Neil Findlay MSP has written an open letter to his friend Mike Dailly who has just left the Labour Party to join the Scottish National Party.
Dear Mike,
I was astonished to see your social media posts at the weekend triumphantly claiming that you have joined the SNP. As someone who has worked with you and respects your commitment to justice and equality, I genuinely want to try to understand your reasoning.
On economics, the SNP have abjectly failed to use the powers they have, and indeed Scotland’s new tax powers, to bring about any significant redistribution of wealth. It is a real struggle to identify any areas of policy where hard cash is taken from the wealthy and put into the hands of the poor and low paid. Only two years ago the SNP wanted to turn Scotland into the most competitive “business friendly” country in Europe with an aim to have the lowest corporation tax rates on the continent; how would that vision help the very people you have campaigned with, and worked for, over the decades?
The SNP are gutting local government, which is the front line in the fight against poverty and inequality. This year another £327 million will be cut from our councils according to the Scottish Parliament Information Service.
SNP ministers, including the First Minister, call Labour’s progressive tax policies “a tax grab” when in fact they are essential for the funding of the public services people rely on.
In education the SNP have decimated further education with 150,000 college places gone, impacting most upon women, the young and the disabled. Student support in the form of FE bursaries has been reduced. In our schools, the gap between pupils whose families are least deprived and those most deprived is increasing. Our international education standing is in decline. In our NHS, seven of the eight main performance standards have been missed and there is a crisis in social care.
We hear repeated calls for new powers, yet when the SNP had the powers and the opportunity to bring in new welfare provisions they left them with the Tories at Westminster, letting people suffer for another three years.
And on independence, the fall in the oil price combined with the end of the Barnett formula would leave our public services gasping for air. According to the Scottish Government’s own figures, Scotland would have a £15 billion deficit. Mike, how would such a scenario impact on the people you work with day in and day out?
The Labour Party and the Labour movement created the NHS, the welfare state, public ownership of key services, council housing, the living wage and the Scottish Parliament. Name me one thing that nationalism has achieved that can compare to any of this?
I am genuinely interested to hear how all of this sits with your long-standing commitment to eradicate poverty and inequality and your desire to reverse growing inequity in health, education and living standards. I tried to raise these issues with you privately over the weekend but got no reply. Feel free to respond to each point in due course (and not deflect to other issues that I haven’t asked about).
Finally Mike, I will leave you with this quote: “There is the rhetoric of independence and social justice, and then there is actual SNP policy in government, which is frequently reactionary, punitive, and a total stranger to social justice. Not my vision for Scotland.” The quote is yours Mike – you were right then, but you are wrong now.
I look forward to your reply.
PS I look forward to continuing to work with you on the issues we care about.
Yours in friendship
Neil Findlay MSP Lothian (Labour)
Labour today tabled a motion in support of a second EU referendum while continuing to oppose any talk of a second Scottish Independence referendum.
Perhaps its this level of utter despicable duplicity that has former Labour members searching their conscience and seeing their status quo as unviable.
Is that the one the SNP MPs are supporting as well?
Why wouldn’t the SNP support it when they also support a second Indy ref? No duplicity there now is there?
See the difference? Consistency Inconsistency. Conviction No Convictions.
Why am I not surprised I had to spell it out as if to a 5 year old?
Mike, I ask myself what kind of person hangs around a *labour party* blog just so they can hurl insults at everything and everyone on said blog? I just wonder how angry you must be to do that. Have you considered therapy?
What kind of a blog has nothing but content that screams “Provocation” “Controversy” “Propaganda” “Click bait”
Kind of begs for insults don’t you think?
More and more people are seeking therapy directly because of the last 30 years of uninterrupted Right wing Tory rule under both Labour and the Conservatives and you wonder why folk get angry?
I’m amazed more folk aint angry. Seems too many are content to live in an isolated bubble of ignorance.
That’s whats left of the Labour core vote by the way.
If you increase everybodies taxation you’re redistributing wealth from the poorest to the State.
“It is a real struggle to identify any areas of policy where hard cash is taken from the wealthy and put into the hands of the poor and low paid.”
Says the man who supports the idea of redistributing Scottish revenues from Scotland to Westminster.
