Scottish independence: Scottish Government's economic policies under fire ahead of indy blueprint publication, an early salvo is lobbed in Alex Salmond’s direction as he bases Scotland’s future on his assumptions, ‘hugs and kisses’ event for Nats this Tuesday

Dear All

Tuesday sees the launch of the White Paper by the SNP.

Rather than having a gravitas event at the Scottish Parliament and launch it there, the SNP have decided to launch in Glasgow.

Scotland’s unpopular Deputy First Minster Nicola Sturgeon lives in Glasgow, and the SNP front called Yes Scotland is also based here.

One wonders if this event is to cheer and bolster their possible flagging moral or it could be that the SNP want two bites at publicity.

Probably the latter!

Like the disastrous launch at the ‘Declaration of Cineworld’, we appear to be getting cheap and cheerful, low brow pap.

Where should the paper have been launched?  

I would say the Scottish Parliament, the seat of Government; this is another foot shooting exercise by the SNP leadership.

Perhaps the SNP have organized bussing in a few supporters to this event as previously not a lot of people have turned up to witness ‘historic’ events by Salmond and Sturgeon.  

The White paper is expected to focus on Alex Salmond's economic policies.

Some of those policies are dependent on English approval such as currency union.

And Westminster has ruled that out.

Is independence about getting a few extra quid in your pocket?

Does it come down to a bit of a bribe?

No and no!

You cannot buy independence, you never could, it is a special event which needed a crafted narrative which all links up, not what has happened a disjointed series of events which make no sense.

What Alex Salmond is selling is a pipedream, it is a house of sand and easily taken apart.   

Labour and the Tories are attacked the First Minister on the key issue of his economic policies because he is weak there, in fact he is pretty much weak in most of the reserved issues, and we get back to the issue of trust, Scots, working class Scots don’t trust Alex Salmond.

Labour leader Johann Lamont and Conservative Ruth Davidson warn an independent Scotland would need to raise taxes, cut spending, or both, to create a sustainable economy.

The Scottish Independence bid should never have taken place in this Parliament, this term was fixing the system; this parliament was setting up the country for the bid; this term was about groundwork.

Fail, fail and fail.

Falling oil revenues and an ageing population would create tougher economic choices, however that also comes with the SNP wanting mass immigration that effective would leave many young Scots without a future.

Budgets and services are under pressure, it will get worse with mass immigration, the concept failed under Labour and it will fail under the SNP.

Salmond’s take on the IFS report is that "Scotland more than pays its way in the United Kingdom".

Johann Lamont said:

"If the First Minister is to be believed we won't just be a new country after independence, he will invent a new arithmetic. While in every other country in the world the choice is between tax rises or cuts in spending, Alex Salmond will have you believe we are the only country, the only country, where the future is this - how big a tax cut can you give to big business and how much more can we spend on good things."

She added:

"Isn't it the case that at the very heart of next week's white paper, and at the heart of everyone this Government does, is this belief - if the First Minister and his colleagues say something confidently and often enough, no matter how wrong it is, the people of Scotland will be daft enough to believe it."

You can’t have Nrdic welfare without Nordic taxes.

Tory leader Ruth Davidson says the First Minister is becoming increasingly isolated in his economic argument for independence.

She added:

"All alone is the First Minister, sticking his fingers in his ears, making fag-packet promises and with an economic plan with more holes in it than Rab C Nesbitt's string vest."

Interesting Alex Salmond said:

"I say let's get control of these economic levers, let's increase productivity, increase our exports, invest in our economy, let's grow the Scottish economy and move forward to that better future."

He added: "This party, this Government, has ambition for this country. We think we can invest in the future, grow our economy and give all our people a decent future."

So, everything comes down to “we think”.

Do you the difference between fact and assumption?

Assumption is rated as the mother of all fuck ups!

Expect the ‘fake excitement’ on Tuesday to be on show, expect the SNP to be animated, lots of hugs and kisses, maybe the odd blow job in the toilets to celebrate the ‘we are on our way now’ attitude.

Sadly like much of this Scottish independence campaign the SNP and their cohorts still haven’t made it out of the bathroom.

The politics of shite don’t sell.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University