POLLING DAY PAY DAY FOR LABOUR EX-MINISTERS

POLLING DAY PAY DAY FOR LABOUR EX-MINISTERS

GOLDEN GOODBYES ARE LABOUR’S FINAL INSULT

A parliamentary question to the UK Cabinet Office has revealed outgoing Labour Ministers received over £1m in pay offs after losing at the General Election.

In a written answer to SNP MP for Perth and North Perthshire Pete Wishart, Cabinet Minister Francis Maude revealed that outgoing Labour ministers received a total of £1,051,202 in severance pay. Mr Wishart challenged Scottish Labour MPs, who were Ministers in the last government, to reveal how much they had received.

Commenting, Mr Wishart said:

“At a time when workers across the public sector are paying the price of Labour’s mismanagement of the economy, these golden goodbyes are the final insult.

“Voters kicked Labour out of office, and these payments are essentially a reward for failure. May 6th was a polling day pay day for Labour Ministers – collecting hefty pay outs as they headed straight to the opposition benches.

“In these uncertain times, as job cuts loom across the public sector, it will not sit well with many that ex-ministers were feathering their nests.”

Mr Wishart added:

“In the interests of transparency, those Scottish Labour MPs who took this reward should say how much they have received.”

MacNEIL WELCOMES RECOGNITION OF ISLAND CONSTITUENCIES

MacNEIL WELCOMES RECOGNITION OF ISLAND CONSTITUENCIES

SNP MP for Na h-Eileanan Iar Angus MacNeil MP has welcomed the announcement by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, that the Western Isles and Orkney & Shetland will be excluded from the Boundary Commission’s review of constituency boundaries which is intended to greater equalise the electorates of all other constituencies.

Commenting, Mr MacNeil said:

“I have long argued that island constituencies are unique and cannot be parcelled up into neat population bundles in the same way as inner city seats.

“The announcement by the UK Government today is welcome recognition of this. It’s great news for the people of Na h-Eileanan Iar as a community constituency and a victory for common sense."

TORIES ADMIT THEY ARE TOXIC IN SCOTLAND

TORIES ADMIT THEY ARE TOXIC IN SCOTLAND

Commenting on a report in the Sunday Herald about a leaked Scottish Tory party memo where their deputy leader admitted his party is “toxic” Glasgow SNP MSP Bill Kidd said:

“Unusually I find myself agreeing with Murdo Fraser - his party is a toxic brand in Scotland. The fact is that the Scottish Tories have not moved on from the Thatcher years. “This memo shows how out of touch the Tories are with Scotland. They can't be trusted and have learnt nothing.

“It only goes to show that leopards don’t change their spots, and that this is still the same old anti-Scottish Tories.

“However it should also be borne in mind that the outcome of the UK election was not an inevitable Tory government. There was a progressive, anti-Tory alternative on offer but Labour MPs from Scotland preferred the comfort of the back benches.

“Yet Labour let the people of Scotland down. They promised to protect Scotland from the Tories - instead they undermined Gordon Brown and opened the door to a toxic Tory government in Scotland.”

ARROGANT LABOUR REASSERTS ITSELF WITH RETURN OF PURCELL

ARROGANT LABOUR REASSERTS ITSELF WITH RETURN OF PURCELL

LABOUR CAN’T BE TRUSTED TO WEED OUT CRONYISM

Commenting on reports that two businessmen, who only donated to the Labour party after their company benefitted from a £1.7 million land deal from the Labour-run Glasgow City Council, have given former council leader Steven Purcell a post with their charity, Glasgow SNP MSP Anne McLaughlin said the whole episode was another fishy deal involving Labour donors.

Commenting Ms McLaughlin said:

“It would appear that the Labour party which thinks that it can get away with looking like it is up to its knees in cronyism and corruption is reasserting itself. The same Labour party which presided over a widening in the gap between rich and poor.

“This is not the first indication we have had this week that Labour’s links with businessmen and planning decisions is highly questionable. We already have the revelations about Councillor Docherty in South Lanarkshire as reported this week.

“In the case of Steven Purcell the Labour party should be answering what part they played in this appointment?

“Then to add to those revelations we also have the Evening Times articles about Glasgow crime groups cashing in on million of local government contracts.”