Says the man who works for a party which promotes PFI PPP as a means of redistributing public funding to Private shareholders.
Says the man who works for a party which promotes Tuition fees as a means of redistributing funds from the poorest to Private share holders.
Says the man who works for a party which promotes prescription fees as a means of redistributing funds from the poor and sick to Pharmaceutical company share holders.
Says the man who works for a party which supports the policy of redistributing welfare funding to Trident Warmongering and paying off the UK national debt.
Not an exclusive list by any means but you get the idea of the sheer bare faced hypocrisy Neil Findlay has earned a reputation for.
Another Champagne Socialist who feels entitled and privileged enough to bend any principle if it keeps his snout in the trough.
very well said
Everything you wrote is untrue.
What? Sorry are you some kind of interdimensional traveller? Or somebody who deliberately ignores events and reality?
“If you increase everybodies taxation you’re redistributing wealth from the poorest to the State”
1. Not true if you then use that taxation to fund services for the poor. Which is what Labour do and what SNP do not.
“redistributing Scottish revenues from Scotland to Westminster.”
Westminster redistributes money TO Scotland. Even SNP do not deny this.
“party which promotes PFI”
SNP also run PFI schemes
“Tuition fees”
Free tuition fees in Scotland benefit the rich and middle classes
“prescription fees”
What are you on about???
“1. Not true if you then use that taxation to fund services for the poor. Which is what Labour do and what SNP do not.”
Labour supports funding Trident, the war in Iraq Afghanistan Syria and Libya, PFI PPP, the House of Lords etc etc from funds raised through taxation.
“Westminster redistributes money TO Scotland. Even SNP do not deny this.”
I don’t I just clarify the fact that its our own money being returned to us via Barnett.
“SNP also run PFI schemes”
No they don’t that’s a deliberate willful bare faced lie.
“Free tuition fees in Scotland benefit the rich and middle classes”
They benefit the poor most of all.
“prescription fees”
What are you on about???”
Sorry that should have read Prescription “Charges”. Amazed you didn’t pick that up. No actually I’m not.
Yep I getting the old online trolling vibe from this one.
I am dismayed that two men with so much experience of life in the public eye – and the responsibility that goes with that – have been reduced to this. Statesmanlike thus is not. And it is rhetoric like this that has caused the electorate to divert from mainstream politics to what we are currently witnessing in the US. A plague in both your houses.
Well said
Comrade we’ve worked a lot together in the past and you are a good man and friend. Just for the record the other Mike on the comments here isn’t me. I will answer your points, hopefully in Monday’s The Herald. All the best Neil. Mike
“Just for the record the other Mike on the comments here isn’t me”
That’s for sure! …”the other Mike”……who is a regular poster on here ……is salt of the earth compared to you!
Rats and sinking ships; springs to mind.
It just goes to show; the current SNP really is full of imposters, charlatans and ex “labour” people seeking a new troff to stick their heads into.
Congratulations. You’ve realised the ship is sinking. There may be some hope for you.
What on earth is a “troff”?
“What on earth is a “troff”?”
“troff” is Scots for trough.
Thought a culture vulture like yourself would have known that?
A trough in Scotland is pronounced troch. Rymes nearly with loch. Only our Southron friends would say troff—or BBC Scotland.
I’m certainly culturally aware enough to know that in Scots it’s troch (rhymes with loch) *not* troff, which is, at best, the phonetic spelling of the English pronunciation.
You’re welcome. 🙂
If you were “fortunate” enough to be taught the Initial Teaching Alphabet (ITA) in “select” Scottish state primary schools in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s; you would have been well aware of what a “troff” is.
You may call it a “trough”, others a “troch”, to some it’s a “troff”.
Whatever you want to call it, one thing’s for sure………Mike Dailly is looking for one to stick his head into.
The Labour party really isn’t long for this world if you treat your most recent escapees with such disdain.
How do you ever expect to win back their support, or is the masochism so ingrained that’s no longer important?
You have two friends.
You are in trouble.
One runs off and the other stays.
Which do you trust?
The one that didn’t get you into trouble in the first place.
Andy,
Give Mike Dailly a break. He runs some kind of government funded drop in centre. What do expect him to do?
