The Labour Party supports austerity in England but opposes it in Scotland. If Labour were to win the general election, and also find themselves in power in Scotland’s 2016 parliamentary elections, there would be “new and higher” benefits in Scotland, whereas sanctions and cuts would continue to oppress the ordinary people of England. Indeed, they have repeatedly promised to be tougher on benefits than the Tories – in England.
Now let us for a moment suspend all our critical faculties, and believe that Gordon Brown is sincere about the higher benefits in Scotland. Let us also ignore the fact that to be practical, that would require devolution of a vastly greater proportion of the tax base than anything Labour or the Smith Commission are suggesting. Let us, just for now, believe it is a sincere and practical offer. It is possible to understand why it could attract some people – the union without the cuts and austerity.
But why one earth would any left wing person in England want to vote for a party which, if in power in both England and Scotland, would pay higher benefits to Scots than to English? Why would the English vote for a continued retrenchment of the welfare state there but not in Scotland. Indeed, is there not liable to be some resentment in England at this rather strange proposition? When you add to this Labour’s absolute insistence that while English MPs may not vote on Scottish affairs, Scottish MP’s must be allowed to vote on English affairs, it seems to me you would have to be nuts to vote for Labour in England at present.
The BBC’s latest promotion of super-Brown and his new promises has caused much hilarity in Scotland. I cannot improve on this incisive comment I lifted from the Guardian, by MurphyUKOK:
What is it with the Labour Party and these 2 in particular? The sequencing of their ‘pledges’ on Home Rule so far had been
1) totally opposed to home rule – it is either yes or no
2) eh no actually, we are shitting ourselves, it looks like we might lose- we ‘vow’ home rule
3) we didn’t vow home rule
4) the smith commission has finalised its position- we have delivered home rule
5) eh no … that actually isn’t home rule but if you vote for us again we will give you home rule
A party of lying fucking idiots!!!
But I think the Greens, the Tories and UKIP in England must be those most amused and delighted by Labour’s latest incredible convolution. All of which reinforces my frequently repeated assertion that Labour are going to be nowhere near government after the general election, unless in coalition with the Tories.
Independence is so close now we can almost touch it.
No trace has yet been found of Tony Blair’s crack-pipe…
He didn’t inhale. He didn’t. What I am beginning to find traces of is an association between one Milton Berlinski, a pretty prominent US money-manufacturer, and one of Blair’s unaccountable companies. A great deal of money seems to be involved. Details may follow.
“Apparently this fly-man Murphy, (‘Prince’ William’s ageing body double) is amending the non-existant constitution of the non-existant Scottish Labour (Impersonators) Party. Apparently scrawled on yellowing lined jotter-paper”
________________________________
Tony M.
Rev, Stu Campbell decided to look into the elusive Labour Constitution document, he couldn’t find it anywhere, not on their website, nor is it,in any of their literature, so he wrote to the Electoral Commission to see if they held a copy of it, they didn’t.
Apparently you’ve more chance of finding hen’s teeth, than the Labour Constitution document.
Phil
“Uzbek
What do you actually know of marx?”
He was (almost) perfect theorist but when lenin tried and Stalin then altered and further tried his (almost) perfect theory in practise it turned into rivers of bloods and mountains of bones. Both human unfortunately. Every theory which failed in practise is false theory which worth nothing. But yet again Marxism was worth rivers of (human) blood and mountains of (human) bones.
I realise that seating with Anglo-Saxon arse in comfortable British chair it is easy to speculate about goodness or Marxism and failure of individual Marxists practisists such as lenin or stalin but when your compatriots (or even more important some of your relatives) fall victims of this failure your judgment will be little more clearer (or biased as MWL would say).
Ba’al Zevul
In 1917 Russians were also tired of very short experience of democracy and in 1933 Germans of their slightly longer version of it. Both ended up in a huge mess.
So far Kantian order is the best one. Although to be fair Kant did not support democracy as such but more so liberal values and individual rights. Both of these are better protected by democracy. Even the least financially worth off person in UK (and EU in general) is much freer than the richest man in present Russia (except Vlad Almighty of course) or China.
Not always truth (from someone’s mouth) is truth as such. I am sure you read Orwell and know what I mean.
