Latest news with #SNP-run
Glasgow Times
4 days ago
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Tommy Sheridan says he is 'victimised' by Glasgow council
The Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership informed Tommy that due to his 2011 perjury conviction and prison sentence, all future applications for employment would be denied, according to the BBC. He has challenged this decision at Scotland's highest civil court, the Court of Session. Tommy told BBC Scotland News that his gender critical views on trans rights were a factor in the decision by the SNP-run council. READ MORE: Tommy Sheridan refused social work job due to 'unacceptable risk', court hears Sheridan, who completed a master's degree in social work at Glasgow Caledonian University, told BBC Scotland that he had "no doubt whatsoever" that he was being blacklisted by the council. He said that this is because of his socialist background and his views on transgender issues, which he says conflict with those of the SNP-led council. He said: "I don't think it chimes with the spirit of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act to hold against someone a 15-year-old conviction. "Particularly when I've already had to go through a vetting process, a very stiff vetting process from the body that was set up to regulate social care." Sheridan maintains that his "lived experience", including time in prison, makes him particularly suited to working in criminal justice youth social work. He said: "I come from a very working-class background, brought up in a housing scheme, having been in and around jails for the best part of 20-odd years. "I have intimate knowledge of the processes, challenges, and what prison is really like." (Image: Newsquest) He also claimed his gender-critical beliefs—such as rejecting self-identification in favour of biological definitions—played a role in the decision: "I think being a socialist is always difficult for some of the SNP councillors, but I think the biggest area would be my gender critical views. "I don't share the SNP's position that someone can declare that they're a man or a woman. I believe in biology, I believe in science, and so does the law now. "It's very unusual that the Supreme Court agrees with me, but there you go. I agree with the Supreme Court. "Now, those are gender critical views that Glasgow City Council SNP group don't agree with. So I've got no doubt in my mind that that's part of the package." Sheridan's case is currently under consideration at the Court of Session, after he received a rejection letter in August 2024. The court heard that Glasgow City Council deemed his past conviction an 'unacceptable level of risk' for a social work role. His lawyer argued the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC)—the body responsible for regulating the profession—had already approved him as a suitable candidate, making the council's position unlawful. In response, the council's legal representative, Paul Reid KC, maintained the decision was within the local authority's rights as an employment matter and therefore not subject to judicial review. Lord Young is expected to deliver a ruling in due course. READ MORE: Tommy Sheridan to pursue legal action against Scottish council Sheridan has announced plans to return to frontline politics, seeking selection as a candidate for the Alba Party in the next Scottish Parliament elections. He added: "Why don't I go back into politics and start using the skills I have to communicate, to advocate, to try and promote independence. "But also to rage against some of the injustices in our world just now, of which there are far too many." Sheridan rose to prominence as an anti-Poll Tax campaigner, later becoming an MSP in 1999 for the Scottish Socialist Party, which he led during its peak years. He was imprisoned in 2011 after being convicted of perjury related to a defamation case against the News of the World. A Glasgow City Council spokesperson said: 'It is untrue to say that Mr Sheridan's views on trans rights had any bearing on this matter whatsoever. "The hiring process is purely operational, and elected members play no role in selecting candidates for this kind of role. "Furthermore, these assertions did not form any part of Mr Sheridan's case in court.'
