THE END OF A BEAUTIFUL FRIENDSHIP? (Courtesy of ConservativeHome)

Update:  "With ironic understatement, a Downing Street spokesman yesterday left little doubt that the remarks had caused some irritation in No 10. He said: "The Elysee have been in contact this morning to assure us that these remarks were not meant as a critique of UK economic policy - which is nice." Sunday Herald

BASHIR AHMAD 1940 - 2009

Bashir Ahmad 1940 - 2009

Scotland's first Scots-Asian MSP has died suddenly, at home in Pollockshields, Glasgow, of a heart attack.  In 1995 he founded Scots Asians for Independence and was a member of the SNP's national executive committee since 1998.   

SUBROSA'S SUPER SEVEN (blogs)

Thought it may be a good idea to have a weekly list of blogs which are directly or indirectly associated with Scottish politics. They are my personal choices and no bribery has taken place. The reason the following have been chosen is because each contained a post which I found enjoyable, informative, very well researched or all three.

If you, dear readers, think this is a good idea then I'll try to do one every week. If not, just don't comment!

Alphabetical order to avoid favouritism:

Advanced Media Watch -   For his efforts at the Gaelic 

Key bored Warrior -  for the copy of the article in Wednesday's Scottish Mediawatch

Lobbydog -   a subject close to my heart and obviously closer to Gordon Brown's

Pseudepigrapha -  a wonderful fairy tale (a series so tune in regularly)

Scunnert - highlighting the PANA campaign for a second NO to the Lisbon Treaty

Tractor Stats -  my favourite graphic this week

Wardog -  The missing Glenrothes register

Fish suppers to new bloggers:  Brownlie and  The Universality of Cheese for their first efforts.

SOCIAL ENGINEERING for the NEW GLOBAL ORDER

Browsing some blogs, I came across this post from Henry North London.  It shows just how far along the line our masters are with their desire for a New World Order (now referred to as the New Global Order by Gordon Brown).

The post doesn't require quotes from me, it stands firmly on its own merit, but I would like you to note it was the child who took the most interest.  What's the saying?  "Give me the child before they're seven and I'll show you the man."

Food for thought and concern for our future generations.  It's our responsibility to vote for politicians who are intent on ensuring our children are educated to their full potential and not the dumbed-down standards of today.

Should anyone be interested in Joshua Bell (photograph), here is a link to an interview one lucky blogger had with him, some months after the subway event.

FMQs 5 February 2009

The car radio was my initial source for FMQs today and, to be honest, I found it all rather tedious.  Just goes to show there is a great difference between a radio scriptwriter and one for the visual media.  Anyway now I've watched it on the box I feel fully qualified, having absorbed a double dose, to give my assessment.

FMQs kicked off today at noon, with the funereal tone of Ian Gray who always wins the toss, "To ask the FM what engagements he has for later today".  Second question was, "The Scottish Futures Trust is rubbish so why isn't it in the bin?" (or words to that effect).  Mr Gray droned on and on becoming more desperate to fit in his new catch phrase "the Salmond slump."

  

Did he realise the damage he was doing?  Scotland depends on tourism and anyone innocently listening or watching could well think there are no salmon is our rivers and it's possibly a waste of time even visiting the famous salmon ladder in Pitlochry. Thanks Mr Gray, we can always depend on you to do your bit to destroy our tourism industry.  

Mr Salmond addressed Mr Gray's questions with his usual accuracy, (correcting a few of Mr Gray's quoted figures), and concluded his responses by suggesting labour may wish to join with him fight for more fiscal powers for the Parliament.

Next to take the stage was Ms Goldie, on form as ever.  Her aim was to promote a new conservative website and to let Parliament know that when David Cameron becomes Prime Minister, he will work together with the Scottish Parliament. Good campaigning again Aunty Annabel.  Bit disappointing for her though, the FM said he'd prefer to meet the PM rather than log on to the new tory website.

Mr Scott then took the floor concentrating on the financial help the government is going to provide for those in difficulty during the present economic climate. The FM was gentle with his new best friend and gave him a thorough explanation of the action the government are taking.

All in all a fair performance from most.  Perhaps everyone was rather weary after working hard yesterday.  Most of us understand, we do it every day.

NEW STYLE BLOG BANNERS

Do you think this type of individual banner will become all the rage?

