The Eternal Flame of Burning in Hell; UK Government Minister Michael Gove delivers a master class in letter writing to failed SNP Minister Mike Russell over Scottish Nationalist 'misleading' and 'invented' Westminster claims, Gove asking to see Russell's Brexit 'homework' sends Russell into a Nationalist trope on Westminster 'attacking of the people of Scotland', Gove is only asking where Russell's Brexit 'homework' is, not circa £600,000 of indyref 2 donations which are supposed to be sitting and 'ring fenced' in the SNP accounts

Dear All 

One thing is certain at the next Holyrood election 2021, assuming there is one, is that Scotland will see the end of SNP MSP Mike Russell. His claim to fame will be the damage he done to Scottish education as the former Education Minister. In his later years, post education, the anchor round Scotland's neck was moved by SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon to head up the SNP Government response to Brexit. Russell has been utterly useless, Sturgeon's administration has been in denial ever since they lose the EU referendum in 2016. The SNP had hoped post defeat that maybe some kind of reversal of Brexit was possible, as their 'remainer' sickness took hold, they then hoped the 'pill' of a bad deal would be a cure, their cure didn't work. Rather than being helpful and shaping the new political dynamic in the UK, they have been in bed with the EU working against us. This type of treachery of course hasn't gone un-noticed by the public and Westminster as the SNP have been quite open about it.

The SNP motto seems to be 'proud to be a traitor'! 

The Nats had hoped to 'win' Scottish independence and then during the transition out of the UK hoped to circumvent the rules of EU membership by staying in. Legally their position was nonsense because the EU rules don't allow this, and their example of East Germany joining West Germany was entirely wrong-headed. In the case of Germany, a member, if another country joins them to former a large German nation, it's a matter firstly of German internal politics, in the case of the SNP, they wanted to legally take a membership which they never had with the EU. If the SNP had won in 2014, they would have left the UK and automatically left the EU. The SNP used the 'transfer' membership narrative to deceive people, their own supporters and the wider public who don't follow politics. Now that the UK has left, now that the transition is coming to an end, the scale of SNP un-prepared is laid bare. Like the kid who dodge school, the SNP is well behind the rest of the UK class, and now crying foul. 

Recently the UK Government has decided to tackle the SNP's narrative which for the most part they have been allowed to get away with un-challenged. For years the UK allowed Nicola Sturgeon to spin her lies and nonsense, but now things are changing. The UK Government is to setup a unit to speak up for Scotland against the Nationalist lies, deceit and fabrication, you could say this unit should have been rocking since 2012, but the penny has finally dropped. UK Minister Michael Gove has started the ball rolling by writing to the Scottish Government's constitution minister after Russell complained of poor communication over Brexit. In his letter the Cabinet Office minister told Mike Russell MSP he was "sorry" he felt that the cooperation between the two governments had "not been all that it might be". This is called 'setting the stage', what comes next was the slap down as Gove outlined a series of meetings attended by Scottish Government officials in the past year. These meetings were on the preparations needed for the end of the transition period. Mike Russell like Nicola Sturgeon have been the kids who dodged school, then complain that it wasn't open as their rationale for non-attendance. Mike Russell, Scottish Government Constitution Secretary, said last week that Westminster's engagement with Holyrood over Brexit had been "sporadic and dysfunctional". 

School was open! 

Gove's letter stated that there had been five meetings of the Joint Ministerial Committee on EU Negotiations (JMC EN) this year, and plans for another meeting this week. Gove added Nicola Sturgeon had been invited to attend several meetings, but it is understood she had not taken up the offer in person. So, the question is why, why did Nicola Sturgeon not attend, my take on her 'no show' is simple, Sturgeon thinks she is the leader of Scotland, when she is in fact a political figure in a devolved administration. She only gets to control bits of Scottish life. To give the appearance she is more than a minor official in the UK administration, she puts on a show, but the reality is that she is answerable to the Prime Minister Boris Johnson. To make her seem important, she doesn't want to be seen attending meetings with UK civil servants and junior ministers. One of the things which should never have been allowed was a UK Prime Minister walking into Bute House as a 'guest', this gave the wrong impression that SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon was the de facto leader of Scotland and that a UK Prime Minister was a 'visiting' head of state from another country. I think the UK establishment has now sussed this which is why I think there will be no more 'Bute House' photo ops on the stairs outside it for 'President' Sturgeon. 

Nicola Sturgeon is a minor official in the UK administration. 

A reason for non attendance at Brexit meetings, is Sturgeon wouldn't attend unless Boris is there. She doesn't like the idea she is part of the administrative pack, Sturgeon wants to be the person who merely 'signs off' things which the officials draw up. Basically, everyone else has to draw the water, she just drinks it. What is amusing about Gove's letter is when he in his role as the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster urged Holyrood ministers to share their progress on preparations for January 1, 2021. He is basically asking to see Sturgeon and Russell's 'homework' to grade it, which is why I think he will have a bit of a wait on his hands. 

Gove wrote: 

"I am sorry if you feel that the UK Government’s contact with you and others in the devolved administrations has not been all that it might be. I hope I can lay your mind at rest. I have been, and remain, very keen to secure the best possible engagement between us... Turning to engagement more broadly, since the start of October, the First Minister of Scotland has been invited to regular meetings of the XO [Exit Operations] Cabinet Committee, dealing with preparations and operational readiness for the end of the transition period. I would like to put on record my thanks to your colleagues and officials for the valuable contributions they made to discussions in three Committee sessions so far this month." 

