Government minister visits Dunfermline to find out about Citizens’ Assembly projectLast week, Dunfermline took another confident stride toward becoming a beacon of democratic innovation in Scotland. On Tuesday, Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee visited the Abbeyview Community Hub to meet with local councillors, Fife Council...Posted 27 Aug 2025
What are the benefits of Citizens’ Assemblies, and should they be used more?At the ERS, we’ve long campaigned for more involvement of citizens in the decisions that affect them. For politics to work for people like us, it needs to include people like us. Too often, public...Posted 03 Oct 2024
A future Labour government would be right to use Citizens’ AssembliesThis morning it was revealed in The Times that Sue Gray, Keir Starmer’s Chief of Staff and former leading Civil Servant, is considering the use of Citizens’ Assemblies. Gray made the comments by referring to...Posted 19 Feb 2024
ERS Scotland: Our plans for the years aheadAt ERS Scotland we are constantly monitoring the political seas and updating our course to make sure we have the proper heading. Following this year’s local elections, the elections to the Scottish Parliament in 2021,...Posted 24 May 2022
Scottish local democracy can build and strengthen our communitiesDemocracy is the right for people to decide how the place where they live is run. But too few people now believe that this right is being honoured, too few believe that they decide and...Posted 13 May 2022
On Monday MPs have a chance to pass an election bill that actually worksOpposition MPs have tabled amendments on reforming our voting system that would improve our elections for voters across the country. On Monday the government’s elections bill returns to the House of Commons. Along with other...Posted 14 Jan 2022
COP26 shows we need to democratise to decarboniseIn the run up to the COP26 climate change conference, a coalition of leading democracy organisations joined together on a campaign to put strong democracy at the heart of any response. The campaign’s message was...Posted 26 Nov 2021
Local communities must be the foundation on which we build Scotland’s recoveryThe pandemic has given us a fresh insight into what we already knew about Scotland’s communities; people will sacrifice their time and resources to aid their neighbours. But that sense of community cannot be taken...Posted 26 Mar 2021
The Blaenau Gwent Climate Assembly is a first for WalesThis community could be about to change how communities in Wales help decide on climate policy. In just a few days time Wales will host its very first Climate Assembly. It could be a game-changer...Posted 01 Mar 2021
Holyrood must take forward the Citizens’ Assembly’s calls to revamp Scottish democracyPoliticians must move Scottish democracy forward by putting citizens at the centre, the ERS and 17 other leading organisations and campaigners say.Posted 18 Feb 2021