How long before they are arresting men and women for the Wearin' o' the yellow?.

I met with Napper Tandy, and he took me by the hand
And he said, "How's poor old Ireland, and how does she stand?"
"She's the most distressful country that ever yet was seen
For they're hanging men and women there for the Wearin' o' the Green. "

The claim is that English would execute any Irishman or Irishwoman who was caught wearing green, or displaying green as a banner or flag, because the colour green was used as a symbol of Irish patriotism, and supporters of the rebellion used it. The time of this was probably in the late 1770's through the mid 1790's. In 1798 the Irish finally rebelled against the English because of the tyranny and oppression they faced every day by the hands of the English. . 

We are familar with the news that

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has been charged by the Football Association (FA) for breaching the body's kit and advertising regulations. 

Guardiola will be sanctioned for “wearing a political message, specifically a yellow ribbon,” according to the FA. The City chief had previously ignored two official warning from the organization.
The FA began to hold dialogue with Guardiola, in December, regarding wearing the ribbon pitchside, which the body says is a violation of its regulations.
The ex-Barcelona and Spain midfielder has until March 5 to respond to the federation's charge.
The revered soccer manager explained, late last year, that he dons the ribbon in solidarity with imprisoned politicians in his native Catalonia.
“All the politicians that are in prison, I hope they can leave and go back home soon with their families and continue living the lives they deserve,” he expressed.
Guardiola is free to wear the yellow ribbon pitchside during Union of European Football Associations Champions League fixtures, since the FA rules exclude Tuesdays and Wednesdays, or unrestricted during pre- and post-match media commitments.
“Hopefully sooner or later I can stop wearing it (altogether),” the soccer manager further explained.

With elections in Catalonia approaching,in december   Madrid    unleashed a crackdown on an unlikely target: fountains lit up in yellow are banned in Barcelona. The argument was that the illumination promotes separatist views.

The move by the local branch of the Spanish electoral commission was spearheaded by the lawmakers of Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy’s People’s Party (PP). Alberto Fernandez, the speaker for PP in Barcelona City Council, decried the earlier decision by the council to light up fountains yellow in solidarity with the families of the jailed Catalonian officials and pro-independence activists.  Fernandez stated that it amounts to open support for the Catalan independence cause.
The election board sided with PP, citing a law that forbids public bodies to use images “coinciding or similar to those used in the campaigns by any party running the elections” ordering the council to shut down the illumination.

How long will it be before the wearing of a Yellow Ribbon becomes a criminal offence in Spain,

It seems that  it was alright for

David d'Enterria *X‏ @denterd Mar 29

Europe, XXI century: FOUR Spanish Ministers (Defense, Interior, Justice, Education) sing typical far-right Spanish Legion anthem "We are the bridegrooms of Death" in a procession in Spain. #FreeCatalonia #EuropeWakeUp

 

 a procession in Spain. #FreeCatalonia #EuropeWakeUp

0:08

61.2K views

111 replies 1,720 retweets 712 likes

Show this thread

But how long before the heirs of Franco ban the wearing on a yelow ribbon even the colour Yellow.

As Europe seemingly complies with the Fascist Spanish Government  by arresting democratically elected politicians who are charged with Rebellion it is likely that there will be moves by Madrid to inanimate all aspects of Catalonian resistance.

How long before they are arresting men and women for the wearing of the yellow?

 

Tories believe "Four Nations" should be confined to Rugby

The response  from UK Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes  that there was no role for Scottish Government on migration committees was predictable .

But it was her insistence that Scotland had no right than a English County Council that irked.

Caroline Nokes rejected a call for the Scottish Government to be represented on the Migration Advisory Committee.

No role for Holyrood on Westminster’s migration committee, MPs told

Read more at: https://www.scotsman.com/news/no-role-for-holyrood-on-westminster-s-migration-committee-mps-told-1-4713858

 

When pressed on the issue by the SNP’s Pete Wishart, chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee at the House of Commons, she stressed that “immigration is a reserved matter”.

Ms Nokes said: 

“The MAC takes evidence and information from a wide range of organisations, bodies, individuals.

“I do not think there is any greater case to put a Scottish Government official on it than one from the Welsh Assembly or indeed any county council who wanted to come forward pointing out there was a specific shortage in their area.”

The comparison  of Scotland to an English County can hardly be lost as Mrs May spends Easter touring  the four Nations of the UK presumably spouting Unionist no-nonsense and claiming that we are better together cannot be starker.