To break that down, he is highlighting the non appearance of Nicola Sturgeon, and praising her colleagues and officials for their valuable contributions, which she can't claim credit for. Also in his letter, Gove focused on the Scottish Government's progress citing , the UK Government had yet to receive crucial data or information about how Holyrood ministers are preparing for the end of the transition period. Gove added UK officials had "not been invited to any operational readiness meetings of the Scottish Government". This is the same as the 'schools inspectors' paying a visit which will not go down well with the SNP, bad enough to be incompetent, even worse to have it confirmed in writing by UK officials. 

Gove also added: 

" I appreciate that is your decision but we still lack access to crucial data and have not had papers or other important planning materials shared with us. This includes information on how the funding the Scottish Government received to support readiness has been spent; how many Environmental Health Officers are in place in Local Authorities; and how you are ensuring businesses are aware and taking action to prepare for change." 

Watch out for more 'TV ads' on various media platforms as an ass covering exercise to show the UK Government, obviously educationally lite. 'Are you prepared for Brexit in Scotland...' with a link to a website probably with '.Scot' in the address. 

To highlight the non attendance of Nicola Sturgeon, a senior UK government source told The Herald that Nicola Sturgeon had not attended any of the Exit Operations committees personally, and added that the idea the UK Government had not been engaging with Holyrood was a "invented grievance". What is clear is that the UK see Nicola Sturgeon in her present role as having a limited shelf life or shelf life dogged by controversy till the end of her tenure as FM. They might as well join the party and heap some more coal on the fire and stoke it by letting some 'air' into it. 

The UK Source said: 

"Michael Russell’s claim that the UK Government is not engaging closely with the Scottish Government is just another invented grievance. Instead of playing political games what we actually need from the Scottish Government is clarity on their preparations for the end of the Transition Period." 

In reply to being found wanting, SNP Minister Mike Russell trotted out what is now a staple of his government's excuses were doing "all we can" to mitigate the "appalling situation the UK Government has created". What does 'all we can' mean? All we can means is merely a sound bite because Russell has been cornered, he has been boxed in, he certainly can't explain away Sturgeon's behaviour because the explanation would show how vain she is. He can't show their 'work' because it will be of such poor quality and not on a par with what is produced down south, and he can't simply remain dumb of what the SNP plan actually is. In Russell's fight back, he said: 

"The extraordinary decision of Boris Johnson and Michael Gove to impose a disastrous hard Brexit in the middle of a global pandemic and economic recession shows  they have total contempt for people in Scotland. The job losses and misery their reckless extreme Brexit will cause will sadly not be ‘invented’ but will be all too real for people in just two months’ time.

We are doing all we can to protect Scotland from an appalling situation the UK Government has created but we, the Scottish Parliament and the people of Scotland have all been ignored –  which is one reason there is now a clear majority for independence." 

So, after reading this reply, you can clearly see that SNP Minister Mike Russell cannot defend his or the wider SNP Government's position. His response should have been 'facts and figures', it should have been 'places, dates and times of work', it should have highlighted who has been brought to 'tune up' the finished design. He should have said, 'we are ready to go', but instead we got a feeble attack on Boris Johnson and Michael Gove, a Nationalist trope on the 'attacking of the people of Scotland', and nonsense of Sturgeon will protect Scotland doing all she can. What is 'all she can' translated mean, it means nothing, Sturgeon will do nothing because she doesn't know what she should do. In the end, I suppose the route that will be taken is Scottish officials 'borrowing' the homework of the UK Government and sex it up by making it appear 'Scottish'. 

Finally, the end of the transition period is the closing of the window on Nicola Sturgeon's dream of Scottish independence, EU membership and the death of the narrative 'Scotland in Europe'. Scotland is going to be out of Europe, so any independence bid won't have a fall back of the European Central Bank to bail the country out. Recently I read a huge funny story about money, which I invite you to read too. It is a heart-warming tale of Nationalists entitled: 

'You've Been Robbed' but maybe the title should have been, 'Where's the Fucking Money?' 

It seems a point has been raised that whole lot of money raised to fight indyref 2 generated by ordinary people's donations allegedly doesn't appear in the balance sheet of the SNP's official accounts which were said to be 'ring fenced' by the party leadership. 

https://www.thenational.scot/news/15344728.snp-all-the-money-raised-on-scotref-website-is-ringfenced-to-fight-a-future-independence-referendum/

Those SNP accounts have been submitted to the Electoral Commission to be checked. According to Wings over Scotland, he has for some considerable time has been asking where indyref 2 donation money is, he wrote; 

"As Wings has been warning for most of this year, something in the region of £700,000 in supposedly “ring-fenced” money raised by two crowd funding campaigns has indeed vanished into the maw of the party machine, leaving just under £97,000 in the bank". 

https://wingsoverscotland.com/youve-been-robbed/#comments 

The George Laird view is people's donations should be respected and.... oh dear, more light shining on Nicola Sturgeon's CEO Husband Peter Murrell and of course big questions!

Yours sincerely

George Laird                                                                                                                                The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University