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Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor

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Brian Taylor: Starmer has handed Anas Sarwar a bumper Christmas hamper of problems As the year ends, will it be John Swinney or Anas Sarwar who is wearing the biggest smile?

Stand alongside me this Yuletide period and let us ponder. Which of our Scottish political leaders is gleefully greeting Santa? And which is assuming...

previous day 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Starmer and Swinney – who will win the race to reform public services?

In tendering advice about the “play within a play”, Hamlet counselled “reform it altogether”. The gloomy Dane was speaking satirically....

15.12.2024 4

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Smart budget. Very smart. Here’s where it could go wrong

Will it endure? That was decidedly an astute budget this week. But will it last? Will the structure sustain, both economically and politically?...

08.12.2024 5

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: On this St Andrew’s Day, just how Scottish do you feel?

Let me ask you this. Do you feel an enhanced stirring of patriotic pride with the advent of this St Andrew’s Day. No? Mostly, I would imagine you...

30.11.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Politicians? They are all at it. But here's why they have my sympathy

Democracy, Churchill satirised, is “the worst form of government” – except, that is, for all the other systems that have been tried. The...

23.11.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Three big reasons why action to reverse climate change is in trouble Recently, I chanced to be, once again, in the great and noble city of Dundee, drawn primarily by a sporting engagement at Tannadice.

Recently, I chanced to be, once again, in the great and noble city of Dundee, drawn primarily by a sporting engagement at Tannadice.  I took the...

16.11.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: How to respond to Trump? Swinney gets it right – eventually If you are of a certain age, it is said that you can remember where you were when you learned that President John F. Kennedy had been shot. (Me, I believe I was boarding a bus in Dundee’s City Square. A number 22, I think.)

If you are of a certain age, it is said that you can remember where you were when you learned that President John F. Kennedy had been shot. (Me, I...

09.11.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Why John Swinney really, really hates this UK budget

There are few things worse in politics than your opponent agreeing with you. Nothing is so exasperating as the sanctimonious, insincere smile of...

02.11.2024 9

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Hope and fear – the emotions on display as we stand by for the Budget As of this weekend, the pre-Budget shadow boxing continues. Between the front benches at Westminster. And between the UK and Scottish governments.

As of this weekend, the pre-Budget shadow boxing continues. Between the front benches at Westminster. And between the UK and Scottish governments. ...

26.10.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Is it time to scrap the Lords – or to cherish its contribution?

Perhaps it escaped your notice but this week Westminster embarked upon a project which was billed as “the largest constitutional reform to the UK...

19.10.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Keir Starmer’s first 100 days – how much worse can it get?

So how has it been for you? The first 100 days? Of the new Labour government? What’s that? You couldn’t care less? OK, so it doesn’t really...

12.10.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: We can, we must, find a solution to the conflict in the Middle East

Our planet progresses, if at all, through decency and dignity. We advance, if at all, through trade, shared knowledge and co-operation. International...

05.10.2024 6

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Could the new Scottish Tory leader cut a budget deal with John Swinney? Column 173 28 September 2024 Headline: Could the new Scottish Tory leader cut a budget deal with John Swinney? Two quick questions on this quarter-centenary for the Scottish Parliament. What will Russell Findlay stand for as the new Scottish Conservative leader? And does anybody care? Yes, he is the heir to centuries of tradition. Yes, his party is still the only outfit, since universal suffrage, to win a popular majority in Scotland. (In 1955, thanks for asking.) But they have a rather variegated past. Some historians trace Scottish Tory roots back to the Jacobites. Others reflect that they gamely survived the nineteenth century, despite being routinely gubbed by the Liberals – in the “distant and Whiggish country” of Scotland.

Two quick questions on this quarter-centenary for the Scottish Parliament. What will Russell Findlay stand for as the new Scottish Conservative...

