to vote for it. All, that is, except for Cathie Craigie, who voted against it. By mistake, allegedly. Must be hard, all those options to choose from!
All this must be enough to make her wonder why she even wanted the post in the first place. Then along comes the revelation that she may be facing a further Electoral Commission investigation as well as a police one. This time the claim is that she misled businessmen into funding her constituency office to the tune of £12,000.
The Smashing Pumpkins have been a band, on and off for about twenty years, because of the ability of Billy Corgan, their lead singer. The next Labour leader will have to be just as gifted if the Labour ship is going to be turned around. Andy Kerr may be licking his lips at the prospect of a leadership election, but this job may be beyond his capabilities.
It looks like we are also counting down the days to the end of the tenure of the fourth Scottish Labour leader since devolution. Wendy may have won a moral “victory” this week, but it is a bit like your team winning the final game of the season when you are already relegated and are facing the prospect of administration.
No sooner had the verdict from the Electoral Commission come out, than the Sunday Herald are reporting that Gordon Brown is about to hi-jack Wendy’s Constitutional Commission. Now Labour made a big thing about this at the time, but now Papa Broon wants to downgrade it to a review or a working party. And he wants it to be led by Westminster.
If that wasn’t enough, Wendy has had to do a bit of moonlighting as a plumber. For the amount of leaks that are coming from Labour at the moment are enough to keep anyone busy. The latest shows that a Shadow Cabinet minute shows that the tactic of reading a pre-prepared loyalty script to selected journalists has been a successful one.
Yeah, right!
Then there was her well documented performance at the vote on the Scottish Budget. Having put forward an amendment to the budget, which was accepted by the SNP, she and her colleagues then failed to vote for it. All, that is, except for Cathie Craigie, who voted against it. By mistake, allegedly. Must be hard, all those options to choose from!
All this must be enough to make her wonder why she even wanted the post in the first place. Then along comes the revelation that she may be facing a further Electoral Commission investigation as well as a police one. This time the claim is that she misled businessmen into funding her constituency office to the tune of £12,000.
The Smashing Pumpkins have been a band, on and off for about twenty years, because of the ability of Billy Corgan, their lead singer. The next Labour leader will have to be just as gifted if the Labour ship is going to be turned around. Andy Kerr may be licking his lips at the prospect of a leadership election, but this job may be beyond his capabilities.
Friday, 25 January 2008
Top Trumps
When I was younger, I used to have a couple of sets of Top Trumps. I can remember having a few sets of the popular cards, but I vividly remember having the set that had sports cars in it. However, at Our Scotland we have seen some Top Trumps played out with football, politics and golf cards.
For a start we had the unveiling of the new Scotland manager who will take us into the World Cup qualifying campaign. George Burley trumped Mark McGhee, Graeme Souness and Tommy Burns to get the job.
Burley said during a press conference, "Now the dream is to qualify for the World Cup in 2010. The country has belief, I'm certainly up for the challenge and we'll go for it."
If he continues the progress that we have made during the last couple of years, then we could just make the World Cup.
Secondly we had the resignation of Peter Hain as Work and Pensions Secretary and Secretary of State for Wales. The Electoral Commission well and truly trumped him by referring the matter of an undisclosed £103,000 to the Metropolitan Police.
After Hain has set a precedent, Wendy Alexander must be sweating on the decision of the Electoral Commission over her suspect dealings. Mind you, she has been waiting that long, that she may have run out of sweat. Will she be the next to be trumped?
We also had the clearance of the first hurdle for the Scottish Budget. The £30bn budget was passed by just 2 votes with the Tories voting with the government. Is this a sign of things to come? The Tories snuggling up with the Scottish Government?
Finally we come to the man himself, Donald Trump and his plans to invest a zillion pounds into Scotland. Well, Scotland has been totally Trumped over this one. Trump is calling all the shots and if his deal doesn’t go ahead, I will be truly and utterly amazed.
For a start we had the unveiling of the new Scotland manager who will take us into the World Cup qualifying campaign. George Burley trumped Mark McGhee, Graeme Souness and Tommy Burns to get the job.
