The Lesley Riddoch Podcast Lesley Riddoch and Pat Joyce

It's half time in the General Election campaign and the manifestos are coming thick and fast.It was Scottish Labour's turn this morning. We give our immediate reaction to the launch event, its narrative and themes , and wonder how, if at all, Scottish it was.Reform have overtaken the Tories in UK polling and look set to damage them in constituencies across England. For Pat's sins he took a look at Reform's manifesto.Much has been made of the predicted demise of the SNP given early polling. There is a fight between the SNP and Labour across Scotland but have certain polls exaggerated Labour support? We discuss the most recent MRP polls and the impact polling can have on voters and suggest that there is a different story unfolding.Scottish Opinion Polls (electoralcalculus.co.uk)The battle for Scottish marginals will be vital on July 4th. Best for Britain claims to give impartial advice on how to vote for pro EU candidates . Lesley questions their judgement and impartiality given their advice to vote Labour in Scotland.
The battle for Scottish marginals will be vital on July 4th. Best for Britain claims to give impartial advice on how to vote for pro EU candidates . Lesley questions their judgement and impartiality given their advice to vote Labour in Scotland.If you want to submit your questions for Lesley to put to Lorna Slater,Stephen Flynn and Alex Salmond follow this linkWe're interviewing the pro-independence leaders – have your say | The NationalAll this plus rants on Scotland at the Euros and the dreaded, not all of them English, commentators and pundits.


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In this late night episode we give our immediate reaction to the Scottish Leaders' debate on BBC Scotland.We also look back at a week which saw SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn receive rounds of applause in the 7 way UK equivalent particularly when he took on Farage and the great unspoken-Brexit .Meanwhile on Radio 4's Any Questions John Nicolson got exactly the same rousing response from the audience in Rutland( Yup it does exist in reality not just the fertile imaginations of Eric Idle and Neil Innes).You can listen to John herehttps://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m001zw62Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse for Rishi Sunak he decided to skip the international element of the D Day 80th anniversary commemorations and return home for an ITV interview and an election planning meeting. Is there a Labour plant in the Tory campaign team given the stupidity of that decision?Today also saw the launch of the Tory Party Election Manifesto. Over 70 pages worth but given the state of the polls and the crumbling campaign is it worth the paper it's written on?


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Monday saw the first election debate on STV and the return of Farage as leader of Reform and a candidate in the General Election. Farage captured the headlines across the media but how relevant is he and his party to Scotland?STV's "Leaders' Debate" was an odd affair in that it featured four male MSPs none of whom is standing for election to Westminster.We look at the debate and the attack and defence lines all four took.North Sea development and energy issues were central to the debate and Anas Sarwar punted a different line on the role of Labour's Great British Energy Company than that taken by Sir Keir Starmer. He also made promise after promise on spending and borrowing commitments which contradicted Rachel Reeves. Where does the truth lie? Labour sticking to rigid fiscal rules has come under attack by John Swinney and respected economic institutions such as the IFS. How effective will the SNP's ABC mantra- Austerity, Brexit , Cost of Living Crisis- prove to be with the electorate?Diane Abbott has now been given the all clear, by Starmer not by the NEC, to stand as a Labour candidate but disquiet is growing, not just on the Labour Left, with the selection process which has seen Starmer loyalists being parachuted into safe seats. Donald Trump was convicted on all 34 felony  counts of falsifying business records in the Stormy Daniel's "hush money" case. What impact will this have on the upcoming US Presidential Election?Meanwhile we await to see the outcome of President Biden's Gaza Peace Plan. Will Netanyahu accept it or will he bow to pressure from the far right Zionists on whom he depends for his Knesset majority? How will the Israeli public react?All this plus Tayport dooks, windae cleaner interruptions, and a great Scottish sporting triumph( spoiler not the 2 nil win v Gibraltar).


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The General Election campaign is well under way and we look at how it's been going both in Scotland and the UK.Will devolved matters dominate the debate in Scotland. How can the SNP focus voters minds on Westminster issues? Lesley has particular insights on this after her sojourn in Orkney, Shetland and Caithness.Can the Tories recover from the shambles of the first week? How will they solve the black hole of missing candidates? Are they focusing all their attention on capturing Reform supporters?Labour has received backing from big business but can it withstand pressure from UNITE over watering down its New Deal for Working People?Starmer has also maintained a distinct fence sitting position over the ICC arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant even after the latest Rafa outrage. However he's been extremely vocal in demanding that the election debates should be head to head with Sunak, excluding all other parties in particular the SNP.We ask how fit for the rough and tumble of the campaign trail are both Anas Sarwar and Douglas Ross after less than stellar recent media appearances?Much has been made of the recent Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce survey on Energy Transition. It's safe to say no political party nor either government comes out well. However there are some nuggets not so far covered by either the press or broadcasters contained within it.All this plus Bambie Thug, fitba( not Dundee United), and the Orkney folk festival.


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In this podcast extra we speak with Stewart Kirkpatrick, the former head of digital for Yes Scotland who has launched a survey designed to find out just why the 2014 referendum was lost.Since then Stewart has worked for the petition and campaigns website 38 Degrees before moving to openDemocracy as their head of impact.His experiences there  taught him the “power of asking people what they think”.This is precisely what this survey sets out to do.If you want to take part, and why wouldn't you, go tohttps://yeswedidnae.scot/


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In this special edition of the Lesley Riddoch podcast we give our immediate reaction to and analysis of Rishi Sunak's surprise announcement of a General Election on the 4th of July.


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