Scottish Referendum – Page 5

Glasgow South West – Poorly Served By Davidson And His labour Party Colleagues – Time For Change -Get ‘Em Out

Ian Davidson was born in 1950 in the borders region of Scotland. He migrated north to Strathclyde and was elected to the position of councillor with the Strathclyde Regional Council, where he was employed from 1978 -1992. He gave up his post when he was elected as a Labour MP and has been at Westminster from that time, until 2015. As sitting MP it is expected he will contest Glasgow & South West in the May 2015 general election.

My family lived in the Gorbals in 1955. At that time people were poor, badly housed, undernourished, in ill-health and ill educated. Not a lot has changed since. Visitors to Glasgow are kept well away from Govan being directed to visiting the impressive George Square, the recently built BBC Scotland Headquarters and Science Centre buildings et. al.

But visit Govan, (no way) it is a different world far removed from the glitter and gloss of areas that have been upgraded, through the good auspices of the Glasgow City Council. In Govan the lives of many inhabitants are still blighted by grinding poverty, drug dealing, alcohol abuse, ill health, early death, unemployment and despair. There are other areas of Glasgow in which conditions in Govan are mirrored. A factor common to all of the aformentioned is that for 50 years voters have loyally given their precious vote to Labour politicians whose only interest is to perpetuate the deprivation so that they would be sure of securing another majority at the next election.

Davidson is Chairman of The Scottish Affairs Select Committee at Westminster. His style of management is dicatorial, strident and overbearing. He tolerates no dispute over any decsions he takes in the name of the committeee he regards as his to control.

Davidson, is probably the most influential of Labour Party policy deciders, “almost anything he say’s goes” where Scottish politics is concerned. He is known to be quite scathing of the Scottish Parliament, in particular the ability of the MSP’s, including Labour elected to it. Scotland would be best advised to remember Davidson’s quote before the referendum, “Once we get our, “No” vote in 2014, we’ll rip so many powers from the Scottish Parliament the neo-Nats might as well meet once a month above a pub, for all they’ll have left to talk about”. So there is a hidden Labour agenda. In the event of a “No” vote, (duly delivered by campaign of fear) the Scottish Parliament, will be first neutered then, in time abandoned.

In the course of the referendum campaign he was vociferous in his oppositon to any form of independence. On one occasion he demanded that the MOD insert a, “get out” clause into a warship contract, due to be signed off with BAE to build frigates on the Clyde so that the MOD could remove the contract to Portsmouth in the event of a “Yes” vote. So much for representing his people, the bulk of Glasgows shipbuilding constituents live in Govan.

In Westminster, Davidson, prominent anti-independence campaigner repeated his call that once the, “conflict” of the independence campaign is over “all that will be required is mopping up and bayoneting of the wounded.” http://www.glawest.org/ian-davidson-mp-repeats-call-to-bayonet-scottish-independence-supporters/

In March 2007, Davidson purchased from his, Additional Costs Allowance , reclining furniture costing nearly £1,500 and had it delivered to his Glasgow home at the time he was claiming his Commons allowance on his flat in South London. He said the suite was later driven to London at the taxpayers cost. he subsequently claimed and was reimbursed in full for both bills.

Under the Green Book rules, the allowance can only reimburse MPs for “expenses wholly, exclusively and necessarily incurred when staying overnight away from their main UK residence … for the purpose of performing their parliamentary duties.”

A note of enquiry from a Commons official was concerned Davidson paid a property search agency to help him find a new flat and references records showing Davidson had already claimed £1,000 of taxpayers’ money with nothing to show for it and was concerned about how long the search, at the taxpayers expense would go on.

Davidson explained he wanted to use the agency because — away from home a lot — no time to house hunt — unfamiliar with English house-hunting. He had not expected this to take so long. The market was difficult — not sure how much longer it would take. He added he was, “not sure about terms of contractwith the agency but that he might have to pay £5k in all. He didn’t remember who he spoke to originally or who had authorized this spend.” The final charge to the taxpayer for finding Davidson a flat came to £6,000. The fees’ office agreed a proportion of this sum. He then billed the taxpayer for more than £11,000 to move into the flat.

