Decisions, Decisions

The latest 'bombshell' to explode in the Scottish independence debate is that the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, has offered a thoughtful reminder that new members of the European Union (EU) must be accepted by all existing members of the EU - before they can join the club.

And this sage advice from Spain is now being waved around triumphantly by the No camp  as proof positive that Scotland is effectively trapped within the UK - because no one can guarantee 100% that some rogue nation, Spain perhaps, might object to Scotland joining the EU club as an independent country from the UK - or to be precise what would be left of the UK.

Now to my mind this is just stuff and nonsense - it's the same old line about things being too difficult or uncertain, so unless you have a crystal ball to hand - the best thing to do is to sit tight and do nothing, otherwise the sky might fall on your head.

I've been here before I have to admit and while it's nothing to do with independence, I was put on the spot years ago when the whole business of equal pay took off - as I attended lots of meetings around Scotland to explain the big pay gap between traditional male and female jobs - and that the way to tackle the situation was for people to pursue a claim to the Employment Tribunals.

Now the forces who had turned a blind eye to this huge pay gap for years (the council employers and the trade unions) didn't take this lying down - they quickly rustled up cash offers of compensation which were worth far less that the true value of people's claims - although in order to get the money potential claimants had to sign away their future employment rights.

The first Council to go down this path was labour-run Glasgow - the largest in Scotland - and the council's buy out strategy was supported by the Labour supporting unions who had been virtually silent on the issue of equal pay for years.

The maximum offer Glasgow made was £9,000 and that was for a full-time worker with at least five years service - and they called the workforce to a series of 'acceptance' meetings attended by 'independent' lawyers paid for by the Council which encouraged thousands of low paid workers to sign their rights away in the run-up to Christmas 2005 - tempting timing to say the least.

And without a word of protest from the trade unions, of course - certainly none of the major industrial 'hoo hah' that was so evident at Grangemouth, for example, where the employer was accused of issuing the workers with 'sign or die' letters.

The tactics of the employer were to frighten people into believing that they would lose everything if they didn't sign up - and I was often asked at local Action 4 Equality Scotland (A4ES) meetings - could I guarantee 100% that people would do better throwing their lot in with A4ES.

And I always gave an honest answer - that life doesn't work by those kind of guarantees, that I was completely convinced the Council's offer was a terrible deal, that the workers were being cheated out of what they were really entitled to - and that their claims were worth a great deal more.

I also said that if you asked that question of an airline or coach or train company - that before I buy my ticket, can you guarantee 100% that I will arrive safely and on time - then people would never leave the house.

Because accidents happen everyday, people die crossing the road for goodness sake, yet that's not a reason for living your life under the duvet cover - so use the evidence of your own eyes and ears and make the best decision you can.

And that's the reason why so many people in Glasgow and elsewhere are pursuing equal pay claims with Action 4 Equality Scotland - and why the trade unions are not trusted by so many of their own members.    

As for Mariano Rajoy, he's the most right wing conservative Prime Minister has had since Spain became a democracy and said goodbye to General Franco - and he's engulfed by an expenses scandal and slush monies paid to members of his political party, the Popular Party or PP.

In other words not the kind of person to buy a second hand care from, not if you ask me anyway.