The truth is the Tories and indeed some Labour Politicians  hate the idea of separate legislatures  and beleive the tem  "Four Nations" should only be applied to the likes of Rugby Union.

There may be an argument for not including the separate legislatures  on the immigration committee  though I can't see it.

Indeed  we have different  approaches than England but it seems that we are treated with contempt by Westminster .

If we need any proof that this is not a Union of equals and "Better Together" is a rubbish slogan comparing us to an English County  proves it.

A UK Government minister has rejected a call for Scotland to be given a seat on the expert committee which advises on immigration. Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes said while the Home Office is represented on the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), there would be a difficulty in giving the Scottish Government a similar role.

Read more at: https://www.scotsman.com/news/no-role-for-holyrood-on-westminster-s-migration-committee-mps-told-1-4713858

A UK Government minister has rejected a call for Scotland to be given a seat on the expert committee which advises on immigration. Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes said while the Home Office is represented on the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), there would be a difficulty in giving the Scottish Government a similar role.

Read more at: https://www.scotsman.com/news/no-role-for-holyrood-on-westminster-s-migration-committee-mps-told-1-4713858

How do Labour (and other parties) deal with Anti-Semitism?

The issue of Anti-Semitism is a difficult one to enter into .

You can clearly see the Anti-Semitism of Right Wing and Nazi grops but there is also allegations that it exist on the Left and particularly the Labour Party.

 Plaid supporters have had more than a fair share of accusations from Labour members  over allegations   that the leaders in the 1930's (Saunders Lewis Ambrose Bebb) were Anti-Semitic , though the evidence is entirely evident.

But I don't take delight in the accusations against Jeremy Corbyn 

News report such as this on Sky News have given the impression that Mr Corbyn may hold such views

Jeremy Corbyn is the "figurehead of an anti-Semitic political culture" and there are "no safe spaces" for British Jews within the Labour Party, a top community leader has warned.

An unprecedented protest by Jewish leaders, coordinated by the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC) and the Board of Deputies of British Jews, will take place outside Parliament on Monday, putting Mr Corbyn under renewed pressure over allegations of Jew hatred within Labour.

Jewish community leaders will also deliver a letter to Labour MPs in advance of their weekly meeting.
It comes as Mr Corbyn saw an apology for "pockets of anti-Semitism" within Labour rejected by Jewish groups.
The Labour leader said he was "sincerely sorry for the pain which has been caused", but has been told the "time for words is over".

 The BBC has extensively covered the issue , but actual evidence is scarce.

That does not mean it does not exist. Certainly those on the left who think that attacking Capitalism is a green light for attacking Jews.


There are also those who quite rightly deplore Israel treatment of the Palestinians and make the error of equating all Jews with a state that is behaving appallingly and constantly breaking International law.


Ironically Israel sees to get support from Right wing fractions whose Islamophobia s greater than their Anti-Semitism.


Though I don't think that you have to be a supporter of Jeremy Corbyn, to consider this is being used by the "Usual Suspects" of Anti-Corbyn MPs to smear Corbyn, whether the alligation have weight or not.



There is no room for Anti-Semitism in any UK part and it must be dealt with

But criticism of Israel should be greater and I see no reason why you can condemn bot Anti-Semitism and Israel if not in the same breath. equally.


There is no need to use the "I am not Anti-Semitic " line to do so/ but care should not  be made in equating Israel with all Jews in the same way you would not equate Iran or Saudi Arabia with all Muslims,.

The Scottish Parliament should offer Clara Ponsati asylum in Holyrood .

3. 
   

   Former Catalan education minister  will fight an international order for her extradition to Spain from Scotland, arguing that as a secessionist leader she is not guaranteed a fair trial, her lawyer said on Monday.The European arrest warrant was one of a series issued to leaders of Catalonia's independence movement on charges of rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state.

   
   

   Lawyer Aamer Anwar told BBC radio

   .

   "This is a political persecution, a systematic attempt to criminalise the desire for independence," We believe that if she is sent back to Spain then she will suffer inhuman and degrading treatment, that the independence of the judiciary in Spain cannot be guaranteed."
   
   Ponsati, who is a professor at Scotland's University of St. Andrews, will present herself at court in Edinburgh and will apply for bail,

   
   The case is being closely watched in Scotland, where the nationalist devolved government said on Sunday that although it supports Catalonia's right to self-determination, it would respect the judicial process.
   
   Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said she supported the right of the Catalan people to determine their own future but the Scottish authorities were obliged to follow due process and ministers were not permitted to intervene.
   
   She added:

    

    "We strongly oppose the Spanish government's decision to seek the arrest and imprisonment of independence supporting politicians.
   
   "The fact that our justice system is legally obliged to follow due process in the determination of extradition requests does not change those views."
   

   Though this is a reserved matter and it will be Westminster that decide ,  This is a bit of a cop out Ms Sturgeon should have indicated that if her Government  was in a position to do so, it would not agree to carry it out.

   
   

   Though at least one of Ms Sturgeon's MP is clear that this warrant should not be obeyed and not allow Clara Ponsati's extrication.

   
   

   
   

   
   Verified account @AngusMacNeilSNP

   Is Germany going to help the fascism of today's Spain? They cannot hand over a democratically elected politician to a Spanish jail!! #Puigdemont
   
   448 replies 117 retweets 249 likes

   It seems that  some Labour MPs have no qualms
   

   Ian Murray‏Verified account @IanMurrayMP 19h19 hours ago
   
   
   
   Ian Murray Retweeted Angus B MacNeil MP
   
   
   It’s seems as long as you support independence you can sit above the law. Someone has been accused of breaking the law & should be given the opportunity to clear their name in that country’s court. We would expect the same so respect the law (even if you disagree with the law).
   

   Nelson Mandela Mr Murray ? Martin Luther King? do you respect the then laws of the counties that imprisoned them?
   This followed news that authorities in Germany detained former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont on Sunday after he crossed into the country from Denmark, setting up a possible extradition of the separatist leader to Spain. 
   Puigdemont’s attorney announced the detention on Twitter and said his client had been taken to a police station. German police confirmed in a statement that Puigdemont had been taken into custody at 11:19 a.m. Sunday by highway patrol officers in Schleswig-Holstein, a state that borders Denmark.
   

   For many this has echoes of the past for Germany
   

   For anybody not overly familiar with past crimes of the Spanish State in relation to Catalan elected officials have a read of this..
   Lluis was the President of Catalonia before and during the civil war. He was exiled in France but was arrested by the French Police and handed over to German authorities.
   He was returned to Spain , tortured and finally sentenced to death for the charges of Rebellion.
   He remains the only elected President in European history to have been executed.
   
   .

   

   Lluís Companys - Wikipedia

   Lluís Companys i Jover (Catalan pronunciation: [ʎuˈis kumˈpaɲs]; 21 June 1882 – 15 October 1940) was a leftist politician. He was the President of Catalonia (Spain), from 1934 and during the Spanish Civil War.

   en.wikipedia.org

    

    

   The silence of the Unionist Parties is deafening. Can it be that there are sections in them who are applauding  the heirs of Franco in clamping down on "secessionists"  and would like to apply it here,?

   
   

   As for the Scottish Government.  Maybe the Scottish Parliament should offer asylum to Clara Ponsati within Holyrood.

   
   

   Just how many MSP's would back this is uncertain, but the sit  of Scottish Police entering the Parliament building on the orders of a Westminster minster obeying a fascist government would be edifying.
   

    

   
   
   
   
   

   
   

   
   

Has Owen Smith spoken on Brexit's impact on Wales?

Labour’s Owen Smith says Jeremy Corbyn made a “mistake” by firing him from his shadow cabinet . 

The MP for Pontypridd was sacked from his role as shadow Northern Ireland Secretary on Friday following an article he wrote for the Guardian calling for a second referendum.

I am not sure as AAV indicates that this was a debilitate move  to undermine Corbyn and wreck Labour's chances in the May council elections in England,

Owen Smith coming out and defying the party line (which is that Labour will vote against Tory Brexit if it fails to meet the six conditions laid out by Kier Starmer) is the first blow in a internal wrecking campaign designed to reduce the Labour vote.

They know that in order for this strategy to work hundreds of Labour councillors will have to lose their jobs, and multiple local authorities will need to be ceded to the austerity fixated Tories. But they see these disastrous outcomes as a price worth paying in order to have another stab at getting rid of Corbyn and turning Labour back into a centre-right, pro-austerity, orthodox neoliberal party they want it to be, so that they can hover ever so slightly to the left of the barkingly right-wing Tories and deny the electorate any real economic choice.