The one thing his defection confirms beyond any doubt is the status of the SNP. The SNP should now rebrand and make it official. Mike Dailly kens fine who Scotland’s Establishment Party is. The SNP are the pigs in Scotland’s Animal Farm. They hold The Royal Seal, responsible for the distribution of hand outs from Scotland’s block grant.
This has nothing to do Mike Dailly and his politics or with Neil Findlay’s silly letter about ‘social justice’ and ‘redistribution of wealth’, (just how stupid does Neil Findlay think peole are?). This is about no more and no less than the hand out of favours. It is about patronage; the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows to another.
Richard,
“Four legs good, two legs better”
This Mike Dailly character, is either; Being leaned on, feeble minded, or on the make.
I suspect he’s on the make.
The SNP are welcome to Mike Dailly.
You’re the same nutcase who spams the Herald comments.
you’re in the right party along with lord Fire Raiser and Hothersall’s Paedos.
No Mike………..I don’t read the Herald……..it’s a pay wall and I’m not for paying……you’re confusing me with someone else.
Still, if you would like to copy and paste your “Herald” reply to Neil, it would no doubt give us a good laugh.
So you don’t actually care is somebody is a Charlatan or trougher as long as they are a Labour Charlatan and Trougher?
I wonder if watching the Tories free to do what they do with the prospect of a lab gov some way off just too much for a good man to take.
My prediction is you are one of the useful idiots who think that, after independence, you can abandon the SNP and run a truly socialist country. Be very careful – and perhaps re-read Dr Frankenstein.
And When should we expect a Socialist UK to arrive? Which UK party is trying to make it so?
The Blue Tories? The Red Tories? or the Orange Tories?
Couldn’t agree more
A dignified response Mike (Dailly) and I look forward to reading your Herald article.
He has probably concluded that Mrs May is about to turn the UK into a giant tax haven on the edge of Europe. While refusing to allow Scotland the ability to remain in the single market or control immigration.
This is a Tory Brexit and will devastate Scotland.
He probably concludes that Jeremy Corbyn was horribly silly to describe Brexit as an ‘opportunity’ for Scotland and deluded when ordering a three line whip in the article fifty vote.
Need I go on?
Maybe Mike Dailly reads Lesley Riddoch, George Kerevan, Micheal Gray, ‘The Ginger Dug’, Cat Boyle, Carol Leckie, Mhairi Black and Kevin McKenna and has begun to accept the truth staring the rest of us in the face. The Slab does not have one writer who could hold a candle to any of the above.
Hahahahahahahahahaha. Oh my god you’re not joking. You genuinely think the folk you list are great writers.
Let him have his delusions, he’ll need them with such a taste in writing! 🙂
Certainly better than you Dunky, that’s for sure.
Duncan your just making an earse of yersel now, you surely are not going to match “Jim O’Neill, Scott Arthur etc. and not forgetting yersel with “Alan Findlay’s” list of writers.
You may not like what they say, but their writing/articles are miles above anything any of the unionist camp can produce.
Does it matter that what they write are lies?
Writing lies doesn’t seem to overly bother you too much.
You should read one of Jim O’Neill articles, then you would know what lies are.
‘Writers’ and comrades such as yourself are probably part of the reason Mike has swapped over to the dark side!
Duncan relative to you I’m a great writer and so’s my cat. You’re too corrupt to be able to distinguish between what is and what isn’t great writing.
They are better than you,an opinion shared by many.
Mr Hothersall wrote; “Hahahahahahahahahaha. Oh my god you’re not joking. You genuinely think the folk you list are great writers”.
Had they been espousing support for the Labour Party and the Union you would be praising them and, no doubt, urging them to contribute to this site. As it is, your comment just looks bitter with just a smidgen of desperate..
You’re coming across as a bit hysterical, Duncan, and not doing yourself any favours in being so dismissive.
Oh my. I can only tell you that they are liars. They are lying to you. You will wake up one day and realise that. I hope you remember this comment on that day.
List their “lies” as you call them.
Okay then, just list “one lie” then.
Shut up Neil.
You are a lying arsehole.