Burley said during a press conference, "Now the dream is to qualify for the World Cup in 2010. The country has belief, I'm certainly up for the challenge and we'll go for it."
If he continues the progress that we have made during the last couple of years, then we could just make the World Cup.
Secondly we had the resignation of Peter Hain as Work and Pensions Secretary and Secretary of State for Wales. The Electoral Commission well and truly trumped him by referring the matter of an undisclosed £103,000 to the Metropolitan Police.
After Hain has set a precedent, Wendy Alexander must be sweating on the decision of the Electoral Commission over her suspect dealings. Mind you, she has been waiting that long, that she may have run out of sweat. Will she be the next to be trumped?
We also had the clearance of the first hurdle for the Scottish Budget. The £30bn budget was passed by just 2 votes with the Tories voting with the government. Is this a sign of things to come? The Tories snuggling up with the Scottish Government?
Finally we come to the man himself, Donald Trump and his plans to invest a zillion pounds into Scotland. Well, Scotland has been totally Trumped over this one. Trump is calling all the shots and if his deal doesn’t go ahead, I will be truly and utterly amazed.
Friday, 18 January 2008
Money, Money, Money
This week, amongst other things, we have been talking about money at Our Scotland.
Firstly there was Labour’s opposition to the Scottish Government’s deal with councils in order for them not to increase council tax. Wendy Alexander agreed in principal that ring-fenced funding should be slashed, yet said the cuts agreed went too far. Can she make up her mind about anything?
Secondly there was the issue of the £30bn budget that is due to be voted on in Parliament this week. The Green’s, who seemed awfully friendly with the SNP at the outset of this parliament, indicated that they are unlikely to vote with the SNP. With Labour definitely voting against it and the Lib Dems likely to abstain, it would be all down to the Tories.
And all I am saying is that it must be a sign of the times, that a Scottish Government does a deal with the Tories and nobody says anything. And let’s look at one of the deals that have been done. More police on the streets. It was one of the more laughable aspects in the lead up to the election.
Party X – We are going to put 1,000 more police officers on the streets
Party Y – Well we are going to put 1,001 more police officers on the streets
Party Z – Is that all? We are going to put 1,002 more police officers on the streets
In all honesty, what difference does 1,000 extra police officers on the street make? Maybe this is radical thinking and nobody has thought of it before, although I very much doubt it, but would the money not be better spent on sorting out why the crime is happening in the first place. Maybe it could go into supporting initiatives to stop people re-offending. Maybe it could go into funding activities to keep some teenagers off the streets and out of trouble.
Instead they might as well put their extra funding in my back pocket, because crime is about as likely to go down by doing that as by putting extra police on the streets.
Talking of back pockets Peter Hain and George Osborne are the latest in a long line of MP’s and MSP’s to be spotted with undeclared money poking out of their denims. Surely there should be a review of political funding, because either people have total disregard for the rules governing funding or they just don't have a clue about their obligations.
Join in the debate at Our Scotland.
Firstly there was Labour’s opposition to the Scottish Government’s deal with councils in order for them not to increase council tax. Wendy Alexander agreed in principal that ring-fenced funding should be slashed, yet said the cuts agreed went too far. Can she make up her mind about anything?
Secondly there was the issue of the £30bn budget that is due to be voted on in Parliament this week. The Green’s, who seemed awfully friendly with the SNP at the outset of this parliament, indicated that they are unlikely to vote with the SNP. With Labour definitely voting against it and the Lib Dems likely to abstain, it would be all down to the Tories.
And all I am saying is that it must be a sign of the times, that a Scottish Government does a deal with the Tories and nobody says anything. And let’s look at one of the deals that have been done. More police on the streets. It was one of the more laughable aspects in the lead up to the election.
Party X – We are going to put 1,000 more police officers on the streets
Party Y – Well we are going to put 1,001 more police officers on the streets
Party Z – Is that all? We are going to put 1,002 more police officers on the streets
In all honesty, what difference does 1,000 extra police officers on the street make? Maybe this is radical thinking and nobody has thought of it before, although I very much doubt it, but would the money not be better spent on sorting out why the crime is happening in the first place. Maybe it could go into supporting initiatives to stop people re-offending. Maybe it could go into funding activities to keep some teenagers off the streets and out of trouble.