I am not sure  Owen Smith has the Machiavellian skills to pul this off

Mr Smith said:

 “Given that it is increasingly obvious that the promises the Brexiters made to the voters – especially, but not only, their pledge of an additional £350m a week for the NHS – are never going to be honoured, we have the right to keep asking if Brexit remains the right choice for the country. And to ask, too, that the country has a vote on whether to accept the terms, and true costs of that choice, once they are clear. That is how Labour can properly serve our democracy and the interests of our people.

Making the case for staying in the single market, he said:

 “If we insist on leaving the EU then there is realistically only one way to honour our obligations under the Good Friday agreement and that is to remain members of both the customs union and the single market. I’m pleased my party has taken a big step in this direction by backing continued customs union membership, but we need to go further.”

Mr Smith, who was a special adviser to former Northern Ireland Secretary Paul Murphy, argued a hard border in Northern Ireland must be avoided at all costs, stating:

 “The openness of the Irish border is a hugely important sign of the continuing successes – despite all the problems – of the peace process cemented into the Good Friday agreement. More than that, it demonstrates, every day, that different identities, histories and jurisdictions can coexist on the island without threatening each side’s integrity or legitimacy.
“Given the immense suffering, in Britain as well as in Northern Ireland and the Republic, during the Troubles, we mess with these symbols at our peril...
“More than that, when the British and Irish governments signed the Good Friday agreement we were entering into a contract with the people of Ireland, north and south. It is disgraceful that we think we can break that without their consent.”

I don't often disagree with  AAV  but i din't think this is part of a right wing plot though if Labour fail to make substantial gains in London in particular, then it will lead to further  accusations against Owen Smith 's actions.

The questions I would like to ask Mr Smith s that as a Welsh MP why hasn't he and indeed both left and right Labour members in Wales have spoken out on the impact f Brexit in Wales.

Are they so lost in their Unionist cause yhat it is only Northern Irerland  that concerns them?

A open, soft, or hard boarder between the Republic of Ireland and the Six Counties of the North will affect Wales particularly the port of Holyhead negatively in all cases. 

 
Whether they follow Jeremy Corbyn Hard Brexit line, Labour officalcompromise position that respects the result of the referendum, but which insists that the final Brexit deal is subjected to Keir Starmer's six tests or Owen Smith s call for a second referemnim it is time for Labour  to argue their case from a Welsh perceptive.

Of course the sensible answer is Wales to decide for itself as an Independent nation whether it wants to join the European  or carry on as annex of England  in their  xenophobic  Brexit.

Pig in a Poke centre politics.

What to make of Plaid MP Plaid Cymru  Jonathan Edwards claim that the party is in danger of “political oblivion” if it responds to the challeng
e of Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour party by basing its strategy on “socialist theory”,
Carmarthen East and Dinefwr MP Jonathan Edwards  called for Plaid to take the opportunity to capture the political centre ground.

He said,
 

 “I’d like to close by pleading with the party not to respond to the electoral challenges we face from Corbyn’s Labour by basing our political strategy on the intricacies of socialist theory. I fear that road leads to political oblivion. In the face of an increasingly insular, hostile, right wing centralist Tory party and a hard left statist command and control Labour party – we have to aim for the gaping void in the middle.
“This does not mean abandoning our principles as a party but prioritising our pro-business, environmental, internationalist and law and justice credentials.”

The problem  is that Jonathan is falling into the common trap of allowing Labour to define what is meant by socialism and the left in mainstream politics


The Left- Right  deride is non linear and even if you accept where the centre is split of in all directions.

Decentralised Socialism is vastly different from the Corbynist and Momentum position.


But there is also a level of dishonesty in positioning  a party according to where you see a gap on the Left-Right spectrum which is being defined by others.

 We are told that there is a gap in the centre, but where is the centre.

If it exists on a linear Left-Right spectrum then why isn't being filled by the Liberal Democrats?

Corbyn rise came from the thousands of Labour voters  who were fed up with Tory Austerity and the then Labour leadership seeming to go along with it ,

This saw a General Election which particularly saw a return to two party politics.

Opinion polls have indicted that this is continuing, even when it becomes clear that Jeremy Corbyn is as much as a Hard Brexiter as Jacob Rees Mogg.

Olaid have a unique selling point in Independence but they must also sell what they means,

For those of us on the progressive-left it does not mean having a Westminster style administration in Cardiff.

