SNP Archives - Page 8 of 17

Families Being “Left Behind” In Aberdeenshire

Aberdeen City, Featured, News No Responses »

Jul 162015

Christian Allard at Instant Neighbour foodbank

Christian Allard MSP at Instant Neighbour Foodbank, Aberdeen

With thanks to Lee Robb, Caseworker to Christian Allard MSP.

North East MSP, Christian Allard, has welcomed the news that Aberdeenshire is ahead of Scotland’s capital city in terms of average disposable income. However, the SNP MSP warns that a rising number of foodbanks in the region indicates that many families are being left behind.

This comes in response to a recently released study conducted by SPICE (Scottish Parliament Information Centre) that reviewed levels of average disposable income in areas of Scotland, compared to the UK average.

The SPICE study reports on figures from 2013 and showed Scotland’s average disposable income to be at £17,039 – compared to the UK average of £17,599.

Commenting on the findings, Mr. Allard said:

“The good news is that people are prospering here in the North East. However, it cannot be ignored that there has been a rise in foodbanks in Aberdeenshire over the past few years.

“This is a clear indication that there is an imbalance of wealth and opportunity, leaving families behind to rely on charitable food parcels.

“This, in the most affluent area of the country, is frankly unacceptable. This year, we saw an Aberdeen-based foodbank running out of food!”

Aberdeen’s Instant Neighbour foodbank appealed for help in March after running out of supplies and having to turn away families. Mr. Allard has volunteered with local foodbank collections in Aberdeenshire, the latest one being at the beginning of this month.

“People in Aberdeenshire know the problems that some families face. Unrelenting cuts to basic welfare needs have meant that families cannot sustain themselves. It was incredibly touching to see such a great contribution from the local community to Inverurie Tesco’s push for foodbank donations.

“I would like to congratulate the local Tesco store for their efforts, and thank all those who donated to this cause.”

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Local MP Meets Learning Disabled And Carers At Commons

Articles, Opinion No Responses »

Jun 192015

With thanks to Stuart Donaldson MP.

MencapReception - Learning DIsability Week2

Stuart Donaldson MP at Mencap Reception – Learning Disability Week

Stuart Donaldson MP attended a Royal Mencap Society reception in the House of Commons on Wednesday to celebrate Learning Disability Week.
He spoke to people with a learning disability, carers and family members about their personal experiences, the challenges they face and the changes they want to see in society. There were speeches from people with a learning disability and their families as well as Mencap President Brian Rix.

He listened to a speech from 27 year old Vijay, who has a learning disability and played an active role in Mencap’s Hear My Voice campaign.

The campaign saw over 800 local candidates in the lead up to the general election pledge their support. 151 of them were elected as MPs – meaning over a fifth of the new Parliament pledged to listen more attentively to people with a learning disability and their families.

There are 1.4 million people with a learning disability in the UK but many feel they are not listened to by those in power and the issues they that are important to them – like hate crime, welfare, better healthcare and education – are often not talked about.

Commenting, Stuart Donaldson MP said:

“I was honoured to attend the Mencap reception in Parliament to hear from people with learning disabilities, and to help celebrate Learning Disability Week. People with a learning disability and their families are as much a part of our society as anyone else and deserve to have their voices heard on the issues that matter to them. I am listening and I hope that many more MPs will do the same by getting on board and supporting Mencap and Learning Disability Week”

Jan Tregelles, Mencap’s chief executive, said:

“It is encouraging to see so many MPs listening to people with a learning disability and their families about the problems they face and the change they want to see in the new Parliament. They are the experts in what matters to them, so newly elected MPs should be listening to what they have to say throughout the new Parliament”

Lord Brian Rix, Mencap President, said:

“There are 1.4 million people in the UK with a learning disability and 6 million more family members and carers connected to them. However they often tell us they feel they are not listened to by politicians and subsequently many of the challenges they face go unheard and unresolved. We are asking new Members of Parliament to listen to what people with a learning disability and their families have to say.”

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Old Susannah No. 176 – Just Plane Stupid

Opinion, Satire and Humour 2 Responses »

May 222015

Voice’s Old Susannah takes a look over the past week’s events in the ‘Deen and beyond. By Suzanne Kelly.

Tally ho! It’s been quite a week in the Granite City and wider world. Well done all you who voted Conservative!

The SNP is now on the move; not since the Covenanters has Scotland been so unanimous. A new Independence Referendum can’t be far off, so I hope you’ve all saved your ‘YES’ banners and Saltires.

Perhaps the best news is that nice Mr Farage tried to resign but they wouldn’t let him. Who else indeed could lead UKIP? Mr Fromage is indeed the man for the job, although I think they were considering a gay Romanian immigrant at one point.

That nice Mr Trump’s coyness and modesty were on display at the end of April. Well, on display in two obscure small legal notices in the back of the Evening Express.