Ba’al Zevul
There are two ways to do (improve) things. One called revolutionally and another one evolutionary. To some extend society and politics in Britain would be better off by employing the latter version. Middle class is very strong and society as such is not very desperate. Call for revolution is call for desperate measures which (in my opinion) is not required to change politics in Britain. see for yourself. In 1945 Britain was even more conservative than now, people were still wearing cylinder hats and red socks. It had just ended horrible war and was in huge debts and was sliding towards second rate power from once almighty empire. And yet society called for people who thought differently. Who promised and delivered what they (these people) needed the most. And it all happened without shots on the street, without barricades and rivers of blood (as was the case in both Russia and Germany few decades earlier).
YouGov’s latest poll, Scottish voting intentions.
http://d25d2506sfb94s.cloudfront.net/cumulus_uploads/document/a7awj68e8x/Final_Times_Results_150202_Website.pdf
……………………………………..
Which party would be most effective at securing further powers for the Scottish Parliament 2015 GE.
________________________
Conservatives 4
Labour 15
Lib/dem 2
SNP 64
none of Them 5
Don’t Know 12
weighted sample-1001.
__________________________
which Scottish party will give an influential voice at Westminster.
______________________
Conservative 4
Labour 18
Lib/Dem 2
SNP 58
None 6
Don’t Know 13
http://wingsoverscotland.com/youre-gonna-need-someone-on-your-side/
Its looking good, I hope the SNP crush Lying-Labour, in Scotland the Lib/Dems look dead in the water, along with the Tories, there’s actually more, don’t Knows and None, than Tory votes.
“Independence is so close now we can almost touch it.”
Where have I heard that before.
“Independence is so close now we can almost touch it.”
__________________________
I really hope you’re right Craig, hopefully we can kiss Westminster goodbye, and of those in Scotland who don’t like it well they can f*ck-off, they won’t be missed.
“I really hope you’re right Craig, hopefully we can kiss Westminster goodbye, and of those in Scotland who don’t like it well they can f*ck-off, they won’t be missed.”
Place would be pretty empty without 55% of the population.
How about the mindless minority fuck off instead.
Glenn,
Yes, the Welsh are an entirely different question. Personally I very much hope they will choose independence, but not being in the least Welsh myself it is not my call.
Fred
Your side down to 48% and falling…
http://scotgoespop.blogspot.co.uk/2015/02/snp-power-to-record-21-lead-in-jaw.html
“Your side down to 48% and falling…”
Have they had another referendum?
I heard all the claims before the last one.
It’s crosses in the ballot box that mean something, not wishful thinking.
Probably a bit of Welsh in there somewhere.
Uzbek
“He was (almost) perfect theorist”
Almost perfect! Well you go much further than me. I would say, as much/little as I understand, Marx made some mighty errors of judgement. Such as the vanguard led transitional state, exactly as pursued by Lenin and Trotsky. Marx gave us a devastating critique of capitalism, not the USSR. To think the likes of Stalin as Marxist is laughable.
“Every theory which failed in practise is false theory which worth nothing.”
Not entirely sure what you mean with this but: sure no theory is perfect. However, some theories are more inspiring than others. You might equate Stalin and Hitler. Fair enough. But I suggest it is daft to equate Marxism and Fascism. Marx presented a philosophical and economic framework which aspired to equity, tolerance and justice for all. Fascism fundamentally discriminates to breed hatred and division.
FYI I am not a Marxist. I just see equating Marxism to Fascism as a dismissing a thinker dangerous to capitalism. The word itself is used by power much like the word “Terrorist”. Don’t think, just feel. Be afraid. Marxist! Terrorist!
Yes we all know what Labour is like, but what we want to know is what the SNP has got in store for the English.
What are the SNP’s proposals for devolution in England. They say that they will vote on English issues, so lets hear their English policies.
lease can we have a proportional fair voting system as a guaranteed preamble to devolution?
And whilst we are at it, would they not want to join forces with those who say that a referendum on Europe has to be preceded by some policies that safeguard all those who are currently dependent on EU subsidies.
Labour is hammering the nails into its own coffin, and its well deserved.
“Place would be pretty empty without 55% of the population.”
____________________________
Oh you mean the 55% of self preserving b*stards who don’t want to rock the boat,(We’d be better of without them) or the bigoted O/O, who worship Old Lizzy HRH, I feel at least some of the 55%, have seen through those lying- Labour traitors.
Voting intentions seem to back this up, with the SNP well ahead, no wonder Jim (The Judas) Murphy has called in Gordon Brown, because very few believe (Henry Jackson Society)Murphy.
At least we known Murphy’s a stinking liar but Gordon Brown actually believes the lies he spouts, which makes him far more dangerous.Brown is a pathetic Tomb Tabard.
I was born in Yorkshire, from a long line of Yorkshiremen and women. But I would still like to see independence for Birmingham.
