The Herald

The Herald | Politics


Scotland's £600,000 aid gift to Gaza hailed as ?lifeline?
15 Nov 2025 at 9:44am
The Scottish Government said the money will support the delivery of a number of vital services


What must Rachel Reeves do to get UK believing in itself again?
15 Nov 2025 at 4:30am
Is the forthcoming Budget the last attempt this Government will have to turn the ship around?


Doctors warn unregulated Botox ?putting pressure? on NHS Scotland
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am
Doctors say complications from 'unregulated' cosmetic injectables are adding ?further pressure? to Scotland?s NHS as figures show demand for care.


Rachel Reeves to U-turn on controversial plans to raise income tax in UK budget
14 Nov 2025 at 10:03am
Rachel Reeves has reportedly U-turned on the decision to raise income tax at the upcoming budget on November 26 following significant public scrutiny.


Scotland must not 'write off' problematic children, charity warns in poverty ...
14 Nov 2025 at 5:30am
Scotland needs a 'shift' in power to tackle child poverty and exploitation, Action for Children have warned the next government.


Political uncertainty to push up cost of Scotland?s 'kilt' bonds
14 Nov 2025 at 5:00am
Investors warn Scotland?s first bond issue will carry a political risk premium, pushing borrowing costs above UK gilts despite matching credit ratings.


SNP urges Labour to boost offshore wind support as firms warn of lost jobs
14 Nov 2025 at 5:00am
The SNP has urged the Labour Government to increase support for Scottish offshore wind projects as industry leaders warn jobs and investment are at risk.


HES chief under investigation after grievance made by all seven directors
14 Nov 2025 at 6:40pm
A collective grievance by all seven directors of the government's crisis hit heritage agency is what triggered an investigation into the organisation's chief executive Katerina Brown.


Advocate warns of appeals after Supreme Court backs challenge to rape shield ...
14 Nov 2025 at 2:09pm
A high profile advocate who claims laws to protect rape victims have been violating the  right to a fair trial in Scotland has called for the appointment of a retired judge to examine potential miscarriages of justice.


Expert group calls for sweeping reform of Scotland?s abortion law
14 Nov 2025 at 10:30am
An expert group has called for a move towards decriminalisation of abortion and major legal reform in Scotland, urging for abortion to be solely treated as healthcare.


Lack of support for recall Bill would be ?failure of Parliament?, MSPs told
13 Nov 2025 at 7:36pm
Not passing a Bill which would allow for MSPs to lose their seats would be a ?failure of Parliament?, the member behind it has said.


Ministers ?choosing? silence on trans prisoner case, government admits
13 Nov 2025 at 3:45pm
The Scottish Government has admitted ministers chose not to comment on the transgender prisoner court case, despite no legal bar to doing so.


Sarwar says Downing Street row has undermined' UK Government message
13 Nov 2025 at 2:43pm
Anas Sarwar says the Downing Street briefing row has ?undermined? the UK Government?s message ahead of the Budget.


Lawyers expecting 'multiple' appeals against sex crimes convictions after ruling
13 Nov 2025 at 2:22pm
Multiple appeals are expected to be triggered by men convicted of serious sexual offences after a landmark Supreme Court ruling yesterday.

The Scotsman

The Scotsman Politics


Angus Robertson: Everyone asks about Scottish independence when I'm overseas
15 Nov 2025 at 6:00am

The SNP External Affairs Secretary said he was asked about the constitution ?all the time?

The tourist levy is coming into force in Edinburgh on July 24 next year

Invinity Energy Systems has said it could bring the jobs to its Motherwell and Bathgate sites

Katerina Brown was suspended just months into the role as CEO of Heritage Environment Scotland over these allegations

Wings over Scotland

Over The Hill And Down The Slope
14 Nov 2025 at 1:15pm
We’ve just been leaked the SNP’s first poster roughs for Holyrood 2026. One more push, everyone!

