Wake Up Scotland: 1,339 and counting ….
Wake Up Scotland: 1,339 and counting …. Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, August 4th 2021 Last week the tragic milestone that is Scotland’s drug death total for the year ending 2020 came out. The figures showed that 1,339 people died, a rise of 5.9% on the previous year’s bad enough total of 1,264. This is up from 455 in 2007, the year the SNP came to power- a staggering increase of 194% in the drug-related mortality rate over their time in office. This is the highest annual number of drug deaths recorded in Scotland since records began in 1996, and the
Westminster, the SNP and Independence: How SNP MPs can stand up for Scotland’s right to decide
Westminster, the SNP and independence: How SNP MPs can stand up for Scotland’s right to decide Gerry Hassan The National, August 3rd 2021 The recent Scottish Parliament elections of May 2021 are a mere three months old, yet for some people who grow easily impatient at the pace of our politics seem to have been already written off. At the same time our politics and society face numerous challenges: COVID-19, the escalating chaos of Brexit, the daily incompetence of Boris Johnson and his Tory Government, the scale of Scotland’s drug deaths, and more. Yet, in parts of the independence movement
A Celebration of Democracy – and Goodbye to Yesterday’s Men
A Celebration of Democracy – and Goodbye to Yesterday’s Men Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, May 12th 2021 The Scottish elections attracted major media coverage - not just here, but across the UK and internationally. They have been portrayed as historic, and a potential turning point that could decide the fate of the independence question, and ultimately, determine the future of the UK. They were a major moment of democratic engagement. The five previous Scottish elections I discussed last week all had fairly unimpressive turnouts - 58.4% in 1999, 49.7% in 2003, 54.0% in 2007, 50.5% in 2011, and 55.8% in
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A big moment for Scotland and Democracy
A big moment for Scotland and Democracy Gerry Hassan Sunday National, May 9th 2021 The morning after the 2014 indyref UK PM David Cameron stood on the Downing Street steps and said it was time to listen to England and bring in “English Votes for English Laws.” Fast forward seven years, Scotland went to the polls and before most of the results were declared Boris Johnson gave an interview to the Daily Telegraph where he said no to another indyref calling it “irresponsible and reckless.” Tory contempt for the people runs deep when they express what Tories decree is the
Glasgow on the Edge
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
Scotland’s choices and future after the election
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
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The politics of populism in Scotland and the challenge of Alex Salmond and George Galloway
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
The return of Alex Salmond, Alba and whether it helps independence
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
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Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon and Lessons for Politics and Public Life
Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon and Lessons for Politics and Public Life Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, March 24th 2021 Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon’s political relationship has defined Scotland over the past two decades. They oversaw the rise of the SNP and its transformation into a party of power. They achieved and nearly won an indyref - followed by the slow, painful unravelling of their relationship in public; the turbulence of the past three years, and the bitter end of their partnership. We have seen nothing like it in Scottish or UK politics in living memory. No previous political
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Scotland on the international stage
Scotland on the international stage Gerry Hassan Sunday National, March 14th 2021 These are turbulent times domestically and internationally. The UK Government, state and wider reputation of the UK has taken a hit of late through Brexit, the UK threatening to break international law, its record on COVID-19 as ‘the sick man of Europe’, and the latest Royal Family scandal bringing a reality check to how the House of Windsor is seen globally. Scotland needs to think about its image and how it places itself on the international stage in relation to independence. This has not been addressed enough
