Ramsay Jones: Our world lost two of its brightest lights last week
Our world lost two of its brightest lights last week.
Opinion
Richard Lochhead: ‘It’s a travesty that families are under so much pressure that feeding their kids is a struggle’
As a member of the Education Committee I spend a lot of time with colleagues looking at what needs to be done to close the attainment gap and give all our kids the best start in life.
Ramsay Jones: Who should make the final life and death decision?
“My gladiator lay down his shield and gained his wings.”
David Stewart: ‘We owe debt of gratitude and honour to the RAF for their defence of our nation’
I think it appropriate that I start this column in recognition of the centenary of the RAF.
Ramsay Jones: Indyref 2 focus could backfire on the SNP
At their party conference in June, the next deputy leader of the SNP will be announced.
Ramsay Jones: Britain is right to act for children of Syria after safe havens become gas chambers
Children sat huddled in a Syrian cellar sheltering from the latest bombardment from the Assad regime.
Ramsay Jones: To cower or confront – how far would you and should you go to protect life and possessions?
There has been much debate over the last week or so about the rights and wrongs of using force to defend one’s life and possessions when faced with an intruder into your home.
John Finnie: Scotland could teach Spain about how a true liberal democracy works
Whatever side of Scotland’s independence referendum debate you were on, most people will agree it exemplified some of the best principles of democracy.
Ramsay Jones: Cold war leaves Corbyn and Salmond facing chilly reception
There is a distinctly cold wind blowing from the East. As we shiver under the latest icy blast from Siberia, we can at least be comforted by the knowledge that it will pass in a matter of days.
Peter Chapman MSP: Amid all the political noise and media speculation, the UK and EU are edging closer to a transition deal on Brexit
Amid all the political noise and media speculation, the UK and EU are edging closer to a transition deal on Brexit – with agreement expected in time for a European summit on Thursday.
John Swinney: Considering key issues faced by rural communities
Ahead of today’s Convention of the Highlands and Islands, Deputy First Minister John Swinney considers some of the key issues faced by rural communities
Michael Russell: More than 20 years ago, the people of Scotland voted overwhelmingly for a national parliament
BREXIT: MORE than 20 years ago, the people of Scotland voted overwhelmingly for a national parliament.
Ramsay Jones: Let’s hope the wind blows fair for France because across the Channel they’re not that fussed
Two issues have dominated the news agenda since my last Monday muse.
Jamie Stone: If Scotland’s banks were to work together
Readers know of the Royal Bank of Scotland’s proposal to close many of its local branches.
Lewis Macdonald: Recovery underway – but we need to plan a long-term future for north-east’s energy industry
Over three years into the downturn, the oil and gas industry is showing signs of recovery. While the oil price will never again reach the heady heights of 2014, it has started to settle at a level where modest growth could return to the North Sea.
Ramsay Jones: Highs of Murrayfield stand in stark contrast to the lows of some of our Winter Olympic performances
Events of the last week or so have given me the perfect excuse to divert the main thrust of this column away from the usual suspects and subjects.
Ramsay Jones: In the US, the freedom being most furiously defended is the right to kill – not the right to live
No less than 43,000 people were killed in Britain during the blitz of World War II.
Ramsay Jones: Oxfam case raises troubling questions for us all but vital, life-saving work must continue
They are the words which greet an internet search for Oxfam.
Ramsay Jones: Time to focus on an issue that would forge a new relationship with the EU and right a wrong
It’s time to talk Brexit again. Sorry, but we have to.
Rhoda Grant: Let us call a halt to cuts to council budgets and ensure access to public services
The Scottish budget is going to be debated in the parliament next week – this is a worrying time for those who depend on public services.
Ramsay Jones: We shovelled, salted and cleared. It was our civic duty. Nobody told us to, it was the obvious thing to do
Winter’s icy grip had its fingers wrapped tightly round much of Scotland last week.
David Duguid: RBS facing more challenging statistics than its ongoing decline in branch use
It is now eight years since RBS promised not to close branches when they were “the last in town”.
Ramsay Jones: The most talented people, which local democracy sorely needs, are staying away over low wages
Imagine if you were on the board of directors of an enterprise with an annual spend of over a billion pounds; if you had 8,000 employees, had to make vital decisions on a daily basis about the livelihoods of nearly a quarter of a million people, and responsible for nurturing the economy of some of the world’s biggest companies.
Ian Blackford: We must unite before an extreme Brexit causes economic catastrophe
Time is running out to prevent a catastrophic extreme Brexit.
Ramsay Jones: Should law breakers have right to decide who our law makers should be in Scotland?
Convicted prisoners are banned from voting in the UK.
‘Time for government to honour its commitment on fair funding for island ferry services’
Growing up in Sanday in the late 70s and 80s, I well remember the MV Orcadia steaming into Kettletoft on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Lesley Laird: Time for banks to show they have changed
It’s hard to be sure of the precise moment when a high street dies.
Nicola Sturgeon: ‘Why I am backing the P&J’s Save Our Banks campaign’
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has today backed the Press and Journal’s Save Our Banks campaign.
Ramsay Jones: Fewer than 500 days from now, let us leave. Let us take back control of our seas. But let’s be reasonable
Last Sunday was my birthday. Last Sunday also saw travel chaos across the UK and much of Europe.
Liam Kerr: SNP ‘break income tax pledge and squeeze councils’
The SNP manifesto for the Holyrood election last included a clear, unequivocal pledge not to raise income tax for basic rate payers.
Ramsay Jones: When securing a deal looked like a distant dream, the PM pulled it off and she didn’t even have to sing
It was, I suppose, fitting that the first stage of our exit from the European Union should be settled at dawn in the capital of Belgium. It gave headline writers plenty of alliterative scope: Breakfast Brexit in Brussels.
Kirsty Blackman: Tories are letting Scotland down over Brexit ‘shambles’
Quite often, politicians use the word shambles to describe a situation.