Expense claims show that Davidson, a member of the Commons Public Accounts Committee, arranged for a handyman from Glasgow to renovate his south London flat between 2005-06 and 2007-08 at a cost to the taxpayer of £5500. He then took the handyman, whom he described as a “family friend”, shooting at two events organized by the National Rifle Association. In one match he was on a Commons’ team against the House of Lords. Davidson said he “could not recall” whether the handyman paid his own costs.

Davidson said permission to employ his “family friend” had been “specifically requested from the fees office and agreed on the basis that it would be cheaper than employing a London firm. He said: “he accompanied me on two occasions to a shooting match with the National Rifle Association. Since a competition had already been arranged to shoot at Bisley, I sought and was given agreement for him to participate as my guest.”

Davidson said he had the furniture delivered to Glasgow “since someone is invariably in and my London house is on a bus lane with double red lines.” He said he had hired a property search company because he had “spent many fruitless hours looking for a suitable property and then decided to seek professional help”. The fees office had agreed it was an “acceptable cost”. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/mps-expenses/5351148/MPs-expenses-Ian-Davidson-paid-friend-5500-to-renovate-flat-then-took-him-shooting.html

The people of Glasgow (Govan) should reject Davidson and his self serving Labour party colleagues in favour of the SNP who, as entity exist only to serve the people of Scotland. Labour have had enough chances.

To understand the man the Ian Davidson is it is best to view him in action. The videos listed provide just that opportunity.

Labour MP questioned on voting record at Bedroom tax demo

Ian Davidson obsessively repeats his mantras of ‘separatist’ and ‘separation’ – a substitute for argument.

Talking nonsense to the MOD about nuclear weapons

Fijians serving in Scottish Regiments should be easier to spot

Not a happy bunny: Ed Miliband to curtail union power

Shipbuilding and warships

Yew Choob Presents-Ian Davidson.Lyrics by Ninjapenguin

Resident joker, invoking laughter and sneers at draconian cuts planned for Scotland

About article 346 Orders for warships to the Clyde

Monitoring an Anti-Bedroom Tax Demo

Scottish shipbuilding and its shameless politicization

Malcolm Tucker deals with Ian Davidson MP

Caught on Cam, “Stupid Bastard”

Claims Faslane supports 19000 jobs

Disrupts PM Question Time

Ian Davidson MP – Innovative union responses to the cuts

The nuclear issue Faslane and independence-and safe havens.

Your state pension is safe upon Independence

Independence will not affect your state pension

How will saving Clyde yards affect the referendum?

‘Experts’ talk rubbish on referendum questions to Commons committee

What European elites learn: Don’t ask the people!

Are you hiding concessions already made from us? Panic in Labour ranks!

Servicemen and women – Impact of Referendum

Will rUK armed forces still recruit Scots after Scotland’s independence?

Scottish service personnel – pensions and medical records

Wind-up – How will UK government departments communicate with Scottish public?

UK Referendum Rules – how will they apply?

What do you hope to agree? The Labour panic sets in .

The Memorandum of Understanding – Morally and politically binding – but legally?

Section 30 Order – What happens if parties don’t agree?

Requests for assurances that UK Parliament can control the process

Macho posturing and sarcasm by Davidson

The franchise for 16-17 year – old’s and Sect 30

Donation rules – donors from outside of UK. Monaco and Bahamas?

Will Scottish Government seeks to abuse/exploit Commonwealth Games?

Davidson fantasizes that UK can control 2014 date.

Defence in a Post-Independent Scotland

Ian Davidson MP talks nonsense to the MOD about nuclear weapons

Labour MP claims Bannockburn is a celebration of the mass murder of the English
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4q-BVJ0Ve8 bannockburn

Ian Davidson accuses Isabel Fraser and BBC of pro-SNP bias on Newsnight Scotland

Ian Davidson and Jamie Hepburn on Trident, NATO and defence aspects of independence

Ian Davidson & his team of experts over complicating matters to the point that they seem incompetent.

