Scotland’s newspapers are some of the oldest, and were once among the most prestigious, in the world. But there are few foreign correspondents left. None of our newspapers has a staff correspondent covering Ukraine - a major war in Europe! - or a foreign correspondent on the staff at all. In an age rife with disinformation and lies, we desperately need this expertise … [Read more...] about Let’s reverse the decline in Scottish journalism
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Is Scotland heading for an early election?
Two elections will be uppermost in delegates' minds when the SNP stages its annual conference in Edinburgh this weekend: the July 4 general election when the party suffered a crushing defeat and the May 2026 election for the Scottish Parliament when it fears it may suffer a similarly disastrous outcome, losing power after almost two decades. Another key event, Tuesday's … [Read more...] about Is Scotland heading for an early election?
Options and challenges for Wales’s constitutional future
The Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales reported in January 2024. The Commission had both independent experts and party political nominees on it, produced a unanimous report, and found that the three main constitutional options they focused on - enhanced devolution, a federal UK and an independent Wales - were all viable (each with their own strengths … [Read more...] about Options and challenges for Wales’s constitutional future
Lies, damn lies and education stats
A week after the OECD published its latest (2022) findings in the Programme for International Student Assessment, a triennial exercise known by its acronym PISA, the SNP-led Scottish Government and the party itself are spinning a report purportedly showing the opposite of what the Paris-based think tank has discovered. As Profs Lindsay Paterson and Walter Humes, two of … [Read more...] about Lies, damn lies and education stats
What’s the Orange Order’s future?
Today, across Northern Ireland, thousands of Orange Men will be parading for the 12th of July commemorations. But what is the future of the loyal orders? Like most institutions, their numbers have been declining. From a high point of 90,000 in the 1960s to 34,000 in 2012, I suspect the figure for active members today is more like 20,000. What is the place of the Orange Order … [Read more...] about What’s the Orange Order’s future?