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Steve Finan

Steve Finan

The Courier

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STEVE FINAN: Dundee Olympia probe must examine EVERYTHING – not just latest closure

I watched the live stream of Dundee City Council’s governance committee debating an inquiry into the Olympia debacle. I thought I’d strayed into...

23.04.2024 20

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Broughty Ferry sculpture was missed chance to support Dundee talent

The new sculpture at Broughty Ferry cycle path is a disgrace. Not the way it looks, its provenance is the problem. The Murraygate dragon, inspired by...

17.04.2024 4

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Will Magdalen Green bridge become latest smoke and mirrors ‘consultation’?

Dundee City Council’s consultation on a new bridge at Magdalen Green has been branded “shockingly poor”. How depressingly unsurprising. I have...

10.04.2024 20

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee low emission zone is gesture politics at best

You’ll have seen the TV ads warning that, in two months, entering Dundee’s Low Emissions Zone (LEZ) with an unclean vehicle attracts a £60 fine....

03.04.2024 6

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee’s council leader hiding from public damages the city’s reputation

I wrote recently that the way they deal with problems marks the difference between a career politician and a real-world worker. As if to prove my...

27.03.2024 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee’s council leader hiding from public damages the city’s reputation

I wrote recently that the way they deal with problems marks the difference between a career politician and a real-world worker. As if to prove my...

27.03.2024 4

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Make Dundee capital city of UK national grid and watch money roll in

Almost exactly seven months ago, Dundee City Council leader John Alexander spoke out after Dundee was utterly unfairly not given investment zone...

20.03.2024 4

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Merge Dundee and Angus education and put the money saved into classrooms and libraries

At a time when local governments are starved of cash no one should get a free ride at the taxpayers’ expense. To save significant money we need...

13.03.2024 1

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Olympia is smoking gun exposing Dundee City Council incompetence

On Monday and Tuesday, damning articles about The Olympia debacle were published. The reports were a superb example of journalism by Dale Haslam. To...

28.02.2024 6

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: If councils don’t like their budgets they need to fight with BOTH governments

John Alexander’s statement yesterday was hugely interesting. I thank him for coming out and speaking directly to the city. If only his fellow...

21.02.2024 4

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: I’ve been accused of bad-mouthing Dundee by writing about Olympia scandal – and it’s nonsense

With the discordant clang of an iron rod falling from a flume, the Olympia debacle is back in sharp focus. The Dundee City Council response, or lack...

14.02.2024 5

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: How can Dundee cycle paths survive while education and safety services face being savaged?

Is it just me? Is there something I’m not understanding? Can no one else see the obvious solution to Dundee’s financial black hole? I understand...

07.02.2024 8

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: How can more Dundonians be encouraged to use public transport if there are fewer buses?

Several bus services in Dundee are to be axed within weeks. That’s not good. And a bit of a surprise. A surprise because (I quote Dundee City...

01.02.2024 10

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Can council heads be the Batman and Robin Dundee needs to save Western Gateway school?

Dundee’s Western Gateway school wasn’t given funding, despite meeting the Scottish Government’s selection criteria. The reason Holyrood gave...

24.01.2024 7

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee and Dundee United ground-share is slippery slope to Merged FC

It’s not often I disagree with Jim Spence. I like him very much as a person and respect him as a journalist and a man of principle. But when it...

17.01.2024 10

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee FC leaving Dens opens opportunity for worldwide football museum

Dundee has an opportunity to do something unique. Bear with me as I set the scene. Many of the nation’s great football stadiums – Old Trafford,...

10.01.2024 8

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee SNP councillors are afraid to fight for the city

The SNP group on Dundee City Council are the one group of Dundonians who could quickly hold their leader to account over the Olympia scandal. They...

03.01.2024 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee SNP councillors are afraid to fight for the city

The SNP group on Dundee City Council are the one group of Dundonians who could quickly hold their leader to account over the Olympia scandal. They...

