AS was widely predicted, Keir Starmer's so-called energy company, the investment vehicle GB Energy, is to be headquartered in Aberdeen.
As was equally widely predicted, this occasioned celebratory headline stories on BBC Scotland.
The same BBC Scotland which just as predictably chose to ignore the story that the Labour Scottish Secretary Ian Murray had been spouting untruths in an interview with BBC Scotland in order to get out of an embarrassing situation with regards to the £150 million which he may or may not have been given by the Treasury to by-pass Holyrood.
Murray wrongly blamed a journalist for making things up, then was forced to issue a hasty 'correction'.
Had it been John Swinney who had behaved this way, BBC Scotland and the Scottish media would have been in full scale meltdown about the story for days, giving us wall to wall outrage about a political attack on journalistic integrity.
READ MORE: Michael Gove to become editor of The Spectator
But Ian Murray, as one of this year's Saviours of the Union, gets a free pass.
'Twas ever thus.
But never mind any of that.
Out of the goodness of its heart and its saintly beneficence, the Westminster government has gifted Scotland a pretty bauble.
Let us get down on our knees and give thanks to the gods of the Labour Party for this union benefit.
Another reason not to vote for independence, dire warnings of job losses at GB Energy headquarters incoming in three, two, one.
Well, they needed something now that they can't sell us scare stories about how the tides and winds are about to run out.
It is still unclear just how many jobs that GB Energy will create in Aberdeen.
Of course, all new jobs are to be welcomed, and new jobs will be created when the GB Energy headquarters opens its doors in Aberdeen.
However, since we already know that despite its name GB Energy is not in fact an energy company and it will neither produce energy nor own energy infrastructure, but rather it is an 'investment' vehicle for funneling a limited amount of public funds into private sector renewable energy projects, it seems that most of the jobs which will be created will be low level clerical and administrative posts, not highly skilled and well paid trades which might be attractive to oil and gas sector workers who are faced with losing their jobs as the economy transitions away from fossil fuels.
The Labour government has also confirmed that two additional sites will open in Edinburgh and Glasgow once GB Energy is up and running.
READ MORE: Andrew Marr blasts 'ridiculous' Gaelic signs in parts of Scotland
The company will initially be located in government buildings in these cities until permanent bases are established.
While welcoming the creation of new jobs, pro-independence politicians reacted cautiously to the news.
We've been here before and have learned to beware of Westminster bearing gifts.
There is still no clarity about how GB Energy will actually work, how many jobs it will create, and how and above all when it will start to bring down energy bills.
Writing on Twitter, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said: "Good, of course.
“Now just to tell us what it will actually do and when it will bring down energy bills, as promised."
Meanwhile, Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman said the announcement raised more questions than it answers.
“If done properly, GB Energy could present an important opportunity for Aberdeen – with new jobs, investment, a focus away from the legacy of oil and gas,” she said.
“We want to be optimistic, but a lot of us are concerned that this will become an investor’s playpen, rather than a genuine driver of new renewables projects.
“So far the UK Government’s statement raises many more questions than answers.
"It is time for Labour to be clear about its ambitions for this project, and what it will look like.
“GB Energy should be an organisation that resources the energy sector's move towards genuine renewable energy, not an excuse for more warm words on oil, gas and nuclear.
"An energy transition without justice for workers and affected communities is the last thing we need. Aberdeen has a unique role to play in driving forward our just transition.
“It can be the engine that drives the climate action and green economy that are so vital."
Keir Starmer plays the Tory tune against benefit claimants
One thing that certainly didn't change despite Starmer's constant promise of change is the demonisation of benefits claimants which has become ingrained in British political culture and the right-wing media.
We are locked in a vicious circle of negative stories about benefits claimants in the right-wing press, which prompts politicians to promise to crack down on “cheats” and the “work-shy”, which in turn generates more negative stories about benefits claimants in the right-wing press.
Starmer's Labour party is determined to keep turning the screw, despite an impregnable Commons majority which gives Starmer the power to defy media tropes and stereotypes.
He chooses not to.
This week, we have yet another announcement about being “tough” on the long term sick who are claiming illness and disability benefits.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer: Those on long-term sickness benefit should look for work
Speaking to Sky News, Health Secretary Wes Streeting - who is himself in receipt of many thousands of pounds worth of benefits from private health companies - said: “Where people are off ill and they are unable to work, the social security system is available, and it’s up to us to make sure that we get them back to health and back to work quickly.
"Where people are fraudulently claiming benefits, that’s a different kettle of fish, and people shouldn’t be doing that, and we’re not going to tolerate it, which is why, in her speech and through her work as the Work and Pensions Secretary, Liz Kendall will be clear, as has the Prime Minister, that we’ve got to reduce the benefits bill."
The amount of money lost due to fraudulently claimed disability benefit Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is miniscule.
The DWP considers that the rate of fraud in relation to personal independence payment (PIP) is so small that it is assessed at 0% in the 2024 “Fraud and error in the benefits system annual report”.
Benefits fraud in general is dwarfed by tax evasion and avoidance.
Nevertheless, Starmer thinks that it is vital that the government gives itself sweeping new powers to snoop on the bank accounts of people in receipt of benefits.
Labour has promised to crack down on benefit fraud by reintroducing Tory “snooper’s charter” proposals mooted under the last government that would allow welfare officials to request information from claimants’ bank accounts.
This piece is an extract from today’s REAL Scottish Politics newsletter, which is emailed out at 7pm every weekday with a round-up of the day's top stories and exclusive analysis from the Wee Ginger Dug.
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