I would have preferred that Sturgeon put her time and effort into producing a white paper on emergency action to be taken over the disastrous decline in education in Scotland.
This is all white noise done to generate support for a second Indy Ref.
The truth is that support for one has fallen. Her strategy isn't working.

Nicola Sturgeon if you Donna geet me ma cake I demand another indepandent NOOW.

https://www.eveningtelegraph.co.uk/f...l-school-site/


So its not just the usual parties that hold "closed meetings" from the public ... The SNP do it too! (quelle surprise), irony is even a member of the SNP administration for Dundee City Council said it should have been made public but in short in my mind it seems decision has been made and Persimmon even though they say will consult public about plans I can see it already as a done deal, even if the public said no to it


A secret decision to sell off a former Dundee school site to a housing developer will net the council millions of pounds, the Tele can reveal.

The site of the former Kingspark School in Gillburn Road has been sold to Persimmon Homes for £3,316,234.

The deal was struck based on the developer’s plan to build 62 homes on the land.

However, should any more houses be built on the site, the council will net an extra £53,500 per property, according to papers obtained by the Tele.

Members of the council’s city development committee approved the deal in a meeting behind closed doors. The move has raised questions over a possible conflict of interest for the council.

The sale is dependent on Persimmon gaining planning permission.

Steven Cragg, who has campaigned to keep the site for community use, told the Tele: “There is clearly a huge conflict of interest here if the council is to benefit financially from this development and council members will be the ones to decide whether or not the application gets the go-ahead.”

Independent councillor Ian Borthwick said: “It would be quite wrong for councillors to make a decision on the application on the grounds of how much the council could stand to make from the sale of the land and the development.

“The first priority has to be making a decision based on the merits of the application under planning legislation.”

Labour member Richard McCready said the council shouldn’t look for a quick cash fix but must have a “long-term vision”.

Councillor Jimmy Black, a member of the SNP administration, was previously critical of decisions taken privately.

He admitted today: “I think the public have the right to know, in advance, who we are selling council land to and what we are selling it for.”

A council spokesman insisted there were a number of reasons why the deal had to be withheld from the public.

He added: “Councillors who sit on the development management committee can only consider material planning considerations when deciding an application.

“These councillors have had specialist training to ensure they perform the role in accordance with legislation.”

Persimmon has vowed to consult the public on the plans.

I though education was a priority for this SNP government? Or is it now poverty? SNP in some of their policies believe they can wipe out ie poverty by a certain year - things need to change not just in Scotland but UK wide, start by getting rid of the crooks in parliament(s) and get rid of political point scoring. I am also tired of hearing Salmond/Sturgeon saying "people of Scotland" remember you two not everyone in Scotland voted for you but again you seem to think they did! Yet they still come away with claiming they still run the Scottish Government but by a minority (but they forget that)

https://twitter.com/MilesBriggsMSP/s...70610316034048

https://twitter.com/AnnieWellsMSP/st...93080808394754

Just read the 62 page document regarding Scotlands Place in Europe.

http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0051/00512073.pdf

Some of it is good and some of it is not but a whole lot of it might just be lifted and turned around by any future remain in the UK campaign as it contains a massive amount of detail about how it's valuable for Scotland to remain in the Union for trade and jobs alone.

It's a kind of shoot yourself in the foot argument for belonging to a greater whole and I'm amazed they think if we can't recognise one we will readily see the other

Saying that I can't help but agree that we would be better of remaining in the EU.

Thanks for the info, didn't realise the Tories were out doing this. still haven't seen them in any towns near me though.

Of course the SNP haven't been knocking on doors trying to get voters to express their views on independence. No that's not happening at all 😂

Since you posted a link. Was it necessary to copy and paste the whole article?

Well I thought to highlight the key points in the piece than be selective in what I say. Since its more my "local" area I doubt anyone be from Glasgow or around the central belt actually cares about the other areas of Scotland (most of the time)

Not to mention the health system - sick of having a 2-3 week wait for a GP appointment.

Is this normal. I've never waited more than a week for a GP appointment and my gran who is ninety phoned the doctors the other day and was seen on the same day. As much as a minority complain about the health service the vast majority of NHS user rate the service as good or excellent which, considering we have the strongest performing NHS in the UK is hardly surprising. The reality is for a minority of people there is nothing the SNP can do that they would be happy with because there's a half demented minority who have an obsessive hatred for the that means they don't have the capacity to make any reasoned judgment of their record in office.

