Friday 4 February 2005

Frank Field has a Scottish clone!

It's about time that this became a hot political issue:
MORE than two-thirds of Scots deemed too sick to work in the last year have come straight off the jobless register - undermining Labour’s claims to have stopped using the sick list to conceal unemployment.
That's not news to everyone. Some people already understand that:
the welfare system is already bankrolling social failure in inner-city constituencies.
Probably from Civitas, wouldn't you think?

And how about this:

"Every problem the Scottish Executive and local authorities deal with - education, crime, antisocial behaviour - can be traced to the underclass living in Scotland today,"
I'd guess the Social Affairs Unit for that one.

And could this be the Scottish Conservative Party speaking up for the poor old taxpayer:

the price of Westminster’s failure to tackle the problem will also be paid by council tax payers who must foot the bill for social services. This problem is especially acute in Glasgow where council tax is the highest in Britain.
No, that's a bit too radical for our local Tories I'm afraid.

The shocking truth is that those three quotes reflect the thinking of a Scottish Labour MP, who was, unsurprisingly, "speaking on condition of anonymity". Please, whoever you are, throw away the cloak of anonymity and start off a real debate about Scotland's future.

1 comment:

David Farrer said...

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24 February 2007, 20:26:34 GMT
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David Malloch
Devolution was created with the intention of consolidating the power of a narrow-minded elite. As far as Labour are concerned its 'mission accomplished', don't expect them to get too excited over one of their own recognising reality even under a cloak of anonymity.

6 February 2005, 16:44:30 GMT
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Stuart Dickson
Brian, 
 
6 Scottish parliamentary parties: 
 
1. Labour 29% (social democrats, centre-left, pro-Union with England) 
2. SNP 21% (social democrats, centre-left, pro-Scottish independence) 
3. Conservative & Unionist 15% (centre-right, pro-Union with England) 
4. Liberal Democrats 12%(social democrats, centre-left, pro-Union with England) 
5. Greens 7% (left, pro-Scottish independence) 
6. SSP 7% (far left, pro-Scottish independence)

5 February 2005, 15:02:12 GMT
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dearieme
In Scotland, the issue was easy. Either rub along with our English friends/neighbours/cousins, or be ruled by the Glasgow Labour Party. 
 
Astonishingly, people voted for the latter. Not for independence,nor federation, nor reform: for rule by the Scottish corrupt-foolish-and ignorant-loutish party, the Scottish until-five-minutes-ago-we-were-largely-fellow-travellers Party, the oh-dear-God-it-doesn't-really-bear-thinking-about Party, the that-the-country-of-Hume-and-Smith-should come-to-this Party. Easy, really.

5 February 2005, 11:38:11 GMT
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Brian Blazevic
I'm a novice to Scottish and UK politics. Could you post something on the basics, perhaps an overview of the major parties and what they stand for? 
 
Brian 
San Diego 
USA

5 February 2005, 05:26:58 GMT
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dearieme
Who was it who originally pointed out that, since markets work, if you pay for unemployment, you get unemployment; if you pay for disability, you get disability....?

4 February 2005, 17:17:26 GMT
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Stuart Dickson
Sounds a bit like Wendy Alexander MSP.

4 February 2005, 13:22:34 GMT