The whole S.N.P. election strategy was built on lies, they wanted a Tory win in order to spread the it’s Westminster’s fault myth. There was never a hope in hell that they could have had any influence and they knew it, we voted no by a large majority to independence thus limiting the influence of the Scottish members elected to parliament and the majority of the U.K. electorate voted tory . David Cameron is right to exclude some E.U. citizens from voting in the in-out referendum, I wish we had for the general election and that the S.N.P. had been defeated as they are truly Scotland’s shame

Toby says: “Carmichael’s sin was denying all knowledge of the leak when asked about it at the time”

Following the leak Alastair Carmichael lied. He was asked clearly and without room for misunderstanding whether he had leaked the memo. He clearly, and without room for misunderstanding responded that no, the first he’d heard was from a Telegraph journalist afterwards.

The lie, which Carmichael has had the grace to admit to even if Toby’s not so sure, was intended to smear an opponent in the runup to a general election. That’s irrelevant to his position. The memo wasn’t correct, that’s also been admitted by Carmichael, if not by Toby, but that’s irrelevant too.

The issue is that Carmichael lied, revealing an aspect of his character which, if his electorate had known it at the time, might well have changed the outcome of the election he was fighting in Orkney & Shetland. It’s an additional pointer to his character when you consider that he could have admitted his lie before the election, but waited to do so until afterwards, and in fact until he was certain to be revealed as the source, and as a liar.

Alastair Carmichael should step down to fight a by-election, giving his electorate the chance to consider his actions and his apologies. If, after that process he is re-elected then many folk, even those who believe he was wrong to leak the memo, would accept that he’d done the right thing and deserved to represent the northern isles.

But as things stand he is an MP who deceived the electorate in his constituency during the election campaign. His position is not tenable.

The Memo was based on a 3rd hand telephone call.
1.4 Million Sterling in 6 weeks to find out what Alistair Carmichael MP could have been honest about in the first place.
A Solicitor, Ex Procurator Fiscal Depute, the Right Honourable Gentleman is a well trained and qualified liar.

The SNP has a very idiosyncratic view of the truth. Like the Moonies, whom they closely resemble in many ways, the SNP feels entirely relaxed about lying in their own cause. Thus last year they put before the Scottish people an entire tissue of lies, without compunction. salmond lied about EU membership, the currency, the extent of Scotland’s oil and gas reserves, their value, and the extent of the public spending deficit.

Connoisseurs of salmond’s delusional nonsense will recall that in his notorious Celtic Lion speech (2008) he raved that an independent Scotland would join the Ark of Prosperity (Iceland, Eire). Almost immedately those two economies went belly up, and salmond was the butt of more jokes. So salmond’s corrupt minsters tried to expunge the gaffe from the public record – you can read an account of the blundering shifty clowns’ cover up here http://www.newstatesman.com/blogs/david-allen-green/2011/06/global-economy-world-scotland

What a bitter little man Toady Young is. Chippy isn’t the word.

Good old Toby, an English nationalist through and through. In the fines traditions of journalism, never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

It’s fun to read such uninformed articles. London-centric politicians and commentators haven’t a clue about Scotland. The chasm between Scotland and England continues to grow. More please.

” it’s hypocritical of the SNP leader to complain about duplicity, given her party’s conduct in the run-up to the referendum.”
The tendancy to smear seems a singular penchant carried by those opposed to the SNP (instinctive or otherwise) and Toby Young proves he is no exception.
Let’s be clear about the people who were involved in this cack-handed effort to smear Scotland’s First Minister:
There was of course Alistair Carmichael, a Tory/LibDem Government Minister, who by virtue of his Party’s sheer collapse throughout the UK,new he faced a daunting task to retain his Islands seat against the SNP.
His special adviser, Euan Roddin, is the man credited with orchestrating the secret meeting between Alistair Darling, (the late) David McLetchie, Jim Murphy, Douglas Alexander and Cameron’s spin doctor Andrew Cooper.
A meeting that led to the so-called “Abbotsford Accord” with the sole function of discrediting the SNP by any means possible.
Toby Young persists, despite all the evidence, to assert that the contents of the leaked memo were an accurate account. That this is undermined by Carmichael himself who admits the contents were “incorrect”, that they were flatly denied not just by Nicola Sturgeon but by France’s Ambassador to the UK and the French Consular General appears not to prompt any self-doubt in Toby’s almost psychic self-belief, as he preaches the opposite of the truth to Spectator readers.
The reason why Carmichael must place himself again before the judgement of electors, is not to satisfy political egos, but plain and simply because his admitted dishonesty, his blatant attempt to smear Scotland’s First Minister and his apparent belief that foreign diplomatic conventions would protect him from discovery.
This is a “British” way of doing politics that has been responsible for turning off generations from engagement in the democratic process.
It is a way of doing politics that was rejected absolutely by the people of Scotland and it says a significant amount about Toby Young that he seeks to defend and excuse it.

