Edinburgh's cityscape is studded with monuments to memories. In Aberdeen, King's and Marischal Colleges remind us of a time when the Granite City had as many universities for its citizens as England had for all of hers. And while the hauntingly empty acr

Former East Fife star Henry McLeish forged a successful career in politics Pic: © SNS Copy With the news that Dunfermline legend Jim Leishman is to stand as a Labour candidate for the Dunfermline Central seat in May’s council elections, we take a look ba

For better or worse, richer or poorer, the SNP's Highland fling has never been closer to breaking the union. So why is the coalition shirking a battle with the tartan army? Eleven years ago, Alex Salmond resigned as leader of the Scottish National Party,

He told how his parents came to Britain to escape Nazi persecution and that they had found the UK a just cause for which to struggle. Quoting various British achievements, Mr Miliband said: What is the most urgent task facing us putting up a Border acro

As the momentum gathers pace towards the historic independence vote, unionists are mustering their forces In the autumn of 1997, just months after Tony Blair had won an historic landslide election, three of Scotland’s political parties came together in a

The word “Tory” became a contemptuous synonym for “English”; when John Smith, Gordon Brown, Donald Dewar or Robin Cook said “Tory government”, Scotland heard “English occupiers”. That willingness to demonise in the political interest created the unstoppa

Edinburgh Throughout my time in Scotland I was asked, again and again, the same question, rhetorically or otherwise: can anyone stop Alex Salmond? At present, the Scottish National Party leader and First Minister seems pretty much unstoppable. A cult of

In the clearest indication yet that she is building her role alongsi

It is a privilege to give a lecture in honour of Hugo Young. At Hugo's memorial service, Chris, now Lord, Patten said "the quality of what Hugo wrote, and the standards he set for himself and others, brought distinction to a profession too often demeaned

Decades of Labour’s dog-whistle politics have only played into Alex Salmond’s hands In the Eighties and Nineties, Labour fought a vicious battle for supremacy against the nationalists in Scotland, the consequences of which we saw a fortnight ago when a B

This is the week when the nagging ache that is the relationship between England and Scotland becomes a real pain – one that can no longer be ignored. Alex Salmond will be in London, giving a lecture to the English. Cameron's commission on relations betwe

DEVOLUTION is a process, not an event. That principle was true when Donald Dewar first expressed it and it is true now. I believe that. I want the current devolved settlement to be renewed, refreshed and deepened, and by that I mean not just moving power

Slowly but inexorably, the coalition government is backing into a Scottish trap. But in the end it's a benevolent trap. If it clangs shut, the nations of the United Kingdom – England as well as Scotland – may emerge transformed into a wiser, modernised r

How does it happen that Scottish Nationalism walks and talks as if it’s able to call terms over an independence referendum which opinion polls suggest it would lose? A major reason for the SNP’s sweep to absolute majority last May was the inadequacy of t

Johann Lamont brands First Minister Alex Salmond 'frightened' to bring forward independence referendum Jan 12 2012 Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond LABOUR has accused First Minister Alex Salmond of lacking the courage to bring forward the timing of

Scotland is a part of the United Kingdom. Since 1999, when legislative powers were devolved to a reconstituted Scottish Parliament, it has enjoyed a high degree of independence. There are three distinct regions: the Highlands and Islands, a densely popul

According to existing Westminster legislation, English waters stretch at their North Easterly point to 56 degrees 36 minutes north – that is over 100 miles North of the border at Berwick, and North of Dundee. In 1999 Tony Blair, abetted by the Scottish

If EdM is sincere about taking Union vested interests in Labour , he should resign. Seriously what does Hari have on those folks at the independant? Pictures of some mass orgy on the press room floor? The real news is that

George Osborne regards his pledge in 2007 to scrap inheritance tax for properties worth less than £1m as one of his finest achievements. His bold move unsettled Gordon Brown and was the key factor in persuading the then prime minister to abandon plans to