Nei Findlay really needs to examine his conscience if he is any kind of socialist! But he still doesn’t deserve to be call an “arsehole”!
Yes he does. He is a slavering arsehole. An arsehole who would see Scotland destroyed rather than vote against his beloved union.
So the playbook for ‘How to win friends’ now has a chapter on public vilification? I simply don’t understand public servants that feel the need to vomit their bile in this public way, and expect the public to respect or listen to them. This open letter to a friend says so much about the author and his party.
Don’t change your mind, ever, even when there is a slew of evidence available, that’s says you just might be doing something wrong.
Civic
That comment says a lot about you
Maybe you should be asking, how bad are Labour if he’s joined the SNP (if they’re as bad as you state)
It may be down to some of the guff in your open letter or when one of your own colleagues thinks that Trident should be renewed to avoid job losses or maybe it was Scottish Labour choosing to leave employment law and welfare legislation in the hands of Westminster with a Tory government during the Smith Commission. Maybe it was Labour voting along side the Tories on their austerity package. Maybe it was seeing all those Better Together buddies being rewarded with ermine robes
I was going to end with, you couldn’t make it up, but clearly, you can
SNP voted through tory austerity and are trying to push through an austerity budget.
Scotland will wake up one day, in bed with the SNP, and be horribly, horribly embarrassed about what they just did.
That’s a willful bare faced lie. Are you trolling?
The UK Labour Party website front page is a a wall of how the tory government in Westminster is mis-managng the economy and failing to adequately fund public services. Here’s a few random examples:
“Under the Tories our NHS is underfunded and understaffed”
“The Tories cut £4.6 billion from social care budgets in the last Parliament”
“Tory cuts may mean up to 3,000 pharmacy closures across England.”
“Growth is down. Wages are down. Productivity is down. They’ve failed on the deficit, and failed on the debt.”
Then we had this report just a few days ago on the Public Accounts Committee’s on HMRC’s approach to highest earners’ tax payments:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2017/jan/27/uks-super-rich-appear-to-get-special-deal-from-hmrc-says-watchdog
“income tax they [High net-worth individuals] paid fell by 20% – from £4.5bn in 2009-10 to £3.5bn in 2014-15 – when the overall income tax take rose by £23bn.”
If we compare UK taxation with that of other EU and EFTA countries the UK’s taxation is at least ten percentage points lower than the EU-28 average.
http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/File:Total_tax_revenue_by_Member_States_and_EFTA_countries,_2014_and_2015,_%25_of_GDP.png
As GERS tells us, until the provisions of the Scotland Act came into force 83.5% of Scotland’s revenues were raised by Westminster. (much of the rest is Council Tax). The majority of Scotland’s revenues are directly controlled by Westminster.
I think there are very few Labour members and supporters (outside Scotland) who would argue that the Conservative UK Government is not engaged in a concerted policy to cut higher rate and corporate taxation at the expense of public services. Indeed, while they would not coin it in those terms the tories themselves would say much the same thing.
As a result of UK revenue policies, Scotland’s revenues are far below what is needed to properly fund public services here.
Now the big question is this. should the cost of tax-breaks to the likes of Starbucks, Amazon, Boots and the Duke of Westminster be funded by increasing individual personal taxation on the people of Scotland or should we be able to share that burden out across the whole of the revenue base?
Labour seem to think it is down to all of us, as individuals, to club together and make-up the shortfall resulting from the tory UK government’s austerity measures by paying more income tax. I would be interested to know the argument as to why this is preferable to Scotland being able to control the whole of its public sector revenues and be able to share the burden of funding public services across the full range of income streams rather than put it all onto personal taxation.
Without full control of all revenue and spending, income tax rises in Scotland would not fund “services for the poor” in Scotland, they would fund tax-breaks for the super-rich in rUK.
