A trip to the shops

As is often the case, the healthy side of my lunch is rarely enough to satisfy my hunger (and my sweet teeth) so I used the last 10 minutes to venture out for 'a wee goody' with some Mrs Tilly tablet fitting the bill just perfectly.

At my work we have a Tesco and of course at lunchtime there is a very long queue. As I inched closer to the tills (and freedom) I watched with interest that every staff member said "Would you like a bag?" regardless of what any one person was buying. This was followed with "Do you have a clubcard?" and, of course, these two were sandwiched between "Good Morning" and "Have a good day".

So even before I knew who was serving me I knew exactly what they were going to say. And of course, those same 4 lines; nothing more, nothing less, came my way.

A couple of interesting (to me anyway) points to note here:

(1) Most people say yes if you offer them something so those who don't need a bag will generally end up taking their bottle of water (or whatever) out the plastic bag within seconds of leaving the shop. And so, the environmentally unfriendly poly bag serves only to unhelpfully warm the water for about ten seconds. Pretty pointless really. Why not just leave people to ask for the bag if there's a chance they dont' need one?

(2) Tesco workers are clearly constrained by a brutal regime at the top of Tesco. These stock phrases their workers use are no doubt drummed into them at 'Tesco Camp' upon joining the evil global empire. I bought a small bar of tablet which I clearly was going to take back to my desk if I didn't snaffle the whole lot on the way (turned out it was half and half). But still, this Tesco footsoldier had no choice but to pointlessly ask if I wanted a means of carrying it in the off chance that my hand was incapable of holding a 6 inch bar of confectionery back to my workspace. I gave my Tesco worker (Jim) a blank look for about 3 seconds, trying to silently will him into breaking free from the vice-like grip his employer had him in. Come on Jim, my straining pupils were saying, seize the moment and laugh at how ridiculous your question is here.
But he was unmoved. The dead eyes gazed back at me waiting for an answer. I suspect he could have stood there all day. Motionless. Unblinking. Patiently flatlining. Finally, I caved and responded. "No, that won't be necessary" I mumbled.

Walking off, I was choking back tears for dear Jim as I heard him say "Have a good day".


It doesn't need to be this way!


I want to live in a world where shop staff can say "Lovely day isn't it?" or "Are you watching the football tonight?" or "Woah! Crazy tie dude!!" if they see fit. A world where fruit can be bumpy and veg looks like it came from the ground, not suspiciously shiny and of equal size and shape. I don't want uniforms to be a dull checked tartan and boring black slacks, a hole where a nose-ring usually sits being the only suggestion that "Lisa" has any sort of a life. I want to be free from the Tesco Clubcard, the 3-for-2 offer, the value deals, the fluorescent lighting that hurts the eyes. I want to walk into a shop to be surprised and warmed and enthused by what they have to offer.

In short. I fucking hate Tesco.

(Mrs Tilly does very nice fudge though)

Toffs and Average Joes

I've never liked that Raef on The Apprentice. He speaks too crisply, he is too rich, his hair has that funny posh parting and he clearly had a great education and was born with a silver tongue in his mouth. How could you like someone so eloquent? With such manners? Who dresses so well? And with such an easy propensity to laugh?

Clearly, I am being facetious, but the logic above is almost exactly what the Labour party in Crewe and Nantwich are using in order to try to win cheap votes in the constituency. They claim that the Tory candidate coming from a rich family and having a first class education means he can't fathom the issues that affect you're average working Joe. Poppycock.

Incredibly, the UK party as a whole are considering using the same "toff Tory" approach to target David Cameron. It simply will not work.

I went to a standard state school, a fairly average education in a fairly average town so I didn't really come into contact with anyone from private schools until university.

I was, of course, taught by my Glaswegian compatriots to wear a chip on my shoulder with pride but it didn't take long before the range of talents that these strange, exotic people possessed had me enthralled.

