Michael Anderson and Graeme Roy on Scotland's Populations

Professors Michael Anderson and Graeme Roy spoke at the David Hume Institute on “Scotland’s Populations”. They discussed how our demographics have shaped our country, and the challenges they present in the future. 

Professor Michael Anderson is Emeritus Professor of Economic History, University of Edinburgh, and an expert on Scottish demography. Last year, Oxford University Press published ‘Scotland's Populations: from the 1850s to Today’, which explores population growth and decline, rural settlement and depopulation, and migration and emigration.  

Professor Graeme Roy is Director of the Fraser of Allander Institute and Head of Economics at the University of Strathclyde. Prior to joining Strathclyde University he was head of the First Minister’s Policy Unit. 

A copy of the slides from each presentation is available for download here:

Please see below for the audio recording of this event.

Jonathan Portes on Immigration policy: challenges for the UK and Scotland

Professor Jonathan Portes spoke at the David Hume Institute on “Immigration policy: challenges for the UK and Scotland”.

Professor Jonathan Portes is a Senior Fellow of the Economic and Social Research Council's "UK in a Changing Europe" initiative, based at King’s College London, which promotes high quality research into the complex and changing relationship between the UK and the European Union. His current research concentrates on issues related to immigration and labour mobility, both within the European Union and outside; and the economic implications of Brexit. Jonathan's latest book is called 'What Do we Know and What Should We Do About Immigration?'.

He has spent most of his career working as a civil servant, serving as Chief Economist at the Department for Work and Pensions from 2002 to 2008 and Chief Economist at the Cabinet Office from 2008 to 2011. He led the Cabinet Office’s economic analysis and economic policy work during the financial crisis and on the G20 London Summit in April 2009. From 2011 to 2015, he was Director of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research.

A copy of the slides from Jonathan’s presentation is available for download here:

Philip Rycroft on Brexit and the Union: what next for Scotland in the UK?

Philip Rycroft, recently retired Permanent Secretary of DExEU, the Department for Exiting the European Union, gave a lecture at the David Hume Institute on “Brexit and the Union: what next for Scotland in the UK?”. 

Philip Rycroft worked at DExEU between March 2017 and March 2019, from October 2017 as Permanent Secretary. He was responsible for leading the department in all its work on the Government’s preparations for Brexit. From June 2015 to March 2019 he was head of the UK Governance Group in the Cabinet Office, with responsibility for advising ministers on all aspects of the constitution and devolution. 

The text of his lecture is available for download here:

First Minister's Reading List 2019 Launch

The 2019 First Minister's Reading List was announced by Sally Magnusson and Jane-Frances Kelly at the Borders Book Festival.

The David Hume Institute is delighted to present its 2019 First Minister’s Summer Reading List. Bringing together some of the best recent writing from Scotland and beyond, the list is intended as a fresh way to stimulate debate about the state of the nation and the world. While the Institute does not endorse every view expressed in the books, they are all good reads, based on evidence and with something of significance to say. We hope the First Minister – or indeed any Scot – will find them thought-provoking and an enjoyable addition to their summer break. The publication can be downloaded below and explains the reasons behind the list and why we chose the specific books on this year’s list. We hope they provide some enjoyable, thought-provoking reading for your summer. 

2019 David Hume Lecture by Darren McGarvey

The 2019 Annual David Hume Lecture was given by Darren McGarvey, Scottish writer, activist, social commentator and rapper ‘Loki’.

Darren grew up in Pollok, where he experienced the effects of extreme poverty and addiction, and was part of the Poverty Truth Commission hosted in Glasgow in 2009. He is also a community activist, encouraging young people to explore important issues through music and language. In 2015 he was the first ever ‘Rapper-in-Residence’ with Police Scotland’s Violence Reduction Unit.

Darren has written for the Scotsman, Holyrood Magazine and is a regular contributor to the BBC, STV and other national media. In 2018 he won the Orwell Prize for Poverty Safari, which also appeared in the David Hume Institute’s 2018 First Minister’s Summer Reading List.

This event was held in partnership with the University of Edinburgh Business School.

Please see below for the audio recording of this event.

Scotland's Evolving Fiscal Landscape

Dame Susan Rice, Robert Chote and Alyson Stafford spoke about how the Scottish Fiscal Commission and the Office of Budget Responsibility work both individually and together and the setting in which these institutions exist and operate.

Robert Chote has been Chair of the Office for Budget Responsibility since 2010, having been reappointed for a second five-year term in 2015. He also chairs the OECD’s network of parliamentary budget offices and independent fiscal institutions, as well as the external advisory group of the Irish parliamentary budget office. Previously, Robert served as Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies from 2002 to 2010, as a senior advisor at the International Monetary Fund from 1999 to 2002, as Economics Editor of the Financial Times from 1995 to 1999, and as a writer at the Independent and Independent on Sunday from 1990 to 1994. Robert is chair of the Royal Statistical Society’s advisory group on public data literacy. He is also a member of the Finance Committee of the University of Cambridge and the advisory committee of the ESRC Centre for Macroeconomics, and is a governor of the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR).

Dame Susan Rice DBE has been Chair of the Scottish Fiscal Commission since 2014 and was reappointed for a further four years from July 2018. A Chartered Banker, Susan is, inter alia, Chairman of Scottish Water, President of the Scottish Council of Development and Industry, a non-executive director of J Sainsbury and the Banking Standards Board, and a lay member of Court of Edinburgh University. Susan is a published medical researcher and has previously served as senior Vice President at NatWest Bancorp in New York, dean at Yale and Colgate Universities, Chairman and Chief Executive of Lloyds TSB Scotland plc and Managing Director of Lloyds Banking Group.

Alyson Stafford CBE is Director General Scottish Exchequer, with responsibility for the overall Scottish Budget including tax, spending and measuring performance, and for advice, support and systems on finance and procurement. Alyson joined the Scottish Government in 2005, previously serving as Director General Finance and Director of Finance. Prior to joining the Scottish Government, Alyson led strategic, operational and corporate services in the Health Service in England and Scotland as a Chief Executive and Director of Finance.