AND AS WE CONTINUE.........

If you read our first issue of The Flag in the Wind you will know that this is a weekly Internet commentary on the Scottish political scene; if you desire further erudition click on Archives on the Menu Bar.

 THE SCOTTISH NATIONAL PARTY

The Scots Independent Newspaper is independent of the Scottish National Party, but we support the Party in its drive for Independence; while space precludes us commenting on all the issues raised by the 35 MSPs, 6 MPS and 2 MEPs, also the Party Office Bearers, we have provided a link to the SNP Website - click on SNP on the Menu Bar.

THE FLAG IN THE WIND

The above was the title of a book written in the early Fifties by John MacDonald MacCormick, one of the founder members of the Scottish National Party in 1934. The sub-title was "The Story of the National Movement in Scotland". His comment in the book said "It is perhaps in the symbols which men use that their deepest sentiments are most readily expressed. Flags as well as straws show which way the wind is blowing". A fuller account appears under Features.

ANGUS MACGILLVERAY

Angus MacGillveray was a Party institution and was better known to the rank and file of the SNP than many of the National Office Bearers.

We have included a tribute to him by Peter Wright, and the Preface to his "Rebel Ceilidh Song Book" under Features. There will be a song a week until they’re all done, and then maybe we’ll have an encore!

BANNOCKBURN RALLY

Around 500 Nationalists were at the Bannockburn Rally on Saturday 24 Jun 00. The Rally is held every year to commemorate the victory of King Robert the Bruce over the invading English army in 1314; this restored Scottish Independence, sadly lost in 1707.

Party leader Alex Salmond MSP, said that progress towards the SNP goal of Independence was continuing apace.

Prominent Scottish Labour Movement figure Jimmy Reid was the guest speaker. He said "Independence is now inevitable. I intend to see it."

Party President Dr Winnie Ewing MSP also addressed the Rally.

A full report of all speeches together with pictures will appear in the August issue of the Scots Independent -- in glorious Technicolour!

REACH FOR THE SKYE BRIDGE

It would seem that the current operators of the toll booths at the Skye Bridge should be known as Dick Turpin Ltd (Or Unlimited) as they have been collecting tolls illegally since the bridge was opened.

According to Professor Robert Black QC, of Edinburgh University’s Law Department the paperwork setting up the toll regime is fundamentally flawed. The government should have set up a special roads scheme and then a toll order; there should also have been an assignation statement naming the concessionaire. These documents do not exist.

There is an unsigned assignation statement naming Skye Bridge Tolls Ltd as the concessionaire; the toll booths are operated by Miller Civil Engineering.

Very interesting to see where this one will take us; no mention of the Bank of America, the real owners, creaming off the money at the end of the day. Unsigned documents? No one prepared to take responsibility? Everything about PFI (Private Finance Initiative) done in a great hurry before any objections were raised?

If the tolls have been collected illegally then they will have to be refunded, and those charged and fined for refusing to pay the tolls are vindicated, and can sue someone. What do you bet it will not be the Bank of America.

And what of the man who set it up, the Tory Secretary of State for Scotland, Ian Lang? Well, we think Michael Forsyth, Malcolm Rifkind and Ian Lang, all got jobs in the City of London, but we would not cast aspersions.

ROGER KNOX SUSAN DEACON

We are delighted to report that Roger Knox won the District Council seat of Musselburgh East from Labour with a 13% swing.

The result in Musselburgh East was:

Roger is a long standing campaigner and his victory, turning a Labour majority of 396 into an SNP majority of 27 is well deserved.

The local MSP is Susan Deacon, the Labour Health Minister; we are sure that as her local Councillor Roger will listen attentively to her problems, and also give her problems.

ERI - PFI - WHY OH WHY1

For the unitiated, Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Private Finance Initiative - the F is often given another interpretation. Don’t worry about it - your grandchildren will pay the bill.

Ms Susan Deacon, the aforesaid Health Minister, says that the new Edinburgh Royal Infirmary is big enough despite it having 200 fewer beds than the current Royal Infirmary. This has 1069 beds and initially the doctors were happy enough with the 1100 beds proposed. Financial constraints made the Health Boards cut the number of beds. Financial constraints, you might ask, what financial constraints? Well the financiers won’t be able to make enough money if the building is any bigger. We also know that there will be 17 consultants less when the new hospital opens.

