A letter from our new editor: Hope springs eternal, this spring

It is a privilege to introduce myself today as the new editor of The Scotsman. But it has, I'll confess, been an unusual first week.

Neil McIntosh took up the position as editor of The Scotsman this week

Any induction to a job should involve a blur of new faces, unfamiliar corridors and the hunt for a vending machine.

Inevitably, this week has been different, sat in a back room at home where I've spent much of the last year. At least I knew where the coffee pot was.

And not all about The Scotsman is new to me. I started my career here in the 1990s, writing a weekly column about the internet, and also worked on the Edinburgh Evening News.

Subsequent travels saw me work for the Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and the BBC. But with The Scotsman and its sister titles under the new, ambitious ownership of National World, I leapt at the chance to return. As Scotland emerges from the pandemic and makes vital decisions about its future, it was impossible to resist the opportunity to ensure The Scotsman pursues vigorously its 204-year-old mission to "exhibit, as much as possible, the very shape and pressure of the times".

We hope to move from tracking the relentless toll of the last year towards a global celebration - of family reunions, a summer of sport, our festivals. We will wholeheartedly support the people and businesses helping our nation recover. And we will keep a keen eye on those whose decisions, necessarily, have had such an impact on our lives and freedoms over the last year.

The last few days have been busy, and full of contrasts. A constant has been the sadness at the Duke of Edinburgh's death, and preparation for his funeral today. But there has also been the happy anticipation of the relaxation of lockdown across Scotland, and the growing pace of vaccination here. Hope springs eternal, this spring.

Your support remains vital to this institution. By subscribing online or buying the paper you sustain The Scotsman. Thank you. And I will always be glad to hear from you, either on our famous letters page, or via [email protected].