Ian Davidson accuses Isabel Fraser and BBC of pro-SNP bias on Newsnight Scotland

11 videos featuring Ian Davidson

16 Videos Featuring Ian Davidson

Professor Anthony Glees-Right Wing Expert on Terrorism

Professor Anthony Glees is an extreme right-wing British academic considered an expert on, “terrorism” and “radicalization”. He is currently head of the Buckingham University Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at Britain’s only private university. He is affiliated to the, “Henry Jackson Society” a project for democratic geopolitics which is a British neo-conservative think tank and political action committee (PAC) which is supported by important US neo-cons and by two of Prime Minister David Cameron’s closest advisers and ministers, (Michael Gove and Ed Vaizey).

David Haines – The Scottish Aid Worker Held Captive in Syria

Professor Anthony Glees, is convinced ISIS sense an opportunity to weaken the UK via their brutal campaign of terror. He expressed fears Islamic extremists are deliberately threatening to behead David Haines, a Scots aid worker, using the dad-of-two in a propaganda drive as the Scottish independence referendum approaches to break up the UK. Last night highly-placed intelligence sources revealed it is “extremely likely” ISIS terror chiefs believe beheading Haines will make Prime Minister David Cameron appear, “weak”, fueling anti-English sentiment among referendum voters.

http://www.sundaypost.com/news-views/scotland/isis-targeted-scot-to-force-a-yes-vote-in-referendum-1.562793

Islamic State Executioners are British

Professor Anthony Glees, of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at the University of Buckingham, told Britain’s, “The Independent” that political correctness had helped provide a fertile breading ground for Islamism in the UK. “Why are there Brits there? In my view this is because Islamist extremist ideologies have been able to be spread with relative ease in our country under the cover of “religion”, “free speech” and “multiculturalism”.” “A small number of British Muslims have been brainwashed by so-called preachers and convinced that they must kill to create a global caliphate,” he added.

http://www.virtualjerusalem.com/news.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14007:islamic-state-executioner-of-james-foley-john-from-london&catid=1:headlines&Itemid=14007

Islamic Hit Squads Target Sunnis Living in the UK

Professor Anthony Glees, of the Centre for Security and Intelligence Studies at Buckingham University, said to the Daily Mail, “The US is worried about the British situation. They fear there might be a knock-on effect for them”, “The throat-cutting between Sunnis and Shias in Iraq and Syria has not yet spread to the UK, but it is a real threat”. “It is conceivable you could see Shia, “hit squads” in Britain targeting Sunnis preparing to go out to the conflict zones to fight.” “The Americans regard the UK as a disaster because of our lax stance on immigration which has allowed this militancy to take hold,” Glees added. “Frankly, they would not be doing their jobs properly if it did not do this – forming an objective view of the situation outside of the reports they get from MI5 and their officers at the US Embassy in London”.

http://rt.com/usa/169508-cia-radical-islam-spread-britain/

Pupils in Schools in England Pushing Radical Islamic Agenda’s

The Home Office, which is responsible for the police and security forces, argues that it is counter-productive to clamp down on legal but extreme views. “It’s the difference between firefighting and fire protection,” said Professor Anthony Glees, who contributed to the parliamentary Homeland Security Group. “The government is split between libertarians and the law-and-order Conservatives.”

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/10/inspectors-uncover-uk-schools-pushing-radical-islamic-agendas.html

Al Qaeda Sleepers in London

Anthony Glees, wrote, in an article for the Wall Street Journal that, “Britain has become, al Qaeda target No. 1” He also stated that intelligence sources now believe that the activities of the “homegrown” jihadists in Britain are in fact, trained and sponsored from Pakistan.

http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/not-your-fathers-college-campus.html

Ebola Virus Danger to UK from Foreign Students

Anthony Glees, Professor of Politics at Buckingham University, called for West African students to be held in their home countries until they have been declared clear of Ebola and the 21-day incubation period has passed.

http://theeagleonline.com.ng/fear-grips-uk-as-21000-african-students-return/

European Market – To Withdraw or Not That is the Question?

