MAgazine
The one Keir Starmer policy I want to see implemented in Scotland
Blurb goes here
If you want to end homelessness, give people a home
A new study from the Social Market Foundation presents the results of several Housing First pilot schemes, including one in Scotland, and finds that providing free housing to people suffering homelessness results in better outcomes than current services and is cheaper than not doing it.
How to recapture public land
We need to reverse the subtle incremental transfer of land from the commons to the private sector. A way to do that is through a system of land default
How the EPC system makes building eco-houses harder
A guest article from supporter Michael Breslin on how his attempt to build an eco-house was penalised by the broken Energy Performance Certificate system.
Three years of learning
Too late for gambling regrets Gordon
Gordon Brown is right that the gambling industry has become a money-printing blight on our society worth billions of pounds and should be taxed. Pity it was him that caused this to happen in the first place.
The case for a bit more stoicism
The one thing we all know is that being in touch with your feelings is good for you. Except the evidence is actually much more in the other direction and it is not clear our obsession with being ‘true to our emotions’ is helping us one little bit.
Moral Outrage - and rightly so
How to lose friends and alienate people
Politicians can't stop convincing themselves that working for commercial interests is actually working for the public good. The contradiction between what they think and what we think is undermining democracy.
Rolling the dice with housing-again
Will Britain never understand the difference between making housing affordable and subsidising unaffordable housing to prop up the profits of developers? Apparently not...
Rolling the dice with housing-again
Will Britain never understand the difference between making housing affordable and subsidising unaffordable housing to prop up the profits of developers? Apparently not...
Scotland has no controlling intellect
Why does it feel like things in Scotland aren’t designed to work? It’s because they’re not designed to work by a person who cares, they’re designed to make profit by a bunch of people who don’t.
Lessons from New York
Democratic Socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani comfortably beat out billionaire-backed billionaire Andrew Cuomo, by 56% to 44% in the final round after vote transfers. Unlike Cuomo, his campaign centred around clearly articulated demands that reflected the needs of the people of New York.
What Scottish independence could deliver for the welfare state
To truly tackle poverty and build a fairer society, Scotland shouldn't just mimic others—it should be bold, learn from Europe's best, and lead with a Universal Basic Income that both saves money and eradicates poverty.
What I learned from the school that made my children
My last child leaves primary school and it gives me a moment to reflect on what our little rural primary school has achieved. There are lessons to be learned for all public policy.
Scotland is being dragged into an RTS crisis
The switch-off of the system that lets many households keep their electricity running is going to have a disproportionate in Scotland. For many it could be a real disaster.
Scotland is not for sale Pt. I
Scotland may not be privatising the public realm with quite the zeal of Starmer’s Labour, but it is happening constantly nonetheless. A vision for a public good-driven democracy is needed.
The Ocean Can’t Wait - Scotland Must Lead the World
A new piece of legislation currently passing through the Scottish Parliament would make Scotland world-leading on environmental protection. If you care about the sea, you should back it.
Turning the heat up - the right way
A series of new government consultations could lead to a home insulation scheme that actually works. You should support them and ask your politicians to do the same.
‘Scotland’s Future – Something Worth Talking About’
William Duguid on the Independence Forum Scotland’s upcoming conference in Perth
