The Flag in the Wind
A weekly online newspaper bringing you information on the political scene in Scotland: part of the monthly Scots Independent.

Home | About Us | Subscriptions | Archives | SNP | Ad Rates | Features | Adverts | Events | Links

CAMPAIGNING FOR SCOTLAND
(Owned, Edited and Printed in Scotland since November 1926)
"Promoting all that is best in Scottish Nationalism and all that is best in Scotland."

Compiled by Jim Lynch
[Issue 84 - 11th January 2002]

However, I was most impressed to learn that we Scots were going to do more work for charity this year, and that we were going to be much more organised in our financial dealingsas well. It was obviously a slow time for news, and saying what we were going to do rather than what we had done highlighted the proverbial triumph of hope over experience.

No sign as yet of the System Three Poll, usually published in the first week of the month, so either the pollsters were taking a break, or the polled were not answering their phones; I did not miss any issues of the Herald, as I discovered to my horror that both the Scotsman and the Herald were published on New Year’s Day. This might have happened last year, as I was in Strathpeffer where no shops were open, and maybe in previous years when I spent New Year abroad (in Scarborough) but it came as a nasty shock just the same; creeping, or galloping, Anglicisation!

EURO, EURO, EURO

This is going to be the Government’s policy initiative this year, leaving, "Education, Education, Education," languishing by the roadside if it got that far.

1st January was a momentous day for Europe, and the launch of the single currency seems to have been relatively hitch free, despite the dire warnings of Britain’s right wing press, which includes the Scotsman and the Daily Discord. The euro is now the common currency of 12 nations comprising some 300 million people, and Britain stands alone; this is the direct result of the Single European Act, signed on our behalf by that arch anti-European,(Yes, anti, not Auntie) Margaret Thatcher, who has been in denial ever since. We should also remember that we entered the European Economic Community, as it was then, under Prime Minister, Edward Heath, and the Tories have been fighting about it ever since.

As to whether we should join the euro or not, I personally am ambivalent; the SNP policy is to join, but we have had a chequered history on the whole European issue. We were broadly in favour of greater participation in Europe, but opposed going in on anybody else’s (England’s) terms, but the referendum in 1975 resulted in a victory for the Government of the day (Labour) who had all the money anyway; the result was 58.4% to remain in the EEC against 41.6% to come out, on a 61.7% poll. In England there was a 64.5% turnout, and 68.7% were in favour , and 31.3% against, so there were fairly radical differences. There was then a period of anti-Europeanism within the Party, (I was one of those opposed to membership), but then the SNP used the issue strategically to weaken the Westminster stranglehold, and came up with "Independence in Europe", as a counter to the separatist tag.

What is interesting in the present situation is the parallels with 1975; in 1975, we wanted a separate count to be held in Scotland and Wales. This was opposed by the Labour Government, as they did not want the possibility of a "No" vote being used by Scottish and Welsh Nationalists to further the cause of Independence; in the event, a national count was deemed too unworkable, and a regional and county structure was adopted throughout the UK. (Minority Nationalism and European Integration, by Peter Lynch, University of Wales Press ).

And so to today; it has already been proposed that as the Scottish Parliament and Local Government Elections are being held on 1 May 2003, that the referendum on the euro should be held on the same day. In the House of Commons on 4th December 2001, Glasgow Pollok Labour MP, Ian Davidson asked the Deputy Scottish Secretary, George Foulkes "Can he clarify whether the Government intend to have the results of any future (euro) referendum counted separately by country?" Mr Foulkes answered "No."

Alex Salmond then tabled a Parliamentary Question to the Prime Minister, asking that the results be broken down by nation and region of the UK; on 10th December , he was referred to a previous answer by Treasury Minister Ruth Kelly on 2 November , which said "If the Government recommend UK entry it will be put to a vote in Parliament and then to a referendum of the British people." Alex has now written yet again to the Prime Minister to try and get a straight answer....... what did I say about the triumph of hope over experience?

