Leadership, Taxes, Lighting and Powdery Mildew

Nicola Sturgeon has been appointed leader of the SNP.  She was unopposed and her status will be made official at the forthcoming SNP conference in Perth.  Three MSPs are in the running for the deputy leadership - Stewart Hosie, Angela Constance and Keith Brown.  My money’s on Keith Brown as I think he would make an excellent deputy leader and unlike Ms Constance, who has refused to also take the role of Deputy First Minister, Keith Brown would handle that brief well.  However, it’s not down to me to decide; the decision will be made by members at the conference.

There is a lot of talk about the Yes parties joining forces for next year’s general election. I heard a little of the BBC’s Sunday Politics programme yesterday and apart from the Patrick Harvie interview, I wasn’t too impressed.  Is it a good idea? Perhaps, but I don’t think it will happen.  Too many large egos involved.

Where is Scotland going to get the money to have this social utopia?  The SNP representative mentioned taxes. Higher taxes for those who in the middle-upper earnings bracket will discourage those we need to attract from overseas and perhaps result in some leaving the country to work elsewhere. It will also discourage employers from increasing their staffing levels. What we should be doing is raising our standards of education so as the young are better prepared to enter the workplace.  

It’s been a trying couple of weeks here.  At this time of year I attempt to display my DIY skills with varying degrees of success. This year most of the little tasks have been completed but I now await the third type of under-cupboard lighting for the kitchen.  The old lights were fine but I have been unable to buy replacements recently as ‘LED have replaced standard types’ I was told.  Cue my lovely electrician who suggested a roll of sticky-backed mini LED lights. ‘Low energy and should do the job’.  They didn’t.  The light level was extremely poor. They were removed and a block of LED lights replaced them. Not much difference in the light level but plenty in the price.  So now I await the next ‘modern', low energy and money saving fittings.  No idea what they will be but until now I didn’t realise how dependent I was upon the under cupboard lighting and how dismal the kitchen is without it in evenings.

Time for a visit to the garden centre to purchase some plants for a couple of winter hanging baskets.  I usually use winter flowering pansies but last year they were attacked by powdery mildew and they transcended from two delightful displays to dead within days.  Maybe I’ll chance them again this year but I must remember the skimmed milk. 

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