UKIP policy on an in/out vote on Europe is rumored to be more hardline than the Tory proposal and it appears to be nearing inclusion in the UKIP 2015 General Election Manifesto;

“In the event UKIP hold the balance of power after the next election, (increasingly likely) the party will insist that an in/out referendum be held before the end of 2015, (this will require a change in the rules pertaining to the fixed term of a government. Should the referendum result indicate the will of the people is to withdraw from the EU, parliament would be dissolved and a general election held in May 2016”. The government elected will negotiate the withdrawal of the UK from the European market.

Now that’s what I call a spoiler!! The wind will be well up the tails of the Tory, Labour and Liberal party’s.

Alan Hansen- A man for All Seasons

Alan Hansen for the, “Blether together” Scotland team of the past. A read of his autobiography revealed his disdain of the Scotland team. His long and extremely well paid sojourn in England has clearly clouded his judgement but I was not at all surprised he came out in support of a no vote in the referendum. After all he has been extremely well cared for financially , (still is through BT)

I remember Hansen well. He was a Liverpool stalwart but his Scotland career never really got going due to recurring injury call offs. Surprisingly he seemed to be fit to play for Liverpool a few days afterwards.

He played for Scotland in the 1982 World Cup in Spain. The team failed to progress beyond the the qualifying group due to a disastrous draw with the USSR. A collision worthy of a, “Charlie Chaplin” movie between a ball watching Hansen and his central defensive partner Willie Miller allowed USSR striker Ramoz Shengelia through to score.

He became a bit injury prone and was increasingly ignored by a number of Scotland managers throughout the eighties. Alex Ferguson, (in temporary charge after the sudden death in 1985 of Jock Stein) controversially dropped Hansen from the Scotland squad for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, Stating that he shared Stein’s reservations about Hansen’s commitment to Scotland, poor international form and reluctance to play international friendly games in the warm up to the World Cup. He won the last of his 26 Scotland caps in 1987.

Hansen is no stranger to controversy, earning an incredible £1.5 million a year for his one-day-a-week job with the BBC, yet who still used to claim huge expenses bills to take him from his home in Southport down to London for filming. It seems that Hansen’s gravy train has stopped for good. His current contract with the BBC expired this summer, but it seems he has landed on his feet once more taking up a job with BT Sport.

Michelle Mone & the Ups & Downs of her Business Life.

1. Recurring threats by Michelle Mone to transfer her business to England should Scotland become independent are simply, “hot air” since she no longer has a controlling stake in her new company, (Ultimo Brands International) which incidentally is registered for business in london.

2. MJM International morphed into, “Ultimo Brands International” in January 2014 and is registered with Companies House in London. It has Ms Mone, Anthony Caplan, Eliaz Poleg and Ajaykumar Amalean as its directors. Mr Caplan is Ms Mone’s lawyer with Mr Poleg and Mr Amalean both board directors at MAS Holdings. MAS Holdings a, (Sri Lanka based company) is thought to have 51% ownership of UBI with Ms Mone in control of 49%. Mr Poleg, chairman of UBI, said, “We are delighted that we will soon be operating under a new company name, “Ultimo Brands International”. The name-change reflects the resurgence of the brand and our ambitions for growth beyond the UK.” The spokeswoman for UBI said the Ultimo range was being overhauled and relaunched in early 2014 .

3. Michelle Mone, the new poster girl for British Airways, (Boldly modelling a swimsuit of her own design)in yet another eye-catching twist in the career of one of Scotland’s best known business figures said, ‘I have absolutely no problem with people expressing an opinion, but if you are going to be disrespectful, I don’t want to hear it. ‘I’ve been called a “****”, a “cow”, a “slut”, as well as being told “I’m going to get it”, “we’ll come and get you” and they’re “going to throw me across the border”. ‘I’m not a murderer, a thief or a rapist. I’m a good person who employs a lot of people in Scotland, both Yes and No supporters, and we all get on. ‘We should all be able to live in a country where you can express views and not be vilified for it.’ But Ms Mone says her commercial experience tells her that ‘Alex Salmond’s business plan is flawed’.

