Peter Brown argues that tax, invested well, is part of what being a civilised nation is and offers two ideas on radically simplifying taxation as a part of what we hope will be an ongoing contribution to how taxation policy is likely to be very different in an independent Scotland. By Peter Brown It’s not … Read more
The powers of the Scottish parliament are under threat as Westminster takes back control By Editorial This is a difficult piece to write but write it we must because Scotland is approaching the crossroads when we need a clear path towards independence. It seems to us that that it is no longer a simple choice … Read more
By Russell Bruce With Tory politicians determined to undermine Nicola Sturgeon and her health team on Scotland’s response to the Covid19 pandemic we thought a statistical comparison of actual trends would provide some real clarity. Holding the SNP government to account is a legitimate function of opposition parties but are the attacks from Johnson’s men … Read more
Herring photograph by Zeshalyn Capino on Unsplash By Russell Bruce No fish and dead fish After four and and half years of political posturing and ignoring economic consequences the UK finally got a deal with hours to spare. That the Westminster parliament agreed to endorse it without proper scrutiny in a debate of a few … Read more
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon recently said in Holyrood and in interviews that the rollout of the vaccines, initially one, then two and now three, was a race – a race against getting as many at risk and vulnerable people as possible vaccinated against the existing and new, vastly more infectious variant of the Covid19 virus. … Read more
By Russell Bruce As 2020 comes to an end it is without a doubt that the early months of 2021 will continue to be difficult as the virus is more dangerous than ever and compounded with Boris Johnson’s idiot Brexit deal will make life even more difficult than it needed to be for all of … Read more
US International Pandemic PREDICT programme By Russell Bruce The New York Times has released a video detailing how the US invested 2 billion dollars in an international effort to identify and combat the spread of viruses. The US Center of Disease Control (CDC) was instrumental in the drive to enable the early identification of any … Read more
To catch a mackerel© Jenny Downing By Russell Bruce The government of Jersey is up in arms over a proposed UK power grab as it seeks to obtain control over all the waters in these islands with the exception of the those of the Irish Republic. Jersey as a Crown Dependency has control over everything … Read more
Tout seul au monde By Russell Bruce The permafrost surrounding UK /EU talks needs more than a little warming, even just moving to a shade warmer. Newsnet has a proposal to break the impasse. We think the Scottish Government could be an intermediary to break the current deadlock. Scotland may not be neutral but for … Read more
By Margaret Johnstone “Scotland’s Hitler,” screamed a caller on a radio programme, referring to Scotland’s First Minister closing pubs for 16 days to contain the Covid19 virus. Some upset individuals went even further in their written and online abuse. Tabloid headlines shrieked with a similar fury – Last chance saloon, Sturgeon’s last orders, Nic’s got … Read more