Dear All
One of the ways you can judge the strength of a government is how open and transparent it is to the people.
“If you have nothing to hide, you have nothing to fear” is an old adage.
The SNP Government seems to be falling apart, inward looking and on the back foot now.
The information watchdog Rosemary Agnew has expressed her “disappointment” at the Scottish Government withholding public information.
This is a sign of a government in trouble, ooking jaded and tired.
SNP Ministers have withheld 18 Health and Social Care Directorate internal audit reports from publication.
This is despite “strongly worded advice” from the Information Watchdog to reconsider.
This is bad government and also bad strategy.
The underlining reason will be seen by many as a government in crisis that is rapidly becoming ‘heartless and hopeless’.
Agnew criticised ministers for attempting to adopt a “class-based blanket approach” to non-disclosure, which contradicted her own advice, that of the courts, and even the government’s own internal guidance.
The people have a right to know and many will see secrecy as a tool to cover up incompetence and lack of a work ethic to tackle the real issues facing Scotland.
In an intervention that is highly embarrassing it has been concluded that most of the information was appropriate for release.
Te news of the SNP Government adopting secrecy is great news for Labour and a massive boost, they described the ruling as a “significant intervention” which “should embarrass SNP ministers”.
A spokeswoman for the commissioner said:
“The commissioner’s decision expresses disappointment that the ministers continued to seek to exempt the information in its entirety throughout her investigation, despite a 2007 Court of Session ruling which considered and rejected a similar blanket approach.”
Ministers were given advance notice of the likely outcome of her deliberations if they continued to pursue general arguments against disclosure, and were given “strongly worded advice to reconsider their position”.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said:
“We are aware of the Commissioner’s decision and are complying with her findings.”
Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said:
“This SNP government has an unhealthy addiction to secrecy.”
Withholding information is wrong, it is a clear sign of a government in decline that has lost its way, Alex Salmond talks a lot about a fair, open and transparent society, seems that doesn’t apply to the majority of people, just those in the SNP middle class clique.
Trust is a key factor in independence; the SNP Government is losing the trust of the public.
The clock is ticking down to defeat in the independence referendum, and the work to ensure that defeat is in part the way that Alex Salmond is allowing the Scottish Government to operate.
This government is going to end up the same way as Gordon Brown's, disaster after disaster and all self made to a spectacular implosion.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
I knew that some information had been held back, but not to this scale.
ReplyDeleteThey should release the information. If it is bad, then you say what the problems are, possible causes, and possible solutions to the issues at hand.
Most people will accept that a Government will experience problems. What they will not accept is when ministers appear to be hiding bad news.
Dear Barb
ReplyDeleteThe SNP Government reminds me of the Blair years.
And that end in disaster.
The idea not to tell the truth is a serious mistake, far from being clever it is actually quite stupid.
Independence can only be won on trust, transparency and openness coupled with ideas that the nation can buy into to.
So far Alex Salmond and his middle class clique are offering nothing and subtracting rights.
Independence is over.
No one is going to sign up to Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon's ideas because they know that behind them is a nasty vile and poisonous clique.
C*nts is the right word to describe them.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
George you tell it like it is. Direct and to the point.
ReplyDeleteThats why you are gaining a widespread following.
None of the spin of the so called ministers.
That is why the SNP are faultering they beleive there own hype. A house of cards, which is ready to collapse like the walls oF Jerrico.
Dear Anon
ReplyDeleteWe have an SNP leadership that effectively don't know how to lead, plus too many bad decisions.
They are too busy trying to be the new establishment, I see in Glasgow, cronies of Team Sturgeon rush to grab elected positions having done nothing. They stand for nothing, they don't produce ideas and they don't do any work.
But they are fettered as a force.
You are right the SNP is starting to look like a House of Cards.
Soon, it will all come tumbling down.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University