Craig Wilson

It’s said that ‘defence of the realm is the first duty of government’. And, despite apparent agreement that this is the primary duty, there never seems to follow a list ranking the other ‘lesser’ duties of government – a sort of political Ten Commandments. Of course, with hammer... Read more

Straight back from the summer recess, MSPs had little chance to water their office plants and catch up with colleagues. No, no. Not when the Programme for Government is the main item of the day – with two subsequent days of debate and a series of Ministerial elaborations to... Read more

Nicola Sturgeon fields new team as transfer window closes For Scottish Politics fanciers (yes, that includes both you and I) the last 24 hours have felt like premiership transfer deadline day. With Twitter tuned to #ScotReshuffle and thumb over the refresh button, we were treated... Read more

This year's Gathering was another outstanding success. Two days of stalls, workshops, showcasing, networking, learning and celebrating. Near 3,000 people visited over two days at the SEC and I'm sure every one of them took away at least one nugget of information that will serve... Read more

In recent weeks, Theresa May has resembled the dismembered Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Despite receiving seemingly fatal blows, she somehow survives and carries on regardless. Think what you may of the Prime Minister, her determination is something to behold... Read more

Policy makers must provide support to the sector to underpin tough legislation on alcohol “This is not a silver bullet.” That’s likely the line we’ll hear most from MSPs and health professionals in the coming months, as minimum unit pricing for alcohol is introduced in Scotland... Read more

Summary The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) and Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA) are requesting that Scottish and Welsh MP give their backing to the cross-party tabling of amendments from the Scottish and Welsh Governments’. SCVO and WCVA have... Read more

With Big Ben currently out of action, the assembled masses of the House of Commons are set to put on a ding-dong of their own. Later today, we will see the beginning of the committee stage of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill. And it looks like it might be a show worth... Read more

Do the First Minister’s announcements mark a truly radical change in approach and will actions match the warm rhetoric? With MSPs back from the summer recess, the First Minister outlined her Programme for Government for the year ahead. The programme was trailed as the Scottish... Read more

“Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.” – Winston Churchill After 14 months of wearying speculation and intrigue, Brexit is about to get very real. Soon, the phony war will end and we will begin to see a... Read more