“For Scotland to wash its own face would mean massive public spending cuts.”

That’s assuming a Scottish government would have the sense and integrity to cut its spending to the appropriate levels. One suspects they would instead spend themselves into the ground and then try wangle it for the UK government to pick up the tab. Nevermind that in the scenario of an impoverished Scotland, a flood of Scottish jobseekers to the UK would be a de facto case of the UK paying for Scottish debt.

Disgraced former Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill finally admits that the ‘Sein Fein’ SNP Government are human rights abusers on prisoner voting rights, Scotland is on the road to fascism, there isn’t any room for justice under unpopular Nicola Sturgeon

Dear All

Kenny MacAskill was the worst Justice Secretary in the history of the Scottish Parliament.

He got the job because he was basically Alex Salmond’s pal; this was the criteria it seems to hold Ministerial Office in the SNP Government. Through-out his rein he was dogged by controversy, one of the cases which showed him up as a lemming was the Cadder Case.

What is interesting about the Cadder Case was the UK Supreme Court had to act to ensure that Scots got access to a fair trial. MacAskill fought tooth and nail against this case, at the time, I opined that human rights couldn’t be replaced by effectively was ‘gifts’ by the Crown Office. Although Cadder the individual wasn’t exactly a pillar of the community, he did more for justice in Scotland as ‘deadbeat’ than Kenny MacAskill did while holding ministerial office.

On the Cadder Case, George Laird was right again by the way, it was they say an open and shut case.

During the Scottish referendum, the SNP deliberately continued to disenfranchise a section of the population resident in Scotland from exercising their right to vote. These people were prisoners who were locked in prison. The issue of prisoner voting is an issue that most politicians won’t touch with a barge pole because everyone is signed up to ‘tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime’.

This slogan was Tony Blair’s mantra while in public office.

Anyone not signing up to this was attacked by the other parties and described as being weak and pro criminal.

Giving people their human rights isn’t and shouldn’t be a matter of whether we like them, or what they stand for, or even what they have done previously.

So, a political consensus emerged which was ‘fuck criminals, we don’t want their votes if they are in prison’.

My position when the issue cropped up at the referendum was that the prisoners should be allowed to vote. This view is in line with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) who ruled the blanket ban on prisoners voting is a breach of human rights.

According to MacAskill view now, the Scottish Government must review its “shameful” position, during the ‘shame’ episode, Kenny MacAskill had no problem in doing two things, one, collecting his Ministerial salary and secondly keeping his mouth shut.

Keeping your mouth shut doesn’t make you a team player, just in case you motherfuckers didn’t know that!

You are either the Justice Secretary of Scotland or you are not, is my opinion, plainly MacAskill was Alex Salmond’s placeman.

MacAskill’s sudden conversion to ‘faith’ is that he thinks the SNP must back prison votes to fight Tory human rights plan.

I get the sense, this isn’t about restoring democracy and human rights but rather this is a political manoeuvre. The Conservatives want to repeal the Human Rights Act 1998, and replace it with what is termed the British Bill of Rights.

The problem with the Human Rights Act 1998 isn’t that the Bill is wrong, but the wrongful judgments which arise from it, like allowing terrorists to have a revolving door to attempt to defeat the ends of justice. Another misuse is allowing foreign criminals the right to remain in the UK on the basis they can cite another part of human rights as a justification as a breach.

One of the gags used is right to family life to avoid deportation.

David Cameron wants to replace the human rights act with a British Bill of Rights but it rather looks like people will get less rights; and as we head towards a possible exit from the EU, this may look to some as long term housekeeping.

We don’t have a bad human rights act, we have bad judges.

Writing in The National newspaper, MacAskill admitted that he was “complicit” in the “wrong” decision to oppose granting convicted prisoners the vote.

