There is tangible panic in the ranks of those who would preserve the power and privilege that they enjoy under the patronage of the British state by denying the sovereignty of the people of Scotland. They are increasingly desperate to dupe people into thinking that a No vote represents a vote for more powers - an option they vehemently refused to have on the ballot when they were afforded that opportunity by the Scottish Government. Who is this Lord Purvis of Tweed? Whom does he speak for? What claim does he have on our trust? Plain old Jeremy Purvis, as he was before he was rewarded for loyalty to the British state by elevation to the House of Lords, had a fairly undistinguished career as an MSP. Although he doubtless served his party as dutifully as any drone, it would be difficult to identify any notable contribution that he made to Scotlands well-being. The most significant thing that might be said of him is that he is one of the politicians rejected with cause by the Scottish electorate in 2011. Apart from being a member of the British states retirement club for failed and rejected politicians, Purvis represents the party which has enabled the socially and economically corrosive, ideologically-driven Tory austerity cult. He is also involved in a group calling itself Devo Plus which, as those able to read the sub-text of such titles will be aware, is an organisation dedicated to minimising whatever further powers might be granted to the Scottish Parliament if hogs and sows should ever soar like eagles. Not much cause for trust there then. Curiously, the article does not mention His Lordships involvement with Devo Plus. Why might that be. I wonder? Could it be because the point of the piece is to give the impression that he speaks for a united front of British political parties such as might be required in order to create and sustain the deception of a No vote being a vote for something real? An impression that would be undermined were it revealed that he actually speaks only for his own little fringe group. I have written before of the reasons why the claim that a No vote is a vote for more powers must be treated as a malicious lie. Even a cursory examination reveals that such a claim has no credibility whatever. Just one of the reasons for this is the fact that, to even begin to be believable, the British parties would have to make common cause around a specific set of proposals. Let me stress that, in itself, such a shared position would not would not make the claim credible. It is just one of a number of conditions that would have to be met. Conditions which range from the highly improbable through the downright unimaginable to the constitutionally impossible. Purviss latest offering is no more than an attempt to make this united front seem more of a realistic prospect than it ever can be outside the fantasies of a political has-been with delusions of influence. It is a pretty feeble attempt to take forward the lies about what a No vote means. But it should serve as a warning. There will be further efforts on this front. And some of those efforts may be more adroit than this inept exercise in spin. We should be constantly on our guard against the dishonesty and deceitfulness of those determined to deny Scotlands rightful constitutional status. We should always bear in mind that the ONLY way to guarantee more powers for the Scottish Parliament is to vote Yes.
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 11:43:41 +0000
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