I can’t imagine why, but the pre-application public consultations for a second golf course, 850 houses and 1900 leisure units, whatever they are, came and went with no publicity from the Press & Journal or the Evening Express. I suppose with stories vying for space, some minor issues like Trump building on the Menie Estate have to be overlooked.

‘Cow found in Field’, ‘Man wins Inverurie Rowie baking award’ and ‘three clothing stores may or may not open in Aberdeen’ trumped the Trump news. When alerted to these ads, I wrote to the contact address given for information. Sadly, the nice man hadn’t the time to get back to me. In fact he was too busy to get back to at least six other people who also wanted information in advance of the deadline in order to praise the scheme.

A cynic might think that the Trump organisation, spearheaded at Menie by the planning supremo, golf expert and beauty queen Mrs Sarah Malone Bates, were trying to sneak one over on us. But I’m sure it was just a case of not wanting to brag about these exciting plans that kept any news of them off the pages of AJL papers, except for those ads on the back of the EE.

I guess it’s now too late to get in your notes of praise for the scheme; it would be a pity if the Shire’s planning people thought that this lack of information were sufficient grounds to throw the exercise on the scrap heap. That would be just awful.

Despite having to re-write my original column ‘Hooray for the Liberal Democrat Landslide’, it’s been a great week. I’ve been part of the Aberdonian contingent at the Westworld Weekend in Crewe; the bands were Spear of Destiny, Theatre of Hate, Kirk Brandon acoustic, Folk Grinder and the Death Valley Surfers. The beer was just as impressive: bottles of Punk IPA AND BrewDog Abstracts Nos. 15, 16, 17 and 18. For some strange reason the bar ran out of Punk, I can’t imagine why.

Old Susannah extended her weekend with a night of Julian Cope at the Lemon Tree, where BrewDog also flowed. Cope’s a bit madcap and a bit behind the times. He joked that it would be good if those in power tried LSD. I’m pretty convinced most of them are tripping as it is.

When you’re having a great weekend, you want to prolong it. Therefore my sincere thanks to the guy who decided to have a cigarette in his plane’s toilet when my and other planes should have been landing at Aberdeen.

clearly he was a genius of some sort

What good sport it was to circle for an extra 30 or so minutes, to be told that a plane on the runway had smoke coming out of it, and that we might have to divert.

I had the great pleasure of seeing the suspect explaining himself to the six or so police who surrounded him as my flight finally filed through the airport. A woman PC was saying:

“You have been identified as the man who was smoking in your plane’s toilet.”

I wondered whether he were a famous movie star, international scholar, or perhaps even an ACSEF member. He must have been someone very important indeed who simply needed a smoke. His slightly dirty clothes, his stubbly chin, his knuckles dragging on the floor and his simian posture were just too good a cover; clearly he was a genius of some sort, disguised as a posturing, swaggering self-centred ignorant chav.

Then he spoke and in an instant I knew I was listening to an Einstein. He answered the woman PC thus:

“You’re kidding right?”

Old Susannah is only an amateur student of psychology and human behaviour, but I am reasonably certain the police weren’t kidding. They almost seemed angry for some reason, and they didn’t at all seem the Laughing Policeman kind.

She continued:

“I am not going to search you”

I suppose he must have previously baulked at that prospect,

“but one of my colleagues may want to. Empty your pockets.”

Again confirming my assessment of the man’s undeniable wit, and reaffirming my belief in his complete innocence he said:

“You’re kidding right?”

My own acting skills are little better than novice; but surely no one could have looked as perfectly innocent as this poor man. I’m sure he was set up. The faint whiff of cigarette smoke that was in the area surely had come from one of those policemen.

Then again, if someone as important as this man obviously is, needed a cigarette, then who are the Civil Aviation Authority, the police, Aberdeen Airport, several hundred people wanting to land, and a hundred people on his plane needing to travel to get in his way? I’d feel guilty if I’d inconvenienced our man.

Besides, imagine what a good adventure it must have been for those on his flight: to be airborne and smell smoke, and see it coming out of the plane’s toilet, just like it must have been for the doomed Canadian flight several years ago that started this unfair no-smoking on planes backlash.

It’s not as if anyone circling around was getting nervous with every new announcement that we might have to be diverted elsewhere, that a plane on the runway had to be evacuated and fire was involved.

No worries. It’s not as if anything terrible ever happens to planes or at airports. There weren’t any older people getting worried or upset; there were no stressed out ground crew. Just you and your smoke. Some people just can’t take a joke though, and as a second thought, maybe next time, if they let you fly again, you might want to look into this nicotine patch business.

And so, my sincere thanks to the as-yet unnamed 31-year-old man for giving me the thrill of a lifetime. Really, if I ever get the chance to repay your kindness, I’ll do so. A mention in my humble column will have to do for now. However, if I can find out who your employers are, I’ll be delighted to drop them a suitable commendation for all the fun you provided.

Also in the news there was an election. England wants five more years of David Cameron, and somehow failed to appreciate all that Nick Clegg’s done for them. Scotland wants the SNP.

