Scotish Labour Party

[The__Proclaimer]

The token bitter SNP supporter at my work is adament that The Scottish Exectutive will be an independent one come next year. I admitted that Labour will lose votes due to Blair's foreign policy but she had to admit Scottish Labour's time at Hollyrood has been a bit of a success:

- Student Fee's Abolished
- Free Personal Care For The Elderly
- Smoking Banned In Public Places
- Free Travel Anywhere In Scotland for the Disabled and OAP's
- Hunting With Dogs Banned
- Section 28 Repelled

Her response. 'You Unionists are all the same, bowing down to the English with your wee Mickey Mouse parliamnent.'
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[Smurf]

I'm not entirely convinced that it's Blair's foreign policy that will cost Labour votes. I think on balance foreign policy largely unaffects voting behaviour.

Overall Labour in Scotland had done okay since 1999. The expectation levels of devolution were IMO entirely unrealistic. They really are a very uninspiring lot though in the current executive. Jack McConnell is an okay bloke but the fact that he made a decision, to boot anyone who could be a threat to his position, on the back benches.. It says it all..

Hate to be predictable but i think the UK Labour government has done more for me and my family than any previous UK government in my lifetime, and more than i can expect from a bunch of failed unimaginative Scottish Labour MSP's in a Parliament with quite substantial powers..

[part/time supporter]

Originally Posted by The__Proclaimer
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The token bitter SNP supporter at my work is adament that The Scottish Exectutive will be an independent one come next year. I admitted that Labour will lose votes due to Blair's foreign policy but she had to admit Scottish Labour's time at Hollyrood has been a bit of a success:

- Student Fee's Abolished
- Free Personal Care For The Elderly
- Smoking Banned In Public Places
- Free Travel Anywhere In Scotland for the Disabled and OAP's
- Hunting With Dogs Banned
- Section 28 Repelled

Her response. 'You Unionists are all the same, bowing down to the English with your wee Mickey Mouse parliamnent.'

At least two of those wouldn't have happened if Labour wasn't forced into coalition with the 'Beige Party'.

[Colr]

Originally Posted by Smurf
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I'm not entirely convinced that it's Blair's foreign policy that will cost Labour votes. I think on balance foreign policy largely unaffects voting behaviour.

I utterly agree with this. The people I hear claiming that it will usually wouldn't have voted for Blair anyway.

[Colr]

Originally Posted by The__Proclaimer
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Her response. 'You Unionists are all the same, bowing down to the English with your wee Mickey Mouse parliamnent.'
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Ol' vinegar tits!!!!

[Observer]

Student Fee's Abolished
- Free Personal Care For The Elderly
- Smoking Banned In Public Places
- Free Travel Anywhere In Scotland for the Disabled and OAP's
- Hunting With Dogs Banned
- Section 28 Repelled


Just looking at these policies, the student one is a bit of a con. There is still a compulsory endowment of £2k after your degree which goes to pay for bursaries for students from poor families- literally robbing Peter to pay Paul. So it's a cut in fees, and an end to up-front fees. Good news for middle-class parents.

The care policy is certainly popular, but not with Labour's Sam galbraith, who seems to think that any universal benefit is essentially right-wing. Presumably he won't like the travel one for the same reason.

I like the hunting ban cos it annoys the toffs, but I believe there were only 11 hunts in Scotland, so a fairly minor achievement.

Section 28 was the end of Labour's honeymoon. fair play to them for braving it out, but they were caught off guard. Now they just get Westminster to legislate for anything that might annoy the Tom Winning crowd- devolution in action, eh?

I reckon the SNP and Lib Dems will make progress, Labour and the SSP will lose seats, the Tories and Greens not much change.

Should make for a confused picture- pretty much summing up the Scottish electorate!

[pilrig70]

Originally Posted by Smurf
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I'm not entirely convinced that it's Blair's foreign policy that will cost Labour votes. I think on balance foreign policy largely unaffects voting behaviour.

On 1st May 2003 the anti-war parties of the SSP and Scottish Greens returned 11 MSPs between them.

This was in no small part because of Blair's foreign policy in Iraq at the time.

Which kinda blows apart yer very weak political theory above.

[Smurf]

Originally Posted by pilrig70
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On 1st May 2003 the anti-war parties of the SSP and Scottish Greens returned 11 MSPs between them.

This was in no small part because of Blair's foreign policy in Iraq at the time.

Which kinda blows apart yer very weak political theory above.

So if not for 'Blair's war' in Iraq the SSP & Greens would have done even worse in terms of their % vote?
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[Colr]

Originally Posted by pilrig70
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On 1st May 2003 the anti-war parties of the SSP and Scottish Greens returned 11 MSPs between them.

This was in no small part because of Blair's foreign policy in Iraq at the time.

Which kinda blows apart yer very weak political theory above.

Misunderstanding cause and effect, no?
Maybe some other reasons for voting for these parties e.g. their approach to tax and investment?

[pilrig70]

Originally Posted by Smurf
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So if not for 'Blair's war' in Iraq the SSP & Greens would have done even worse in terms of their % vote?
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Worse than what? Their 1999 votes? I doubt that. Both parties did well between 1999 and 2003 in both public perception and increasing their share of electoral support.