Grift Away
8 Nov 2025 at 2:31pm
Oh good, another plan. Just three and a half years to wait. Should we, what’s the phrase, “Save The Date”? Rhetorical question, obviously. If you’re in a hurry, folks, just scroll down to the video and start there, because Believe In Scotland’s latest wheeze to get hold of your folding money and stash it in …

Rise Of The Machine
7 Nov 2025 at 11:49am
It’s Wings’ 14th birthday today, and to be entirely honest with you, readers, like a lot of teenagers we’re having a bit of an existential crisis. It’s quite difficult to see any point in being a Scottish political journalist for the next five years, because it’s just going to be one depressing Groundhog Day after …

How To Create Racists
29 Oct 2025 at 2:36pm
This really is an extraordinary headline, for multiple reasons. Because what actually IS “the rise of Reform”? ? The only thing “the rise of Reform” can possibly mean here is “more and more people choosing to vote for, or express their support for, a particular lawful political party in a democracy”. Why are we supposed …

Great news, everyone!
27 Oct 2025 at 11:04am
We?re important! Something to look forward to there, then.

The Music That Nobody Likes
24 Oct 2025 at 12:42pm
Perhaps the key graphic from last night’s by-election in Caerphilly is this one (green means Plaid Cymru in the context of Wales): In the end, Plaid won pretty comfortably in what had been predicted to be a very tight contest between them and Reform, with a majority of almost 4,000. But Plaid aren’t going to …

The Icarus Folly
22 Oct 2025 at 4:27pm
Last month, when half a football team of armed police ambushed and arrested comedy writer Graham Linehan at Heathrow Airport for a couple of tweets, we said this: Today, even more swiftly than we thought, this happened: Rarely can a hand have been overplayed so badly. Fans of free speech owe a huge vote of …

Courage Calls To None
17 Oct 2025 at 1:24pm
We should point out right at the start that a reader donated £12 back in the summer specifically to send us to Nicola Sturgeon’s book event in Bath last night. We assume it was someone we’d upset in some way. We arrived bang on 6.30, expecting to be among the first on the scene, but …

Your enemy?s mistakes
16 Oct 2025 at 5:03pm
So on the surface level this is just flat-out hilarious. Firstly because, as we showed you yesterday, the “significant proportion of Scotland’s population” which appears to have been won back to the SNP since John Swinney became its leader is… 1%. That’s all their vote has actually increased by as Scottish Labour have haemorrhaged support …

Come On Baby, Let?s Do The Twist
16 Oct 2025 at 11:34am
All of the words you’re about to read below were written by the same person in the last few days. It’s completely verbatim and none of it is taken in any way out of context. It means what it sounds like it means. But even if you’ve got a forehead the size of the “eggheads” …

Craig Murray

UN Reform and Scottish Independence
14 Nov 2025 at 11:06am

Scottish Independence is an extremely attractive prospect to states at the United Nations, and for reasons that you might not expect. Every state knows that the current UN structure is outdated and indefensible, with five states – US, China, Russia, UK and France – having a permanent seat and a total veto on the Security …

UN Reform and Scottish Independence

The Four Mentors of King Charles
6 Nov 2025 at 3:40pm

As Godfather to Prince William, heir to the British throne, Prince Charles chose his close friend and adviser Laurens van der Post. A paedophile. Van der Post raped a 14 year old girl who had been given into his care for the sea voyage from South Africa to London. He then installed her in a …

The Four Mentors of King Charles

UK Government Opposes Application for Scottish Judicial Review of Palestine A...
30 Oct 2025 at 5:27pm

The UK government – in the undistinguished shape of Baroness Smith of Cluny, Labour party hack, youngest daughter of John Smith and Advocate-General for Scotland – has responded to the court in our request for a Scottish judicial review of the proscription of Palestine Action. The Government asks that the judicial review be denied on …

UK Government Opposes Application for Scottish Judicial Review of Palestine Action Terrorist Proscription

Urgent ? We Need a Federal Your Party
29 Oct 2025 at 2:34pm

The draft Your Party constitution is for a highly centralised, London-based party which echoes the Labour Party. It “devolves” – they literally use the word – power from the centre to non-autonomous entities in Scotland and Wales. We need a Federal party – a completely different approach – where authority lies with the members, and …

