John Wood reviews Scotland Rising: The Case for Independence by Gerry Hassan (Pluto Press, 2022) Gerry Hassan has made timely and valuable contributions to our political discourse for around three decades now. His most notable volume remains The Strange Death of Labour Scotland (co-written with Eric Shaw in 2012), examining the decline of Scottish Labour, […]
Mike Danson reviews two books on Scotland’s economic prospects: After Brexit. The Economics of Scottish Independence, by Gavin McCrone (Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2022). ISBN 978 1 78027 762 2. £8.99. pp 188. The Bargain. Why the UK Works So Well for Scotland, by Tom Miers (Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2022). ISBN 978 1 78027 769 1. £8.99. pp. […]
Gordon Morgan reviews Why the West is Failing – Failed Economics and the Rise of the East, by John Mills (Cambridge: Polity Press, 2022) This book makes two major points. First, UK GDP growth is 1.4% compared to a world average of 3.5% and China’s rate of 9.1%. This low rate of growth is shared […]
Editorial: The tectonic plates of politics shift again His and her family firm: Publicly funded pinnacle of inequality in wealth and power Tommy Sheppard Off with their heids as we keep ours – the unfinished revolution must be finished Bill Bonnar Subject-ive Questions David McKinstry Yes, a republic! But what sort of republic? Gregor Gall […]
The Foundation held a very successful ninth annual lecture on the evening of Thursday 6 October with around 200 people in attendance to hear Christina McAnea, Glasgow-born and the first woman UNISON general secretary in the Banqueting Hall in the City Chambers on George Square. Christina outlined the case of how unions are fighting the […]
Tories are in a continued crisis but still the attacks continue … but before we get to that, there is the small matter of the monarchy and a republic to deal with and which the cover for this issue flags up. So, we have a once in a lifetime opportunity – a historical moment, if […]
Tommy Sheppard lays out the case against the monarchy. I’m not sure which is the more depressing: that the UK has just reaffirmed the hereditary right of kings or that a majority of its citizens demonstrably agree with that situation. Despite this, as we begin the new Caroline era, a grown-up debate about the future […]
Bill Bonnar examines the feting of the monarchs but sees the prospect of change ahead. As socialists, we were dreading it. Not the passing of the queen but rather how it would be marked and we were not disappointed. Ten days of carefully manufactured mass hysteria; not only to mark the passing of the queen […]
Is it now time to stand tall And abandon the royal bowing and scraping? If nothing else think of the money You will be saving? The cost of sixteen royals Equals thirteen thousand nurses Without putting us in the red Hospitals we all dread But that being said, Who would you choose Prince Andrew Or […]
Gregor Gall surveys the options we can choose from and who might help to deliver it. The death of the queen and the accession of a new king have provided the best opportunity in many generations to develop and deepen the case for a republic in any and all parts of Britain. This far exceeds […]