Nor does it mean accepting the Old, New or Corbynist  Labour agenda but our own.

Thus seems to be Leanne Woods  call for a renewal of decentralise socialism.

It may well be hard to sell but it more honest than the pig in a poke of  centre (again where is it) politics.

Reforming Welsh local government. Alternatives to the empty fag packet solution.

I seems the Welsh government plans for the future of our councils is just a rehash of the previous merger plans. A lazy and possibly disastrous future.

Anglesey and Gwynedd may work . But Bridgend.Rhondda Cynon Taf and Merthyr Tydfil anyone?


Over at Click on Wales Peter Black has at least put forward real ideas not something drawn up on a empty fag packet . 
Reforming Welsh local government. Alternatives to the empty fag packet solution.
He writes

It isn’t just the extra costs which have to be borne by smaller authorities seeking to deliver education and social services without sufficient economy of scale, or even the shortage of expertise in some specialities that have forced councils to appoint more generic managers to specialist posts, that are forcing change, but more fundamental problems. These include the lack of a diverse council tax base in some areas, forcing bills up to near-unaffordable levels. As a result, in parts of Wales people are paying through the nose for inadequate services.
For these and other reasons it has long been my view that change is needed. My concern, which has not been allayed by the latest announcement, is that when it comes, reorganisation will be another quick fix, defined by vested interests and that we will have to do it all again in another 20 years’ time.
Of course, the other consideration has to be whether reform is worth carrying out at all if it does not produce a radical restructuring of the way councils operate? Moving boundaries around from a Cardiff Bay cubby hole will not cut it. Change has to be meaningful, empowering and bottom-up.
What that means is that new boundaries, based on a realistic number of councils (I would suggest 15 or 16) should be drawn up by the boundary commission, taking account of community links, economic factors such as enhancing major urban centres of employment, the views of local people and of course geography. We should base boundaries on travel-to-work areas, not on the existing map and we should get the boundary commission to do the work properly, as part of a meaningful consultative process, not the politicians.
New powers should be devolved from the Welsh Government to local councils, including economic development, a power of general competence, oversight of further education, and the merger of primary health services, public health and community care with social services within the democratically accountable local government structure. That would necessitate changes to the governance of secondary health services.
In my view there are too many councillors. Their number should be reduced but their role enhanced so as to give them greater responsibility to deliver services in their own area. And there needs to be a rationalisation of community councils to make them more sustainable where they exist, giving them the ability to deliver more services in their own area.
Finally, none of this is worth doing if we don’t ensure that the councillors running these new authorities have a proper mandate. The introduction of the single transferable vote for all council elections is essential. That is the only way that we can ensure that the make-up of councils properly reflect the communities they serve.

 If the outcome of elections does not reflect the way people voted and produces big majorities for single parties on a minority of votes then not only are those councils unrepresentative, but they are less accountable, less sensitive to local opinion, and scrutiny is consequently less effective. The outcome is poorer services.

I take a different path and would create Super Councils to deal with areas like Health ,Education, Social Policy an possibly Policing. With powers devolved by the Assembly to enhance them.


Possibly using the existing Health Boards as template. Maybe if we rename the Assembly as Parliament they could be called Welsh Regional Assemblies.





We would the create 40-60 Councils  which are a mixture of Community councils and the remaining powers of the exiting Councils who are not paid or have expenses of about £2000-5000 per anum.

My solution may be too radical for the assembly bubble so maybe we should support Peter Black's suggestion.

The current plans however do not in anyway lead me to hope that Labour have avoided the Root and Branch reforms we need for the sale of the Lazy solutions of appropriate mergers,







s

Neil McEevoy forms "Fan Club" group within Plaid.

 It's over thirty years since at a Plaid Conference in Porthcawl it was decided  to form a group within Plaid Cymru later to be  called the National Left ,to promote the idea of decentralisesd socialism within the party and beyond .

I was  for a time secretary of that group and although not technically among the leadership, it did revolve around Dafydd Elis Thomas.

Not long after a right won rival "Hydro" was formed led by Clayton Jones a populist councillor from Pontypridd.

So I will be interested  to see what form the new as yet unnamed new campaign group within Plaid Cymru, formed five days after he was expelled from the party by Neil McEvoy's will take.