Urgent – We Need a Federal Your Party

I Have Joined Your Party
27 Oct 2025 at 6:55pm

I am taking the plunge into Your Party. My worries remain about its centralist tendencies and lack of democracy, but I will work against those from within. Your Party is not a unionist party. It does not yet have a policy on Scottish Independence. I shall of course be striving for it actively to support …

I Have Joined Your Party

A Quick Intellectual Canter
20 Oct 2025 at 2:35pm

This is more video of me than anybody would ever want to see, but here are three interviews I did over the weekend. The first covers the legal action against the proscription of Palestine Action, Starmer’s summary courts for peaceful protestors charged with “terrorism”, UK and US efforts to legalise the Israeli occupation of Gaza …

A Quick Intellectual Canter

BBC Scotland

Thousands take to streets to highlight 'climate emergency'
15 Nov 2025 at 4:24pm
Demonstrators marched through Glasgow city centre on a day of global action to coincide with the COP30 climate talks in Brazil.

Scottish abortion law 'not fit for purpose', says expert group
14 Nov 2025 at 12:51pm
Currently, an abortion is only legal before 24 weeks when two doctors agree that certain grounds have been met.

Plan to allow voters to remove MSPs backed by parliament
13 Nov 2025 at 5:21pm
Unlike Westminster, Holyrood does not have a mechanism allowing constituents to recall their representatives.

Scottish government aiming to issue first bonds in 2026-27
13 Nov 2025 at 12:22pm
Scottish ministers wants to use bonds to raise money from investors to fund infrastructure projects.

What difference could bonds make to funding a future Scotland?
13 Nov 2025 at 4:59pm
Scottish ministers are to issue bonds for the first time but is that the best way for a country to borrow money?

Police chief says force will always record rapists as men
12 Nov 2025 at 4:28pm
Police Scotland has clarified its policy on how rapes and attempted rapes are registered on its system.

Why Scotland's teachers want 90 minutes back
12 Nov 2025 at 6:28am
Scotland's teachers are preparing to vote on industrial action over workload and time spent in front of pupils.

Early release of prisoners will cause victims anxiety, admits minister
11 Nov 2025 at 5:08pm
The emergency scheme which will see nearly 1,000 inmates freed from Scotland's jails is set to get under way.

Minimum age in assisted dying bill raised to 18
11 Nov 2025 at 2:12pm
MSPs on Holyrood's health committee have backed an amendment to raise the lower threshold from 16.

Breastfeeding rates in Scotland at record high
11 Nov 2025 at 3:02pm
Breastfeeding rates in Scotland are at the highest level since official records began, Public Health Scotland (PHS) data shows.

Sarwar refuses to comment on UK tax hike speculation
10 Nov 2025 at 1:03pm
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has fuelled speculation that she could announce an increase in the Autumn Budget.

SNP take over running of Stirling Council
10 Nov 2025 at 6:08pm
An agreement has also been reached that sees the first Scottish Green join the administration.

Scot Goes Pop

Uncharted territory as party in favour of Scottish independence takes second ...
14 Nov 2025 at 1:32pm
* .* .*With less than two months of the year left to go, the 2025 Scot Goes Pop fundraiser is still short of its target figure.  If you'd like to help keep the lights on during the several months i...

Let's build a wall, and put Nigel Farage on the other side of it
13 Nov 2025 at 9:06pm
You've got to admit, I'm on a roll with these.

Why independence would save money for HARD-WORKING SCOTTISH TAXPAYERS
13 Nov 2025 at 8:12pm
I hope you appreciate these, because it took about fifteen attempts before Grok gave me versions with only minimal spelling mistakes.  And yes, I know they're too wordy, but regard them as a work i...

Another week, another majestic SNP lead in YouGov's Scottish subsample
12 Nov 2025 at 2:46am
* .* .*With less than two months of the year left to go, the 2025 Scot Goes Pop fundraiser is still short of its target figure.  If you'd like to help keep the lights on during the several months i...