Of course, there's no reason why multi-talented, bilingual, business-savvy private school types should be put on a pedestal but to apply inverse snobbery and think that the uncultured, uneducated and undesirables are somehow a better class of person than the upper crust is seriously misguided.

And I bet even Average Joe would happily agree with me.

The bets are off in Crewe and Nantwich, and it's not difficult to see why.

Oh dear

Let's be honest, this headline can't be too good for the SNP's "1,000 extra police officers" policy....

"Row over Scottish police numbers"

I'm off to bed, but I strongly suspect Kenny MacAskill is still awake somewhere this evening....!

And there we have it.

A lot of chat about abortions and embryos on various blogs today but after all that it was a fairly comprehensive result. The abortion limit will remain at 24 weeks.

For me, this is as it should be as I mentioned earlier today.


So it seems the only interest and entertainment we'll get from this evening is Kezia Dugdale's rather bizarre behaviour.

First she adamantly and wrongly states that Alex won't be in Westminster and then tosses a vague reference to Brian Soutar into the mix, a desperate (and perhaps libellous) attempt to suggest that the business tycoon is buying votes in parliament.

Secondly, even minutes before the vote takes place, Kezia believes the result is going to be "extremely close". It was a thumping 332 to 190 scoreline.

There was also the clear insinuation that Alex Salmond was in the wrong to spend time working on the Scottish Futures Trust, a policy that has the potential to save Scotland literally billions of pounds if the SNP can get it up and running.

This tireless evening also included a pledge that Kez will don her cape and fly to America to fight alongside Barack Obama if he wins the Democratic nomination. Barack must be thanking his lucky stars that this stalwart of Scottish Politics will be leading the charge against the Republicans for him.

Back to tonight, and on learning that Alex is indeed in Westminster, Kezia then (again for no apparent reason) decides that "something seriously suspicious" is going on. This charge is based on the monstrous basis that Kez can't spot Alex on tv anywhere. Given Alex has been in favour of 20 week limits since September 2007, I don't think his missing a bit of the debate is reason enough to suggest dodgy behaviour.


As is becoming increasingly the status quo, there's no logic or concrete facts emanating from the Soapbox during these wild swings at the SNP.


I can understand the frustration and bitterness that must come with being in the Labour party ranks at the moment, and I honestly do sympathise, but to hit out at one's enemies in such a bizarre and inappropriate manner is probably not the best way forward.

Scottish Futures Trust

I await with interest what plan Alex Salmond and John Swinney have come up with to push further ahead with the Scottish Futures Trust. It has had a few detractors so far but the logic and simplicity of the plan makes complete sense and it is a far, far better approach than the prohibitively expensive PFI model.

I have already discussed SFT last month so I'm going to lazily direct anyone interested in this subject to there.

I also believe I should point to the Sunday Herald's latest front page story which has independent analysis on PFI and how costly it is. It is truly shocking.

It is worth noting the Tory finance spokesperson Derek Brownlee's comments on SFT:

"However it is dressed up, the key principle of PFI/PPP is maintained - leveraging in private investment into public infrastructure."

Derek is either deliberately seeking to mislead or he himself does not understand. Yes, the SFT involves private investment, but given the private company involved is going to be a not-for-profit arms-length entity then there is no loss to the Scottish public. He is cunningly using the term "private investment" to suggest there is private sector profits still being made. This will not be the case as I am sure Swinney and Salmond are about to announce.

The quicker we can reverse the damage done by PFI the better. I look forward to the next step being taken later today.

The Lives of Mothers

"When you do have a child, you will be amazed by the capacity you have to love someone."

So said Robert Downey Jr in his time on Ally McBeal. Or so I've been told. It's not like I watch the show (or own the dvd boxed sets) or anything….

But, with the upcoming vote on abortion limits in mind, an appropriate question may be: Why does this unconditional love that most mothers have for their children only start after the child has been born?

I've often struggled to reconcile the difference between mothers who are able to terminate the pregnancy of their unborn child and mothers who would fight tooth and nail to give their born children the best chance in life. It is somehow morally acceptable to kill an inconvenient foetus while it is (of course) criminally outrageous to smother a weeks old baby who cried incessantly or had a disability.

