Friday, November 13, 2020

All Change At Number 10, Dominic Cummings to leave Downing St at the end of the year thus enabling PM Boris Johnson to 'reset' his Government in the post Brexit era, as 'Global UK' goes online next year, attention must now surely turn towards the next major fight in UK politics which cannot be ignored, for the Conservatives, it is to tear down the 'yellow wall' of the SNP in Scotland, can Scottish leader Douglas Ross and the Scottish Conservatives crack the Holyrood nut in 2021, one thing is certain, they will need the help of Boris Johnson









Dear All

If you were to name some of the key players who helped deliver Brexit in this country, you would put Nigel Farage at the lost of the list, and closely followed by Dominic Cummings. As history will record, these two people were in the right place at the right time and did the UK a great service. Of course their place in history won't have been possible if then PM David Cameron hadn't been so out of touch with the mood of the British people. As the Brexit transition period draws to a close, it seems the winds of change will also be sweeping through Number 10. Lee Cain, an advisor has gone, he was a close ally of Dominic Cummings, and now Cummings himself is said to be departing at the end of the year. Are there other people who will also be leaving, well that story is still to unfold, but these key departures allow PM Boris Johnson the chance to reset his administration according to a senior Conservative. Just as Brexit was important, the next big fight for the Conservatives is to destroy what some people call the 'yellow wall'. The 'yellow wall' is the SNP, but the fight to get rid of them is vastly different than the Brexit fight. The reasons are many but a key difference is the Conservatives have to fight individual elections in Scotland and not a referendum.  

One thing which will not happen despite being touted, and is a road to nowhere is that idea that Boris Johnson can rebuild relations with the SNP Government. Given the way that the SNP operate, Johnson and his advisors must surely know that cooperation is dead. Building relations with them is a myth and handing over of more powers doesn't change the mindset in Scotland one bit. The SNP have been  effectively using 'hate speech' to build up their vote, instead of using the word, 'English' as the cause of all Scotland's ills, they use the word, 'Westminster'. The SNP could and should be called an 'exotic' version of the BNP. Out of one side of their mouth they preach diversity, out the opposite side, they preach hatred, hatred of England, hatred of English people, and hatred of Conservatives. Anyone think that Boris Johnson can turn that around? If so, a better question would be could Boris Johnson tame a rabid dog with a few biscuits and a jolly disposition?

The answer to both questions is No!

Boris cannot turn the SNP into a cooperative body of government working towards mutual ends. The SNP cannot be bought off, they can't be reasoned with, they only 'take', they don't give back or work for the common good. So, there is no benchmark in which active negotiations with them produce positive results unless it is in the SNP's interests. For years, the UK Government of all colours has left the 'Scottish problem' to fester. The lack of 'boots on the ground' has left the SNP as the dominate party in Scotland. The SNP seized of the opportunity of the Westminster expenses scandal and concentrated their power by the shift in the voter base. Rather than upping their game, the opposition parties fell back and became ineffective, they were willing to settle for less as the elections results to the Scottish parliament shows time and time again.

Due to the 'list' system at Holyrood, those elected have a double edge sword against them, if they do nothing chances are they can keep their list seats, if they campaign properly, they might win FPTP seats in which case, a list MSP may be out of a job. In many respects it's a bit like the period at dusk where your eyes can't see properly in the dark or light, this has caused what I would describe as a 'list' mentality in the opposition parties. Outside of parliament, their influence is mainly confined to social media, and this includes their activities pre Covid. While the SNP beavered away in constituencies doing the talking and being seen on the ground, the opposition parties were scarce.

The only way effective campaigning from the opposition parties can happen is if those on the list system can experience the 'fear of loss'. I believe that all MSPs should only be eligible and allowed by law only two terms on the list before they are rotated off it. This would boost campaigning and those who refuse to work, well their party and the public will take care of them.

Isn't time we had better MSPs?

When I say better, I don't mean qualifications, I mean commitment to work harder in their areas. I would also end the practice of people standing in constituencies also standing on the list. The only way to take Scotland back from the SNP is to fight for it. Parties need to win back the voters who felt that the opposite parties didn't speak for them, didn't represent them and, establish the ethos of public service back into politics. At present in Scotland, the Scottish public know that SNP politicians put 'party before country'  at every turn, but as they see no one viable, they keep voting SNP. In return for their votes, the SNP offer election bribes, not because they feel generous or kind or worldly, but because they clicked a few pounds thrown at the masses can buy you the government of Scotland.

