That is a map of Argyll and Bute constituency taken from Wikipedia. It is huge, and as you might imagine communications around it are pretty difficult. It contains at least a dozen different inhabited islands.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argyll_and_Bute_(UK_Parliament_constituency)
In a straight line it is about 150 miles from its northernmost to southernmost point. As is obvious, you can’t actually travel around it in straight lines without a helicopter.
Yet those purblind London oriented fools at the Telegraph think it is a scandal that the MP, Alan Reid, claimed £1500 on bed and breakfast within his own constituency. That would be four days stay for Hazel Belars in the Clerkenwell Hotel, but it was in fact Alan reid putting in the hard miles needed to be a good MP in his wonderful constituency – which makes the best whiskies in the world.
The real scandal here is the purblind stupidity of the English idiots of the Telegraph, who thinks that North means Islington and West means Chelsea.
r u on crack?
Well noted Craig.
Journos in general are a bunch of lazy, cheating, and loud mouthed operatives, however adding ignorance into the mix, then you have the perfect Telegraph editor, and Journos.
These guys are so damn lazy that they could not be bothered to look up the Wikipedia, although their prejudice would not have registered the large distances and overnight stays for the trips necessary, after all it is so small when you look at it on the monitor, anyone can just walk from one end to the other in one or two steps.
Is there any need for the racial slur? What about the Scottish idiots that work for the Telegraph? Do you know for a fact that the only people at the Telegraph who worked on this story were English? The chances are, with the number of Scottish communists in the London media, that there were Scots involved in it. Are they idiots as well or is it only the English that are idiots?
I’d have thought an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Lancaster School of Law would have been reluctant to publish racist material on the internet.
Is there any need for the racial slur?
Yes.
What a racist.English idiots? What about brown,darling,foulkes and martin etc lying thieving fraudsters and SCOTTISH
What does Alan Reid do in his “wonderful constituency ” after devolution? He’s redundant there which is why he comes down to England to vote on English matters without being answerable to those whose life he affects.
He should stay in his “wonderful constituency ” and mind his own business.
Yes, Brown, Darling, Foulkes and Martin are Scottish knaves. Happy to go along with that.
I wan’t claiming all English people are idiots, just the ones at the Telegraph. Some English people are very bright. My mum, for one.
English idiots? How do you know the nationalities of those employed at the Telegraph? Have you asked them? Will you be posting that those other people from different nations, including Scotland, who are employed at the Telegraph, are also idiots?
What a racist tosser you are! Your English mum must be very proud of raising such an anti-English, racist scumbag to represent the family.
Well, Helen, the Telegraph article I refer to was written by Martin Beckford, who is English. So is the Political Editor and ao is the Editor. So the particular idiots involved were, indeed, English.
That is relevant, becuase if they had been Scottish they would have understood why the MP for Argyll and Bute might need to move around B & Bs.
Craig,
You’ve lost the plot with this one.
These people are lazy journalists because they are lazy journalists, not because they are English (if indeed they are).
Anyway, although I do like Islay malts Highland Park from Orkney is arguably the best whisky…
Bitter and twisted Scot with an inferiority complex, yes, yet another.
Look, more often than not, England thrashed Scortland in all those medieval battles, either get over it, go pour a dram and whack on your Special extended edition Braveheart DVD, or seek medical help.
Theres a good Jock Jock.
John,
Wow you English are thin-skinned!
If they had been Scottish, even the laziest journo there would understand the problems of being MP for Argyll and Bute. They displayed an arrogant disregard for the facts in the case that is not just lazy journalism, it is typical of English journalism about Scotland.
You call yourself a former British Ambassador and Human Rights Activist?
My goodness, but you should be ashamed of yourself. What a load of racist drivel you just spouted. I have posted this link on Twitter. As I type, your nasty racist comments are being discussed on Facebook as well.
It is the human right of Englshmen, women and children anywhere, not to be racially abused by you.
John D Monkey,
I agree Highland Park is very very good. You get unlimited amounts when you speak at the Edinburgh Book Festival, which makes it very worthwhile. Bit I just love the back of the nose peatiness of Islay.
According to your biography page Craig you were born and brought up in West Runton. To the best of my knowledge that’s in Norfolk (I went to the occasional gig there at the Pavilion). You say here that you have an English mother.
The masthead of your site however describes you as Scottish. Please advise.
Not being an idiot, I found it very easy to understand what Craig meant:
These people don’t know about this part of the world because they are English (or rather not Scottish).
Given that, these people are idiots for not looking up what they were talking about before opening their mouths in ignorance.
Thus they are English and they are idiots. They are English idiots.
Or non-Scottish idiots, but that doesn’t have quite the ring to it, does it?
