To ask if you are voting SNP?

[SpiceAddict]

How do you think they are going to 'end austerity'? How will this be financed? You can't just suddenly invest more in infrastructure etc to create more jobs if there is no.money.

If it is going to be financed by stopping trident, then we will lose US support - not really a good idea....

Labour are going to increase tax for higher payers, mansion tax etc in order to fund their investments.

I live in Yorkshire and we really don't get the support for SNP. They don't make sense to me, but as they seem to be so popular, please can someone actually why?

I'm late to the thread and wasn't going to respond until I read this from ubik1 on 03/04

^single police force - costs have went up since this was introduced and they are now being forced to make cuts to the service in order to maintain what we had..

That is utter rubbish. Costs have reduced significantly through the integration of the eight forces into a single police service. There are still more cuts to be made but nbers of police officers are protected.^

Have you ANY idea what's happening inside Police Scotland? I can't be too precise as it would put my job at risk, but the "contact centres" for 101 calls are in meltdown with 100s of lost calls daily, one of the remaining contr rooms is possibly 4 weeks away from being closed due to lack of staff, existing operational staff are on their knees due to doing the work of 3 people, police officers are taking 3,4 and 5 days if not more on a very regular basis, when previously they attended the same day. Many crimes are going unrecorded as complainers are giving up on reporting as police officers are taking so long to attend....during last year's Ryder cup event there were CHIEF INSPECTORS driving mini buses of officers around the country, because those planning the event hadn't planned this aspect properly....
Shall I go on?

If there was only one reason to not vote SNP in any election, this is it

Damn! Forgot the ^ at the end of the quote!

police officers are taking 3,4 and 5 days if not more on a very regular basis, when previously they attended the same day.

Wow! That's certainly not been my experience so I guess I have been lucky! Phoned 101 at about 2am for someone trying windows. Police had a poke around about half an hour later. Police back out following morning with fingerprint guys in the afternoon. Follow up call a few days later. Was very, very impressed with the service.

Not read any reports re. failure of Police Scotland. Can you link please?

The problem I have with Police Scotland is that some of the local links have been lost. At the community council we usually have a police report - up until the introduction of Police Scotland we would usually get a local officer, who would report on crime trends and rates of solving crime in the area, plus any initiatives taking place. Since the introduction of Police Scotland, we sometimes get a local officer, but quite often get someone from another area, with no idea about local trends (I think the lack of data is also linked to cutting numbers of back office staff in the police, although presumably stats are still calculated) and have heard the same from community councils across the city.

Sharing resources across Scotland can be good (apparently Edinburgh are getting more use of the police helicopter) but also bad (officers partly funded by the council to work in particular areas being redeployed, lack of police cover for Hogmanay street party etc).

And - there seems to be an attitude at the top that one policing policy suits all areas. Witness the fuss over armed officers, which might have been working fine in some areas of Scotland but isn't going down well in others. And the fuss in Edinburgh over the saunas - people have known for years that the council licences them and that they are really brothels. Some people have a moral objection to this, other people see it as realistic and helping to keep more sex workers off the streets. Last year the police started doing sudden inspections and trying to shut them down because shock, horror, there was evidence of sex for sale. There was an article in the local paper last week saying that now greater numbers of women are working in flats and on the streets, fewer women are contacting charities who help sex workers, and STI rates amongst sex workers are increasing - the suggestion was that premises are no longer stocking large numbers of condoms as the police were using that as evidence of prostitution.

Re the 101 service, that got discussed at the community council last month and apparently they are going to employ an experienced call centre manager, so hopefully response rates will improve.

Ooaoml do you have a link to that article?

Apintofbest - NHS Scotland using the private sector for services has went on for a long time - but this is but the same as privatisation of services which you seem to think judging by your post. We the public don't pay for the service - NHS Scotland do, whereas if it was privitised we would have to pay on an individual basis for it, big difference.

not the same

Murphy today campaigning at the bottom of the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall ... if he had any use at all he should oppose Glasgow City (Labour) Council's destruction of the steps to build a few shops and a glass staircase!!!!

savethesteps

The council destroyed Glasgow's George Square and now moving on to another iconic civil space

Which is it? Referendum or independence? Because Alex Salmond seems to consider the terms interchangeable. He said that a referendum is only one of a number of ways to achieving independence: "That is to say that you establish a parliament and you establish successively more powers until you have a situation where you’re independent in all but name, and then presumably you declare yourself to be independent".

The correct term for this is UDI, or unilateral declaration of independence.

The last country to declare UDI from Britain was white Rhodesia in 1965, which prior to that had home rule and its own parliament. The result of UDI in Rhodesia was a 16-year civil war.

I'm really not sure what point Alex Salmond is trying to make here. But he seems to be missing the point that independence ought to be by consensus if it is not to cause long-lasting divisions.

(In any event, there is actually only two ways for Scotland to become independent. The first way is for Westminster to legislate for it, either with or without a referendum. The second way is for armed rebellion. Presumably only a few Celtofascists want that).

itsallgoing to be fine

But unless you have some power in that parliament (ie voted for by the people) this is a moot point.

It would only be a 'moot point' if Holyrood had been empowered by Westminster to declare independence. Given the uncertainty this would cause to the British economy generally, it won't happen.

Also, although it technically has to be agreed by WM, a referendum could only come about if there was a pro-indy majority at Holyrood, making it undemocratic for WM to refuse.

I assume by "technical" you mean "legal", ie, Holyrood had to be empowered by Westminster to hold the 2014 referendum, and would have to be again. But you're wrong. There's nothing technical about it. The degree of economic uncertainty caused to the UK economy by the last referendum means that after a point it stops being a matter for Scots alone. Democracy does not cease to exist south of the Tweed.