The Alba Party angrily denies allegations it has illegally nominated by-elect...
10 Nov 2025 at 9:57pm
As you may have seen on The National's website, the Alba Party is belatedly now a McEleny-free zone.  A whole six months after his expulsion from the party, Chris McEleny has been forcibly removed ...

Why the Believe in Scotland plan to win independence could be a GAME-CHANGER
10 Nov 2025 at 7:57am
When I first heard in vague terms what was in the new Believe in Scotland plan to win independence, I was sceptical, and I expected to be even more sceptical once I had read it in full - but I was ...

Are Labour quite sure there are no downsides to going all in on being the par...
9 Nov 2025 at 10:29am
 

A response to Alba man Jim Cassidy's rather cowardly personal attack
8 Nov 2025 at 12:22pm
This is a blogpost I've been meaning to write for a little while, and as my previous post contained yet more allegations about sleaze in the Alba Party, this may be as good a moment as any to do it...

STV Politics News

Latest Politics News | STV News

Greens need ?most effective? Holyrood campaign to counter Reform, says Ross G...
15 Nov 2025 at 12:04pm
Greer said he is focused on 'defeating the really hateful politics that are going to arrive in this Parliament'.

UK Government urged to lift two-child limit in Budget
14 Nov 2025 at 11:43am
The social justice secretary said such policies should be ?confined to the darkest days of austerity?.

Devolution has been ?step backwards? for local democracy, paper warns
14 Nov 2025 at 7:03am
A paper written by former Stirling Council chief urges ministers to devolve power from the Scottish Government to local leaders.

Neil Gray announces hundreds of extra staff as part of £20m health measures t...
13 Nov 2025 at 6:06pm
Almost 300 frontline A&E staff will be brought in this year as experts predict an early and 'difficult' flu season.

John Swinney tells family of Sheku Bayoh finding new inquiry chair will be ma...
13 Nov 2025 at 4:35pm
The inquiry into Sheku Bayoh's death has been paused after chairman Lord Bracadale stood down in October.

Scottish Government ?remains open? to national grooming gang inquiry
13 Nov 2025 at 2:35pm
Swinney was challenged to agree to establish a national inquiry at First Minister's Questions on Thursday.

John Swinney to face FMQs after grooming gangs victim urges national inquiry
13 Nov 2025 at 11:54am
FMQs will be broadcast from the Scottish Parliament at midday on Thursday.

Scotland ?on track? to issue first bonds in 2026-27
13 Nov 2025 at 11:50am
It comes after the Scottish Government was given the same high credit rating as the UK by two global agencies.

Swinney urged by grooming gangs victim to launch national inquiry
13 Nov 2025 at 11:31am
Taylor has written to the Scottish First Minister about abuse she says she was subjected to while aged 13 and in care.

Anglesey selected as site for UK?s first small modular reactor nuclear plant
13 Nov 2025 at 12:17am
The first-of-its-kind project on the former nuclear site at Wylfa on Anglesey, North Wales is backed by £2.5 billion government investment.

Clarity on Government?s stance on Rosebank ?nowhere to be seen?, say Greens
12 Nov 2025 at 6:01pm
The party forced a vote on the issue on Wednesday.

Legislation to strip free bus passes from anti-social youths coming next month
12 Nov 2025 at 5:59pm
Connectivity minister Jim Fairlie confirmed secondary legislation will be laid at Holyrood in December to allow the move.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer ?didn?t authorise attacks on Cabinet members? ami...
12 Nov 2025 at 3:23pm
Starmer said any attack on any member of his Cabinet is 'absolutely unacceptable'.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer to face PMQs amid rumours of leadership challenge
12 Nov 2025 at 11:47am
PMQs will be broadcast from the House of Commons at midday on Wednesday.

Daily Record

Daily Record - Politics

The UK Budget must make life easier for working people by lowering energy bills
14 Nov 2025 at 4:07pm
Writing for the Record, the Scottish Labour leader sets out what he hopes to see from Rachel Reeves' Budget statement later this month.