03.01.2024 4

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Latest Olympia ‘explanation’ won’t fool Dundee

I am hugely disappointed by Dundee City Council leader John Alexander’s “explanation” of the Olympia debacle. It wasn’t an explanation. It was...

28.12.2023 6

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: All of Dundee should have their say in survey – it could be last chance to save city centre

A voluntary survey is an unsatisfactory way to gauge the opinions of businesses and the Dundee public on the introduction of wide cycle lanes in city...

20.12.2023 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee’s Olympia finally open but decisions and actions must be explained

On Monday Dundee’s Olympia is to reopen after its closure for, initially, a faulty light fitting. Repairs have cost £6 million and taken nearly 28...

13.12.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Basic services are facing cuts in Dundee – why should vanity projects survive?

I’ve been looking into the details of the latest streets in which Dundee City Council proposes to install walking, wheeling and cycling lanes. With...

06.12.2023 6

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee Olympia may finally be re-opening but will inquiry ever come?

A pivotal moment is coming next week for Dundee’s SNP councillors, when elected members get a tour of the (bafflingly still closed) Olympia....

29.11.2023 5

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Does John Alexander’s bold announcement mean Dundee’s fortunes are finally changing?

I am always intrigued by anyone saying “this is what I’m going to achieve”. Sometimes it’s a sign of confidence, sometimes they’ve mistaken...

22.11.2023 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Olympia fire safety guidance neglect only strengthens argument for full inquiry

A whistleblower revealed that fire damper testing at Dundee’s Olympia centre wasn’t done for eight years. This took a Freedom of Information...

14.11.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: How will councils survive tax freeze? Try cutting chief executives’ salaries

I noticed Angus Council last week appointed a new chief executive, Kathryn Lindsay. Her salary will be, astoundingly, £128,000. In Dundee, chief...

08.11.2023 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Insulating homes will do more for climate change – and saving lives – than cycle paths

I admire opinions presented in robust language. I believe sharp words cut across boredom thresholds, so let’s talk about active travel routes in...

01.11.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee and Angus councils must put protecting lives before vanity projects

The flooding in Dundee and across Angus shows the possibility of a new weather normal. We’ve seen extreme events across the world: wildfires,...

25.10.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundonians have right to know EVERYTHING about £6m Olympia failures

The Olympia is to reopen in a few weeks. That’s a good thing. But let me tell you what will happen. Dundee City Council’s accompanying press...

11.10.2023 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: I have nothing against cyclists, but Dundee active travel plan costs too much to benefit too few

Dundee City Council clearly has a concept of a typical Dundonian: they are aged 18 to 35, physically fit, love cycling, hate cars, and their life goal...

04.10.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: A year on, I’m more convinced than ever Dundee should expand into Fife, Angus and Perthshire

A year has passed since I started writing this column. That first week I complained Dundee’s boundaries were too tightly drawn and, 12 months later,...

28.09.2023 3

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Can Dundee find SNP politicians braver than this limp lot?

The discipline of Dundee City Council’s SNP group is wonderful for their party – but a bad thing for Dundee. I’ll tell you exactly why. I was...

20.09.2023 5

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: How can Dundee politicians stomach multi-million pound ‘stitch-up’?

Right, let me start by saying I don’t care who you vote for in a general or Scottish election. I defend to the death your right to vote as you...

15.09.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee aches for V&A to succeed – but why can’t you celebrate our city a bit more?

The numbers showing the benefits the V&A has brought to Dundee were impressive. Generating £304 million for the Scottish economy from 1.7 million...

13.09.2023 2

The Courier

Steve Finan

STEVE FINAN: Dundee SNP group don’t rock the boat – and that’s a problem ahead of contest for new seat

The Westminster parliament must be dissolved by December 17 2024. Wise folk predict an April or October election. I doubt it’ll happen early. The...

07.09.2023 5

The Courier

Steve Finan

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