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/michelle-mone-bas-poster-girl-in-an-ultimo-swimsuit.1395878309

4. Kate Hopkins, in her column for the, “Sun” labelled the Scottish lingerie tycoon an, “asylum seeker” after Mone pledged to move to England if Scotland became independent. Hopkins said, “If you are part of Scotland and have the opportunity to vote, you should remain in the country where you exercised your democratic right. “The last thing we need is more asylum seekers in England. She went on, “Even if they are wealthy and have norks like Marilyn Monroe.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/showbiz/504797/Katie-Hopkins-lays-into-Michelle-Mone-for-moaning-about-Scottish-independence

5. Michelle Mone has revealed she suffers from obsessive compulsive disorder. In general, sufferers experience repetitive, intrusive and unwelcome thoughts, images, impulses and doubts which they find hard to ignore. The thoughts push them to perform repetitive acts as a way to alleviate the symptoms.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/health/i-m-obsessive-sufferer-admits-bra-tycoon-1-1037728

6. She has been criticised in the past for fronting a campaign backing Scottish manufacturing when her own products were being made overseas in China.

http://www.scotsman.com/business/transport-industry/mone-hits-back-at-chinese-whispers-1-1393283
http://www.scotsman.com/news/world/underwear-tycoon-denies-sweat-shop-reports-1-523506

7. she got into another ruck with the press over claims that her business would be worth 100m just months before it had to be rescued by fellow entrepreneur Tom Hunter.

10. Michelle Mone, appoints a ‘fantastic’ new model – er, Ms Mone. The mistress of spin rarely passes an opportunity to step into the spotlight. Having dispensed with Jordan’s services after a single day, firing Peaches Geldof for alleged drug taking and insisting she only hired Penny Lancaster because she was cheap, Michelle Mone has finally found a model she can work with: herself.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/ultimo-run-by-ms-mone-appoints-a-fantastic-new-model-er-ms-mone-1-806942

11. Michelle Mone clenched her fist and spat venom about lingerie models who were refusing to stalk the catwalk in her skimpy thongs. “F***ing neurotics,” says Mone, creator of the Ultimo bra, which has boosted cleavages worldwide with its stitched-in sacs of silicone gel. “I think they’re bloody prima donnas. They’re getting paid fortunes, and they’re in there moaning their arse off. I feel like punching every one of them.”

http://www.scotsman.com/news/the-ultimo-sacrifice-1-605796
http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/bra-queen-mone-gets-it-off-her-chest-for-bbc-1-1360771
http://www.scotsman.com/news/undies-with-a-capital-u-1-1357321
http://www.scotsman.com/business/finance/beauty-business-under-her-skin-1-524960

12. The number of tribunals, and the amount of protection available to workers, has “gone way over the score”.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/mone-hits-out-at-workers-rights-after-start-of-tribunal-1-719678

13. A Former employee, (at a tribunal), Miss Woods claimed, “Mrs Mone asked women at job interviews if they planned to start a family and did not seem to appreciate staff taking time off for family reasons.”

http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/i-was-forced-out-of-job-by-bra-tycoon-1-716430

14. Michelle Mone, the bra tycoon, has pledged her support to Labour’s election campaign. The Scot extolled Labour’s economic and jobs record, yesterday, when the party outlined its plans for workers.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/mone-lift-for-labour-1-705286

15. Michelle Mone branded Chancellor Alistair Darling’s 50p rate “a disgrace” and likened it to “Monopoly money”. She confessed she might also now be considering a move to Hong Kong to continue her successful Ultimo business.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/97173/Darling-s-Budget-tax-hike-may-force-Michelle-Mone-to-uproot-for-Hong-Kong

16. Mone was branded a, “manipulative cow” by Rod Stewart over her decision to drop Penny Lancaster, his 34-year-old girlfriend, for his ex, after Lancaster was deemed not well enough known. The 60-year-old rocker said: “I hope she [Mone] chokes on her profits.” Ms Mone, 33, also received offensive e-mails over the move. But the real reason why Mone and Lancaster went their separate ways appears to be the usual culprit: money. It has come to light that when Lancaster’s 200,000-a-year contract to promote Ultimo ended, Mone asked if she could continue using the model’s image for another five months for free. The ‘offer’ was rejected as “ludicrous.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/bra-firm-thanks-ditched-model-rachel-hunter-for-her-support-1-1110684
http://www.scotsman.com/news/storm-in-a-d-cup-1-1298380
http://www.scotsman.com/news/not-a-penny-more-1-507786