AND QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS

What a lot of rubbish is printed in the press about Parliamentary Questions, and the cost thereof; well for a start, in the previous article, we had an evasive answer on 2nd November, a definite answer on 4th December (from a fellow member of the same Labour-Co-op Party) and a further evasive answer by the Prime Minister referring to the first evasive answer on 10th December. Now, how could saying "No" cost £282, and writing "No" cost £121, or should they work on the principle "Buy one get one free?" The cost of Parliamentary Questions may be high because Labour MP are not asking any; there is not a filing cabinet full of question answerers from which they can pull out trained research staff at will. There is a Parliamentary Information Office which has a permanent staff, and they supply all the answers; the cost per answer is their salaries divided by the number of questions asked, but not necessarily answered, as per the example given.

The reason for the publicity by the Labour worshipping press is that the SNP published a list of the participation records in the House of Commons for all the Scottish Member from 8 Jun 2001 to 17 Dec 2001, under the various headings of Written Parliamentary Questions, Oral Parliamentary Questions, Participation in Debates, and Early Day Motions; we have to say that the SNP had 5 out of 6 top places. We realise of course that New Labour MPs may not be allowed to ask questions of the Government, but if so, what are they doing? One other point; Colin Campbell, SNP MSP had been asking questions in the Scottish Parliament about the Defence Diversification Agency; he wanted to know how many Scottish companies had worked with the agency, and their identities. The questions were first asked in April 2001, and Wendy Alexander kept evading the answers by saying it was "not executive policy to disclose information of this nature"; this went on for six months. In exasperation, Colin got Pete Wishart, Westminster MP for North Tayside to ask the Ministry of Defence, and was answered immediately; it would have saved money if Colin had been answered the first time.

The Labour Westminster MP, Brian Donohoe, is now asking what do MSPs do, and has taken umbrage at his lack of participation in the House of Commons being exposed; in the Westminster Working League, as we might call it, while SNP MP Michael Weir, comes top with 309 points, Mr Donohoe comes in at 39 with 16 points. Mr Donohoe says there is more to being a Westminster MP than participation in the affairs of the House; we know that Mr Donohoe is on the Transport Committee, and is busy stopping trains, and that he has a good working relationship with his Scottish Parliament counterpart, Irene Oldfather, as far as constituency business is concerned, but what else is he doing? He is even beaten by George Galloway, at No 23, despite the latter’s frequent journeyings to Baghdad, where he is heartened by thousands coming to cheer with tears in their eyes; I suppose I would have tears in my eyes if I was forced to take a day off work without pay at the "behest" of the Secret Police to go and cheer another moustachioed bigshot. (See Foot in Mouth - Issue 83 - 4 Jan 02)

Mr Donohoe will not of course be critical of the aforesaid Irene Oldfather; she did her noble duty by attending one Rural Affairs Committee meeting in order to vote down compensation for any one put out of work by the bill to ban hunting. The clause to pay compensation was defeated by one vote; Mrs Oldfather was a stop gap appointment, as she was due to take over convenership of the European committee, and was only expected to attend the one meeting. Apparently she was visited at her surgery in the constituency by hunt supporting constituents, and is alleged to have told them that they deserved to lose their jobs. We look forward to her campaign of persuasion on the euro.

FOR IT’S A LONG LONG TIME.......

"From May to December" as the song has it, but it is an even longer time from March to December; the financial year of the Scottish Qualifications Authority ended on 31 March 2001, and their financial account were tabled in the Scottish Parliament on 20th December 2001. Whether they would have even appeared at all without a question from SNP Shadow Education Minister, Mike Russell, is a moot point; as it is, their financial year ended before Easter, and they managed to publish before Christmas. It could be of course that they decided to slip them through just before Parliament rose, when all the MSPs are getting into party (small p) mood and goodwill is expected to prevail, and it seems to have worked, as I saw no mention of it in the press at all.

I have tried in vain to find the relevant information on the Internet, as the costs are all paid from public funds, but either the Executive will not do this, or the staff concerned are still getting over their New Year hangovers; I suspect the former, as Mike Russell has pointed out that there was an overdraft of £894000, and they were owed £1.6 million. Now if they had collected the money due there would not be an overdraft with interest being paid from the public purse, but it seems that the £1.6 million owed was over three months and might not be paid. It looks as if the Authority was no better with its financial stewardship than it was with looking after the futures of all the hopefuls whose exam results they messed up. The only information I can find on the web refers to 1997 when it was set up, and shows it had a budget of £23 million and 505 staff; the Authority assumed the functions of the Scottish Examinations Board and the Scottish Vocational Education Council, and the figures are for these bodies. How very transparent, but maybe I’m looking in the wrong place.