Anas Sarwar brands SNP 'economically illiterate' in clash over income tax rises
14 Nov 2025 at 3:54pm
EXCLUSIVE: The Scottish Labour leader accused the SNP of "effectively arguing for a cut to its own budget".

Anas Sarwar demands Rachel Reeves uses Budget to finally scrap two-child cap ...
14 Nov 2025 at 2:34pm
The Scottish Labour leader said Rachel Reeves had to deliver a Budget that "confronts child poverty".

Rachel Reeves ditches plans to hike income tax as UK borrowing costs jump
14 Nov 2025 at 10:36am
Income tax levels in Scotland are set by Holyrood but spending decisions set by Reeves have a major impact on how much funding is available to the SNP Government.

Sheku Bayoh family meets John Swinney and demands public inquiry into dad's d...
13 Nov 2025 at 3:55pm
The First Minister reiterated to Bayoh's sister Kadi Johnson his Government?s commitment to establishing the relevant facts surrounding her brother's death.

Anas Sarwar would struggle to find the route to victory at Holyrood with a pa...
13 Nov 2025 at 2:55pm
Daily Record Political Editor Paul Hutcheon says the latest nonsense from Downing Street is another example of the Labour Government scuppering Sarwar.

Anas Sarwar blasts ?deeply unhelpful? and ?unacceptable? Downing Street brief...
13 Nov 2025 at 1:36pm
The Scottish Labour leader hit out after over 24 hours of chaos at the heart of the UK Government.

John Swinney 'open' to grooming gangs inquiry after heartbreaking letter by v...
13 Nov 2025 at 12:41pm
The First Minister hinted at a national probe after the Record revealed the case of a thirteen year old who was abused while she was in care.

Alan Cumming claims Westminster should get its 'boots off our necks' in row o...
13 Nov 2025 at 11:58am
The New York-based actor and friend of Nicola Sturgeon claimed it ?blows my mind? to see ministers in London ?interfering in what the democratically elected people have decided to do?.

Top cop insists Glasgow city centre is 'safe place to visit' as police crack ...
13 Nov 2025 at 4:30am
Dozens of officers flooded the streets of central Glasgow yesterday following two months' of intelligence gathering on illegal drug dealing networks.

The National

The National | Politics

Wes Streeting urged to 'come clean over £200k from private-health linked donors'
15 Nov 2025 at 2:00pm

WES Streeting has been urged to ?come clean? about the benefits private healthcare companies are reaping for alleged donations worth more than £200,000 made to the Labour MP by individuals linked to the sector.

US president Donald Trump to lodge multi-billion lawsuit against BBC 'next week'
15 Nov 2025 at 8:41am

DONALD Trump has said he will sue the BBC next week after the corporation apologised but declined to compensate him for its edited version of a 2021 speech broadcast by Panorama

BBC must apologise for 'justifying the unjustifiable', former correspondent says
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

THE BBC owes the people of Gaza an apology for helping to ?justify the unjustifiable?, a former correspondent for the broadcaster has said ...

What can the Picts teach us about a route to Scottish independence?
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

MYSTERIOUS, tattooed (or painted), their language obscure, their monumental stones all over the north and the east ...

Trump got an apology. Gaza got silence: Why I quit as a BBC correspondent
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

THAT was the breaking point. I resigned from the BBC, effective immediately ...

Mhairi Black: This is what the row engulfing the BBC is really about
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

THIS week saw the president of the United States threaten to sue the BBC for $1 billion over an edited clip in a Panorama documentary ...

Why should Scotland follow poor English examples and pay billions for nuclear?
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

PRIME Minister Keir Starmer and Anas Sarwar this week made further statements in support of more nuclear power in Scotland ...

No, Time magazine. King Charles is not a 'titan of climate change'. He's a hy...
15 Nov 2025 at 5:00am

A CLAIM by Time magazine that Britain?s monarch is a climate change ?titan? is another chapter in royal greenwashing ...

300 organisations warn Labour: 'We will not comply with proposed Home Office ...
14 Nov 2025 at 7:15pm

HUNDREDS of charities and voluntary organisations have warned the UK Government that they will not comply with plans to force asylum seekers to complete voluntary work ...

