Dear readers, the pristine skies, falling leaves and frigid temps of the weekend gave us a stunning autumnal couple of days that the Bell team made full use of. Meanwhile, the headlines kept coming, with John Swinney announcing that Scotland’s long awaited bus franchising would be completed by the end of the next Scottish Parliament (that’s 2031 for the non-clock watchers). Already Glasgow’s (and the nation’s) biggest bus barons are up in arms.
Yes, the Easdales are back, and in their traditionally understated way, have compared Swinney to dictators Idi Amin and Robert Mugabe for the plans. We’ll be examining exactly what franchising could mean for Glasgow in an upcoming edition.
But first, your Monday briefing, including minor mutiny at the SNP conference over proposed changes to Glasgow’s council structure, the funeral of the city’s most camera-friendly gangster, and some welcome resolution to the Packet Man saga.
Campaign update: 205 members down, 795 to go
We’re in war mode! It’s week two of our campaign to get to 1,000 new paying members by 15 November, which means lots of overtime, high (manic) spirits, and lots of kind words from our dear readers which keep us going.
This morning we hit 205 new sign-ups, which is massive and brilliant and means we’re one step closer to making good on the five pledges we’ve promised to Glasgow.
A reminder of them: we’re going to train up young journalists; tackle the city’s biggest talking points with in-depth series; publish a monthly good news edition; go behind-the-scenes with audio and hold at least three in-person events like our barnstorming one at Drygate last week.
Scroll down for more audience feedback on how that one went but we had at least one attendee sign up as an annual paid member on the spot — and they chose to forgo a discount in support.
You can do that too, by signing up here. But if you would like a discount, we’re offering £40 off our annual membership, or a trial of The Bell at £2.99 for two months.
We want to get to 250 by the end of the day and there’s 27,000 people who read us for free, so there’s a lot of you who have yet to come on board. Do so now.
Glasgow in Brief
🚌 Also in war mode: ‘billionaire’ bus barons Sandy and James Easdale, after John Swinney announced Scotland’s buses will be under by public control by 2031. The plan would see the nation’s buses franchised — which means local authorities and regional transport partnerships get control to set things like routes, rates and timetables, instead of operators.
Sandy Easdale, co-owner of McGill’s, one of Glasgow’s biggest bus companies, wasted no time comparing the First Minister to dictators Idi Amin and Robert Mugabe. The Easdale’s have a history of dramatic statements when it comes to keeping control of their buses; Sandy previously vowed to fight franchising “with every breath I’ve got and every penny I’ve got”.
McGill’s are also arguing that, unlike in England, Scotland’s buses were never in public control in the first place, so there is nothing to “bring back”. Interestingly, the brothers didn’t raise this objection – or any, in fact – when the £2 bus cap was introduced in Strathclyde – perhaps because any potential losses are being subsidised by the Scottish Government…
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