Fun Day Out For Law Students: Tommy Robinson’s trial at Old Bailey sees hundreds turn up to protest, the court hearing has been adjourned, and there will now be a ‘substantive hearing’ held by an independent hearings panel to see if there is evidence for this case to proceed, is this the establishment using their ‘get out of jail’ free card, because this case is a loser!

Dear All

If you have been following the Tommy Robinson case, you might have found something very interesting from a legal standpoint; can a person who committed no offence be jailed? The answer to this question is yes, but there are other questions which then pop up such as was the hearing that jailed Tommy Robinson fair?

The answer to that question is no!

The Robinson case shines a spotlight on British justice, and whether people accused of contempt of court should get a jury trial. If there had been a jury trial in the Leeds case against Robinson, he would have been freed. The reason is that information already in the public domain isn’t subject to reporting restrictions. This means no matter where a person is, what he is using to communicate such information, this is part of his right to freedom of speech and freedom of expression.

The case against Tommy Robinson is bogus, and no matter how the prosecution try to spice it up, it is a loser, to attempt to have a second bite of the cherry is not in the public interest and a sheer waste of police and the court’s time. If it was me at the Prosecution Service, I would opt to bin this case, because going into court with nothing makes you look a fool.

Today was supposed to be D-Day for Tommy Robinson down at the Old Bailey, since this was a show trial, everyone turned up, including a sizeable number of protesters, a small number of counter protesters and the media.

Everyone was all revved up to go!

Except the judge who looking at this shambles, deciding that a spot of long grass was called for and promptly adjourned the trial, why get upset with the weekend coming up? Plus, why damage your own credibility on the bench trying to clean up someone’s else’s mistake The judge adjourned this case to determine whether there will be a substantive hearing at the Old Bailey into the alleged contempt of court. A substantive hearing is apparently conducted by two lay members and one professional member of the independent hearings panel, plus one legal adviser.

So, judging by what is in the public domain about what happened, I would suggest that independent hearings panel might be the ‘out’ that is needed to get this mess done and dusted as an issue, and dropped like a hot brick. In this case, leave out the aftermath, leave out the protesters, the marches and concentrate on the issue.

In that case, the evidence points to Tommy Robinson having not broken the law.

As to the counter protesters turning up at the Old Bailey, this is just a hate mob, becaue of who Tommy Robinson is and what he represents. They clearly aren’t interested in justice, and this case is an important one to watch, however they appear not to be concerned with the evidence. If being jailed while being innocent can happen to Robinson, it can happen to them.

Clearly that thought never crossed their minds!

One thing that the media has done is to continually call Tommy Robinson as a far right activist, his real name is Stephen Christopher Yaxley-Lennon who cofounded the EDL but left when he said that extremists had joined the group. He is now an independent reporter, personality of sorts and a TV pundit, but he is still to many Tommy Robinson. In politics, you get people allegedly who stand for ‘injustice’, but in this fundamental case, the political parties remained silent. The press remained pro jail, both the printed press and TV, even getting a stooge on to say publicly what happened to Tommy Robinson was okay, it wasn’t as we all know.

Speaking to reporters outside court after the adjourned hearing, Robinson said:

"I believe they want me in prison for Christmas”.

He added:

"The law's supposed to be blind, but it's not supposed to be deaf and dumb. I'm being specifically targeted for who I am. I want closure. I believe they are purposely not giving me closure”.

The bigger picture of today’s hearing I would say is this, the fact this has been sent to an independent hearings panel is in itself an acknowledgment that this case is a loser, and everyone knows it is a loser. What the independent hearings panel is, is a ‘get out of jail free’ card for the Establishment, which they should grasp with both hands.

As much as certain people would like to see Tommy Robinson back in prison, you have to have evidence, this case is devoid of it entirely, and makes a mockery of the justice system. Not liking someone isn’t a reason to conduct a witch hunt against them, deny them rights and certainly not cause to deny them due process, and a fair trial.

Finally, this bit caught my eye; Tommy Robinson is alleged to have committed contempt of court by filming people in a criminal trial and broadcasting footage on social media.

This reads like he ‘filmed in the court’, is this just lazy writing by the press or attempting to portray the establishment version of things?

Also anyone has the right to film in public, this is entirely legal and tested many times, youtube is full of videos on this subject. What the court can do is ban anything being reported 'in it' concerning the case, not something already known.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Political Unaware; French President Emmanuel Macron Puts Globalist Case Against Trump at UN, Hints at Anti-U.S. Trade Deal Boycott, what is unfolding is a stooge acting out to try and be seen as a force and the main power player in Europe, cheered by the elite and held in contempt by his own people, Macron is a man with a limited future

Dear All

When I was on Gordon Brewer’s radio debate on the EU referendum as a guest speaker, one of the things which I touched on was the way the EU uses trade deals which is detrimental to other countries. As part of my pitch, I talked about the trade deal between the EU and Kenya.

https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2015/jan/16/kenya-flower-trade-eu-pressure

Basically, the EU brokers deals with developing countries in a way that they either they sign or their market access to the EU is restricted. What the EU is doing is operating a cartel to suppress prices in their favour, in effect creating unfair deals which poor countries have no option but to sign up to.

It is a form of economic warfare.

Such, tactics can work on small countries, but the problem then unworkable when used against a major world economy such as the US. Donald Trump has problems domestically and internationally, his crime was getting elected and rejecting the globalist agenda. As US President, he is forthright in putting the interests of America and its workers first, something which the Democrats failed to do.

The EU experiment to create a super state is doomed to failure; the cracks in the EU already are beginning to emerge, in Poland, in Hungary and in Italy. The sea change in the mood of the people is transforming politics in Europe in a way which will eventually lead to a break up or re-organisation.  

France’s Emmanuel Macron has used his speech to the United Nations General Assembly to put the globalist case against the pro-sovereignty, strong borders vision outlined by U.S. President Donald Trump. The economy of France isn’t exactly doing well, and when you consider the bill for NATO which the US pays a hefty share in order to protect Europe, you have to ask why Macron is so stupid. The embattled French President is facing tumbling approval ratings at home which are set to grow even worse, as France has been rocked by the migrant crisis.  