And yet, I find myself utterly convinced by the arguments put forward by those in the 'right to choose' camp.

The sad reality is that we don't live in a life plucked from tv scripts. There is not always the schmaltzy happy ending as the difficult, complicated, often depressing lives we lead are not penned by a Hollywood scriptwriter blessed with imagination and a wicked skill for storytelling.

Even if the mother's "capacity to love" had fallen short in an Ally McBeal episode there would be an All-American loving couple waiting in the wings to take the baby away to a life lived happily ever after. Real life doesn't work that way.

So women, thankfully, have a window of convenience, a time period where they know they are pregnant but have the opportunity to abort before the child's life truly begins.

And how long should a women's window remain open?

Well, I was going to start this post by having the reader imagine a pregnancy starting today and then ask them if having a termination date of 7th October (20 weeks hence) or 4th November (24 weeks hence) really made all that much of a difference. My point being (in unashamed defence of Alex Salmond's position on the subject) that 20 weeks is as suitable a time period as 24 weeks.

But then, by the same token, an extra 4 weeks for any abused, raped, confused and/or depressed mothers to come to the most difficult decision they'll ever have to make is worth it.

I admit that my strength of feeling on this subject is markedly low. Whatever the decision taken at Westminster this evening I will neither be outraged nor delighted. But I will be interested. And of particular note during the debate will be the difference between MPs who are able to see life as stark as it can be for women and those who still cling on to the happy endings, whatever the cost.

Scottish Labour - A Way Back from the Brink

As a blatant fan of the SNP and risking the possibility that this blog ever becomes a brainless cheerleader of the nationalists (with me painted yellow and replete with pom-poms, of course) I feel it is well worth my time to occasionally kick out against the party or at the very least point out where Labour, the Lib Dems or the Tories impress me.

I've already stated that I think Gordon Brown is the best bet for Prime Minister at the current time, genuinely wishing him a come back. He has the capacity to reverse the polls which are very soft indeed given David Cameron is benefitting from votes lost rather than votes won. He is ahead simply because he is the alternative Prime Minister, not because he is saying anything particularly impressive.

For the Scottish Labour party, I feel now would be a good time to either back the current leader or sing the praises of who would be a suitable replacement.

And even though I am trying to be fair and soberly assess Scottish Labour's position through non-partisan eyes, Wendy Alexander's position is untenable for one simple reason. She cannot be the leader of the party when the SNP bring forward their independence referendum bill.

There is no way, after all this "Bring it on" nonsense, that she can then lead her party into voting it down. And make no mistake, it will be voted down.

Of course Labour will be damaged when this time comes but maximum damage will be felt if maximum hypocrisy is on show. So only a Labour leader who has consistently opposed an independence referendum can sit as head of the party whenever the bill is presented before MSPs. Wendy should accept this and make way for a successor later this year.

So, this leaves me with a great opportunity to 'big up' someone in the Labour party who impresses me and who can build a smart, confident shadow Government going into the 2011 Holyrood election.

Now at this point I could go on about slim pickings and slip back into some emptily jolly "the SNP are great" ways. I shall resist but I will have to partake in some sort of process of elimination given the realistic options available to Scottish Labour.

For example, there are some non-starters:

Jackie Baillie has had a shocker on Newsnight which immediately rules her out and she is known to be something of a control freak. After Wendy's well known 24/7 demands and furious pace in communication with her colleagues, Scottish Labour need someone with a broader view when it comes to holding power.

Malcolm Chisholm is my local MSP. He is well respected, votes with his heart (leading to him being kicked out the Cabinet twice) and generally wins with a landslide whenever he stands making a mockery of my tactical voting tendencies. However, he is completely isolated in the parliament and without sufficient support he can be ruled out immediately.

