Who made the poppy a political symbol? For those who collected the flower from fields in France 90 years ago and many bereaved relatives at home it was a symbol of respect for loved ones lost, but it can be used politically and has been shamelessly politicised in Scotland in recent years, where the symbol of national loss has been exploited.
In itself, the poppy is not political, it occupies the same territory as the black armband, but even this worldwide symbol of respect has been exploited for political ends by footballers in the past.
I can understand why many in England are furious that Fifa consider the poppy a political symbol and have banned England for wearing it against Spain this week, but since a few live to exploit the flower for political ends, the Fifa decision is correct.
Before making the decision someone at Fifa would have undertaken cursory research into the subject. Searching Google for “poppy football” a few weeks ago would have returned this (now archived) result. I’m sure you recall; a banner at Celtic Park, which didn’t make the news on the day it was displayed, or on the next day, was badgered by someone into the news on day three. Celtic were the target of that exercise, the England team are now collateral damage.
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Michael McMahon MSP on the Christine Grahame allegations
http://fansagainstcriminalisation.blogspot.com/2011/11/michael-mcmahon-msp-on-christine-graham.html
“As Convenor of the Justice Committee Christine Grahame has a responsibility to ensure that the Scottish Government is doing all it can to protect people from sectarianism and racism and any questions raised about her position on this matter must be cleared up as soon as possible. Given the nature of these allegations and the concerns that such an allegation raise I would urge Christine Grahame to consider her position on the Justice Committee until such times as any investigation into this matter has been completed.
Questions already exist about Ms Grahame’s neutrality while considering the so called Bigot Bill as she appears to believe that more Catholics need to be arrested to even things up in society. She clearly cannot be viewed as an impartial participant in the process of scrutinising this controversial legislation and while these allegations remain under investigation she should not be steering the Committee’s interrogation of the Government’s unpopular proposal”
Was that her getting interviewed in the parliament yesterday evening….think she was wearing a white poppy!
Aaaaargh, more poppy debate….
T4
philvisreturns says:
10 November, 2011 at 12:31
That’s pretty much the reality of it.
Apparently Carter-Ruck (shurely shome mishstake) are on standby for this one.
philvisreturns @ 12:23
“Raw animal cunning is more effective than intellect in Scottish politics”
I agree. Bearly literate with a raw animal cunning. (worth a repeat imo)
Her display of intent to “even up” the number of arrests was telling:
1. Her awareness that one group made up more victims than the other, from statistics that are now “lost”. (Lies of course).
2. Her intention not to deal with this properly, but rather to even up the numbers.
3. She is a zonal marker, and conceded a massive own goal from ace striker and Celtic legend Tom Devine.
!!Bada Bing!! says:
10 November, 2011 at 12:32
How many days now ,big man ?
Some of you seem to believe this is just the disgruntled ranting of an ex-employee.
Okay, well let me put it this way. This is a guy who has accused a senior political figure, involved in a major piece of legislation, of being a bigot, of holding abhorrent views out of sync with the stated political and social philosophy of her party, and furthermore, of being a bed-hopping megalomaniac, even going as far as to “name names”.
This is all newsworthy, and at a time when the SNP are rising in the opinion polls we have friends in low places like you would not believe if the basis of these allegations is true.
Let’s start with the Unionists. No great lovers of the “Catholic cause”, this is a chance in a lifetime to torpedo a senior member of the Scottish government, send them into freefall and internecine strife, split them along religious lines and terrify half the population into ever casting a ballot in their name. And you think they will forego that chance?
The guy has written this blog under his own name. He has announced his intention to take the party and Grahame to a tribunal. The very fact he accusses her of having an affair with a married Tory MSP, who he names, for the record, is dynamite enough to catapult this story onto the national front pages … and journalists will be digging for it, especially those who’s newspaper groups are staunchly unionist in their outlook … like the Record, the Mail and, of course, Murdoch ….
This is dynamite waiting for the lighting of a fuse. Pure and simple. Someone should forward it to someone like Kevin McKenna. The Catholic Church press office will be all over it. I think she’s in big, big bother.
If Graham is guilty of having sectarian views then it begs the question, why was she given such a prominent role in the setting up of this new bill. The views she alledgedly holds must be common knowledge among her fellow party members – including Salmond.
