Monthly Archives: February 2015

Political parties, let alone incumbent ones, don’t usually engage in public soul-searching ten weeks out from a general election. But with the ballot box looming, some of Britain’s leading Tory commentators are wondering aloud if the Conservatives are on the (centre-)right path. This kind of discussion may seem irrelevant in Scotland where the Tories willContinueContinue reading “Future of the Conservatives lies in being good, not just right”

At this point, politicians should just assume every lobbyist they meet is an undercover reporter from the Daily Telegraph. Sir Malcolm Rifkind and Jack Straw have been secretly recorded by journalists, allegedly offering to use their positions to advance the interests of a (non-existent) Chinese company. In the video, Mr Straw is said to claim thatContinueContinue reading “Rifkind and Straw scandal shows why we must pay MPs more”

The only things missing were the pom-poms. David Cameron came to Edinburgh to rally the Scottish Tory faithful, usually an unhappy task for a Conservative leader. The party has been in the doldrums north of the border for so long that Mr Cameron’s predecessors have copied and pasted the same speech year after year. “TheContinueContinue reading “David Cameron rallies the Tory faithful at conference”

Scottish Conservative leaders aren’t obvious pioneers of same-sex equality. Ruth Davidson, however, isn’t your average Scottish Conservative leader. The 36-year-old MSP for Glasgow has broken new ground with a party election broadcast featuring her partner Jen. The broadcast, released on Wednesday evening shows Ms Davidson and her partner out walking and spending time with theContinueContinue reading “Scottish Tory leader introduces her same-sex partner in election ad”

Analysing Scottish Labour’s standing in the opinion polls, the tagline from the 1974 horror classic The Texas Chain Saw Massacre comes to mind: “Who will survive and what will be left of them?” According to Lord Ashcroft’s landmark Scottish polling, the answer seems to be: Not many and not much. Make no mistake, the natureContinueContinue reading “Will Scottish Labour survive and what will be left of it?”