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Sceptical Scot

Asking Questions. Seeking Answers.

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Local government blame game

Local government blame game

February 14, 2019 By James Mitchell 3 Comments

‘Fiscal responsibility is the flip side of fiscal autonomy. Those who argue for more money from the Scottish Government without proposing new powers for local government to raise own revenue are also playing a blame game.’ First in a series on centralisation/local autonomy

Politics

The parochialism of the present

The parochialism of the present

February 15, 2019 By Walter Humes 16 Comments

‘Revisiting our educational history might encourage us to question some of the prevailing orthodoxies of our time…Perhaps we should ask why there are no comparable radical voices in Scottish education today.’

Citizen’s assembly to break Brexit deadlock?

Citizen’s assembly to break Brexit deadlock?

January 29, 2019 By Alan Renwick Leave a Comment

We should not imagine that they could magic away all the current quandaries over Brexit. But they could play several important roles in clarifying options, reflecting on solutions, overcoming division, and reinvigorating democracy in the UK.

P1 tests – first green shoots of recovery for Scottish education?

P1 tests – first green shoots of recovery for Scottish education?

January 11, 2019 By Sue Palmer 1 Comment

A Nordic-style kindergarten stage is the only way currently available of connecting all Scotland’s children with their evolutionary heritage. And, who knows, it might also help get Curriculum for Excellence back on track.

UK’s remarkable energy transition

UK’s remarkable energy transition

January 11, 2019 By Grant Wilson and Iain Staffell Leave a Comment

Looking to 2019, with more renewable capacity being installed, it is possible that solar could overtake coal, and renewables could generate more than nuclear for every single month. They could also generate more than coal and gas combined over a month for the first ever time.

Culture

Best Scottish Poetry offers  escape to reality

Best Scottish Poetry offers escape to reality

February 5, 2019 By Fay Young Leave a Comment

Claire Askew’s delightful poem, is it escape or reality? Thanks to the noxious ill wind of Brexit, it seems, there’s a new demand for words with meaning, or meaningful ambiguity. Where better to find it than Best Scottish Poetry.

George Square 1919: no real revolutionary threat?

George Square 1919: no real revolutionary threat?

January 31, 2019 By Gerry Mooney Leave a Comment

‘Yet while many continue to play up the revolutionary aspect today, there is no evidence it was anything more than a legitimate demonstration.’

Syrian, Scottish, British

Syrian, Scottish, British

January 20, 2019 By Lina Fadel 1 Comment

‘I knew I was a citizen when I lost sleep over Brexit, full of regret at not being able to vote. I knew I belonged when I held my baby boy for the first time in a maternity ward in Edinburgh, and when he said his first English word.’

Open up: the emotional museum

Open up: the emotional museum

January 18, 2019 By Fay Young 1 Comment

What better time could there be to explore what shapes our identities? Fay Young goes in search of the emotional museum

Latest blog posts

Brexit’s multi-billion hit on Scotland’s economy

February 22, 2019 By Fraser of Allander Institute Leave a Comment

‘All of these assumptions are necessarily educated guesswork. Add all the ‘worst case’ scenarios for each of these elements and you end up with an economy that shrinks by an eye-watering £11bn figure.’

So sorry, England

February 17, 2019 By Jim McLean 1 Comment

‘Even if Scotland cannot now save the UK from Brexit, it could still enable the UK Government to proceed with its existing EU deal but at a price.’

Sex and gender identity in the 2021 Census

February 13, 2019 By Kath Murray Lucy Hunter Blackburn Lisa Mackenzie Leave a Comment

“Given where we are, we think the most appropriate and pragmatic response would be to recognise that both sex and gender or lived identity may be relevant to people‘s lived experiences.”

A question of trust

February 7, 2019 By Caroline Gardner Leave a Comment

Auditors in England are under the cosh while the Scottish public audit model wins plaudits. But no room for complacency argues the Auditor General for Scotland

About Sceptical Scot

Welcome to Sceptical Scot, Scotland’s premier non-tribal forum for passionate, informed debate. Sceptical Scot is for all who care about Scotland’s future, regardless of how they vote: for party, independence or union, EU or Brexit. We aim to provide an arena that is both broader and deeper than current online/print offers with a rich diet of well-researched, polemical, thought-provoking writing. Read more »

What’s new on Sceptical Scot

  • Brexit’s multi-billion hit on Scotland’s economy February 22, 2019
  • So sorry, England February 17, 2019
  • The parochialism of the present February 15, 2019
  • Local government blame game February 14, 2019
  • Sex and gender identity in the 2021 Census February 13, 2019
  • A question of trust February 7, 2019
  • Best Scottish Poetry offers escape to reality February 5, 2019
  • George Square 1919: no real revolutionary threat? January 31, 2019
  • Scottish exports: where they really go January 30, 2019
  • Brexit, SNP and Indy January 29, 2019

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