Instead they might as well put their extra funding in my back pocket, because crime is about as likely to go down by doing that as by putting extra police on the streets.
Talking of back pockets Peter Hain and George Osborne are the latest in a long line of MP’s and MSP’s to be spotted with undeclared money poking out of their denims. Surely there should be a review of political funding, because either people have total disregard for the rules governing funding or they just don't have a clue about their obligations.
Join in the debate at Our Scotland.
Friday, 11 January 2008
OIL
Oil is what makes the world go round. At least that is what we are told. Virtually everyone in the Western world needs it and for the countries that own it, well they are just can’t get rid of the dollar signs in front of their eyes.
Don’t know much about the technical side of this, but the UN has opened up negotiations for 162,935 square miles of sea bed in the eastern Atlantic, which is thought to be rich in oil. Who are the countries most affected? Ireland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Scotland.
Now 30 years ago, the significance of the oil revenue was greatly underplayed by Westminster governments to help quell the rising Scottish independence movement. This time around we are all a little wiser about the value of oil as well as its finite availability.
However, who is going to be at the negotiating table on Scotland’s behalf? A Westminster government. Will they sell us down the river just like last time? Perhaps they will only get 25% of the area they could have negotiated, just in order to maintain their precious union? Paranoid? Well Westminster has form on this subject.
Another country that has a little interest in oil is the United States of America. This week we saw the year long circus move up a gear as the New Hampshire primaries took place. Hilary Clinton made a mockery of the pundits and pollsters as she took the honours.
What will Bill be called if she does get into the White House? First Lady? First Man? Maybe since he will have done his job for Hilary, it will be First In Line To The Divorce Courts.
I am just glad that George W will be out of office by the time the negotiations for the Atlantic oil is concluded, because the facts weren’t looking good if negotiations went well for us. Can just imagine the US Government portfolio on us:
Scotland
Lots of Oil
Rogue Government (according to Westminster)
Weapons of Mass Destruction
Bush – “Bomb the B******s !!”
Keep up to date with Scotland’s threat to international security at Our Scotland.
Don’t know much about the technical side of this, but the UN has opened up negotiations for 162,935 square miles of sea bed in the eastern Atlantic, which is thought to be rich in oil. Who are the countries most affected? Ireland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Scotland.
Now 30 years ago, the significance of the oil revenue was greatly underplayed by Westminster governments to help quell the rising Scottish independence movement. This time around we are all a little wiser about the value of oil as well as its finite availability.
However, who is going to be at the negotiating table on Scotland’s behalf? A Westminster government. Will they sell us down the river just like last time? Perhaps they will only get 25% of the area they could have negotiated, just in order to maintain their precious union? Paranoid? Well Westminster has form on this subject.
Another country that has a little interest in oil is the United States of America. This week we saw the year long circus move up a gear as the New Hampshire primaries took place. Hilary Clinton made a mockery of the pundits and pollsters as she took the honours.
What will Bill be called if she does get into the White House? First Lady? First Man? Maybe since he will have done his job for Hilary, it will be First In Line To The Divorce Courts.
I am just glad that George W will be out of office by the time the negotiations for the Atlantic oil is concluded, because the facts weren’t looking good if negotiations went well for us. Can just imagine the US Government portfolio on us:
Scotland
Lots of Oil
Rogue Government (according to Westminster)
Weapons of Mass Destruction
Bush – “Bomb the B******s !!”
Keep up to date with Scotland’s threat to international security at Our Scotland.
Friday, 4 January 2008
Happy New Year!
I haven’t been about for a bit, suffering from prolonged election fatigue!
Well last year was simply a sensational year in Scottish politics.
The election itself was sensational. There was voter confusion, helicopters not getting off the ground, mad-man swinging a golf club, counting machines not working and counts postponed. All that before 11 o’clock at night!
