Scottish independence poll 2019

The Scottish National party has been given another £1m by Chris and Colin Weir, the couple who won £161m on the Euromillions lottery, to help bankroll its independence campaign. The Weirs are now among the largest individual donors in British politics, and the most generous in Scottish political history, donating £5.5m from their winnings to the SNP and the official Yes Scotland pro-independence campaign over the past three years. Their latest gift, which follows Yes Scotland's disclosure on Sunday that the Weirs had given them another £2.5m from their winnings, was the second largest individual donation to a political party in the first three months of 2014. Michael Hintze, a British-Australian financier, philanthropist and Tory donor, gave the Conservatives £1.5m in the first quarter of the year, while the Unite trade union gave the largest donation of that period to the Labour party, of nearly £1.84m. The Weirs, from Largs in Ayrshire, have now donated … [Read more...] about Lottery winners give Scottish National party another £1m gift

Not going to vote? You're not alone. The reasons vary - cynicism, feeling powerless, feeling uninformed - but across the UK, almost a third of the electorate didn't use their right to choose their MP in the last few elections. But if you think your vote doesn't matter, you could be wrong. The number of non-voters is greater than the sitting MP's majority in 551 out of 650 constituencies: that's more than 80%. Take Boris Johnson's constituency of Uxbridge and South Ruislip, for example: 23,716 people voted for him in 2017, giving him a majority of 5,034. However, 22,798 voters on the electoral register didn't turn out at all. That means he has a theoretical majority of just 918 over those who didn't vote.That puts him just beyond the 142 seats where there were more non-voters than people who voted for the winning MP. In some seats the gap between the winner and second place was incredibly tight. In 11, the MP won by fewer than 100 votes. Yet in each of those there were between 12,000 … [Read more...] about Election 2019: How non-voters could hold sway as we approach polling day

Advertising on social media has become an everyday part of political campaigning. So, what have Scotland's parties done so far at this election to target voters in key marginals?How does it work?Concerns were raised after the 2017 election about party use of paid social media adverts, and the way these "dark ads" were targeting individuals with tailored messages.In an attempt to improve transparency, Facebook set up an Ad Library covering all the adverts posted on its site as well as on Instagram, which it also owns.This is a tool which lets you search for a political party, group, or even candidate page, and find information about the ads they have bought. This includes rough figures for how much they paid, how many people have seen the ad (or "impressions" to use their lingo), as well as their gender and their approximate age.The Ad Library is an insight - albeit a limited one - into what messages political parties are seeking to put across, and to whom.Last month Twitter went one … [Read more...] about General election 2019: The digital ad battle in Scotland

The Labour Party has launched its 2019 election manifesto, with the slogan It's Time For Real Change. It sets out the polices the party aims to introduce should it win the election.The full document runs to 105 pages. But what are the promises that will grab the public's attention, and, potentially win over voters on polling day, 12 December?1. Hold a second referendum on BrexitLabour will renegotiate a new Brexit deal within three months, and hold a referendum on the deal or Remain within six monthsBrexit is Labour's elephant in the room.Jeremy Corbyn wants to talk about his other policies, and the short "The Final Say on Brexit" section only begins on page 89 of this manifesto. The other main UK-wide parties have simple slogans, but Labour's policy is more complicated and doesn't fit on a manifesto cover or the side of a bus. It promises to renegotiate a new Brexit deal within three months - based on a new UK-EU customs union and close EU single market alignment. That deal would then … [Read more...] about General election 2019: Labour Party manifesto – key policies explained

The Alliance Party lost the only Westminster seat it had in 2015, when Naomi Long failed to retain it.She managed a shock win in 2010 to take the East Belfast seat off the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), defeating then leader Peter Robinson.Alliance also has eight MLAs (members of the Northern Ireland Assembly) and one MEP.Who is the leader?Naomi Long has been in charge of the party since 2016.Until May 2019, she represented East Belfast in the Northern Ireland Assembly but stood down from the role after she was elected to the European Parliament. Poll tracker: How do the parties compare? Who should I vote for? Read our policy guide Five key election pledgesThe party has not published its manifesto yet - but here are five policies likely to feature in it: Opposition to a hard Brexit and support for another referendum Restoration of the Stormont assembly Investment in healthcare and skills Strong support for integrated education Supports the voting age being lowered to 16 Where does … [Read more...] about General election 2019: A simple guide to the Alliance Party