Mr McEvoy is barred from this weekend's Plaid spring conference and the group will launch on the event's fringes.
Before the launch, he said Plaid had sometimes acted more like a "pressure group". Plaid said it would be better if a party member spoke for the group.
Mr McEvoy's membership was revoked for 18 months following a party investigation into his conduct at the 2017 Plaid Cymru spring conference.
He said the process was "completely flawed from the very beginning".
Also a Cardiff councillor for the ward of Fairwater, Mr McEvoy has been an independent AM for South Wales Central since being removed from Plaid Cymru's assembly group last September.
Ahead of the group's launch, due to take place on the fringes of the conference in Llangollen on Saturday, Mr McEvoy said: 

"Plaid isn't a pressure group but at times it has acted like one.
"We had the chance to throw Labour out of government, with the vote on the first minister in 2016, but we chose influence instead of government."
Members of the new group will pay a membership fee and cannot be a member of another political party.

The organisers said the group was borne out of "frustration" with the party, and they called for "party democracy and the rule book" to be respected and for "complete separation between lobbying firms and Plaid Cymru".

They said:

 "Over consecutive Plaid conferences members have met and discussed how best to take Plaid forward and have expressed frustration with the current direction of the assembly group."
The group's organisers also described the party's election results as "disappointing, with the Plaid Cymru group of 10 assembly members the smallest it has ever been".

A Plaid spokeswoman said the party was "open and transparent" and "allows robust debate".

"The focus of our spring conference this weekend will be to share and discuss the innovative ideas that will help us achieve our mission of building a new nation," she said.
"Constructive contributions from the new campaign group will be noted.
"Nevertheless, it would be more appropriate for its spokesperson to be a member of Plaid Cymru."

One  wonders if this  is a serious attempt to  steer Plaid down along a new path or is merely  the Neil McEvoy fan club.


Under our First Past the Post system there is very little room for another independista party in Wales either on the Left Right or Fan Club variety.

 Maybe Plaid should copy the Australian Labor party where the Labor Left (also known as the Socialist Left and Progressive Left) is an organised democratic socialist faction of the Australian Labor Party. It competes with the more fiscally conservative Labor Right faction.

Or even Québec solidaire which also includes a number of collectives, made up of members in good standing who may, in compliance with requirements, promote their respective political views within Québec solidaire. 

These groups do not have formal representation in the Congress, the National Council or other bodies of the party and seems to avoid the usual Left wing splits 

Current collectives include:

• Socialist Alternative, the Quebec section of the Committee for a Workers' International.^[29]
• Décroissance conviviale, a collective which promotes degrowth.
• Gauche Socialiste, the Quebec section of the reunified Fourth International.^[30]
• Laïcité, a collective which promotes the separation of church and state.
• Mass critique, an anti-capitalist collective.
• The Parti Communiste du Québec – Parti Communiste du Canada (PCQ-PCC), the Quebec membership of the Communist Party of Canada.
• Socialisme Internationale, the Quebec membership of the International Socialists.^[31]
• Tendance Marxiste Internationale, the Quebec section of the International Marxist Tendency.^[32]

After voting to merge with the party in late 2017, Option nationale will become a new collective within Québec solidaire.

Of course to what extent this could lead to a clear election manifesto, which all can sign up to is unclear.

In the meantime we will have to wait to see what the new group will call it self and what it intends to be its doctrine  other than the Neil Mcevoy Fan Club.

Not agreeing with Boris Johnson does not make Corbyn a conspiracy theorist.

This Blog  and Rodolfo Walsh's Glasses  have pointed out t what the latter refers to as the "the worrying number of people who seem determined to ignore all the evidence and identify over he attempted murder by poisoning of two people in Salisbury another culprit, however bizarre or tangential their choice of 'culprits' is".
 Not agreeing with Boris Johnson does not make Corbyn a conspiracy theorist.
The main problem with these "conspiracy theories"  that it discredits , those who whilst acknowledge that Russia and indeed President Putin are main suspects  believe  the Alice in Wonderland   position of the government  of Verdict First Evidence Second should not be the immediate response.

The website Political Betting reproduced  a Foreign Office  video which mocks what it calls Russia's  campaign of disinformation, but it clearly is also aimed at those who do not automatically follow Mrs May's and Boris Johnson's line.

