Will independence end elite capture of politics?
Link to a post I wrote for Bellacaledonia on whether independence will make any difference to the land question in Scotland. Available as a pdf here
Continue readingCapping the CAP 1
In the rapidly expanding digital world, it is encouraging to welcome an outbreak of online participation among our elected representatives. Not only do many MPs and MSPs have blogs, twitter accounts and facebook pages but some of them are even
Continue readingCampaign for REAL Local Government 1
This blog was first published at Bella Caledonia [link broken Oct 2024] on 29 September 2011 UPDATE 25 November 2012 Read the Jimmy Reid Foundation’s excellent report Silent Crisis: Failure and Revival in Local Democracy in Scotland for a detailed
Continue readingTax Incremental Financing misses a trick
The Scottish Government today announced a further three projects that will be developed using the Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) model. This is a mechanism whereby future non-domestic rates (business rates) that arise as a consequence of the TIF financed development
Continue readingNo other country has mapped its greenspace in this way
Today, an organisation called Greenspace Scotland launched what they claim is a world first in mapping the location, extent and type of greenspace across all of Scotland’s urban settlements. [broken link Oct 2024]“No other country has mapped its greenspace in
Continue readingScotland and the Crown Estate VII
The Scotland Bill is now being considered by the House of Lords. As regular readers will be aware, I have been taking a close interest in the particular issue of the proposed changes in the administration of the Crown Estate
Continue readingLand Taxes
The Liberal Democrats have just published an interesting policy discussion paper on land taxes available here. I am delighted to see this thinking emerging from one of the UK coalition partners in Government and hope that the Scottish party plays
Continue readingBrian Wilson Writes
For many years, I have read the West Highland Free Press, a newspaper which campaigns fearlessly for the interests of the West Highlands and its people. The paper’s priorities are perhaps best encapsulated in the Gaelic slogan on its masthead:
Continue readingSovereign Grant Bill & Scotland
Thursday 14 July – and in the House of Commons all of the stages of the Sovereign Grant Bill [broken link Oct 2024] are rushed through in one sitting and it now heads off to the Lords. In the debate
Continue readingSovereign Grant
Yesterday morning with very little advance notice, the Chancellor, George Osborne, tabled the Sovereign Grant Bill in the UK Parliament (all papers on Treasury website – [broken link Oct 2024]). The bill provides for a new method of financing the
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