After a significant period of torpor, HE in Scotland appears to be becoming active again. Unfortunately, as soon as Shirley Anne Somerville began to get grips with the thorny issue of student support, her promotion (and the subsequent issue with her successor) meant a summer without ministers – new boy Richard Lochhead has a lot to pick up and quickly.
All this explains why we have a freelance writer on the Power List rather than a minister representing Scottish HE – it can sometimes feel like she’s the only one keeping the show on the road. And though we are glad to work with our 2017 Wonk of the Year, her placement puts the rest of the Scottish sector on notice – we need more people like Hunter Blackburn.