The number if Scottish MPs at WM is never going to be able to force a referendum.

This is serious non-point. Westminster has not stood in the way of a Scottish referendum. It was held on the Scottish government's request, when the Scottish government wanted it.

www.edinburghnews.scotsman.com/news/crime/unsafe-sex-in-saunas-after-police-condom-crackdown-1-3746332 there's the link Jackie. I apologise in advance for any dodgy comments - the EEN attracts a 'special' brand of comment (really kicks off on tram stories) from across the opinion spectrum.

There were umpteen stories last year when the police were doing their searches - extracts of the report had them being all maiden aunt shocked at their astounding discovery that people were buying sex in these places.

Star wars, I cannot agree re the Concert Hall Steps. For a modern cultural space from a disabled person's point of view they are one of the most exclusionary symbols around!

Police Scotland .....my experience - so far not good! Was from when it first came in so maybe (hopefully) things have improved?
First Lost property ...phoned 101, go through their switch board, put through to the lost property office in the local big town -which was on answer phone, no opportunity to leave a message - just a sorry try again later. I tried 4 or 5 times - different times of the day etc - once they even put me through to the message that the lost property office was closed. To be fair I've had that experience before -but it was a local number (inc in my package) and it was relatively easy to keep trying....just dial a number, get answer machine until eventually someone did pick up. With 101 not only does it cost 15p a time but it also took much longer - more of their time and mine ... in the end I went into the station.
The second problem, not life or death but had a big effect on me.
I had a nightmare neighbour - went on for years. Nothing he did individually was particularly serious or (mostly) even illegal, he did damage my property (hard to prove -even though he told me he had), came into my garden etc. In the end it got to the point where I was nervous of going out the house, dreaded coming home, jumped when the doorbell went, scared to hang my washing out etc.
The police spoke to him and he stopped for 6 months or so... and then started again. If anything that was worse - the community officer kept changing, couldn't get a case together - and for me cos just when I started to relax something else happened. After this had happened a couple of times the community officer told me he wouldn't speak to him again. I was to keep a log, report everything, get photographic evidence etc and they should be able to get a case together for harassment (which it was). Then 101 came in -the local station closed. The central switchboard wouldn't log a report unless they sent someone out - to talk to neighbour - which was a waste of the officers time really. And worse it was always different officers, I had to go through the whole story etc...try to give them the full picture. (I actually gave up, couldn't take it anymore and was trying to move when nightmare neighbour died unexpectedly.)

starwarslegoboy
There are no reports about the organisation failing, I'm speaking from personal knowledge

I take your point about the disabled access at Buchanan St. There are disabled lifts/access at the other side on Killermont St.

I used to work there front of house when I was a student and I can tell you that the only way disabled people were getting out of there in an emergency is to chuck them down the stairs and that's not even getting to exit door. So yes, there should be improvements for disabled access. It was a scandal that a building only built in 1990 has so little disabled provision.

But I still believe that the steps are an important civic space and should be preserved. There could be another solution to the access for the disabled

Toad-in-the-hole: "Westminster has not stood in the way of a Scottish referendum. It was held on the Scottish government's request, when the Scottish government wanted it." - exactly. But Sturgeon & Salmon have adopted the "lets keep having a referendum until the Scots get fed up and vote yes to shut us up" position. They will not shut up until either the Scots get bored or the rUK tells them to F off.

Arf. No no voter is going to vote yes to shut a politician up. SNP want independence, but as they say it will only happen if it is the will of the people of Scotland.

Democracy can be such a nuisance sometimes....

Quite, itsall

But Sturgeon & Salmon have adopted the "lets keep having a referendum until the Scots get fed up and vote yes to shut us up" position.

Did they?

That amnesia must be quite frustrating PrimalLass. Imagine not being able to remember anything that's happened unless a handy internet link is provided!

The Scottish Government are very careful not to put down certain things in writing, and they have a real talent for hiding facts and manipulating statistics in official reports (there is an example up thread if you can't recall the example given already). Some of the local authority's requirements, e.g. in relation to planning, never appear in writing. But you still have to comply with them if you want something to happen!

But Sturgeon & Salmon have adopted the "lets keep having a referendum until the Scots get fed up and vote yes to shut us up" position.

I genuinely can't see the problem with this? If Scots vote for a parliament with a majority of pro-indy MSPs with a referendum in their manifesto surely that is their democratic right?

If Scots dont want a referendum, then they won't vote for these parties?

SNP manifesto is basically the Labour manifesto with a different cover. They copied all their policies. Policies they were recently against.

Itsallgoing I genuinely can't see the problem with this? If Scots vote for a parliament with a majority of pro-indy MSPs with a referendum in their manifesto surely that is their democratic right?

Just the uncertainty, the harm to the economy, the removal of focus from other matters, the constant bias in any government activity, the waste of money, the disruption to the country, the division and hatred that it tends to spawn...

I would actually term some of Salmond's recent proposals (and to a lesser extent) Sturgeon's as more of a revolution (or failed revolution) than fully concerning a referendum, since Salmond certainly made several references to a non-referendum process towards independence. And it certainly seems to be what some SNP figures think (I quoted them, further back in the thread).

You've no idea how much nicer it is being away from it all, and living in a stable country with good, effective government. I think its a shame for Scotland that it does tend to drive such a high proportion of Scots away, and I guess that explains some of the problems it now has. I certainly wouldn't want to live there at the moment. I do have a vote though, under UK election rules, and I sort of view Scottish politics as a bit of a car crash or like a horror show at the cinema, you know its awful, but you just feel compelled to watch, glad you're not involved.