Discussion on ‘The Neoproterozoic to Mid-Devonian evolution of Scotland: a review and unresolved issues’ Scottish Journal of Geology, 51, 5–30

A review of any field, and perhaps especially that of the evolution of the Scottish crust, should include reference to all the relevant scientific work brought to bear on that field; not excepting studies which provide alternatives to those of the authors or indeed controversial views. The review of Dewey et al. (2015), while it does not ‘attempt in-depth analyses of any terrain or tectonic topic … but mainly poses questions’ (Dewey et al. 2015, p. 5), clearly does not fit the above criteria, in that it ignores completely the many crucial arguments regarding the evolution of the Scottish crust posed by the late Professor Brian Bluck and his many co-authors over the period 1980 – 2015. Such a body of evidence-based and closely argued work should, of course, be open to challenge but it should not, and cannot be, simply ignored.