Mike Stevenson

I’ve never subscribed to the “best small country in the world” line. Why? Because it seems to do what we specialise in – belittle ourselves. Why is every positive statement so often qualified by a diminishing one? Small? Yes, we are in relative terms, but let’s not flag that up unless we really use it to our advantage. Our compactness is an asset and offers a multiplicity of opportunities – swifter communication, fewer cultural tensions, less red tape, greater freedom for ideas to come to fruition more quickly, national initiatives developed and implemented more easily, and barriers to progress knocked down with greater ease. (more…)