Margaret Curran, I'm afraid, has a smile that could shatter glass. I don't know the woman except via people who have worked closely alongside her but she has an unfortunately unlikeable quality around her that I fear is too deeply entrenched to be controlled. She often makes me wonder if she's Hillary Clinton's nastier wee cousin. Margaret can be ruled out for sure.

Helen Eadie. As much as I enjoy Calum Cashley's frequent posts on the matter, he is (surely!?) raising them with tongue firmly placed in cheek when he suggests Helen for Scottish Labour leader.

No, we have to cast the net wider than the above.

So how about the usual suspects:

Iain Gray. Intelligent, fair-minded, experienced in working with Oxfam, good speaker publicly as long as noone rocks the boat too much; I do think Iain Gray would make a safe, solid choice as leader of Scottish Labour. The only problem is, safe and solid is not the approach Labour require. They need a bit more razmatazz and ambition. Iain Gray is a little bit dull and would not capture the imagination of the Scottish people. And anyway, Alex Salmond would have him for breakfast regardless of whether or not Iain Gray had a good point or not in between the stammerings and mumblings. Anyone who thinks otherwise should watch again Iain's recent showing on Newsnight to see how easy it is to fluster the man.

Andy Kerr. Similar to Iain Gray, he'd probably be a pretty safe pair of hands but he just doesn't have enough of a spark. His move to reward the nurses with an early pay rise was beautifully done, especially the great PR when he stood in his best suit with about 100 nurses all of them smiling as one on a sunny Edinburgh day. But this also shows his brutal side as he didn't share any of this glory with the rest of the party and he seems to have a penchant for briefing against his colleagues and stabbing them in the back when he doesn't even need to. So for Andy Kerr I think we should read a poor man's Jack McConnell. And surely Scotland deserves better.

So where now? Cathy Jamieson? She does a good job in FMQs and I think she'd have a more natural instinct than Wendy in avoiding banana skins but could we stomach her lack of eloquence for more than a few weeks before she becomes a figure of fun? I doubt it.

So we're running out of MSPs a bit here I think. And that's where my idea becomes inspired, creative and stunning, all rolled into one. (If I say so myself.)

Yes, in my view the person to lead Labour into the next Holyrood election is none other than……......


Ewan Aitken

When it comes to trustworthy recommendations, be it films, books, music or even, apparently, leaders of countries, I always try to use information already gleaned from those in the know. So my ears were first pricked by Ewan's talents by Kezia Dugdale's when she was positively fulsome in praise for Mr Aitken. I guess those comments sewed the seed in my thinking that he is a competent politician.

But my esteem for the man has grown more rapidly and much more recently as Ewan has started writing a blog. I am so taken with it that when I read a story in the general press I tend to turn to his blog to make sense of Labour's plans. Ewan has a clarity and balance to his writing which, if he carries into policy approach and oral delivery, would be very attractive indeed. He has already written intelligently on a whole range of topics.

I have regularly left comments on this blog and these could be read in a way which seems I am less than impressed with his thoughts. But if someone writes a poor blogging entry, I don't tend to waste my time responding to it. I like to see if I can "bring down" a good post and I'm not ashamed to say that each time I thought I had done so on Ewan's blog, I was calmly and respectfully (and occasionally comprehensively) picked apart.

As an Edinburgh resident I have seen first hand the good work that has been completed while Ewan was leader of Edinburgh Council. I've already congratulated him on this blog for the St Andrew's Square renovation (though I admit I initially wrote the blog item in the hope it was an SNP idea!). Edinburgh has been practically transformed in the past 6-10 years. The Forthside project, the finance district, the easing of congestion on Princes St and the rapid increase in building across the capital without ruining the natural beauty that Edinburgh possesses. It's no wonder the city is now regularly ranked amongst the most popular cities in the world.

And, in keeping with the Edinburgh Council theme, the good work that Ewan and Labour have done is in stark contrast to the SNP/Lib Dem coalition which I personally believe are making a dog's breakfast of running the city. Of course I would rather this wasn't the case but credit where credit is due, the past year has served only to show how capable the last adminstration were. If I could, I would go back and vote SNP-SNP-Labour on May 3rd 2007.

