Tuesday 31 July 2018

Police Scotland Restrict The Right To Protest

The right to peaceful protest is the cornerstone of a democracy and is essential to maintaining good order in any country.

The minute this right is taken away from citizens, that country ceases to be a democracy and authoritarian rule soon takes over. Members of the public find themselves not only denied the right to protest peacefully but also denied the right to speak freely and criticise those in authority.

That could never happen in Scotland could it?

It just did.

The Scottish Defence League recently tried to hold a rally in Glasgow. As is usual when organisations like the SDL hold a rally, an opposing Anti-Fascist campaign was also planned as a counter-demonstration. OK, so no surprises there.

However Police Scotland ordered a number of restrictions on the SDL protest only.

The SDL were warned that no more than 100 of their people would be allowed to be at the protest rally. Time restrictions were also put in place as to when the SDL protest could begin and end. If the SDL refused to comply with the restrictions, Police Scotland told them they would be committing an offence and would be arrested.

No such restrictions were placed on the other group, the Anti-Fascists.

Now let me be clear...I am not, nor have I ever been, a member of either the SDL or the AntiFascist movement, so I don't have a horse in this race.

But I have had many experiences dealing with untrustworthy Police Scotland, so this corrupt type of biased behaviour from them is nothing unusual or surprising to me.

It concerns me greatly that Police Scotland have sought to take sides so openly and arrogantly in a political debate by imposing restrictions on one sides right to peaceful protest.

They would do well to heed the classic phrase "I wholly disapprove of what you say and will defend to the death your right to say it".

I remember the days when Police Scotland used to help, support, and protect innocent members of the Scottish public, not target them.

Welcome to the murky world of untrustworthy Police Scotland...where they think nothing of jack-booting all over your rights as a member of the Scottish public to protest peacefully and speak freely.

https://www.thescottishsun.co.uk/news/2962053/police-scotland-boss-iain-livingstone-scottish-defence-league-glasgow-rally-restrictions/


Don't You Just Wish You Were A Bank?

RBS (The Royal Bank Of Scotland) are not too popular with Scottish business owners.

A section of RBS known as the Global Restructuring Group (GRG) was supposed to help small businesses but, instead, they allegedly exploited these small businesses and forced many to the brink of collapse...just so they could profit from their demise by selling off their properties.

Despicable.

Unsurprisingly, RBS denied the claims (well they would wouldn't they).

But it doesn't end there. The plot thickens.

RBS have curiously been quoted as saying they are "deeply sorry" for their treatment of businesses in the GRG...and the disgraced GRG has now been disbanded.

Also, RBS have set aside £400 million to compensate thousands of small businesses in the GRG.

And if that's not enough already, nearly 400 cases have been settled so far and RBS has offered £115 million in refunds for fees charged by GRG.

Call me a skeptic, but I'm pretty sure RBS wouldn't be throwing almost half a billion quid at this little 'problem' if it wasn't pretty clear that they were in the wrong for the way they acted regarding their treatment of small businesses in their GRG.

So, when can we see RBS managers in jail?

Ehhh...we won't.

Because no-one at RBS will be prosecuted over this scandal.

The Scottish Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service have stated that "there is insufficient evidence of criminal conduct" and that there is "no basis for criminal action".

In the meantime, if you, a normally law-abiding member of the Scottish public, forget to tax your motor vehicle or drive at 35mph in a 30mph zone, the Crown Office will have you prosecuted in court quicker than you can say "Fred The Shred".

Ahhh, who'd have thought that a decade after the good ole' financial crisis of 2008, the Royal Bank Of Scotland would still be the gift that just keeps giving...especially if you're a banker and those gifts are billions of pounds and a get-out-of-jail free card from your buddies in the COPFS.

Don't you just wish you were a banker.

http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/16383605.no-basis-for-criminal-action-over-rbs-small-business-scandal-says-crown-office/