When the result was announced , just before tea time the next evening, it couldn’t get more dramatic. It came down to the final declaration. And what a historic declaration. The Labour hegemony on political power in Scotland was finally broken. There was a new dawn. Alex Salmond was First Minister.
Salmond was quickly in action dealing with the first terrorist attack in Scotland of its kind. An apparent suicide bomber drove straight at Glasgow Airport intending to cause death and carnage.
After Jack McConnell vowed to continue as Labour leader, his position soon became untenable and Wendy Alexander got elected unopposed. She had hardly got her feet under the table when she was embroiled in trouble. An allegedly dodgy donation for her leadership election campaign has been acknowledged as illegal by her own party. What makes it even more unbelievable, was that she was elected unopposed. Will she be following Jack McConnell sooner rather than later?
Another thing that bit the dust in 2007 was the Best Small Country in the World slogan that Scotland used. Although papers released in 2008 show that Scotland would have been a whole lot bigger (economical) independent country if it wasn’t deceived by successive Westminster governments about the value of its oil revenues.
So 2008 has kicked off with a real political hot potato. Will the year continue in similar fashion?
Keep up to date with all the political debate at Our Scotland.
Well last year was simply a sensational year in Scottish politics.
The election itself was sensational. There was voter confusion, helicopters not getting off the ground, mad-man swinging a golf club, counting machines not working and counts postponed. All that before 11 o’clock at night!
When the result was announced , just before tea time the next evening, it couldn’t get more dramatic. It came down to the final declaration. And what a historic declaration. The Labour hegemony on political power in Scotland was finally broken. There was a new dawn. Alex Salmond was First Minister.
Salmond was quickly in action dealing with the first terrorist attack in Scotland of its kind. An apparent suicide bomber drove straight at Glasgow Airport intending to cause death and carnage.
After Jack McConnell vowed to continue as Labour leader, his position soon became untenable and Wendy Alexander got elected unopposed. She had hardly got her feet under the table when she was embroiled in trouble. An allegedly dodgy donation for her leadership election campaign has been acknowledged as illegal by her own party. What makes it even more unbelievable, was that she was elected unopposed. Will she be following Jack McConnell sooner rather than later?
Another thing that bit the dust in 2007 was the Best Small Country in the World slogan that Scotland used. Although papers released in 2008 show that Scotland would have been a whole lot bigger (economical) independent country if it wasn’t deceived by successive Westminster governments about the value of its oil revenues.
So 2008 has kicked off with a real political hot potato. Will the year continue in similar fashion?
Keep up to date with all the political debate at Our Scotland.
Saturday, 6 October 2007
No General Election!
Well, what would you know! Having let speculation build and build over the last two weeks or so, Gordon Brown turned around today and announced that there would not be an election.
There can be no other explanation than he has totally bottled it. If he was never going to call an election, he would have stopped all the speculation stone dead. Brown had totally backed himself into a corner, where the only option seemed to be to call an election. Yet he has stunned us all.
The leaders of the other political parties must be thinking all their Christmases have come at once, as this gives them unlimited ammunition in which to attack Brown. The SNP have got the ball rolling by calling Brown a "feartie"!
On a personal note, I m quite disappointed. As the prospect of a GE increased I was getting quite excited. There is nothing like the buzz that election day gives you. I was looking forward to a long night in front of the TV and Peter Snow's Swingometer. However it is not to be. Having two elections in one year would have been a bit greedy though.
Wonder if Brown will live to regret this decision though?
There can be no other explanation than he has totally bottled it. If he was never going to call an election, he would have stopped all the speculation stone dead. Brown had totally backed himself into a corner, where the only option seemed to be to call an election. Yet he has stunned us all.
The leaders of the other political parties must be thinking all their Christmases have come at once, as this gives them unlimited ammunition in which to attack Brown. The SNP have got the ball rolling by calling Brown a "feartie"!
On a personal note, I m quite disappointed. As the prospect of a GE increased I was getting quite excited. There is nothing like the buzz that election day gives you. I was looking forward to a long night in front of the TV and Peter Snow's Swingometer. However it is not to be. Having two elections in one year would have been a bit greedy though.
Wonder if Brown will live to regret this decision though?
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