How convenient to see that the new Board appointments were announced between Christmas and New Year, when everyone would have plenty of time to read them, laying aside the pokey hats to do so, and doing away with any courtesy of telling the Parliament’s Education Committee what was happening. The Education Minister sees no need to inform anyone of what she is doing, a trait copied from the First Minister, Jack McConnell, who decided to take away schools inspection from the Schools Inspectorate and give it to local authorities, but didn’t bother to inform the Education Minister, who read about it in the newspapers. (As per the Tony Blair Presidential Prerogative.) Among the appointments was Judith Gillespie, of the Scottish Parent Teacher Council, and one of the SQA’s severest critics; Ms Gillespie is highly respected, but this reminds me of the old industrial ploy of promoting a good shop steward to be a manager. Surely ex social worker, and now Education Minister, Cathy Jamieson would not think like that?

There are signs that a more " commercial" approach is being taken by the SQA; books of past examination papers used to cost £2.85, but now they are £6.25. The Scottish Secondary Teachers Association believes the books are essential tools for pupils’ revision, and that with pupils studying perhaps 8 Standard Grades and 5 Higher Grades this rise would disadvantage poorer children. The books also cover fewer years, and include a lot more blank pages designed for working out answers, thus preventing them being handed down to younger members of the family, so parents will have to fork out again; the SQA will take all these points into account when reviewing the contract to print them in 2002. Maybe they should have had their second thoughts first ?

SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD

I don’t know why it took so long for it to click; the old adage "the answer to trouble at home is war abroad" has been shrieking at me as the Blessed Tony floats serenely around the world, rebuilding the Pyramids, creating peace between India and Pakistan, and assuring the Afghanis "I come in peace". When I read that the Indian Press hailed him as the "second most powerful man in the world" I hoped that the editor of the Bangalore Sunday Times had a keen sense of irony; certainly the information technology and communications minister, Pramod Mahajan, was good humoured, but pointed, when he reminded Mr Blair that he did not need to visit India to calm them down, as they had been "pretty cool for years". Quite a lot of the tensions between the two countries are due to Britain’s colonial occupation of the sub-continent, and the partition of India and Pakistan, against the earnest wishes of Mahatma Gandhi, when India gained independence; there was also the matter of Pakistan as East Pakistan and West Pakistan as one country, with the whole of India between them, resolved as Bangladesh after much blood was spilt. However, Mr Blair was not responsible for any of that, but one would have thought he would have been wary of giving advice to countries pillaged by his ancestors.

He did mean well, and some commentators had referred to Dean Acheson’s remark that "Great Britain has lost an Empire and never found a role" as the reason for his missions around the world; he wants to be a world leader, as his predecessors were, and Britain is too small for him. It is also too small for the English as well, and they hanker for the golden days of Empire and the past glories, and when they were a great nation; they are less keen on taking part in the new Europe.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, things were going to rack and ruin; the railways are in deep doodoo, labelled by one of his own ministers as "the worst in Europe", transport in general is appalling, the health and education services are creaking, the trouble in Northern Ireland continues (another partition "solution" by a British Government) and there is no sureness of touch to handle these problems, hence the foreign adventures. Mr Blair sees a referendum on the euro looming, and he desperately wants to win that and get his neb into the European Community as a world class leader, but he cannot do that while outside the currency bloc; and he will not risk a referendum until he is sure of winning.

He must be further encouraged that this year the William Wallace Award on Tartan Day in America is to be jointly given to himself and George Bush; what a comedown after Sir Sean Connery! Apparently Mr Bush has visited us, at least once, and Mr Blair was born and educated here; well he was educated at Fettes in Edinburgh, so geographically he did go to school in Scotland. It’s not all bad; the Headmaster of Fettes in 1974, Chenevix French ( or Trench, I can never mind), voted SNP in 1974. He had previously been Headmaster at Eton, and he told me he was voting for me; perhaps he lied.