27.09.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Think John Swinney has had a tough week? Stand by for more

It was, I presume, intended to be a Bad Cop / Good Cop routine. Shona Robison, as Finance Secretary, was detailed to alarm us with talk of spending...

07.09.2024 6

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Here’s how SNP hopes to recover in time for the next election battle

Where are the songs of spring? Good question. For the SNP, at their autumn conference, the anthems are somewhat muted by bruising defeat and...

31.08.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Why we should all worry about who wins this race for the White House As is my annual custom, I have by now absorbed a few fragments of the gloriously gargantuan Edinburgh Festivals – International, Book and Fringe.

As is my annual custom, I have by now absorbed a few fragments of the gloriously gargantuan Edinburgh Festivals – International, Book and Fringe. ...

24.08.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Stand by for spending cuts and tax rises. Who’s to blame? It has long struck me that the games of our youth are adaptable to politics. For example, Hide and seek reminds us of the occasionally evasive behaviour of our elected tribunes.

It has long struck me that the games of our youth are adaptable to politics. For example, Hide and seek reminds us of the occasionally evasive...

17.08.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Condemn the riots – but understand their true nature and context

Put yourself in their place for a moment. Terrified refugees, lodging in an English city, a raucous, aggressive mob at the door, intent on violence...

10.08.2024 40

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Has John Swinney been handed a brimming bag of rubbish by Labour cuts?

A platitude, I know, but to govern is to choose. Frequently, political choices are influenced or determined by external factors. That is particularly...

03.08.2024 4

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Scottish Tories need to reinvent themselves – or flounder

Politics, by definition, never stands still. However, sometimes, it takes a breath, a pause. This can be essential in order to regroup. As Churchill...

27.07.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Just how long are you prepared to wait for Labour’s change?

Political choice is not driven solely by individuals, however powerful. Still less by party manifestos, issued to content the electorate. ...

20.07.2024 5

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Explained – how Labour intend to mirror SNP strategy

Other than Burns, Scott and Carroll, my favourite comment upon the human condition comes from the French thinker, Voltaire. He had his character...

13.07.2024 7

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: This election was a cry of pain from an anguished electorate

To the victor, the spoils. To the sundry losers, the opportunity to spoil for a fight. Internally. Unless exceptionally deft or lucky. It is right to...

06.07.2024 7

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: The cause and origin of the Starmer Tsunami As we witness this Starmer tsunami, let us also contemplate its cause, its origin.  This is a remarkable endorsement for Labour - to whom congratulations - but it is also a shriek of pain by a troubled and anxious populace.  

As we witness this Starmer tsunami, let us also contemplate its cause, its origin.  This is a remarkable endorsement for Labour - to...

05.07.2024 5

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: The past is coming back to haunt our political leaders in election

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a political leader, when embroiled in a televised debate, will frequently resort to pious platitude. You...

29.06.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

All of a flutter: What a week it has been for Alister Jack

Good week Paul Johnson, Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies Elections frequently appear remote from reality. After all, politicians are...

28.06.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Don’t fancy this election? Hang on – there is another one coming

Less than a fortnight to go but still a bit early for firm predictions, unless you press me. However, here is one for free: the next political battles...

22.06.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

It's been a good week for our Steve - and a bad week for Boris

Good day - Steve Clarke Forget politics. A week is an eternity in football. I am simply not going to mention that mild setback in Munich. (And,...

21.06.2024 7

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Why politics is more complicated than ever before

Let us consider the election. The one in France, that is. It holds at least two key lessons for us, as we prepare for our own exercise in democracy. ...

15.06.2024 9

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Could Nigel Farage do a Dundee United?

Good week - Nigel Farage In Westminster terms, Nigel Farage is a serial loser. This will be the eighth time he has sought a seat on the green...

14.06.2024 4

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Even Douglas Ross knows dumping a sick MP is not a good look

The greatest temptation for the Speaker in the House of Commons is to be a “character”. To project a persona, perhaps to gain a degree of sympathy...