Glasgow Times
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Glasgow city council caught up in Netflix and porn scandal
The Daily Mail revealed that Glasgow City Council workers tried to access inappropriate sites using taxpayer-funded devices. In the past year, staff attempted to stream Netflix shows 63 times. They also tried to access the Pornhub website 17 times and gambling sites another 17 times. READ MORE: YOB chucked bottle at Celtic goalkeeper during derby match READ MORE: Two officers hospitalised and three arrested after 'disturbance' While most attempts were blocked by the council's safety firewall, five attempts to access betting sites were successful. The council suggested that some staff may have been working on a gambling harms project at the time of these successful entries. The revelations come as many public sector staff continue to work from home for part of the week, with some logging on from as far away as the United Arab Emirates, Bulgaria, and Germany. This follows last week's revelations in The Mail that Scottish Government civil servants had also been accessing inappropriate material at work. Scottish Conservative Glasgow MSP Annie Wells said: "Glaswegians who have been hit with huge hikes in their council tax will be appalled that council employees have been trying to access dodgy websites and Netflix on their time. "We know that this behaviour has occurred within the SNP government, and this culture is clearly prevalent within SNP-run Glasgow City Council too. "Hard-pressed taxpayers expect employees to be focused on fixing the city's pothole-ridden roads, emptying bins, and supporting our schools. "Instead, there have been multiple occasions of them trying to view dodgy content, place a bet or watch their favourite new shows. "This might only be a select number of staff who thought this was appropriate, but SNP bosses at the City Chambers must guarantee all staff will be working on what matters to Glasgow at all times." Figures obtained under freedom of information laws show that there were 63 attempts to access Netflix on Glasgow City Council devices between May 14, 2024, and May 13 this year. Every attempt was blocked by a firewall, the council insists. In the past year, there were also 17 attempts to access pornography on Glasgow City Council devices, but every attempt was again blocked by firewalls. READ MORE: Glasgow drivers racked up £1.7m in LEZ fines since 2023, figures show Over the same period, there were 17 attempts to access gambling websites, with five of those being successful. The statistics, obtained by the Scottish Conservatives, follow a public backlash over the number of civil servants and local authority staff still working from home, despite the Covid pandemic ending in 2022. Some workers only need to attend their office one day a week, while council staff have been allowed to work from far-flung locations including Japan, India, and Australia. A spokesman for the council said: "The council has clear policies on acceptable use of IT equipment, and access to some sites and services is restricted or blocked. "The council has thousands of staff who use a PC, phone or other internet-enabled device, and these figures reflect a very small number of incidents."
Daily Record
12-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
Prime Minister 'horrified' Lanarkshire steelworks have been effectively mothballed
The Prime Minister said the SNP-run Scottish Government had failed to find work to keep the sites thriving after negotiating a 'bad deal' which saw them being bought by a new owner. Sir Keir Starmer has said he is 'horrified' that steelworks in Lanarkshire have been effectively mothballed, and is calling on John Swinney to step in to revive them. The Prime Minister said the SNP-run Scottish Government had failed to find work to keep the sites thriving after negotiating a 'bad deal' which saw them being bought by a new owner. The plants at Dalzell in Motherwell and Clydebridge were bought by the Liberty House group in 2016, backed by a £7 million loan from the Scottish Government. The group, which is part of Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance, also owns the Lochaber aluminium smelter. The Labour leader's comments come after the US trade deal which was reached on Thursday - which cut tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium. Mr Swinney's party said Sir Keir was attempting to 'wash over' his own industrial failures. Writing in the Sunday Times, the Prime Minister said: 'I'm proud we've secured a deal that slashes tariffs on the steel and aluminium industries to zero. 'This Labour government will always support our proud steel industry. So I'm horrified that the Dalzell and Clydebridge steelworks in Lanarkshire are lying mothballed, with workers on furlough. 'All because the SNP negotiated a bad deal and have had no industrial strategy to bring work to those mills. 'We're standing up for Scottish steel - now Swinney needs to step in and get those plants up and running again.' It is understood that some staff at Dalzell in Motherwell have been furloughed and there is no work going through the plant. The Prime Minister also highlighted the trade deal with India, which cuts costs on the crucial Scottish export of whisky. SNP MP Pete Wishart laid the blame on the UK Government, saying it had failed to back the Scottish industry in contrast to the action taken to protect plants south of the border. He told the newspaper: 'The audacity of Keir Starmer to attempt to wash over the UK government's betrayal of Scottish industry is insulting. 'They put emergency support in for Scunthorpe steelworks and deliberately legislated to exclude Scotland and therefore, Dalzell works from any such help, now or in the future.' He added: 'Like the Tories, Labour are making it abundantly clear that Scotland will always be an afterthought for Westminster. The SNP is the only party that will always be on Scotland's side.' *Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here.