17. Michelle Mone has bought out investors Sir Tom Hunter and Ian Grabiner in a deal understood to be worth £800,000. The Scots billionaire and the chief operating officer of fashion group Arcadia had invested in Mone’s lingerie company, Ultimo, when the business nearly collapsed after its launch in 1999. The firm has since prospered.

http://www.scotsman.com/business/mone-buys-out-ultimo-investors-1-1079065

18. Entrepreneur Michelle Mone is considering moving to the United States to further her television career. A regular guest on, “The Apprentice – You’re Fired” she revealed on social networking site, “Facebook” that she was torn between staying in Scotland and uprooting her children, to live in the US. “Decisions to make, offered a huge opportunity in LA but have to live there for a lot of the time,” she wrote. “Don’t think I can leave my home … wish I wasn’t such a home bird. “It would initially be for a year but huge decision as I would have to take kids out of school.”

http://www.scotsman.com/news/celebrity/lingerie-tycoon-michelle-mone-unveils-her-ultimo-dream-house-1-799642

19. In March 2002, Mone was 15 minutes from bankruptcy, salvaging the company only by putting up her house and her life-savings and borrowing 100,000 from the millionaire entrepreneur, Tom Hunter.

http://www.scotsman.com/news/a-model-of-diplomacy-over-lingerie-switch-1-519684
http://www.scotsman.com/news/15-minutes-of-pain-1-1299292

20. She may only have been two thirds of the way through her contract, but it seems that Abbey Clancy is no longer the face of Ultimo. The 28-year-old WAG has been sacked by Michelle Mone after the two fell out following another campaign which Abbey has recently fronted wearing next to nothing.

http://www.express.co.uk/news/showbiz/478227/Michelle-Mone-terminates-Abbey-Clancy-s-Ultimo-contract-after-model-stripped-off-for-Veet

This is Westminster- MPs’ 9% Pay Rise to be Implemented

MPs elected to Westminster in nxt year’s general election will start their tenure with a 9% pay rise. The Chief Executive of the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa), Marcial Boo said the proposal was not excessive, arguing politicians should not be paid a “miserly amount”. Their pay will be increased from £67,000 to £74,000. The proposed £74,000 figure was seen by some as being “at the low end”, he claimed, adding that pay needed to be fair to attract good candidates. Other quotes attributed to Boo;

a. “They are there to represent us all – to form laws, to send young people to war,”

b. “It is not an easy job to do. We want to have good people doing the job and they need to be paid fairly.”

c. “Now, that’s not paid in excess but it’s not being paid a miserly amount either.”

It is disgraceful and obscene that the Westminster system finds it acceptable to increase the salaries of MP’s whilst there are so many Scot’s on the breadline. Many have had no pay rise in years and the, incapacitated, unemployed and elderly are about to be hit with another round of Osborne’s austerity cuts. Surely this must be the, “straw that breaks the camel back”. Enough is enough. Scot’s need to send a clear message to Westminster that we have no interest in remaining with a political system that punishes the poor and enriches the rich. Vote, “Yes” in the referendum. Take Scotland back. Let us manage our own affairs.

Ed Miliband and Scotland England Border Controls

1. Ed Miliband issued, yet another, “scare story” threatening an independent Scotland with border controls. I expect he might be referring to the shambolic £1billion computerized system, (commissioned by the last Labour government) and recently written off by the Con/Dem government.

2. Rather than perpetuating mischievous myths Ed would be better advised to address his concerns addressing the intention of the, Irish government to embrace, in full the, “Schengen” open borders scheme, should Scotland vote, “yes” to independence.

3. The, “Common Travel Area” (CTA) “Schengen” opt out, allowing the UK & Ireland to maintain border controls was only useful to Ireland so long as decisions impacting on it were mutually agreed. Introduction, without consultation of the, “botched scheme” now requires Irish citizens to travel with photographic identification and current passports together with other means of identification.

4. The, “Common Travel Area” is no more but any move by the UK government to introduce border controls between Ireland and Northern Ireland would be strenuously resisted by the Irish on both sides of the border. In any event there are in excess of 260 road traffic crossing points on the border so policing it would be impossible.