08.06.2024 50

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Forget the fog of comfort. This election involves tough choices

His Majesty’s House of Commons, there assembled at Westminster, is defined by division. It is its core, its leitmotif. When MPs vote, the House...

01.06.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Does Scotland matter a hoot in this election? Yes – and here’s why

The rebuke was stern. The Scottish Parliamentary chamber at Holyrood was not a suitable venue for contesting the UK General Election. This...

25.05.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: How will Scots react to choice between Tories, Labour and SNP? By one of the curious coincidences which are all too common in politics, John Swinney was setting out his Scottish governing priorities – just as the speculation grew that the Prime Minister was about to call an election. Mr Swinney gamely pursued his own agenda – but could not help noting, en passant, that decisions elsewhere might bring about political change. Labour’s Jackie Baillie got to her feet at Holyrood to declare: “Bring it on.” In Westminster, the PM duly brought it on – announcing a General Election for July the fourth, at the start of the Scottish school holidays. However, more broadly, these exchanges at Holyrood reminded us of the Scottish context in this UK General Election. Rishi Sunak’s rhetoric relied upon the politics of fear. He summoned up Covid, Putin’s aggression in Ukraine and “Islamist extremism” in the Middle East. He placed these into the basket of disquiet already occupied by the economy and the cost of living. And he invited people to choose. Insisting that he had a firm plan – and playing upon a perceived weakness of the Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer, in suggesting that he would shift with the political wind. But it was intriguing to note that the statement issued by Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative leader, made no mention of Labour whatsoever. Instead, he exhorted voters to back the Tories to “beat the SNP” and, in so doing, to “end their obsession with independence for good”. By contrast, Labour in Scotland will seek triangulation, depicting the Tories and the SNP as equally inimical to Scottish interests: condemning the Tories over the economy and the SNP over the health service. And John Swinney? He faces a challenge – not least because he has only just resumed the SNP leadership and immediately faces an almighty political conflict. Humza Yousaf previously declared that Labour was a certainty to win that contest, because the voters of England had turned against the Tories. He argued that people in Scotland were therefore safe to vote SNP – in search of influence at Westminster. A scenario which was, of course, dismissed by rivals. Will Mr Swinney be more circumspect? Perhaps – but he now has to pursue a twin path. Reviving the SNP’s credibility in devolved government while, simultaneously, fighting to defend Westminster seats against the Tories and a seemingly resurgent Labour Party. His own stated priorities in government were: eradicating child poverty, growing Scotland’s economy, tackling the climate emergency and improving public services. But he had more than a few anticipatory comments about Westminster governance too – suggesting that austerity, Brexit and previously high inflation had deprived Scotland of valuable funds. Expect a combination of those two arguments – Scottish Government revised offers and Westminster culpability – to feature in the SNP’s election pitch. The Liberal Democrats are emboldened by a good showing in the English local elections and will hope to translate that into their customary pavement politics in key targets across Scotland. The Greens plan to fight a record number of seats in Scotland at this election, advocating a blend of climate and social justice. But the underlying issue in Scotland will be, as ever, the question of salience. Are people here in Scotland thinking predominantly about the next government of the United Kingdom? In which case, polls would suggest that they might align behind Labour as best placed to alter the occupancy of Downing Street.

By one of the curious coincidences which are all too common in politics, John Swinney was setting out his Scottish governing priorities – just as...

22.05.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Sunak, Starmer, Swinney – and the politics of fear

While at university in Fife, back in the Middle Ages, I encountered the philosophical musings of the Danish Existentialist Søren Kierkegaard. All...

18.05.2024 40

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: What place for independence in Swinney’s plans?

Nostalgia can be a powerful emotion. Perhaps Holyrood’s quarter-centenary is having an impact but there seemed to be a few backward glances on...

