“Jeremy Corbyn has been endorsed by UB40. Surely this will bolster his chances of success in the Labour leadership contest?” Will, Govanhill

I’M not so sure about that, Will. While, on the surface of it, Corbyn appears to have been endorsed by English reggae act UB40, it should be noted that UB40 are just as divided a band as the Labour Party are a political organisation. While this seems oddly fitting, the comical synchronicity seen in this endorsement will not have left many Jeremy Corbyn fans dancing in the street.

On Tuesday afternoon, Jeremy Corbyn held a press conference in Birmingham with one incarnation of UB40. Many readers will know UB40, fondly or otherwise, for such hits as Red Red Wine and Food For Thought. However, their relevance with regards to modern day politics is questionable at best.

While no one can fault their socialist convictions, anyone under 40 will probably have to ask their parents to learn about the band. As far as strange pairings go, this is almost on par with Jim Murphy and Eddie Izzard in 2015.

Worse still was the use of the “UB4Corbyn” hashtag at the press conference. Given that “UB40” was the code for unemployment benefit forms in the 1980s, Owen Smith’s campaign team must’ve been beside themselves with laughter, while Twitter, as ever, was awash with witty and sardonic remarks about Britain under Corbyn’s leadership.

Following the press conference, the other UB40 incarnation – also known as UB40 – expressed their support for the Labour Party, but not explicitly for Corbyn. While Owen Smith cannot claim this as a resounding victory for his cause, there’s every chance that he will try to anyway. In this instance, Smith may actually benefit from keeping his mouth shut. I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest, however, if Owen chose to seek endorsement from Simply Red.

Ultimately, Corbyn may have scored an own goal in using a band with a history of acrimonious fallouts to promote unity and strength in the Labour party. In addition, it’d probably be fair to say that associating himself with a popular-with-parents brand of British reggae music is not going to do a great deal for his street cred. Personally, I would urge Corbyn to start listening to The Wildhearts, Motörhead and AC/DC and possibly consider a “Corbyn Rocks!” campaign as a means of recovering from this embarrassing incident.


“What role do you think the US presidential race will play in regard to Brexit and Scottish independence?” Bill, Dundee

DONALD Trump and Hillary Clinton are presently neck and neck in their race for the White House. We will know in early November who comes out victorious, and the winner will have a considerable impact on the current Brexit negotiations. The outgoing President Obama has made it public that he believes Britain made the wrong choice in voting to leave the EU, and it seems likely that fellow Democrat Hillary would share such a view. However, Donald Trump has been notoriously anti-EU during his campaign, going so far as to mingle with Nigel Farage in what can only be described as a meeting of the mindless.

Should Trump become President, it would seem logical that his demented brain would seek to aid Britain in the wake of its Brexit decision. This could prove significant as we hurtle towards the implementation of Article 50. As it stands, Theresa May, who voted Remain, is in a situation where nobody expects her to succeed in making Brexit a success. Indeed, the odds are so insurmountably stacked against her that even producing a Brexit of passable stability would be perceived as a triumph. A Trump victory in the US election could lend itself to this very scenario.

The expectation is that the initiation of Article 50 will be utterly disastrous, so if the combined efforts of Malevolent May and Tyrannical Trump can somehow make it work, it could be the unravelling of the entire Eurozone project. This is something that Donald Trump would very much like to see.

As far as Scottish independence goes, it could be a mistake to simply assume the consequences of Brexit are readily predictable. The SNP have a poor track record when it comes to blind assumption, most notably in regard to the oil industry and Named Person scheme. The best thing Nicola Sturgeon can do right now is stalk her prey, not strike.

There is the distinct possibility that Brexit will be the sword that the United Kingdom falls on. However, we do not know this for certain. All we have right now is the knowledge of a democratic deficit between Scotland and England. If Donald Trump is elected in November, it will radically change the Brexit game.

Similarly, if Hillary Clinton becomes President, we will better be able to predict the consequences of Article 50 for Scotland.

It does seem quite surreal that leaders of the United States should play any role in the politics of the United Kingdom, but this is the state we’re in right now.

Politics is a game of poker, and Scotland played a blinder against Westminster with the Remain vote earlier this year. However, it was not the winning hand. Right now we need to watch our opponent closely and see if, and how, they can get themselves out of a losing predicament. If they fail to outmanoeuvre us on the EU matter, Scottish independence could be within our grasp. However, if Theresa May is somehow able to get the Brexit Titanic back to shore, it could level the playing field once again. The US presidency could ultimately prove to be the wildcard in the deck, one that could turn out to be an unwanted joker or an illicit ace. Only time will tell.