Niko will hopefully think this one (below) is suitable for me.  He kindly sent me a link about the latest statistics regarding the number of elderly in the UK.

A LETTER TO PATRICK (HARVIE)

Dear Patrick

I'm sad you, once again, didn't feel you could vote for the Scottish budget today.  Surely you can understand why John Swinney cannot support your £100m request for your home insulation policy.  As I understand it (and it's been difficult to find the detail believe me), your policy concentrates on insulating lofts and cavity wall filling, both good ideas and essential to keeping heat inside out homes.  

But you see Patrick, your policy doesn't address the many thousands of Scottish homes which are stone built and I know you're aware stone built houses are unsuitable for cavity wall insulation. They require internal or external insulation don't they?  Why didn't you revise your policy to suit all the homes in Scotland and not just the ones built after the 1960s instead of relying upon a policy designed for homes in Yorkshire, England? 

When you didn't produce a Scottish policy, John Swinney offered you a pilot scheme, which would have assessed the cost of internally insulating tenements and stone built homes, but you turned it down. Then John offered you £22m but that still wasn't good enough.  I can understand your refusal in that case because there are many homes which do require lagged attics and filled cavities.  

Last week, during typical political negotiations, you refused an extra £11m because you didn't understand the detail you said. I'd have grabbed it and worked out the detail later, but that's the type of person I am.

Once last week's budget fell, you opened the door for the libdems and labour to get in.  The libdems (knowing how silly they were to have taken their ball away in the initial stages), played the game well, considering they thought the budget would pass on last week's vote.  That leaves labour - well what can I say?  They've gained nothing really, Andy Kerr's speech was just the usual spin, but with a difference - he also attacked the libdems, his old cohorts!

Patrick, I think John Swinney's offer to you was fair all things considered.  It's my view that the SNP (if they have any sense) will now develop your policy to suit all homes in Scotland and I do hope they give you a wee bit credit, but I doubt it.  As I write the BBC are saying John Swinney was in 'contrite' mood today.  I refute that.  He's held the stage with confidence and vigour, believing what he's put forward to the Parliament is the best for Scotland.

Patrick, all the electorate in Scotland are fond of the Greens to one degree or another. The fact that your vote last year was imperative is no longer valid. That's politics for you!

With fond thoughts

A Dundee Wifey

CHARLIE GORDON, MSP, WEBSITE EXPENSES

Charlie Gordon, labour MSP for Glasgow Cathcart, former Glasgow City Council leader and the man who 'acted in good faith' over the Wendy Alexander scandal. The same man who was on Newsnicht back in July, putting himself forward for the post of leader of labour MSPs in the Scottish Parliament, but he didn't get enough support.

How many of you have websites?  Quite a few I expect, especially if you have a business of any kind.  Charlie Gordon has a website for his business which, as we know, is looking after the good people of Glasgow Cathcart.  He charged these good people and the rest of the population of Scotland £12,822 this last financial year for the privilege of reading his website.  That's about £10,000 more than any similar site should cost - I'm being generous too.

Mark Pack, Liberal Democrat Voice has an excellent article on the ins and outs of Mr Gordon's website expenses, so no need to repeat them here.

What I do need to repeat is this - why do we continue to accept this behaviour from any MSP?  Last week this was news and now this week not a word about it in the press.  Has anyone complained to Parliament officials?  Has labour taken any action? 

The Turks obviously think it's a serious matter because it's mentioned in the Turkish Weekly.  Why can't we see how important it is that we stamp out this trough-digging now.  Once we have independence we need quality MSPs (or whatever we decide to call them) to represent us, the type of person who understands the meaning of the words trust and honesty. Incidents like this can't be allowed to become tomorrow's chip paper, they must be resolved, and quickly.

THE SCOTTISH BUDGET REVISITED - 4 February 2009

Both the Scottish and English media have been saying the Scottish budget will be voted through unanimously tomorrow afternoon.  The Presiding Officer and party business managers have agreed other business is postponed to allow the debate to be concluded in the one sitting.

So, who are the winners and losers since last Wednesday? Certainly the SNP government lost because their Bill fell, although they behaved sensibly by submitting the same Bill immediately. The conservatives won, no doubt about that.  Their willingness to co-operate with the government all through the process has certainly gained them a certain amount of kudos. Margo won, as usual she bargained the way only a woman can. The Greens lost.  Badly.  I've heard Patrick Harvie's been telt aff by many in his party.  The libdems lost because they didn't even approach the starting line and it's taken them months to realise you can't join a game unless you're in the park.  