“SNP voted through tory austerity” Care to explain that statement Mick? I think you know that to be a complete lie. Are you aware that many Labour MPs voted for or abstained at the Tory austerity budget? The same austerity budget that results in a cut to Scotland’s grant
You then have the nerve to complain about the SNP’s budget cuts which are a direct result of Westminster’s cut to the block grant
You’re either passing falsehoods hoping that some followers of this blog believe it or your just completely clueless about what’s actually going on
On another matter, the Welfare Bill, here’s a list of 184 Labour MPs who didn’t vote against the Tories’ cuts tinyurl.com/hsdr7cl . How do you believe this helps the poorest in society. It’s my guess that this is the type of thing thaty sees people like Mike Dailly abandon the Labour Party
Perhaps, Neil, your erstwhile comrade has realised the route down which Brexit Britain is heading. A northern hemisphere Hong Kong/Singapore; a low wage, low public service, low tax, low skill economy dependent on financial services to fund what’s left of the state, and fiscal transfers to support the areas outside the M25. Maybe he’s realised that the Supreme Court’s decision on the Sewell convention makes a nonsense of the much vaunted family of nations. Possibly he’s sickened by the Labour Party’s petty post truth, post sense carping from the sidelines. There is, in truth, a myriad of reasons for leaving the Labour Party.
Like your former comrade, I too am a former Labour Party member, although I left some twenty years ago. I joined the S.N.P. in 2011 when it became clear that there was going to be a referendum. I wondered at the time about rejoining labour in an independent Scotland. After their performance in the referendum and after. I don’t think I could. I’m not even sure they’ll be there.
The problem with “comrade” Findlay is like his Scottish Labour cohorts his absolute total hatred for the SNP and its supporters comes way way above any beliefs he may have of social justice for the Scottish people. I used to have high hopes for Neil. Alas.
Let me see if I understand this correctly.
Northern European social democracy, the human race’s greatest political achievement, is under existential threat, and you’re concerned about someone defecting from one (increasingly unpopular) social democratic party to another (increasingly more popular) one?
You seriously need to get your priorities straight.
The reason Scottish social democrats are switching from Labour to the SNP is simply because Nicola Sturgeon, Mhairi Black, Tommy Shepherd and co appear to be more authentic, competent, intelligent and effective social democrats than anyone Labour has to offer.
Wake up! SNP are nationalists, not social democrats
Anybody who acknowledges a National identity is a Nationalist including Social Democrats. Duh.
And I suppose you’ll go on saying that until you’re the last person standing?
The SNP are both nationalists AND social democrats. Just like the Labour Party, but more in tune with the 21st century.
A fair amount of self-righteous twaddle here, old misrepresentations about the welfare bill vote and even going back to indyref. Makes me wonder if even SNP supporters are at a loss as to why someone would make such a move right now. Whatever the reason, let him say next week as promised. On his own head be it.
SNP supporters have a fair idea why Mike Dailly, and thousands of others have left the Labour party. What we’re trying to do is help YOU understand as it’s you and Neil Findlay that seem to be at a loss
Why do you believe Labour have lost so many supporters and party members?
Why does this site have far more attacks on the SNP Gov rather than the Tory Gov? I guess it’s kind of difficult to attack a right wing government that you’ve constantly told us we’re Better Together with
How do you propose that we get him, and the hundreds of thousands like him, back in the fold? We can’t just wait for a new electorate more to our liking to turn up.
Or is that actually the plan?
What “misrepresentations” would that be then?
Labour MPs walked hand-in-hand through the lobbies to impose an *additional* £30bn of cuts over & above what the Tories had already inflicted.
No they didn’t. Please cite Hansard to prove this or withdraw it.
They did. Just like labour covered up massive child abuse by their elected MPs and councillors.
What did you know dunky? Did you inform the police or were you joining in?
No problem, just as soon as you withdraw all the snide remarks & insults you’ve thrown at Indy supporters since 2012.
Your dreaming, with labours current situation and direction, no-one is at a loss as to why Mike Dailly has moved to the SNP.
Welcome to the family Mike.
What a lose to the Labour party. Neil Findlay is right in what he says. The SNP will leave us poor and on the sidelines.
We see how the racist Trump is being treated that is as nothing to the way the anti English racist SNP will be treated if they ever get independence.
The SNP would also tie us to Europe and the uncontrolled immigration that brings.Just look at Govanhill all the fault of Sturgeon.
Oh dear!
Wow,the ignorant stupidity is strong with you.
