Better late than never

So the party of 'spend, spend, spend' has finally woken up to the fact that we are giving far too much to the EU in these times of austerity. Either that or Labour just wanted a stick to beat David Cameron with because they are not known for being either prudent (and Calton is using the word in its true, pre-Brown sense) or anti-EU. Whatever the reason for their vote today it's better late than never. The EU budget is out of control and the British taxpayer is the loser. What Calton can't quite get his head round is a Conservative Government being defeated by Labour and its own backbenchers for not being tough enough on Europe. Extraordinary. Times are certainly changing.

Totally depressing

It's bad enough to have to come back to the city after a wonderful week in the West Highlands without being depressed further by Alex Salmond's announcement today of yet another stupid renewables target. Murdo Fraser is quite right when he points out that the SNP's target is "completely underpinned by wind power. Not only is that an unreliable and intermittent source, but it's led to turbines blighting communities across the whole country." As yet, you can still get wonderful views from the mountains on the west coast without turbines blotting the landscape but for how long? The amount of truly wild land in Scotland is rapidly shrinking and, with it, the attraction for tourists. We are cutting off our nose to spite our face.

The EU - an obituary

MP Douglas Carswell has likened the UK's membership of the EU to being 'shackled to a corpse'. Calton couldn't have said it better himself. The EU is a deadweight which both the UK and Scotland could well do without. It stinks. No amount of tinkering with it will sort its problems. It is fundamentally flawed. It's pushing up the daisies. It wouldn't live if you put 5000 volts through it. It is an ex-union. Hopefully the legal advice which the Scottish Government is now finally getting around to asking for vis-a-vis the EU will tell them that we won't automatically be a member if we become independent. Then the people of Scotland can really have a choice about who governs us.

Keep up the pressure Jackie!

Calton likes to think of himself as a fair-minded person and he came away from watching Alex Salmond's interview with Andrew Neil with the distinct impression that the First Minister was deliberately trying to obfuscate the question of legal advice. The phrase used by Salmond -  "in terms of the debate" - is, at best, open to differing interpretation and, at worst, totally meaningless. Of course it's no surprise that Nicola Sturgeon has leapt to her leader's defence (although Calton wonders when she is finally going to realise that Eck is a liability rather than an asset) however, thankfully, Jackie Baillie is not letting the dear Leader off the hook. More power to yer elbow Jackie!

Praying for a minority government

It's not often that Calton gets his prayers answered in 3 days however, with today's damaging admission by the SNP that they have not in fact sought legal advice from the Lord Advocate over Scotland's membership of the EU post-independence, it is clear that there is a God in heaven who listens, unlike the Scottish Government. What is truly scandalous is the fact that the SNP were prepared to spend public money on a useless court battle against a FOI request by Labour MEP Catherine Stihler (which they have now dropped). Their credibility is going down the toilet. All it needs is for a few more SNP MSPs to resign from the party over NATO and we might well be back to a minority government. Calton is off to say his prayers.

Wanted - a longer spoon

It's no surprise to Calton that the SNP are prepared to ignore the advice of the Electoral Commission, given that they don't listen to anyone else. And for Nicola Sturgeon to say that Scotland won't be "bought and sold for anyone's gold" is a nonsense when the SNP are bribing voters with free personal care, frozen council taxes, free prescriptions and free bus travel for the elderly and the average man or woman in the street would vote yes or no to independence depending on whether or not it made them £500 richer. How can the SNP Government possibly make an impartial decision on spending limits for the referendum campaign? That's the role of the Electoral Commission. Unfortunately Michael Moore seems to have been duped by the Deputy First Minister into thinking that the SNP would abide by the Commission's advice. More fool him. You need a longer spoon than he has got to sup with the SNP.

A bit on the tough side

Calton apologises for the brevity of his posts at the moment but he is on holiday in the Highlands, where the scenery is to die for and you could die waiting for a web page to update! The only super-fast download happening hereabouts is the emptying of Calton's bird feeder by the local population of Coal Tits. And just in case you are concerned about the thought of a Sea Eagle feeding small birds, it's OK - Calton only eats politicians. He might have been tempted to have a bite of the recently departed Tory Chief Whip however the Labour vultures got there first and Calton suspects Mitchell would have been a bit on the tough side, despite hanging (on) for so long.

Does money Trump class?

That's right Eck - play the class card, like we've all forgotten your own attempts to cosy up to the likes of Murdoch and Trump. Or is it OK if they've got money as long as they didn't go to Eton? Who are you trying to kid? This isn't so much about Lord Snooty as shades of Desperate Dan. Salmond has also pledged to 'tell the truth about Scotland'. Hopefully that will include a response to the FOI request about what legal advice, if any, the Scottish Government has obtained regarding our position in the EU if we become independent.

Pot calling kettle black

It's a bit rich of John Swinney to say that it's time the Chancellor George Osborne listened, given the SNP's own poor track record of listening to the electorate. If Swinney and his pals have their way, Scotland will be an independent basket case with a large deficit and a downgraded rating, paying high interest on her debts to fund the SNP's vote-winning handouts, until the EU wades in and tells them to cut spending. As a party, the SNP have realised that Scotland will have to be a member of NATO if she wants to be taken seriously past-independence. Unfortunately, the same maturity is not evident in their approach to government finances. Time to grow up, boys and girls.

Staying in the EU is nonsense

It just does not make sense for the SNP to keep complaining that, as part of the UK, they do not have all the fiscal levers needed to help the economy, while all the while they are determined to stay/become part of the EU if Scotland becomes independent, especially in the light of Frau Merkel's most recent comments in which she stated that the EU should have "real rights to intervene in national budgets". Which of those seven rather frightening words does Alex Salmond not understand? Is it only unacceptable to the SNP when England intervenes in Scottish affairs but it's OK if Europe does it? Who would you rather have sticking an oar into our budget - England or Germany? Calton would rather have the former any day of the week. If our First Minister truly wants independence he needs to go for our own bank and our own currency and stay out of the EU. Anything else is just nonsense.