Would Iain Gray Please Define Elite

The following is the Press Association release made about comments from the leader of the Labour MSPs Iain Gray:

Devolution may have benefited "elite" groups more than the general Scottish population, Labour leader Iain Gray has said.

His comment came as he prepared to deliver a lecture on 10 years of devolution at Edinburgh University.

Mr Gray warned that politics must shift from "identity to values" - and hit out at the SNP's "obsession" with independence as a solution.

Now that makes interesting reading for a number of scores. One just under 80% of the time spent under devolution, Scotland has benefited from a Labour First Minister and many of the ministerial roles being held by his Labour colleagues. So while I think he is trying to be disparaging about the SNP he is also being very disparaging about his Labour colleagues and indeed the Lib Dems who shared power with them.

Secondly I wonder if the elderly who gained free personal care count as elite? Or those who get their eyes tests free? What about the various students from all walks of live who do not have to pay tuition fees in Scotland? OK I can see them ending up being part of the elite but not all of them started there and without than many of them would not have started a degree.

What about the whole population who will benefit from the targets and actions taken to make Scotland a greener place, a knowledge based economy and other such actions which benefit many not just the elite. There is also the smoking ban which was brought in to help those that had no option but to work in some of the lowest paid jobs from the effects of passive smoking.

Just what does the Gray man of Holyrood mean by elite, you have to ask oneself when so many benefits have come to Scots that Labour in England have yet to deliver or trailed behind with.

Who's Debating You? Salmond has Turned One Down

It has been a hot topic of conversation in Scotland over recent months that Alex Salmond has been saying he wants to be involved in debates in Scotland ahead of the general election. He has even threatened legal action if he is not allowed into the Prime Ministerial debates.

Well if looks like he has refused to answer a challenge from the Scottish leaders Labour's Iain Gray, Lib Dem Tavish Scott and Tory Annabel Goldie to a debate. Indeed let's also invite Patrick Harvie of the Greens and if Alex doesn't show empty seat him. I've since the first ramifications said there should be a Scottish wide debate instead or as well as one of the proposed debates. It is not a compromise but a recognition of the devolved nature of politics here in Scotland, an answer to the West Lothian Question as far as the debates issue is concerned. I'm sure a similar thing will occur in Northern Ireland and I'd wish it also happens in Wales. But Alex is letting his ego get the better of him.

He has stated his ambition of getting 20 seats in the General Election, but his super-ego is getting the better of him. He thinks as First Minister of a devolved Parliament he deserves equal billing with the Prime Ministerial contenders and at the same time thinks he above the opposition leaders in that devolved power. He is in the no mans land, not on the same stage as the others and with his one extra seat considers himself better than Grey and the rest.

Turning down this offer of a Scotland debate on terms of parity while seeking to set, control and bully the UK wide agenda (without consideration to other more nationwide parties) for his own self shows that the ego is what is ruling the SNP decisions on the debates issue.

Lucozade All Eck Wants for Christmas

Apparently the Rev I.M. Salmond First Minister to the new kirk of Holyrood wants a year's supply of Lucozade™ for Christmas. Well this does raise the questions is that in bottles or cans? How many bottles/cans does he get through in a day? What capacity bottle (if bottle is preferred option) does he use? Also does his dentist know he drinks this many sugary drinks on a daily/yearly basis? And if so, what has the First Minister's dentist got the say about it?

I follow commend Scottish Lib Dem leader Tavish Scott's wish on this wish list, though it will be somewhat delayed in delivery. He like me is hoping that Liverpool maintain their current position in the Premier League when the final, final whistles of the season are blown. For those not au fait with football that would mean Liverpool have finally won a title for the first time since 1989-90, the first under the Premier League brand and will help to keep the marauding Manchester United at bay from equalling our record of titles for at least another 2 seasons.

The Labour Leader Iain Gray wants Barack Obama's Ray-Bans™. These are probably so he can attend an East Lothian constituency party function without drawing attention to himself.

Meanwhile elsewhere Margo MacDonald clearly wants to be Willie Wonka by wanting a whole chocolate factory, maybe Margo is going to attempt euthanasia by death by chocolate. Margaret Mitchell is a bit Michael Jackson-esque is wishing for a chimpanzee and Willie Coffee wants a Star Trek™ phaser gun (this is available just up the hill from the Parliament and down South Bridge at Forbidden Planet™), unless of course he wants a fully functioning model in which case he may have to wait until after Montgomery Scott is born in Linlithgow.

Are Lloyds-TSB Labour's Policy Wonks?

Just what was new Nu-Labour Scottish MSPs leader Iain Gray implying when he said that a Scottish Local Income Tax would affect Scottish jobs with HBOS?

Surely the man who is leader of only 45 other people isn't implying that a bank should be setting policy in Scotland? Last time I checked the board of Lloyds-TSB were not members of the Scottish Parliament. Also last time I checked Sarah Gordon Brown wasn't chief executive of Lloyds-TSB-Halifax-Bank of Scotland. So just what is Gray up to? Is he using a crisis for political gain? Scaremongering on a new tack with the same old refrain but with a new menace lurking in his wake?

The warnings from the CBI that Scotland's stalled economy would fail to grow once the crunch is over and that a consensus (when 46% of the people are actually in favour of LIT) are running on empty Iain. We've all seen that the wealthy are really only in it to keep as much of their own wealth to themselves and bugger fairness to those on the lowest incomes, very much like Labour policy. Ordinary people are looking for progressive not regressive taxation at the moment as they are struggling to make ends met. That way the hard working on lower incomes can spent theirs on what they need to spend it on rather than having a bulky flat rate tax set for something which in not reflective of their ability to pay.

Of course Gray did hint that Council Tax may have runs its course during his leadership election but has nothing concrete to bring to the table to replace it. We'll wait and see just how many of the same people also attack those proposals if and when they appear. Strangely people will always complain about their taxes and then always find the faults in any replacement system rather than weighing up the pros versus cons.