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Chiefy1724

Listed below are comments made by Chiefy1724 between Tuesday, 3rd November 2009 and Thursday, 26th November 2009.

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Getting on with it 09:40am on 26 Nov 2009 Is there a Wind Of Change blowing through BBC Northern Britain Newsroom (and associated outposts) ? Brewer delivers on Newsnicht and the GMS team are clearly having a good go.

Gary Robertson obviously survived his session in Room 101 yesterday and came back this morning for an interview with The Grey Man on Minimum Pricing on GMS (Around 7-35am). The awkward questions were asked ("Are you not just turning this into a political issue rather than looking to the best interests of the health of the nation ? Your "commission" is just another way of kicking this into the long grass before the UK General Election ?") Of course, no replies, and The Grey Man just kept on talking over Gary as he had clearly been taught to do in his "Meedja Training".

The best one though was "If your commission recommends minimum pricing, will you accept that". The Grey Man replies "Well, it simply won't".

Also interesting to note that Gary finished the interview by referring to The Grey Man by his correct title of "The Leader of Labour in the Scottish Parliament" as opposed to the usual BBC Northern Britain "Leader of Scottish Labour".

Didn't hear Nicola on GMS at 8-10. How did she get on ?
Getting on with it 4:38pm on 25 Nov 2009 The Murph Muttering In Full:

1/ It's all really good (lowers voice) but this will only happen in the next Parliament if NuLba win the 2010 General Election. If we can pass it through the Westminister Parliament.

2/ Loyal Subjects of Northern Britain, if you are Very good and vote for Gordon then you might get some of what we might promise you sometime. Possibly.

3/ NuLab will (in very small letters, "if elected") "complete Donald Dewar's Devolution Legacy"

4/ Don't vote for those Nasty Nats. A vote for those Nasty Nats is a Vote for the Tories. Boo. Maggie Maggie Maggie, Out Out Out.

5/ Er....

6/ That's it.

Peter, Have I got to say Anything Else ? Oh, you've arranged for The Usual on Reporting Northern Britain and Newsnicht tonight ? Glen or Catriona ? And Gary Robertson has been assigned as Special Correspondant from Rockall ? Jolly Good.

Anyone got the latest betting on The Murph retaining Eastwood ?
Coming home 09:22am on 25 Nov 2009 I also heard The Murph this morning. Poor Gary, he'll be off to Room 101 this afternoon.

As Far as I heard,What he did wheedle out of The Muprh was

i) that "(this) will only happen IN THE NEXT PARLIAMENT IF LABOUR ARE RETURNED TO POWER"

ii) that The Treasury are unlikely to implement any of the proposed changes in the Tax System before TEN YEARS.

So the White Paper is meaningless. No powers will be handed over to The Parly in advance of next year's General Election. "Fiscal Responsibility" depends on the whims of Whitehall Manadrins.

SPIN, SPIN, SPIN......Listen Subjects in Northern Britain, be good and vote for Gordon and you might get some of what we might promise you sometime. Possibly.

Hang on, the Parliament has by dint of the Scotland Act the power to vary the rate of Income tax by plus or minus up to 3 percent. How can we do that by vote of Parly but have to wait Ten Years to set a base rate of 10% and have Parly add to that ?

Not saying that there aren't some technical issues in the way, not saying that either would be easy but it's jam (or rather bananas) tomorrow if and only if you vote for that Nice Mr Brown. Yes.

OK, elections are all about promises. But It is insulting that The Murph has taken this approach and is trumpeting the White Paper as "proof that Labour's approach to completing Donald Dewar's legacy" (or words to that effect) Is The Way, The Truth and The Light and that those Nasty Secessionists are bent on destroying our Scotland.

It's Time.
Coming home 1:53pm on 24 Nov 2009 Brian,

I nearly choked on my lunchtime sandwiches when I read your "It is entirely right, indeed essential, to ask awkward questions and expect answers."

Is this a Statement of Intent from the Northern British Newsroom of the BBC ? Has somebody finally found some backbones in an old cupboard somewhere sealed with a fist grasping a red rose, the numbers 1997 and the Phrase "Only to be opened in the event of Tory Government" ?

I strongly suspect however than any member of said august body actually asking awkward questions of, oh, purely as an example, of The Murph or The Grey Man will be either finding themselves posted as Special Correspondant from Rockall or Reporting to Room 101 for a spell of Re-Education.

Still, no chance of that, eh ? We await with interest the latest contributions from Glen and Catriona for dissection of The Awkward Questions.

Here's an awkward question to which we expect an answer.

Will a certain weel-kent BBC Northern Britain "Reporter" with previvious form in this regard either confirm or deny that she will be standing as a Labour Candidate in either the 2010 General Election or the 2011 Scottish Parliamentary Election ?

