Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 8th September 2024. Critics and fans probably agree: the proposal was emblematic, in its way, of the late Sturgeon and brief Yousaf premierships. In contrast with the situation down south, where even existing human rights protections remained under constant threat from Conservative politicians, they decided the Scottish Parliament would do … Continue reading Scotland’s human rights (B/b)ill →

Sunday National, Herald on Sunday, 4th August 2024. When you hear the phrase “freedom of movement,” you could be forgiven for thinking we’re talking about the European Union. But the idea has much deeper roots than our lost entitlement to retire to France, work without a visa in Spain, or even just use the EU … Continue reading Without fear →

Sunday National, 30th June 2024. For any publisher, receiving a lawyer’s letter is a bracing experience. Where lawyers tread, fee notes are sure to follow. Litigation means jeopardy. And under the law as it stands, even writing a simple factual story isn’t always legally safe. For news outlets, the risks of getting it wrong are … Continue reading SLAPPed →

Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 9th June 2024. Morton v HM Advocate is one of those cases that every law student in Scotland has studied for almost a century. For eighty-seven years, the case has structured how corroboration has been understood and applied by every layer of our criminal justice system. In their essays, generations … Continue reading Corroboration: a wrong turning? →

Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 12th May 2024. I can’t remember who it was who first coined the idea Scotland is made up of a loose confederation of “city states” – but the notion always appealed to me. The phrase might more naturally conjure up Machiavelli’s Italy and the warring Italian republics of the 15th … Continue reading Political geographies →

Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 5th May 2024. In 2013 – six years before Alan Bates won his big civil case – Scottish prosecutors missed a golden opportunity to act decisively on concerns the Post Office's computer evidence may not be reliable. Mystifyingly – almost nobody in Scottish politics or the media seems interested in … Continue reading “A complete reversal of the PF’s original position” →

Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 28th April 2024. In March 1979, there was a serious discussion about driving the dying Labour MP for Batley and Morley some 200 miles from Yorkshire to the House of Commons. Sir Alfred Broughton was keen to come. The context was the now-famous motion of no confidence which had been … Continue reading No confidences →

Herald on Sunday, Sunday National, 21st April 2024. Savvy political analysts often refer to “the Overton Window” these days. Like many ideas that first sprung up in the United States, this once-obscure poli-sci buzzword has floated across the Atlantic –like triangulation and third-way politics – and is now routinely tossed-about by talking heads to explain … Continue reading Overton Windows →