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Operation Branchform, SNP staff, present and former to be re-interviewed by Police Scotland investigating SNP Party finances, this development in the slow moving case is said to be directed by the Crown Office, Scotland’s prosecution service, is this another false dawn for action, or is the storm about to erupt?
When former Nicola Sturgeon was cornered like a rat by the Holyrood press pack, you could see in her demeanor that she extremely uncomfortab...
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On the 31 st July 2023, I did a blog post called ‘political death looms in Rutherglen’, my contention was that the by-election on paper see... -
On the 11 th of June, SNP MSP Nicola Sturgeon was interviewed by police; she was in fact arrested, not interviewed as a witness but arreste...
Dear All,
ReplyDeleteI have taken advice from an expert member of the ASCE over the past couple of days. I explained the situation that I have been left in and he was astounded by that. My view is that the only honest advice I have had since this sad sequence of events first unfolded has been from the ASCE and so it may be worth all of you following his advice and it is as follows:
I explained that Jonathan Moore, Anas Sarwar and Jackie Baillie have been reported for "Misfeasance in Public Office" to the SPSO and that Stephen Garvin and George Spence had been reported for "Reckless Certification" to Police Scotland and that I had furthermore recommended that this case be properly investigated at a Public Inquiry.
There is one key piece of evidence and it is the 30/9/16 letter by the Scottish Government attached.
1. The initial exchange was between myself and Bob Gray who was Construction Director of Ogilvie Construction in 2014. I said that a mistake had been made and that the school would sink because of it and he disagreed. I was immediately terminated and blacklisted and that has prevented me from working since that date.
2. All evidence suggests that I was correct and so what do we do about that at this stage and how do I get paid and returned to work?
3. Ogilvie Construction has "Professional Indemnity Insurance" covering "an honest mistake made by a professional". Bob Gray is a member of the CIOB and so he is a professional and this was an honest mistake.
4. It looks certain that a claim will have to be made by Ogilvie Construction. If the school has to be rebuilt on a different site, the claim may be for £30m-£40m and so it would appear absolutely crucial that this is done.
5. Has this claim been made?
I include the Secretary of State for Scotland in the distribution of this Email. I suspect that we have all had enough of the Scottish Government and so I am not copying it to him for his information; I am copying it for his urgent and necessary action.
As the trailing Emails set-out, I am now in a precarious position due entirely to the lack of attention shown by my constituency MSP and her Leader but also to the rest of you. You may think that you have done your job but that is not my perception and I suspect it will not be the public's perception either.
My suggestion is that I meet Harper MacLeod for a final outcome meeting as soon as that can be arranged.The purpose of that will be to get me and the others paid and get me back to work.
Governments do not check and accept the work of contractors. To do that would be entirely wrong contractually and no Government in the world would do it but the letter shows that is what you have done here.
I know Bob Gray and the current Directors of Ogilvie Construction and the chances of him, or them, answering this and proving myself and the experts wrong are precisely zero and so can we get a move-on please and let me get-on with my life?
Finally, I would ask all of you to take a look at the Scottish Government letter attached and ask yourself if such a fundamentally stupid letter would be issued by any other Government in the world?
We should be finished now, George.
ReplyDeleteWe will get a result from the Branchform Inquiry in the next few weeks/months. What paid for the Jaguar and the motor-home? Everyone's forgotten about that. There will be a gnashing of teeth, but what do the rest of them actually do at Holyrood? Bottle return scheme, GRR, named persons, Gupta, ferries, Protected Marine Conservation Areas? I see Alister Jack is now prepared to take them on when he wasn't a year or so ago. I could go-on but all I see at Holyrood is all very bad.
ReplyDelete19 bills in 900 days, Holyrood is a disgrace, it concentrates on fluff politics. Anyone with any sense would bail out to Westminster asap.
DeleteAs to Branchform, I would love to see the triple whammy standing in the dock.
DeleteThe Daily Record's New Year Editorial comment today said that the SNP were marked by cover-ups and corruption. It made me think that they may have some inside knowledge of Police Scotland's investigation? Mind-you the Labour Party in Scotland are even worse.
DeleteI make the analogy with football from time to time. Both Glasgow clubs have gone through hard times and Celtic were rescued by McCann and Desmond and Rangers were rescued by King and Parks. So, there are supporters around who value the heritage these clubs represent and they feel they must step-in to rescue them and to keep the heritage going. Whether you personally agree with it or not, a lot of people care about these clubs.
