The Common Weal Policy Podcast

Episode 40 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week, Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell react to the UK Budget exploring the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak but also the implications of the budget for Tory Austerity and the prospects for Scotland by comparing this budget both to the prevalling ideology in the Scottish Government - that of the Sustainab...

Episode 39 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week, Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell is joined by long term advocate of Common Weal, Amanda Burgauer to discuss how the Green New Deal will affect rural Scotland. They discuss issues around retrofitting and replacing housing stock - a particular challenge for older housing that doesn&apos...

Episode 38 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell continue their pull-out of the chapters from the Common Home Plan, Common Weal's Green New Deal blueprint, by looking at Resources and the Circular Economy. Our current economy is far too linear with resources being extracted, turned into goods which are too oft...

Episode 37 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Dr Craig Dalzell is joined by Bill Austin, a former UK customs officer and now consultant on customs and borders infrastructure - recently returned from a trip advising governments in East Africa on their infrastructure and policies. Bill tells us how badly the UK's borders and customs agencies...

Episode 36 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . In this episode, Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell discuss another chapter in Common Weal's Common Home Plan, this time dealing with how we heat our homes. You can read the Common Home Plan here. The pair first discuss the progress towards COP26 with the news in the FT today that the UK Government is in t...

Episode 35 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . In this episode, Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell discuss Common Weal's latest policy paper Within Our Grasp - a campaign strategy aimed at winning independence. The main paper can be read here and a shorter summary paper can be read here . Within Our Grasp looks at the current situation of the independe...

Episode 34 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . In this episode of the Policy Podcast, Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell is joined once again by Ellen Höfer from EU Citizens for an Independent Scotland. Ellen updates us on her efforts to fight for the rights of EU nationals after Brexit and also discusses moves by the Scottish Government to re...

Episode 33 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week, Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi and Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell look at the shift in Scottish Labour's position in the constitutional debate. Unable to "Out Union" the Conservatives and obviously neither able to nor desiring to "Out Indy" the SNP, Labour...

Episode 32 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . Welcome to 2020 and Season 2 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast This week, Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi and Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell discuss Common Weal's plans for 2020 against a backdrop of the ongoing climate emergency, global wildfires, renewed conflict in the Middle East and...

Episode 31 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Johnathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell continue their discussion about the Common Home Plan - Common Weal's blueprint for a Green New Deal for Scotland. In this episode, they discuss the impact that a Green New Deal will have on international trade and how Scotland could shape future trade deals by...

Episode 30 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Craig Dalzell is joined by Jason Douglas from the Common Weal South Lanarkshire Local Group to talk about the proposals in the Our Common Home plan for improving housing and other buildings. A builder himself, Jason is well versed in the kinds of issues that may be faced when trying to improve build...

Episode 29 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here .  This week Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell are joined by special guest Jenny Floki who came along to the launch party for Common Weal's new project Our Common Home - A Green New Deal for Scotland. They discuss the importance of this kind of political campaign not just because of the environmental conseq...

Episode 28 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Common Weal Campaigns Officer talks to Head of Policy & Research Craig Dalzell and with Common Weal's Volunteers Organiser Elaine McKenna. They discuss the current political landscape of the main parties in Westminster with their strengths and weaknesses going into the newly announced Gener...

Episode 27 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Craig Dalzell is joined by  Ellen Höfer the Creative Director of EU Citizens for an Independent Scotland . Ellen cuts through the stramash of UK politics to discuss the (lack of) progress of Brexit and what the latest developments have meant for the rights of EU citizens living in the UK - particula...

Episode 26 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Jonathon Shafi and Craig Dalzell look back at the past week and the work that Common Weal has been doing recently - including our recent policy successes. First, they discuss the ongoing political situation and Common Weal's condemnation of the imprisonment of the leaders of the Catalonian inde...

Episode 25 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Jonathon Shafi and Lewis Akers discuss the global climate strikes, the anullment of the prorogation of the UK Parliament and the prospects for a General Election in the near future. From there, they discuss two of Common Weal's policy papers which deal with vulnerabilities in our election proce...

Episode 24 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Lewis Akers is joined by Becki Menzies from Get Glasgow Moving to discuss news that the Scottish Government is standing by to be the "operator of last resort" if the current franchise holder Abelio continues to fail commuters. They then discuss the prospect of fully nationalising Scotland...

Episode 23 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download the episode directly here . This week Lewis Akers and Craig Dalzell look at the prorogation of the UK Parliament and recent news that Scottish courts have declared that shut down to be unlawful. The impacts of these decisions and what they mean for UK constitutional law could be profound. Craig then discusses Common Weal's policy p...

September 5th, 2019 Common Weal Episode 22 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast This week Common Weal Director Robin McAlpine, and campaigns officer, Jonathon Shafi, discuss the chaos in Westminster and the need for independence and a Green New Deal. Robin gives a teaser of what to expect from our major new policy and campaign on a Scottish Green New Deal, and connects this with the breakdown of the...

Episode 21 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . This week Lewis Akers and Craig Dalzell discuss Common Weal's latest campaign to launch a Green New Deal for Scotland. They start by discussing recent events in Blackpool where fracking activities have been causing increasingly strong earthquakes and use that to discuss the economics of fracking and the...

Episode 20 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . This week, Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell and Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi discuss the annual GERS report. They discuss what the report is (and what it isn't) and what it says about Scotland's finances (along with what it doesn't say). Particular highlights from the report...

Episode 19 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . This week, Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell and Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi talk to Callum Slater who has been researching with Common Weal over the summer and will soon be publishing a policy paper on the opportunities and barriers that an independent Scotland will face in international t...

Episode 17 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . This week, Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell talks to Dr Keith Baker from Common Weal's Energy Working Group on their proposals for a National Energy Company which would own our energy assets like our power generators and transmission lines and a Scottish Energy Development Agency which wou...

Episode 17 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . In this week's Common Weal Policy Podcast Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi and Research Intern Lewis Akers discuss Boris Johnson's rise to Prime Minister of the UK and the implications that may have for Scotland. They also discuss Common Weal's new policy paper, Scotland's Trade , which e...

Episode 16 of the Common Weal Policy Podcast You can download this episode directly here . This week Common Weal's Campaigns Officer Jonathon Shafi and Head of Policy & Research Dr Craig Dalzell discuss Craig's 2016 Common Weal policy paper Claiming Scotland's Assets . This paper looks at the principles, legalities and historical precedents surrounding the division of state-owne...