‘Now that the traffic engineers have had their say it’s clearly about time that the public, not the notionally public servants, have a say about this space. I still hold to the view that sculpture – and new work in particular , the 4th plinth idea – would work here.’
Policy
Democratic backsliding under Johnson
“Cross-party calls for a culture of ‘kindness’ deserved to develop into a movement to rebuild civility and public trust. Amidst the Paterson controversy, such hopes looked very distant again – but perhaps the furore will in time spur recognition of the need for deeper cultural change.”
Regenerative farming could cut methane emissions
Food production will have to change to deliver the methane emissions reductions agreed at COP26. How will this work? Last week, I interviewed a “regenerative farmer” in Fife who may have some answers. Claire Pollock has a mixed farm of animals and arable – she doesn’t plough but sows cereal straight onto harvest stubble. Cows […]
Socialised power: electricity is a public good
The Scottish Government has dropped plans for a National Energy Company in favour of a watered-down advisory agency but the author says electricity should be treated as a public (common) good. The debate continues.
Scotland’s road to net zero: how far, so far?
Scotland has ambitious targets to reach net zero by 2045 and, so far, we are falling behind in the cuts to emissions needed to reach these targets…More needs to be done to improve our green and blue spaces, and protect the species that depend on these habitats.
Climate change and farming
“The prizes in terms of turning farming into a low emissions sector are significant, and necessary, to meet Scotland’s climate change targets. The challenge is to ensure food production can operate at a sufficient scale and quality to make the sector financially, as well as environmentally, sustainable.”
Energy efficiency could boost economy and jobs
A no-brainer ahead of #COP26: “The UK’s buildings account for 17% of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions. Making them more energy efficient could cover 34% of the emission cuts needed in the sector by 2030. It would also increase GDP by nearly £1.3bn (0.07%) a year, and create 22,545 new full-time jobs across the UK economy.”
National Care Service: adequately funded?
“We hope that a clear, transparent, assessment of financial requirements, that meets with consensus from those who know, work for and draw on these services, emerges. An underfunded National Care Service is unlikely to do any better than the system that it seeks to replace.”
Christie can’t wait another decade
“For now, there’s a mismatch between the Scottish Government’s vision of a more successful Scotland – where poverty is reduced, and economic growth is sustainable – and how we assess public sector performance. I am not convinced that public sector leaders really feel accountable for delivering change that demands different organisations work together.”
Emerging from the shadows
“Opportunities for Labour arise from an SNP that excels in performative politics but fails in policy performance. The respective and competing nationalisms of Edinburgh and London governments are shrill and limited in their understanding of self-government. You cannot ‘take back control’ by focusing on empowering London or Edinburgh at the cost to all else. Labour has some way to go but with an independence referendum unlikely any time soon it does have some time.”