French President Emmanuel Macron will fall because the people of France will come to realise that stronger leadership is needed to protect France and its citizens. He already feels the pressure as rising national populist parties in Italy and Central Europe are challenging his efforts to cast himself as the main player in European Union power politics. Angela Merkel’s career is in effect over, she still holds power but what she doesn’t hold is the trust of the German people.

In global forums like the United Nations, however, Macron remains the poster boy for ‘centrism’, he may think that the assembled politicians and bureaucrats giving him a standing ovation makes his political future secure, but it doesn’t. Macron is a stooge; formerly he worked as a Rothschild & Cie financier. He then had a stint serving as economy minister in France’s previous Socialist government before launching his own party. He like Merkel knows that there is a crisis of the very foundations of today’s world; he is one of the players who created it.

Macron did however admit that this is a time where their ‘collective system is falling apart’, but like a Captain wanting to go down with his ship, he said he was committed to “multilateralism”.

In the US, President Trump is turning the US around, employment is at an all time high, but the road to a ‘Make America Great Again’ still has a long road to travel, especially in problem cities like Detriot, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-uyYVlr84Mc

Yes, there is a price for the globalist dream, the rich get rich and the ordinary person, well whether you are in America or Kenya, the end result is always the same.

President Trump has his critics but who can fault this statement:

“We reject the ideology of globalism, and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism.”

The bottom line, US President tells UN General Assembly he will never "surrender sovereignty to an unelected global bureaucracy."

Trump’s speech in contrast emphasise the way illegal migration “exploits vulnerable populations, hurts hardworking citizens, and has produced a vicious cycle of crime, violence, and poverty”.

Again, the evidence is there to see in black and white.

Trump is right to assert that “Only by upholding national borders [and] destroying criminal gangs can we break this cycle and establish a real foundation for prosperity”. If you can’t protect your own people, and are not willing to, then that begs the question why are you in public office?

Poland is one country singled out by Trump as:

“a great people are standing up for their independence, their security, and their sovereignty”.

President Macron like Angela Merkel is a relic of a failed experiment which struggles each day to be relevant in European politics, they hold power now, that power will be taken away from them by the people.

 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-45640308

Finally, right across Europe, new parties have emerged, some condemn them as far right in order to stigmatise them in the eyes of the public, mostly this is fake news, but despite every dirty trick, support grows. People know a strong Europe doesn’t lie by being part of the EU; it lies in each country having sovereignty and being accountable to the people.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Scottish Labour, the Dugdale Mistake: Labour leader Richard Leonard says Labour won't bankroll Kezia Dugdale legal defence again, “The decision has been made and the decision will not change”, delegates at UK Labour conference in Liverpool blocked by party bosses from having a vote to help Kezia Dugdale, a party not unified cannot become a government either at Holyrood or Westminster

Dear All

One of the better Star Trek movies without a doubt is the Wrath of Khan, the classic quote which made movie history was:

“Ah, Kirk, my old friend, do you know the Klingon proverb that tells us 'Revenge is a dish that is best served cold?' It is very cold ...in space”.

Although fiction can sometimes intimate life, the abandonment of Kezia Dugdale by the Labour Party is a rather squalid affair. There are two Labour Parties, the official Labour Party under the control of the Corbyn faction, and the ‘shadow’ Labour Party. ‘Shadow’ Labour are playing the long game, well they really don’t have any choice, the new gatekeepers are loyal to Jeremy Corbyn.

One of the mistakes that Kezia Dugdale did rather early in the leadership of Jeremy Corbyn was to not back him as leader, and as I keep saying, when people do things, there are consequences. While Kezia was leader of Scottish Labour, this wasn’t a problem, when she stepped down and became a rank and file MSP, it was! Kezia should never have gone for the leadership, some people aren't suited to the role, and if you couple it with her wrong choices in backing the wrong causes, disaster soon followed.

From Corbyn to Trump to Brexit, Kezia was wrong as history unfolded, in the case of Trump, she compounded the mistake by going to back Hillary Clinton in her election, which beggars belief when you research the Clintons.

I wasn’t originally planning to do another Kezia post straight after the last one but what I wanted to highlight ‘lack of unity’ in Scottish Labour. In an election, any party which goes into it with a lack of unity has a serious problem, especially if it is known in the public domain.

Kezia Dugdale’s replacement as leader is Richard Leonard, I voted for him over Anas Sarwar, it wasn’t a hard decision, Anas by words out of his own mouth convinced me that he wasn’t the man to lead the Party.

Richard Leonard as Scottish Labour leader has said the Labour Party will not restart its financial support for Kezia Dugdale in her legal fight. What Leonard has effectively said is that his predecessor was on her own, left to sink or swim!

He said:

“The decision has been made and the decision will not change.”

So, is this leadership?

Well, it is a decision, but outside the context of the case, it was a bad decision, Richard Leonard, pro Corbyn has decided to leave behind Kezia Dugdale, pro Blairite, this will not engender unity, especially when you think that 2021 election needs a united party to campaign. As the ‘third party’ in Scotland, it will take a huge effort to get Scottish Labour out of the position that it is in. I would think that the current strategy at Scottish Labour HQ seems to be hoping the SNP keep losing support for them to get results rather than work for it. This isn’t a winning strategy to adopt, it is narrow thinking, 2017 in Glasgow, only one Labour MP elected, the guy I campaigned for incidentally, it was a hard fight with little help, but what it did have was a team unified and with purpose.  

One thing about the 2021 election is that it is a three way race for minority government, unless something dramatic changes between now and then. The Scottish Conservatives remain in a better position politically and financially than the Labour Party, they will do a huge push to go for government.

In the press coverage of this election, you will probably see the stage set as a battle between Nicola Sturgeon and Ruth Davidson, it is doubtful that people will be taking an interest in others.

Richard Leonard had an open opportunity to support Kezia Dugdale although I doubt how that case will end in her favour, but he should have used her predicament as a ‘loss leader’.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loss_leader

Instead by turning his face to the wind, he is seen by many of his MSP colleagues as doing what they see as a politically-motivated “betrayal”.

  

Pro-Corbyn successor, Jennie Formby cancelled the arrangement after legal fees in the case reached almost £100,000 but Richard Leonard should have known and then fought for the big picture. The big picture is that Scottish Labour needs a good result in 2021 in Scotland in order to have a better chance in the 2022 Westminster election where Scottish seats are needed if there is any chance of a Labour Government.

