Theresa May

Politics is becoming a battle of ideas again, but the Tories look a spent force Gerry Hassan The Herald, October 4th 2017 The Conservative Party love to tell themselves they are one of the most successful parties electorally in the Western world. Chancellor Philip Hammond was giving Tories this reassuring message on Monday. But this conference does not feel like that of a party in good health, spirits or much energy. Instead, despite being in government, it feels like a party lost and almost pre-preparing for opposition. There is the leadership issue. Theresa May’s lost majority saw her stitch-up a

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Brexit, Dunkirk and a Britain Where the Past Shapes the Future Gerry Hassan Open Democracy, July 26th 2017 The past is always around us in what passes for modern Britain. In recent years, particularly in the aftermath of the Brexit vote, it seems more omnipotent and increasingly problematic. From politics to culture and most aspects of public life we are confronted with a fantasyland version of the collective past which is selective and sepia-tinged. This matters because it reduces the prospect of us believing that we can make a better collective future than the nasty, mean-spirited reality which is for

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We have reached a watershed for UK politics: Time for independence to catch the wave of change Gerry Hassan Bella Caledonia, June 20th 2017 These are bewildering and often disorientating times to live in. In recent weeks and months it has felt at times difficult to keep up with the speed of events – as history has been seemingly made and remade every few days. Such periods call for being honest, respectful in debate, and reflection and self-awareness in everything any of us say or do in public. Look around at the events in the UK and world and they

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Time for the SNP and Labour to break with the failed policies of divided Britain Gerry Hassan Sunday Herald, May 28th 2017 Until last week this election was one in which nothing seemed to be happening. All of that changed with the horrors of Manchester. Such atrocities test the fabric of our democracy and civic culture and sadly find some – though thankfully few – wanting. Theresa May came out saying some of the right words. But we have nearly 1,000 armed troops now on our streets:; a reflection of the huge police cuts she made in her six-year

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 The Winner Doesn’t Take It All: Phoney War or the Beginning of a New Era? Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, May 10th 2017 Scotland’s permanent political campaign continued last week with the local elections. These were important for who runs Scotland’s 32 councils, local services and what passes for the remnants of local government, after decades of centralisation under Labour, Tories and SNP. But the stakes were higher than usual with the impending UK general election. Everybody could claim some spoils. The SNP ‘won’ - finishing with most votes and seats. The Tories made significant gains in votes and seats. Labour

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‘When I hear the word Scotland I want to say: ‘Shut the Fuck Up’’ Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, May 3rd 2017 ‘When I hear the word Scotland, I want to say: ‘Shut the Fuck Up.’’ These were the emotive words someone said at a public event in Newcastle I spoke at exactly one year to the day after the 2014 indyref. They undoubtedly voiced the views of a part of the country - by that I mean a part of England. But at the same time their anger and loss of patience taps into something that is clearly going on

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The Continuing Battle for Scotland: Goodbye to British politics and Goodbye to Britain? Gerry Hassan Bella Caledonia, April 19th 2017 The age of perma-campaigning and elections continues in Scotland. Theresa May’s snap election, supposedly to give her a mandate for Brexit which she already had, will be Scotland’s seventh visit to the polls in the last three years. For some of us, a select few, this is nirvana. For many more it is an unwanted intrusion. But while mainstream media vox pops show us the now legendary Brenda from Bristol say how disgusted she is at having to vote again,

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An Open Letter to the SNP and Independence Supporters Gerry Hassan Bella Caledonia, March 17th 2017 These are fast moving political times for Scotland. The events of the last week illustrate the accelerated fragmentation and disintegration of the UK as we know it. But these are also times of high stakes and stand-offs, with the Scottish and UK Governments gaming and predicting the actions of the other. Monday’s announcement by Nicola Sturgeon took the UK Government by surprise and seized the centrestage of British politics – forcing the postponement of triggering Article 50. Theresa May’s most recent statement, declaring

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Indyref2 is coming but can we do better than two versions of Little Britain? Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, March 15th 2016 The ides of March 2017. One single day - Monday March 13^th - will go down as an epic day in the fragmentation of the United Kingdom. The Brexit Bill passed through all its stages in the Commons and Lords shorn of any extra commitments. Nicola Sturgeon announced the prospect of a second independence referendum. And the UK Government in response decided to shelve the triggering of Article 50 for two weeks. That’s without mentioning what is happening in

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Scottish Independence has to move with the times Gerry Hassan Scottish Review, February 1st 2017 Scotland has in recent times liked to see itself as progressive, democratic and European. What’s so special about that you might think? A bit like apple pie and being kind to animals. But these undoubtedly mainstream values were rightly seen as increasingly at odds with the direction of the UK in the last few decades. The UK wasn’t any of these things and this has become even more pronounced and obvious post-Brexit vote. The Scottish case for these three qualities in 2014 was about something

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