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UK Strategic Defence Review in a changing world

Jun 3, 2025By Dave Watson

 The much-trailed UK Strategic Defence Review (SDR) was published yesterday. It was timely for me as I was participating in a European seminar on how Europe should respond to the new strategic situation.

There is a lot of narrative (som…Read more…

Jun 3, 2025Dave Watson

Political change has to be more than a slogan

May 8, 2025By Dave Watson

The elections in England ought to be a wake-up call to political parties, particularly about the disillusionment many voters feel about our politics. The warning signs were present in the opinion polls and surveys from ERS; others have highlighted the …Read more…

May 8, 2025Dave Watson

It’s health inequalities stupid!

Mar 12, 2025By Dave Watson

Benjamin Franklin famously said that ‘nothing is certain except death and taxes’. Well, it used to be pretty certain that this generation would live longer than the last – but no more. Life expectancy was improving until 2011 when it started to decline…Read more…

Mar 12, 2025Dave Watson

Public Private Partnerships – surely not again!

Feb 12, 2025By Dave Watson

I thought I wouldn’t need to write about PPP ever again. However, as the Chancellor is considering private finance for new infrastructure projects, a new generation of politicians and officials must be reminded of this bonkers idea. A Public-…Read more…

Feb 12, 2025Dave Watson

ScotRail: public ownership is not enough

Jan 27, 2025By Dave Watson

 The Herald has been running a series of articles on ScotRail since it was taken into partial public ownership as the ‘operator of last resort’. As is often the case, the headlines don’t always reflect the content, which is generally good, and the…Read more…

Jan 27, 2025Dave Watson

Social Murder?: Austerity and Life Expectancy in the UK

Dec 9, 2024By Dave Watson

Life expectancy has increased in the UK more or less constantly for more than a century. Around 2012, this all stopped, and among poorer populations, it actually went in reverse. In some parts of the UK, the change to premature mortality rates (death u…Read more…

Dec 9, 2024Dave Watson

Europe after Trump

Nov 18, 2024By Dave Watson

I participated in a European foundation workshop last week, which examined the impact of a Trump presidency on Europe. While European leaders politely congratulated Trump and emphasised long-standing links, the policy community is less sanguine.As you …Read more…

Nov 18, 2024Dave Watson

Autumn Budget 2024

Oct 30, 2024By Dave Watson

 I am sadly old enough to remember when budget purdah was a thing. Clearly, no more, with relatively few surprises in today’s budget, which hadn’t either been formally announced or at least briefed in advance. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a massive…Read more…

Oct 30, 2024Dave Watson

Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back

Oct 10, 2024By Dave Watson

 If you are interested in economic policy, I recommend reading Torsten Bell’s new book, Great Britain? How We Get Our Future Back. In it, he provides a detailed analysis of the key economic challenges facing the UK today and proposes policies to r…Read more…

Oct 10, 2024Dave Watson

New Local Democracy for Scotland

Sep 9, 2024By Dave Watson

I was in Edinburgh today, speaking at the launch of the New Local Democracy for Scotland Declaration.Building a Local Scotland is a group of academics, trade unionists, former council leaders, and journalists who have launched a campaign to tackle the …Read more…

Sep 9, 2024Dave Watson

Defence Review

Aug 14, 2024By Dave Watson

 The new Labour Secretary of State for Defence has announced a defence review. This is not just a routine action for new governments, but a crucial and urgent step given the changes in threats since the last review. The review, with its broad and …Read more…

Aug 14, 2024Dave Watson

Pensions reform – time for action

Jul 23, 2024By Dave Watson

 Pensions reform usually gets little political attention, so it’s good to see the new UK government prioritising it. The Pension Schemes Bill, announced in the King’s Speech, is taking forward measures announced by the previous administration, alt…Read more…

Jul 23, 2024Dave Watson

It’s Manifesto Time!

Jun 13, 2024By Dave Watson

 It’s manifesto time. As someone who has drafted and haggled over a few in my time, I enjoy this part of an election campaign while recognising that this makes me a less-than-typical voter.  You might think in a snap election that manife…Read more…

Jun 13, 2024Dave Watson

Devolution and the quango state

May 8, 2024By Dave Watson

This week is the 25th anniversary of the first elections to the Scottish Parliament. Commentary typically focuses on how the Parliament has performed and how its procedures can be reformed. While I agree with many of the criticisms, the Scott…Read more…

May 8, 2024Dave Watson

Ukraine and the ‘Johnson thwarted peace’ myth

Apr 9, 2024By Dave Watson

I was involved in a panel discussion about defence expenditure this week. A trade union activist I greatly respect justified his argument against providing military aid to Ukraine by invoking a Putin-propagated myth. The essence of this conspiracy theo…Read more…

Apr 9, 2024Dave Watson

Defence in an Independent Scotland

Mar 9, 2024By Dave Watson

The Scottish Government has published the latest policy paper in its Building a New Scotland series, An Independent Scotland’s Place in the World. This paper sets out its vision for an independent Scotland’s foreign, defence, and security policy. If yo…Read more…

Mar 9, 2024Dave Watson

Defence and security in an uncertain world

Feb 7, 2024By Dave Watson

Everyone is suddenly talking about defence. Britain’s Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Patrick Sanders, discussed a ‘citizen’s army’. This has sparked nostalgia for National Service in some quarters (which Sanders rejected) and a more serious de…Read more…

Feb 7, 2024Dave Watson

Tough political decisions

Jan 8, 2024By Dave Watson

 It could be a long political year if today’s election pitches are anything to go by. Anas Sarwar was making a pitch to Yes voters in Rutherglen. It is a smart move given that despite the SNP’s woes, the dial has barely moved on support for i…Read more…

Jan 8, 2024Dave Watson

Scottish Budget 2024-25

Dec 19, 2023By Dave Watson

 There were no big surprises in the draft Scottish Budget published today. I set out the background to the Budget in a briefing for the Jimmy Reid Foundation, and it was always going to be challenging given the economic environment and the appalli…Read more…

Dec 19, 2023Dave Watson

Pharmanomics – How Big Pharma Destroys Global Health

Dec 4, 2023By Dave Watson

If you read one book this year about the economics of health, Pharmanomics by Nick Dearden should be it. The Director of Global Justice unpicks the way Big Pharma does business and rips us all off. This may not be unique in a capitalist society, but in…Read more…

Dec 4, 2023Dave Watson
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