Category Archives: Commerce

The First Shall Be Last

Posted on April 12, 2012 by davidsberry

Last week, the Edinburgh Evening News broke the story that FirstBus (Scotland East) was going to withdraw roughly half the service it currently runs in East and Mid-lothian. Having worked with First through EL Council and seen the thick end … Continue reading →

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Why Far Away is Close to Home

Posted on April 3, 2012 by davidsberry

Oakland, California is 8 time zones or 5,000 miles from Scotland and, as it seldom registers on our screens unless the Raiders make it to the Superbowl, is seen to have little relevance. Oakland does not have the profile of … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce, Education | Leave a comment

Not Just Pasty-Faced: Unionist Economics Are Peely-Wally Too

Posted on March 29, 2012 by davidsberry

This blog having trodden light on politics for a week, its time to wheech the shoes off and climb back into the vat to tread the grapes of math. Those readers squeamish about numeracy may wish to skip this one … Continue reading →

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We Want to Get BACK On

Posted on March 19, 2012 by davidsberry

Today’s issue of the Hootsmon has an interesting article from a Devo-Plus advocate Malcolm Fraser who argues Scotland does not need independence to take on more responsibility for its own future. Plausible though many of his arguments are, it is … Continue reading →

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Ma Faither’s Howff Has Many Mansions

Posted on March 9, 2012 by davidsberry

This week part of my duties involved attending the CoSLA Resources & Capacity Executive which busies itself with such things as how councils make ends meet. Those there shared concerns how various developments, such as welfare reform and utility tariffs, … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce, Politics | 4 Comments

Small Is Beautiful

Posted on February 29, 2012 by davidsberry

An early evening seminar at the Hume Institute led by the Chair of the First Minister’s Council of Economic Advisors is not everyone’s idea of entertainment but Paul Johnson, Director of the Institute of Fiscal Studies made it that for … Continue reading →

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Flight to Blarney Cancelled

Posted on February 25, 2012 by davidsberry

This week’s announcement by Ryanair of cuts at Edinburgh airport has been touted by the airline as a major blow to the growing airport and claims that passenger numbers are likely to decline from the present 1.8m to 1.5m passengers … Continue reading →

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Subsea Robbery

Posted on February 24, 2012 by davidsberry

One fact that is almost wholly unappreciated outside of the oil business is the obligingly shallow nature of places like the Gulf of Mexico and the North Sea. To landlubbers, the sea looks pretty much the same anywhere and, since … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce | 4 Comments

You Can’t Get There from Here

Posted on January 24, 2012 by davidsberry

Yesterday’s BBC Panorama programme, entitled Train Fares: Taken for a Ride, while not quite up to their usual incisive standard of surgical reporting, provided a wealth of information about commuter travails in England and the soaring costs to those captive … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce, Transport | Leave a comment

Triple Eh?

Posted on January 5, 2012 by davidsberry

Just about inhaled my muesli this morning when I glanced at today’s Hootsmon front page to see that prophet-of-doom-who-should-know-better Bill Jamieson was querying whether Scotland could retain the present AAA credit rating the UK (and very few other countries) enjoy. … Continue reading →

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