STV News
11-05-2025
- Business
- STV News
Starmer says he is ‘horrified' steelworks are mothballed due to SNP's ‘bad deal'
Sir Keir Starmer has said he is 'horrified' that steelworks in Lanarkshire have been effectively mothballed, and is calling on John Swinney to step in to revive them. The Prime Minister said the SNP-run Scottish Government had failed to find work to keep the sites thriving after negotiating a 'bad deal' which saw them being bought by a new owner. The plants at Dalzell and Clydebridge were bought by the Liberty House group in 2016, backed by a £7 million loan from the Scottish Government. The group, which is part of Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance, also owns the Lochaber aluminium smelter. The Labour leader's comments come after the US trade deal which was reached on Thursday – which cut tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium. Mr Swinney's party said Sir Keir was attempting to 'wash over' his own industrial failures. Writing in the Sunday Times, the Prime Minister said: 'I'm proud we've secured a deal that slashes tariffs on the steel and aluminium industries to zero. 'This Labour government will always support our proud steel industry. So I'm horrified that the Dalzell and Clydebridge steelworks in Lanarkshire are lying mothballed, with workers on furlough. 'All because the SNP negotiated a bad deal and have had no industrial strategy to bring work to those mills. 'We're standing up for Scottish steel – now Swinney needs to step in and get those plants up and running again.' It is understood that some staff at Dalzell in Motherwell have been furloughed and there is no work going through the plant. The Prime Minister also highlighted the trade deal with India, which cuts costs on the crucial Scottish export of whisky. SNP MP Pete Wishart laid the blame on the UK Government, saying it had failed to back the Scottish industry in contrast to the action taken to protect plants south of the border. He said: 'The audacity of Keir Starmer to attempt to wash over the UK government's betrayal of Scottish industry is insulting. 'They put emergency support in for Scunthorpe steelworks and deliberately legislated to exclude Scotland and therefore, Dalzell works from any such help, now or in the future. 'Westminster did nothing to help the SNP save Dalzell. It did nothing to help us save Lochaber. And now it has done nothing to save Grangemouth.' He added: 'Like the Tories, Labour are making it abundantly clear that Scotland will always be an afterthought for Westminster. The SNP is the only party that will always be on Scotland's side.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Powys County Times
11-05-2025
- Business
- Powys County Times
Starmer says he is ‘horrified' steelworks are mothballed due to SNP's ‘bad deal'
Sir Keir Starmer has said he is 'horrified' that steelworks in Lanarkshire have been effectively mothballed, and is calling on John Swinney to step in to revive them. The Prime Minister said the SNP-run Scottish Government had failed to find work to keep the sites thriving after negotiating a 'bad deal' which saw them being bought by a new owner. The plants at Dalzell and Clydebridge were bought by the Liberty House group in 2016, backed by a £7 million loan from the Scottish Government. The group, which is part of Sanjeev Gupta's GFG Alliance, also owns the Lochaber aluminium smelter. The Labour leader's comments come after the US trade deal which was reached on Thursday – which cut tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium. Mr Swinney's party said Sir Keir was attempting to 'wash over' his own industrial failures. Writing in the Sunday Times, the Prime Minister said: 'I'm proud we've secured a deal that slashes tariffs on the steel and aluminium industries to zero. 'This Labour government will always support our proud steel industry. So I'm horrified that the Dalzell and Clydebridge steelworks in Lanarkshire are lying mothballed, with workers on furlough. 'All because the SNP negotiated a bad deal and have had no industrial strategy to bring work to those mills. 'We're standing up for Scottish steel – now Swinney needs to step in and get those plants up and running again.' It is understood that some staff at Dalzell in Motherwell have been furloughed and there is no work going through the plant. The Prime Minister also highlighted the trade deal with India, which cuts costs on the crucial Scottish export of whisky. SNP MP Pete Wishart laid the blame on the UK Government, saying it had failed to back the Scottish industry in contrast to the action taken to protect plants south of the border. He said: 'The audacity of Keir Starmer to attempt to wash over the UK government's betrayal of Scottish industry is insulting. 'They put emergency support in for Scunthorpe steelworks and deliberately legislated to exclude Scotland and therefore, Dalzell works from any such help, now or in the future. 'Westminster did nothing to help the SNP save Dalzell. It did nothing to help us save Lochaber. And now it has done nothing to save Grangemouth.'