So, for a few quid invested, Richard Leonard might have got a united-ish Scottish Party, a better shot at Holyrood and Westminster, but he didn’t go big picture, he made a massive mistake. You think he might have clicked when delegates at UK Labour conference in Liverpool tried to force a vote on the issue to help Ms Dugdale, but were rebuffed by party bosses.

Finally, in the recent candidate selection for Glasgow South West, I was denied a vote on who is to be the candidate, I wasn’t sent a voting form, and I wasn’t told about the hustings event where you get to question people who are standing as candidates. Although this rather nasty and squalid contest has come to an end, the bad taste it leaves about how the ‘Corbyn’ candidate was selected won’t be forgotten. I wonder if the Labour Party can’t generate loyalty at the bottom or the top of the party then how are they to convince the electorate to see them as a Holyrood or Westminster government in waiting.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Labour Unity Takes a Knock: Labour Party ends funding for Kezia Dugdale's defence of Wings over Scotland defamation case, UK Labour did not tell Kezia Dugdale directly of its decision, but informed her lawyers, I guess the personal touch isn’t their speciality

Dear All

When the UK Labour tossed in a few shekels’ to fund former Scottish leader Kezia Dugdale in the legal action brought against her by Wings Over Scotland clown, Stuart Campbell, I have to say that I was surprised.

I was wondering if the reason was that because she was at the time Labour Leader in Scotland, this was their rationale.

Having stumped up some cash, it now seems that UK Labour has decided to pull the plug on the cash flow and leave Kezia, high and dry. Kezia by any stretch of the imagination couldn’t be described as a Corbyn supporter, right from the get go, she wasn’t what you could be called enthusiastic.

Now the plug has been pulled, this exposes Kezia Dugdale to potentially significant costs if she doesn’t win, plus the additional cost of paying off Stuart Campbell. Campbell lives in Bath and runs a website called Wings Over Scotland which has many idiots using the comments section.

So, it is said that UK Labour has funded her defence to the tune of £100,000, not exactly chump change, this is member’s subs, but apparently the new Gen Sec Jennie Formby allegedly doesn’t to continue the funding.

This saga started when in her Daily Record column, KeziaMs Dugdale said she was “shocked and appalled to see a pro-independence blogger's homophobic tweets”.

   

Campbell vigorously denies homophobia.

Her reaction was said to be caused by a tweet from Campbell where he said David Mundell’s son, the Tory MSP Oliver Mundell, was “the sort of public speaker that makes you wish his dad had embraced his homosexuality sooner".

Things escalated from there in a legal drama.

Many people will have opinions what that tweet means, but the most obvious meaning for those who don’t subscribe to identity politics is that Oliver Mundell is such a poor speaker. If you do subscribe to identity politics, you maybe inclined to read take Dugdale’s view, which I think would be a minority position.

In simple economic terms, the Labour Party has allegedly spent £100,000 and Campbell is asking for £25,000, it doesn’t seem good value for money for the members, or particularly smart.

There are plenty in the Unionist camp that despite Stuart Campbell, but people should learn to tell the difference between an opinion and a fact. In this case, if you go just on the tweet, you can’t say homophobic tweet. It boils down to, it isn’t what you thought he meant, it is all about what he thought he meant.

In other words, you can’t put your words into someone else’s mouth.

Because in a Court of Law; you would get ‘handed your ass’ for that type of thinking.

What I find surprising is that is the shock of Kezia Dugdale and many other Labour MSPs now the UK party has now ended the financial arrangement. This leaves Kezia Dugdale to fend for herself in a case which looks very much a potential loser.

There is an old saying that when in a hole; stop digging; that said, I am a great believer in letting people do their own thing, because it is part of the learning experience for them.

It now looks like the publisher of Ms Dugdale’s column, the Daily Record may now supply Ms Dugdale with legal support for the rest of the case, but that is to be confirmed.

Finally, as Court cases go, this isn’t one of the greatest to watch or take much of an interest in, by it should serve as a warning to elected people such as MSPs about what they say as an opinion and what they say as fact.

I met Kezia Dugdale at the Brexit count in Glasgow, we chatted for a few minutes; it was very pleasant even when I told her I was doing Leave. If I was handing out advice I would say have a real hard think about if you want to continue this case further.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Ultra 3D Earth Tutorial! + Free ORB Plug-in! 100% After Effects!

Dear All

One of the interests I have is in CGI as you see in movies like avatar, in the past, people like myself wouldn't have an opportunity to learn such stuff unless I had gone to work in a movie studio or been able to access a learning institution which ran a course on it.

Now with the advance of the internet, you can learn a variety of things from the comfort of the virtual classroom, in your home, library or even while on a bus!

I found this tutorial in which Andrew Kramer, a leading After Effects and movie cgi genius shows a step by step approach in how the big companies pull off the cgi effects which so many movies rely on. Needless to say you need the right software and computer graphics card to pull off this tutorial but it does show that even the 'little guy' can dream of being a George Lucas.

Anyway, enjoy this tutorial, the plug in is free and the knowledge imparted is top notch.

Finally, Andrew Kramer is a guy who taught himself and has been producing free tutorials and products along with a great range of reasonably priced products which are a must for anyone want to learn After Effects. He is a regular at NAB which is an event that showcases media entertainment technology to industry and the general public, held in Las Vegas. Andrew usually does a presentation for Adobe each year.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

No place for Alex Salmond at the indy table; New pro-independence group is to launch on St Andrew’s Day, as an offshoot of the Scottish Independence Convention, it is a repackaging of a failed experiment, can the SIC grasp the complexity that the SNP and their current and former leadership are toxic vessels?

Dear All

The SNP and the Yes Movement, back in 2012, Yes Scotland was setup in Hope Street Glasgow, it was run by the SNP, staffed by the SNP for the benefit of the SNP plus a few other losers to pad it out and a donkey called Blair Jenkins to run it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yes_Scotland

The choice of location for the HQ wasn’t hard to fathom, Alex Salmond appointed Nicola Sturgeon to be the ‘face of independence’ in order to chase the wummin’s vote. Sturgeon sat on the board, along with Tasmina Ahmed-Shiekh, faded pop star Pat Kane, Colin Fox of the SSP, and Elaine C Smith of Rab C Nesbit fame, a few others also sat on it. Dennis Canavan, the ex Labour MP was chair presumably to give the impression of cross party political support.

