Latest Blogs
The power of letting bygones be bygones
POSTED ON 24/07/2023 (updated 04/09/2023)
“Forgiveness… call me naive… it has worked for me”. These words of a man who, as a schoolboy in Northern Ireland, was blinded by a bullet fired by a British soldier are captured in the …
A ‘high trust’ economy will be more productive
POSTED ON 29/05/2023 (updated 04/09/2023)
“It’s all about trust, isn’t it?” observed my assistant mediator in a recent mediation where property investors resolved a long-running dispute with their professional advisers, having incurred considerable legal costs. It was good to see …
Really listening is the truly radical action the new First Minister should adopt
POSTED ON 27/03/2023 (updated 30/05/2023)
Today, a new leader should be announced for the SNP. That person will then be nominated for appointment as First Minister in the Scottish Parliament. Those of us in the field of conflict resolution or, perhaps …
Sturgeon’s successor must offer an olive branch to UK parliament
POSTED ON 01/03/2023 (updated 27/03/2023)
The breakthrough in the UK’s relations with the EU over Northern Ireland demonstrates yet again that there is no substitute for conducting negotiations with respect and dignity, building relationships with counterparts, being honest and frank …
Negotiators must really listen if we are to find a way through this wave of strikes
POSTED ON 30/01/2023 (updated 03/03/2023)
“O, wad some Power the giftie gie us To see oursels as others see us!” I am writing this on Burns Night and reflecting on a recent conversation with an acquaintance. I left our meeting feeling deeply …
It takes empathy to break the cycle of fear around bullying
POSTED ON 26/01/2023 (updated 30/01/2023)
Gillian Bowditch’s description in The Sunday Times this week of the attack on a schoolgirl at Waid Academy in Anstruther, Fife, brought back memories from 50 years ago. In 1973, I became a pupil at …
Could the legal profession contribute more to Scottish society?
POSTED ON 28/11/2022 (updated 26/01/2023)
Recently I attended events which got me thinking about the kind of society we are now living in – and the role of the legal profession in it. At the Scottish Mediation conference, Professor Gurchathen Sanghera, …
What is the point of public inquiries?
POSTED ON 26/09/2022 (updated 05/12/2022)
“Our problem is there always seems to be someone else to blame. The tram inquiry is about to reach £13m. The other ongoing inquiry into the Pandemic will also cost millions. ... Huge sums of …
Ruling out Peace Talks with Russia could be a Mistake
POSTED ON 22/09/2022 (updated 30/09/2022)
Stewart McDonald MP (SNP Defence Spokesperson) describes the horrors experienced in Ukraine and articulates well the concerns felt there about any change in the West’s position, prompted by “extreme voices from the left and the …
Scottish NHS can lead on leadership
POSTED ON 02/08/2022 (updated 27/09/2022)
Recently, Sir Gordon Messenger, a retired senior Royal Marines officer who hails from Dundee, delivered an independent report to the Department of Health & Social Care. His brief was to examine the state of leadership …