If these allegations are proved to be true then it’s more than her who has cause to worry. Whoever put her in this justice committee role should be worrying too.
ernie lynch – I think it was more a case of Labour being absolutely delighted to obtain the support of the Murdoch press, and now feeling free to attack them because they no longer enjoy that support.
But I’m a cynic.
However, if the Murdoch press is genuinely, as alleged, a mafia-like “criminal enterprise”, and the Labour government, despite being in office for 13 years, knew this but was too cowardly to do anything about it, then they should never again be entrusted with the reins of government. (thumbsup)
ernie lynch @ 12:29
That’s a possibility but he’s much shrewder than that imo, and has enough experience in politics to know that something like would, if true, come out eventually. Unless such attitudes are more common than we dare think within Holyrood.
James Forrest is Lennon says:
10 November, 2011 at 12:37
Agree and if anything you understate it. She might just be toast.
Fortunes Favour Mibbes – Still, you have to admit… she’s not bad looking for a musk ox. (thumbsup)
James Forrest
I didn’t read that. I scrolled on by.
Honestly. ;o)
MWD
anyone see this???
mmm…. another debate
A day after the row over Fifa’s rules on the wearing of poppies on football shirts, The Premier League have unveiled a new “Christmas Truce” youth tournament to be played in Ypres, honouring those who died there in the first world war.
The inaugural tournament, featuring under-12s from Manchester United, Borussia Dortmund, Lens and Genk, will be played on 3-4 December this year at the home of the Belgian club KVK Ieper.
The Premier League say the tournament, named after the unofficial truce which took place on 24 December 1914 in the trenches around Ypres, which is believed to have included a football match, will “honour the sacrifice made by previous generations of football players in World War 1, whilst also promoting the development of the game’s future stars”.
A Premier League statement said the focus was on both “player development and education”.
“In line with the principles outlined in the Elite Player Performance Plan, this is an opportunity for the most promising young players under the age of 12 to further their development by challenging themselves against the best players in Europe.
“The tournament will also have an educational purpose. World War 1 is often part of the curriculum for Year Seven children and so this will be a unique and valuable learning experience. The boys will be recognising the role of professional football players in World War 1 and commemorating their sacrifice.”
The Manchester United team will visit the Ypres Menin Gate Memorial and lay a commemorative wreath.
Ged Roddy, director of youth at the Premier League, said: “This is an opportunity for the next generation to honour heroes of the past, and build for the future. Tournaments like this are vital to development of players as per the EPPP. To create more rounded footballers it is important that we play the best with the best.
“But their education is vital also and this will be a very beneficial cultural experience. One of things that Ofsted highlighted when we got our ‘Outstanding’ rating was that Premier League clubs encourage open minds that accept and welcome other cultures.
“We will be using the Christmas Truce Tournament to foster the development of closer relationships between European clubs.”
philvisreturns @ 12:39
Musk ox? Whatever floats yer boat :)
Henriks Sombrero says:
10 November, 2011 at 12:37
Don’t think anyone foresaw the interest there would be in this matter.
Normal Justice Committee meetings attract very small audiences.
MWD:
Hehehe. Apologies for my tone of the other day fella … some stressful things going on right now.
Feeling better today tho … this news is highly interesting and my antennae are twitching at the potential for major fallout.
We live in interesting times.
VP- 12 mate.G64 has been quiet….
new article posted.
Moonbeams WD. \o/ Supporting Neil Lennon 100%. C’mon the hoops. says:
Knew you would break first ,ya big safty.:O)
Big Nan @ 12:42
You’ve been quite up to speed on this (thankfully!).
Do you really think Salmond hasn’t seen the potential explosiveness of this bill, and the madness of putting such a person in charge as convenor?
I’m struggling to believe that. Politics is a right murky world. So’s Scottish Law it would seem, another area she’s done well in.
James Forrest is Lennon says:
10 November, 2011 at 12:44
Hehehe. Apologies for my tone of the other day fella … some stressful things going on right now.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Were you also stressed out when you advised me to jump off a tall building?
The ironic thing is, I normally read, and enjoy your posts, although the lack of an apology from yourself still rankles.
JF; I hope that’s the case but more likely this’ll probably be turned on to the Celtic Trust or indeed Hirst and dismissed as ‘paranoia’; any journo worth their salt would be digging as we speak to see if there’s any truth in these allegations.
It’s quite simple, if she doesn’t deny these allegations she must be removed from the process immediately and if Salmond is serious about tackling bigotry he must sack her from the party. Anything less will not suffice if these allegations are true.
