@markonline
An ex Marine, I Iove spending time on the water whenever possible. Politically, I have what is considered traditional left of centre views. I support Scottish self-determination and am a supporter of the Scotland Rugby team and the Toronto Blue Jays.
Kind of incredible. I was just sitting down to write about how Starmer should be given credit for keeping us out of this mess when he does this. Unutterably foolish and obsequious. Why in God's name should we have anything to do with this shortsighted madness.
Gorton and Denton by-election result:
GRN: 40.7% (+27.5)
REF: 28.7% (+14.7)
LAB: 25.4% (-25.3)
CON: 1.9% (-6.0)
LDEM: 1.8% (-2.1)
Green GAIN from Labour.
This is a massive scandal.
Labour has invented a made-up tactical vote organisation to trick Gorton and Denton into voting for them.
How can this even be legal?
Dear Lucy On the eve of the by-election, your Labour party spokesperson has admitted to the Huffington Post that a Labour party leaflet has been delivered through doors with your imprint recommending a vote for Labour by a tactical voting organisation which does not exist. This is deeply troubling, it is actually lying to voters. Did you approve this? Do you feel the Labour Party in government should be held to different standards in terms of honesty to the British public? In your last letter to me you mentioned your ‘very extensive data’ and ‘having spoken to over a third of eligible voters’ which led you to an understanding that the by election ‘was a contest between labour and Reform’. Clearly this latest development only tells voters one thing - you will employ any type of political deception (or in Urdu “Dhoka” ) to win. You will be very aware that all three real tactical voting organisations are recommending a vote for the Greens as the best way to stop Reform. Lying to the voters, as you have been caught doing, raises the real prospect that Reform will be the beneficiaries, something you have said that you don’t want. As this is such an important issue, for the sake of your own reputation, I would strongly urge you to apologise to the voters of Denton and Gorton before the polls open in the morning.” Kind regards, Zack Polanski Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales
Dear @lucympowell.bsky.social,
Why did you invent a fake tactical voting company to stop the Green Party beating Reform?
I'm starting to think your letters haven't always been in good faith...
Please watch.
The most effective way to nationalise the water industry in England and Wales is stop voting Conservative, Labour, Reform and Lib Dem.
The same rule applies in Scotland to prevent the privatisation of Scottish Water.
The new service will operate in Lochee seven days a week with no appointment necessary.
Poll showing voting intentions in the upcoming Gorton and Denton by-election. 32% Green 29% Reform 26% Labour
If you’re a traditional Labour voter repeating the Labour spin that a Green vote will split the vote and is effectively a vote for Reform, this independent poll tells a different story.
Don’t be loyal to a party that has abandoned its Labour values. Vote Green.
The only vote to defeat Reform.
I would say Rupert Murdoch was, and still is, the worst PM.
I’ve found it, I’ve found the worst take
If you have a Royal Family, you have deference.
If you have a Royal Family, you have a class system.
If you have a RF, you essentially say, "These people are better than everyone else by dint of birth & should maintain enormous influence, wealth and power."
Why would anyone want that at all?
Far-right thug Tommy Robinson flees UK after police warning over terror threat Far-right thug Tommy Robinson took to social media this evening to proclaim himself a 'priority target' for ISIS, adding he had fled the UK after receiving a call from Bedfordshire Police
Fighting age man flees his homeland to seek asylum on overcrowded island.
Westminster is in chaos, armpit deep in the Epstein scandal and Labour plotting. Yet there’s radio silence from the SNP on independence. Now is the moment to strike and say an Indy Scotland would be better than this circus. Speak out now if you want to win the fight
In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
🚨 BREAKING: The High Court has ruled that the Government’s banning of Palestine Action using the Terrorism Act is unlawful
In 2024 Anas Sarwar told voters that Keir Starmer as PM and a Labour government would deliver “change” for Scotland.
Now he says Starmer and Labour aren’t good for Scotland but somehow he alone would be as First Minister.
You can’t promise change then run from the consequences when it falls apart.
we need to talk about that Ring Super Bowl ad
Thinking about Scottish football and the similarities to the way Scottish politics is viewed from down south | Alec Ross
Posts from the Daily Record's Paul Hutcheon on X: #1: 'That's the Scottish Labour "branch office" line dead and buried.' #2: 'From the silence/public statements of Scottish Labour MPs, it's clear they see Keir Starmer, not Anas Sarwar, as their leader.'
Less than six hours between these posts.
Excellent journalism, Paul. Thank you.
Anas Sarwar is a prime example of an opportunist who sees a chance to gain an advantage, often at the expense of ethics or morals. Sarwar called Mandelson an "old friend" in April 2025 during a visit to Washington, D.C.
Scottish Labour are part of Keir Starmer's Labour.
I'm convinced AI is our generation's radium - a discovery with genuinely useful applications in specific, controlled circumstances that we stupidly put in everything from kid's toys to toothpaste until we realised the harm far too late where future generations will ask if we were out of our minds.
I think every Scottish rugby fan was screaming the same.
What the fuck is The Times thinking here? They had days to ditch this and find copy to replace this frankly skin-crawling puff piece. If you want a metaphor for media failure this is it
Anas Sarwar says today of Peter Mandelson: “I'm utterly disgusted and furious about the entire situation … He never should have been the ambassador to the US.”
For context, here’s Sarwar in April 2025 love-bombing his ‘old friend’.
They think we are stupid.
He is an amoral opportunistic chancer.
"If Mandelson's links to Jeffrey Epstein disqualifies him from holding power, why does the company controlled by Epstein's business partner and co-owner retain access to the UK's most sensitive national security infrastructure?"
Peter Thiel. Jeffrey Epstein. Palantir. The UK Government.
Wrote something, just to get it out of my head, about how fundamentally weird it is watching the panicked flailing and pathetic self-soothing defences of the UK Government from a Scottish perspective medium.com/@allanfaulds...
Good piece by Mike Small in @bellacaledonia.bsky.social this morning on the collapse of new music support at BBC Radio Scotland and the questionable evidence by BBC Scotland's Hayley Valentine to the Scottish Parliament CEEAC committee.
bellacaledonia.org.uk/2026/01/30/b... @scottishgreens.org
The only logical position
"Independence offers liberation. Embracing chartalism – a school of economic thought that recognises how sovereign currency issuance supports public priorities – Scotland could build a wellbeing economy prioritising health, equality, sustainability, and community over GDP."
