Economy
Greece: denial of human rights in today’s Europe
First of our new student blogs: The eyes of Europe are focused on Syria and the plight of thousands of refugees from conflict. But member states of the EU continue to suffer under the yoke…
Osbo’s traps for Sturgeon and Swinney
The Chancellor’s humiliating u-turn over tax credits and his shadow’s gaffe over Mao grabbed the headlines but the autumn statement had plenty of stings in the tail for the Scottish Government, report two prominent Stirling…
George Osborne’s anti-industrial strategy
The Chancellor claimed in his recent autumn statement to be wholly committed to continuing the previous coalition government’s industrial strategy. But on at least three counts he’s plainly misleading the public.
HBOS: too little, too late
It cost £7m – a million for each of the years since Scotland’s (once) most-revered bank went bust. But, after all the billions spent, the thousands of jobs slashed, lessons still have to be learned…
Tax credit cuts and ‘defensive devolution’
The SNP/Scottish Government and Labour now agree powers exist to restore, at least partially, tax credit cuts. But how can this be done without the administrative machinery in place? Full devolution of welfare powers would…
Student debt: class matters
The Scottish Government refuses to acknowledge the way student debt hits young working class people hardest. Even the NUS Scotland virtually ignores the issue. Our leading expert cries shame.
Lights going out all over Scotland
Scotland faces an acute energy gap in the near future and the Scottish Government will fall short of its 2020 target of self-sufficiency in energy supply via a ‘balanced mix.’ Key elements of this mix,…
Could private discussions kill the Scotland Act?
The Secretary of State for Scotland wrote to me this week telling me about progress on the Scotland Bill. I don’t know David Mundell and I imagine I am just one of hundreds, if not…
Luddism in the age of Uber
The term Luddism is thrown around as a form of abuse against vested interests resistant to economic/technological change. But the real lesson of its history is that the law and courts should hold powerful companies…
Missed chance to break up big banks
The Competition Commission has missed a trick with its refusal to countenance a break-up of big banks despite powerful evidence of the lack of real competition in the retail market. The situation is even worse…
Bringing Britain together: time to re-address shared interests
Cross-border urban policy, transport, health and industry are just four areas where Scotland the UK should work together in a new “post-unionist” relationship based on a joint action across a shared island.
Angus Deaton: ‘brilliant’ Scots Nobel-winning economist
Edinburgh-born economist Angus Deaton has won the 2015 Nobel Prize for Economics for his work on consumption, poverty and welfare: a fellow economist pays tribute to a remarkable scholar.