Scotland
Don’t pick a fight with the SNP
Since the Holyrood elections in May, the campaign for Scottish independence has been noticeably quiet. But that is about to…
No, Boris didn’t ‘snub’ Sturgeon
One of the reasons the SNP has dominated Scottish politics for so long is that it is extremely adept at…
Boris could make devolution reform his legacy – if he has the ambition
Today marks two years since Boris Johnson accepted Her Majesty’s invitation to serve as her fourteenth Prime Minister. His tenure…
North star
Claudia Massie on the unjustly neglected artist Joan Eardley, who deserves to be ranked alongside Auerbach, Bacon and de Kooning
The world on the rocks
Adam Nicolson is one of our finest writers of non-fiction. He has range — from place and history to literature…
Who can make the Scottish Lib Dems great again?
Willie Rennie’s resignation — announced, as only he could, via a self-shot video while climbing Benarty Hill in western Fife…
Will surging house prices send the English young to save Scotland?
Nicola Sturgeon depresses me and seems to be having the same effect on Scottish house prices. In a housing market…
So near and yet so strange
This pleasant volume, the author announces in the introduction, is ‘not a nature book, or even a travel book, so…
Nicola Sturgeon isn’t serious about IndyRef2
The announcement reeked of desperation. Nicola Sturgeon is‘delighted’ that the SNP National Executive Committee has approved her nomination of retired…
Ever weaker Union: The Tories lack a constitutional theory
No doubt Michael Gove is satisfied with how his latest comments on Scottish independence have gone down. The Chancellor of…
Euros 2021: England are easily the most boring side in the tournament
England 0 Scotland 0 Hungary 1 (Fiola) France 1 (Griezmann) The wonderful Hungarians almost took my mind off England’s lamentable…
Scrapping English votes for English laws could spell trouble
It has been almost 45 years since Tam Dalyell first asked the West Lothian Question. It is a damning indictment…
Does this SNP politician think buses are racist?
One of the benefits of devolution has been giving Scots their own parliament in which the great issues of the…
Prince William won’t save the Union
Can the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge save the Union? Officials at Buckingham Palace are reported to be drawing up…
Give the people what they think they want
I have a mean streak. Perhaps my cruellest urge is to give people what they claim to want. When political…
Diary
In the New York Times, the celebrated journalist Maureen Dowd describes Crieff as ‘a sleepy town in Scotland’. Well. There…
Northern exposure
Scotland is open – and desperate for English tourists
Are ‘controversial stickers’ really a matter for the police?
Has Police Scotland misunderstood the purpose of policing? A recent crackdown on ‘controversial stickers’ appears to suggest as much. ‘On Monday…
Scotland’s next constitutional fight won’t be over a referendum
Get ready for a constitutional rammy during the first half of this, the sixth session of the Scottish parliament. Just…
Letters
The Union in peril Sir: Fraser Nelson (‘The great pretender’, 15 May) writes that it has never been easier to…
Portrait of the week
Home A new complexion of British politics was revealed by the capture of Hartlepool by Jill Mortimer for the Conservatives…
The ‘mandate wars’ won’t be resolved anytime soon
So what does it all mean? The first thing to bear in mind is that more than one thing may…
‘I can just be myself’
Can Anas Sarwar woo Scottish voters back?
What’s next for the Union?
The Union faces two simultaneous challenges in Northern Ireland and Scotland that both look set to worsen in the coming…
Your guide to the 2021 election results
This week will see the biggest set of polls in UK history outside of a general election. Contests are under…