Another subtle but potent advantage in Ewan's favour is something very simple. He doesn't hate the SNP. You can see the detest Wendy has for Alex Salmond, it sits in the pit of her stomach and is one of the main reasons she can't control herself at FMQs or even in live interviews at times. I have been told this is a common problem across both of the main parties, a toxic malevolence between the SNP and Labour with the bad blood going both ways in almost equal measures. Any leader who has to stand in the public eye needs a certain way of being, a certain gravity, a certain composure that carries their words softly into the ears of a listening voter. Wendy patently does not possess this and if Alex lacks this then he is putting on a very, very good replacement act. Perhaps Ewan's religious background is something of a saving grace here but it is clear from the ex-minister's tone that he merely disagrees with the opposition. He harbours no secret desire to destroy them.

Further to this, Ewan's base is in the East and Labour are entitled to take the West for granted so choosing a leader from outside of Greater Glasgow is a shrewd plan. There is no question that the wider your power base, the stronger you have the potential to be. The SNP will have to crack Glasgow if it is ever to be a fair fight. And similarly, as an ex-Minister Ewan Aitken could also be expected to hoover up votes from the more religiously-minded amongst us.

I admit to the risk of possessing a certain political naivety so perhaps the fact that Ewan isn't even an MSP (yet!) makes this whole idea a bit ridiculous but it doesn't take the most complex of mental gymnastics to turn this potential weakness into a pillar of strength.

It's no secret that Jack McConnell is positively chomping at the bit to get into the House of Lords but the Labour party as a whole fear a mauling in any by-election. Personally, I don't see Motherwell and Wishaw as a Crewe and Nantwich just yet. The good people of Central Scotland are happy enough to vote for anyone (and I do mean anyone) in a Labour rosette so parachuting Ewan into Holyrood should be trouble-free.

And what a spring-board! They have months to plan this and all to the backdrop of a Jack McConnell swansong that could be pushed as warm and fuzzy as the Scottish public could stomach. Their new leader could be promoted as the secret weapon, someone so talented, experienced and affable that they just couldn't wait to fast track him into the top tier to take on the Nats. A well timed policy think-tank could arm their new leader with ideas and manifesto items that could make him the Holyrood version of Rambo. And with Obama winning the Democratic nomination, proving that experience is not always key in winning elections, the left wing of Scotland could tap into the American feel good factor and decide they rather like the idea of a creative, optimistic and somewhat unknown personality championing the idea of change.

It's been a long time that I've nodded happily along to a Labour politician thinking to myself that they are talking sense and have a solid grasp of what the real world involves. I do this regularly on Ewan Aitken's blog so, perhaps, Scottish Labour will think big and promote this man to the very top to pull them out of their current mire.

Though of course, as I get out my yellow paint and put on my SNP pom-poms again, I sincerely hope that Wendy Alexander stays on till 2011, long enough for her to watch Alex Salmond "bring on" an independence referendum bill and experience an implosion of Scottish Labour that will make the past fortnight look like a mere tummy-bumper.

Sweden

I have returned from a week in Sweden and I am delighted to state that it is the healthy, democratic, feminist, hip, content wonderland that we all imagine it to be.

Couples stroll through Stockholm parks and along Malmo boardwalks wearing funky clothing or pushing sporty buggies, seemingly perfectly at ease with the 30% basic rate and 55% higher rate tax that comes out of their payslips each month. You can almost imagine them resisting a snigger at our Local Income Tax and 10% rate squabbles over the past few months.

Students in Lund to the South and Umea to the North are all too keen to talk about the subjects they are grateful to not have to pay to study. New sections of universities are being thrown up at a furious rate as the investment in learning continues apace.

Infact, the only real downside that I encountered was that their knowledge of Britain, and more specifically Scotland, was not perhaps what it should be. I was constantly labelled "English" or "from England" which is fine, it honestly doesn't bother me that much, but given the fervent pride in their own country and the readiness with which Swedes wish to define themselves as separate from (and better than) their Scandinavian neighbours, I would have thought they would have known how Scotland sits within the UK.

