The Flag in the Wind
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CAMPAIGNING FOR SCOTLAND
(Owned, Edited and Printed in Scotland since November 1926)
Compiled by Jim Lynch
[Issue 50 - 18 May 2001]

ISSUE NO

If you were watching the BBC’s "Question Time" on Tuesday 15 May 2001, you might have noticed how often Anne Mackenzie tried to deflect John Swinney from answering questions by saying "We’ll come back to that", only for John to say "I’ll answer that", and he then did. It would seem that the tactic was to allow members of the audience to make some damaging or disparaging remark, and then swiftly move on before John could rebut, but he rebutted, and did not fall for it. It is fashionable for all politicians to claim that BBC interviewers, or all interviewers, indeed, give them a hard time and do not permit them to answer the question, while at the same time the politician obfuscates and answers a different question; this was not quite like that, as John was more than willing to answer the questions, but Annie tried to stop him, and in most cases she failed. It was particularly noticeable when a question was asked about Trident which she vetoed by saying "We don't have time for that, and we want to end on a lighthearted note";  John Swinney ignored her instructions, and said the SNP would banish nuclear weapons from Scottish soil.

It was a very good performance by John Swinney, and he must read Flag in the Wind, as when asked why none of the SNP’s six MPs were there to vote for the minimum wage, he pointed out that his voting record in the House of Commons was a lot better than Henry McLeish’s, and that many Scottish Labour MPs voted in the House of Commons but never asked questions, or indeed contributed in any way. (We covered this last week - blaw blaw!) He might have made the point that Labour had a majority of 242 and were in no danger of losing the vote, but that might have been giving a hostage to fortune. I particularly liked his answer on the economic question when Anne Mackenzie tried to rubbish the SNP figures; "But , Anne, these are Labour figures, just published today, which say that Scotland is sending more to the London Treasury than it receives." Anne Mackenzie, like many another Liberal Democrat, had not done her home work.

As apparently conceded by the BBC, the programme was also broadcast in England - at 1.30 am.

If I heard her rightly, Fiona Ross of STV, a dyed in the wool Labour supporter, claimed that the New Labour Manifesto for Scotland would be published later than the English one because Mrs Helen Liddell, Secretary of State for Scotland was in Birmingham for the launch of the English Manifesto, and she would need time to get back to Scotland; sounds reasonable to me. It was also very interesting to hear Mrs Liddell’s little helper, George Foulkes, say that the Scottish Parliament would not raise taxes; interesting, as whether the Scottish Parliament raises taxes or not is their affair, and has nothing whatever to do with Mr Foulkes. However, Mr Foulkes, like Anne Mackenzie, had not done his homework either, as he was rabbiting on about the Scottish structural deficit even after the Treasury admitted the surplus; Budget 2001 document, HM Treasury March 2001, table on Page 194 - see how helpful we are to political opponents.

Of course the Manifesto for Scotland will be much thinner than the one for England; health, law and order and education to name the three major issues are all devolved matters, and there are already fissures between Labour Mps and the Scottish Government (a fissure in itself.) Only last week, New Labour MP Anne Begg let it slip that tuition fees had not been abolished, thus contradicting the Lab Lib coalition’s claim that they have! You see the dilemma; Labour, acceding to Lib Dem pressure in the Scottish Parliament," abolished" tuition fees, but will make graduates repay the "abolished" fees when they start work. So the Lib Dems claim that tuition fees are abolished by their efforts, and Labour can claim south of the Border that tuition fees are not abolished, only deferred; both parties claim they have stuck to their promises, but in effect tuition fees are merely deferred. It’s the kind of situation that should lead to a new adage "There are lies, damned lies, and tuition fees!"