And amidst all this vainglorious seeking for power and status, the affairs of poor little Scotland and its desire for Independence are of little account.

FOOT IN THE MOUTH NOTES

One of the world’s largest wind farms is to be established on the island of Lewis, and it is expected to generate 10 times more power than Scotland needs, so it will be directly linked to England.

Fears of what might happen if the wind stopped blowing are declared groundless; according to legend it did stop one day - and everyone fell over.

I’ve often heard of people getting "wandered up a close", but I didn’t know it could happen to a computer.

When reporting on the Scot being held as a member of Al Qaeda, the Daily Mail said he had been brought up in a "smart Victorian townhouse in the Kirkton area of Dundee."

Kirkton is one of the largest postwar (1939-45) corporation housing schemes built in Dundee; can’t remember anything Victorian about it.

Plans are afoot to introduce a pre recorded questionnaire for patients needing a doctor; you know the type, press 1, press 2, etc, which banks and insurance companies plague us with.

If you’re having a heart attack, press 1; if you’re still alive, press 2......

According to reports, the NHS is to lease the top floor of Health Care International in Greenock for a major project.

The hospital cost £200 million to build, and £40 million of this was public money paid by the generous Tories (with our money); we should just take the floor, not pay for it again.

Mr Blair should be delighted that in one field anyway, Britain is leading Europe; apparently we are the fattest people in Europe.

When Tom Shields of the Herald Diary was in America, his comments on the number of fat people there should have resonance here "The people here don’t need gun control, they need portion control."

                            SYNOPSIS

SNP ATTACKS EXECUTIVE's "RECORD OF FAILURE"

The SNP dismissed a parliamentary debate on the Scottish Executive's priorities as a showcase for spin. Leader John Swinney has accused ministers of creating a "blizzard" of reviews and consultations and criticised the Executive over its record on improving health and education services. Mr Swinney went on the offensive by attacking the "record of failure" which he claimed the Executive had presided over since it came to power. He read out a mock report card on the Executive's five key priorities of health, education, jobs, transport and crime. Mr Swinney said the administration had failed on all those issues. He said hospital waiting lists and times had gone up, the Executive had broken its pledges on education and training, unemployment had risen, the railway system was "in total chaos" and crime was also on the increase. The SNP leader dismissed Mr McConnell's speech as "an exercise in spin" and called on the Executive to begin delivering for the Scottish people. He said: "Maybe the government should get down to less talking and get down to more action in the delivery of public services." Mr Swinney pledged an SNP administration would scrap the Private Finance Initiative and replace it with a Scottish trust which, he claimed, would deliver more schools and hospitals as well as greater investment in other public services. Among the other initiatives Mr Swinney pledged to pursue were the re-introduction of free dental health check-ups, the reduction of class sizes and a ban on new nuclear power stations being built in Scotland.

EXECUTIVE UNDER FIRE AS CASH PLEDGED TO TACKLE "BED BLOCKING"

The Labour-led coalition today pledged 20 million pounds towards attacking the problem of "bed blocking" in Scottish hospitals. The money will be used to pay for up to 1,000 extra places in "more appropriate settings" next year, enabling the elderly and some others to be discharged more quickly from hospitals. The move to ease the logjam in Scotland's busy hospital wards was disclosed by Jack McConnell in his first major set piece parliamentary speech since he became First Minister in November. Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP shadow health minister, criticised the Executive's record on health and demanded more nurses, more investment and more consultants. She said: "It's a sobering thought that someone, a patient who at the time of the last government re-launch last year was on a waiting list for a hip replacement for example, is still likely to be on that list today. That's in spite of the extra money the government says it's investing and the repeated promises in 2000 and 2001 that they would get waiting lists and waiting times down. For that patient, the First Minister's words are just that, words. They are the words of a man that everyone knows has been at the very heart of this failing administration from its very inception. Why  would anyone else in this Parliament or in Scotland trust in him because for the past two-and-a-half years the only thing that's been reliable about this government is its failure."