Two things set the SNP on the path to power, the Westminster expenses scandal and the Council tax freeze. Over the years, they add other incentives, not a lot but just enough to retain power. Whitehall insiders really don't know Scottish politics, they don't grasp the why of how voters drifted away from them and gave the SNP power. They went into every Scottish election post 2007 with manifestos which were all about them, not the people. 2015 Westminster, Jim Murphy 'offers' Scotland policies that he cannot implement as a centre piece of his election campaign for Scottish Labour. To me nothing explains it better than a post I wrote in Feb 2015, it was aptly titled, 'Fucking it all up'.

http://glasgowunihumanrights.blogspot.com/2015/02/fucking-it-all-up-labour-leader-jim.html   

And that was exactly what Jim Murphy and Kezia Dugdale did to the Scottish Labour campaign which ushered in 56 SNP MPs. My contribution to that Labour campaign was nil, serious illness sidelined me. 12 weeks before the ballot, I knew Scottish Labour's campaign would see them wiped off the face of the political map in Scotland. What surprises me is that Jim Murphy, his campaigning team and Scottish Labour HQ couldn't, and they were supposed to be the 'experts'. The result for Scottish Labour was to hold one single seat, which Ian Murray did in Edinburgh because of the unionist vote in his area, Conservatives and Lib Dems gave him their votes. His support for Hearts also helped him as the Scottish Labour vote crumbled away to dust. This wasn't Scottish Labour's finest hour, it was a major embarrassment which post election, the party didn't learn from.      

As I said above, it is a waste of time to deal with the SNP, if the Conservatives want power in Scotland, they need to 'cut out the middle man'  and go straight to the people. There is no opportunity to change the tone and style of the UK Government regarding Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP by thinking a softer approach works. The UK Government need to be more professional and active in promoting themselves in Scotland. Also they need to shout from the rooftops what they are doing, and even more active in offering and making people aware of every single resource, grants, loans and specialised help which is available to enrich their lives. This is the tack that the UK Government should take as part of its 'Global UK' strategy for Scotland, not just help to businesses, but also directly to people. They need to shut down the SNP and force them to do the 'day job', the UK Government has to go into competition with the SNP, head to head, 365 days a year.

Help people and then tell their stories to all of Scotland!

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon’s argument for another Scottish independence referendum in the near future should be drowned out by the UK. Alister Jack, the Scottish Secretary has said that as far as the Conservative Government was concerned it would be 25 years before a second poll on Scotland’s future should take place. In 25 years from now the pretend parliament will still be a debating chamber for student union politics. By the time that 2039 rolls around, there will be no heavyweights in the SNP. Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon will be probably be gone, or incapable of campaigning. Nicola Sturgeon is the last dodo when she falls and that is looking increasingly likely, the SNP will be fractionalised  by 'woke' activists pushing gender politics and critical race theory to anyone who will listen. The SNP is a party in decline because once they got power, they abused power for selfish ends.

As we wait to find out what 'goodies' are in the publication of The Dunlop Report, on strengthening the Union, along with the review on intergovernmental relations.  If it doesn't grasp the full extent breakdown and thinks 'candy for the weans' solves everything, it will be just another report to gather dust. It doesn't matter to the SNP how well Scotland is treated, they would simply claim any good done for Scotland because the SNP 'fought' for it from Westminster. What is needed is a fight on Scottish soil, some people call it 'parking your tanks on someone's lawn'. Everything according to the SNP is not good enough, and it started long before Brexit and even the UK Internal Market Bill. The SNP calls this Bill a power grab of powers that they never had at Holyrood because they were until recently enacted by the EU.

I see the change at Number 10 as positive, Cummings had a job to do, it is now ending, Brexit is now ending, 'Global UK'  will now have a different set of priorities to do, and it's right that the new era starts with a fresh team for the PM. One part of tackling the 'yellow wall' was hinted at by Michael Gove who said that the UK Government wanted to “reset” relations with the SNP and improve it through “constant repair and renovation”. Everyone except the SNP recognises that devolution is broken in Scotland, and the SNP have overstepped the mark. Part of repair and renovation is to recognise that the UK Government needs to have more accountability how the SNP is spending money. It's time to ensure that UK money earmarked for certain people and projects is actually used on them. If the SNP won't pass on money to business or people, there is a case that this should be done by the Scotland Office. This is a part of the UK Government which I have for years highlighted needs enlarging and with a new remit. A start has been made in that direction in Edinburgh, but it is time to crank up the machine to a level which the SNP cannot compete with, if not all you can expect a shuffling of deck chairs at Holyrood, and some different people waiting in line at the canteen who call themselves MSPs!

Finally, Scottish actor Sean Connery recently passed away at the age of 90, I was a fan of his Bond movies, and some of his later work, which include one of his best performances in The Hunt for Red October. Connery also did a movie with Kevin Costner and Robert De Niro called, The 'Untouchables'. In that movie there is a quote by Costner to De Niro in the court at the end of the movie which is rather  apt for the situation in Scotland.

"Never stop, never stop fighting till the fight is done".

Whose up for a fight?

Yours sincerely

George Laird                                                                                                                        The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University


2 comments:

  1. Great Georgiboy but the tories want the SNP in power to keep Lab out of Westminster

    ReplyDelete