The stench of death hangs around Keir Starmer's Labour Party
14 Nov 2025 at 5:51pm

MALODOROUS vapours have infected Westminster. Literally

Holyrood Magazine

Holyrood Website

Scottish Affairs Committee launches inquiry into rural digital connectivity ?
14 Nov 2025 at 3:19pm
The Scottish Affairs Committee has launched an inquiry into how digital connectivity can be improved across rural and remote parts of Scotland

Labour set to U-turn on plan to raise income tax
14 Nov 2025 at 10:10am
Chancellor Rachel Reeves had been expected to raise income tax in this month's Budget

Recall system backed in principle by Scottish Parliament
13 Nov 2025 at 5:35pm
A review of the complaints and sanctions process was also agreed

Scottish Government ?open? to grooming gangs inquiry
13 Nov 2025 at 3:18pm
Russell Findlay called for a ?full and fearless? investigation during FMQs

Anas Sarwar says ?deeply unhelpful? leadership briefings must stop
13 Nov 2025 at 1:31pm
He did not answer a question about whether he would rather have Keir Starmer or Wes Streeting by his side next May

Elon Musk?s Grok AI chatbot falsely claims Trump won the 2020 US presidential...
13 Nov 2025 at 1:25pm
Grok, the chatbot developed by Elon Musk?s xAI company, has claimed that Donald Trump won the 2020 US presidential election

UK Government introduces law to tackle AI child abuse images
13 Nov 2025 at 11:03am
The UK Government has released new legislation that allows them to work with the artificial intelligence industry and child protection organisations to ensure AI models cannot be misused to create synthetic child sexual abuse content

Scotland's credit rating matches UK ahead of first bonds issue
13 Nov 2025 at 10:08am
?1.5bn plan aims to raise money for public services from investors

Lower wages reducing impact of Scottish taxation, Audit Scotland finds
13 Nov 2025 at 7:00am
Auditor General calls for transparency over impact of tax choices

Douglas Alexander calls for ?new crusade? on Scottish devolution
13 Nov 2025 at 6:00am
Scottish secretary to address Cosla convention

Guardian - Scottish Politics

Scottish politics | The Guardian

Starmer stands by McSweeney and says he has been ?assured no briefings agains...
13 Nov 2025 at 6:06pm
This blog has now closed, you can read more on this story herePA Media has more on what the monthly performance figures from NHS England show. PA says:The data shows 180,329 people in England had been waiting more than a year to start routine hospital treatment at the end of September, down from ...

Scotland plans to issue £1.5bn of its own bonds ? ?kilts? rather than gilts
13 Nov 2025 at 12:48pm
Announcement by first minister John Swinney comes after Moody?s and S&P give country same credit rating as UKThe Scottish first minister John Swinney has said Edinburgh is on track to issue its own government bonds, nicknamed ?kilts?, after the country was given the same credit rating as the UK.T...

The Guardian view on Scottish land reform: vast estates remain feudal in scal...
9 Nov 2025 at 5:25pm
Half of the country?s privately owned countryside is held by just 421 owners. New legislation suggests democrats still fear powerful interestsNo other European country has such a narrow base of proprietorship as Scotland. Half of all privately owned rural land is held by 421 people or entities. T...

Nicola Sturgeon: I understand why people doubt my ignorance of alleged SNP em...
7 Nov 2025 at 3:20pm
?Trust me, I had no idea? about potential wrongdoing in Scottish National party, says former first ministerNicola Sturgeon on leadership, scandal and trolling the trolls ? podcastNicola Sturgeon has said she fully understands why many people find it hard to believe she had no idea about alleged e...

Nicola Sturgeon on leadership, scandal and trolling the trolls ? podcast
7 Nov 2025 at 5:00am
In a special, bonus episode of Politics Weekly, Pippa Crerar and Kiran Stacey sit down with Scotland?s former first minister Nicola Sturgeon for a frank conversation about her time in office and the future of nationalist politics.Nothing is off the table: her leadership, Covid, the gender row tha...