A PLETHORA OF OPINION POLLS

It seems at the moment that everywhere you look there is an opinion poll ready to leap upon you and smother you with confusion and apathy; and while all politicians deny they pay attention to them, they pore over them, sweat over them, twist them and stroke them, depending on whether they are good for ones particular party. The problem with the opinion polls just now is that they are all predicated on the UK total, and it is difficult to get a Scottish bias as to what is happening. However here are a few variations:

So we seem to constitute half of the "Others" in the UK context, the balance being made up of a hotch potch of Greens, the various socialist parties, Plaid Cymru , Sinn Fein and various Ulster Unionists, plus Independents, which means Martin Bell. On that last, Mr Bell is standing in Brentwood and Ongar, a Tory seat, against the incumbent, Pickles, as the Conservative Constituency Association has been hijacked by the Pentecostal Church - all part of life’s rich tapestry.

However, I digress, as is my wont; whichever way you look at it, the opinion polls show a significant difference between Scotland and the UK in the voting patterns. The Tory vote in the UK is running at 32%, whereas in Scotland it is around the 16/17 % mark; the Lib Dem vote is roughly the same in both countries, and the Labour share in Scotland is lower than south of the Border. The Tory vote in the UK, 32%, obviously masks a much higher figure in England and Wales, as the UK percentage is depressed by the 16% in Scotland; as far as we know there are no specific polls for England, although there will be for Wales due to the existence of Plaid Cymru. The same argument applies to the Labour vote; they are doing much better in England than they are in Scotland.

The point of the whole exercise is that the SNP is entitled to broadcast coverage in Scotland in proportion to its share of the vote, which is far higher than the Tory share, and we have to guard against being hidden in the UK share, where the Tories reign supreme; also on these figures Mrs Liddell’s contention that the Tories are the enemy in Scotland is contrived, because the SNP is the threat to Labour in Scotland, and on the above figures Labour should win comfortably in England.

The new SNP poster, unveiled this week, and pictured above, says it all!

 HOLY WENDY’S PRAYER

"Yet I am here, a chosen sample, To show thy grace is great and ample,
"I’m here, a pillar o’ Thy temple, strong as a rock,
"A guide, a buckler, and example, To a’ Thy flock"

We have here the curious case of the Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning, Ms Wendy Alexander, who has produced a 27 page dossier to disprove the SNP claim that Scotland is subsidising the rest of the UK; the fact that the SNP claim was verified by the Treasury (see above) did not disconcert Ms Alexander one whit, as she accused the SNP of the "selective use of figures", and being an expert in the selective use of figures, she should know. What is curious, and probably has never occurred to Ms Alexander is to why she spends so much time and effort running down her country? Because her allegation that Scotland is subsidised is a sterling example of the Scottish cringe, and if it were true, it is an appalling example of the mismanagement of the Scottish economy by successive London governments; as it is, if Scotland were being subsidised, we would have been pushed out into outer darkness long before now.

One thought for Ms Alexander; if her allegation that Scotland is subsidised is to hold water, it follows that she herself is subsidised, and she owes her present standard of living to the generosity of the English taxpayer! The definition of Scotland is not some far off land of which we know little, but this our country, here and now, the people we live beside, work beside, socialise with; if you ask any of your friends which particular part of their life is paid for by the generous English taxpayer, is it their house, their grocery bill, their car, drinks at the pub, cigarettes, whatever, there would be a vociferous and indignant denial, perhaps even a John Prescott! It is always someone else who is subsidised, and I am constantly amazed at the politicians, and their spear carriers, who proudly claim that someone else keeps them!

"But Lord, remember me and mine, Wi’ mercies temporal and divine,
"That I for grace and gear may shine, Excell’d by name,
" And a’ the glory shall be Thine, Amen, Amen!"

THERE WAS A SOLDIER - A SCOTTISH SOLDIER

The operative word here is "was" as the Ministry of Defence is planning to do away with two Scottish Regiments, and to amalgamate what is left into one Brigade.

The regiments under threat are The Black Watch (RHR) and the Royal Scots, also known as Pontius Pilate’s Bodyguard; the Black Watch is the senior Highland Regiment, and the Royal Scots is the oldest regiment in the British army and traditionally known as "The First of Foot, the Right of Line and Pride of the British Army. I have an interest in the issue, as I did my National Service in the Black Watch, and my grandfather was in the Royal Scots; the word is that the Royal Scots will be amalgamated with the Kings Own Scottish Borderers and my wife’s grandfather was in the Kings Own Scottish Borderers. Just taking these odd facts into account, how many other households in Scotland would come up with similar tales? I would suspect well over 75%, because we are not unique (I accept that there will not be a lot of ex National Servicemen about); my grandfather was in the Royal Scots to escape the grinding poverty in the south of Ireland, my wife’s grandfather was killed in the First World War, and I was called up and put into the Black Watch because I came from Dundee, and the catchment area was Dundee, Angus, Perthshire and Fife.