RoS – your comments are divisive – those 55% are real people doing everyday things.
Tommy has his faults, as do well all, but his hearts in the right place.
http://youtu.be/_O_48RH_zho
Uzbek
The word “revolution” is also used as another scary word to instil conservative values. You seem to equate mass bloodshed and revolution. Which is nonsense.
This whole thing about evolution OR revolution is a nonsense. They are not distinct opposites. Revolution is one way society evolves. Human culture can be viewed as continuous revolution and counter revolution. From the neolithic onwards, it’s all a struggle for power based on the accumulation of wealth. A to and froing towards a gradual emancipation of the many, much accelerated in the last 200 years. And yes the revolutions of 1917 were important aspects of this, even if the USSR did very quickly turn to shit. It is hard to see the post ’45 Labour government here without the European revolutions preceding it which wouldn’t have happened without the global revolutions of 1848 and so on and on.
With those YouGov figures, could the SNP get all 59 Scottish seats in Westminster?
“RoS – your comments are divisive – those 55% are real people doing everyday things.”
_________________________
I call it as I see it Fool, some of the 55% were duped into voting no by the vow. The rest decided to vote no, due to self preservation, which allows Westminster (A foreign government in my opinion)to keep WMD’s 30 miles from Scotland’s largest city.
It allows nuclear subs to pollute Scottish waters unchallenged by SEPA, it allows massive austerity cuts, whilst big business pays less tax, it allows Scottish men, and women, to be dragged into and die in illegal foreign wars, that we didn’t vote for.
It allows Westminster to punish the sick poor and elderly, just because they’re poor, it allows a possible £100 billion quid to be spent on renewing Trident in Scotland, I could cite many more things Fool, independence is a must.
“With those YouGov figures, could the SNP get all 59 Scottish seats in Westminster?”
__________________________
Lysais, its unlikely, East Renfrewshire is a strong Labour seat, and according to Lib/Dem/Labour/Tories, they’re going to pull their vote, to stop Alex Salmond winning the Gordon seat, in Aberdeenshire.
But in my opinion 49 seat of the 59 seats are a possibility, who knows it could be more it could be less.
The mindless minority on this blog is you Fred !!
“The mindless minority on this blog is you Fred !!”
Fuck off and die retard.
So are Lib/Dem/Labour/Tories going to divide the Scottish seats among them, running only one candidate for each constituency, so as to minimize how many seats SNP can take?
“So are Lib/Dem/Labour/Tories going to divide the Scottish seats among them, running only one candidate for each constituency, so as to minimize how many seats SNP can take?”
_________________________
Not as far as I know Lysias, its only the Gordon seat, the silly buggers are so desperate, to get one over on Alex Salmond.
Its a sign of minion parties in Scotland, their London masters hate Alex and the SNP so much, or should I say fear Alex Salmond that would be more appropriate.
Because Alex and the SNP have no Westminster master, they only answer to the people of Scotland.
ROS
“Because Alex and the SNP have no Westminster master, they only answer to the people of Scotland.”
That’s the funniest thing I’ve read all day.
“That’s the funniest thing I’ve read all day.”
Phil.
You’ve only ever commented once to me, and that was to call me a racist c*nt.
But I’m a bigger man than you, so I won’t tell you, to go and well you know.
I will instead cite an example of the Scottish government answering, and heeding, the will of the Scottish people, just lately infact.
Chief Constable Sir Stephen House rolled out armed police officers across Scotland, a few months back, the public and several Scottish politicians were concerned about this, and after Kenny MacAskill (The then Justice Secretary, now Michael Matheson)spoke with Sir Stephen House, police Scotland did a complete U-Turn on its armed police policy.
Uzbek – I’m not actually calling for revolution (though in moments of utter exasperation I may have done on occasion) However, the middle-class is rapidly polarising between a few major gainers and the rest, who are now beginning to feel disenfranchised if not actually uncomfortable, and civil revolt will become more tempting if the trend continues. Well, we know what that costs, and it’s probably not a good idea. On the other hand, there is going to be no evolution without consensus, and no consensus without much wider understanding of the current situation and where it is leading. If that takes the odd demonstration, the odd renegade lefty MP and a lot of time on social media, I’m for it.
Marx called it correctly then, and isn’t too far off the trail now. Had the revolution occurred in Germany rather than Russia, we might now have a more positive view of his work. It fits much better with an industrialist-capitalist system than an essentially medieval feudal society such as Russia was then, and still is in some respects.
That’s way off topic, and I apologise.