There are undoubtedly problems within the Heath service and that is undeniable. I often work with members of the medical profession and everyone of them has a tale to tell about understaffing or the lack of GPS. Whether it's better than in Cornwall doesn't really bother me as I don't live there.

I don't ever find I get a GP appointment the same day but a ninety year old probably should.

The reality is that for a minority of people the SNP will never do any wrong but the actuality is that we can't compare what happens in Truro with what happens in Kirkcaldy. Don't get me wrong, I think we have a very good health service but it is lacking in staff in many key areas such as GPs and Nursing staff.

There is always somewhere to improve and the Government of the day should be held responsible for failings and not always compared to some area of England that's doing worse.

Yes 2-3 weeks is a standard waiting time at my GP surgery. My baby will also not get regular check ups with the health visitor due to lack of resources. I have a friend in another part of the country who has a son with multiple disabilities as well as elderly relatives to care for - they have NO GP surgery and rely on calling NHS24 or nurses to asses who needs to be seen by a health professional. It's not good enough.

But surely you concede the SNP provide a better nhs than any other part of the U.K.. Looks you're part of the single figure percentage who think it's not good enough or even excellent. I wonder if your political leanings influence that. I have to my experience of the NHS is mainly positive.

It's all subjective depending on where you live and in some parts of the UK some services will be better than those in Scotland. Surely you can see this? Not every part of Scotlands NHS outperforms other UK areas and it would be silly to think so.

I know NHS workers from England who moved to Scotland and were aghast at the Staff training programmes of one of Scotlands largest hospitals.

The SNP provide an NHS in Scotland and as I've previously stated it's disengenuous to compare this with the rest of the UK. The SNP provide a better health service than Botswana too you know

I can only go on my own personal experiences. If you think I'm being deliberately biased then that's up to you. And I live in a highly populated area of Lanarkshire, not out in the middle of nowhere. I've never been surveyed to my opinion on the health service - I'm obviously not in the "vast majority of NHS users" who were asked, how unfortunate. And how can I concede they provide a better health service that the rest of the UK when I've no personal experience elsewhere? I'd suggest your political leanings influence your view that it's better than the rest of the UK.

By what measure ? I would imagine that performance would be sometimes better or sometimes worse across different areas when compared with different NHS Trusts.

I guess wee little Nicola will not been holidaying in Spain anytime soon

http://www.express.co.uk/news/politi...arket-Scotland

The trouble is that she knew Spain would do this before she wasted the Scottish Civil Services time on this document which only exists to justify a grievance and nothing else.

I'm coming round to the idea of another Referendum to settle this once and for all in March 2017. If we go independent then so be it, if we don't then we don't have another Indyref until 2030 at the easer lies to. Then the SNP can get on with governing in Scotland and concentrating on Scotland rather than just attempting to create further division.

I doubt the Government, or indeed anyone rational, would agree to another indyref whilst the UK is going through Brexit negotiations for obvious reasons.

The SNP will have to content themselves with improving the lives of ordinary Scots and leave Brexit to those who want as good a deal as possible for every citizen irrespective of where they live.

I wonder if Sturgeon genuinely does not understand what the reality of her position actually is?

I'm sure she does.
At least the Scottish government has come up with a decent plan to meet the wished of the Scottish people voting to stay in the EU. The only other plan anyone has come up with has 3 parts to it 1) Brexit means Brexit, 2) Have our cake and eat it, and 3) it's going to be red, white and blue.
At least Theresa May took as much as three hours to read the proposals in detail before dismissing it in its entirety.

So again, the majority of Scots can take flying f**k to themselves?

That's the SNP way of thinking .... ... still give Sturgeon credit she can respect the vote of the American election but she still can't abide by the European election and 2014 Indy Ref result says something and where priorites lie...

As you know there was no Scottish vote on our position in the EU, the best you can take form the referendum, is that we wanted the UK to remain in the EU. I think many remain voters accept the result.

Decent plan is questionable. Certainly some on her standing council of Europe don't agree...

Nicola Sturgeon Brexit adviser pours cold water on her single market plans hours before they are unveiled


And... Nicola Sturgeon's soft Brexit plan labelled "complete madness" after 10-year delay emerges


It's amazing it took Theresa May as long as 3 hours