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| Version 2 | Version 3 |
|---|---|
| MacKenzie attack draws Scots fire | MacKenzie attack draws Scots fire |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A leading Scottish businessman has defended fellow countrymen against comments made by former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie on the Question Time. | A leading Scottish businessman has defended fellow countrymen against comments made by former Sun editor Kelvin MacKenzie on the Question Time. |
| Mr MacKenzie, a columnist on the newspaper, said the reality was Scots enjoy spending money, not creating it. | Mr MacKenzie, a columnist on the newspaper, said the reality was Scots enjoy spending money, not creating it. |
| Duncan Bannatyne, who stars in the BBC's Dragons' Den, said: "MacKenzie's comments were an attack on the character of the Scottish people." | Duncan Bannatyne, who stars in the BBC's Dragons' Den, said: "MacKenzie's comments were an attack on the character of the Scottish people." |
| The BBC has received hundreds of complaints about the remarks. | The BBC has received hundreds of complaints about the remarks. |
| Mr MacKenzie made the comments during a discussion on Question Time, from Cheltenham, about the Conservative Party Leader David Cameron and the Shadow Chancellor George Osbourne. | Mr MacKenzie made the comments during a discussion on Question Time, from Cheltenham, about the Conservative Party Leader David Cameron and the Shadow Chancellor George Osbourne. |
| I think Kelvin MacKenzie is a raving lunatic, I think he's a complete idiot and a racist idiot at that Duncan Bannatyne | I think Kelvin MacKenzie is a raving lunatic, I think he's a complete idiot and a racist idiot at that Duncan Bannatyne |
| He then turned his attention to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. | He then turned his attention to Prime Minister Gordon Brown. |
| "Brown is a Scot," he said. | "Brown is a Scot," he said. |
| "He is a socialist Scot who wants to spend every single penny you earn, never forget that. | "He is a socialist Scot who wants to spend every single penny you earn, never forget that. |
| "Scotland believes not in entrepreneurialism like London and the south east. | "Scotland believes not in entrepreneurialism like London and the south east. |
| "He couldn't find anyone who would carry his bag better than another Scot so he grabbed (Alistair) Darling from wherever he was. | "He couldn't find anyone who would carry his bag better than another Scot so he grabbed (Alistair) Darling from wherever he was. |
| "The reality is that the Scots enjoy spending it, they don't enjoy creating it which is the opposite of down in the south." | "The reality is that the Scots enjoy spending it, they don't enjoy creating it which is the opposite of down in the south." |
| RICHEST SCOTS Sir Tom Hunter £1,050mThe Grant and Gordon family £900mKeith Miller £810mBrian Souter and Ann Gloag £770mSir David Murray £750m | RICHEST SCOTS Sir Tom Hunter £1,050mThe Grant and Gordon family £900mKeith Miller £810mBrian Souter and Ann Gloag £770mSir David Murray £750m |
| The claim was met by jeers from the audience. | The claim was met by jeers from the audience. |
| Mr Bannatyne said: "I think Kelvin MacKenzie is a raving lunatic, I think he's a complete idiot and a racist idiot at that. | Mr Bannatyne said: "I think Kelvin MacKenzie is a raving lunatic, I think he's a complete idiot and a racist idiot at that. |
| "There are some phenomenal Scottish entrepreneurs, I could name so many. | "There are some phenomenal Scottish entrepreneurs, I could name so many. |
| "There's Sir Tom Hunter, Brian Souter, Sir Tom Farmer, you could go on and on, there are many of us." | "There's Sir Tom Hunter, Brian Souter, Sir Tom Farmer, you could go on and on, there are many of us." |
| He added: "It is plainly wrong for MacKenzie to assert that Scottish people do not understand business and enterprise." | He added: "It is plainly wrong for MacKenzie to assert that Scottish people do not understand business and enterprise." |
| Mr MacKenzie told BBC Scotland that the entrepreneurial spirit in Scotland had declined over the past three or four decades. | Mr MacKenzie told BBC Scotland that the entrepreneurial spirit in Scotland had declined over the past three or four decades. |
| "There's no doubt that if it weren't for London and the South East, Scotland might well be heading towards being a third world nation now," he added. | "There's no doubt that if it weren't for London and the South East, Scotland might well be heading towards being a third world nation now," he added. |
| Dramatic change | |
| Stewart Hosie, the Scottish National Party's home affairs spokesman, said: "Kelvin MacKenzie has made himself a figure of fun with this ridiculous attack on the Scottish people. | Stewart Hosie, the Scottish National Party's home affairs spokesman, said: "Kelvin MacKenzie has made himself a figure of fun with this ridiculous attack on the Scottish people. |
| "I would draw Mr MacKenzie's attention to a report published by Local Government Futures and Oxford Economics this week that scotches the subsidy myth once and for all. | "I would draw Mr MacKenzie's attention to a report published by Local Government Futures and Oxford Economics this week that scotches the subsidy myth once and for all. |
| "The study shows that people living in Scotland are actually amongst those who get the least return for the cash they pump into Treasury coffers, a point emphasised by the tight spending settlement Scotland received in the Comprehensive Spending Review earlier this week." | "The study shows that people living in Scotland are actually amongst those who get the least return for the cash they pump into Treasury coffers, a point emphasised by the tight spending settlement Scotland received in the Comprehensive Spending Review earlier this week." |
| John Anderson, chief executive of The Entrepreneurial Exchange, said that MacKenzie's vision of Scotland was "stuck in the past". | |
| He said: "He has got his decades wrong. There is no doubt that Scotland did slip. It became dependent on large-scale nationalised industries. | |
| "About 10 to 12 years ago that started to change. There has been a dramatic change in attitudes in Scotland and the mindset of people is now second to none. | |
| "Ambitious and outward looking. That is modern Scotland." |