The game's a bogey

At last we seem to be getting somewhere with a sensible fisheries policy which will hopefully end the shameful practice of discards and help small boats. About time too, although it still has to get through a vote in the European Parliament. Groan. Calton is just surprised that Richard Lochhead is still a fan of the EU given the hassle he's had over this. When is the penny going to drop amongst the SNP that, if we were not in the EU, we wouldn't have the hassle? It's called 'independence' folks - if you've the bottle for it. Forget William Hague's idea of a red card - Calton thinks we should grab the ball and walk off the pitch. There are times when the game's just not worth the candle.

Not so expert independence experts

Nicola Sturgeon has rolled out Hollywood film producer Iain Smith, award-winning chef Roy Brett and events expert Prof Joe Goldblatt to back her argument that Scotland would be better off independent. Unfortunately, Brett seems to be confused between Westminster, which is in charge of VAT, and the EU, which determines our fishing policy. Under the SNP's plans, an independent Scotland would only be able to control the former - the fishing policy would still be out of our hands. Maybe he should stick to cooking. Calton also has his doubts about Goldblatt, who thinks that an independent Scotland would "become one of the most successful tourism destinations in the world". Not once the SNP have covered it with windfarms it won't. It will also not be so attractive to film companies for location shoots once the landscape has been industrialised on a grand scale (unless the next Bond film has a helicopter chase though a windfarm as its opener). Scotland does have a lot of assets and a lot of great businesses. We are being hampered by Westminster's restrictive immigration policies, brought in because they have no control over immigration from within the EU. The answer is not "independence within Europe" but for the Scottish Government to work with Westminster to help businesses by reducing red tape (much of it from the EU), and to agree an immigration policy which takes account of Scotland's needs. Unfortunately there is not much sign of that happening between now and next September.

Endangered species of the political kind

At time of writing, the Times vote on whether we should be in or out of the EU was 56% OUT to 44% IN. Calton voted OUT. That should come as no surprise to his regular readers. If we left the EU our farmers would at least be able to bury their dead sheep instead of paying the knacker to take them away. We would be able to manage our own fish stocks. We wouldn't be forced into an unaffordable energy policy by EU directives. We would be our own boss again. Unfortunately Alex Salmond is so wedded to the European ideal that even UKIP's tremendous gains in last week's English elections fail to warn him of his impending doom if he carries on down the EU path. For far too long our political elite have not been listening to voters and have not given them a choice on Europe (or gay marriage). It's therefore no surprise that UKIP are cleaning up - no the EU, no to gay marriage, no to windfarms. What's not to like? (Unless you are a Libdem, in which case you are an endangered species.) If the SNP don't start listening to the electorate, they too will be on the endangered list.

Mackerel wars - our secret weapon

Is anyone else getting completely and utterly bored with the way the SNP respond to any opinion which differs from their own with scorn and insults? Calton is certainly getting bored blogging about it. Please would someone tell Ms Sturgeon that the definition of arrogance is dismissing your opponents as arrogant because you don't have a decent argument with which to reply to them. If the Icelandic fishing boats had as many holes in them as the argument for independence we wouldn't be having any mackerel wars. As it is, Richard Lochhead is still hoping that mediation will work instead of getting his claws out and going for the kill. Calton thinks we should send Nicola off to deal with the Icelanders and put Richard in charge of negotiating with Westminster. That way, whether or not we get independence, at least we'd get our fish back.

People power

At last - the European Parliament has woken up to the fact that people do not like seeing perfectly good fish being chucked back into the sea to feed the ... er ... fish. We'd rather be eating them ourselves. As ever, the devil of the deep blue sea is in the detail, and there is still the not insignificant hurdle of the totally undemocratic European Commission to be overcome, however hopefully it won't be long before all the fish caught by Scottish boats is landed by Scottish boats. That just leaves the small problem of the mackerel quotas. Time to send in the gunboats Richard!

Attack shark

It is a truth, universally acknowledged, that a man in possession of a ministerial portfolio must be in want of a fight. Richard Lochhead has therefore decided to pick one with Iceland and the Faroe Islands over mackerel. Quite right too - it's about time the Scottish Fisheries Minister showed his teeth. As far as Calton is concerned, Lochhead should quit circling round with his talk of a mediator and go in for the kill. If he wants an example of how it's done, he can always take a look here.

Benyon wellies in to the EU

First the good news - no cut to the number of days Scottish fishing boats can put to sea next year, thanks to Richard 'Wellington' Benyon, UK Fisheries Minister. There's still a possibility of a cut in the cod quota, which would lead to more shameful discards, depending on talks with Norway, however there is now more optimism that a sensible outcome will be achieved in January. Here's hoping.

Now the bad news - Scottish oil revenue forecasts have halved in the last eighteen months. The black gold is in danger of running out, which would deal a hammer blow to the SNP's plans for Scotland to be an independent socialist utopia within Europe. First of all, the EU might not want us if we don't have as much oil as we thought we did. Secondly, the SNP's spending plans will send us into big deficit country without big oil revenues and, thirdly, their idea of stashing away some of the oil money into a fund, although very sensible, will exacerbate the deficit problem unless accompanied by a reduction in spending, something the left-leaning SNP are reluctant to do. Of course the SNP have reacted by disputing the figures. Well they would, wouldn't they!