Foreign Office 🇬🇧‏Verified account @foreignoffice

The nerve agent came from Sweden, Ukraine did it to frame Russia, It was contamination from the UK's own research facility... Instead of providing an explanation for the Salisbury incident, Russia has launched a campaign of disinformation

97.7K views

0:21 / 1:03

You can see it here.

 Indeed it seems that Political Betting  has fallen for this they say.

What say you Mr. Corbyn?

The above video which has been issued by the Foreign Office looks appears to be a very different approach to diplomacy in relation to Russia than we have seen before.
Clearly in the current situation where this is all about winning the battle for hearts and minds and who do you believe getting your case out there is highly important.
Having looked at the video a couple of time I think it’s quite impressive. It is simple a straightforward and uses the graphics very well – it certainly won’t be out of place on social media. It is, perhaps, a shock that the Foreign Office should be acting in this way. You normally expect them to be working behind closed doors not going public in a big way,
There is the ongoing situation that the leader of the opposition and member of the Privy Council, Jeremy Corbyn, seems to be going out of his way not to criticise Moscow in any way.

Mike Smithson

I am not a Corbynist  but I see nothing wrong in his stance over the Salisbury attempted murder .

As far as I know he has not put forward any of the conspiracy theories above and it seems that the FO and Boris Johnson are not so much interested in discrediting Russian disinformation or conspiracy theorist, but those like Jeremy Corbyn who has called for more evidence before pronouncing a verdict.

Plaid expel McEvoy for 18 months as it fails to resolve issue.

The news that Neil McEvoy has been expelled from Plaid Cymru for 18 months following a party investigation into his conduct reflects badly on a Party who will be arguing that it can make the tough decisions as a Welsh Government,

Apparently the party's standing orders didn't allow for a permanent expulsion and a temporary exclusion gives the impression that the door is still ajar. 

According to the BBC

 it's very possible, barring a successful appeal, that Neil McEvoy has been dealt a potentially career ending blow by his party.
He could be in exile when prospective candidates battle it out for the regional list nomination. Neil McEvoy might never stand for Plaid again but the party hasn't heard the last of him either. 

The man suspended for his conference arrival last year will be there again this year, albeit under very different circumstances.

Plaid Cymru said the South Wales Central AM had breached a series of party rules.
It found him guilty of misconduct over his behaviour at the 2017 Plaid Cymru spring conference.

The spring conference in 2017 came days after a tribunal found that a remark Mr McEvoy made to a Cardiff council officer amounted to "bullying behaviour" - leading to him to being suspended for a month.
According to copies of complaints against Mr McEvoy, Plaid chairman Alun Ffred Jones said he had asked the AM to not hold a rally at the spring conference at the spring conference, a request that was ignored when a welcoming party greeted Mr McEvoy at the Newport venue.
He was asked by Mr Jones not to make any reference to the tribunal in his speech to conference, but Mr Jones said Mr McEvoy made frequent references to it.
"Mr McEvoy... did everything possible to take attention away from the Conference message so that the Leader and others were on the back foot answering questions on this issue rather than on Plaid's message for the forthcoming elections," Mr Jones wrote.


There are more details on the Wales Online website here, 

Well it is likely that Mr McEvoy will repeat his actions and turn up to Plaids Spring Conference this weekend.

Unless of course there has been some agreement on allowing an appeal if he does not cause any trouble.

Unlikely to happen

Mr McEvoy said the process was "completely flawed from the very beginning" and that he intended to appeal against the decision.

Mr McEvoy said:

 "Plaid members need to know that I have been expelled from the party for 18 months for being welcomed at a conference by members and for not allowing the Chair to change my conference speech.
"Freedom of speech and association are fundamental human rights which Plaid members fight to uphold."
He claimed to have evidence that Mr Jones had begun the investigation into him before any written complaints were received and that "others were aware of the complaints, whilst I was not".
"This is an unbelievable abuse of process," Mr McEvoy said.
"There has been no due process or natural justice, just a sustained effort by lobbyists to undermine me," he added.
"The complaints have not been dealt with in accordance with the party's own rules and standing orders.

 I am not a fan of Mr McEvoy and I don't like his populist style of politics but Plaid have taken a year to get to this  decision and clearly have not ended it 

But the process of taking disciplinary  action against him, seems to have taken age. and clearly it is not over.

It will be interesting  to see how much support Mr McEvoy can gather this weekend and it looks like if he going to be forced out of the Party  , or reinstated  either way the saga will damage the Party in the lead up to the 2021 Assembly Elections.