“The SNP will leave us poor and on the sidelines”
Oh, we’re all so wealthy just now. Leave us on the sidelines of what? Nuclear weapons, illegal wars, foreign wars, right wing governments, cash for honours, cash for questions, the un-elected House of Lords, higher electricity transmission charges?
You do know Govanhill is in Glasgow and that they have a Labour local authority, you know, the people responsible for dealing with fly tipping, uncollected rubbish, rats etc. What is it you believe Nicola Sturgeon should do in Govanhill?
“anti English racist SNP”
When all else fails, go for the anti English bull. I’m guessing here but I suspect you have a few friends, perhaps even some of your family who are SNP members or SNP voters, perhaps even some of your family. Are they all screaming bravehearts with blue faces shouting ‘we hate the English’?
I was going to gently poke fun at your confused post but it is funny enough left alone.
If the SNP racist/anti-English, care to explain this then:
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/jul/17/surge-english-snp-members-scottish-nationalist-party
No wonder Labour in Scotland is failing with folk like you in it, who can’t even get some basic facts right.
Here Neil you keep going on about cuts to council services etc remind us who abstained in Westminster to £30 billion in austerity cuts and your shadow chancellor said he wouldn’t make anychanges to Osbournes budget and you keep going on about increasing taxes to cover Westminster austerity … it is not the job of Holyrood and the Scottish government to protect the Scottish people from austerity your party won’t even vote against and last spring the Labour party in Scotland and Scot Tories wanted the Scottish government to accept a further £7 billion cuts to our budget … you keep saying only Labour defends the people of Scotland … your party has a funny way of showing it … you would rather Scotland continues to suffer under a Britain that is failing badly than become a nation in it’s own right with massive amounts of natural resources worth trillions https://www.oilandgaspeople.com/news/1039/scottish-west-coast-untapped-oil-and-gas-reserves-worth-trillions/
you keep going back to this flawed data that Scotland has a £15 billion pound deficit let me break it down for you Neil within that so called £15 billion is Scottish taxpayers contributing to English capital projects worth £2 trillion including London sewers HS2,Crossrail, Trident etc if we become Independent we will not be contributing toward English/UK capital projects hence the figure is way lower on the other hand last year UK economy had a deficit of £80 billion and had to borrow a further £70 billion so that is a total deficit of £150 billion … this year the UK is expected to borrow over a £120 billion keep in mind the UK is £1.7 Trillion in debt and spunked over £700 billion of our oil and gas resources and talking about oil and gas it is such a big burden on Scotland that Norway made £9.1 billion from oil whilst extracting the same amount as Scotland and lets get on to Tax Scotland contributed £60 billion in tax towards the UK and Holyrood received less than £30 billion …. some mistake surely … after all we are meant to be subsidy junkies no ??
so Neil why do Labour in Scotland want to remain poor within the UK when we can be so much better out of the UK ??
Mike Dailly has been an articulate and involved advocate for Labour and the poor of Govan for many years. He is at the coal face so to speak, in Glasgow, and will be aware of who walks the walk and who are just bullshitters in this city, Labours last serious bastion.
He will also look to Westminster and see English Nationalist right wingers forming government for decades to come , with a shambolic Labour Party heading for a Liberal Party style decline. And with that, will come scapegoating of minorities, the poor and the sick. Welcome to the New Brexit Britain.
So if Dailly has actually left Scottish Labour for the SNP, then McAvennie and Dugdale better launch the lifeboats because Scottish Labour is holed beneath the waterline.
And who is the local MSP our FM
Who’s been the Local Authority for the last 60-70 years?
After reading the labour comments and basically the way they try to convince themselves they must be right just because they say so. It just flys in the face of reason and common sense.
You don’t want to believe this but explain why in the space of just a few years labour has just one MP in the whole of Scotland, you are now the third political party in Scotland behind the Tories, I repeat third behind the fucking Tories. And no- one gives a monkeys about your chances in the coming council elections.
And yet you will still deny what is staring you right in the face, YOU ARE FUCKING WRONG, your results don’t lie . Still you will waste your time yelling its the SNPs fault, never the Tories, never your masters down in London.