ReplyDeleteI voted for the creation of Holyrood. It would be a place to sort-out Scotland's problems inside Scotland by those who would speak freely and get it done. It has been an obvious failure, hasn't it and yet is there anyone in Scotland, or eve an overseas Scot, who feels compelled to defend the Scottish Government? I don't think there are and that means that no-one values it. There must be a reason for that?
Merry Christmas, George.
ReplyDeleteWe live next to a stretch of open water here. I was taking the dog out for a walk this morning and I met the chap next door with his wet-suit on and he was going in for a swim.
Happy New year to you when it comes
DeleteGeorge - The only strategy that works is if they agree to blame Bob Gray and say that he lied. Remember Alistair Campbell's "4-stages of dealing with a whistleblower"? We've finally reached stage 4 (all say that it was "a misunderstanding"). I have had to do everything for them, haven't I? Is this a government or a nursery school? (serious question)
ReplyDeleteGeorge - This all started in August 2014. At the end of 2014, Harper MacLeod were co-opted onto the panel of the Scottish legal ombudsman. It was the first time that a private sector law-firm had ever been co-opted in this way. They have been there ever since and are being paid money, every year, that should really be being paid to claimants. The lawyer they have on the panel also lectures part-time at Glasgow University and that's a routine that has always worked for Harper MacLeod. They are the Scottish Government's lawyers and so being co-opted on to the ombudsman's panel serves to insulate both from public scrutiny. That's why they both offer to put themselves forward for investigation by the ombudsman. They know they can relax. Nothing will be investigated and everything will be covered-up. Liam Kerr is a lawyer and one of the brightest of the MSP's - should he not be aware of this? The point I am making is that this is a Scottish cover-up involving the Scottish Government, Harper MacLeod and Ogilvie Construction. I remain involved and Buro Happold are involved too and I presume we both want out equally badly? In any case and as it stands, it is Buro Happold against the ASCE and so Buro Happold would be well advised to fuck-off out of the way.
ReplyDeleteHolyrood cover ups are nothing new, look how they deleted the Salmond documents, so fast it would make your head swim. Holyrood should be shutdown, it is corrupted by the parties right into the rank and file of the institution. It isn't a people parliament as Donald Dewar called it.
DeleteSalmond is alleging "Misfeasance in Public Office" and that is what I have alleged too. I cannot post anything up here but the letters I have received from the Scottish Government over the years are astonishing. I sent them to an expert member of the ASCE and he couldn't believe what he was reading.
ReplyDeleteGeorge - The only solution is to blame Ogilvie Construction and Harper MacLeod for this. It all comes down to "Insurance" and why the decision was made not to submit a Professional Indemnity Insurance claim at the time. Find-out who made that decision and you have the culprits. Should they be facing criminal trial? What do you think the public would say?
ReplyDelete"Find-out who made that decision....." From John Swinney's letter to Jackie Baillie, of 20/12/17: "Aberdeen City Council, Hub North Scotland and Ogilvie Construction have provided assurances that Mr Dick's allegations remain untrue and are not substantiated by any new information". The "new information", by the ASCE, was submitted to Ms Baillie 3-weeks earlier and you do not, ever, accept "self-assessment" by the contractor. Do we have the culprit(s)? I think we do.
ReplyDeleteGeorge - The way it works from here is that either the Scottish Government pays, Ogilvie Construction pays, or Harper MacLeod and their clients Aberdeen City Council and Hub pay. I'm sure the public would prefer some combination of Ogilvie Construction and Harper MacLeod? Why should the public pay for a cover-up facilitated by them?
ReplyDeleteThis happened before at Edinburgh Sick Kids Hospital and it was the Scottish Government that paid for everything. Jonathan Moore caused that disaster too and so he never learns. An arrogant arse of a man. He's already been reported for "Misfeasance in Public Office" along with Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie.
It's perhaps time for Mr Sarwar and Ms Baillie to start doing their job?
Happy New Year. We stay in the country here and my wife saw a pheasant in the garden last week. I used to stay in Cathcart, near the river and we used to have rats in the garden back then. A few less rats in the year ahead would do me. Engineering rats, legal rats and political rats. Do you think that is possible?
