Labour sleeze... UNREPORTED by the BritNat press

[Saorsa1]

Oops, nearly missed this one :

The Scotsman

Ex-MPs lose fight to avoid criminal trial over expenses
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Published Date: 11 November 2010
By Stephen Howard

A FORMER Scottish Labour MP accused of fiddling his expenses has lost a final bid to avoid a criminal trial.
Jim Devine, who represented the Livingston constituency, was joined be former Westminster colleagues David Chaytor and Elliot Morley in taking their cases to the highest court in the land. The former MPs, who all deny theft by false accounting, claimed any investigation into their expenses claims and the imposition of any sanctions "should lie within the hands of parliament".

The Supreme Court ruled they were not protected by parliamentary privilege, and they will now face separate trials at London's Southwark Crown Court - the first is due to begin on 22 November.

Nine justices gave their decisions yesterday to avoid clashing with the criminal proceedings and will give their reasons for the ruling at a later date.

Nigel Pleming, QC, representing Devine and Chaytor, told a hearing at the Supreme Court in October that the parliamentary expenses scheme was part of proceedings in the House, so the men should be protected by parliamentary privilege.

He added: "I also wish to emphasise as firmly as I can that this is not, and never has been, an attempt to take them above or outside the law."

He said the House had "the power to punish, and to recover any monies wrongly claimed, and is well capable of investigating allegations, including allegations of dishonesty, made against its members".

Mr Pleming said it had been recognised in the courts below that the case raised important issues of principle and was without direct precedent.

"So far as we are aware these are the first criminal prosecutions of members of the House of Commons - in relation either to a statement made in or to parliament or its delegates, or based on a member's dealings with parliament - for over 300 years.

"These proceedings have been brought against an extremely adverse, even hostile, media and political background."

Lord Chief Justice Lord Judge, heading a panel of three Court of Appeal judges, earlier this year upheld a ruling by a judge at Southwark Crown Court in central London that the ex-MPs were not protected by privilege.

Former Bury North MP Chaytor, 61, of Todmorden, West Yorkshire; ex-S****horpe MP Morley, 58, of Winterton, north Lincolnshire; and Devine, 57, of Bathgate, West Lothian are all on unconditional bail and due to face separate trials.

The three are claiming that the criminal charges against them involve questioning or impugning proceedings in parliament, not because the statements and claims made by them are themselves proceedings, but because they were made in the course of parliamentary proceedings.

[Saorsa1]

Just when you think their talent for sleaze production is a little less prolific than usual, three stories arrive at the same time... like buses.

Is there any area of discussion one can broach that wouldn't have some or other Labourite sleazing all over it?

The SNP would be crucified for such behaviour and rightly so.

[Saorsa1]

From Go Lassie Go

In 2004, Finland lifted the prohibition on people bringing cheap alcohol into the country. The results were disastrous and consumption rose by 10%, along with alcohol related illness.

Labour and the other unionist parties are totally disingenuous when they say minumum pricing is untried and untested. Price does matter, as Finland shows. Yes, it would be better if the money went to the state instead of the supermarket. But the UK government refuse to act. Why, then, do these parties oppose calls to give Scotland control over duty on alcohol and other taxes? Might it be because Scotch whisky alone provides £1.6bn a year to the UK exchequer?

Images-12Kaye Adams was taken aback when Labour's Doctor Richard Simpson, a guest on her show, lamely responded that his only solution to the problem was to bat it back to the UK government - without even trying a Scottish approach. Some people think he was given too much time by the BBC. Personally, I think he was given enough time to hang himself. Listen again to Call Kaye here. Dr Simpson thinks most of the pensioners in the country are addicted to cheap vodka....he must hope Scotland is too inebriated to notice his inconsistency and opportunisim.

Incidently, the SNP proposal did not come out of thin air. It was based on research by the World Health Organisation . The WHO studied policies aimed at reducing alcohol consumption around the world. It concluded that the most effective methods to reduce consumption were 1. Target at risk groups. 2. Control price. 3 Reduce access.

WHO said woolly approaches such as "improve education" were least effective.

The SNP followed WHO advice by addressing the three different points in these ways 1. Ban under 21s from off sales (eg target as risk groups). 2. Set a minimum unit price. 3. Introduce separate tills for alcohol at supermarkets.

