Osbourne says no to currency union.

see my post about how long is it before he stands down as a MSP.

And see epicsteve’ comment :

If he stands down as an MSP and is re-elected as an MP then I’d expect him to continue donating that pension to charity. When he was an MP and an MSP at the same time he used to donate one of those salaries to the same charitable trust.

Salmond has a track record of not accepting two incomes for his elected work :

http://www.newsnetscotland.scot/index.php/scottish-politics/201-labour-mps-follow-first-ministers-lead-on-second-salaries

Also what a complete farce you can claim a First Minister pension of £42k pa whilst you are still earning a salary as an MSP !

It might well be “a complete farce” but is Salmond personally responsible for introducing the rule ? The fact that he is donating his to charity suggests that he doesn’t personally see it as a necessity. Nor does it follow that he is being less generous because you think the rule is a farce.

Another perfect example of the Salmond spin

To be fair your criticism of him on this point appear to be based on the fact that you don’t like his politics, whether or not it’s a perfect example of the Salmond spin you are certainly playing politics with the issue.

I don’t like Salmond’s politics but it doesn’t lead me to conclude that donating a second income to charity can’t be seen as “so generous in any way shape or form”.

I assume people have seen the quote from the head of the BBC who described Salmond as a paranoid loser

Nope and as it is you saying it quote please.

not so generous in any way shape or form”

If he shat gold bricks and gave them to the poor and needy you would still complain. Ernie nails it tbh- politics from you and nobility[ and possibly politics] from AS.

He is doing a good turn and all this shows is that some right wingers – esp on STW- have some hate issues re AS.

Personally I thought that the referendum might just be the first skirmish in a long engagement. Having won, the unionist parties have it in their control to make sure there remains a majority against independence. If they fail and the SNP regain a mandate for another referendum then I don’t see why there shouldn’t be one.

The unionist parties won the referendum, they’re comprehensively losing Scotland:

It’s beginning to dawn on the smarter Scottish Labour people that they’ve comprehensively screwed up by getting into bed with the Tories. People have long memories, that behaviour won’t be forgiven – the question is whether Labour in Scotland is dead for a decade of a generation.

People have long memories

Agreed. And I’m expecting this to be a big card played by both sides. With one going “look at these gits who sold you out” and the other going “look at these gits, let them in and there’ll be another referendum”

Hard to see Labour recovering in time for the next round of political electioneering points scoring. But I will not be suprised if that frequently bandied about map will prove far from accurate. Much will depend on how much money people have in their own pockets I suspect.

Anyway, up the peoples republic of rhubard pies

Only on here could somebody dig up AS for giving £40k plus pa to charity,suprisingly it wasn’t THM. I wish he had stayed on for a while, the sound of Jam, zulu and THM’s heads exploding as he was allowed a PPB on national tv because of the size of the SNP’s vote in the next Westminster election would have been heard in Sutherland. 😀
Interesting times coming here, Labour must REALLY wish the elections were a lot longer away.

The Yes vote would have been permanent, I think a No should be the same.

JY google it, its on all the news services. If AS had just got on with his giving privately, or ideally, decline to take the pension at all whilst he was still working as an SMP/MP then that would have credibility in my eyes.

ernie, not sure it is his politics which is the issue for me, it’s his whole mode of operation. I’m glad he has a track record of not being paid for two jobs, Scotland and UK as a whole should have a rule that if you are an MP you have no other job. I have that in my employment contract, always have. As an SMP/FM I would imagine he had a lot to do with the pension rule.

jambalaya – Member
But he’s not donating it every year, it’s short term piece of politics, see my post about how long is it before he stands down as a MSP. Also what a complete farce you can claim a First Minister pension of £42k pa whilst you are still earning a salary as an MSP !

My point is he should be getting that pension whilst he is still working for the same employer. Giving away something which should never have been allowed is not generous. It is also total spin to say he is giving away his pension, that’s a headline designed to suggest he is forgoing it permanently which he is absolutely not. A £42k pension in Scotland is very generous and that for 7 years work. i wonder what other pensions he’ll be getting paid for by the Scottish tax payer.I think he also donated half his FM salary to charity too. you’ll need to google the facts on that though.

@seosamh – from google he kept his FM salary and donated some/all of his other MP/SMP salary to charity. Its the two jobs / two salaries thing again for me.

As an aside Google also turned up that when he stood down as a UK MP he got a £65k pay off (resettlement allowance to help him deal with not being an MP !), he kept half and gave half to charity. I do wonder again how MPs get a payoff when they walk straight into another job, in his case as an MSP and then FM.

So my blood boils further 😉

He tweeted his own pleasure at his donation !

