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Sceptical Scot

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John McLaren

About John McLaren

Independent economist at Scottish Trends. Previously worked at Fiscal Affairs Scotland, H.M. Treasury and at the Scottish Office. Honorary Professor of Public Policy at the Adam Smith Business School, Glasgow University.

Fantasy economics: alive and well on both sides of the border

October 8, 2022 by John McLaren 1 Comment

“Where Scotland differs (from the UK) the most is in its lack of engagement on economic issues. If this continues then the £1.5 billion (fiscal) shortfall will continue to grow and taxes will continue to rise to compensate. Surely no-one wants this but then why does no one take it seriously?” asks John McLaren in his latest acute commentary on the state of the Scottish economy.

Strategy for going everywhere and nowhere

March 5, 2022 by John McLaren 4 Comments

“The report, the launch, the minutes of the Advisory Council meetings – all point to a ‘just get it done and get it out’ approach. And as with previous, failed, economic strategies it will go through various hoops of progress reports and ‘accountability’ that are underplayed and soon forgotten. But without anyone taking real ownership, without a genuine attempt to identify and plan a way forward, little will change.”

Time to shake up Scotland

January 8, 2022 by John McLaren 8 Comments

“…now would be a good time to shake things up even further. Who will make that happen? I expect little from the Government or the Parliament, it’ll be for others to push for change..”

Manifestos for #Holyrood21 and the pandemic’s impact on future Scottish society

March 7, 2021 by John McLaren Leave a Comment

Since its inception, the Scottish Parliament has not been renowned for its reforming zeal. But the pandemic has thrown up a range of challenges that must be addressed if a ‘working’ system is to re-emerge in hospitals, schools and the courts. It is surely right then that the electorate has some idea of the competing views of each of the political parties as to how they intend to respond to the pandemic’s effects.

GERS, COVID and Scottish independence

August 29, 2020 by John McLaren 2 Comments

“This lack of economic engagement by senior SNP Ministers remains a weakness for the independence message on the economy. Such a policy vacuum in a key area of the independence debate may be manageable when minds are focussed elsewhere but if a Second Referendum were to become a reality then it would soon turn into a significant weak point in the pro-independence argument.”

Scottish growth patterns over 20 years

May 31, 2020 by John McLaren Leave a Comment

‘Overall, a combination of : the pandemic lockdown; the existing post financial crisis slowdown, in both absolute and relative (to the UK) terms; and another looming North Sea slowdown, means that Scotland’s economic prospects are far from bright.’

Scotland’s wellbeing: rhetoric and reality

January 23, 2020 by John McLaren 3 Comments

A drift of sea pinks or 'Thrift' image Jacki-Dee CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Nicola Sturgeon wants to measure Scotland’s economic success by wellbeing/quality of life, not just GDP. But where’s the beef? The Scottish Budget in February will be the test of what lies behind the rhetoric.

How Scotland ranks

October 1, 2019 by John McLaren 3 Comments

A drift of sea pinks or 'Thrift' image Jacki-Dee CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

‘Although lying mid-table, Scotland can still be viewed as a relatively prosperous OECD nation. This ranking is likely to apply regardless of whether Scotland is part of the UK or independent. However, independence would still pose questions over how to reduce Scotland’s relatively large fiscal deficit.’

GERS 2019 and indyref2

August 22, 2019 by John McLaren 1 Comment

A small ship, hopelessly at sea

‘The comment by the Scottish Finance Secretary at the time of publication that “Scotland’s economy and public finances are strong” seems fanciful given any reasonable analysis of recent low economic growth figures and a still high, by international standards, fiscal deficit.’

What does the recent failure to improve Scotland’s productivity ranking tell us?

May 30, 2019 by John McLaren 3 Comments

A small ship, hopelessly at sea

‘All in all, great care needs to be applied when making judgments comparing national productivity levels. As a result, choosing a shift in international rankings as a government policy target is probably unwise.’

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