Four years ago today, the two year run in campaign came to an end, the SNP lied, deceived and tried to trick their way to independence but when the result came in, the dream of Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon was over. This was a watershed moment, the Nationalists and their allies ran a dirty tricks campaign which included intimidation, not subtle but rather in your face.

People such as me were constantly targeted to be smeared; you might have caught the end of that strategy in the press.

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/cybernat-troll-fined-1500-after-7305775

After a disastrous indy campaign, it wasn’t surprising that the Yes Movement would come to realise that the SNP, in particular Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon were a liability round the neck of the independence cause.

Nicola Sturgeon won’t ever lead Scotland to be an independent country, at present she is making noises about indyref 2 but the reality is that she is playing for time, she needs to get another term as FM in order to get enough Scottish ‘roubles’ put by to have a cushy life, post politics, no Fortune 500 companies beating their way to her door.

Post referendum, Alex Salmond went to Westminster then two years later, he was out on the street; his job opportunities weren’t exactly Fortune 500. Salmond was taken on by the Russians, to do a ‘show’, a cross between Parkinson and Politics, and neither entertaining enough to warrant watching.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17aUonwwfMs

Some people will do anything for money!

The emergence of a new indy group isn’t a surprise, through-out history, people have tried to sell stuff by repackaging it and calling it something else, and with the SNP leadership being so toxic, Scottish Independence Convention (SIC) probably want ‘clear water’ between them and the Nats. As part of their pitch for the new group, they are starting off with a St Andrew’s Day high-profile fundraiser. The National (a newspaper) reported that the new organisation will be spun off from SIC to provide a ‘strategic vision’ for a new Yes campaign, and will offer a fact checking service.

Apparently fact checking services are all the rage now.

Of course, some facts will not be checked, in case it upsets the ‘strategic vision’ for a new Yes campaign!

SIC convenor Elaine C Smith said:

“We don’t know when the next referendum will be but we know we need to start campaigning now. We know we need to be getting on the front foot with the media. We know we need to be harnessing the power of our grassroots organisations. We know we need to be preparing to take the argument to the doorstep and the keyboard”.

If you saw some of the trash that the SNP roped into campaigning, you wouldn’t want some of them anywhere need a front door and certainly not near a keyboard, the bitter cybernats are still fighting their ‘War on Scots’ on platforms like Twitter.

Smith added:

“Four years after the last independence referendum there is still so much energy in the Yes movement but we need to harness it if we are going to successfully listen to and listen to and persuade our fellow Scots that the only safe way forward is to be in charge of our own destiny. The movement has successfully crowd-funded many initiatives since 2014. But this is the chance to take it to the next level. “If we are serious about winning independence then we need to start campaigning on it now. And that means backing this fundraiser when it comes.” 

The lie of Scottish independence is of course that the SNP don’t want Scottish people to be in charge of our own destiny, they want EU membership.

If you think back to 2014 when the SNP converted to being part of NATO, that was just a ruse to get them through the rather tricky problem of defence and regards to spending to secure our borders properly.

In 2013, you may remember this article by me:

http://glasgowunihumanrights.blogspot.com/2013/03/scottish-independence-defence-sec-says.html

At present we have an SNP Government which is a complete shambles under Nicola Sturgeon’s failing leadership, and Alex Salmond having issues to deal with of a serious nature, he denies all wrongdoing.

   

https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/alex-salmond-reported-cops-over-13129661

“Alex Salmond reported to cops over allegations of sexual assault”, doesn’t play well on a doorstep, especially if you want the wummin’s vote.

Finally, if you look at wiki, you see some of the same names as board members of Yes Scotland who are also senior members of the Scottish Independence Convention.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scottish_Independence_Convention

Re-packaging an unworkable and failed idea by people unable to grasp the concept of what it entails is a bit like trying to sell ‘broken lighbulbs’, the market is very limited for public consumption.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Angela Merkel’s Europe is dying; German Politician says privately that ‘Civil War Is Coming to Europe’, the ‘Battle for Europe’ isn’t that far away, the anger isn’t just confined to Germany, it is Europe wide, politicians and media are jointing working to suppress the truth, ‘peace in our time’ isn’t possible now, too many murders, too many rapes!

Dear All

Sometime ago, I started blogging on the concept of ‘civil war’ coming to Europe, since I first started commenting on this, the slide towards ‘war’ continues. As someone who has an interest in WW2, I remember reading then watch the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Neville Chamberlain, who made in his 30 September 1938 speech a prediction of ‘peace in our time’. Actually he was rather wide of the mark as events unfolded. When Neville Chamberlain’s end came, he had sought the help of his friends to stay in power and that help wasn’t forthcoming.

After the disastrous Norway Campaign, it was clear that the mood in the Country and House of Commons had changed.

The Norway Campaign had been a failure.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norwegian_Campaign

Now, in this era, the situation in which ‘civil war’ is possible has been created by politicians in Europe, the ‘war’ when it comes will I suspect much like how resistance cells operated in Nazi occupied Europe. I think it is safe to say that a lot of politicians will be in danger along with migrants. The countless murders, rapes, robberies and other outrages are pushing Europeans to the brink.

http://glasgowunihumanrights.blogspot.com/2016/07/another-step-is-taken-road-to-civil-war.html

It is 2018, this year is drawing to a close, and a German city politician in an off the record briefing has said that:

“Civil war is coming to Europe.”

The person, he told will not be revealing his name, as he says in Germany there are penalties for this kind of frankness. That conversation is just one of a number of conservations among what people are saying in private in Germany today. Angela Merkel’s open invitation to three million immigrants mostly of fighting-age males from Muslim countries has been the trigger. The official German number is 1.5 million; however, as we know now, we have been lied to by politicians and also by our media. It wouldn’t be ‘quelle surprise’ when it all kicks off, when you plant acorns, you aren’t surprised when a tree pops up!

The ‘civil war’ in Europe, will not just be a ‘German’ event, no, this will spread through-out Europe, when I did a Brexit talk at Strathclyde University for a Muslim student group, I was asked the question about Muslims going to work in Europe. I said to the student that at this time, under the current situation, working in Europe is dangerous, and I won’t recommend it for him or indeed anyone from the UK.

Europe has changed, and not for the better, when fpeople live in constant fear there is always a tipping point.