He gets £85k as First Minister AND £60k as an SMP (not to mention most his life will be run on expenses). When he took the UK resettlement allowance he was still an SMP, still earning his £60k (and maybe the £85 too can’t recall if he was FM too). So he is still earning £60k as an SMP and would have been entitled to a pension of £45k.

He really is the king of spin and a master of smoke and mirrors.

from google he kept his FM salary and donated some/all of his other MP/SMP salary to charity.

….when he stood down as a UK MP he got a £65k pay off (resettlement allowance to help him deal with not being an MP !), he kept half and gave half to charity

So you have done a bit of digging around in Google and discovered that Alex Salmond has given quite a bit of money (which he was perfectly entitled to keep for himself) to charity.

You don’t however believe that this is “so generous in any way shape or form”.

You are not exactly a very easy person to please, are you jambalaya ?

Would you like to tell us how much Alex Salmond should have given to charity for it to have met with your full approval ?

more google

Gordon Brown waived his UK PM’s pension entirely, ie for life. AS is donating it whilst he is still employed by the Scottish government/people as an SMP. That was my point all along. What Gordon Brown did was generous. What AS has done is PR.

@earnie I appreciate he could have kept these amounts, but there is a strong argument that he should never have had them. The condemnation from UK Labour about keeping half the £65k when stepping down as an MP was pretty strong. As I said it would be one thing if he just gave this money discretely but he announced it with a fanfare on Twitter.

but there is a strong argument that he should never have had them.

So you are criticizing the system not Alex Salmond, you didn’t make that clear, you gave every indication that it was Alex Salmond that you had a problem with over this issue.

As I said it would be one thing if he just gave this money discretely

I don’t see a problem with someone announcing that they are donating a salary to charity. It certainly doesn’t make that the charitable act is less generous because they have announced it, which is what you’ve suggested.

Gordon Brown is obviously the best example we could possibly have
http://order-order.com/2014/01/24/exc-gordon-brown-office-has-10000-a-week-expenses-raises-over-3-million-gives-less-than-1-million-to-charity/

Alex Salmond wasn’t even at Holyrood when that rule was implemented. Oh – and it’s MSP, not SMP.

jambalaya – Member

What Gordon Brown did was generous. What AS has done is PR.

You really are a hypocrite jambalaya. Three weeks ago you were criticising Gordon Brown’s charitable donations from a second income dismissing him as not being motivated by altruistic considerations, you are now describing him as being “generous”.

Do you remember that thread ? scotroutes used the same “evidence” then from a right-wing Tory blogger to belittle Gordon Brown’s charitable work as he has now.

If you can’t remember the thread here it is again :

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/welcome-back-gordi#post-6420617

It’s nice to see the relentless positivity of the no campaign is alive and well.

HAHAHA @ erie pwning you and NW comment

The Yes vote would have been permanent, I think a No should be the same.

Good luck with that thought

JY google it, its on all the news services.

I did before i asked i found nothing but top hit now

‘really, Salmond, you’re a paranoid loser and you really shouldn’t insult the BBC like that’,

I love statements like that, he should be on here with that level of hypocrisy… oh hold on is it you Jam 😉

Can you state categorically for the record what AS has to do in terms of a charitable donation for you to not insult him for it ?

duckman – Member
Only on here could somebody dig up AS for giving £40k plus pa to charity,suprisingly it wasn’t THM.

Oi, play the ball ref….oops forgot, you are one! Are you Steve Walsh by any chance?

No need to worry about the DOs charitable affairs. There are enough basic facts that support ridiculing his posturing and lies, we don’t need anymore. Spinning his way jnto Westminster will be funny enough and then the book launch….

JY, He could forgo his SMP pension for life, better he could forgo the FM one but as that’s higher it would seem reasonable for him to keep that. He could have forgone his £65k allowance from the UK parliament.

@duckman – we don’t know he is giving £42k to charity, there are too many caveats. Also he is giving the Scottish taxpayers money to charity from a pension which should not be paid under these circumstances, ie when he is till working/being paid for by the Scottish taxpayer.

Think about it – he can do the job of first minister for £85k or not bother and get £45k !

Northwind there is nothing negative about pointing out what a fraud Salmond is is there ?

ernie – yes I am criticising the system too, one he was the leader of and did much to shape. Brown gave up his pension for life, Salmond has done no such thing

There is no doubt in my mind he intends to stand as a UK MP in the May 2015 General Election – more jobs and more pay whilst drawing his pension from the Scottish taxpayer.

All of this just reinforces my view of the Holyrood political elite being just the same (in fact worse) than those other bods in Westminster

He seems to have accepted the future entitlement to a pension only to “donate” it to charity some years later.

