| | | Neil McIntosh | | Editor of The Scotsman |
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Dear reader, You would correctly assume that journalists tend to be news junkies, and I'm no different. But the current news flow - which could most politely be described as "unrelenting" - is hard going, even for us. Horrific global weather, a mass shooting in Thailand and Putin's nuclear sabre-rattling all bring us unease from overseas. And things are little better closer to home. It may seem a long time ago, but it was only the start of the week that Michael Gove announced he was leading the rebellion against the Conservative tax cuts package. Then we had the u-turn on that top rate tax cut, concerns about the NHS's staffing and the threat of 1970s-style three-hour blackouts this winter. Perhaps unsurprisingly, our exclusive opinion poll midweek revealed the Conservatives will be entirely wiped out in Scotland at the next General Election, unless something changes. Dramatically. Even if you are diametrically opposed to the Conservatives - and I appreciate many of our readers would, in more normal times, actually be quite supportive of them - there is a fundamental problem with this quite radical government. Governments - nations - work better when there's some kind of grudging respect for both the government of the day, and its mandate, from the bulk of the electorate. Liz Truss's government feels far from that, lacking its own direct mandate and now embarked on a range of policies, few apparently popular, which are very different to Boris Johnson's manifesto.
I'm not one of those who think Truss will be swept away quickly by the Conservatives - simply because it took so long to move on Boris Johnson. But that may mean we have a little more of this exhausting uncertainty to come. So, for our part, we will continue to offer a clear-eyed and honest view of what is going on, tightly packaged and leavened - we hope - with features that are a little more upbeat. On that theme, then, and looking ahead to tomorrow, we hope to bring you news of whether Glasgow has landed hosting duties for next year's Eurovision - we're due to learn around 7pm tonight if the giant music party is headed for Clydeside. We'll also hear from the island community that's raised £150,000 to save its local pub. And we'll be looking forward to a full weekend's domestic football - after a difficult week in Europe, at least some of our teams will be getting back to winning ways, in what is a jam-packed month for sport. In the magazine, Corina Contini offers us all exactly what we need - hearty one-pot cooking - alongside our usual brilliant package of arts, entertainment and lifestyle journalism. All of it offers you something a little brighter for the weekend. We hope you enjoy - and here's hoping for better news next week. Best wishes, Neil McIntosh Editor, The Scotsman | 