WAY back in 1975, when a young Gordon Brown believed in social democracy, he edited what became the influential Red Paper on Scotland. Brown was elected as rector of the University of Edinburgh in 1972 and it was through this office that he then edited the Red Paper. On an array of matters, the Red Paper set out an alternative, radical and progressive vision for society in Scotland.
Some 20 years on, Brown had his opportunity as chancellor and then prime minister under four Labour governments between 1997 and 2010 to carry that vision forward into practice. He chose not to do so.
