Scottish politics dissected from a left, pro-independence stance. Each week, award-winning broadcaster and journalist, Lesley Riddoch chews over the week’s news with former media lecturer and Dundee United fan, Pat Joyce. If you like intelligent, quirky chat about Scottish society and culture, and Scottish, UK and international politics analysed from a Scottish perspective; this podcast is for you.
http://lesleyriddoch.com/podcast
The Outsiders
This week's look at politics from a left/indy perspective has a definite outsiders theme.
The Scottish Advisory Group on Economic Recovery published its report with an official fanfare yesterday. But, although it uses all the buzzwords like resilience and fairness, is it yet another piece of tinkering about the edges?
Compare this to the lack of coverage and analysis of Common Weal's Resilient Scotland research.
The Langholm Initiative have launched their crowdfunding campaign as they attempt the largest community buyout in the south of Scotland, hoping to bring 10,500 acres of old grouse moor into community ownership. To be successful they need to raise over £5million by October. Lesley is,understandably,outraged.
The Private Sector Resilience( that buzz word again) Group has been meeting at Holyrood. All the usual Scottish government "stakeholders" are involved. However one very significant set of voices is not represented. I think you might guess who.
Pete Wishart has been the loudest in oppostion to the development of a Plan B for independence, saying now is not the time.
I take a keek at his arguments for sticking to Plan A.
There's been a quiet upsurge in trade union membership over the past couple of years which has moved into overdrive during the Covid crisis. Who are the new trade unionists, and why are they joining?
All this plus Trump's Tulsa travails ,masked shopping, Stanley Johnson's passport pauchle, and just a wee mention of Dundee United.