The voting public has spoken. Some people are puzzled by some of the election outcomes and how votes metamorphose into fair, democratic representation in Parliament. As I’m one of those people, herewith some timely terms for those baffled by ballot box bamboozlement.

First Past The Post: (Modern Conservative compound Noun) A system of counting election results to allocate seats in the English Parliament.

I’m sure you’re as happy as I am at how the elections throughout the UK turned out. This is down to the exciting, but fair ‘first past the post’ voting system. It’s no more complicated than understanding how the Hadron Supercollider’s quest for the God Particle demonstrates that anti-matter underpins the known universe, why you never get all your socks back after doing a load of laundry, or the arbitrary nature of the offside rule, depending on who the ref is.

For those of you slower of wit, here is a bit of number crunching:

The sad thing is that there are some sore losers out there, who would change this system. Take for instance Electoral Reform UK. This band of brigands should be rounded up, and probably will be once that nice Mr Gove gets rid of this Human Rights nonsense, see below. Here is a quote from their radical website:

“[Most] people’s votes were essentially wasted. Of the almost 31 million people who voted on the 7th, 15.4 million voted for losing candidates. That’s 50% of voters who backed a candidate that didn’t win, making the vast majority of voters feel unrepresented. That doesn’t sound like democracy to most people.”

Talk about sour grapes. I’m sure we all feel well represented. If you want to contact Electoral Reform and tell them to leave well enough alone, you can do so here, which is also where you can sign their petition asking for electoral reform. But just ignore that bit.

Still, a system that would leave the beloved Liberal Democrats out in the cold can’t be fair. Old Susannah is every bit as upset at the defenestration of the LibDems as you might think. Once the equal partners of Dave Cameron’s Conservatives, the chargers of tuition fees, and the slayers of the vermin roe deer, it’s sad to think these noble animals have been metaphorically shot between the eyes, just as they rightfully insisted was done to some 46 Tullos Hill Deer.

If I can stop sobbing into my LibDem logo-embroidered handkerchief long enough, I’ll send a consolatory email to Aileen HoMalone and ask her for a few words on this sad defeat. But back to the fairness of the system.

Special thanks should go to the 33% of UK residents eligible to vote who didn’t do so. It’s not as if getting the opinion of a third of the country’s voters could have made any real difference, not under First Past The Post anyway.

Thank you for staying home to watch the Heartbeat Omnibus, reruns of Neighbours, playing Grand Theft Auto 27 or whatever it was that kept you from spending ten minutes to pick the UK’s future direction. I’m sure those who didn’t bother to join in had very important reasons. Just like the reasons the important man had on that aircraft to smoke in the bathroom.

Human Rights Act: (Modern European Union compound noun) A declaration of inalienable freedoms each person should be entitled to, but never is.

As far as I can work out, this is some kind of wishy-washy left-wing Liberal law from 1998 that brought in the EU’s Human Rights declaration and enshrined it in UK law. It’s even supposed to make the NHS and the Police treat people as if they had rights, even people suspected of crime, just like that guy who smelled of smoke who came out of the plane’s toilet seen by many, who could only comment ‘You’re kidding right?’.

This has been problematic and a nuisance. It’s been implemented fully, as we can see in practice all around us.

We’ve got a war on drugs, a war on terror

The parents of Ashya King were arrested for taking their son for the successful medical treatment he had abroad, because the NHS swore out an arrest warrant.

The police officers who cleverly infiltrated various legal protest groups, sleeping with and impregnating women they pretended to love were only doing their job of course, but under Human Rights law, these women, who were probably criminals anyway, seem to be able to claim damages and child support.

There’s only so much a Conservative government can stand. They’re sending top gun Michael Gove in to correct this over-application of human rights. Any day now, all these freedoms we’re enjoying, like the right to protest the elections in London free from police harassment, may be a distant memory. Too right, too. We’ve got a war on drugs, a war on terror… there’s no room for sentimentality when it comes to breaking a few bones – sorry – breaking a few criminal gangs.

These rights include:

“These rights are: Right to life, right not to be tortured or subjected to inhumane treatment, right not to be held as a slave, right to liberty and security of the person, right to a fair trial, right not be retrospectively convicted for a crime, right to a private and family life, right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, right to freedom of expression, right to freedom of assembly and association, right to marriage, right to an effective remedy, right not to be discriminated against, the right to the peaceful enjoyment of one’s property, and the right to an education. The Act also imposes a duty upon governments to provide free and fair elections.”

If you want to see how hard it is to be a police officer, and the kinds of things they have to put up with from protesters, here’s a little story. It may look like the police are harming citizens who are on the ground at a protest against the Tories, but I’m sure it’s just some form of massage therapy I’m not familiar with.

As if anyone would want to protest against the Tories: we’ve just elected them by a landslide. Apparently.

I get why our rulers want to get rid of this education nonsense and privacy stuff, but since we’ve already got a completely free and fair election system, surely they’ve no complaint on that score. So for those renegades and anarchists who enjoy these so-called rights, enjoy them while you can.

