First Minister Alex Salmond
“SO LET US TELL THE LABOUR LEADERSHIP ABOUT THE REALITY ABOUT OUR FELLOW SCOTS.
“They don’t want something for nothing.
“They just want the right to live in a country which understands the importance of society.
“A country that knows the value and not just the price of the services we hold dear.
“These are the fruits not just of this party or this government, but the fruits of a Scottish Parliament that chose to reflect our nation in these ways.
“It is the social contract between our Parliament and our people.
“SOME CALL IT UNIVERSALITY, AND SAY ITS TIME HAS PASSED
“I CALL IT HUMAN DECENCY AND ITS TIME IS NOW
“I would be tempted to say that Labour knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.
“But they don’t even know the price of anything.
“These great gains of the Parliament, personal care, bus travel, an end to tuition fees, a free National Health Service, cost just over 3% of the Scottish Budget…………..
“And so Labour and Tory – the two great pillars of the Union – united in a death grip programme to a sweep away concessionary travel, free prescriptions and education.
“Some in Holyrood think Labour’s new approach is clever. But
conference, have no doubt, it is not wise.“It is not wise to end the social solidarity in benefits to all the
people. And it is not good politics to betray the fact that they will continue with Tory austerity if they ever returned to government.“The STUC described Labour’s views as “extreme”.
“Last year Scotland lost a giant of the trade union movement and of Scottish public life. Campbell Christie was loved by many for his principles, his humour, his courage and his wisdom.
“In an interview he gave just before his passing he said:
”People say we can’t afford things now but in 1948 we couldn’t afford the NHS and the pension schemes but we did it and when you start to look at the whole question of provision of support, you just need to remember how little there had been back then and how important it was to make it happen.”
Full speech: http://www.snp.org/blog/post/2012/oct/first-minister-alex-salmonds-conference-address
One response
IF Scotland leave the union, it will leave England with a TORY Reich! A Nightmare! Yet, I would be a supporter of the Nationhood of Scotland, I would vote for that and rid the land of Tories…. although the best of men are men at best… However, I wish Scotland all the very best on the Road to its Destiny. It is a Good and Decent Nation, not completely rotted by the Tory influence!