Scottish independence
The woman I’m not – Nicola Sturgeon
Scotland’s former first minister spends most of her memoir telling us how different she is from her public image
Another Scottish independence referendum is coming
Despite what the SNP and its supporters insist, Nicola Sturgeon did not ‘announce’ a second referendum on independence today. Far…
No, Scottish independence is not like the war in Ukraine
Perhaps it’s the absence of any oppression of their own country that compels Scottish nationalists to latch onto the oppression…
Will Scottish independence really be ‘Brexit times ten’?
Scottish civil servants are to start work on a ‘detailed prospectus’ for independence so the Scottish government can hold another…
Tough old world
Like a basking shark, Val McDermid once remarked, a crime series needs to keep moving or die. The same could…
Don’t pick a fight with the SNP
Since the Holyrood elections in May, the campaign for Scottish independence has been noticeably quiet. But that is about to…
Nicola Sturgeon isn’t serious about IndyRef2
The announcement reeked of desperation. Nicola Sturgeon is‘delighted’ that the SNP National Executive Committee has approved her nomination of retired…
Does this SNP politician think buses are racist?
One of the benefits of devolution has been giving Scots their own parliament in which the great issues of the…
Prince William won’t save the Union
Can the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge save the Union? Officials at Buckingham Palace are reported to be drawing up…
Give the people what they think they want
I have a mean streak. Perhaps my cruellest urge is to give people what they claim to want. When political…
The SNP’s latest separation blueprint is pure project fantasy
‘A SNP MSP has claimed an independent Scotland could guarantee a couple with children a minimum income of more than…
The wrath of Nicola Sturgeon
I can’t seem to find the Oracle of Delphi’s complete works. The libraries remain shut and when I go to…
Highland games
Will Boris Johnson call Nicola Sturgeon’s bluff?
Westminster must avoid the Sturgeon trap
The challenge for the UK government in the coming months is to make Nicola Sturgeon look like a constitutional obsessive.…
How Alex Salmond can game the loophole in Scotland’s voting system
Two decades after devolution, the Scottish Parliament’s election system still confuses ordinary voters and seasoned political observers alike. Politicians on…
Is the SNP prepared for Scotland’s next financial crisis?
As the world continues its fight against Covid-19, the Scottish National Party has been busy plotting Scotland’s exit from the UK. If…
The real Tory opposition leader
A few months ago, Tory aides spotted a suspicious pattern. If they agreed on a new Covid policy to be…
Letters
SNP sophistry Sir: Andrew Wilson (‘Scot free’, 21 November) poses the question: ‘What if the case for independence was a…
How to keep the UK united
Tory MPs are already starting to talk about May’s various elections. Boris Johnson’s first post-Covid electoral test will take place…
Scot free
Staying in the Union is now riskier than independence
Devolutionary theory: How Westminster is killing the Union
Robert Conquest’s third law (which may not have been his third law) says that the behaviour of any bureaucratic organisation is…
To save the Union, negotiate independence
The first cabinet meeting of the new term and Boris Johnson’s summer holiday were both dominated by one concern: how…
Scexit has become a matter of faith, not fact
There is a satirical flowchart that sums up Scottish nationalism better than a thousand articles. It begins with the question:…
Scottish horror
How can Boris deal with the looming question of IndyRef2?
Boris Johnson promises to ‘unite and level up’ the UK. Can he really achieve that?
Boris Johnson’s victory speech in Downing Street was aimed at the voters unsure about his government, whether they be the…
