By KD Tait Faced with record levels of support for Scottish independence in the run-up to Holyrood elections in May, Labour leader Keir Starmer has resorted to a tried and busted remedy patented by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown. In a keynote speech on 21 December, Starmer claimed he was offering “a positive alternative to […]

One hundred years ago, tanks rumbled on the streets of Glasgow, howitzers were positioned at strategic points of the city, army snipers aimed fire from the rooftop of the Post Office.

THE RETURN of two party politics in England was mirrored to a more limited extent in Scotland, with both Labour and the Tories

Now is not the time,” declared British Prime Minister Theresa May on the announcement of the Scottish parliament’s vote for a second referendum, “because we’ve got to be coming together, not pulling apart…” The Scottish people would be “asked to make a crucial decision without necessary information. I don’t think that would be fair. This […]

The British working class movement exists and has been created in over 200 years of joint struggle against British capital. The highest form of workers unity is in a socialist party struggling for socialism. However, the Scottish nationalist left rejects the idea of building a common socialist party with our comrades south of the border. […]

By Chris Taylor In the 18 months since Jeremy Corbyn first secured a place on the leadership ballot, hundreds of thousands have joined Labour. By population, Scottish Labour should have seen a gain in the tens of thousands. In fact, fewer than 5,000 have joined the party. Unlike in the rest of Britain, there has […]

By Dave Stockton The press reported David Cameron as jubilant – can he do anything else beyond jubilating? On the morning after the 5 May elections, it became clear that their results were a disappointment to a wide spectrum of politicians, journalists and assorted “think tanks”; indeed to all of those who had already written […]

By Sandy McBurney ALL commentators are agreed that the governing party, the Scottish National Party (SNP), is going to win the 2016 Scottish parliamentary elections. They are on 50 per cent plus in the opinion polls. Their membership stands at 115,000, which is the equivalent of over a million members on a British scale. This […]

The Scottish Nationalist Party is still riding high after its almost total wipe out of Labour in the May general election. The SNP has a lot of support among the electorate. Currently in the opinion polls they have about 50 per cent of the vote and look set to win a sweeping victory in the […]

By KD Tait 20 May 2015 From an early EU referendum to scrapping the Human Rights Act, from devolving powers to Scotland through to English votes on English laws, the new Tory government has constitutional change firmly in its sights. Their aim will be to see off the hardline Eurosceptics whilst using devolution to decentralise […]

By Peter Main All indicators point to a massive swing from Labour to the Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) in the coming election. It is possible that the SNP could go from its present 6 seats to more than 40 and so hold the balance of power in a hung parliament. Because of widespread support for […]

3 February 2015 The Scottish National Party claims it is a social democratic party and it is widely seen as an anti-austerity party to the left of Labour. What should socialists make of this, asks Andy Yorke Since the 45 per cent “yes” vote in the independence referendum, the SNP’s membership has nearly quadrupled to […]

  Most of the far left forces in Scotland supported independence. KD Tait looks at how they have followed this through The decision by most left organisations in Scotland to pose a vote for independence as the way to oppose austerity, defend the NHS and strike a blow at the “establishment” was an opportunist concession […]

The positive enthusiasm of millions in the Scottish referendum and the massive rejection of austerity and privatisation have opened up a constitutional crisis in Britain. But, argues Jeremy Dewar, the working class needs to intervene with its own class demands and programme if the bosses are not to use the crisis to weaken the ability […]

By Dave Stockton Despite the rejection of independence, the shock to the system caused by the final weeks of the referendum campaign – when it appeared the blue Saltire was going to be ripped out of the Union Flag – continues to be felt. The pro-union parties at Westminster, which made a solemn vow to […]

Sandy McBurney, Glasgow South Left Unity member, talks to Workers Power about why he is against voting for Scottish independence in the upcoming referendum on 18 September Workers Power (WP): What effect do you think independence would have on the unity of workers north and south of the border? Sandy McBurney (SB): It is obvious […]

The Scottish people face a historic decision on 18 September 2014, when they vote on the question: “Should Scotland be an independent country?” Andy Yorke considers what advice socialists should give   Although polls continue to show a majority against complete independence, but in favour of increased powers for the Scottish parliament (“Devo-Max”), the latest […]

By Marcus Halaby It is an often-repeated truism that giving in to bullies only encourages them. Workers at the Grangemouth plant near Falkirk in Scotland are learning this the hard way. After a shameful climb-down by Unite the Union general secretary Len McCluskey, hailed as having been necessary to “save jobs”, employers INEOS are now […]

By Jeremy Dewar UNITE, THE biggest union in Britain, which is under the leadership of Len McCluskey, one of the most outspoken left general secretaries, has accepted the most humiliating terms of surrender from Ineos, owners of the Grangemouth refinery and petrochemicals plant. On Friday 25 October the workforce cheered the announcement of a deal […]

David Cameron has stirred up a hornets nest of indignation in Scotland by announcing that he intends to force the Scottish people to answer his question in the referendum on independence and to hold it when he decides – i.e. soon. The criterion set out for the vote by Cameron would likely refuse to include […]

The SNP have posed left to win an election victory, taking them one step closer to their proposed referendum, asks Joy Macready

The Scottish National Party (SNP) wiped the floor in last weeks Scottish Parliament elections, gaining 23 seats at the expense of Labour, Lib Dems, and the Tories, writes John Bowman