"SCO" CAR PLATES STILL NOT WITHIN THE LAW

Drivers who display the "Scottish" type of European Union number plates could face 1,000 pound fines, despite the government's licence plate U-turn over Christmas. SNP European spokesman Angus Robertson is planning to step up protests by writing to Transport Secretary Stephen Byers. The row is over an illegal form of licence plate which displays the stars of the EU, the Saltire and the letters SCO to the left of the vehicle number, which motorists were able to buy until September last year. Then the Government announced the only legal plate would be one with GB, surrounded by EU stars, to the left of the number. Mr Robertson, MP for Moray, complained that that decision was rushed out during the holiday period to avoid Government embarrassment over the U-turn, was ill-prepared - since the regulations will take months to change - and in any case failed to include the EU stars on the new-style Scottish plates. He said it would mean those who had plates with the EU stars, the Scottish flag and SCO to the left of their numbers would have to replace them or face criminal sanctions.

EXECUTIVE WASHES ITS HANDS OF BUS PENSIONERS

SNP MSP Fergus Ewing today accused the Scottish Executive of washing its hands of the Scottish Transport Group Pensioners after they admitted they had no plans to discuss with the Treasury or Inland Revenue ways of maximising the pensioners pay out. The admission comes in a reply to a parliamentary question by Mr Ewing and after it was revealed that the Scottish Executive and Treasury had raided the pension fund of at least two thirds of the fund or 150 million pounds. "The Scottish Executive is trying to wash their hands of the plight of these pensioners. They are not even willing to discuss with the Treasury and the Inland Revenue ways of maximising the pay out these pensioners receive," Mr Ewing said.

SNP SAYS CHILD SOCIAL SERVICES IN CRISIS

Social work services for children are in crisis across Scotland, the SNP claimed today. The party said local authorities were struggling to recruit and retain enough social workers to cope with a growing workload. A survey conducted by the SNP found staff vacancies of up to 24 per cent. And it said up to 29 per cent of cases involving children were unallocated. The SNP called for urgent action to tackle the problem, including a review of the current pay and conditions of social workers to offer an attractive package and a campaign to improve the public image of social work. The party said a third of Scotland's children begin their life in poverty, 80 children under the age of 16 become homeless every day, around 100,000 live with domestic violence and about 9000 run away every year. Report author, the SNP's shadow depute minister for children and education, Irene McGugan MSP, said: "We need to recognise the value and contribution of social workers to society and the complexity, knowledge and skill required to undertake the task. An urgent and radical review of the pay and conditions of social workers is required which also addresses the issue of the negative public image of the profession. If the Scottish Executive takes the needs of children seriously, then it must act to ensure that the role of childcare social workers is valued. They are currently presiding over an acute crisis in the recruitment and retention of social workers. The gap between the Executive's aims and the reality on the ground is widening, and children's lives are suffering as a result."

RAIL WOE FOR COMMUTERS AS MSPs DEMAND EXECUTIVE ACTION

Rail commuters are experiencing widespread disruption across Scotland after a quarter of train services north of the border were cancelled. ScotRail issued an emergency timetable following an overtime ban by drivers involved in a pay dispute. Some of the company's drivers are refusing to do overtime or work on rest days as they seek a 5,000 pounds pay rise. Talks aimed at reaching agreement between train operators and union officials ended in deadlock on 28 December. Services affected include the flagship Edinburgh to Glasgow line, which is running half hourly rather than every 15 minutes. SNP shadow transport minister Kenny MacAskill today called on the Scottish Executive to become involved in the dispute. Mr MacAskill said: "The situation with Scotrail is not similar to a normal dispute between management and unions and it is therefore imperative that the Scottish Executive becomes involved. They have a duty and responsibility to become involved and their inaction so far is shameful." North-east MP Richard Lochhead has called for government action after commuters faced cancellation of almost all local services on the Aberdeen-Dyce-Keith route. "Scotland's rail network is fast becoming a laughing stock throughout Europe and the local economy is suffering as a result," he said. "Our local network has always been in desperate need of investment but it seems to be going from bad to worse under the Labour-led coalition with its hands-off approach."