Next week: That’ll depend on whether or not the Conservatives continue to allow political satire.

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Vomiting Times

Articles, Opinion 1 Response »

Apr 102015

By Duncan Harley.

In an unprecedented piece of vitriolic pre-election political propaganda, the Sunday Times (April 5th) has headlined on Nicola Sturgeon’s shoe collection and her sisters job as a phlebotomist. The Header on page 14 reads “Destined to be Queen of Scots”– who famously got her head chopped off -alongside an image of the Scotland’s First Minister waving to the cameras in Glasgow.

In the background, smiling folk take photographs and a few hold up protest banners suggesting the scrapping of Trident.

Everyone, and I include the assembled press, is smiling but there is no suggestion of a light hearted wee joke in the Times article by columnist Gillian Bowditch.

Seemingly Ms Sturgeon can’t drive, has a huge collection of shoes and is a hopeless cook. She watches “City Freedom” whatever that is and likes Annie Lennox – don’t we all?

Monstrously the First Minister dropped three dress sizes during the Scottish Referendum and her father Robin was a working class electrician.

The article compares Scotland to some “Dodgy regimes in warmer climes”, a clear reference to the de-stabilising of that Arab Spring by the US and the Western Powers.

Seemingly Nicola was “politicised” by nationalists and “like Margaret Thatcher can get by on five hours sleep a night”. This despite MS Bowditch’s assertion that Ms Sturgeon “hated everything that she (Thatcher) stood for.”

Getting it both ways is the prerogative of the stupid.

With comments suggesting that Sturgeon’s sister was a phlebotomist and quotes from “One SNP councillor” saying that – and he has known her for years – “Whatever she wants, she get’s. They don’t call her Nasty Nicky for nothing. Don’t stand in her way or you’ll regret it” there is at least some vitriol in the Times piece.

So who is this Gillian Bowditch lady?

A quick check on Google reveals 13 people in the UK with the name Gillian Bowditch and advises digital searchers to click to find personal data about all thirteen.

Which one could she be?

A skint dark skinned but nice stripper from Penge perhaps, a hot dogging housewife from down under town Stroud’s red light district or a digitally challenged cross dressing midget Elvis impersonator from Motherwell West? Who can tell.

Seemingly however the real Gillian may well be a tabloid journalist who penned an article about a “Gay contender for mayor expecting baby with lesbians” in the Times of January 18th 2015.

The text reads something like:

“IVAN MASSOW, the gay entrepreneur hoping to succeed Boris Johnson as London mayor, is having a baby with a lesbian couple and plans for the child to divide his or her time equally between two households.”

““Having a child is something I really wanted to do for so long and if I don’t do it now, my chance is over. There is never a right time in anyone’s life. It’s one of these things I just have to do,” said Massow, 47, whose baby is due in August.

“Over the past year, the businessman, estimated to be worth £40m, received offers from lesbian friends to have his child, but decided to turn to a co-parenting website.”

To read the full article on-line the Times asks for money and many will feel that it is money spent unwisely.

As for the original printed article about Nicola, apart from a very few library copies, it’s where it should be – in landfill.

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Local MSPs Hail Cash To Combat Fuel Poverty

Articles, Opinion 1 Response »

Apr 102015

Christian Allard MSP for the North East of Scotland

With thanks to Gavin Mowat.

SNP MSPs Alex Salmond, Dennis Robertson and Christian Allard have welcomed an allocation of £3,233,000 for Aberdeenshire households from the Home Energy Efficiency Programme. The scheme provides grant funding to local authorities to develop and deliver local fuel poverty programmes.

Additional funding for Aberdeenshire comes as part of £103 million investment to tackle fuel poverty across Scotland in 2015/16.

This includes a new £14 million loans scheme which will offer homeowners interest-free loans of up to £10,000 for energy efficiency measures.

The SNP Government will also launch the next phase of its Cashback scheme which will see £10 million made available to homeowners and private tenants, and £5 million for social landlords.

Through the scheme, private sector households will be able to claim up to £5,800 for installations recommended by an energy advice report, and households on remote areas will be entitled to greater amounts to cover the increased costs they face.

Both the Cashback and Loans scheme will open on April 13. Advice for applicants will be available on the Home Energy Scotland website or at 0808 808 2282.

Local SNP MSPs welcomed these measures which will help protect vulnerable families throughout Aberdeenshire from the effects of high energy costs.

Commenting, Aberdeenshire East MSP Alex Salmond said:

“It is unacceptable that anyone should have to suffer from fuel poverty – that is why the SNP in Government is investing £103 million to tackle the issue.

“More than £3 million will go a long way towards making valuable energy efficiency improvements to homes throughout Aberdeenshire.

“I would urge homeowners in Aberdeenshire struggling with their heating bills to find out about their options from Home Energy Scotland – and apply for an interest free loan when they become available later this month.”

