The Scottish Independence Podcast

For the 3rd time in recent episodes The Scottish Independence Podcast is going back to the parliament, this time to talk to John Finnie MSP.

John is an Independent MSP for the Highlands and Islands region and one of the topics of our discussion was why he made the decision to become an independent rather than stay with the SNP.

We also talked about the disgraceful immigration policies of the UK government and how, whilst Scotland has already sought to curb some of the worst excesses of those policies, it could do so much better.

Then we got on to what might be some good foreign policy options for an Independent Scotland.

There is all this and much more in there.

Hope you enjoy…

LINKS
https://twitter.com/JohnFinnieMSP
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/

"I don't think the UK economy is in recovery...I think it's going back to the disease that [it] suffered from in the run-up to the recession".

Patrick Harvie is the guest for the 51st episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast.

If you didn't already know, Patrick is an MSP and the co-convener of the Scottish Green Party and he came on to the podcast to talk about some of the alternative ideas post-independence that are outlined in the new Green YES document.

For example, the Greens are openly advocating for a Scottish Currency instead of the pound or Euro, there should be a move away from centralised government, and what's a Citizen's Income?

It's well worth the listen.

Did you know that there is a part of Scotland that already has an oil fund? That was building social housing when the rest of the UK was selling it off? That was in some ways already going beyond party politics?

Well there is, and it's called Shetland.

For those reasons and more for the 50th episode (actually if you count Christmas, New Year, April Fools and others there's been a lot more) of the Scottish Independence Podcast I spoke with Brian Nugent, who's involved with Yes Shetland.

We spoke about how things are a little different in terms of local govt up there. We also got on to how the campaign is affected by some things that it might not necessarily be in the rest of the country.

We talked about that oil fund has been used too, and much more.

Hope you enjoy…

LINKS
http://www.yesshetland.info/
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell
https://twitter.com/Yesshetland

For the 39th episode of the For A' That podcast I was joined by the editors of the Mair Nor A Roch Wind website, namely Amy Westwell, Cailean Gallagher and Rory Scothorne.

Their site has been described thusly...

“This should *really* scare the Labour establishment” – Pat Kane

“It’s like being harangued by a keelie Lenin” – A Cybernat

“First I’ve read on this site, which some have been recommending. Dear lord.” – Wings over Scotland

“They’ve walked into no mans land, These guys are absolutely smack bang in the middle of everybody” - Lesley Riddoch

You certainly won't be hearing the standard Yes or No positions in the podcast.

We discussed the site itself, the inspiration for it and its goals.

We also talked about Putin's intervention into the debate, the recent study suggesting that (shock) the media may actually have a pro-union bias and the cybernat idea - though this was recorded before this story took it's latest turn.

Apart from that we talked about why, against the evidence in my opinion, they think the labour party may still be the vehicle for social change in an independent Scotland.

There's much more in there besides.

Oh and Andrew wasn't able to join us, but he'll be back.

Hope you enjoy...

"...Labour ministers, culture ministers... one overheard, when she was asked if Scottish Studies should be part of the school curriculum replied 'oh no, I'm not educating a generation of nationalists"

For the 49th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I spoke with Billy Kay.

Billy has for years been writing, broadcasting and producing material on Scottish Culture and Scots language, for the BBC and internationally.

We talked about his output and much more including the effect that the dearth of Scottish culture and history in our schools may have had on the population, the Scottish Insurrection of 1820, the campaign for hearts and heads and other things besides.

Hope you enjoy...

The Scottish Independence campaign is obviously not the only one happening around the world, so it is more than useful to see the similarities and differences in what is going on elsewhere.

With this in mind, for the 48th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast I took a trip to Catalonia (not literally - though it'd be nice), and the guest was Anna Arqué who is involved in the Catalonian Independence Movement and some groups that work at a European level trying to stress the importance of the democratic right of self-determination including the International Commission For European Citizens (and she hopes some more Scots will get on there and sign the thing).

Hope You Enjoy

LINKS
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/wp-admin/www.europeancitizensdecide.eu
https://twitter.com/anna_arque
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell

"If I'd had my way, in 1999 before a politician's bum had hit a seat in this chamber...I would've had them all travel, for at least 6 weeks round Scotland to visit every local authority. And ideally to go by public transport because small country as it is, we need to better understand its attributes and its issues."

... as said by Jean Urquhart MSP, who is the guest for the 46th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast.

Aside from that, we get into what it is like being an independent in the parliament, some history of the Scottish Independence movement, why she resigned from the SNP, are the Shetland and Orkney independence movements we hear about real and much more.

David Comerford is the guest for the 45th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast.

David is an economist at The University of Stirling, who is working on the ESRC's Future of the UK & Scotland project.

Listening to this is your chance to get over some of the spin from both sides in this debate. Some of the questions I put to him were...

What are the benefits of staying or leaving the EU?
What's the truth surrounding currency choices?
Is the white paper realistic?

Aside from that, David had some important things to say on the subject of short-termism and how narrow some of the thinking so far has been.

It all might require your thinking cap, so I'd put it on now.

Hope you enjoy…

Derek Bateman is the guest for the 45th episode of the Scottish Independence Podcast.

Here is what his BBC biog says about him...

Derek Bateman is a veteran of the Scottish news scene having begun as a trainee reporter with the Scotsman in his teens and spending the last 45 years covering politics and current affairs in various guises - as a reporter with the Glasgow Herald, political editor of Scotland on Sunday, a foreign correspondent for STV's international output, a correspondent for the Observer and commentator and presenter at Radio Scotland.

Over the years he has specialised in politics, international affairs and Europe having been a regular observer of EU affairs in Brussels and Strasbourg. He followed the Troubles in Ireland from Dublin and Belfast and as a reporter and radio documentary-maker for BBC Scotland he has worked in Russia, Finland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, France, the Basque Country, Catalonia, Denmark, Iceland and the Deep South of the United States. He has presented two presidential elections from Washington. He made a location documentary series on the Quebec referendum in 1995 and another on the handover of Hong Kong to China the following year.

Among the highlights of 20 years at the BBC - for him, if not the audience - are co-presenting Good Morning Scotland for 10 years and presenting the Saturday current affairs review Newsweek Scotland. He is a regular presenter of Westminster and Holyrood election night coverage and of by-elections. He occupied the presenter's chair for the opening of the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

The thing is though, Derek decided to chuck it all in so he could have his say in the Scottish Independence debate and since then his blogs have been lighting up the debate.

This podcast should lively up your evening a fair old bit as well.

Hope you enjoy...


LINKS
http://derekbateman1.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/category/the-scottish-independence-podcast/

Just a little thing from the podcast to say Happy New/Big Year.

Oh, and a little response to David Cameron's New Year speech from yesterday.

Hope you enjoy…

LINKS
http://michaelgreenwell.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/mgreenwell