A Watershed Moment for Scottish Labour, Scotland and the UK
A Watershed Moment for Scottish Labour, Scotland and the UK Gerry Hassan Sunday Mail, March 8th 2015 Scottish Labour’s predicament and condition is centre stage in British politics. It has become one of the major factors which will determine the fate of the next UK election and government. Jim Murphy’s leadership, with its constant announcements and hyper-activity, whilst not having created the fundamental problems the party faces, seems to offer no real solution so far. Underneath all this Scottish Labour does not understand the position it finds itself in and how to get out of it. Fundamentally the party does
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Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP and the Age of Anti-Austerity Politics
Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP and the Age of Anti-Austerity Politics Gerry Hassan Sunday Mail, February 15th 2015 It has been a week filled with economic news and controversies. There was the imploding crisis of HSBC’s secret Swiss bank accounts and tax avoidance; the on-going Greek-German Governments European stand-off which threatens the future of the entire euro zone; while Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, is getting people ready for a year of flat or even falling prices. At the same time after years of public spending constraints and cuts, across large parts of Europe there is a
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The Myth of ‘Glasgow Man’
The Myth of ‘Glasgow Man’ Gerry Hassan Sunday Mail, February 1st 2015 ‘Glasgow man’ is expected to be a critical factor in the forthcoming general election contest in Scotland. He, or it, is central to Jim Murphy’s attempt to save Scottish Labour and win back 200,000 Labour supporters who voted Yes in the referendum. It is also pivotal to the SNP’s attempt to breakthrough in traditional Labour seats. Glasgow man is shorthand for a certain political demographic - the equivalent of ‘Basildon man’ who supposedly won it for Thatcher, and of ‘Mondeo man’ who contributed to Blair’s three election
The Battle for Britain 2015
The Battle for Britain 2015 Gerry Hassan Sunday Mail, December 28th 2014 Britain has had a tumultuous year. And 2015 will be as dramatic and difficult to predict. The UK general election will take place on Thursday May 7th. None of the three established Westminster parties are popular and nor are their leaders. Cameron’s poll ratings at least run ahead of Tory support, whereas Miliband and Clegg are massively unpopular with 22% and 13% satisfaction ratings respectively; and Miliband is more unpopular in Scotland than the Tory Prime Minister. At the last UK election in 2010, the Conservatives finished 20
