News and Blog


This article, by Jim Swire, was published in the Summer 2014 edition of Perspectives, it is republished here in light of recent interest in the case. Jim Swire lost his daughter Flora in the bombing of Pan Am flight 103…

This article was written for Perspectives magazine, and published on CommonSpace My friend emails me. Niki is a head teacher on an idyllic island not too far out from Athens into the Agean. She asks me for news of Scotland…

Democratic Left Scotland hosted the unveiling of a portrait of David MacLennan, the actor, writer and producer who was at the heart of Scottish theatre for over 40 years until his death in June 2014 at the age of 65.…

Many issues will impact attitudes to Scottish politics in 2016: people’s daily lives and the weather amongst these. Europe and global events, the fate of local government and public services will compete with the Scottish Government elections for people’s attention.…

by John Finnie MSP, featured in the latest edition of Perspectives. Copies are now available at Word Power, West Nicolson Street, Edinburgh.  Ever since being asked to write an article, a couple of months ago, on Scotland’s now two year old police…

Well it’s not boring. Nicola is First Minister with a gender balanced cabinet. Alex looks set to return to London to open up a second front and Jim will lead Scottish Labour and try to find a seat in Holyrood.…

Here is a message from Stuart Fairweather: “Tomorrow 97% of people over the age of 16 living in Scotland have the right to vote. We should encourage and support all friends, family, neighbours and workmates to use their vote. Democratic…

In 2012 Democratic Left Scotland commissioned Sandy Moffat to paint a portrait of Scottish political theorist Tom Nairn. It was unveiled at the launch of a collection of his work “Old Nations, Auld Enemies, New Times, Selected Essays” on Monday…

After Falkirk and Grangemouth, where next? The article below should be seen as a contribution to an ongoing discussion. It draws on discussions with members of Democratic Left Scotland and others in late 2013. Any comments would be very welcome.…

In the debate about whether Scotland should be an independent country, three major topics have proved to be both predictably contentious and genuinely problematic: Scotland’s relationship with the EU in a context where the institutions of the EU are being…