Dennis Robertson, Aberdeenshire East MSP, added:

“That anyone should be in fuel poverty in Scotland is an absolute scandal and it is encouraging to see the SNP Government take steps to tackle this issue.

“Constituents contact me regularly to ask for advice regarding fuel poverty and it will be great to be able to reassure them that the Scottish Government are fully aware of this issue and are ready to help those in need.”

North East MSP Christian Allard said:

“This additional funding is very welcome for the North East and is another example of the SNP’s desire to tackle fuel poverty.

“The new loan scheme will give homeowners the opportunity to apply for interest free loans which will make it easier for them to take action to install energy efficiency measures.

“Fuel poverty has no place in Modern Scotland and this action will go some way to resigning it to the history books.”

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MSPs Welcome Start Of AWPR Work

Aberdeenshire, Opinion 3 Responses »

Feb 202015

With thanks to Ann-Marie Parry, Parliamentary Assistant, Rt Hon Alex Salmond MSP

Aberdeenshire East MSP Alex Salmond and North East MSP Christian Allard have welcomed the start of construction work on the £745 million Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route/Balmedie-Tipperty road project today.
Construction will support around 1,500 jobs and over 100 apprenticeships, graduate places, and other training opportunities.

The scheme will be delivered in stages, with completion expected in winter 2017, around six months ahead of schedule.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the beginning of the work at Balmedie, one of the key communities to benefit from the AWPR, today.

Alex Salmond said:

“This is a brilliant day for residents all across the north-east of Scotland who will benefit from increased connectivity and shorter journey times.

“The construction of the AWPR is expected to create 1,500 jobs at its peak as well as 100 apprenticeships, graduate places and other training which means that young people will get valuable opportunities to enter the workplace.

“The AWPR will deliver much needed relief from the congestion in and around Aberdeen and I am delighted that sections of the road, such as the junctions around the Airport, will be finished as early as next year.

“With an estimated £6 billion of investment and 14,000 jobs expected to be created in the north-east over the next thirty years, it is clear that the AWPR will help to boost business and keep Aberdeen internationally competitive.”

Christian Allard (pictured) said:

“I am delighted that construction work on the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route is now underway as this will have a huge impact on the road network in the north-east of Scotland.

“Not only will journey times greatly improve but construction will bring thousands of jobs to the region.

“With this £745 million development underway and expected to be complete 6 months ahead of schedule this Scottish Government is clearly committed to delivering for the north-east.”

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MSPs Welcome Progress At NHS Grampian

Aberdeen City, Articles, Opinion 2 Responses »

Feb 172015

With thanks to Ann-Marie Parry.

SNP MSPs Alex Salmond and Christian Allard have welcomed the “real progress” being made by NHS Grampian in addressing the recommendations of the Healthcare Improvement Scotland report published December last year.

Today’s update from NHS Grampian shows the work they are taking forward to recruit more nurses, better investigate and respond to complaints and develop sustainable plans to further improve unscheduled care.

The update comes ahead of Health Secretary Shona Robison’s visit to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary today.

Aberdeenshire East MSP Alex Salmond said:

“I am very pleased that the new leadership team at NHS Grampian are making real progress in implementing the Healthcare Improvement Scotland recommendations.

“I welcome the health board’s plans to recruit more nurses and take forward a strategy to make unscheduled care work better for patients.

“This SNP Government is committed to ensuring that this progress continues as is clear from the £49.1 million increase to the health board’s budget.

“This is the highest increases of any health board in Scotland and will bring NHS Grampian within 1% parity of NRAC, the NHS funding formula.”

North East MSP Christian Allard attended a NHS Grampian briefing for MSPs on Friday.

Commenting, Mr Allard (pictured) said:

“Staff at NHS Grampian are amongst the best working in NHS Scotland and they should be given high praise for the level of care they provide to North East patients.

“Last week’s meeting with the NHS Grampian Board was very positive and this has been backed up by today’s update on the Healthcare Improvement Scotland action plan.”

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End Council Tax Freeze Say Councillors

Aberdeenshire, Opinion 2 Responses »

Feb 122015

With thanks to Martin Ford.

Two Aberdeenshire councillors are calling for an end to the Council Tax freeze as their council faces up to £50 million in budget cuts over the next four years.

The call comes in the week Aberdeenshire and other councils across Scotland set their revenue budgets for the next financial year.

“This cannot go on,” said Green councillor Martin Ford.

“It’s the elephant in the room on budget day. Most councillors know the Council Tax freeze is unsustainable, but aren’t prepared to say so.”

Allowing for inflation, a freeze in cash terms is actually a real-terms cut in income to the Council. Meanwhile, Aberdeenshire is having to plan for demand-led spending pressures due to rising school rolls and increasing numbers of very elderly people.

“The inevitable consequence of a continuation of the Council Tax freeze is more cuts in public services,” said Democratic Independent councillor Paul Johnston.

“Expecting the Council to do more with less, year after year, is not realistic.”