NO TO PROBE AFTER HEALTH BOSSES QUIT

Health minister Malcolm Chisholm has refused to investigate allegations of mismanagement at one of Scotland's biggest health trusts. Three directors, including Scottish TV doctor Kathleen Long, quit Lanarkshire Primary Care NHS Trust within months of each other. MSP Linda Fabiani demanded the minister and Trevor Jones, head of the NHS in Scotland, launch an inquiry. But in an answer to her parliamentary question Mr Chisholm has refused to look into the sudden departures. Ms Fabiani fears the staff changes could be affecting the standard of service being given to Lanarkshire people. She said: "I find this reply hard to understand. After asking my parliamentary question, I have been told the affairs of the Trust are not the Executive's concerns. We shouldn't sit back and do nothing about this situation. I am reiterating calls for this situation to be looked into." Mr Chisholm's stance on Lanarkshire is in stark contrast to the North Glasgow trust which the health minister is intent on breaking up after ordering it to relinquish control of the troubled Beatson cancer unit at the city's Western Infirmary.

---

OUR ADVERTISERS
Please support our Advertisers by visiting their web sites

Send a superb bouquet of flowers from Wild About Flowers to any UK address. Use our special login name and password to ensure you get your special price negotiated for you by the Flag!
Login Name: Scots  Password: Independent

James Thin, Booksellers

Burke's Landed Gentry

---

SCOTTISH FOOD, TRADITIONS AND CUSTOMS
(if you have any suggestions on what you'd like us to include email peter@scotsindependent.org)

The Burning of the Clavie - Burghead

Tonight ( 11 January 2002 ) the Moray town of Burghead will celebrate "Auld Hogmany" with an ancient fire festival -The Burning of the Clavie. The history of Burghead goes back some 1500 years when it was the site of an important promontary fort, one of the most magnificent centres of Pictish power. From the fort, built in the 4th or 5th centuries, have come stone slabs carved with Pictish motifs, including the famous Burghead bull - two examples of which are in the local museum. The present day Burning of the Clavie in Burghead is obviously a reminder of those far-off days. The word appears to be a corruption of the Gaelic 'cliabh' ( pronounced clee-av ), a basket, the fire being carried in a basket-like instrument which bears that name. The Clavie is packed with tar soaked sticks and mixed with peat, before being set alight and carried round the town by the "Clavie King" and his "Clavie Crew", followed by the residents of Burghead. It is then taken up Doorie Hill to the ramparts of the ancient Pictish fort and allowed to burn out. The embers are supposed to be lucky and are collected by the Clavie followers. The luck is said to last for a year. This column cannot pass the luck of the Clavie to you but can suggest a way to join with the good folk of Burghead in spirit! The traditional drink, in the past, for celebrating Hogmany in Scotland was Het Pint, of which Sir Walter Scott wrote -

 

'...it was uncanny and would certainly have felt it uncomfortable, not to welcome the New Year in the midst of his family, and  few friends , with the immemorial libation of a het pint.'

 

The Het pint was traditionally carried through the streets at Hogmanay, in large copper kettles, known as toddy kettles, several hours before 'the chappin o the Twal'.

 

Het Pint

Ingredients : 4 pt mild ale; 1 teasp. grated nutmeg; 4 oz sugar; 3 eggs; 1/2 pt Whisky

 

Put the ale into a thick saucepan, then add the nutmeg, and  bring to just below boiling point. ( If it boils, the alcoholic content is considerably lowered. ) Stir in the sugar and let it dissolve. Beat the eggs very well, and add them gradually to the beer, stirring all the time so that it doesn't curdle. Then add the Whisky , and heat  up, but on no account boil. Pour the liquid from the saucepan into heated tankards, back and forth so that it becomes clear and sparkling.

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

DATES IN HISTORY

11 January 1671
Reconstitution of the High Court of Justicary, the supreme criminal court in Scotland.
" That the ancient and necessar policie and custome of Justices aires and circuit courts, which upon occasion of the late troubles have bein intermitted, should be againe revived and continued."  - Register of the Privy Council

 

16 January 1707
The Act of Union of the Parliaments of England and Scotland was ratified.

 

17 January 1883
Birth of Sir Compton Mackenzie, author and founder member of the National Party of Scotland in 1928. In 1931 he was elected as the first ever Scottish Nationalist Lord Rector of Glasgow University.

See Dates in History in our Features Section

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

SI Prize Crossword No. 25 JANUARY  2002
[Click here to bring up the crosswords]