1 and 3 were killed off quickly and 2 was stopped yesterday.

There was a time when the Scottish divisions of London parties included a few folk who sincerely believed they were defending their country inside the UK. They were misguided but genuine. A few devolutionists were motivated by a sense of public service. Now, the plates have shifted. Nobody who watched yesterday's debate could believe those old time, pro-Scotland unionists still exist. The whole debate was an exercise in cynicism.

[Saorsa1]

This isn't the usual criminal charges sleaze but as far as I'm concerned the Labourites and the unionists acted in a partisan way that is in fact sleazy and disgusting.

The article above shows a dirtiness that is quite unpalatable and sleazy in so many ways, not the least of it being Labour's fault. Blethering on about Buckfast and being unfair to the poor (poor winos are of course a concern and no-one wishes to punish poor alcoholics) .

Disgusting and sleazy. The next sleaze story will be soon and no doubt a Labour sleazebag breaking the law or being found out. This thread is named Labour sleaze but it is open to sleaze of all parties; it just seems to be Labour who are snouting about in the sty all the time.

Feel free to pick on ANY party, if they do it, they deserve it. That said, there seems to be little reason for expecting the 9 out of 10 stories in Scotland will remain Labourite scandals. They are the pork pie mafia of Glasgow after all.

[Saorsa1]

I'd just like to add, that before I started this thread, I had no idea how corrupt Labour actually were; the reason for that being is the Scottish Brit nat press doesn't mention it.

[Saorsa1]

The Scotsman

20th Nov 2011

Shame of MP arrested and put in cells after refusing breath test
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By BRIAN FERGUSON

A LEADING Scottish Labour MP was forced to resign from Ed Miliband's front bench-team last night after being arrested for failing to provide a breath test.
Eric Joyce, MP for Falkirk, in Stirlingshire, was banned from driving for a year, after appearing from the cells at his local sheriff court yesterday.

Joyce, shadow Northern Ireland spokesman, last night said he was "deeply ashamed of his actions"
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after being held by police at a petrochemical plant in his constituency.

He added: "I have been incredibly stupid and rightly suffered the penalty for it. I want to apologise unreservedly to those I have let down."

Joyce, a former army major, who served in the Black Watch, achieved notoriety in the House of Commons expenses scandal when it emerged he had claimed more than any MP.

He had previously been banned for driving for six months after being caught speeding on the M9, near Bo'ness, in Stirlingshire.

Security staff had raised the alarm about his behaviour when he approached a gatehouse around 11.15pm on Thursday, shortly after they had heard suspicious noises and spotted a vehicle moving slowly outside the plant.

Guards on duty said they smelled alcohol on the 50-year-old's breath and told police they believed he was "not compos mentis."

When police arrived at the scene they found Joyce, elected 10 years ago to the House of Commons, standing by his car, speaking on his phone. He was then arrested and taken to Falkirk police station. He told officers he was tired, had been "up the previous night", and had just flown up from London.

He said: "I had one of those bottles of wine on the plane, but not excessive." But he refused to give a breath sample, saying he wanted to speak to a solicitor first. He was charged with failing to give a sample without reasonable excuse.

The Crown accepted not guilty pleas to two other charges - one of driving carelessly and at excessive speed, causing an oncoming car to swerve out of his way, and colliding with, and damaging, a roundabout road sign, as well as failing to take a preliminary roadside breath test.

Kirsty Anderson, depute fiscal, told Falkirk Sheriff Court one of the guards at the Ineos plant in Bo'ness Road heard "what sounded like heavy metal rubbing very loudly".

She added: "The car came to a stop directly outside Gate No. 6 at the plant. The accused got out and approached the gatehouse. The security officer was of the opinion that he was either confused, or under the influence of alcohol, and the police were contacted.

"He said that he had no idea what he had hit -- but he knew he had hit something.

[Saorsa1]

9 days since the last grubby Labour story.

To be fair, this kind of event is a personal choice but had it been an SNP MSP, we would have not heard the end of the 'scandal'

Also, this is one of the rare stories actually printed by the Brit nat press.


9 days... they just keep on coming

That's about 25 major scandals a year from Labour Scotland (one every 2 weeks).