Although the AfD, Alternative für Deutschland, the main party of the resistance to Angela still only polls around 16 percent of the national vote, their day to achieve power is coming. When people thought in Holland that Geert Wilders would be PM, I said no, the reason was simple, not enough damage has been done yet to make people turn away from the mainstream parties. I was right in that Dutch election, their gains are like a detonator going off before the main explosion.

The other parties in Germany, Angela Merkel’s majority Christian Democrats and the SPD and the Greens will make sure that the AfD stays out of power by forming alliances of convenience. So, in effect, they are priming Germany to blow, when you strangle the people’s voice, when you ignore them, the outcome is things are going to get a lot lot worse before they get better. People will then turn to parties like Alternative für Deutschland.

As part of the political and media strategy to suppress support for AfD, their campaign is to dub AfD as the ‘far right’, this tactic of labelling is well known in politics. Angela Merkel’s party and others would really rather bury their heads in the sand about the problems and just pretend it’s not happening. They should have acted long ago, but didn’t every murder, every rape, every robbery in Germany by migrants can be laid at Merkel’s door.

Merkel should be in prison for what she and others have done!

Finally, if you look at how the protest rally in Chemnitz over the murder of a man by two migrants, you can see how the politicians and media work hand in glove. The purpose of the rally was to draw attention to the large number of rapes and murders inflicted by mostly Muslim immigrants on Germans. That protest was utterly misrepresented by the media and the authorities as neo-Nazi revivalism which it was not.

Nothing, I have seen and nothing I have read leads me to believe that the slide to ‘civil war’ can be stopped; the rock is just starting to roll down the mountain.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Tommy Robinson & Ezra Levant EXCLUSIVE interview on his Prison Treatment

Dear All

An interesting video on what happened to Tommy Robinson when he was arrested and jailed.

Clearly, this is worth watching, as it raises serious questions about how the legal system is working.

The basis of a fair society is how people are treated before the law, if this is lost, then society is lost.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

SNP Anger Explodes; former MSP Tommy Sheridan provokes bitter SNP anger by wanting to show the movie, Braveheart at his Hope Over Fear Rally, he says he is 'not frightened' to screen 'cinematic classic', is the real reason of the SNP objection that Mel Gibson in the movie bangs the French bird, and self confessed ‘lonely’ Nicola Sturgeon is having to make do with an old age pensioner husband?

Dear All

Have you seen the price of a cinema ticket these days, it costs a fortune, but if you can’t afford to go to the movies, then Tommy Sheridan is going to be showing the screen 'cinematic classic' Braveheart at his pro-indy rally. 

The idea of showing Braveheart is to get people fired up, in the movie, you can see sex, violence and comedy. The sex bit is tamed down, but the fight scenes are worth watching, after all who doesn’t like a good rammy?

So, Braveheart is being shown in Glasgow’s George Square, there is a Greggs nearby, a couple of sausage rolls and a few cans of soft drink and you are 'good to go', provided the weather is okay.

Might be an idea to bring a fold up seat for comfort!

Hope Over Fear is a vehicle for Tommy Sheridan to attempt to make a political comeback, however, no matter how many movies he shows, no matter how many kids get their face painted, he has blew it in the Scottish political arena.

His fall from grace was epic despite the Russians attempting to give him a ‘leg up’ rather than a ‘leg over’, his time is over.   

The SNP leadership aren’t a fan of Tommy Sheridan going way back, and nothing has changed, they see Sheridan as a threat to them and their narrative.

Already Sturgeon’s little helper SNP Councillor Mhairi Hunter has said:

"People will be put off voting Yes by seeing folk cheering Braveheart and then cheering Tommy Sheridan. That will absolutely put soft Nos off."

Of course people won’t be put off by seeing the state of Govanhill under the management of her ‘stay away’ boss Nicola Sturgeon. There is in my opinion no such thing as ‘soft nos’ because people are pretty wise now to the SNP and what they are all about.

If Tommy Sheridan doesn’t believe me when I say his career is over, then perhaps, Scottish Tory chief whip Maurice Golden might convince him. He said:

“Reasonable supporters of independence will cringe at the prospect of this ridiculous spectacle. It's quite obvious Tommy Sheridan is using this campaign as a way to rehabilitate his image from convicted perjurer and failed politician."

I would say that he is right on part two of his assessment but wrong on part one, a movie is a movie is a movie. Also given that some people are a little dry when it comes to public speaking, pre-entertainment is really a bad thing.

And of course, Tommy Sheridan can film this event and use this as material for his new chat show!

Two Twitter polls attracting over 2000 votes asking about the showing of Braveheart in advance of the Hope Over Fear rally found the majority are so far showing a wave of opinion against it.

Some people don’t like a good movie, and that is what Braveheart is, a movie, not a documentary, it isn’t a movie that you look for deep meaning, much in the same way you won’t find it is a John Wayne ‘cowboys and indians’ movie.

One poll found 72% either said it should not go ahead or answered "are you kidding me?". Another found 42% thought it was a bad idea, 22% a good one and 36% not bothered.

This anti response sounds to me to be disgruntled SNP types who are getting their knickers in a twist because many of their leadership figures are actually English but they don’t like to be reminded of it.

One thing which may disappoint people is that Sheridan has decided to show an edited version of the cinematic classic probably due to time constrains, Braveheart running time is normally 3 hours and 2 mins.

One wonders what scenes will be shown in this watered down version!

Is sex out?

Is battle scene violence out?

Is the scene of the LGBT man thrown out of a high window by the English King played by Patrick McGoohan, (he also had a small part in the Dambusters movie) kept in?

Is the comedy of the Irishman played well by David O’Hara still there?

One thing that Braveheart had was a pretty amazing cast working with Mel Gibson.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Braveheart#Cast

This was also the first noticeable role for Catherine McCormack who played Mel Gibson’s love interest, early on she gets her throat slit, which effectively sets up the movie.

One wonders really what the main objection to this movie by the SNP?

Is it that this is a heterosexual love story?

Is it the Mel Gibson marries a beautiful young woman and Nicola Sturgeon married a guy old enough to be her father who effectively stays out of sight?

Is it because Mel Gibson in the movie bangs the French bird and gets her preggers?

Is it because of the LGBT man thrown out of a high window?

Is it because heterosexual males are shown taken the lead and driving forward a real agenda for change when people like Nicola Sturgeon are farting about with ‘baby boxes’ and ‘tampons’?