The Scottish Government has ensured that councils do not increase the Council Tax by threatening a lower grant settlement if the Council Tax is increased – ensuring any reasonable increase in Council Tax would leave the council in an even worse position financially than maintaining the Tax freeze.

“Local Government has effectively been reduced to local administration,” said Cllr Martin Ford.

“The Council’s total budget is essentially decided for it by the Scottish Government. The councillors are just left with deciding which are the least damaging cuts to make – the alternative option of avoiding cuts by raising some additional tax revenue having been blocked.

“The decision on the balance to strike between cutting council services or raising some additional tax income should be taken locally, not by the SNP government in Edinburgh.”

The current Band D Council Tax in Aberdeenshire is £1,141. A one per cent increase would result in a Band D rate of £1,152, or eleven pounds a year more, only 21 pence extra per week. An increase equal to the current Retail Price Index (RPI) of 1.6 per cent would see the Aberdeenshire Band D Council Tax set at £1,159.

“Scottish Government politicians must trust the people of Aberdeenshire with tax raising powers, in the same way as they want tax powers from Westminster,” said Cllr Paul Johnston.

“This is all about trust on tax. Trust Aberdeenshire to take decisions on tax for Aberdeenshire.”

Cllr Ford added:

“Even a one per cent rise in the Council Tax would prevent some cuts in public services,”

Aberdeenshire Council is budgeting for a Council Tax income in the next financial year of £124.658 million. A one per cent increase in the Council Tax would increase revenue to £125.905 million. An RPI-linked 1.6 per cent increase in the Council Tax would bring the Council almost £2 million extra income.

“An extra £2 million annual income would certainly not enable the Council to avoid cutting some services over the next several years,” said Cllr Paul Johnston.

“But it would prevent the most undesirable cuts.”

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Salmond Welcomes Scottish Cabinet To North East

Aberdeenshire, Information 1 Response »

Feb 052015

With thanks to Ann-Marie Parry, Parliamentary Assistant, Rt Hon Alex Salmond MSP.

Aberdeenshire East MSP Alex Salmond has welcomed the announcement that Scottish Government Ministers will be coming to the North East of Scotland this month where they will have the opportunity to hear first-hand from local people in a public discussion meeting.

The Cabinet will meet on Monday 16th February and anyone interested is welcome to attend the “town hall meeting” style event taking place in the Music Hall from 19:00 to 20:30 that evening.

Attendees must pre-register online or by phoning 0300 244 2138.

Welcoming the news, Alex Salmond said:

“One of the most effective ways we brought government closer to the people during my time as First Minister was to take the Scottish Cabinet to every corner of the country, to hear first-hand about issues affecting local areas.

“I’m delighted that this initiative is being continued and that the people of the North East of Scotland will have a chance to put their questions to Nicola Sturgeon and her government colleagues at the Music Hall on 16th February.

“I would encourage anyone who is able to head along for what should be a fun and interesting evening, as well as a great opportunity to make your views known on a variety of issues – local and national.”

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said:

“The government I lead intends to be open, listening, and available in a way we have not seen before – the most open and accessible government that Scotland has ever had.

“That is why we are making sure that the business of government is open to everyone who wants to be involved, and why we are taking cabinet meetings to all parts of the country. I’m hugely looking forward to meeting up with members of the public and hearing their views when we come to Aberdeen later this month – and those views will not only be head, but will also result in real action.

“Our strongest focus is on growing our economy, protecting public services, tackling inequality and empowering our communities. But we must be united in the business of making Scotland a better place to live and work. Together we can build a fairer and more prosperous country.

“If you are in Aberdeen and you want to raise an issue or have something you would like us to see then get in touch through @scotgovFM using #ABcab, our Facebook page or give us a call.”

Info – pre-register for the event at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/ministers-touring-scotland-tickets-15598395220.

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Old Susannah No. 170 – Valentine’s Special

Opinion, Satire and Humour 2 Responses »

Jan 302015

Suzanne Kelly aka Old Susannah gets to grips with Grampian’s great and good, and with St Valentine’s Day just around the corner, her soft and sympathetic side is coming to the fore. Or maybe not. Can’t you just feel the love?

Well, it’s official now: Aberdeen City and Shire ARE ON THE MAP! This is for several reasons. It’s not because we’re home to BrewDog, the UK’s fastest-growing drinks company (and arguably the most fun drinks company anywhere). It’s not even because we might set the tone and build a granite web (keep dreaming Messrs Wood, Smith and Crosby, you never know).

We got on the map mainly because Donald Trump came to our humble backwater. But the latest developments are even more exciting than that! Alex Salmond is writing a column for the Press & Journal AND famous people came here the other weekend! Result!

As to this new column, it’s riveting stuff. Did you know he loved his mum? He’s written a column about it.

It’s in no way reminiscent of when an X Factor contestant seeks sympathy with a sad story before singing badly. He’s also sharing a few likes and dislikes. I’m sure the honourable member will one of these days come and visit the people in his constituency at the Menie Estate – it’s just a matter of priorities.

