Category Archives: Politics

44: This Is Leadership?

Posted on March 22, 2011 by davidsberry

In the course of their one-day conference, my opponent (who happens to be Labour’s Leader) stood up before those assembled. As his boss Ed Milliband had rather ignored Scotland in his own speech, someone needed to bring the focus back … Continue reading →

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46: Full Moon Equinox

Posted on March 20, 2011 by davidsberry

Funny how things do seem to come together naturally—like the Labour conference and Magners Comedy Festival being together in Glasgow this weekend. It was a fabulous full moon tonight, right on the gateway to Spring. Clear sky, still sea and … Continue reading →

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48: Cause or Effect?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by davidsberry

An interesting set of statistics surfaced yesterday. Amidst a great deal of BBC and UK-level handwringing over worsening employment statistics, (England’s rising to 2.53m people out of work) Scotland bucked the trend, dropping 16,000 to 218,000 or 8.1%. And that … Continue reading →

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49: Parliamo Politico VI

Posted on March 17, 2011 by davidsberry

Let’s Talk Pencil-Pusher: Lesson VI—Scrutiny (Sixth of a series, translating bureaucrat-speak into what it means for folk in East Lothian on St Paddy’s Day) Our council operates what is called a ‘scrutiny’ or self-evaluation mechanism. This consists of a Customer … Continue reading →

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51: Tornado…Tsunami…Tomorrow?

Posted on March 14, 2011 by davidsberry

It was pure coincidence but perhaps symbolic. The day I was invited to visit EDF’s Torness power station was when the 8.9 magnitude earthquake struck Japan. Since we had no news of its impact, the only discussion at the time … Continue reading →

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53: Govan in Sight

Posted on March 13, 2011 by davidsberry

Arriving at the SECC for conference, the Armadillo resembled a huge igloo under the snow but the buzz among delegates was warming. By mid-morning, the hall was already  receptive as I seconded Mike and Angela’s motion on Delivering for Scotland’s … Continue reading →

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58: Round One (ding!)

Posted on March 8, 2011 by davidsberry

East Lothian’s election was effectively launched yesterday with an hour-long candidate hustings in front of 100 S4-S6 seniors in Modern Studies at North Berwick High, although the Lib-Dem candidate neither responded to nor showed up for the event. How did … Continue reading →

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60 Days to Go

Posted on March 6, 2011 by davidsberry

We must be getting serious. With two months to go, the first hustings happen next week with a senior school event at North Berwick High in the afternoon of Monday 7th  and an RSPB-sponsored Climate Cafe hustings in Haddington’s Town House … Continue reading →

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61: Tomorrow-ness?

Posted on March 4, 2011 by davidsberry

Having been on a doorstep or three as part of my campaign, I have to say that the good people of East Lothian are nothing if not polite. The only hostility in an identifiable group that I have met comes … Continue reading →

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62: Genteel Revolutionaries

Posted on March 4, 2011 by davidsberry

The rarified rooms of the Royal Society in George Street are a perfect setting for the David Hume lectures and a perfect antidote to the brawling good cheer of All Bar One across the road. This month, the lecture was … Continue reading →

Posted in Commerce, Education, Politics | Tagged | 3 Comments