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteI was further advised by an expert member of the ASCE during the holiday and so let me set-out his guidance for you:
The key piece of evidence is Jonathan Moore's 30/9/16 letter (attached) and in the penultimate paragraph he states: "In the unlikely event that problems arise at the school due to its design and construction, Aberdeen City Council has informed us that under the terms of the Contract, Ogilvie Construction remain for a period of 12-years, fully liable and responsible for repairs or remedial works required".
This describes the "latent defect" clause in the Contract, but there are two major problems with Mr Moore's explanation of it. Firstly, it isn't a "latent defect" as it was explained to all of the contracted parties in 2014 before construction began and it has been in the Press several times since then and so it cannot be described as "latent". Secondly, there is a time limit on making a claim after a defect is discovered (it is normally 3-years) and so, on that basis, you are time barred. You weren't time barred when Mr Moore wrote the letter but because you have done nothing in the intervening years, you are time barred now.
Therefore, accountability lies with those who considered but declined to make the insurance claim between 2014 and 2017. In his subsequent letter of 7/10/16 (also attached) you will see that Mr Moore was the appointed leader of that group and hence that responsibility rests with his employer, the Scottish Government. The ICE and Buro Happold are copied-in and if they wish to support Mr Moore they can do that but if they do not support him, then this is now over isn't it?
Dear Natalie,
I would appreciate a call from Mr McAteer. As the trailing Emails make clear I am now under a time limitation and, unlike some of these obtuse people, I realize that I need to do something to answer it and I am sure that both yourself and Mr McAteer appreciate that. So, get back to me soon please.
George - Responsibility is with the client to "mitigate loss" and you do that by getting it properly checked and fixed straight away. Hence, the Scottish Government will most likely be paying for this and the cost could be tens of millions. Competent, honest governments deal with matters like this straight away and they let experts handle it for them.
ReplyDeleteGeorge - I understand that Harper MacLeod's "personal injury and reparations team" are now working on this, presumably with an instruction to get it settled.
ReplyDeleteDragging things out is nothing new in Scotland, and sadly there was a time when our sense of justice was seen as second to none. As our political class declined, so did the institutions that they held sway over.
DeleteDear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteThe attached information: "Aberdeen Schools Project Comments and Discussion" by expert members of the ASCE has been sent to you many times now. It seems to have had no effect on the investigation and I have always found that puzzling.
It was sent to all of the parties involved in November 2017. I was advised earlier today that these opinions mean that we are discussing not a "latent defect", but a "patent defect" and, from a legal standpoint, the two are entirely different and I presume that you can research that for yourselves?
Essentially, an accident at Brimmond School will be caused by a "patent defect" and that will mean that it is criminal in nature and you may be asked, by Police Scotland, when you received these opinions and what you did to investigate them.
The ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) has a UK equivalent in the ICE (Institution of Civil Engineers) and so if they, or Buro Happold, wish to question the authenticity of this information they should do so now because otherwise they will be deemed to have accepted it.
It has to be said though that it has been the honesty of the Scottish Government's opinions that has been questioned and my opinions continue to come from the highest reputable sources. It's an incredibly sad situation for the country.
Individuals have been reported to Police Scotland and to the SPSO, but anyone who has ignored these opinions should be asked to explain why. Perhaps the Press would be the best and certainly the quickest way to finding that out? It has always looked like an obvious cover-up and I'm pretty sure that I am not alone in thinking that.
Dear Natalie,
I was expecting Mr McAteer to call today? I cannot be kept waiting and I explained that to you.
George - Hardly anyone at the ASCE even knew what a "patent defect" was and no-one can think of another occasion where it has happened. You need to be a special type of delinquent to accept a building with a known defect as serious as this and cover it up for almost 10-years. This may well be the only recorded example of it, worldwide.
ReplyDeleteDear Mr Kerr and Ms Dunbar,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, ASCE members are located worldwide and so guidance is being returned at all times of the day and night, but mainly at night and so I am passing it on to you as I get it.
Secondly, the two newspapers that have reported on this story in the past have been the "Sunday Mail" and "Scotland on Sunday" and so I am copying-in both as their input may be helpful just now.
The analogous cases that I have referred to to in the past have been Piper Alpha, the Hyatt Regency Walkway Collapse, Grenfell Towers and the Oxgangs School collapse in Edinburgh. All were considered "latent defects" and so no criminal charges were ever brought against those deemed responsible.