Wanted - a Wellington

Nice to see Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon taking the side of our fishermen against further EU cuts in the cod quota. A cut of 25% in the number of days they can put to sea would be a disaster. Although stocks are not rising quite as fast as some would like, there is no need for continued action of such a drastic nature. Unfortunately, Benyon not only has the European Commission to deal with but also the European Parliament. This may yet turn out to be his Waterloo. Calton hopes he has a Wellington moment, for the sake of those who earn their living in wellies.

Continuing the sea theme, it would be good if, in all the recent talk of Scotland's oil riches, we take time to remember the cost paid by the North Sea safety boat crew member who died in the storm last week, and others like him, along with their families and friends. In a week which has seen the worst storm in living memory batter Scotland's east coast, Calton is reminded of words from another century by William Whiting:

"Eternal Father, strong to save,

Whose arm hath bound the restless wave.

Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep

Its own appointed limits keep:

Oh hear us when we cry to Thee

For those in peril on the sea."

SNP assertion on EU membership proved false

SNP MEP Alyn Smith was just plain wrong when he said there is "nobody wanting us to leave" [the EU] "not least in Scotland" in Brian's Big Debate today, because Calton wants us to leave the EU and he is resident in Scotland. Yet another meaningless SNP assertion. Have they actually asked any of the 27 member states whether or not they want an independent Scotland to stay in the EU? Do they really think that continued access to Scotland's fish will be enough to outweigh the Spanish Government's concerns over Catalan and Basque separatism? If the rest of the EU decide that they do want us it will only be because they recognise a good deal when they see one and we will be the losers. It seems that both the First Minister and his Deputy are so keen to remain part of the EU that they will gladly trade anything in exchange for continued membership. How pathetic is that? They'd rather beggar this country than change their policy on Europe. Calton calls that sad.

Barking at the EU

What part of "any new independent country would have to apply to join the EU" does Nicola Sturgeon not understand? Has she too been deluded into thinking that all she needs to do is keep re-iterating her false beliefs and they will happen? The President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso, has made it quite clear that we would have to negotiate entry into the EU from outside if we became independent. The SNP make not like it and they may not agree with it but they are kidding themselves on if they think that they can go to the European Commission and say "you're wrong - we're right". Yes we've got (dwindling) oil reserves. Yes we've got (dwindling) fish stocks. But let's not fool ourselves that the EU will welcome us with open arms, and, if it does, do we really want to trade our oil and fish for membership of an undemocratic fiscal basket-case? Seriously? If Scotland is such a great export market for other EU countries we can surely negotiate good trading terms with those countries from a position outwith the EU, while protecting assets such as our fish. That would be the really sensible option. Unfortunately the Deputy First Minister seems to have completely taken leave of her senses. Absolutely barking.

Norwegian satire

The Norwegians must be having a laugh - awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to the EU in a week which has seen French fishermen chucking half bricks at UK fishing boats and demonstrations in Greece against the German Chancellor Angela Merkel. Satire may have died when the prize was awarded to Henry Kissinger but, if so, it has had a miraculous resurrection. Ironically, Norway is not a part of the EU. If it were, perhaps its government would not be so quick to praise that most undemocratic of institutions for 'advancing democracy'. As for 'peace and reconciliation', tell that to our fishermen. Their job is dangerous enough without a barrage of missiles to contend with. Tell it to the Greeks, whose economy has shrunk by 25% under German-imposed austerity measures. There may not have been a pan-European war since 1945 but the shadows of the last one are all too present in the current Greek crisis. We would do well to remember that the cause of WWII was the punitive reparations forced on Germany at the end of WWI.

Send in the Navy

Calton has long argued for a 200 mile fishing limit policed by gunboats. The need for it has become even more apparent since the French seem intent on not playing by EU fishing rules. That's nothing new or 'plus ca change' as they say in France. Back at home it seems that all our officials can do is monitor the situation. Not good enough chaps - what we really need is a modern-day Nelson to see off the French and protect our fishermen. Somehow Calton can't quite see Fisheries Minister Richard Benyon in that role, nor is anyone from the Scottish Government stepping up to the plate, in spite of the fact that Scottish boats have been attacked. The 'auld alliance' may have served Scotland in the past but those days are long gone. Time for us to tell the French (and the rest of the EU) where to go. With gunboats.

End fish dumping now!

Calton is pleased to learn that an end is possibly in sight for the disgraceful practice of dumping perfectly good fish at sea due to the EU quota system. Of course, if we were not part of the EU and had a 200 mile fishing limit enforced by gunboats, that would be even better. As it is, there are still some hurdles to be crossed before the ban on discards comes into force, namely the European Parliament and the European Commission. Now, if Scotland were independent and outside the EU, we wouldn't have to wait for permission from those two institutions, only one of which is democratically elected. We could end the dumping now. So why the SNP keeps insisting that we should be part of the EU is beyond Calton.

Mackerel wars

It's all very well trumpeting the fact that the value of fish landed last year by Scottish boats was up on previous years. The real truth is that the number of boats has dropped, along with the number of men employed on them, and profits are being squeezed by high fuel costs and a cut in the number of days boats are allowed to put to sea. Calton is just surprised anyone is still bothering to try and make a living from fishing, given how hard it now is, and what is the Scottish Government doing to help? Not a lot. Mackerel stocks, which account for a large part of the increased landings, are threatened by overfishing by Iceland and the Faroes and we as a country are dependent on the EU to do something about it rather than being able to defend our own fisheries. That doesn't give Calton a lot of confidence. Nor will becoming independent make any difference if we follow the SNP's vision of 'independence in Europe'. What we really need is a 200 mile limit and some gunboats!