11.05.2024 30

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Congratulations Mr Swinney - your troubles are just starting

Like all journalists, I am the eager recipient of umpteen news releases from sundry organisations, each competing for my attention. Some enthral....

04.05.2024 40

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Yousaf could have survived but he shot himself in the foot Herald Yousaf piece To adapt a line from the Scottish play, nothing in office became Humza Yousaf like the leaving it. His declared departure was dignified and emotive. One can only express personal empathy. Reaching this conclusion must have been exceptionally difficult after only a year as First Minister. Eventually, though, he was brought down by arithmetic and animosity. By arithmetic in the Scottish Parliament where he had shed the support of the Greens and did not relish the prospect of relying upon Ash Regan, the former SNP leadership contender who defected to Alex Salmond’s Alba party. By animosity – aimed at him from the exasperated and infuriated Greens. On Thursday morning, he peremptorily ended the Bute House agreement and, in so doing, expelled the two Green Ministers from government. Understandably, they were somewhat upset. Yes, they had already begun their own review of the pact, unhappy with the Scottish Government’s decision to abandon interim climate change targets. But there might have been a reconciliation – or perhaps an agreed loosening of the deal. Instead, Humza Yousaf shattered the pact himself. Mr Yousaf knows – he knows – that this was a blunder. It infuriated the Greens when a more emollient approach might have worked. He lost their trust. They regarded his actions as betrayal.

To adapt a line from the Scottish play, nothing in office became Humza Yousaf like the leaving it. His declared departure was dignified and emotive....

29.04.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Humza Yousaf faces a crisis – of his own making

Intriguing element, confidence. It is the core of every political party’s pitch: put your trust in us. More, it is the foundation of the SNP’s...

27.04.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Does democracy have any answers as war rages in Middle East?

We gaze with pity upon Gaza. We contemplate the emergence of wider conflict between Israel and Iran. We calculate the impact – humanitarian, global....

20.04.2024 8

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Why will nobody tell us the blunt truth about tax?

Perhaps it is endemic. More probably, it is election fever. Either way, our political tribunes seem more energised and anxious than ever. Consider...

13.04.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Our NHS is badly bruised – and needs urgent attention

Consider with me the public provision of health care in Scotland. Not simply the Scottish version of the National Health Service, established in 1948....

06.04.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Can things get better for Humza Yousaf – or is he destined to fail?

Let me start with a presumption. Which is that many of you will retain, like me, fond memories of the late and very great Rikki Fulton. I recall him...

30.03.2024 6

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Tough week but Rishi Sunak will stay as PM. For now at least

Democratic politics is about choice – and churn. The people make their choice and our elected tribunes respond in kind. If rejected, they stand...

23.03.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Are the SNP and independence finished – or just getting started?

The National Council of the Scottish National Party is meeting in Perth this weekend. Are members enthused and enthralled? Other than conference, it...

16.03.2024 9

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Political protest – and the Westminster conspiracy of silence

Politics and protest go hand in hand. Therefore, I understand why demonstrators disrupted First Minister’s Questions at Holyrood this week. I...

09.03.2024 20

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Stand by for UK political change – from Wales

So how was it for you? St David’s Day? You know, the annual commemoration of the patron saint of Wales? And all things Welsh? Skipped it again,...

02.03.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Gaza vote illustrates the great divide between SNP and Labour

It would appear to be a common presumption that Labour will form the next UK Government. Perhaps that influenced the Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay...

24.02.2024 10

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Starmer, Scottish Labour – and the Ming Vase strategy

Contemplate Sir Keir Starmer’s perpetual caution. Even after two by-election triumphs. It was described to me as “the Ming Vase strategy”. Step...

17.02.2024 6

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

Brian Taylor: Forget Matheson – Humza Yousaf’s real problems lie ahead

As of today, Humza Yousaf faces two fundamental and related challenges: how to placate the voters over the Matheson clanjamfrie; and how to convince...

10.02.2024 6

Herald Scotland

Brian Taylor

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