A confident Tory Prime Minister. Labour led by an untested left-winger. The SNP surging north of the Border. If Election 2017 feels awfully familiar it’s because we have been here before. Just two years ago, Britain went to the polls in the wake of a divisive constitutional referendum that upended decades-old allegiances. And there wereContinue reading "A cynical take on Project Fear"
Sturgeon knows her party has peaked. That’s why she doesn’t want this election
Barely had the Prime Minister shut the door of Number 10 behind her than the SNP leader was beating a path to the nearest BBC camera. She can’t get someone halfway competent to run Scotland’s schools but she knows where to find Brian Taylor and a microphone in a pinch. Miss Sturgeon pronounced Theresa MayContinue reading "Sturgeon knows her party has peaked. That’s why she doesn’t want this election"
Theresa May is right to say no to a TV debate
I worked on the first TV debate of the Scottish referendum. I was involved in countless more. I was to be found on the production team for televised clashes during the 2015 general election and the 2016 vote for Holyrood. So I speak with some experience when I say TV debates are a terrible idea.Continue reading "Theresa May is right to say no to a TV debate"
After moving to Edinburgh, I now know what’s wrong with our best cities
Moving house is one of the most stressful experiences you can go through. In my case, it's also one of the most confusing. As a west coast boy, I've just upped sticks and resettled my Glasgow life in Edinburgh, that most unGlasgow of cities. I moved to be nearer Holyrood. I write about politics forContinue reading "After moving to Edinburgh, I now know what’s wrong with our best cities"
The trial of Kelvin MacKenzie
Kelvin MacKenzie’s baffling compulsion to pick at Liverpool has brought him up a cropper again, with the Sun pulling his latest polemic on Everton FC player Ross Barkley. MacKenzie has compared the footballer, recently victim of an assault in a nightclub, to ‘a gorilla at the zoo’ and added that, in Liverpool, ‘the only menContinue reading "The trial of Kelvin MacKenzie"
Labour has abandoned workers. Trade unions must avoid doing the same
I’m not a member of a trade union but I should be. As a freelance journalist, my employment situation is precarious — yet it still wouldn’t occur to me to join the National Union of Journalists. My reasons are both personal and political, but mostly practical: the NUJ talks tough but, in the end, seldomContinue reading "Labour has abandoned workers. Trade unions must avoid doing the same"
Twice in a generation
It seems like only two and a half years since the last referendum on Scottish independence but the Scottish National Party assures us a generation has passed, and I would advise you not to question them. It seldom ends well. Nicola Sturgeon has demanded a rerun of that plebiscite, in part because Brexit seems to offer a propitious set ofContinue reading "Twice in a generation"
Bile, anger, and the growing divisiveness of a nation’s politics
'You know, this used to be a hell of a good country,' Jack Nicholson pondered in Easy Rider. 'I can’t understand what’s gone wrong with it.' These words crept into my mind last week and no matter what I did to shut them out, they found a way back in. Anas Sarwar revealed that heContinue reading "Bile, anger, and the growing divisiveness of a nation’s politics"
All politics is local (except maybe in Scotland)
'All politics is local’ ran the maxim of legendary American politico Tip O’Neill, a deal-making Democrat of the old school. O’Neill worked his way up from the back room of the party machine to become Speaker of the House of Representatives and the wily nemesis of Ronald Reagan. In the middle of the 1982 recession,Continue reading "All politics is local (except maybe in Scotland)"
Pepsi’s advert gives protesters exactly what they want: another opportunity to protest
No sooner had Pepsi skooshed open its latest ad campaign than the internet burped it back up. The soft drink giant's new commercial featured Kendall Jenner (ask a young person) emerging from a crowd of protestors to offer a Pepsi to an officer on a police line. The two-and-a-half-minute promo was sugarier than theContinue reading "Pepsi’s advert gives protesters exactly what they want: another opportunity to protest"
Stephen Daisley 