With the way you are going Scotland doesn’t believe you, Scotland doesn’t trust you, Scotland has found out it doesn’t need you. And the good thing about it, is you did it to yourselves with no help from anyone.
So before you reply with your usual crap, here’s what everyone else knows !
Soon it will be either Scotland or the Tories, you will have to choose “publicly” which, and hell mend you if you choose wrongly.
So glad you did not hold back
Hear hear!
Neil the Labour Party UK which the Scottish Labour Party is a section have been kiboshed on the so called Act of the Union it is all over the place and split on the Brexit Article 50 and also had no input into the Scottish Budget, the Scottish Labour Party is all but finished come the local elections in May so with that in mind its no surprise that Mike should decide to join another Party as the Scottish Labour Party is irrelevant these days and finished.
This letter pretty much sums up Labour’s problem. In the midst of a hard-looking Brexit, led by an increasingly xenophobic, far right, nationalist UK government; with Trump in the US threatening full on fascism, being sucked up to by the UK government, it’s just SNP, SNP, SNP are bad.
Some of us are sick to the back teeth of constitutional politics being the only thing politicians in Scotland talk about. But it’s not the SNP we’re sick of. It’s Labour and the Lib Dems, and the way they now have nothing to offer but anti-SNP, mostly in partnership with the Tories who are so thoroughly wrecking the entire UK right now.
Where is your opposition to Brexit? To Trump? To the bloody Tories?? Where are your ideas for Scotland’s future, and how people here can be protected from the worst of all that’s about to happen? Where is your mature, considered response to the Scottish Government’s thought through ideas about how to stay in both the EU and UK? Why are you not on the same side, fighting the Tory UK government tooth and nail to try and help bring about that kind of outcome, which you so often claim to want while doing nothing whatsoever to further it as you wibble on and on with the usual lies about taxes and college places?
I don’t know Mike Dailly, other than as a Labour and Better Together campaigner. But I can’t imagine it would have been an easy decision for him to change to either independence or the SNP. And I have huge respect for someone who can make such a change when he/she feels the facts have changed around them. Labour need to listen to what he’s telling them. Had they been listening to what the rest of us have been telling them for years now, they might not be at the point where long-standing campaigners feel they have no other option but to leave.
Labour, including the author of this post, are committing hari kari. If and when they listen to their friends – or is he black-listed now Neil – they might realise that the only future for Labour in Scotland is through independence. The whole Scottish Labour Party are fast becoming a joke.
Neil
It’s the CONSTITUTION d***y.
I agree with a lot of what you say. I don’t think SNP are bad all the Time . Here in Scotland we are being told to set local authority budgets which I believe are seriously underfunded by Holyrood. We are in a financial straightjacketthe that the SNP Green budget coalition imposed on local authorities imposed on local authorities. I believe there will now be widespread council tax rises more cuts to local services and more people are going to lose their jobs. I am finished with austerity I did not create it and I do not see why I should continue paying for it. I think local authorities should tell Holyrood never mind austerity this is what we need to set a proper budget. The Scottish Government can then tell London this is what we need if we don’t get it the games up . I would support that. A threat of doing another Indy ref on that basis I think revolutionalize voting intentions I would back it. But the Nats wont do it . On other issues I think brexit is a disaster but it was a UK vote. how do we get round that I don’t know I don’t think the FM does either. If after getting an Independence referendum vote through the Scottish Parliament Westminster said no I would support the FM. I also think some very deep thinking and planning is taking place on this in Holyrood and London. For all we know backroom deals are being done between the two Governments. People like John Curtice must be making a fortune
” I am finished with austerity I did not create it and I do not see why I should continue paying for it.
Well david if you voted NO in the Scottish referendum you did create it, you and your party allowed Westminster to continue controlling the financial and revenue outputs of Scotland. So you can stop moaning about austerity as your party will not even stand against the tory controlled austerity policys/budgets down at Westminster.
And that’s what cuts the money allocated to the Scottish budget, of course what does Scottish labour want to do about it ? they want to increase the taxes of the Scottish taxpayer .
Scotland voted no in i4 .so did we create it
I come here less and less now.
The place seems devoid of new ideas.
Same old same old.
Yet i don’t blame the ordinary member.
The entire Scottish leadership is to blame.