That aside, an interesting blog. We noted with interest the anti-Government spin in the article about The Gathering that you refer to and commented on that at the time.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

You do seem to be saying that for an "outlay" of £5.5m, the Scottish Economy gets a return of in excess of £44m ? I'ld like some shares in THAT please rather than shelling out another 12BN for Lloyds/TSB/HBOS.

Isn't that a quite astonishing return and one worthy of fulsome congratulation rather than the damnation by faint praise of your
article ?
Making the changes 3:30pm on 04 Nov 2009 #17 AstonishedII

It is a matter of record that Ms Renton was a Glasgow Labour Councillor "and the first Labour member to represent the "unwinnable" seat of Kelvindale." A quick search engining suggests that she was on the 1999 and 2003 Glasgow List for the Parly, on the 2004 Scotland List for the Euros and the 2007 Glasgow List for the Parly.

Just enter her name into any well-known search engine for further details.

As an aside, If one had a BBC Southern Britain correspondent of similar pedigree interviewing, for example, CMD, I wonder if somebody might suggest that the interviewer may not perhaps be objective in their interrogation ?

Isn't this the very reason that Elizabeth Quigley (a.k.a Mrs Elizabeth Swinney, wife of nasty secessionist SNP Finance Minister and former leader John) kept getting the Mrs McGlumpherty's Cat stories that are nothing whatsoever to do with politics in any way whatsoever on Reporting Northern Britain. Just in case there were any accusations of bias ?

It would be impolite and probably quite inaccurate of me to suggest that there may be dual standards in Operation at the BBC Northern Britain Newsroom.
Making the changes 2:44pm on 04 Nov 2009 #12 handclapping

HLLML suggests on his pages that "on the basis of two years’ experience, estimate that I will receive per annum allowances and expenses of between £30,001 and £35,000 for overnight and day subsistence and office costs and between £10,001 and £15,000 for travel to and from London."

He further goes on to say

"I undertake this work whenever my Scottish Parliament and constituency duties allow".

Nice non-job if you can get it.
Making the changes 1:27pm on 04 Nov 2009 #3 handclappin, #7 X_sticks

In the interests of accuracy I think that it would be fair to point out that His Lordship the Northern British NuLab List Member for the Lothians does not have 2 jobs. He is "A member of the House of Lords, for which he recieves no renumeration".

Details of his other jobs can be found his pages on the Parly website.

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msp/memberspages/George_Foulkes/roi.htm

Makes interesting reading for those fans of His Lordship

And to be fair to the man, he does say that he donated his income from writing a column to Youth Sport in the Lothians.
Breaking up the banks 08:13am on 04 Nov 2009 On the GMS Interview this morning with David Kerr

(Brownedov, about the same time as yesterday, a few minutes later)

Gary Robertson certainly didn't give Kerr an easy ride this morning, and for a Media Professional, Kerr came across as very stutterred and hurried and "errr...." in places. In similar vein to yesterday, GR was keen to hit in about the distinction between the campaign issues which are mostly devolved and the role of the GNE MP.

Kerr has IMHO left himself open. He blamed a lot of the ills of GNE on Glasgow City Council and their (perceived) Active Political Decision not to cooperate with the Scottish Government, particularly in the area of class sizes.

This is not why the people of GNE are voting for an MP. If the problems are on Glasgow City, then stand for election to that and try and make a difference there.

Gary did drag him down the road to Independence, which, let's be fair, is the raison d'etre of the SNP. But Kerr did come across a little bit as "everything will be better come the glorious day". Which lets face it, most of us ranting cyber-nats, sorry northhighlander, Ultra-Nats have been guilty of at one point or another.

All in all, another very fair interview from Gary Robertson. Kerr did not perform as well as I have seen and heard him but made Willie Bain's effort yesterday look like something from the Beano.

Other weel-kent DC Thompson comics are available)
Lib Dem weekend 12:45pm on 03 Nov 2009 #218 Brownedov

Time, erm.....possibly between the 7-30 news and about 7-45. Could be just the pre-side of the 7-30 but definitely after Thought for the Day.

Difficult to say as I normally have GMS in one ear and Mrs Chiefy in the other on the commute in....
Lib Dem weekend 10:07am on 03 Nov 2009 #202 Online Ed

I listened as well this morning and mentally have bumped Gary Robertson a few points up in the "Search for a Northern British Broadcasting Corporation Newsroom Backbone". I don't think that he gave Bain exactly an easy time, starting with a question that the main plank of Bain's campaign was on Reserved Issues and was he therefore saying that the 2 MSPs that cover GNE were ineffectual. He didn't let Bain off with this one either and kept coming back to it.

Full marks for trying. Guessing he'll be off to Room 101 for a spell of Re-Education though.

Bain came across as pretty poor IMHO.

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