For me the biggest losers were labour.  It was obvious for a few weeks that labour had no intention of negotiating.  The list of their requirements was extensive and understandably John Swinney said much of it could not be met.  So labour pouted and sulked.  Let's not forget labour hinted at calling for a vote of confidence just after the numbers were announced, that hasn't been reported much in the last 6 days, but you bet your bottom dollar Alex Salmond won't forget it.

So tomorrow it's all going to be sweetness and light according to Brian Taylor.  The Tories will still get their share - the Greens possibly the £33m they were offered last week - the libdems will get support for further fiscal powers (which is SNP policy anyway) and labour will have their apprenticeships but, only for one year with a promise to revisit the subject for the 2010 budget.

Alex Salmond and John Swinney have been skillful in their handling of the situation in the past 6 days and I hope the Bill goes through unanimously.  If it does, then it will show some parties in our Parliament have now realised the public want results, most don't care how the results are acquired and behaving like petulant teenagers doesn't impress the electorate.

I'm hoping to watch the main part of the debate as I've been most impressed, in the past while, with the Tory finance lad Derek Brownlee.  Somehow feel he could take Annabel's chair once she decides to buy her retirement pad on some Greek island.

MISSING BY-ELECTION DOCUMENTS

Councillor John Beare, convener of the SNP Central Fife constituency, applied to the Sheriff Court to obtain a copy of the marked electoral register used during the Glenrothes by-election, the Dundee Courier reports today.  Candidates and their agents are permitted to see the register, which records only who voted and not how they voted.

Mr Beare has made several requests for the document and has now been told it 'has gone missing.' He was informed renovation work has been carried out at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court and that some documentation had been removed for confidential waste disposal.

Tricia Marwick, when asked if she suspected foul play, remarked, "No I do not.  Nor do I believe it was a fair election.  All I can say for sure is that the crucial information that proves it one way or another has gone missing."

Quelle surprise.  My suggestion is we build a secure, fire-proofed, central archive for such documents; a perfect project for labour's new apprentices.  Could the loss of such an important document make the result null and void?

Update:  Guido Fawkes and others have blogged on this matter.  It needs to be given as much publicity as possible.

MOVE OVER DARLING

Came across this comment on Trixy's 'Is There More to Life Than Shoes' blog.  Do hope 'Dave' doesn't mind me using it, but it confirms what many of us already know.   

'http://blogs.reuters.com/uknews/2009/01/30/sorry-darling-davos-is-for-mandy/
It reads
"If there were any questions over who is number two in British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s cabinet, Davos might have helped clear them up.

While Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling is giving the annual gathering of global big wigs a miss, business minister Lord Peter Mandelson has found the time to go.

For years Mandelson and Brown weren’t talking, now Mandelson is once again at the heart of everything the Labour Party is plotting.

Darling has been the steady rock always at Gordon’s side during the credit crunch, often taking the flak from the media for the government’s handling of the crisis. 

But when it comes to talking to the world’s most powerful decision makers and hob nobbing in an exclusive ski resort, Lord Mandy gets the call."

So when Gordo finally goes insane or has a heart attack (likely), who will take over?
What are the odds on a disgraced (twice) ex-MP and unelected cabinet minister taking over at No10?

Gordo better hire a food taster'

BBC BIAS EXPOSED ONCE AGAIN

It's not often I read the Daily Record but this comment (or perhaps diatribe) by Joan Burnie sums up my opinion of the British Broadcasting Corporation, named the EBC by many north of Watford.  The BBC's biase has always been towards the south-east of England.  The quality of news we receive in Scotland is laughable.  'Scottish' programmes are made for England, such as the cringeworthy Monarch of the Glen, but I admit the History of Scotland is one of the best they've produced for years.

For many, television is their sole entertainment and the BBC have a vast amount of money to spent because of the mandatory licence fee imposed.  One suggestion I could give them - that's to stop sending so many staff on reporting missions.  If newspapers behaved like that they would have been bankrupt years ago.

I'm still waiting to know the actual numbers of staff who were in the US for the inauguration.  Perhaps a FOI letter is the next course of action ...

