The Lib Dems have made a manifesto and as usual it’s quite good.
https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/no2nuisancecalls/pages/1979/attachments/original/1460714587/Manifesto_-_Be_The_Best_Again-_Scottish_Liberal_Democrats_2016.pdf?1460714587
It has lots about education, which is the normal stuff of politics. Makes a change from headlining with the NHS I suppose. NHS comes in second with the same stuff as every manifesto about improving mental health facilities which is nice.
Some paragraphs on reforming drug policy to treat it as a health issue a la Portugal rather than criminal which isn’t in other manifestos.
A box for babies like in Finland, aww.
Stuff about building new homes for rent but nothing about cracking down on landlords who treat their properties as a bank account not a job.
Perfectly reasonable complaints against the SNP government for centralising lots of public services.
The only party to say “Stop the creation of the Scottish Government’s intrusive ID database” which I’ve never heard anyone acknowledge before outside of campaign groups. Extending Freedom of Information law. Improved data rights so you can find out who has accessed your data. Safeguarding use of CCTV which is a story from The Ferret that nobody else has responded to.
“Continue to support a BBC free from the control of government ministers;” which is uninteresting, nothing about giving more control to BBC Scotland.
Using sugar tax for sport use, ringfencing is pretty daft generally and there’s nothing to suggest that would an increase in community sport rather than elite sport.
A blunt penny on income tax. I wonder why any parties think that’ll work with the public.
Lots of pictures of Willie Rennie who I don’t have much opinion of and a few of Lothian’s list head and top Quaker chap Alex Cole-Hamilton who I have photos of waving his crotch at children in nothing but swimming trunks from when I was young. I used to joke about selling these to the highest bidding tabloid but I suspect I wouldn’t get much for lib dem material these days.
The trouble with Lib Dems is that while their manifestos look good their implementation is always somewhat disappointing. There was the two Labour/LibDem Scottish Governments (sorry “Executive”) that promised to take away tuition fees and instead just renamed it. Then the Tory/LibDem UK government that oversaw the largest mass surveillance programme ever without admitting it or critising it once. Then there’s the real reason for their downfall, Jim Lowrie, former councilor for Fountainbridge, who lied so he could use me in his election leaflet. So no vote here I think.