It’s time for London to get votes that matter
The 2010 Purple Protests demanded electoral reform. Image: Ric Lander. In this year's local elections, once again, voters got the councillors they didn't elect. I'm being flippant, of course some…
Lord Devo: Robert Smith is a wolf in sheep’s clothing
Lord Smith is overseeing the devolution of more powers to Scotland. Credit: Flickr Comsec. Lord Robert Smith is heading the Scotland Devolution Commission, which is supposed to achieve a cross-party…
Is a 2015 Scottish Labour wipe out on the cards?
The support for 'Yes' in some Labour heartlands, together with the recent success of the SNP, Scottish Greens and SSP in attracting new members has created some exited speculation about…
A true democracy has no need for a silly slogan like 45%
Let's not romanticise this lost “Yes” with a slogan like “The 45%”. A Yes No question was always a silly way to settle social issues, it just provided a temporary…
“Why further powers for Scotland won’t happen” or “How Labour sleepwalked into a fatal Tory trap”
In the end it was Mark Ballard who called it right. “With a couple of weeks to go there’ll be a poll putting Yes in front, then Cameron will come…
Devo-Max was a perfect example of rotten Westminster politics
The referendum is over, and the no’s have won. With Cameron and Miliband trying to decide exactly what the no’s have won, now is a good time to very briefly…
Some thoughts on the independence referendum
With due apologies for the click bait style of this post, being awake for too much of the past 2 days makes coherent blogging difficult! 1. The results show that…
Nelson Mandela: see the movement he personified as well as the great man
There’s not much that anyone can add to the massive outpouring of grief and admiration for Nelson Mandela. His status as the greatest secular saint of our era becomes clearer…
A Welsh eco-socialist alliance?
Andy Chyba is a member of the Green Party in Wales, and was the lead candidate for the Welsh Greens in the European Parliament elections. He withdrew last week, explaining…
The Referendum Offers us the Opportunity to Win our Politics Back
With one year to go to the referendum, we are in a strange place. On the one hand, there are those who contend that the debate is alienating and boring.…