Is it because the SNP know that the Yes Movement have come to realise that Nicola Sturgeon isn’t the person capable of leading a new indyref campaign?

Finally, if Nicola Sturgeon and her sidekick Mhairi Hunter don’t like Braveheart then don’t turn up, they won’t be missed, perhaps they can spend the time getting to grips with the Govanhill slum which they allegedly represent, or turn up at the rally and hand out free tampons!

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Crime and Failure, the Labour Party made the wrong choice backing Sadiq Khan for London Mayor, Khan’s popularity crumbles to dust after summer of violence in the Capitalsees Mayor’s ratings hit lowest level, Labour need a replacement for the election 2020, the party cannot go into that election with Khan as candidate, he is a serious liability

Dear All

Here is a stat that you may find rather shocking; London has overtaken New York City for number of murders for the first time in over 200 years.

New York is seen often seen in movies as a violence place but the fact that London leaves this behind now is unacceptable. The London Mayor is Labour's Sadiq Khan, his tenure as Mayor has seen him making bad decisions to the point that his approval rating has slumped to its lowest level on record.

Far from being a decisive Mayor, Khan’s attitude is ‘I can’t do anything about…’ In London as we keep seeing there has been an escalating surging violence in the capital. Certain types of crime such as Moped and acid attacks have effectively led people to have no confidence in him.

How much longer the Labour Party can continue to support him as their candidate for Mayor is debateable, personally, I think after his term ends, he should go. What is needed in London is a strong Mayor who is willing to bring back stop and search; who are willing to campaign for severe measures and sentences to be used on those who do violence in the City.

And have exclusion orders to remove such people from the City of London with severe penalties for those who think they can flout the law. Acid attackers should be given sentences inline with those who carry a weapon such as a gun.

It is a fact of life that you don’t stamp out violent crime by being nice; there is ‘no talking people round’ who are active gang members. The time is coming where action is needed, and the rather weak response from Khan shows that there is no leadership worth following in City Hall.

In April, Andrew Gilligan wrote a hard hitting piece, where he looked at Khan’s promises such as on social housing.

https://www.spectator.co.uk/2018/04/sadiq-khan-is-a-lousy-london-mayor-why-hasnt-anyone-noticed/

Khan promised that his housing policy would ‘rival the NHS with its transformative effect on society’ but the reality apparently according to Gilligan was that City Hall figures failed to realise the promise. In the first year of Khan’s term, London did not start building a single social rented home.

In politics, the folly of hanging onto deadweight is well known in Scotland as the Westminster 2015 and 2017 elections showed rather painfully for the Scottish Labour. You might think Scottish Labour learned their lesson, but you would be wrong, former badly defeated Holyrood MSPs are slotted to be Westminster candidates for some of their seats, probably in the 2022 election.   

Although we have seen the problems of Boris Johnson and his martial problems played out in the press, one thing you can say about Johnson was he started 7,439 homes for social rent in his first year as mayor and 1,687 in the first year of his second term.

Even after the economic crash!

I believe that ideally policing should be kept under the scope of the Mayor but given the surging violence, there maybe a case for policing in the Capital to come under direct responsibility of the Home Secretary.

Something has gone badly wrong, and the state of affairs is such that something has to happen to move forward, at present there is an impasse, the new idea of a ‘violent crime taskforce’, in a City of circa 8 million, 120 officers isn’t even a drop in the bucket.

On thing which did have a WTF moment writing this piece was finding out that while an MP, he once went straight from voting in parliament for post office closures to a public meeting where he protested against post office closures. If such an act of stupidity cannot be seen for what it is then the Labour Party has even bigger problems that it realises.

Philip Cowley, Professor of Politics at Queen Mary and Director of the Mile End Institute said regards to the poll findings on Khan:

“In April 2018, Sadiq Khan was still ahead among those aged 50-64, working class Londoners, those living in outer London and white voters. He’s now behind among all of these groups.”

Cowley added:

“When we first started polling, he was one of the most popular politicians in Britain. Such was his cross-party support, he even had net positive support from Conservative voters. Those days are long gone.”

The professor argues with some cause that Khan can be beaten at the next mayoral election in May 2020, if he faces a strong Tory candidate, given Boris Johnson’s troubles which effectively kills off a leadership bid, could he return as Mayor?

The defining issue of Sadiq Khan’s term as Mayor has been crime; this is not the type of failure that you want hanging round your neck entering an election.

Murders in London have overtaken New York for first time since 1800; that is quite a headline which no one can spin away from. If I was a party manager for the Labour Party, I would say that Khan has to be brought in for a serious talk regarding what he doing with his time. Khan has taken a strong stance on politically correct cultural issues, moving to ban attractive images of women on the Tube, fast food adverts, and campaigning against a clean Brexit and U.S. President Donald J. Trump all the while people are being murdered and robbed all around him.

London needs a tough Mayor on crime and a series of measures that meet the needs of the Capital; it rather seems that Khan isn’t that man.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Airwolf flies through Train yard - A George Laird Production

Dear All

In lieu of a politics post today, here is a part finished cgi project which I am working on, due to having to attend an event, my time was rather used up today.

Comments welcome, basically this is an action scene using a 3d model helicopter.

George

Politics is about change; Tommy Robinson gains the support of Ukip leader Gerard Batten to join the party, although this could be controversial having such a high profile figure with a huge following could work in Ukip’s favour, let people stand or fall by their own merits is a good maxim to adopt

Dear All

In politics, it isn’t unusual to see controversial people be involved and even elected to Parliament. Tommy Robinson has caused a stir in the UK, as a former EDL leader, and as a journalist covering the rise of Pakistani Rape Gangs which prey on young white children.

It takes a certain kind of courage to stand up and be counted in today’s PC society culture where if you speak out you are labelled, depending on the topic. Of course labelling is all about control, when you brand someone a racist, you seek to dismiss their views in an attempt to demonise them and de-platform them from the public discourse.

Labelling is a tactic used mostly by the far left, although others have latched onto that bandwagon just as the media. Here is Tommy Robinson speaking to the Daily Mail while on a private holiday with his wife and children after being released from prison. Reporters aren’t thick, generally they are well educated, in this case, you would think that if you ask a simple question, the reporter would easily answer it. This exchange shows why the public is turning to alt media, turning to people who aren’t afraid to speak out and voice an opinion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYrYfOHTsYg

Tommy Robinson wants to join Ukip, currently under their rules if you have been a member of the BNP, you aren’t welcome, this is much the same in all parties. In the case of Tommy Robinson, there is a case that he should be a special ‘exception’ to Ukip’s rule banning ex members of far-right groups from joining.

