How to defeat the Tories and aid democracy
How to defeat the Tories and aid democracy Gerry Hassan The National, 5 October 2021 Tory problems mount by the day. There’s fuel and food shortages evoking the 1970s, a Brexit that seems only to be delivering problems and, in Boris Johnson, a PM who seems to know and care little about detail and the real lives of people. Despite all of this and more the Tories are still in the lead in the polls and the odds remain against Labour winning the next election outright. Labour has a mountain to climb to win the next election that could be
Keir Starmer, Labour and the Limits of Gordon Brown’s Britain
Keir Starmer, Labour and the Limits of Gordon Brown’s Britain Gerry Hassan Sunday National, 3 October 2021 The state of Labour matters in UK politics - and to Scotland. Can it mount a serious challenge to Boris Johnson’s Tories, or does UK politics faces the bleak prospect of perpetual Tory Governments? Thus, the mood of Labour at its recent conference and after has consequences. The party gathering at Brighton was filled with drama, controversy - and heckling. In his lengthy keynote speech Starmer covered subjects including Scotland, the SNP, and the case for the union – citing Gordon Brown and
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Labour’s problems are about much more than Keir Starmer
Labour’s problems are about much more than Keir Starmer Gerry Hassan The National, 28 September 2021 Labour meet in Brighton this week for another conference in opposition and in the wilderness, with clear evidence of being collectively bewildered and confused. Not only that but Keir Starmer’s leadership is openly being questioned across the party – not just from the Corbynite left but on the centre and right from where he has drawn most support until now. No one seems sure what Starmer stands for, or even if he has the real skills needed to be a leader. Yet
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Seven years on independence has serious work to do to win
Seven years on independence has serious work to do to win Gerry Hassan The National, 21 September 2021 Last weekend was the seventh anniversary of Scotland’s big date with destiny on independence – and for some this is an understandable seven-year itch. Cue the demand from some that Scotland holds another indyref as soon as possible. The previous weekend at the Alba gathering Alex Salmond made the case for an indyref in the midst of the COVID pandemic on the grounds that the 2021 Scottish elections were held against the same backdrop (when legislation would have been required to postpone
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The Twilight of Empire State Britain
The Twilight of Empire State Britain Gerry Hassan Sunday National, 22 August 2021 The UK’s reputation took another hit last week, as after the Brexit debacle and 150,000 dead from COVID-19 came the Afghanistan humiliation. The calamity and chaos in Kabul has united people in shock and fury at the incompetence and hubris of the present UK Government in a way those other disasters have not. It has provided defining accounts of a rotten, venal Tory class of entitlement timeservers such as Boris Johnson and Dominic Raab – and a government that only cares about its own self-preservation. It is
The Afghan War and the Problem that is the West
The Afghan War and the Problem that is the West Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, 18 August 2021 The Afghan War has ended in abject failure. A failure whose shape, consequences and brutality will only be fully clear as it is played out in the coming weeks, months and years. In response the UK Government has recalled Parliament to sit on Wednesday, confirming the impotence of the UK. Events on the ground have overtaken the US and UK authorities and other Western capitals. In places there appears a dereliction of duty with UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab caught AWOL on holiday
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Where and who are Scotland’s radicals today?
Where and who are Scotland’s radicals today? Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, June 30th 2021 Summer has arrived in Scotland and what passes for holidays in a pandemic – schools formally off, the Scottish Parliament in recess, lots of staycationing, and maybe even Nicola Sturgeon feeling she is entitled to at least a short holiday. UK politics never seems short of crisis, incident and scandal. Boris Johnson’s haphazard but so far popular Premiership is proving ill-disposed to running a country facing the twin hits of Brexit and COVID-19. Beneath the noise, charge and counter-charge Scottish and UK politics and politicians are
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We are living in age of multiple revolutions
We are living in an age of multiple revolutions Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, June 22nd 2021 This Wednesday is five years exactly since the UK overall – led by England and Wales – voted for Brexit. The matter is still alive and present in so many ways – in the Northern Ireland protocol, in Scotland, in the UK argumentative relationship with the EU, and in the dividing lines which shape British politics. Here are eleven takes about the state of British politics and its future. ONE: Brexit is not just about leaving the EU. It is not just a
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Scotland no longer defines itself and the world through England
Scotland no longer defines itself and the world through England Gerry Hassan Bella Caledonia, June 18th 2021 The Scotland v England fixture returns - Wembley, the Tartan Army, English commentators talking nearly exclusively about England, with Gazza’s 1996 goal now replacing the once constant references to 1966. It is almost as if nothing has ever changed. Almost. This is the original and oldest international fixture in the world dating back to 1872 - the foundational rivalry of international football, and one with great history, drama, controversies and memories. It is a vital part of the story of Scottish and English,
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Despite the lessons of history the British establishment are talking about partition
Despite the lessons of history the British establishment are talking about partition Gerry Hassan The National, June 15th 2021 Partition has been much referenced of late concerning the state of the UK. We have seen hyper-anti-independence supporters like George Galloway float the “partitioning” of Scotland in the event of independence. And we have seen numerous Tory MPs get hot under the collar when talking about the Northern Ireland protocol, declaring that this amounts to the dismemberment and “partitioning” of the UK. Something is clearly in the air and beyond lone political voices key figures in the British political establishment