James Forrest at 12.37
“The very fact he accusses her of having an affair with a married Tory MSP, who he names, for the record, is dynamite enough to catapult this story onto the national front pages”
Presumably that’s why it was a front page story in 2005.
Voguepunter
That’s cause I’m a good ghuy.
MWD
Let’s not forget that she’s the one that stated that legislation was required to “balance things up” (I paraphrase).
henryclarkson 10 November, 2011 at 11:10
Thanks for posting that link
Thought this was worth posting in its entirety, quite shocking to be honest
——
Holyrood Confessions Wednesday, 9 November 2011
A personal perspective on the ducking and diving at Holyrood
SCOTLANDS SHAME
It’s a highly controversial issue that normally would have had the SNP running for cover, but they have, it would seem, taken the bull by the horns (at least they think that’s what they have in their hands!) and beginning to “tackle” Scotland’s centuries old “shame”; sectarianism.
The SNP has a rather unfavourable track record on sectarianism which might explain why it’s taken them so long to try and get round to dealing with it in recent months and in the form of the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Bill.
The late Willie Wolfe who led the Party for 10 years between 1969 and 1979 was openly hostile to the Catholic Church.
In letters subsequently published by his predecessor Gordon Wilson, it was clear his objection to Catholics was not driven, as some in the Party have recently suggested, by an ideological desire to ensure State and Church remained separate, but because Wolfe believed Catholics were conspiring to violate “the statutes establishing the U.K. and securing the Protestant Religion in both England and Scotland”.
Wilson subsequently wrote to Wolfe condemning his “bigoted anti-Catholic views” but much of the damage was already done.
Traditionally most of Scotland’s Catholics at that time backed the Labour Party and any tendencies they may have had to support the SNP was completely off-set by the perception that senior figures in the Party held such strong sectarian views.
It was during Wolfe’s leadership of the Party that Christine Grahame joined the SNP.Historically she had voted Labour, but unlike her brother had resisted joining that Party. She told me that her motivation for becoming an SNP member was that they seemed to have “more fun” with more social activities with fundraising quizzes and musical nights. It also gave her the chance, she said, to escape for a few nights a week from what was clearly the heavy burden of parenthood.
It would be years later before she would contemplate standing for the Party. In the early 80s the SNP came very close to completely imploding.
Both the Socialist 79 Group, (which Alex Salmond, Kenny MacAskill and Roseanna Cunningham were members of) and the ultra-nationalist Siol nan Gaidheal were expelled from the Party.
Grahame deliberately stayed away from this battle and quietly tried to steer a middle path for fear of ending up on the losing side, a cowardly and duplicitous strategy she would repeat many times in her political career.
THE WINDING ROAD TO POWER
I first met Grahame in 1994 at a meeting in Galashiels also attended by Alex Salmond when she was standing, under her married name of Creech, as the MEP candidate in the forthcoming Euro elections.
It was fairly evident from the body language of the two that neither had any great respect for the other. Locally things weren’t much better with fierce infighting that simmered away for years and culminated in a very public row over who would be the SNP’s parliamentary candidate in 1997. Grahame had a clear ability to encourage warring factions within the local Party and manipulate them to her own advantage.
Willie MacKay, then an SNP Councillor denounced Grahame in meetings and also privately in his efforts to secure the candidacy. The bitterness exchanged between the two surprised me. Ultimately neither would secure the nomination and a compromise candidate, Ian Goldie, was put up instead. Grahame deeply resented this, but had no other choice but to accept it.
Shortly before the election though MacKay announced his defection, along with another SNP Councillor Murray Hendrie, to the Labour Party.
Both subsequently claimed that as socialists the Labour Party represented a fairer option for ordinary working class people and families… they had not gambled on Tony Blair though, as he effectively dragged the once socialist Labour Party firmly to the political right where it remains to this day.
ANTI-CATHOLIC PARANOIA
In 1999 Grahame was elected on the regional list and entered Holyrood for the first time. Her ambition, she said, was to continue to deliberately target the Borders Tweeddale seat which she hoped to lure away from decades of Liberal control.
The first inclination I got of Grahame’s sectarian views came after the appointment of the SNP’s Michael Matheson MSP as “Shadow Deputy Justice Minister”, with Roseanna Cunningham taking up the Shadow Justice Minister portfolio. Grahame remarked that the two were as “thick as thieves” and whispered in the office “they are both Catholics, you know that?” “So what,” I thought.