5. I expect the UK will shortly review it’s decision to remain out of, “Schengen” since parts of the agreement have been adopted over the last 4 year’s.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2746369/We-ll-guards-Scottish-border-Ed-Miliband-reveals-incendiary-plan-new-poll-reveals-vote-knife-edge.html

The UK Border Controls Fiasco

1. Launched seven years ago by Labour and further developed by the Con/Dem government the, “e-Borders” computerized system touted by the government as the definitive solution to the perceived problem of insecure border controls has , “hit the deck”, (in polite terms a fiasco) at a cost to the taxpayer of £500million, (excluding a botched cancellation penalty of £230million). In total, including staff costs the writes off is around £1billion.

a. 20% of trips were not counted in and out of Britain or checked against terror and criminal watchlists.

b. 20 million travelers avoided full screening due to recurring catastrophic IT failures and management blunders.

c. 6 million travelers arriving by train, including Eurostar were not subject to advance immigration checks.

d. 10 million sea travelers, subject only to cursory checking slipped through the net without having their personal details compared against lists of killers and dangerous fanatics.

e. 4 million air passengers are subject only to cursory checking meaning that officials were denied full use of the system, a vital weapon in the fight against terrorism

f. The system proved to be incapable of producing an accurate, “headcount” of travelers moving, “in and out” of the UK, leaving officials in the dark about the true scale of illegal immigration.

g. Government ordered to pay £230m of taxpayers’ money to giant US firm behind disastrous border control scheme.

2. The Labour government’s promise to the Nation

a. The UK border will be, “exported” to other countries, forcing anyone attempting to get into Britain to reveal their personal information in advance.

b. The information gathered and passed to the UK border controls agency will be extensively checked against watchlists, security databases and then, logged on a vast database.

c. Extremists, criminals and wanted criminals would either be arrested at the airport or turned away. Alternatively, they could be placed under surveillance to identify terrorist plots.

3. From the outset, the system soon developed into a shambles.

a. It was delayed by EU countries who refused to participate on the grounds that the system breached Brussels directives, including on data protection.

b. There are still six airlines on the continent who are refusing to participate.

c. Technical problems meant people arriving on ferries, Eurostar trains, cruise ships and small planes were not screened in advance.

d. Even when known criminals and illegals were, “flagged” by the system, airports were not phoned in advance providing warning about their impending arrival.

4. Tory MP Philip Davies branded the project an absolute disgrace stating, ” The failures of the system should be attributed to the previous Labour government who had signed off a, disastrous, catastrophic contract”. The Chief Inspector of Borders, John Vine, confirmed in his report to Theresa May, (The Home Secretary)that the, ‘electronic borders’ project had started off badly and descended into a shambles. Theresa May cancelled the contract and the government was sued and lost.

5. The Expose Report

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2728359/A-new-fiasco-Britains-open-borders-20-million-people-arrive-leave-year-without-proper-checks-against-terror-criminal-watchlists.html

David Cameron Acting Tough
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2728359/A-new-fiasco-Britains-open-borders-20-million-people-arrive-leave-year-without-proper-checks-against-terror-criminal-watchlists.html#v-3702456951001

Teresa May Pledging Change and Improvements
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2728359/A-new-fiasco-Britains-open-borders-20-million-people-arrive-leave-year-without-proper-checks-against-terror-criminal-watchlists.html#v-2255098142001

Child Poverty & Early Death in Scotland

Child Poverty in the UK

1. The Government has a statutory requirement, enshrined in the Child Poverty Act 2010 , to end child poverty by 2020. However, it is predicted that by 2020/21 ANOTHER 1 MILLION CHILDREN will be pushed into poverty as a result of the Coalition Government’s policies’. (Barnardo’s ).

2. In the UK the share of national wealth is;

a. The richest 10% own the 60% of the UK’s wealth

b. The poorest 50% own less than 10% of the UK’s wealth.

c. The have-nots numbering about 5% own nothing.

