Bit of an experiment today. I’ve been wondering how I could use more video on The Jaggy Thistle. And I’ve come up with the idea of doing a piece to camera describing what I’ve been writing about in The Times this week.
Regular readers may be aware I write a weekly column on Scottish politics for The Times, and have done so since 2015. You can find my column in the Scottish edition of the paper most Wednesdays, in the main Comment section.
Usually it goes online the previous evening, around teatime.
So in this video I give a brief outline of my argument this week. You can read the column in full on the Times website here.
This week I ask the question: Who are Labour’s hero voters in the Holyrood election that will be held in May next year? And is Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, ruthless enough to put these voters at the heart of his campaign?
This is something that’s been on my mind for a while and it’s good to get it out there.
And yes, I make a factual error in the very first minute. I say the UK general election was in 2025. Doh! I meant 2024. Great start. There are also numerous fumbles and misspeaks.
Hey, I’m a typist not a talker.
Not to betray any confidences, but I recently had to chance to put my “hero voter” argument to some senior Scottish Labour figures in a couple of private discussions.
I have to say, I was given a hearing but not much more. Hence my lack of confidence, at this stage, that Scottish Labour will step up to the mark in the way I believe is necessary.
I live in hope. Somebody has to.
Whether or not I do another video like this, riffing off the top of my head about a column, I don’t know yet. Let’s see what kind of reaction it gets.
Please let me know your thoughts. Have I identified the right hero voters? Is there a group of voters I have overlooked? Is there something else Sarwar needs to offer? Am I being too demanding? Is the kind of shift I am talking about unfeasible for Labour, given its history? Or does the moment require a leader who rewrites the rules?
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Please also let me know what you think of this experiment, and whether you’d like to see this as a regular feature on The Jaggy Thistle.
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“A chield’s amang you takin notes, And faith he’ll prent it.” Robert Burns
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