Here is Tommy Robinson’s pitch to Ukip members.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agBK56Se-NU

One thing is in his video is that he pleads his case with passion, that said, some members of Ukip will not like to see Tommy Robinson in their party, but I think that the members should decide.

In Scotland, I think back to controversial people such as Tommy Sheridan pre Holyrood, passionate speaker, post Bar-L, his career such as it is, is gone; hence he is shunned by the political classes. I am a big believer in letting people do what they want, say what they want and act how they want; they then have to live with the consequences of their decisions.

Sheridan made his bed, now he lies in it, however due to the Russians, it is abit more comfy these days!

I think Ukip members will give Tommy Robinson a chance, of course some will leave the party but I think many people in Britain would like to see passion in their politics again, and people pointing out what they know to be wrong. In support of his application; Tommy Robinson has impressed Ukip leader Gerard Batten, he backs controversial moves to let Tommy Robinson join the party.

As people saw when Tommy Robinson was imprisoned, he has a huge support, not just among white people; it would be a mistake to just writing him off as appealing to those, he has support from all shades of the community. Here is an interview that Tommy Robinson did with Navtaij Singh Sangha which may interest you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A36aEhPoj3Q

One thing that will probably happen is that the mainstream political parties will seek to attack Ukip if Tommy Robinson is made a member, that is ‘part of the game’, appear whiter than white, holier than thou but they aren’t.

https://www.channel4.com/news/out-of-order-politicians-who-ended-up-behind-bars

And this blog post may open your eyes even further.

https://timetostartcaring.com/a-list-of-members-of-parliament-convicted-of-sex-offences/

Finally, if Tommy Robinson is prepared to obey the rules of Ukip, if he acts in a proper manner that one expects from a member or activist, he could gain Ukip quite a lot of publicity and votes. He is a decent speaker; he has a high public profile, and quite a following. His recent spell in prison was an injustice, not the finest hour for the judge who sentenced him. In politics parties you meet allsorts of individuals, is there room in British politics for a Tommy Robinson, yes there is, even although he has “baggage”.

Could I see Tommy Robinson in Westminster as an MP?

Yes.

I could see this happening, parties rise and fall with the public and if Tommy Robinson stood as a candidate for Westminster, I suspect he would be flooded with offers of help. I don’t think some of our currently elected MPs and MSPs could match that community involvement that would be given to him.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University  

All the Kremlin’s Men: As ex SNP leader Alex Salmond’s fate hangs in the balance over allegations of sexual assault, Russian propaganda outlet signs up disgraced former MSP and ex Bar-L prisoner Tommy Sheridan for new chat show, is Sheridan on standby to be parachuted into RT if Salmond falls?

Dear All

In fitba, a player dribbles down the pitch with a ball towards the opposition goal, then out of the blue, he is tackled badly and falls to the ground, the trainer comes on with the ‘magic wet sponge’ but it can’t help this time! Enter the substitute, who warms up on the sidelines in his tracksuit before stepping onto the pitch, once his boots are checked by the ref.

As the fate of former SNP leader Alex Salmond is in doubt following allegations of sexual assault, it seems that the Kremlin could have a new star in the wings, although playing in another division.  

Convicted perjurer Tommy Sheridan has signed up for a new chat show on a Russian propaganda outlet. As a disgraced politician and former MSP, he hopes to offer “an informed opinion, inspire reactions and provoke debate”. As well as being on Sputnik UK, he will also do a bit of scribbling as he pens his thoughts to paper. In football, anything could happen in the 90 minutes; Tommy Sheridan was jailed in 2011 after lying during his successful defamation case against the News of the World. A spell in Barlinnie Prison could be seen as extend injury time.

Tommy will be lead a series of "exclusive and hard hitting video  broadcasts"  featuring a different guest each week, however it is doubtful that he has managed to secure an exclusive from the two Russian military intelligence offers said to be involved in the Skripal case.

https://edition.cnn.com/2018/09/05/uk/uk-russians-novichok-intl/index.html

In what may surprise many in the UK political bubble, Sheridan said to Sputnik readers by saying:

“Unlike many other politicians and commentators, my principle are not negotiable. For me integrity is priceless and although many of us may be in the gutter I will always, in the spirit of Oscar Wilde, be looking up for the stars.”

Speaking of the gutter, if you trot along Paisley Road West, you can see the ‘shack’ that Tommy Sheridan is living in, hardly a Russian Gulag in Siberia, complete with a Red Gate naturally.  

Elsewhere in his intro piece, he apparently wrote:

“I have often fallen foul of the law and been incarcerated for my activities but I believe I have always remained true to my socialist principles and tried to speak truth to power no matter the odds.”

Every time he was jailed, I think many would speculate and say ‘done bang to rights’, in politics it isn’t unusual to spin a line but somewhere people have to draw the line before rewriting history, just for the sake of credibility.

His first column for Sputnik reflected on his upbringing in Glasgow’s Pollok, I was brought up there as well, 46 years in the constituency in the ‘good old days’ where people would break into temp accommodation and then knock on your door asking if you would be interested in a three piece suite…… brand new, one owner.

In my old street of Kempsthorn Crescent, it appeared in the Evening Times many years ago as the street that was refused credit. The refusal was based on people going to stores buying fancy TVs and then ‘bumping their credit’. Although there was a lot of comedy, there was also a lot of sadness, lots of unemployment, violence and drugs, not the greatest place to be a stranger or a victim.  That said a few people managed to become footballers and one who was a classmate John Reid did music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7-BnB3xxUoA

I quite Reidy, he was a good footballer and musician, a very genuine person.

Back to Tommy, I first met Sheridan down at the Pollok Centre decades ago, he and few like minded individuals were campaigning; he asked me why I was wearing a leather jacket on such a hot day. I explained this is Pollok, better my jacket was slashed than me, I was always practical and forward thinking in my youth.

Anyway Sputnik UK is seen by Intelligence officials as “a platform for Kremlin messaging”, which is par for the course but if you know anything about politics, you will know that all media is seen as being tainted.

