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	<title>Scotland &#8211; Ian Birrell</title>
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		<title>Westminster&#8217;s drug policy is put to shame</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/westminsters-drug-policy-is-put-to-shame/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 04 Sep 2023 12:33:56 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Crime]]></category>
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					<description><![CDATA[Published by The i paper (10th July, 2023) The state of British politics often induces despair. Westminster is hooked on playing pathetic tribal games and populated by self-centred [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Sturgeon, Johnson and the curse of nationalism</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/sturgeon-johnson-and-the-curse-of-nationalism/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Mon, 05 Jun 2023 10:52:28 +0000</pubDate>
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		<category><![CDATA[nationalism]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Orwell]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
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					<description><![CDATA[Published by The i paper (27th March, 2023) This week sees the end of an exceptional political era. Nicola Sturgeon is standing down as Scotland’s First Minister after [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Britain&#8217;s criminal approach to drugs</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/britains-criminal-approach-to-drugs/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 02 Sep 2021 16:24:02 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Drugs]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[drugs]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Portugal]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[UnHerd]]></category>
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					<description><![CDATA[Published by UnHerd (30th July, 2021) Our nation’s politicians have long been guilty of an inflated sense of exceptionalism. But there is one area in which Britain indisputably [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>If you thought Brexit was fraught&#8230;</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/if-you-thought-brexit-was-fraught/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 06 Jul 2021 14:17:04 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Feature]]></category>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=5387</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The i paper (10th May, 2021) One of many curiosities about last week’s elections was the unusual success of incumbents. Historically, such events have been a [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Ruth Davidson should have been Tory leader. Instead, she’s on the sidelines</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/ruth-davidson-should-have-been-tory-leader-instead-shes-on-the-sidelines/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Sun, 06 Oct 2019 14:19:11 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Boris]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Conservatives]]></category>
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		<category><![CDATA[Guardian]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[May]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
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					<description><![CDATA[Published by The Guardian (29th August, 2019) The resignation of a Scottish Tory leader does not tend to be seismic political news. I doubt, for instance, many people [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>Short sentences prove prison doesn&#8217;t work</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/short-sentences-prove-prison-doesnt-work/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Tue, 17 Jul 2018 10:03:40 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gauke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prison]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rory Stewart]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Times]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=4266</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The Times (28th June, 2018) This is a depressing time for prison reform campaigners. Ministers have announced they are building two new jails ready for another [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>A broken prison system &#8211; but Scotland pushes for reform</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/a-broken-prison-system-but-scotland-pushes-for-reform/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 01 Mar 2018 10:02:07 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gauke]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ipaper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prison]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Rory Stewart]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SNP]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sturgeon]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=4087</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The i paper (29th January, 2018) Two years ago, in those far off days before the Brexit debacle, David Cameron declared prison reform &#8216;a great progressive [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>The solution to overcrowded prisons? Stop locking people up</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/the-solution-to-overcrowded-prisons-stop-locking-people-up/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Thu, 09 Nov 2017 21:30:14 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Policy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Albutt]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[crime]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Gyimah]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ipaper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[prison]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=3952</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The i paper (16th October, 2017) Marc Maltby was only 23 years old. Yet he has just become the fifth person to die in a month [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>The dozen reasons for Labour&#8217;s decline</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/the-dozen-reasons-for-labours-decline/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Fri, 19 May 2017 13:45:54 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brexit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Conservatives]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Corbyn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[ipaper]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Labour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ukip]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=3739</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The ipaper (8th May, 2017) On Friday morning I received a text from a Syrian friend who just moved to London and takes strong interest in [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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		<title>The pollsters got it wrong – but they are still crucial for politicians</title>
		<link>https://ianbirrell.com/pollsters-got-it-wrong/</link>
		
		<dc:creator><![CDATA[admin]]></dc:creator>
		<pubDate>Wed, 20 Jan 2016 14:40:57 +0000</pubDate>
				<category><![CDATA[Politics]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Brexit]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cameron]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Conservatives]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[EU]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[GE2015]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Labour]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Miliband]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[polling]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Scotland]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Telegraph]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[YouGov]]></category>
		<guid isPermaLink="false">https://ianbirrell.com/?p=3008</guid>

					<description><![CDATA[Published by The Daily Telegraph (20th January, 2016) Shortly before the 2010 general election, David Cameron sat down with the results of the latest in-depth opinion poll. It was [&#8230;]]]></description>
		
		
		
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