The argument is that there will be a greater throughput of patients and they will not stay so long, so they need less beds and less doctors, and nurses. The logic of that is that at present there must be a surplus of beds and doctors and nurses, or else they are doing it wrongly. Waiting lists are increasing, so it is difficult to understand how cutting beds and staff will cut waiting lists, unless they hope more patients will die and reduce the lists that way.

A week or two back, Tony Blair appointed Richard Branson to help reduce hospital waiting lists; one commentator rather acidly noted that Branson should know all about waiting lists - but in his case they were known as train timetables!

WHEN DOES A LEVY BECOME A TAX?

The answer to the above question is when you have to pay it. Lord Levy, a pal of Tony Blair’s, multi-millionaire, Labour fund raiser, and special envoy to the Middle East is irate. His Income Tax details have been made public, and in 1998-99 he only paid Basic Rate Tax, £5000; his story is that he was living on his money, and it is nobody’s business but his.

Geoffrey Robinson, another of Tony Blair’s pals, is owing the French Government £3.2 million for flats he owns in Cannes. He’s negotiating with the French authorities. It was Mr Robinson, aptly titled Paymaster General, who loaned £373,000 to Peter Mandelson, another of Tony’s pals.

The Tories’ fundraiser is Michael Ashcroft, who lives in Belize, but who has been made a Lord on condition he spends some time in Britain.

All the above information is in the public domain and all perfectly legal; moral ? - depends on your point of view; our Treasurer problems pale into insignificance!

POWER AND INFLUENCE

Peter Mandelson, as mentioned above, fell foul of the Parliamentary Commissioner, Ms Elizabeth Filkin, for not registering a loan of £373,000 from Geoffrey Robinson. He did not tell the Britannia Building Society, who loaned him more money. They forgave him, not wanting to be associated with the "Cool Britannia - Fool Britannia" soubriquet.

Ms Filkin said Mr Mandelson was a wrongdoer, but the Labour dominated standards and privileges committee overturned her decision.

And to the point; we await with interest one she is currently handling. It concerns a complaint that Dr John Reid (Soon not to be Secretary of State for Scotland) broke the rules by using his MPs allowance to help fund Labour’s Scottish Election Campaign. Dr Reid denies the charge.

Maybe that’s why he steadfastly refuses to attend any of the Scottish Parliamentary Committees; he might have to answer a question.

ENGLAND DEFLATED

Good to see England deflated by Rumania and out of Euro 2000. Kevin Keegan admitted that they were just not good enough, something not noticed by the English football commentators.

Why was it good? Not xenophobia, but they were going to be thrown out because of the conduct of their followers. This way they at least went with some vestige of honour - and no alibi.

England were hopeful of getting the World Cup in 2006, but it looks as if the World Footballing Bodies will veto that. So where does that leave Scotland’s attempt to get Euro 2008 ? Nowhere according to one German MP who wants all British visitors banned from mainland Europe during major football tournaments. This is guilt by association, and we will have a long hard struggle to escape that; the short solution is Independence.

As to worries by the football bodies that we could cope with rampaging English fans- have they seen the Glesca Polis?

THE BROWN ECONOMY

Chancellor Gordon Brown is trying to persuade people working in the black economy to mend their ways before they get caught. He is going to crack down hard on benefit cheats and he wants them to come clean. There will not be an amnesty, but repent before you get battered, or something like that; it’s all a bit vague.

However as far as people working on the side is concerned, the Treasury is the biggest recipient of staff seconded free by big business. Among these generous companies are : Price Waterhouse Coopers, Ernst & Young, Pannel, Kerr & Foster (What a half back line) BP Amoco, ESSO and Tarmac (The latter doing very nicely on PFI projects).

Others supplying staff free are BNFL, BUPA, BT and British Aerospace, all to various government departments.

How noble of them all, how jolly public spirited - or is it a more polite form of lobbying?

 DATES IN HISTORY

1 July 1592
Charter granted to Sir Alexander Fraser of Philorth to found a university at Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire.

"To edifie and big up collegis, nocht onlie till the great decoirement of the cuntrey, bot also to the advancement of the loist and tint youthe in bringing tham up in leirning and vertew." - Act of Scottish Parliament 16 December 1597 endowing the college.

1 July 1999
Official opening of the reconvened Scottish Parliament in the Church of Scotland Assembly Hall, Edinburgh.

6 July 1870
Institute of Bankers in Scotland formed, the first such body in the world.

 

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