Ray Perman
Don’t hold your breath for indyref2
“Why might she want to delay a decision? One reason is that she cannot guarantee to win a second referendum. Opinion polls still show a majority for remaining within the UK. Calling another vote now…
UBI – new idea, kauld kale
“A full-blown universal income would be even more expensive, involving rises of 10%, taking the basic rate of income tax to 30% and the higher and top rates to 50%. Politically those increases are unthinkable.…
MacKay’s first budget: a cowran, tim’rous beastie
The new economic initiatives are all welcome, but are unlikely to make much impression on Scotland’s low productivity and lack of investment. Yet the weak economy remains the Scottish Government’s biggest problem. Growth lags that…
The Press attacks the rule of law
“Theresa May has other problems to confront. The court ruling has emboldened the opposition and is likely to unite them around a ‘soft-Brexit’ line – wanting to keep Britain in the single European market, or…
Sovereignty, 1707 and saving the other Union
“One of the arguments of the Leave campaign, after all, was that sovereignty should be repatriated from Brussels to Westminster, not to No.10 Downing Street.” So: parliament(s) should have the last word on leaving the…
No evidence for good policy-making by soundbite
‘Instead of policy issues we were presented with one of two questions. Either “the minister wants to do this, can you provide evidence to show it is a good thing?” Or “the minister wants to…
Carney acts, Chancellor delays a vital stimulus
The Bank of England has cut rates to an historic low but: “The experience of other central banks has been similar. They have slashed rates and pumped huge sums into their economies with only modest…
Scotland can lead debate on UK’s post-EU future
The UK has voted to leave the UK, a decision unlikely to be reversed any time soon. Nicola Sturgeon, however, wants to keep Scotland in that union at least; her position is clear but her…
No rush to Brexit – or to #indyref2
“Threatening a second constitutional crisis would not help us resolve the one we already have,” the author argues, pointing out that the EU referendum has solved little or nothing – and a second referendum on…
Scottish cabinet members: experience required
“There are big problems facing the new Scottish Government and some of them will come to a head very quickly.” Farm payments, education, the economy, jobs, tax – our economics guru examines them all.
Next SG: revolutionary but hardly radical
The SNP has one revolutionary aim: the overthrow of the UK constitution. Yet its manifesto is a model of moderation. Why? Tempered by the compromises of government – or cautious process to win over the…
Easter Rising, feminism, nationalism
On the centenary of the Easter Rising in Ireland politicians need to use its political imagery at their peril. Its lessons for nationalism as for fein ism are not unambiguous.