My bold political predictions for 2019
A happy and healthy new year to everyone. A time for some bold predictions for 2019!
Firstly, that the council will rethink plans to cut back on residential home places for the elderly and will make better use of day centres like the Harry Heaney centre in Spittal.
Second, that the council budget, with the SNP Government cutting the share of the Scottish budget going to councils, will continue to salami slice the number of teachers and school support staff.
Local schools will continue to struggle, while Nicola Sturgeon insists that education is her top priority.
The banks will continue to behave badly as the Bank of Scotland branch in Burnside closes.
Where do small shops and businesses bank their takings now? What about helping children to gain the habit of saving regularly?
Why don’t the major banks provide a joint branch where people can pay in money and access banking facilities including a free cashline facility?
At national level, I predict that the Prime Minister will get more support in the parliamentary vote than many people think, but that her Brexit deal will be rejected decisively.
And I will stick my neck out and say we will have a referendum on the Brexit terms in the late Spring when the British people will vote to stay in the EU after all by a decisive majority.
This will lead to the long overdue departure of Theresa May, Jeremy Corbyn and many of their top colleagues.
They have let the country down so badly and are woefully unfit for the job.
The Liberal Democrats – having been proved so sadly right on the disasters of Brexit – will have a resurgence as Brexit collapses in parliamentary chaos.
Indeed, a recent opinion poll indicated that the Liberal Democrats would overtake Labour in a general election if Jeremy Corbyn continues to support Brexit.
The defeat of Brexit will also stop any further independence referendum, fulfilling Alex Salmond’s pledge that the 2014 referendum was a ‘once in a generation’ thing.
After such a graphic demonstration of the costs and disruption of coming out of the European Union, who would sensibly support the even more complicated process of ripping Scotland out of her historic place in the United Kingdom?