exile

Very bizarre, first 10 mins all about the SNP, they're not there!

Yet again unionists Scots on QT tonight - this time 2, Gove and Alexander Gove can't help mentioning Alex Salmond - what is it with these people?

Can't believe how well people think Cameron did. Like him or not, at least Farage scored some hits if you like that sort of thing, as did Miliband (IMHO). Cameron was just like a news reader reading a press release.

p.s. For the record: Farage - turns people suffering from HIV into a political football

Great to hear a spectrum of views (Green etc) making the 'big two' looking just like 2 blokes Format better than expected - but only 4 questions - one on EU/immigration - suited Farage Cameron wooden and on the back foot; Miliband got a few hits on Cameron, and Sturgeon (+Wood + Bennett) got a few hits on both Big parties too busy attacking each other to bother attacking SNP - no mention of Alex Salmond (!) Farage seemed a bit detached banging on about the one issue but probably effectively so for his target audience Nick Clegg I'm afraid I stopped listening to anything he says a long time ago

“Some leaders may have more time speaking during the programme than others, taking into account the different roles and responsibilities of the individual leaders." "The audience has been picked not according to the current polls but a specific ratio. It means from an audience of 200, there will be 40 undecided voters, 35 Tory, 35 Labour, 28 Lib Dems, 21 Ukip, 14 SNP, 14 Green, and 7 Plaid Cymru supporters." http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/apr/02/leaders-debate-cameron-miliband-and-clegg-may-get-more-speaking-time

I agree Cameron may try to use SNP to make Miliband weak. But in general I don't see why Cameron and Miliband would go out of their way to talk up the SNP threat - especially as SNP are there to defend themselves - they'd probably prefer to paint SNP as an irrelevance to the main fight, rather than get dragged into a fight which they know little about. I don't see why Sturgeon would go for UKIP in particular. Any other party can have a pop at them. Why waste ammunition on a party that is on the decline? If anything a vote for UKIP in Scotland splits the Unionist vote. If the 4 Unionist parties were to gang up on Sturgeon, surely they'd only be stating what everyone already knows about SNP ambitions to break up Britain - hardly shock news. It could even be counterproductive if it seems like Labour and Tory are singing from the same hymn sheet. Where will the bananaskins come from? More than abuse or brain fade, I think they need to avoid letting slip some ugly opinion or prejudice they normally keep concealed. As that could have a lasting effect.

2 more corkers from the Torygraph Boris: If Miliband wants to be PM, he will have to let the Scottish tail wag the English doghttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/general-election-2015/11502956/Regressive-sarcastic-and-pious-welcome-to-Britain-under-Ed-Miliband-and-the-SNP.html Nicola Sturgeon – the most dangerous woman in politics Don't fall for the SNP leader's charm – she only cares about destroying the Unionhttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/SNP/11509628/Nicola-Sturgeon-the-most-dangerous-woman-in-politics.html Over 1000 comments since this morning...

Monitoring sexism in election news coverage http://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk/2015/04/views-not-shoes-monitoring-sexism-in-general-election-news/

The DUP leader said his MPs would not support any administration that relied on the SNP or Plaid Cymru so long as these parties were advancing policies to break up the union. “If a government was being propped up by a separatist party that was using its position in order to extract levers of separation then clearly we could not support that,” Robinson said. He qualified his warning however by stating that “if the ask of any party that forms such a support group for a government party is for purely regional issues, then that is a very different matter indeed.” http://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2015/apr/01/election-2015-100-business-leaders-letter-back-conservatives#block-551c25b4e4b0e961ee18557c

One in five of the businessmen who signed pro-Tory letter were given honours by David Cameron and one third are Tory donorshttp://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/one-in-five-of-the-businessmen-who-signed-protory-letter-were-given-honours-by-david-cameron-and-one-third-are-tory-donors-10148897.html

We have 14 pages of material on project Stop the Jocks. But wait: Gillian Bowditch (Sunday Times) says the English are not fussed about the Scots voting SNP, they are comfortable in their own skin, and the only people who should fear the SNP are the Scots! Article reproduced here: https://www.facebook.com/BritU1/posts/759658794141348 "Even the most patriotic, haggis-speaking, Gaelic-eating, kilt-waving, Saltire-wearing, Braveheart-loving nationalist could be forgiven for feeling a tad weary of the mania for viewing everything — from the rugby to the weather — through the prism of nationalism." Does she read the TAMB?

The SNP wants not to help Westminster but to burn it down, claims Paddy Ashdown http://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/wider-political-news/the-snp-wants-not-to-help-westminster-but-to-burn-it-down-claims-paddy.122028238 Meantime, Mr Johnson described the prospect of a Labour-SNP arrangement as "chilling the blood of sensible people across the UK".

Last year's referendum (says Jim) was just a temporary alignment, and the constitutional issue is behind us. But is it? At least Ruth Davidson has a coherent message and has the guts to play the unionist card. Not sure what Labour stands for any more. Something reminded me of Northern Ireland. There it polarised into DUP and SF. Now the UUP - who previously lorded over NI - have no MPs at all...

A letter to the Herald noticed this: IF it wasn't so serious the concocted outrage and panic at the thought of Scots exercising their democratic right to vote for whomsoever they please would be a laughing matter. When the BBC can carry an on-screen banner of "SNP Threat" throughout a flagship UK-wide political programme any doubts of media bias fly out the window and when the SNP are in effect accused of "radicalisation" of schoolchildren any semblance of reason and balance quickly follow it. http://www.heraldscotland.com/comment/letters/snp-are-in-line-for-a-severe-shock.121838894

Bosses' letter backing Tories fuels business battle http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/election-2015-32141412 Do Labour/Better Together campaigners recognise anything here?

Labour are acting like they own Scottish voters http://www.politics.co.uk/blogs/2015/04/01/labour-are-acting-like-they-own-scottish-voters Includes comment on Jim Murphy's arguments on the Today programme today (when he silenced Jim Naughtie by asking him back when the last time the largest party didn't form a government)

In terms of meaning of 'world class', would you say someone like Rino Gattuso was world class?

... when Dundee Utd and Aberdeen were taking on the likes of Roma, Barcelona, Real Madrid...

But seriously (ish)... if you mean why are they different - why one is fixed date (any day of week) while the other is fixed set of days of the week.... - good luck with that one.

That would be an ecumenical matter

isn't cameron's family from jura, and lord 'stone dead' robertson of islay? same genetic pool?

http://www.scotsman.com/news/tom-peterkin-time-for-sturgeon-to-rein-in-salmond-1-3729057

Alex Massie's take on it http://blogs.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/2015/03/everything-yes-voters-believe-about-the-scottish-independence-referendum-is-wrong-but-that-doesnt-matter/ In short: Yes voters are deluded, but the Union could still be doomed.