Times change, and although the army is much reduced, Scots still form a disproportionate percentage of the army’s manpower, 13% for a UK population share of 8.6%. I also believe that past governments used the "Scottish soldier" syndrome as a substitute for nationalism, and that your nationality was subsumed into the "Regiment", and that as political life has moved on, this no longer applies. However, as Colin Campbell, MSP, and SNP Defence spokesman put it "There has always been a strong traditional and geographical link between regiments and communities in Scotland and it is vital to both morale and recruitment that this continues." Colin pointed out that the Tories had hacked away at Scotland’s historic regiments, and New Labour was continuing the process; he added that the cuts would have a damaging effect on the ability of the UK to fulfil its domestic defence, and international peacekeeping and humanitarian relief operations. He has tabled an amendment to a Members’ Business Motion which will be debated on 31 May ; we confidently expect the Scottish government to obfuscate until after 7th June - General Election day.

I know that Colin Campbell said he was shocked by the glaring hypocrisy of the Tories over the issue, as their Options for Change butchered Scottish Regiments, but I am never shocked by political hypocrisy; political honesty - well that would be something.

THE SPEAKERS CORNER

Much comment has been passed by political hacks over the fact that the Parliamentary seat of Springburn is being contested by the SNP and the SSP; this of course arises because Michael Martin, the incumbent, is the Speaker of the House of Commons, and there is a tradition that the Speaker ceases to be a Member of Parliament for his political party, and becomes neutral. In consequence, the seat of Springburn will cease to have a Labour MP for the first time in over 60 years; as the constituency is the second worst in Scotland for illness and unemployment we are not sure if the voters will appreciate their good fortune , particularly as Mr Martin will be pulling in a salary of about £115000 per annum. We are not critical of Mr Martin, as he is playing by the rules of the House of Commons, but the SNP is not constrained by archaic English customs, and we believe the people of Springburn have a democratic right to vote to improve their conditions; the Scottish Parliament seat is held by Mr Martin’s son, Paul, and both seats are reckoned to be rock solid Labour.

Another little gem hit the press last week concerning the position of Presiding Officer for the Scottish Parliament; the present incumbent, Sir David Steel, is not standing for a second term, and a proposal has been put forward that Annabel Goldie of the Tories be proposed as the next Presiding Officer. The only strange thing here is that she is being put forward by the Labour Party; their official line is "We must have a woman", and Annabel fills the bill. The true story is that "We must stop George Reid", who is one of the Deputy Presiding Officers, and he is SNP! Or is it a way to silence Annabel? We would expect that she is a bit shrewder than that, but is it not interesting to see the Westminster chorus in action; it has been said that the only thing that unites the House of Commons is the sight of an SNP MP on his or her feet. (Always got to be politically correct!)

What the clever dicks have not taken into account is that the situation will not arise until after the next election in 2003, and who knows what the composition of the Scottish Parliament will be? The Westminster government will be halfway through its term, we could have mid term blues, and John Swinney will be the First Minister; we could nominate Wendy Alexander as Presiding Officer, if she is still there.

AND WHERE WILL THEY PRESIDE?

There is much angst about the costs of the Scottish Parliament building; from a proposed £50 million in 1997 to an estimated £300 million today, and there are grave doubts if the building will be ready for 2003. The MSPs are getting stick from the public, and the Tories are calling for the cost to be capped at £195 million, so probably no seats; it will make the term "standing for Parliament" a reality! There should be no lack of clarity as to where the blame for this fiasco lies; the decision was taken by the late St Donald Dewar who worked on the ABC principle - Anywhere But Calton Hill! The decision was taken before the Parliament was elected, and they were stuck with a fait accompli (bit international there, and a Spanish architect tae). So Westminster made the decision, as they did with the Greenwich Dome, but while they could try to blame the Tories for the Dome, because it was their idea in the first place, the Holyrood building is all their own work. At the beginning of the life of the Parliament there was an attempt to scrap the building and look elsewhere, but it was narrowly defeated, about two votes, if I remember, and we are stuck with it.