Columns don’t write themselves you know; it’s hard work for a budding writer on his own to make it in the journalism world. It’s awfully good of the P&J to give this novice a break; I wonder if it was just the goodness of the collective Aberdeen Journals Ltd’s hearts – or if there were any other factors involved in signing young Alex up to pen his thoughts? I wonder.

But that’s only the half the reason we’re on the world’s radar now: did you know someone from Oasis and a fashion model actually came to Aberdeenshire for a party?

Well, if not, where have you been? It’s the story everyone’s talking about (well, after fracking, Muse at Marischal College, pollution and other boring subjects). Apparently someone threw a party and… people came up north from down south. To hear Aberdeen Journals tell it it’s the best thing since bunting:

“Kate Moss and Nick Grimshaw party in Craigellachie… That’s right, you read it correctly!”

Yes, that’s right: you DID read it correctly! Well done! I hope you’ve not fainted with the excitement of this revelation if you’re only reading it here for the first time. Apologies. (And if one of you could be so kind as to send me a message and let me know who Nick Grimshaw is and what he does, thanks in advance).

Watch and download the Craigellachie video here, for your and your grand children’s future viewing pleasure:

Anyway, moving on…It’s not Valentine’s day just yet; but as the supermarkets are already piling the Easter eggs on the shelves, there’s no time to lose. Tally ho!

Perhaps love and romance deserve a few definitions at time of year. A cynic might think that St Valentine’s Day is nothing more than a marketing ploy. Let’s look to our betters and see if we can learn anything about affection, admiration, and maybe even love.

To Reconcile: (English verb) Renew a friendship or a love; to recover lost affection and love.

There is one power couple that I hope will soon reconcile. These are two people, meant for each other, sharing the same loves, dreams and ambitions. It would be a huge loss if they can’t rekindle what they once had. So Alex Salmond, in case you missed it: Donald Trump ‘Still Likes and Respects You.’ Or so says the Press & Journal – and if ever The Donald will be quoted accurately, rest assured it will be in the paper his Scottish Vice President’s husband edits.

In mid 2014, Trump said of Alex:

“I disagree with him on one element, I’ve had moments in life when I’ve been very friendly with him and I do respect him, but I disagree with him on wind. [Old Susannah wonders if they got this wind from all the champagne they drank with their steak dinners in New York].

I think there are other great forms of energy but wind is becoming obsolete. I disagreed with him on that, other than that, I like him. I told that to someone the other day, I actually like Alex Salmond but I have to fight him. I’ve created a masterpiece and I don’t want to see it hurt by a very, very foolish technology that’s obsolete.”
https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp/news/aberdeenshire/274163/donald-trump-still-likes-respects-alex-salmond/

Presumably the very foolish technology that’s obsolete is not the printed newspaper.

I suppose when two people are deeply involved – what with wining and dining in the finest hotels either side of the Atlantic – their passions will sometimes lead to heated arguments. However, now that Alex is writing a column for the Press & Journal, he’ll have lots more opportunities to let people connected to Trump know that he likewise wants and needs to get back together.

Let’s wish the couple a happy reconciliation. Trump did go on in the P&J article about taking a position on Salmond’s independence drive, and what would or would not be appropriate for Trump to do about it – but lest the imagery be too heady for some readers, I’ll not dwell on the idea of Trump taking a position on Alex.

Perhaps the taxpayer should step in – again – and send the two flying off to a 5 star hotel in New York or elsewhere where they can enjoy yet another evening of drink and fine food. Perhaps there’s some other SSSI site we can give Trump on a silver platter as well.

Anniversary Gifts: (Modern English compound noun) A list of gifts couples are meant to exchange on different wedding anniversaries.

In January 2013 the power couple of the year tied the knot. Yes, Damian Bates married 2007 Face of Aberdeen Sarah Malone. Why the two didn’t have their nuptuals announced in Aberdeen Journals Ltd – and why Sarah didn’t make the Bride of the Week page – is a mystery. But then love works in mysterious ways. I personally think they didn’t want us mere mortals to be jealous of their union.

Last year by tradition they would have exchanged anniversary gifts made of paper – but I guess Damian had already given Sarah a gift in the form of paper – the Evening Express and P&J to be specific. The modern gift would have been made of plastic for that first anniversary; but no doubt there was already enough plastic in the mix as it was.

The alternative gift for a first year of wedded bliss is to exchange clocks. However, at Sarah’s day job at Trump’s Menie Estate, there are already some small, discrete, tasteful clocks on the landscape. Even better, they all seem to tell different times – doubtless the couple count the hours until the next Trump advertising revenue comes in and the next pro Trump advertorial is put to bed. Isn’t love grand?

This year the happy couple are meant to exchange cotton. Again, that ship has sailed, for they have both cottoned on a number of years back.

Online Dating: (Modern English noun) means of using electronic communications and computing to find a potential partner based on compatibility.