The statistics are little changed from 1914, (the start of World war 10), the rich get richer and the poor get poorer

3. In Scotland, 870 000 people still live in poverty (17% of the population). 200,000 children in Scotland still live in poverty (20% of all children). this is significantly higher that in many other comparable countries. Faced with another 5 years of harsh austerity measures projections are that the number of children living in poverty in Scotland will increase by a further 100,000.

Inequalities in Health and Well-being

4. Inequalities in health, between the most and least privileged people and communities, are clearly apparent in Scotland. WHOLE life expectancy, at birth for men is;

a. 69 years for the most deprived 10% of the population.

b. 82 years for the least deprived 10%.

(a difference of 13 years).

5. The difference in HEALTHY life expectancy was even more stark;

a. 47 years for men in the most deprived 10% of the population.

b. 70 years for least deprived 10%.

(a difference of 23 years).

6. In many constituencies of Glasgow age expectancy differences are even more marked. Significant numbers fail to reach 60 years before dying. Of note and worthy of mention is that Labour Party MP’s are routinely returned to Westminster in these areas. Clearly these representatives have failed the public. Voters need to give thought to changing their allegiances finding politicians and a political system that will deliver real improvements to Glasgow & Strathclyde. An independent Scotland presents as an ideal way forward allowing the desperate needs of the West of Scotland to be addressed speedily since they will be freed from the UK poverty chain.

7. The foregoing very worrying statistics demonstrate how social inequalities in a range of life chances (early life experiences, education, employment, family life, income and wealth, housing, environmental hazards, etc.) can become literally, “embodied” and shape people’s health and longevity. Such differences are clearly unacceptable by any standards of social justice.

The Relentless Rise of Food Poverty in Britain

8. The UK enjoys the seventh richest economy in the world. It is also a deeply divided and unequal society. In May 2014, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that the richest 1% own the same amount of wealth as 54 percent of the population. It was also reported in the same month, (Sunday Times) that the 1,000 richest people in the country had DOUBLED their wealth in five years.

9. Yet at the same time, millions of families across the UK are living below the breadline. Oxfam and Church Action on Poverty have calculated that 20,247,042 meals were given to people in food poverty in 2013/14 by the three main food aid providers. This is a 54% increase on 2012/13.

10. Despite their best efforts, many people cannot earn enough to live on. UK food prices have increased by 43.5% in the eight years to July 2013 and food expenditure as a proportion of total household expenditure has continued to rise.

11. The UK has one of the highest levels of housing costs in Europe, while between 2010 and 2013 energy prices for households rose by 37 per cent. At the same time, low and stagnant wages, insecure and zero-hours contracts mean that for many low-income households, the money they are bringing home is less every month than their essential outgoings.

12. Tackling inequality and food poverty means paying people fairly for their work. Despite their best efforts, many people cannot earn enough to live on. A , “No” vote in the referendum would bring with it ever more misery and early death for Scot’s. A, “Yes” vote will ensure election of a Scottish government with a mandate to address the needs and aspirations of all Scot’s. Full article and references;

http://www.nhsforyes.org/child-health-inequalities-and-child-poverty/ Dr Anne Mullin, a GP in Glasgow.

Scot’s wha Hae

Wonderful play on words.

Trident Dependent Jobs at Faslane

Those who are comfortable retaining, securing the hugely expensive and (illegal to use) Trident Nuclear Missiles at Faslane make great claim that their removal would bring about the loss of 11,000 jobs in the local area. This is a lie, widely spread and repeated by successive UK governments as one of a number of, “frighteners” designed to keep the Scottish public onside.

The truth is that there are 520 jobs dependent on the secure storage and maintenance of Trident missiles at Faslane. Of the total well in excess of 50% are resident in England. These technical workers routinely commute from their homes in England to their workplace in Faslane. The bulk of staff living in or near Faslane are Ministry of Defence police responsible for the security of the site.

Moving the Trident missiles from Faslane to another location could be achieved, (assuming there was a secure site) in a matter of weeks.

Converting the facility for conventional defence (naval) use alone would be relatively straight forward and the new, “Home of the Scottish Navy” would bring with it a major boom in terms of permanent employment, expected to be around 15,000 jobs, in total and resultant financial security to the entire area.

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