Western nations’ increasingly aggressive stance is not prompted by any increase in security threats against these countries — rather, it is caused by a desire to bring about regime changes against governments that pose a threat to the hegemony of imperialism, writes PRABHAT PATNAIK
We need to defend CalMac
It is not the public ownership model that is failing Scotland’s ferry services, it is the government’s poor management – and privatisation would be far worse, writes KATY CLARK MSP
THIS time last year, I wrote that Scotland’s public ferry service was in crisis due to the “failure of the Scottish government to invest in a new fleet over many years,” with sailings cancelled at short notice due to technical breakdowns.
Since then, matters have spiralled out of control.
On Arran, islanders faced food and fuel shortages over the winter due to unreliable sailings. In South Uist, hundreds of residents have been turning out in recent days to protest their service being withdrawn due to difficulties elsewhere on the network.
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Mismanagement, privatisation and EU rules have strangled vital ferry services, leaving Scotland’s island communities stranded and the once-bustling ports of my youth in what feels like terminal decline, laments MATT KERR



