Blog

Greens should challenge Growth Commission report’s ideas

Patrick Harvie MSP Fri 1 Jun, 2018

If the SNP’s Growth Commission was supposed to do anything, it was to provoke debate. Debate is certainly needed about a new proposition for independence, because the one thing every 2014 Yes voter should be able to agree on is that what we don’t need is simply a re-run of an argument that failed to win a majority then, in circumstances which have already changed dramatically. That would be a recipe for a second and perhaps even final defeat.

Who owns Scotland? It’s time to end the secrecy and the costs

Andy Wightman MSP Sat 26 May, 2018

Over the past two years I have been involved in a number of cases raised by constituents that involve trying to find out who owns land and property. Cases range from a business trying to expand, residents trying to secure common repairs and constituents living in tenements with growing numbers of short-term lets. In each such case, folk want to find out easily, speedily and affordably who owns land or property that has a direct impact on their lives. All too often, however, they can’t do so. One constituent was told it would cost her £150 to find out who owned five flats in her stair.

Scotland can be a thriving, welcoming and internationalist country

Ross Greer MSP Fri 11 May, 2018

If it wasn’t obvious before, these last few weeks have shown just how rotten the UK government and its immigration systems in particular are for those unfortunate enough to experience them.

They have themselves made a far stronger case for devolving immigration & asylum powers to Scotland than we could ourselves, causing untold damage to families, communities and our national economy in the name of Theresa May’s ‘hostile environment’ policies and obsession with slashing the number of people coming to this country.

We can’t yet abolish the monarchy ... but we can tackle poverty

John Finnie MSP Fri 27 Apr, 2018

My Green colleague Patrick Harvie got it spot on when he called out the excessive “fawning over privilege” by some politicians about the birth of William and Kate Windsor’s third child.

In case you missed it, Patrick’s amendment to a Tory motion, that was in awe of the royal couple and their new baby, received quite a bit of media attention. In it, Patrick rightly congratulated the parents of the thousands of children born in the UK on the same day while highlighting that 30% of the babies will be born into poverty.