If his moral compass is as strong as he says it is, why didn’t he just waive it in the first place like Gordon Brown and David Cameron. Wouldn’t the £42K a year be better retained in the public sector than stashed in his own charity?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/9254965/Alex-Salmond-refuses-to-give-up-gold-plated-pension-like-Cameron-and-Brown.html

@robdixon – yes this is my point exactly

The article linked to above says that the Scottish Parliament has now abolished this special first minister pension which was drawable at any time and no matter what other jobs you where doing. So AS is drawing a pension which has now been withdrawn being seen to be too generous. The fact he is giving away some of it for a limited period doesn’t make him a hero in my book.

Oi, play the ball ref….oops forgot, you are one! Are you Steve Walsh by any chance?

Now there is somebody that the English have cause to hate. Still I am sure he will continue to make a good bogeyman…AS not SW.

http://www.marysalmondtrust.com/guidelines.html

We do know he is giving the full amount to charity,what are these caveats you alone seem to be privvy to that make him a fraud?
AS gives to charity=fraud
Major parties renege on “the vow” tumbleweed

jambalaya – Member

@robdixon – yes this is my point exactly

The article linked to above says that the Scottish Parliament has now abolished this special first minister pension which was drawable at any time and no matter what other jobs you where doing. So AS is drawing a pension which has now been withdrawn being seen to be too generous. The fact he is giving away some of it for a limited period doesn’t make him a hero in my book.Jebus, pipe down… 😆

The foaming at the mouth that AS causes in some quarters is one of his most attractive attributes IMHO. I hope he does head back to Westminster just for the sheer entertainment value, especially if Labour had to rely on the SNP to shore up a minority government.

Maybe we should have a new thread on which coalition you’d prefer:
– Labour & SNP
– Tory & UKIP

Maybe we should have a new thread on which coalition you’d prefer:
– Labour & SNP
– Tory & UKIP

Jesus **** wept

epicsteve – Member
The foaming at the mouth that AS causes in some quarters is one of his most attractive attributes IMHO. I hope he does head back to Westminster just for the sheer entertainment value, especially if Labour had to rely on the SNP to shore up a minority government.

Maybe we should have a new thread on which coalition you’d prefer:
– Labour & SNP
– Tory & UKIP

The SNP have stated they won’t prop up a westminster gov.

Major parties renege on “the vow” – tumbleweed

❓

Smith Commission set up on 19th September to start drafting new legislation.
Proposals published on 13th October here.

Now I don’t know about you but to me that looks like the government has done exactly what they said they would, and on time too. We’re not finished with November yet, and it would seem premature to say the government won’t deliver on the future items in the timetable, so please, enlighten me as to which vow has been reneged on.

The Flying Ox – Member
Major parties renege on “the vow” – tumbleweed

Smith Commission set up on 19th September to start drafting new legislation.
Proposals published on 13th October here.
Now I don’t know about you but to me that looks like the government has done exactly what they said they would, and on time too. We’re not finished with November yet, and it would seem premature to say the government won’t deliver on the future items in the timetable, so please, enlighten me as to which vow has been reneged on.Lets see what happens to the smith commission proposals after a new government is elected in may.

Promises, what promises! 😆

but largely I do agree people need to engage in the process and see what comes from it.

@seaosamth – I did say earlier I was quite revved up about this, I meant it. Seems the Scottish parliament did agree with me that the FM pension was too generous, just that AS declined to give it up and we are supposed to give him a round of applause for only keeping half.

@epic, yes I agree I think that’s one of his main appeals to his supports, that he winds up those opposed to him.

@Flying Ox – yes Government is absolutely on schedule, they are motivated to implement the more powers for English MPs on English issues. I think in time we will see they’ve been the biggest winners here. The Scots will get more powers which will shine a light on their overly optimistic promises which they cannot deliver (they’ll still blame Westminster for everything of course), the English MPs will get to vote on English policies which will be a big step forward.

the English MPs will get to vote on English policies which will be a big step forward towards Scottish Independence

FTFY 😉 all for it!

btw anyone heading to the RIC conference on saturday?

Is it not time this thread was brought to a dignified close? There can be other threads started at opportune times to discuss devo issues.

We all miss this thread, you can see that by the fact we won’t let it go !

brought to a dignified close?

Bit late for that

We all miss this thread, you can see that by the fact we won’t let it go !

Kill it, kill it with fire, napalm, badgers, nukes, and making progress.

just that AS declined to give it up and we are supposed to give him a round of applause for only keeping half.

What a weird way of writing he voluntarily gave up half his pension. You have let your personal feelings cloud your judgement here. If you chose to donate half of your pension I will applaud yo as we should all applaud him. he did not need to so this, he could no tbe foced to do it but he did and still you are nit willing to say well done. If he cured cancer you would moan he did not do it soon enough.

By all means suggest he could do more but FFS how many politicians or people do this ? Very few so lets applaud them when they do.

So my blood boils further

massive schadenfreude over here