The Banality of Scottish Politics

Speymouth November 27, 2023

Much of the political debate and coverage of Scottish politics remains utterly banal. We are caught in the stagnant pond of constitutional impasse. The reasons for this are clear. Around 50% of people don’t want to be part of the British state yet there seems no way to alter this reality. Those that champion our […] Source

Family matters

Speymouth November 26, 2023

I’m afraid I’m currently dealing with some family issues so won’t be blogging for a little while. My mother’s health has taken a turn for the worse and she is currently in hospital. I will be back when things settle down a bit.   _______________________________________________ My Gaelic maps of Scotland are…

Shut It Down for Palestine

Speymouth November 25, 2023

Three weeks is a long time in politics – or certainly it is for Glasgow City Council. * As part of an international call out to ‘Shut it down for Palestine’, five Glasgow residents disrupted a Glasgow City Council ‘State of the City Economy’ conference. The event featured a panel with two weapons companies based […] Source

Best Scot at Westminster

Speymouth November 25, 2023

After the Herald’s Scottish Politician of the Year Awards we held a Friday night competition on Twitter asking ‘Can anyone name a single thing he’s done for Scotland?’ There were 22k views of that tweet and the answers included: ‘500 brace of grouse and a couple of beaters’ @haikuthenoo ‘He sells Xmas trees in Dumfries […] Source

Asset-stripping can only be stopped with our independence

Speymouth November 24, 2023

GRANGEMOUTH is closing, leaving oil-rich Scotland with no refinery and reliant on England. We’ll no longer be a manufacturer and exporter of petroleum products and become an importer, which is the point. England, always a huge net importer of manufactured goods, couldn’t bear that Scotland has always been a net exporter, so it has “blown another hole in our industrial base”. Source

Grangemouth closure is serious threat to Scotland’s energy security

Speymouth November 23, 2023

Yesterday energy firm PetroIneos announced the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery and a transition to operations as an imports centre within the next 18 months. Grangemouth is Scotland’s only oil refinery, producing over 70% of all of Scotland’s petrol and diesel. The closure is a worrying development, leaving Scotland without a centre to refine […] Source