As I explained last night, Brimmond School will be different in that it will be considered as a "patent defect" and what I mean by that is that I have explained to you that the structure at Brimmond School will inevitably deform, Design Standard EC7 explains it authoritatively, it has been reported in the Press on a number of occasions and expert members of the ASCE have advised on it fairly extensively.
Under these very different circumstances, criminal charges are certainly possible, but Police Scotland are the experts on that subject. Mr Garvin and Mr Spence have already been reported to Police Scotland for "Reckless Certification" and if nothing is done and that leads to a collapse, then there would appear to be the potential, and perhaps the public expectation, that further charges would follow.
Accepting patent defects is nothing new but accepting a public building in the knowledge that it will structurally deform and possibly collapse is unprecedented, certainly in the UK.
Dear Natalie,
Kindly ask Mr McAteer to contact me today.
OK Natalie and thank you for that.
ReplyDeleteThe problem appears to be that Jonathan Moore accepted the defects, which are obvious, on behalf of the employer. He has no authority to do that and I knew that chap was an idiot as soon as he started to speak.
The Council and the Scottish Government have been monitoring movement at the school for the past two years and that goes well beyond simple recklessness.
I am copying this through to Universal Credit to make the point that it has been left to me to do all of the work here and that should not have been the case. Also, I suspect that we may be coming to a conclusion now?
I require to be paid and to ensure that those that have assisted me are also paid and I want to return to work straight away.
George - That was an expert engineer from Kerala in India that has allowed me to put everyone straight at last on the subjects of engineering and law. You may well ask why 85No of our best parliamentarians, lawyers and engineers couldn't have done that years ago? Desperately dishonest and insolent from all of them and nowhere near good enough. By the way, Liam Kerr is a lawyer and so this has not been just a Labour/SNP failure.
ReplyDeleteGeorge - I've worked with the chap from Kerala before and he's very good. Calm and non-confrontational. The opposite of Professor Rennie's team. Professor Rennie's team have been paid tens of millions over the past 10-years providing legal advice to the Scottish Government; very poor legal advice it seems. The chap from Kerala corrected it in less than 3-days and has been paid nothing. This is the peoples parliament in action. Dreadful, isn't it.
ReplyDeleteDear Natalie,
ReplyDeleteI have been assisted over the past week by another expert member of the ASCE. This is not one of the original 44No. and I will hand-over his contact details as I want to ensure that he is properly paid for his work, along with the others that Mr McAteer is aware of. This chap is based in the Middle-East and is a senior advisor for Saudi Arabia's "Vision 2030" project and so the credibility of his advice should be beyond doubt.
First and foremost though, I want to be properly paid.
Finally, any solution should involve an immediate return to work and I am relaxed about working almost anywhere in the world and Mr McAteer understands that. There are problems of course - age, Visa restrictions and my historical involvement with Brimmond School for example but they have been caused by the Scottish Government and so it falls to them to resolve them for me.
I can see problems ahead for the Scottish Government as this is basically "vested-interests" leading to lies, corruption and cover-up, isn't it.
Dear Natalie,
ReplyDeleteCan you make sure that Mr McAteer calls on Monday, please? Sometimes he does what he says and sometimes he doesn't, but the situation is clearly deteriorating quickly and so a call on Monday is crucial.
The up to date list of those to be paid is:
1. Mr Laird
2. Engineer Prakash
3. The ASCE
4. Protect
5. Mr Campbell
I wish to agree how much each should receive and I will hand-over Engineer Prakash's contact details on Monday. These payments will be separate from my payment.
These people range from undoubted world experts to Mr Laird who works from his front room on an old computer. They have contributed in the area of their expertise and although none of them will expect credit for this, I am insisting that they are paid for their work. You will note that there are no Scots parliamentarians, lawyers, engineers or journalists among them. Is that a problem? I think it is.
I will leave my payment to Mr McAteer and, as I said yesterday, a immediate return to work is essential and almost anywhere in the world will be acceptable to me. I am therefore not being prescriptive and I am ready and willing to go.
So, make sure he calls on Monday, please.
Interesting commentary, but I fear that this is engineered news on the Scottish political landscape, takes you away from your roots, which were very well founded. Indeed, your only inaccuracy was the sheer scale, intensity and level of depravity. Only possible, due to continued noise and disruption provided to state bodies and agencies.
ReplyDeleteAnd you are a legend!
ReplyDelete