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Listed below are comments made by Skip_NC between Thursday, 8th October 2009 and Wednesday, 25th November 2009.

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Getting on with it 5:28pm on 25 Nov 2009 #27 Leftie, I agree with almost all of what you say. However, I do believe it is possible for HMRC to break down tax receipts in the manner you suggest. Of course it won't happen and here's why:

The UK government has, for many years, led the world in "double taxation" treaties. In fact, the British model treaty was the basis for the one that is used throughout the world now. It would be simple enough to apply that treaty and compute the tax revenues due to the Scottish Treasury. I am sure a Revenue Officer could knock up a computer file in his tea-break. I am equally sure that he could be prevailed upon to send it by second-class unregistered mail in the hope that the file will get lost on its way to the Scottish Government.

And therein lies the problem. The UK government is offering this unworkable, half-baked, inefficient scheme because the truth is unpalatable to them.

Brian, we all know mathematics isn't your strong suit, so why don't you get a nice, helpful tutor to guide you through at least some of the basics so you can ask Jim Murphy searching questions on this topic?
Under pressure 6:57pm on 23 Nov 2009 #21 Reluctant_Expat,

You seem to be rather confused. Just so you are absolutely clear, Alex Salmond had no power to implement Local Income Tax. It would have required a majority vote in the Scottish Parliament to implement it by way of the limited tax-varying powers contained in the Scotland Act. The SNP do not have enough seats to do this on their own but they did try to gain support for this (the Greens and Lib Dems would have been enough) but the Lib Dems could not agree with the SNP proposals. Rather than waste an inordinate amount of time and energy on something that was going nowhere, the SNP government wisely decided to concentrate its energies on matters that could achieve consensus within the SP.

Incidentally, my understanding is that the Lib Dems wanted LIT to cover savings income as well as earned income. This would have contravened the Scotland Act and the SNP were correct not to agree.

Brian,

As for the police forces, I believe there are eight in Scotland. How many do you propose Scotland should have and how would a reduction improve effectiveness? That could easily take up a blog all by itself. Why don't you give it a go?
Devolution as evolution 4:49pm on 18 Nov 2009 Hang on a minute. The time is not right for the Scottish electorate to have an informed debate, so we are told. However, the time is right for an English-dominated parliament to have an uninformed debate? Do I have that right? Am I the only one who thinks that is just plain daft?

Brian, assuming I am not out on a limb here, it seems that you have lots of interesting questions to ask of the Calman Commission "supporters." I look forward to their answers with interest.
Wise warning 5:45pm on 16 Nov 2009 #253 Neil_Small147 (previous thread),

I agree any government needs a strong opposition. I was thinking that an independent Scottish Conservative Party could carry out that task in a free Scotland.

As for the current blog, oh dearie me. "Working together" will not necessarily achieve the world's goals. What will is common-sense banking. Here in North Carolina we have been hit less hard than many parts of the USA (although unemployment is higher than it might be). In terms of banking, NC has Bank of America and had Wachovia (now owned by Wells Fargo of California) - NC-based but national players.

However, what it also has is a couple of very strong regional banks who kept away from the exotic deals and stuck to boring banking. We also have a solid credit union, (like an old-fashioned building society) bigger locally than BoA or Wachovia, which kept the lid on the mortgage market. It is those banks who are lending (responsibly) to businesses and consumers and it is those banks who will lead NC out of recession ahead of the pack.

We can work together all we want, but those who prosper will be those who get back to basics. Banks do not create wealth. They merely create the right conditions for wealth.
All to play for? 9:56pm on 15 Nov 2009 #247 JRMacClure,

Personally, I'm keeping an eye on the Modern Whig Party. If they can get their act together (and get rid of the "Fair Tax" advocates) they could certainly win the votes of those who lean Republican and a goodly number of Blue Dog Democrats.

Labour will certainly have a role in an independent Scotland. However, if they do not give themselves a shake, they may find themselves filling the "protest vote" role that the SNP vacated some time ago. What a delicious thought!
All to play for? 9:46pm on 15 Nov 2009 #242 JRMacClure,

I'm not oldnat but I did experience the joys of education in East Lothian. If it isn't broken, don't fix it. I understand from relatives that schools across the county still provide, generally, the excellent education I enjoyed. If that is the case, any changes should be approached with great caution.

Having said that, the article you linked to suggests that Cllr Berry is actually looking to preserve the status quo by shielding the schools from the worst of the public spending cuts that are coming Scotland's way in the next several years. Education is essential to life as we know it. If the quality of education is threatened, anything that can be done to preserve it should be welcomed.

To avoid nightmares about my teachers visiting this blog and critiquing my writing I have purposely omitted the names of the schools I attended!
All to play for? 9:19pm on 15 Nov 2009 #229 JRMacClure, your observation about Labour's long and hard recovery made me think of what my granddad said after "Sunny Jim" Callaghan decided to delay the turkey-roasting in 1978 by six months. He said "If Labour loses the election they will be out of power for fifty years."

I found that an incredible thought but he has yet to be proved wrong.

Anyway, the question in my mind is this - when Labour recovers what will they recover as?
Secret talks to crack the Nutt case 6:21pm on 11 Nov 2009 #14 Politicallyincorrect,

Greetings from an expat Scot in Raleigh, North Carolina. You are right in your analysis. It is an argument that is put forward at every election this side of the pond - vote out all incumbents. Unfortunately, one has to bear in mind the issue of postal votes. Look at what happened in Glenrothes last year and what is happening right now in Glasgow North-East.

For a long time I was opposed to PR - weak governments and all that rot. The last 2 1/2 years (in particular) in Scotland have convinced me that a sensible PR system (ie, one NOT designed to preserve a cosy coalition) is the way forward. Will Westminster be brave enough to impose upon itself what it has imposed upon the three smaller nations within the UK?
Anything to declare? 9:58pm on 09 Nov 2009 Greetings from Raleigh, North Carolina.

So we have one blog post on the forthcoming by-election. Compare that with the number of words on this website that were expended upon the sundry US elections held last week. Contrary to what the BBC tries to suggest, the contests told us very little about the political winds over here. Interesting to a political junkie but of no relevance to the electorate of Glasgow North-East.

In the meantime, we have nothing of note on this website relating to a by-election that is of some relevance.

Am I the only one who thinks that this abrogation of responsibility to inform means that the BBC forfeits its right to a mandatory licence fee? If I were still liable for that impost, I would feel very aggrieved.
'OK pal, outside, now' 5:51pm on 08 Oct 2009 Greetings from Raleigh, North Carolina. Well, I have to say I was disappointed when wee Wendy went on her way. Thursdays just weren't the same and I thought Iain Gray might actually have blossomed (?) into a half-way decent parliamentary party leader. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. Today's fifth question was almost as bad as Wendy's "I have no more questions."

Contrast that with the dignified exchange between Alex Salmond and Annabel Goldie. It might actually achieve something. Isn't that the point of FMQ's?

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