And yet, how would they? We are constantly tucked away into British institutions and this is then translated abroad as English as I found yet again on my latest travels. I daresay it won't be too shocking for you to learn that the only person I met that had ever heard of Holyrood was an architect and an avid fan of Enric Miralles. The mention of Wendy Alexander and Alex Salmond drew a very blank look indeed though.

From Swedish newspapers the only real mention of British Politics comes from London and involves the Iraq War or the Olympics or global economic matters. Scotland doesn't get a look in. Our international voice is nothing more than a whisper and the ignorance from the unquestionably intelligent poeple that I met of what being Scottish involves was genuinely startling.

Even with the looming Euro 2008 and Olympic competitions, we don't get to grace the world stage as a nation. We gave it our best shot in the football but for the Olympics we are quietly folded into the British pack which everyone thinks of as England anyway from what I have seen.

The real damage this is all causing is the image a typical Scottish person now has in the eyes of our European neighbours. Many, many people have assumed that I am not from Scotland simply because they understand what I am saying. They expect Scots to be unintelligible and drunk more often than not. An image not helped this past week of course.

We have more to offer the world than the gardener in The Simpsons and the classic Highlander 'teuchter' image attached to most Scottish exports. But the intelligence, the creativity, the logic and the diplomacy that we have to offer Europe and the world doesn't count for much if we do not have the stage or the pulpit to show ourselves at our best.

The European Union would be the perfect arena to reflect our uniquely Scottish talents and I am becoming increasingly convinced that an independent Scotland within the EU is the ideal constitutional scenario for our nation.

Maybe then our European friends may know that not only can we stay sober and speak legible 'English', but they may also realise they like a lot of what we have to say too.

UK Minister admits majority in favour of independence...!

Yes, David Cairns, the Scotland Minister, has quite clearly stated that greater than 50% of Scots want independence:

"51% of people want independence but only 32% are going to vote for the party associated with independence," Mr Cairns told BBC Radio Scotland.

This line is from 2nd November 2006 and came at a time when Labour were attacking the SNP on its Holyrood capabilities. The line, now used in a wider context, blows a hole in the oft-quoted argument that if Scotland wanted independence then the SNP would have won a clear majority at Holyrood.

Infact, for the past 10 years at least we have seen independence support hover around the 45-55% mark. Given that this excludes the "don't knows" of approximately 10%, I would fully expect a referendum in 2008, 2009 or 2010 to end with a win for the "yes" campaign

So it begs the question, if back in 2006 the Nationalists can attract 51% of support for independence with only 32% of the Holyrood poll and with Labour still having some fight in them back then under Tony Blair and Jack McConnell, just what can the mighty SNP do with 45% support at Holyrood and Labour in clear disarray?


I really hope Salmond is strongly considering including a refendum bill in his draft legislation for next week.


Maybe 'It's Time' for the SNP to call the Labour bluff and have the referendum sooner rather than later after all?


Many have said that David Cameron will be the last Prime Minister of the UK, but I'm going to stick my neck out and and say not only will it be Tessa Jowell, but that we Scots have participated in our last UK General Election.

The Times and Michelle Obama

Reading tomorrow headlines in The Times has been an interesting affair.

The leanings of the newspaper aren't difficult to work out when it discusses "the noble cause of the union" and has ex-Communications Director for Scottish Labour writing about FMQs. And Kezia suggests that "Labour's big challenge is somehow to fight for the media's affection"? Yeah right, tough fight you've got there Kez.

But no, it was another article that got under my skin. An appropriate line there given the article discusses Michelle Obama and leads with the title "You go girl!". Barack Obama's wife and quite possibly the next First Lady of America reduced to a cheap Jerry Springer chant.

Even if the truly awful Sun or Daily Record had chosen such a title I would be surprised but The Times?

I am genuinely stunned.