ICELAND and the EU - YES or NO?

In recent months we've heard so much disdain voiced for Iceland and its financial institutions, 'the arc of insolvency' being the popular insulting slogan from the unionist parties.  Yes of course, Icelandic banks were very vulnerable, but who pulled the trigger? Gordon and his Darling. Let's move on.  

Now Iceland is reportedly considering joining the EU, for many reasons and not least because it thinks its present currency (the kronur) would never gain respect again.  Sensible.

The main opposition to joining the EU comes from the Icelandic fishing industry.  More than 70% of Iceland's exports are from fish and fish products and vital to this small country.  Iceland has fought long and hard to preserve its fishing industry, including the 'cod wars' against Britain in the 50s and 70s, when Iceland won the right to assert exclusive control over its traditional grounds and Scotland badly lost out. 

Fishermen are aware joining the EU would mean they couldn't keep their fisheries policies intact, but how much would they be prepared to give up in order to stabilise Iceland's future? That remains to be seen, but the EU seems keen to "quickly complete negotiations" if they do wish to join.

How does this affect Scotland?  If Iceland says yes, Scotland would welcome their expertise in managing fisheries, along with the hope that we would gain some access to Icelandic waters. The bargaining power the Icelandics will have with regard to EU fishing policy is great - meanwhile Scotland can only look on with envy, as Iceland would be treated as an equal on the international stage.

There's the small matter of Iceland having no government at present, but that will be resolved in the next couple of months. Then the people will decide.  We can count ourselves lucky we have a good man in Richard Lochhead who would do his best to ensure we get a slice of the cake (or should that be fish).

JOHNNIE WALKER'S GONE DUTCH

Today the Guardian reports how the Johnnie Walker label was spirited away to Holland. It was achieved by a method called outward domestication. Although I'm no economist, it's easy to see this is all to do with UK tax avoidance and seemingly perfectly legal.

Johnnie Walker is owned by Diageo plc whose HQ is in London. They are giants in the drinks industry but Johnnie Walker, produced in Kilmarnock, is their most famous brand. It appears Diageo has been paying little tax to the Treasury as the tax system taxes 'only those financial profits said to arise in this country'. The bulk of Diageo's profits are declared in this class and for good reason - these overseas taxes are remarkably low.

What's their secret? The company is saying nothing, well they wouldn't, would they. Good investigative journalism has produced evidence of the way in which Diageo has transferred the brands to Holland - on paper anyway. The Inland Revenue has been over to Amsterdam to have a wee word with Diageo and a deal has been done, far more in favour of Diageo that the Treasury by all accounts.

' The legal ownership of many famous trademarks has been transferred, including Johnnie Walker scotch, J & B Rare, and Gilbey's gin - brands worth hundreds of millions of pounds.

Along with the brands has gone the ownership of the entire whisky businesses, leaving Scotland's distilleries as hollowed-out sub-contractors.'

So, next time you have a hot toddy, or just a drop of malt because you want one, give a thought to our whisky industry. Have any other companies who own one of our greatest products acted in this way? Time the Scottish government took a good look. We can't afford to have this happen in an independent Scotland.

BUDGET FAILURE - PATRICK GETS THE FLACK

The Sunday Herald and the Sunday Times are playing the blame game for the fall of the Scottish budget last Wednesday.  The buck stops with Patrick Harvie according to both newspapers.  In both articles John Swinney accepts it was his responsibility for the failure.  Well done.  Labour and libdems aren't spoken about in a good light either for their behaviour.

'It is understood Harvie's hardline stance was opposed by his fellow Green Robin Harper - the two were seen furiously writing notes to one another before the vote - and Harper only supported Harvie out of party duty'. - The Sunday Herald

'The Green party’s notional leader Patrick Harvie had a written agreement from Alex Salmond that, in return for its two votes, the first minister would provide an extra £33m for home insulation. However, at the 11th hour, Harvie withdrew his support, without which the vote would be tied and the bill would fall on the casting vote of the presiding officer.

“Patrick had to go to the coven of witches who authorise his every move, and they began to give him a hard time,” said a source close to the negotiations. “They began to text him, telling him not to settle for anything less than £100m.”' - Sunday Times

As I write Ian Gray is on Politics Now. When are labour going to realise that negative criticism is self-defeating.  People can only listen to so much of it before they switch off.