The Herald and the Scotsman, today, headline:
Labour has a ‘huge problem’ with anti-Semitism, Scottish members in Scotland
‘Eddie Izzard warns Labour must ‘repair damage’ from anti-semitism storm’
Any fool can see this ‘storm’ is being whipped up by the anti-Corbyn faction still in the Labour Party, as part of another attempted coup to unseat him. Of course, the Tory press are delighting in it too.
However, a side effect has been the Scottish press failing to clarify the important fact that there is no evidence, at all, of anti-semitism in the Labour Party’s Scottish branch because, in the main, there is no evidence at all of a serious problem of anti-semitism in Scotland. Surely as Scottish newspapers, they feel obliged to clarify this kind of thing for their readers?
The Herald included further comment like:
‘Labour has a ‘huge problem’ with anti-Semitism, claims Scottish party members. Prominent Labour members in Scotland have said there is a “huge problem” with anti-Semitism in the party amid fresh claims of abuse by Jeremy Corbyn supporters.’
Now, I know that doesn’t say there is a problem with anti-semitism in Scotland but neither does it provide the evidence, which is available, that it isn’t. I think that’s important for accuracy and clarity.
The Scotsman went on to say:
‘Labour moved to distance itself from a series of pro-Corbyn social media groups after an investigation found they contained hundreds of messages promoting Holocaust denial and hate towards Jews. Shadow digital minister Liam Byrne admitted there was “real alarm” at the scale of the problem.’
Once again, that doesn’t say there is a problem with anti-semitism in Scotland but neither does it or the full text provide the evidence, which is available, that it isn’t. Again, I think that’s important for accuracy and clarity.
Now, here is the actual evidence from, the Community Security Trust ‘Anti-semitic Incidents 2017 Report’:
There had been 1 382 incidents in the UK in 2017 up 3% from 1 346 in 2016 (p34). So, not much of a surge overall but there had been a 34% increase in physical assaults from 108 in 2016 to 145 in 2017.
On the same page of the report, I found a breakdown revealing that of the 1 382 incidents, only 16 had occurred in Scotland, up 1 from 15 in 2016.
With 8% of the population, only 1.15% of all anti-Semitic incidents took place in Scotland.
‘Incidents’ included tweets and shouts from passing cars. In the report, no cases of physical assault in Scotland were reported. Only two examples were offered, one was a tweet and the other was an insult from a shopkeeper angered by Israeli attacks in Gaza. So, there almost certainly had been no physical assaults at all in Scotland
Talking-up Scotland 
Difficult to feel any sympathy for Labour in Scotland, they stood quiet while the same papers poured scorn over half the population of Scotland who believed in Independence, in fact they joined in, wholeheartedly.
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British nationalists are desperate to drag Scotland down to England’s level.
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This appears to be another gung-ho attempt to dethrone Corbyn from within Labour utilizing the right wing press as the attack dogs. The next GE in England will be interesting as punters scratch their noggins looking for someone/anyone worth voting for!
The Scottish press are presumably joining in to try to stop the Scottish Tory slide in the polls.
You get a flavour of this nonsense in David Torrance’s latest crazed “Ruthie for FM in 2021” article in the Herald. It would take a heroic leap of faith to imagine the Tories getting the most seats in Scotland, never mind which other party would offer support to give them a parliamentary majority. Yet this is what Torrance would have us believe. Fake News, anyone?
Oh, and if she doesn’t win, she’ll be off to England—is this a threat or a promise?
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The current stramash is taking on elements of L’affaire Stavisky as it rumbles on. However overblown it all is I can’t summon up huge sympathy for Jezza Corbyn and Co. If they live by the MSM then they must be prepared to die by the MSM I suppose.
Interesting to see The bold Baron Adonis maintain his campaign concerning Aunty Beeb’s bias. I seem to recall he kept mighty quiet about it when the beeb’s bias was being applied to the benefit of New lab and Tony Blair etc. However, don’t I remember remember some sage advice about there being more joy in heaven at the repentance of a single sinner and so forth? – so I am happy to cheer on Baron A and his campaign. Interesting suggestion about the beeb tax-payer’s money being handed to Channel 4 instead. Some of the so-called ‘licence payer’ money is diverted from beeb coffers to S4C in Wales – so there is an incipient mechanism for such a move. From RT site today:
The BBC has breached its charter and continues to report Brexit with extreme bias, according to fierce new accusations from Labour peer and anti-Brexit campaigner Andrew Adonis.
The corporation failed to cover anti-Brexit protests and has repeatedly approached Britain’s split with the EU with an agenda, according to Lord Adonis. Ex-Transport Secretary Adonis also launched a scathing assault on the BBC for its coverage involving former UKIP leader Nigel Farage.
Adonis said the BBC is in crisis and called for the public license to be handed to Channel 4. He added that he is creating a pamphlet on “what needs to be done to save public broadcasting,” which he plans to debate on the BBC. He later claimed he would be made to debate it with Farage, who would be given “two-thirds of the air time.”
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