How does indyref 2039 sound to you? Or indyref 2054? Scottish Secretary Alister Jack has sought to harden the UK Government’s position on opposing the right to decide on independence. Asked by the BBC if he was ruling out an indyref regardless of the Scottish Parliament election result, Jack said: “It’s no for a generation”. […]
Independence
“The purpose of an experiment is to determine whether observations of the real world agree with or conflict with the predictions derived from a hypothesis. If they agree, confidence in the hypothesis increases; otherwise, it decreases.” It is time for the independence movement to get to grips with the scientific method. Something does not become […]
Robin Mcalpine: Sterlingisation is a terrible idea and a massive liability
What should the UK Government’s strategy be to stop Scottish independence? One would think this is the sort of thing Tory politicians and their staffers think about themselves. But no, in these days of neoliberal governance, Ministers seem happier to outsource all of their thinking to ridiculously expensive private consultancies. Bloomberg has now reported on a leaked 21-page memo […]
Preparing for a “velvet No”
Andrew Wilson, former SNP MP and head of corporate lobbying firm Charlotte Street Partners, has outlined his “roadmap for independence” in an interview in The Herald on Sunday. He envisages that Scotland could be independent by 2026, and would continue using pound sterling informally thereafter, until such time (perhaps five to ten years) “that it’s no […]
A Scottish currency following independence wouldn’t be “risky”
The latest polling on independence is some good news in tough times for Yes supporters. 58 per cent in favour of independence is reaching into new territory of independence support, even if it is just one poll. As polling expert professor John Curtice points out, this is “the ninth poll in a row since June to […]
Yes on 58%: What’s behind the poll lead?
September 18th. The sixth anniversary of Indyref. I’m sure I am not alone among Source Direct subscribers in wondering if we will ever see as politically vibrant times again as the summer of 2014, when it felt like there wasn’t a person in Scotland who wasn’t actively engaged in shaping the country’s future. So much […]
Don’t lose sight of what made 2014 special
“There is a degree of courage that the Scots, and in particular Nicola Sturgeon, must show if they want the transition to independence and entering the EU, to be realistic. And that includes the currency. “It is not possible and it is not credible for the ‘independentists’, for the SNP, to advocate independence without advocating […]
Currency questions can’t be wished away
“El Borbón a prisión!” That was the shout of a small group of protestors in Madrid on Sunday [9 August], after the self-exile of Juan Carlos I of the House of Bourbon, who is under investigation for corruption charges in Switzerland and Spain. The protest was small because Spain is in its holiday season, but […]
‘Where’s Juan?’: Royal corruption puts Spain’s ’78 regime in the spotlight
Education Secretary John Swinney’s U-turn was about as complete as could be, to the extent that it was more an O than a U. All those SQA moderators may as well not bothered – Swinney has rubbed out their markings. The questions about what this means for the future of Scottish education are profound (David […]
Grading U-turn is the starting pistol on 2021 election
With the long-weekend behind us, Source Direct is coming late to the SNP bunfight. The room is being tidied up, and the National Executive Committee are nursing hangovers, as well as one or two bruises. Why did it happen, and what does it mean? First, for those of you who missed all the fun and […]