Do pity us poor single people; I spend all my time crying in my Hagen daas, wondering what to do with myself, fearing I’ll wither away as a wallflower spinster. Some singles join church groups, some take tango lessons, some take out classified ads. All are desperate to find that certain someone to go to Union Square with on a Saturday, then to stroll hand in hand through the paint thinner section of B&Q with on a Sunday. Let’s face it – you have to be in a couple to be anybody.

Single or married, if we were to be honest with ourselves, men and women are looking for some very basic, important things from a relationship. Money and looks.

You can exchange Tinder feelings to complete strangers and meet up in a back booth of the Chester Hotel to compare bank balances and plastic surgery results. But those who are in the know and in the dough cut to the chase and visit website ‘Seeking Arrangements’.

This is a dignified, personal site that pairs up rich men with poor, good-looking (and for some reason usually younger) women. The women in question, while working nights to put themselves through medical school and supporting their sick mothers no doubt, need a little financial assistance. Girls dating rich men is of course nothing like girls selling themselves for money.

Today’s smart successful girls are free to seek out sugar daddies and ask them to contribute a wee bit to keep them in Jimmy Choos and Tiffany bracelets. In return the men get the satisfaction of working closely with younger people and helping out the next generation – they wouldn’t want anything else for their money from beautiful young women, would they?

I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a romantic way to find the bank account of your dreams if you’re a liberated woman (who looks good of course). And if you’re a rich, hard-working man, it’s likely the wife doesn’t appreciate you, and for a bit of money and jewellery, you can get in a few hours of appreciation on the side. Someone to listen how the wife doesn’t understand, to take walks in the park with, perhaps to do the crossword together.

Or something.

For whatever reason, some people object to sexually objectifying men or women. They even nearly stopped the Sun’s Page 3 models for a day or two!

And that would have been bad for the circulation. Such people are called Feminists. They are almost always unattractive and old. Some of the former Sun models took time out from their busy careers to make witty tweets about those who object to Page 3. Rhian Sugden said:

“It’s only a matter of time before everything we do will be dictated by comfy shoe wearing… No bra wearing… man haters.”

But I digress.

Back to the subject of ‘Seeking Arrangements’ I hope no ‘bra-wearing, men-haters’ think there is anything wrong with such a set-up. It’s not as if it objectifies women, glorifies youth and beauty and commodifies these traits.

One final word on the subject. There are some taboos that should not and must not be broken. It’s acceptable for a rich old man to buy – sorry to help out a poorer, beautiful girl. That’s one of the things we like so much about Mr Trump for that matter. They’re called ‘sugar daddies’ – such a cute nickname, with nothing remotely unpleasant about the ‘daddies’ bit.

But we can all agree that an older woman, however rich, has no business around younger men. Cougars are just unacceptable. Happy to have cleared that up.

It’s so refreshing we had a women’s rights movement, even if it was a long time ago and it’s largely forgotten. For the life of me I can’t think what people like Emma Watson are getting so worked up about. Men may earn more than women, but as websites like Seeking Arrangements show, we’re all really just looking for that person out there who shares our values.

Good luck girls – but be warned: you may have to at some point hold your sugar daddy’s hand. Or something. Still, think of the money.

Cultural Speed Dating: (Modern Aberdonian quango phrase) A matchmaking service for rich patrons and poor artists and makers to get together.

In the same way that the idea of ‘Seeking Arrangements’ gives us a warm feeling, the concept of Cultural Speed Dating is nearly as heart-warming. I wonder what clever person came up with this marvellous idea?

Poor impoverished artists can come and throw themselves at people with money in a bid to get funding. It’s a speed dating set up which gives artists the respect they deserve – a chance to beg for money from the rich in a small space of time.

Culturally speaking, the marriage between the rich, the government, and those artists who either are desperate for success/money – or who are keen to get into bed (as it were) with the powerful is as moving as when Romeo and Juliet first spoke. And that turned out just fine.

Aside from money and fame, any real artist worth their salt wants to be guided by the patronising hand of the people with money.

What can be more important for a visionary than learning to be more commercially acceptable? The people in government who hand out grants know what art they want, and if you want their money, you’ll give them what they want. The wealthy private patron has their own ideas as well too, and the ideas of the rich trump the ideas of the talented. What’s a little compromise now and then if you’re a creative?

Old Susannah was told of a foolish portrait painter who some years back took a commission from a retired wealthy man for a group painting. When the painting was nearly done, the man’s wife told the artist to leave the painting unsigned, so that she could sign it herself later.

What do you think the ungrateful artist did? He said no.

Only with slightly different words. The painter lost out on money. If you’re an artist, I hope you’ll learn something from this little anecdote before the next Cultural Speed dating comes along. I’m sure 5 to 10 minutes is enough time to explain your artistic vision to someone with a chequebook – and if not – just let them do the talking instead.

We can’t just have people going around creating art or literature that the rich folks won’t enjoy, can we?

Next week: I’ll tell you that I love my family, and what tragedies I’ve been through. Or I may update you on what Police Scotland’s been up to (or not been up to for that matter).

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