Initially I put this down to the flashes of paranoia I had witnessed before from Grahame, rather than some deep seated sectarian prejudice. One of her first instructions to me after I was appointed was not to communicate with Michael Russell MSP, the former SNP Chief Executive who I had previously dealt a lot with. Russell had closely supported my work during the campaign I had been involved in, down in the Scottish Borders, against the US venture capitalist firm Viasystems who were trying to close two local factories and pay off 1200 workers.
I had a very good working relationship with Russell then, which it was clear Grahame was unduly suspicious and deeply paranoid about. Russell had come ahead of her in the regional list vote and it was apparent she saw him as a threat to her long term political ambitions.
At one stage, due to illegal employment practices being directed towards me by the US electronics giant, Russell on behalf of the SNP threatened to take legal action against the Company. “Mark Hirst is held in high regard by colleagues and in the local community,” Russell wrote and the Company finally backed down. I had got the first big hint though that my employment with Grahame was going to be no walk in the park.
SECTARIAN ABUSE
At this point I was an active member of the SNP.About a year after I had started work at Holyrood word came through from the Tweeddale branch of the SNP that Murray Hendrie, the former SNP Councillor who had defected to the Labour Party along with Willie Mackay in 1997, wanted to re-join the Party. Grahame was furious and relayed her anger to local Party officials that he must not be accepted back into the SNP.
She instructed me to attend the forthcoming Branch meeting to be held in the Salmon Inn , Galashiels where Murray would make his case to be re-admitted to the Party.
Prominent local activists were present, such as Jim Gibson, Anne Murray and local Councillor John Mitchell. I relayed to the meeting Grahame’s “public” objections to Hendrie being allowed back into the Party.
Responding Hendrie surprised me, and possibly other members present, when he argued that Grahame’s real motivation for not wanting him back was because of the sectarian, anti-Catholic views she held.
A discussion then ensued and it was clear to me that this allegation against Grahame was not news to some of the longer serving members. As I drove away from the meeting I began to wonder about what other prejudices were lurking in Grahame’s mind and the fact I myself was brought up as a Catholic.
Although I have long been a practising, evangelical atheist, I was perhaps more acutely aware of sectarianism than other local members of the SNP and had witnessed and been subjected myself to sectarian abuse as a child growing up in Glenrothes.
I subsequently relayed to Grahame, by phone, how the meeting had gone and how the issue of her alleged anti-Catholic views had been raised. She told me she hoped the local branch would not be “stupid enough” to re-admit him but that if they did she would aim to block it by appealing directly to the internal SNP body that considered membership applications from activists who had previously publicly resigned.
Notably she made no effort, in the conversation with me, to dismiss Hendrie’s central allegation that her objections to him were based on her alleged sectarian prejudice.
THE CATHOLIC “MAFIA”
After I returned to work for Grahame in late 2004, it was clear little had changed. The office was still a shambles and her “work flow” completely disorganised. Having worked the previous 3 years in properly run offices, it was a bit of a shock to return to the chaos. Grahame’s paranoia though was ever present and perhaps even more pronounced.
Previously when I worked for her I had been given an easier rein to operate without constant supervision, but now “everything” had to be passed through her for approval. I immediately began to regret my return.
A few months before Grahame had been brought to task by the Standards Committee for various breaches to the Code of Conduct for MSPs and she feared that if it continued she could face suspension from the Parliament.
Perhaps had she possessed some basic management skills, not least to organise herself, she would not need to worry about breaking the rules. She was particularly scathing of Tricia Marwick’s role as Business Manager for the SNP Parliamentary Group and later when Marwick, a Catholic, was Convenor of the Parliament’s Standards Committee. On a number of occasions she made references to Marwick’s parliamentary activity as being influenced and directed by the Church. Later she would describe Marwick as a “bloody brown nosed job”.
END OF LIFE PREJUDICE
Marwick was not the only target for Grahame’s prejudice. In 2010 Margo MacDonald finally progressed with her proposed “End of Life Choices” bill which sought, under certain circumstances, to legalise euthanasia for patients suffering a terminal illness.
Initially Grahame was fundamentally opposed to the bill and felt that Margo “was too close to the issue” as she is battling daily against Parkinson ’s disease.