He added:

“That’s an issue that has come before the European Courts on many occasions and in which they have been quite clear. A blanket ban is unacceptable and in conflict with human rights, notwithstanding that the UK Government has simply refused to comply and indeed Prime Minister David Cameron has said that the very thought of it makes him sick. Shamefully, the Scottish Government has so far refused to adhere to the spirit and the judgements of the European Courts. Initially it hid behind the franchise being reserved to Westminster but did indicate that it did not support its extension to prisoners. That was compounded by replicating the Westminster line in the franchise for the referendum. Votes were granted for 16 and 17-year-olds but not prisoners.

Kenny MacAskill also said:

“In that act I am as complicit as any as the former justice secretary. It was the wrong thing done, albeit for the right reasons. It was to avoid any needless distractions in the run-up to the referendum, to deny the right-wing press lurid headlines that could tarnish the bigger picture. But the referendum is behind us and the Tory press have failed to stop us. To have credibility on the issue the Scottish Government must now review their position on votes for prisoners or the defence of the Human Rights Act will ring hollow.”

This is basically rubbish, but lets us home in on this part:

“It was the wrong thing done, albeit for the right reasons. It was to avoid any needless distractions in the run-up to the referendum, to deny the right-wing press lurid headlines that could tarnish the bigger picture”.

So, I read this and I think, this is a person who doesn’t give a shit about human rights, doesn’t give a shit about justice and thinks that Government exists as an election and referendum tool.

The job of the Justice Secretary is to oversee a justice system that is fair to both sides in a legal, during his tenure as Justice Secretary, Kenny MacAskill was so far up the arse of the Crown Office; you would have thought he was their employee instead of being their boss.

As to Sein Fein SNP adopting MacAskill’s position, I don’t see unpopular Nicola Sturgeon taking an interest in giving people their human rights; she hasn’t really expressed an interest in that as a politician.

Scotland is on the road to fascism, there isn’t any room for justice.

Yours sincerely

George Laird

The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University

Is that piece written by Toby Mug, certainly not a Journalist of any note.The People of Orkney & Shetland will have their day with Carmichael in Court,now thats called Democrecy.

The degree to which Carmichael is in the proverbial, is indicated by the extraordinary lengths to which fellow Unionists are going to argue ludicrous justifications for colluding with a self confessed Cabinet level liar.

In any other circumstances the same people would be howling for his head.
But the SNP threat has them defending the indefensible.

The sad levels to which a corrupt Union has been reduced to perpetuate its sorry existence.

Time to put it out of its misery.

This article is absolutely on the button. About time someone spelt out the truth of SNP behaviour.

Ah Tobes, against Passion Reason is always defeated.

Another in the long tradition of click-count articles from this scurrilous “magazine” (I’m being very generous there). Expressly designed to bring out the malignant Mr Angry Of England and the equally malignant Mr It’s Not Fair That We Lost of Scotland.
Yawn!

All is fair in love and politics!

Tomorrow’s SPECCIE EXCLUSIVE :

“SNP REFUSE TO COMMENT ON REPORTS THAT THEY WOULD BOIL UP AND EAT YOUR CHILDREN GIVEN HALF A CHANCE”

The SNP leadership today refused to deny that they would gladly eat children, and family pets, in an independent Scotland………

Hi,
Would a normal person buy a life insurance from Mrs. Sturgeon or a second hand car from Mr. Salmond?

Toby has of course missed the point.
Sturgeon can call on AC to resign but cannot make him go. The only power that
can do that is the electoral court, hardly a kangaroo one, that will decide if his conduct, not in the General Election, but here, in Orkney and Shetland was appropriate – that is now a question for judges and we look forward to hearing the result.

I am in a position to comment, though not on the merits of the case, because I an
one of the four people whose name is on the paper work. We brought it because we accept Alistair Carmichael’s apology and think that the appropriate place to
express that is in the ballot box right now.

Over 3000 people have raised the funds to help us begin the case. Their generosity enables us to exercise our democratic rights. I would have thought that kind of grass roots activity would be the kind of thing that Toby would support.. This is not a campaign support byeither the local or national SNP. It is a few people and our mates who want tosee political change. I am sure most people here would disagree with our politics, but isn’t this the kind of citizen action that brings back faith inwhat people can achieve.

You can find out more about us at the ‘People Versus Carmichael’ the campaign site.. We are very close to reaching our target and I am confident that the commitment to justice of Spectator readers will mean that
many will want to contribute.

Let Carmichael stay, his refusal to go is destroying the Lib Dems in Scotland.

brilliant