The pressure is on Alex Salmond to give up his RT show, but as Salmond loves the attention, I doubt he will go voluntary, and less we forget, he gets a lot of roubles for his trouble. In the event that Salmond and RT part waves if Salmond’s problems mushroom, who will be Russia next choice for an RT slot?

Could it be the substitute…… Tommy Sheridan, with a show called The Tommy Sheridan Show?

That said, I am feeling rather left out, I am sure there is a market for The George Laird Show, even it is just on Youtube!

Tommy Sheridan said:

"I will be interviewing a number of fascinating guests who will offer a fresh perspective often denied by the main stream media. This is a great opportunity to tell the untold and I can’t wait to get started. I am also looking forward to producing my own weekly column with Sputnik which will allow me to speak my mind with no pre-set agenda or censorship.”

Why is it that people feel compelled to say that they will be allowed to speak their mind with no pre-set agenda or censorship? 

If Alex Salmond gets the ‘red card’ from RT, will Tasmina Ahmed Shiekh seek a transfer to second division Sputnik UK? Football is a game of two halves, Tommy Sheridan played his first half as an Cllr and MSP, his second half was a prisoner in the nick in Glasgow, now he is playing ‘injury time’ on Sputnik UK. The chances of getting to the ‘Cup Final’ of regaining the public trust look rather slim to me.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Can’t Grasp The New Reality; SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon's political fightback completely stalls as she unveils weak and ineffectual Programme for Government, the allegations surrounding Alex Salmond hang over the party like a dark cloud, even the headline-chasing, knee-jerk short-termism strategy can’t pull the SNP out of the 'Salmond problem'

Dear All

In the wake of the allegations against Alex Salmond which have hit the public domain, the SNP and more importantly Nicola Sturgeon were desperately in need of a good news story to dominate the press.

Nicola Sturgeon tried and failed to regain the political initiative by what even by SNP low standards is a miserably low ambition series of 12 bills in her annual legislative plan. What is incredible that the ‘weak as dishwater’ bills have been hailed only by her and the Nats as ‘really radical’ and as ‘bold steps’ to making Scotland a better nation.

There comes a time when a government has run out of steam; that time has come for Nicola Sturgeon who since taking office as First Minister has only managed a downward spiral of decline.

The nonsense that her bills represent bold steps and will boost the economy seems like most SBNP predications wide of the mark. After destroying the education system through stupidity coupled with outright neglect, doesn’t Scotland deserve a breather from SNP ‘help’?

In a spot of ‘tinkering’ with resources, Nicola Sturgeon also plans to venture in health and justice, areas which also stand as a testimony to SNP incompetence, the removal of ministers being the acid test of how badly they are performing in office. Scotland isn’t moving forward, and the politicians and the public are focused on the issue of sexual misconduct claims against Alex Salmond.

The SNP boat sinking, no competent captain waiting in the wings to be promoted, and ‘everyone hates Nicola’ fan club in the SNP wanting Salmond’s return, and Nicola out, this soap has attracted viewers.

The opposition parties have stated that the dire official statistics just released show Sturgeon’s 11-year-old administration was now “well past its sell-by date”. The only comfort for Sturgeon is that the SNP decline is slow as nationalists don’t have another option other than the SNP, the Scottish Greens aren’t worthy of a vote.

In what must be a personal blow to Nicola Sturgeon as First Minster, Scottish household survey for 2017 reported satisfaction with local health services, schools and public transport was at its lowest level since the SNP took office in 2007. In a previous post I blogged the end of Nicola Sturgeon.

http://glasgowunihumanrights.blogspot.com/2018/08/the-end-of-nicola-sturgeon-snp-leader.html

“satisfaction with local health services, schools and public transport was at its lowest level since the SNP took office in 2007”, gollly, it is time for an epic, George Laird right again!

When you look at the nuts and bolts of the problems in Scotland, it is clear that there needs to be a reformed Scottish Government, if you think back years, I commented on the need for deputy ministers in key government departments. The SNP wanted to show a ‘handful of people’ could run the government, they did…….. badly!

What is needed is more people to work on and address more problems, it isn’t rocket science which is why I blogged years ago on the need for Scottish Government reform to create the posts of deputy ministers in key government departments to solve more problems. The SNP were keen to show that they could run government with a handful of people, they did…… badly.

Hardly a success, hardly radical, hardly progressive……. doing things badly and slow.

Sturgeon insisted this year’s PfG would build on and advance the radical measures of last year, can you remember anything of last year’s programme; anything jump out at you?

Last year was a bad year, the year before that was a bad year, Scots are still waiting for a ‘good year’!

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-45412641

Look at this crap, no housing reform (landlords) bill, no real ground breaking legislation, not even a sniff of a Nye Bevan style bill.

Nicola Sturgeon said her Government had a “clear vision of the kind of country we want to be”, the problem is the rest of Scotland don’t want it, they want better, and better cannot be delivered by the SNP, and certainly not by a party in terminal decline who need to realise they are part of the problem, and none of the solution.

Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson said:

“We are halfway through this parliament and have fewer than 1,000 days to the next Scottish election. If the First Minister wants to make meaningful change, she needs to get a move on. She needs to stop the headline-chasing, knee-jerk short-termism that is the hallmark of her Government. Ms Sturgeon is no longer new in post and is running out of time.”

Scottish LibDem leader Willie Rennie said:

“This Government is showing all the signs of being at the end. I suppose every government runs its natural course. Based on this programme, this Government’s sell-by date is well past.”

One of the highlights of the parliament was the ‘dig’ by Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard who told Sturgeon that she had Labour’s full support in investigating “all allegations of sexual harassment” and in providing care and support to women in all such cases. This prompted some anger by SNP MSPs since revelations against Salmond have become so toxic, and will hang round the neck of the SNP like an Albatross.

Finally, I have said it before and I will say it again, 2021 is the most important election in the history of Holyrood. It could spell the end of the SNP, it could result in a totally hung parliament, it could see Nicola Sturgeon sent packing even, although at present the likelihood is that we are looking at an SNP minority. Even with Green help they might not make it to a majority needed to pass a bill. The rot has set in, the cure in such cases is a change of leader, but given there isn’t quality in the SNP, and Salmond’s reputation is so damaged, the stage is set for a battle royale both inside and outside the party.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University