When it first arose Grahame held the view that terminally ill and vulnerable patients would come under undue pressure to relieve the “burden” on their families and agree to end their life prematurely.
However when the Catholic Church came out strongly against the proposed legislation, Grahame performed an abrupt volte-face, and went on to second Margo’s Bill when it was presented before Parliament. Her decision would have an unintended consequence for her though.
At the time Grahame was Convenor of the Health Committee and it was likely that Margo’s Bill would be scrutinised directly by that committee. Immediately after it became known that Grahame had seconded the Bill mutterings and rumours began that suggested it would not be appropriate for Grahame to chair the Health Committee when the proposed legislation came before it, because of her support for the principles of the Bill.
Chief among those recommending that an ad-hoc committee be established to scrutinise the legislation was Lib Dem MSP, Mike Rumbles who was also a member of the Parliamentary Bureau. Grahame’s anger spilled over in the office and into a long diatribe aimed at Rumbles.
“It’s because he’s a f*cking Catholic” she said.
She went on to link Marwick and other Catholic MSPs into the “conspiracy” and who she felt were manipulating procedures to ensure the Bill got nowhere and was kept away from her and “her” committee.
Of course the decision to establish an ad-hoc committee was also a major slight to her self-perceived “impartial” role as Convenor of the Committee.
Whilst some MSPs who have served on her committees in the past may have believed that also, the reality is that she has long engaged in the practice of notifying and briefing SNP Ministers on what the likely line of questions would be on the occasions when they were required to give evidence and be cross-examined by MSPs.
THE WOMAN WAS NOT FOR TURNING
Both Roseanna Cunningham, who I had also previously worked for and Michael Matheson made public statements criticising the Bill. For Grahame this was further evidence that opposition to the Bill was being orchestrated by the Catholic Church and that Catholic MSPs were following specific instructions from the Altar.
On more than one occasion I remonstrated with her on this, telling her that her views were blinkered and that most of the Catholics I knew barely listened to their respective Priests and lived life pretty much the same as everyone else, with all the sin, hypocrisy and self-motivated interests that involves. The woman was not for turning however.
Her prejudice was, I believe, the single motivating factor in her failed attempt to become Presiding Officer last May. I could not understand why she would go for the position, which requires her to surrender her SNP membership and turn the hard fought seat she stood for into an independent constituency. I explicitly asked her why she was doing it.
“I don’t want her f*cking doing it, that’s why.” I asked who specifically she was referring and she replied “f*cking Tricia Marwick”.
When the vote came through and Marwick was elected PO, the first person over to her was Grahame to give Tricia a big hug and congratulate her on her win.
What’s the saying? Hold your friends close and your enemies closer still !
IGNORANCE
It may seem an odd allegation to level at a party that is perceived to be very in tune with its nation’s history, but the SNP does not have a particularly acute grasp of historical consistency. The general ignorance of the political situation in Ireland is also woeful and in part is reflected in some of the misplaced comments by SNP MSPs in terms of scrutiny of the Bill.
When Grahame cross-examined Professor Tom Devine during the evidence gathering session of the Bill, for a moment her public mask slipped. She suggested that the statistics on the prevalence of sectarian attacks on Catholics was flawed and misleading. She implied the new Bill would “even up” the conviction rate of Celtic and Rangers fans!Devine, peeking over his spectacles, looked like he could barely believe what was coming out of Grahame’s mouth.
There is no question SNP policy on this has been driven by senior Police officers. Perhaps though the institutions of the state should get their own questionable houses in order first. Both police officers and MSPs are required, by law, to give an oath of allegiance or affirmation to the Queen of England, an institution that expressly forbids the UK Head of State (or the Scottish Head of State if Scotland becomes independent) from being a Catholic.
That sectarianism is fully entrenched in law, yet this is the same “civic” establishment that wants to criminalise thousands of football fans for singing songs, some of which are about IRA members who earlier this year the aforementioned Queen laid a wreath of remembrance to during her state visit to Ireland.
But where does it end?
“Rebellious Scots did crush” is still officially part of the British national anthem. Flower of Scotland celebrates our nation’s seminal victory over the English at Bannockburn, so too Scots Wha Hae which is sung at the end of every SNP conference.
Sectarianism in Scotland, as so broadly “defined” by the SNP is not confined to two West of Scotland football teams. Scratch the surface, even a little and you can find it everywhere… including Holyrood.