They would both probably have made gains in May 2003 but maybe not such big gains if it hadnt been for disaffection with the Iraq war.

[egb_hibs]

Originally Posted by The__Proclaimer
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The token bitter SNP supporter at my work is adament that The Scottish Exectutive will be an independent one come next year. I admitted that Labour will lose votes due to Blair's foreign policy but she had to admit Scottish Labour's time at Hollyrood has been a bit of a success:

- Student Fee's Abolished
- Free Personal Care For The Elderly
- Smoking Banned In Public Places
- Free Travel Anywhere In Scotland for the Disabled and OAP's
- Hunting With Dogs Banned
- Section 28 Repelled

Her response. 'You Unionists are all the same, bowing down to the English with your wee Mickey Mouse parliamnent.'
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And I used to think you were a libertine
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half of the above list is a litany of interfering nanny statism and token-issue student-union politics.

it's not what i was hoping for from a parliament.

[Colr]

Originally Posted by egb_hibs
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And I used to think you were a libertine
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half of the above list is a litany of interfering nanny statism and token-issue student-union politics.

it's not what i was hoping for from a parliament.

Which half do you support?

[egb_hibs]

Originally Posted by Colr
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Which half do you support?

the only items listed i care about are the ones re the elderly

[sKipper]

Originally Posted by The__Proclaimer
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The token bitter SNP supporter at my work is adament that The Scottish Exectutive will be an independent one come next year. I admitted that Labour will lose votes due to Blair's foreign policy but she had to admit Scottish Labour's time at Hollyrood has been a bit of a success:

- Student Fee's Abolished
- Free Personal Care For The Elderly
- Smoking Banned In Public Places
- Free Travel Anywhere In Scotland for the Disabled and OAP's
- Hunting With Dogs Banned
- Section 28 Repelled

Her response. 'You Unionists are all the same, bowing down to the English with your wee Mickey Mouse parliamnent.'
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Poor troll for you Proccy.

Dire effort for a supposed Parliament.

[Smurf]

Originally Posted by sKipper
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Poor troll for you Proccy.

Dire effort for a supposed Parliament.

What would you like to see it do Skipper?

[Colr]

Originally Posted by egb_hibs
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the only items listed i care about are the ones re the elderly

What did you expect, then?

[Bartok]

Originally Posted by Smurf
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What would you like to see it do Skipper?

Dunno about Skip but I'd think maybe a few of these:
1. Introduce aggressive incentives for business to locate in Scotland.
2. Set up an anti-sectarianism initiative in all Scottish schools.
3. Scrap the SQA and replace with a quality internal assessment regime run by local education authorities.
4. Pass legislation making all fishing for brown trout free in Scotland.
5. Widen the powers of people to walk on all land without fear of breaking trespass laws.
6. Make Bannockburn Day a national holiday, scrap one of the English holidays.
7. Scrap the most obviously wasteful Quangos.
8. Sort out the bloody history curriculum so Scots study some Scottish history.
9. Provide business incentives for employers to offer life insurance packages.
10. Introduce penal sentences that include elements of rehabilitation.

Ach dinnae get me started, I've a hundred more.

[Dub]

Originally Posted by Dixie Chicken
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Dunno about Skip but I'd think maybe a few of these:
1. Introduce aggressive incentives for business to locate in Scotland Agreed there could be a lot more done in this respect.
2. Set up an anti-sectarianism initiative in all Scottish schools.
Nice one although I cant see it making much progress especially in the west
3. Scrap the SQA and replace with a quality internal assessment regime run by local education authorities.
no idea what an SQA is I am afraid
4. Pass legislation making all fishing for brown trout free in Scotland.
I take it you are a fisherman then
5. Widen the powers of people to walk on all land without fear of breaking trespass laws.
Didnt think there was a law of trespass in Scotland - in fact I am pretty sure there isnt.
6. Make Bannockburn Day a national holiday, scrap one of the English holidays.
One extra days holiday:YAYYY: Dont really care what its called or whether it replaces an english one but i like the idea
7. Scrap the most obviously wasteful Quangos.
A bloke I know is on one to do with poverty as it affects schoolkids so leave that one and scrap the rest please
8. Sort out the bloody history curriculum so Scots study some Scottish history.
Absofeckinlutely
9. Provide business incentives for employers to offer life insurance packages.
Why, surely its up to the individual to sort this out - perhaps more education in this matter is required.
10. Introduce penal sentences that include elements of rehabilitation. Aye ok but what about stopping this ludicrous situation whereby for example you get 10 years for a crime but you only do 6. Scrap that as well and use the extra time in jail for rehab purposes
Ach dinnae get me started, I've a hundred more.

Lets here them please.

Ok some more if you have hundreds
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[Colr]

I think you'll find that business support is administered through Scottish Enterprise which is run by the DTi and therefore not an area over which the SP has influence. It could lower income tax to encourage investment but that's a bit tenuous.

there isn't a criminal law of trespass in Scotland as you say.

[Bartok]

Originally Posted by Colr
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I think you'll find that business support is administered through Scottish Enterprise which is run by the DTi and therefore not an area over which the SP has influence. It could lower income tax to encourage investment but that's a bit tenuous.

there isn't a criminal law of trespass in Scotland as you say.

So we need an independent Scotland if we are to take action, thanks.