Of course, the Tories did not want the Scottish Parliament in the first place, and campaigned for a NO in the Referendum, so they are delighted to attack it at every opportunity, but that approach is counter productive. We have a Parliament, it will proceed to a real one before very long, and we must have a worthy building to house that Parliament. And while we’re on the subject of a worthy building, it would seem that American oak is being used, as the sourcing company is Flour City International, a US company, although Scottish wood is available at half the price. However, while the oak is much dearer, it is being produced by cheap Thai labour, workers paid about 30p per hour, so we have the anomaly of sweated labour and inflated prices; the same company is sourcing granite and may not use Scottish granite, so we might finish up with Chinese granite produced by slave labour.

I think we are entitled to ask why we are using a sourcing company from America; we accept that in the building trade we get a lot of cowboys, but we could at least use Scottish cowboys and not American ones, or is this going to be another Skye Bridge fiasco where a building cost of £23.6 million is giving the Bank of America £128 million.

FOOT IN THE MOUTH NOTES

At long last there might be a direct ferry service from Scotland to the Continent; it will operate out of Rosyth and the preferred bidder is Superfast Ferries of Greece.

I seem to remember that Greek ferry operators have a very poor safety record, but no doubt Scottish Enterprise will be aware of that.

The Home Office (present Secretary Jack Straw) has allowed a religious outfit, the Kairos Trust to take over wings in four prisons, to help prisoners to mend their ways.

In at least one of them there will be an inhouse service; the Trust director has been convicted of embezzlement and is awaiting a custodial sentence.

Tony Blair promised that we would have "People’s Peers" in the House of Lords, to redress the balance and give the place a gloss of democracy. (My words)

Of the first fifteen selected (not elected), seven were knights and three were professors; well they were all people.

John Swinney said Londoners could not be criticised for choosing Paris over Scotland as a holiday destination. He said "They've got the choice of a plane ticket from London to Edinburgh, costing about £250, or a Eurostar ticket to Paris, costing them about half the price."

George Foulkes, Mrs Helen Liddell’s little helper, bridled; he said that John Swinney only knew the cost of a full first class air ticket to London; you could travel by train from Edinburgh to London for £10. Mr Foulkes will not pay any ticket prices between Edinburgh and London, as all his travel will be paid by the taxpayer, but we are interested in the concept of only paying Westminster MPs the £10 rail return.

Speaking in the Scottish Parliament last week, the Shadow Enterprise Minister Mr Kenny Macaskill MSP highlighted the fact that the Scottish Labour government had only spent £4000 marketing Scotland in Canada; 136000 Canad ians had visited Scotland, giving the princely sum of 3p per visitor.

The Tartan Day video, which was produced at a cost of £30000, was also aimed at the Canadian market, but it was junked by New Labour as it made Scotland look good.

SCOTTISH FOOD, TRADITIONS AND CUSTOMS

See our Scottish Food, Traditions and Customs in our Features section

DATES IN HISTORY

SING A SANG AT LEAST
(compiled by Peter D Wright)

"That I for poor auld Scotland's sake
Some useful plan or book could make
Or sing a sang at least ........"

- Robert Burns

See the SING A SANG AT LEAST in our features section

A KIST O FERLIES
A Keek at the Guid Scots Tung
By Peter D Wright
(Note: All words underlined in this section are RealAudio links)

See Scots Language in our Features Section
for other poems, stories, sayings and words in the Scots language

THE MONTHLY PRIZE CROSSWORD

Each month the Scots Independent Newspaper offers a prize crossword and we're now offering this online in the Flag in the Wind as well.   Should you complete the crossword by the deadline you can fax it over to the SI and the first correct one opened on the closing date will win a £10.00 book token.

SI Prize Crossword No. 17
[Click here to bring up the crossword]