“It’s easy to think that as a result of the extinction of the dodo, we are now sadder and wiser, but there’s a lot of evidence to suggest that we are merely sadder and better informed.” – Douglas Adams (This blog post previously appeared in Common Weal’s weekly newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter here.) This week has seen … Continue reading Too Low. Too Slow....

Dr Craig Dalzell introduces Sorted: a handbook for a better Scotland

The distillation of ten years of policy and campaign work from Common Weal and a vision of the first ten years of an independent Scotland.

Out December 2022

Donate to the crowdfunder and/or pre-order your copy here:...

What my trial with a broken oil boiler tells us about challenges ahead of Scottish climate targets in housing.

The UK's failure to control its borders post-Brexit is putting our health and safety at risk.

“When you want to know how things really work, study them when they’re coming apart.” – William Gibson (This blog post previously appeared in Common Weal’s weekly newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter here.) Britain is heading into one of the worst winters of a generation. The rising cost of living combined with multiple crises from energy, food supplies and …...

The land so much needed by men was tilled by these people, who were on the verge of starvation, so that the corn might be sold abroad and the owners of the land might buy themselves hats and canes, and carriages and bronzes, etc.” – Leo Tolstoy (This blog post previously appeared in Common Weal’s weekly newsletter. Sign … Continue reading Whose Land?

A review of promises made by the campaign against Scottish independence and how they've been broken since 2014.

More older people than ever are working. However, this might be because of the UK's economic weakness, not longer, healthier lives.

An analysis of the Scottish Government's Land Reform proposals by testing them against a current attempt by a community to buy out the estate they live on

The fight to win a rent freeze in Scotland shows that the Government still has to learn lessons about political collaboration

Instead of working for "GDP Growth", shouldn't we be working for our own wellbeing?

“They were learning fast, or at least collecting data, which they considered to be the same as learning.” – Terry Pratchett (This blog post previously appeared in Common Weal’s weekly newsletter. Sign up for the newsletter here.) You can also read my previous work on GERS on this blog behind the following...

It's GERSmas!!

How an independent Scotland could reform both the state and private pension systems.

A report from the Scottish Government's public meeting on its latest Land Reform consultation

The Scottish Government's White Paper on the state of UK Democracy points out the failures at a UK level but ignores reforms that the Scottish Government could and should enact now.

For all his failures, Boris Johnson is in the process of handing power over to a Tory PM who may be, for Scotland at least, even worse.

A 2022 Mini-Update to my study of the Demographics of Independence

An update to my recent investigation into the Scottish Government withholding FOI information from the general public.

Analysis of the Scottish Government's roadmap to a referendum.