Scotland

Is there any amount of evidence that could convince the ‘public health’ lobby that one of their bright ideas didn’t work? What would it take for them to admit that they failed? It is now five years since the SNP introduced minimum unit pricing for alcohol. It was supposed to be the most effective policy available to tackle alcohol harm — yet figures released today show that alcohol-specific deaths in Scotland have reached a 14-year high. Is it perhaps time for a rethink? Is it time to abandon a policy that has cost Scottish consumers hundreds of millions of pounds and instead start focusing on dependent drinkers who need help?

On the SNP’s list of regrets, where does the Bute House Agreement with the Greens rank? Since the agreement, the Scottish government’s deposit return scheme has been delayed, Highly Protected Marine Areas halted and the gender reform bill blocked. This month marks the two-year anniversary of the SNP-Green coalition, but has the partnership – and the pro-independence majority that comes with it – been worth it for the nationalists?  ‘There’s a huge amount that’s been achieved,’ says Patrick Harvie, co-leader of the Scottish Greens along with Lorna Slater. Certainly the deal resulted in Harvie and Slater becoming the first Green politicians in the UK to gain ministerial portfolios. But more

As plot twists go, it’s a doozy. Five months ago, Murray Foote resigned as the SNP’s communications director after misleading journalists over party membership numbers. The former editor of the Daily Record stormed off, throwing a grenade over his shoulder. He had only misled journalists because he himself had been misled. A day after Foote’s departure (political cliché level: bombshell), the SNP’s chief executive Peter Murrell took responsibility for the mess and fell on his sword. Now, in a remarkable turn of events, Foote is back in the game. On Monday, he takes up the position of SNP chief executive. He’s the new Peter Murrell. The SNP spin goes that

Scotland continues to suffer drug deaths at levels unseen anywhere else in the UK or Europe. Three Scots die as a result of drugs every single day. That is nearly three times worse than any other country for which records exist. This scandalous figure has just been updated, and shows that, although the number of drug deaths in Scotland fell by a fifth in 2022, it is still nearly double what it was when the SNP came to power. It is also four times as high as it was at the turn of the century. A fall, the government says, is progress. But why so slow? Why did more than

Among the exhibits in Edinburgh university’s famous anatomical museum are the bones of ‘Bowed Joseph’, a notorious 18th century rabble-rouser who could allegedly assemble a crowd of 10,000 by beating his drum. He was ‘bowed’ because Joseph had rickets, a disease that ravaged Scotland’s working classes until the middle of the last century. Rickets is a disease of poverty, caused by poor diet and lack of sunlight and it is back, to the shame of the Scottish government. Cases have risen 33 per cent from 354 in 2018 to 442 last year. Well, poverty is caused by Tory austerity, say SNP MSPs and nationalists on social media. This shows why Scotland

It’s a tough time for Scottish nationalists these days. Polling for indyref2 remains static while the SNP’s own ratings have tanked. There are still no ferries or any sign of a workable bottle return scheme. And the Dear Leader has left the stage to be replaced by hapless Humza Yousaf: the biggest downgrade since Ian Blackford succeeded Charles Kennedy. So no wonder then that the National – a self-identifying newspaper in breach of the Trade Descriptions Act – is forced to look elsewhere to make its case for independence. In their zest to cast off the British yoke, the hard-of-thinking editorial team have stumbled on a brilliant idea: why not study

Oh dear. Hapless Humza Yousaf has tripped up again. The flailing First Minister of Scotland was today asked by Radio Clyde News if he will be watching the Women’s World Cup final on Sunday between England and Spain. Yousaf initially enthusiastically declared that ‘I will be watching the game for sure’. Yet when the reporter asked: ‘But you’ll not necessarily be cheering them on?’ a clearly irritated Yousaf immediately changed his mind and began to backtrack: Cheering them on – if you wish. I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with who I’ll be cheering on. I’m not even sure if I’ll be able to watch the game or not

At last, a target Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf should have no trouble meeting. Waiting lists? The attainment gap? Dualling the A9? Of course not. Humza Yousaf says his forthcoming government reset can be expected to ‘p**s people off’. When it comes to annoying people the First Minister is a veritable virtuoso. He has certainly irritated many in the SNP with his insistence on perpetuating the controversial alliance with the Scottish Green party.   Mr Yousaf clearly knows what side he’s on; unfortunately, Scottish voters are increasingly on the other side Yousaf is quite serious though. Yesterday he told the Holyrood Sources podcast that, as a ‘conviction’ politician, it is his righteous duty to curry unfavour with many

Is First Minister Humza Yousaf at risk of sacrificing crucial SNP votes by refusing to ditch his party’s coalition with the Greens? That’s what a growing number of nationalist politicians are worried about. This week, the Bute House Agreement (a framework between the two parties that allows them to govern together) came under criticism from the SNP’s own politicians – and the party is as divided as ever over what to do about them.  The party’s relationship with the Greens needs to be examined, SNP backbenchers believe – and Fergus Ewing and Kate Forbes have gone so far as to call for a party member vote on the Bute House

Tony Blair famously regretted his government’s introduction of freedom of information laws. ‘You idiot. You naive, foolish, irresponsible nincompoop. There is really no description of stupidity, no matter how vivid, that is adequate. I quake at the imbecility of it,’ he wrote in his memoirs. Blair complained that FOI is not used by ‘the people’ but by journalists as a mallet to beat the government over the head with. But in recent years in Scotland, FOI has at times been used by the public to reveal critical information the SNP administration at Holyrood would rather keep secret. An extraordinary FOI response was published this week, outlining secret advice on the

Uh oh. Following a rowdy bust up with the SNP’s chief whip Brendan O’Hara, the party establishment has now chosen to expel Angus MacNeil MP. MacNeil, a close ally of former first minister Alex Salmond, was initially suspended after news of the fight broke, which saw him reportedly seethe ‘you’re a small wee man!’ at O’Hara several times before flinging an entire stack of papers at him. He has been sitting as an independent MP ever since.  In a scathing Twitter post, MacNeil announced that ‘the summer of member expulsion’ has ‘come to pass.’ The decision to expel him from the party was made by a ‘member conduct committee’, the

To say the SNP have a disastrous record on transport would be putting it lightly. The ferries don’t run on time (if at all), the mystery of the motorhome remains unsolved and the nationalists still haven’t dualled Scotland’s most dangerous road. Perhaps then it’s no surprise to hear that former first minister Nicola Sturgeon and her husband (and former party chief executive) Peter Murrell have been caught driving an untaxed car around town.  It took an awkward phone call from the Sun newspaper for the couple to rectify the late tax, overdue by eight days. Sturgeon and Murrell may now receive a ‘late licensing penalty’ letter and an £80 fine.