I don’t imagine Scottish people have much of a problem about other nationalities talking pish about their area/people, either (as they’re unlikely to get involved at all), so the problem of ignorant non-Scottish people talking rubbish about Scotland is a particularly English one. Thus the term English idiots seems fine in this context.
I am English and did not feel Craig was calling me an idiot.
“Craig is much in demand as a hilarious after dinner speaker”.
———-
His “Hilarity” is not confined to his freebie lunches in Scottish Bingo halls it seems!
It is nice to see the little englanders getting all hetup, and indignant!
Racist, etc. whilst the same bunch have not so much as raised the slightest peep about the constant drip of anti Muslim, and anti all things immigrant, to the extent of some disowning St George the Turkish in favour of Odin (albeit yet another immigrant, but not from those brown lands).
Fact is sleep with dogs and get up with flees allegory applied, holster you indignations, you have been working hard for what is coming your way.
All Craig has done, is to hold a mirror; the face that is seen and you don’t like is yours, and not anyone else’s.
Keep up the good work Craig, we the savvy people, know what you are driving at.
Me thinks the people getting offended over this are either faking it or, dare I say it, English idiots themselves.
And I say that as an English person.
Does a Scottish MP need to move about his constituency so much when he represents his constituents only on reserved matters such as defence and foreign policy? Or does he consult his Scottish constituents on whether they want the English to have foundation hospitals, tuition fees, etc. etc?
MJ,
Well, ethnically I am Scots, English, Italian and Dutch in more or less equal parts. I was born in West Runton. I support Norwich City. In internationals I always support Scotland, but am devoted passionately to the England cricket team and to Kent.
I consider myself Scots, probably because I spent my most formative time there. And maybe partly because my name is Craig Murray. I have lived about a third of my life in England, a third in Scotland, and a third abroad. I am married to an Uzbek of mixed Tajik ancestry.
As you might imagine, race is not a big issue with me. I do though enjoy the Scottish/English sporting rivalry. And I enjoy winding people up sometimes!
Imarcher
I think you will find that I, like nearly all Scots not in New Labour, completely agree that Scots MPs should not vote on English questions.
MJ
Just noticed your point about the Runton Pavilion. My father was a Scot posted to Norfolk in the RAF. He met my mum at a dance at the Runton Pavilion.
Craig accuses English posters of being sensitive. I seem to remember Scots braying ‘racist’ when Jeremy Clarkson spoke accurately on all counts about the ‘one-eyed Scottish idiot’ in 10 Downing St.
Also, Scots as a nation got all huffy puffy about David Starkey’s accurate comments about the ‘Celtic nations’.
Take the Scots pine out of your own eye before sneering about English idots.
Many English people, perhaps most. don’t want anything to do with Scotland and the animosity towards Scots is growing by the minute the longer this devolution apartheid against the English continues.
Where are you mad English nationalists coming from?
Only New Labour wants to keep the system whereby the Scots can vote on English matters but the English can’t vote on Scottish matters. There is as you say a growing desire for mutual independence.
Clarkson’s “Scottish idiot” jibe was fine by me. The “one-eyed” bit was not. I cannot stand Brown, but his unfortunate physical disability is not something that should be attacked.
The anarchy shows promise in this thread; I give it two stars.
**
Craig, you are spot on with this. I’m from Ayrshire in Scotland and I travel around argyll and But quite a bit and it is no easy task. Some of these Island are quite remote with only 3 ferries a week going to them. I think it is quite commendable that he makes the effort as some of these communities are so isolated their grievences generally aren’t ever heard.
Concerning the people complaining about your apparent racist tone, i have two words ……. piss off!!! There is nothing racist about calling someone an English idiot if he is an idiot who happens to be English. Seems more like fact to me.
Anyway, onto more important matters, Highland Park Whisky isn’t a patch on Islay’s Lagavulin – the best whisky in the world.
Stephen Gash,
Appropriate name because you seem to be talking it. I think you have no idea of what Scotland brings to the UK. We would be happy to separate from England any time which is why Westminster won’t allow a referendum on the matter. What you have to remember is that we have a great deal of resources which you (England) would miss. Oil being the main one. As they haven’t even tapped half of the oil out of the north sea yet it would be interesting to see England getting along without it for the next 50 years. Also we have greater sources for renewable energy than anywhere else in Britain. But you wouldn’t want to share that would you?
So the next time you complain about us rememeber that we don’t give two sh*ts what you think.
Well, at least we’d get our shop doorways back.
:))
Didn’t think about that. Our shop doorway are pretty full at the moment!!! Maybe I’m rushing into this a bit too quickly whithout considering everything. Good point!!