Europe puts a light on for Scotland Gerry Hassan Sunday National, May 2nd 2021 Remember in 2014 Scotland was told: “What is [the] process for removing our EU citizenship? Voting Yes.” Now the same voices tell us that Scotland becoming an EU member is too difficult – the supposed ‘queue’ for membership, EU terms and spectre of a ‘Spanish veto’. Yet large parts of Europe have not forgotten that Scotland voted to remain a European nation - and part of the EU - in the 2016 vote, and still has the desire to be a self-governing EU nation. An initiative

Continue Reading Europe puts a light on for Scotland

Glasgow on the Edge Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, April 28th 2021 Glasgow is a great city with a proud history, traditions, cultures and a rich record of invention, industry and radicalism. There are of course many different Glasgows within the city’s boundaries – and often reality jars with how the city likes to see and think of itself. One key example is the consistent conservatism and high-handed bureaucracy of Glasgow City Council in a city that prides itself on its commitment to radicalism. Too often though down the years the city’s municipalism has been characterised by the exact opposite

Continue Reading Glasgow on the Edge

Scotland’s choices and future after the election Gerry Hassan Sunday National, April 23rd 2021 It has been a momentous week. The George Floyd verdict put racial justice and police violence in the US centre-stage, while the over-reach of the plutocrats involved in the European Super League self-destructed in 48 hours. The scale of Tory sleaze and corruption surrounding Boris Johnson and his government rises by the day, with contracts and public monies awarded via access to the UK PM’s mobile phone number and What’s App discussions returning government to a Dickensian system of private favours and kleptocracy. Next week will

Continue Reading Scotland’s choices and future after the election

Breakaway: The rise and fall of the European Super League Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, April 21st 2021 What has been the big media story so far this week? Not COVID, not Boris Johnson’s many scandals, or even the George Floyd trial in the US. Rather, by far the biggest story media-wise has been the announcement of the European Super League – with some of the continent’s biggest football names announcing their intention to join together in a league which would make them an even more out of touch elite, before the fans rebelled and the powers to be had

Continue Reading Breakaway: The rise and fall of the European Super League

The crisis of unionism has become the death of the union as we know it Gerry Hassan Sunday National, April 18th 2021 The UK is not in a good state - undermined by the concerted actions of the UK Government, continuing to showing a lack of understanding of the union. All of this is coming to a head as we approach the Scottish elections, raising the stakes for how people vote and raising difficult questions about the nature of UK democracy. This Tory Government is dramatically changing the UK and the union, how political authority is exercised, the relationships between

Continue Reading The crisis of unionism has become the death of the union as we know it

The UK is not a fully-fledged democracy: An alternative history of Britain Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, April 14th 2021 The events of the past few days, in the aftermath of the death of Prince Philip, have brought the nature of British society, history and democracy to the fore – or rather the all-pervasive official account that is articulated day in and day out. We are continually told – sometimes subliminally and sometimes explicitly - that the monarchy is central to Britain, Britishness and our way of life and being, and that it is part of what makes us unique, stable

Continue Reading The UK is not a fully-fledged democracy: An alternative history of Britain

The politics of populism in Scotland and the challenge of Alex Salmond and George Galloway Gerry Hassan Sunday National, April 11th 2021 Once upon a time politics were simpler. Parties stood unambiguously on the left and right; politics was about class and the economy, and there was no such thing as “identity politics”. This is of course make-believe as politics was never so completely clear cut. But in recent decades this has become even more messy and unpredictable, with existing parties open to new challenges across the developed world. Today one of the big stories of politics is the rise

Continue Reading The politics of populism in Scotland and the challenge of Alex Salmond and George Galloway

Britain is broken – which is both an opportunity and challenge to Scottish radicals Gerry Hassan Sunday National, April 4th 2021 Politics has been highly charged and combative across the UK for many years now. The British political system, its rules and codes, and how politics and power is enacted have been in decline for some time. While many in Scotland view this as proof that independence is needed as soon as possible, it is also true that Scottish politics has some soul searching to do. Recent times have seen our own controversies about party, government and power which have

Continue Reading Britain is broken – which is both an opportunity and challenge to Scottish radicals

The return of Alex Salmond, Alba and whether it helps independence Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, March 31st 2021 That was a week that was. From the Hamilton inquiry clearing the First Minister to a vote of no confidence; to Alex Salmond taking the Scottish Government to court, topped off just before the weekend by Salmond launching his very own personal political force - the Alba Party. The official version spun by Salmond about Alba - or ‘the Ecksit party’ as some wit dubbed it – is that it is all about independence and achieving a ‘supermajority’ in the Scottish

Continue Reading The return of Alex Salmond, Alba and whether it helps independence

Where are the ideas and vision that will shape the future of Scotland? Gerry Hassan Sunday National, March 28th 2021 It has been an intense few weeks in Scottish politics. But as the dust settles on the political exchanges of the Salmond-Sturgeon controversy, the Scottish Parliament rises - and political parties and politicians prepare to fight the Scottish elections and await the voters’ verdict. The sixth Scottish Parliament elections come with many expectations, pressures and demands. Can the SNP retain their popularity after many years in office and recent difficulties? Will it be the Tories or Labour - both

Continue Reading Where are the ideas and vision that will shape the future of Scotland?