Toxic Westminster and BBC enablers

The British media is currently engrossed in one of its periodic bouts of moralistic pearl clutching over the story of an unnamed but “well-known” presenter who is alleged to have paid thousands of pounds over a period of some years to a teenager in return for sexually explicit photos. Phillip Schofield…

Blog break

I’m going to take a week off the blog. Holyrood and Westminster have both gone into summer recess so there should not be a huge amount of political news to report on for a while. I am still very fatigued from attending the SNP Convention in Dundee, it’s taking me longer…

The SNP convention and a plan for independence

I had originally planned to write a proper blog piece on Sunday about my experience being on a panel with Lesley Riddoch and Gordon Macintyre Kemp at the SNP independence convention in Dundee on Saturday 24 June but the day wiped me out and I needed time to rest and recuperate…

Starmer’s litany of broken promises

It’s being reported that if Labour gets into power following the next Westminster General Election, Keir Starmer not after all going to abolish the House of Lords. I know, I’m as shocked as you are, which is to say not remotely shocked at all. Ever since he became leader of what…

BBC Scotland: Never mind the future, here’s the fitba

The BBC is no longer even pretending to hide its contempt for Scottish independence and the constitutional debate which has defined the Scottish political landscape since prior to the 2011 Holyrood election – back when the anti independence parties were still maintaining that if the people of Scotland wanted an independence…

Crowdfunder update

I was especially nervous about launching the crowdfunder this year as my health issues mean that I can no longer update the blog daily, and of course because of the recent issues with the SNP. I thought that the crowdfunder would struggle badly. I had set a target of £5000 which…

Now for some good news

Like many people who support Scottish independence and who recognise that the SNP and Green Scottish Government is the only credible political vehicle for delivering independence, I was shocked – but not hugely surprised – by yesterday’s news that Nicola Sturgeon had been arrested for questioning by the police as part…

Multi-option vs. binary referendum pros and cons

The Scottish Government’s independence minister Jamie Hepburn has suggested that the SNP should consider the possibility of a multi-option referendum on Scotland’s constitutional future. The following options seem to be logically possible 1) independence, 2) Devo Max, 3) Crown dependency status, 4) the Status Quo, 5) a return to direct rule…

Quantifying BBC bias

Anyone who follows the Scottish independence debate will be aware that the BBC’s reputation for fairness and impartiality comes with an important caveat: Except for viewers in Scotland. During the independence referendum campaign in 2014 the BBC was shameless in its shilling for Britain. The examples are legion. The Corporation gave…

Wee Ginger Crowd Funder 2023

It’s that time of the year again. Every June I run an annual crowdfunder to keep this blog going. I’ll be honest, earlier this year I was very close to throwing in the towel. I was very down and dispirited in part because far too many people in the Scottish independence…

Sunak’s trying to hide from accountability

The Official Inquiry into the government’s handling of the covid pandemic will probably go the same way as other official inquiries into the British government’s handling of other important isues. It will be characterised by arse-covering, blame shifting, deflection, pathetic excuses, the scapegoating of minor players, and then nothing much of…

Brown promised a federal UK, we got a feral UK

On Thursday evening Gordie Broon delivered another of his tedious Broonterventions in front of an invited audience of Labour party hacks, about the only people left who can muster a show of enthusiasm for the Gordosaur’s meaningless pronouncements. We get these Broonterventions every couple of months, each of which is billed…

The clean fuel of independence

The reasons why Scottish independence is so badly needed for the success, sanity, and security of this country keep piling up. Just in the past few days more reasons have been added to the ever growing pile, not that most people in Scotland would know that because we are saddled with…