Conservative campaign diary: postal votes and no to alternative votes
The Caledonian Mercury has invited some of those in the election firing-line to send regular bulletins about the personal side of campaigning. David McLetchie is a former leader of the Scottish...
View ArticleVideo: Secrets of the St Andrews stones
This Easter weekend, Historic Scotland will hold a series of guided tours of the ancient carved stones on display in the crypt of St Andrews Cathedral, the largest collection of such stones in...
View ArticleDaily election roundup, 22 April
With less than two weeks of campaigning left until polling day, the five main parties will be working harder than ever to get their messages across and win our votes on 5 May. Politicians say a lot at...
View ArticleOpinion: bankers are ruinous rascals out of touch with reality
By John Knox They just don’t get it, do they? Shareholders at the Royal Bank of Scotland have let the fat cats out of the bag yet again. The RBS chief executive Stephen Hester and his 300 top cats...
View ArticleSorry seems to be the hardest word, tweet, chat show appearance…
By now, Mel Gibson fans will know by now that he is sorry for being taped ranting at his ex-wife, denies he was bothered by being bumped off The Hangover sequel and has more work lined up. That is, if...
View ArticleUseful Gaelic word: trod
trod – argument/anger/trouble Trod, pronounced just as spelt, is one of these words which classes for Gaelic learners seldom seem to teach, but which are common among native speakers of the language,...
View ArticleElectionspeak: campaign
By Betty Kirkpatrick There is often a lot of inter-party hostility and enmity on the political campaign trail, and such feelings are in keeping with the history of the word. Campaign has close...
View ArticleFrom the Clearances to comical heroes: more thoughts about statues
Last week saw the statue of Charles II returned to Parliament Square in Edinburgh, having had a much-needed facelift – a sort of Botox for monuments – to repair splits and cracks in the lead. Now back...
View ArticleIain Gray relaunches Labour campaign in attempt to halt SNP surge
Iain Gray relaunched the Scottish Labour campaign today in a desperate attempt to halt the SNP surge which has put Alex Salmond on course for a second term in government. The Scottish Labour leader...
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Poll: do you care about the Royal Wedding?
By James Browne The preparations for my Royal Wedding street party are well advanced. The bunting’s been strung, the cakes have been baked and I’ve arranged the tumbrels and effigies. The only thing...
View ArticleShoogly nail time: will Iain Gray even win his constituency seat?
By Stuart Crawford That infinitesimally small part of the population which is interested in politics will be feasting at the moment. Every day seems to bring new poll results, new pledges and new...
View ArticleOpinion: it’s personality politics with everything to play for
By Adam Ramsay As you drive through Alyth, it is the yellow flashes that catch your eye – daffodils, primroses and placards. This is John Swinney country. In the small towns between Perth and the...
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Signs of improvement in Scottish manufacturing, says new CBI survey
There are official statistics about the Scottish economy. There are regular academic reports on the different sectors. And then there is the CBI’s Scottish Industrial Trends Survey. The last has been a...
View ArticleElectionspeak: propaganda
By Betty Kirkpatrick Are you one of a decreasing number of people who read at least some of the political information directed at you with avid agreement? Or do you dismiss the whole lot as political...
View ArticleDaily election roundup, 26 April
We’ve analysed all of yesterday’s press communications, from each of the five parties, to pick out the main topics of discussion and generate today’s CalMerc Cloud. The larger the word, the more often...
View ArticleWhere the Scottish election will be won and lost – part 1
As is always the case, this election will be won and lost in just a few key battleground areas. The swing seats hold the key to the final result, and The Caledonian Mercury will be looking at several...
View ArticleLib Dem campaign diary: council overtime and cremating a saltire
The Caledonian Mercury has invited some of those in the election firing-line to send regular bulletins about the personal side of campaigning. Alison Hay is the Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for...
View ArticleHomage to QWERTYopia as the last major typewriter factory closes
Journalists of a certain age sometimes look back fondly to the newsrooms of old, especially after a pint or three has coated the noisy, smoke-filled reality with a roseate veneer of nostalgia. It’s...
View ArticleDaily election roundup, 27 April
Jobs dominated the political communications yesterday, as first minister Alex Salmond outlined the SNP's vision for reindustrialising Scotland by meeting the party's target of 130,000 jobs in the...
View ArticleIndependent campaign diary: no to biomass, yes to massage
The Caledonian Mercury has invited some of those in the election firing-line to send regular bulletins about the personal side of campaigning. Ken O'Neill is standing as an independent candidate in the...
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