ASIAN CALL CENTRES AND PRINCE HARRY TYPE DESCRIPTIONS
Catholics were not the only minority who Grahame apparently held deep rooted prejudices against. During one lunchtime discussion with members of the Tea At Three Club (the group of MSPs staff, and Grahame, who met for tea in the Garden Lobby each day at 3.00pm) the subject of Prince Harry’s derogatory reference to a Pakistani soldier in his unit came up in conversation.
Prince Harry, who was once photographed at a fancy dress party wearing a German Nazi uniform, had subsequently made a video whilst on operations with the British Armed Forces and which had then been leaked to the media. As the Prince was panning past a group of his comrades he zoomed in on one of clear Asian descent and said “and here is our little Paki friend”.
Grahame went on to suggest that the media reaction to this was excessive. She went further and said she thought there was nothing offence in the use of that term and had used it herself many times. Even by her standards I was shocked by her comments.
Peter Warren, who works for Margo and who was sitting at the table responded by pointing out that as someone, who was not himself Pakistani but was half Indian that the use of that term of abuse had historically been directed at him and it was indeed offensive. Grahame just attempted to shrug it off, but I was genuinely horrified.
After lunch and on my return to the office I emailed Peter to express my disquiet with the comments Grahame had made and to make clear her views were entirely her own and not remotely shared by me.
Previously she had made a range of derogatory remarks about Bashir Ahmad, the first Scots-Asian MSP calling him a “token presence”. She also spoke about the Asian “problems” for the SNP in Glasgow accusing them of manipulating chosen candidates into place ahead of more established figures like her close friend Sandra White. Of course Grahame would never behave like that herself!
A few months later, and after her latest in a series of car accidents she herself had caused, I once again became concerned by Grahame’s racist language.
Following a call she made from her parliamentary office to her insurance company she came off the phone and began ranting about the failure, as she saw it, of Asian people to speak “proper English”.
Her comments were audible along the 5th floor of the corridor in the members’ block of the Scottish Parliament. I got up and went through and asked her to tone it down.
She went off again, “Why do they employ people who can’t even f*ckin speak English?” I suggested that rather than getting annoyed with the call assistant, that she direct her anger at the huge multi-million pound corporations who have set up in those countries simply to save money. She remained unrepentant though.
DISGRUNTLED, WHO ME?
Some have suggested that the revelations I am putting into the public domain are those of a former disgruntled ex-employee and that I have an axe to grind.
Well I am disgruntled, that is true.
I worked for Grahame for a total of nine years and witnessed and often had to cover up for her bizarre antics. Last year I became aware she was planning to replace me with her latest elderly married love interest and following advice from my trade union began gathering evidence in support of my forthcoming Employment Tribunal. Later I started to record widespread corrupt practices and malpractice in the office.
In February I decided to confront her on her plans and she assured me, despite the contrary evidence I had seen, that I would not be made redundant. On that assurance I moved 100 miles to settle in a nice part of the Scottish Borders.
Less than a month later she told me I would in fact be made redundant after all if she won the constituency seat. At the same time she went on radio and was reported in the papers during the election campaign highlighting the SNPs commitment to “no compulsory redundancies within the public sector”, whilst behind the scenes she was making plans (and she has stated this on record) to make redundant all three of her staff as soon as she got in.
Increasingly I saw her openly lie to colleagues, deceive others and leak information to political opponents, all with the same broad signature Cheshire grin she puts on for the cameras. Before she discovered I was gathering evidence of her malpractice and corruption I had already contacted the relevant authorities asking them to set out the reporting process to allow them to investigate properly.
Only after she found out I was gathering this information did she move to suspend me, then unfairly dismiss me for “gathering information without her consent”.
Disgruntled? Yes I am disgruntled and would challenge anyone who had experienced what I have put up with not to feel the same. I am not just saying she is not fit to be Convenor of the Justice Committee. It is my considered view, knowing the abhorrent views she does hold, that Grahame is not fit to be an MSP. On the 20th of October I passed these allegations to the Chief Executive of the SNP and also the SNP Chief Whip, but neither have responded or acknowledged the complaint.
So much for being tough on sectarianism!
Posted by The Ill Reverend Father Hirst
http://holyroodconfessions.blogspot.com/
philvisreturns
Agree if Labour know that Murdoch’s empire is criminal they should never rule again… but then if the Tories didn’t know this… perhaps they shouldn’t rule again either. hmm