Spare a thought this Christmas/New Year for the person at the Fiscals’ office on whose desk the file marked ‘Operation Branch Form’, the investigation into the SNP’s finances, is resting.
How does Assad’s removal alter the Middle East’s geopolitics?
Following the Assad regime’s collapse in Syria, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is asserting control in Damascus, aiming for interim governance. Despite optimism for stability, concerns about HTS’s intentions persist. Meanwhile, foreign influences shift, with Turkey, the U.S., and Israel gaining power, while Iran and Russia face diminished roles in a rapidly evolving landscape.
Paying the price for net zero
European nations are retreating from climate commitments, exacerbated by rising costs and societal resistance. The new UK government and Scotland have reduced climate targets amid challenges posed by defense spending and economic demands. Both the UK and Europe face crucial decisions about investing significantly in a green transition, requiring a comprehensive strategy beyond current proposals, and fostering a national dialogue on necessary changes.
Is Reform really overtaking Labour?
Much has been made of the news that Reform has overtaken Labour in voting intentions in a recent poll. The poll, produced by market research agency Find Out Now, put the Conservatives on 26%, Reform on 24% and Labour on 23%. Most recent polls show that Labour is still ahead of Reform, but only by a small […]
Lives of the massacred MacDonalds of Glen Coe
“Just as stories in the past offered lessons to those who would listen, there is a place for stories today to help us adjust to life in a changing world, inspiring resilience in the present through understanding how communities adapted to challenges in the past.”
A failure of leadership over Glasgow’s “Mack”
“A full restoration of the Mack can and must be done – and within years not decades. It will take political will. If leadership is there, the money can be found. Restoring the Mack is a chance to put money and commitment behind a project involving skilled work and training opportunities for the people of greater Glasgow and beyond.”
Still spinning plates: the 2025 Scottish Budget
“There aren’t even any mathematical reasons (if anything, Council Tax reform and a land tax would have made it easier to win progressive votes in Parliament for the budget). There aren’t any objections from their members (indeed, quite the opposite, by not enacting those reforms the SNP are running directly against motions passed overwhelmingly at recent conferences) There is only the lack of will from the Government to make it happen.”
Balgy Gap and the missing loop in the grid
The privatisation of Scotland’s power has proved a failure, argues Jackie Kemp, citing the 60-year failure to provide power to a part of the Highlands
Snobbery at Edinburgh Uni: what a surprise!
“Scottish students at Scottish universities pay no tuition fees! It’s great! The Scottish Government pays them! Except of course, the Scottish Government DOESN’T pay anything like the real amount per head, leaving universities like Edinburgh and St Andrews to recruit the vast majority of their students from the rest of the UK and from abroad.”
A new way to govern Scotland: co-opposition
Labour and Plaid Cymru ran Wales pretty successfully for three years (2021-24) without a formal coalition. Could Swinney and Sarwar take a leaf out of the same boat?