Lammy says he was not ?equipped with the details? when facing questions on mi...
6 Nov 2025 at 5:22pm
This live blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereDavid Lammy, the deputy PM and justice secretary, has welcomed the fact that Billy Smith is back in custody, but described the spike in release mistakes as ?unacceptable?.According to PA Media, Lammy said:William Smith is back in c...

Met police issue statement with more information about missing Algerian priso...
5 Nov 2025 at 6:18pm
This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story hereDavid Lammy starts by saying the PM is in Brazil.He says the thoughts of all MPs are still with the victims of the appalling attacks in Huntingdon and Peterborough, where, he says, he was at school for seven years. Continue reading...

Reeves says she should have checked rental licence had been obtained as letti...
30 Oct 2025 at 6:50pm
No 10 releases redacted emails between Reeves? husband and letting agentRachel Reeves? rental error: standards adviser looking at new informationRobert Peston, ITV?s political editor, says he thinks it is a mistake for the Conservatives to be saying Rachel Reeves should have to resign over the re...

MPs vote down Farage?s proposal for UK to leave ECHR ? as it happened
29 Oct 2025 at 5:20pm
This blog is now closed, you can read more of our UK political coverage hereMark Sedwill, the former cabinet secretary and former national security adviser, goes next. He is now a peer, and a member of the committee.He says the deputy national security adviser, Matthew Collins, thought there was ...

Cruise control: could a £5 ?entry? fee help balance Orkney?s needs with touri...
26 Oct 2025 at 7:00am
With tourists outnumbering locals by 20:1, islanders say levy is needed to help protect neolithic sites and maintain public servicesArtisan jewellery, gift and whisky shops crowd the main street of Kirkwall on Orkney. The town even has a new sushi shop, offering bento boxes and matcha cheesecake....

Wee Ginger Dug

Wee Ginger Dug

Just get your boots off our necks, Westminster
14 Nov 2025 at 3:23pm
In an interview with The National newspaper, the actor Alan Cumming, who currently hosts the US version of the popular show The Traitors and who is outspoken in his support for Scottish independence, demanded “Get just get your boots off our necks, Westminster.” He made the powerful call for Scottish self-determination in connection with the …

No, independence supporters? compaints about BBC bias are nothing like Trump
12 Nov 2025 at 3:01pm
There is certainly no love lost between supporters of Scottish independence and the BBC. It is however egregious I’m-not-a-nationalist-I’m-British bollocks to suggest, as former Labour party hack Carlos Alba writes in Wednesday’s Herald newspaper, that Yes supporters are now on the side of Donald Trump as he threatens the Corporation with a billion dollar lawsuit …

Believe in Scotland?s path to independence, the routemap we need
10 Nov 2025 at 7:25pm
I have previously blogged about my view that the UK is entering a terminal phase crisis which it is unlikely to survive in its current form. The pro-independence campaign group Believe in Scotland is of a similar opinion and believes that this crisis provides Scotland and Wales with a unique opportunity to seize independence and …

Labour?s doomed attempt to paint the SNP as a threat to national security
6 Nov 2025 at 3:34pm
The oil is running out, all the banks will leave, you won’t have a pension, you can’t use the pound, the EU won’t let you back in, and now we have – the SNP are a threat to national security. This wasn’t an off the cuff remark from a harried Labour minister being put under …

The need for iGERS
4 Nov 2025 at 5:13pm
The pro-independence campaign group Believe in Scotland has proposed a replacement for the discredited GERS (Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland) figures which are published every year to the delight of British nationalists up and down the land. These statistics, which as Professor of Accountancy Practice Richard Murphy regularly points out, are based on unreliable and …

Migrant hysteria, the lie driving the rise of the far right
31 Oct 2025 at 6:30pm
The far right is on the rise, and it’s on the rise due to an artificial panic manufactured by rich and powerful interests in order to distract public attention from the greed and avarice of the wealthiest in society, a tiny segment which has hoarded ever greater wealth over the past few decades even as …

Rising support for independence and the end of the so-called Union
27 Oct 2025 at 7:58pm
There have been some mixed messages recently from opinion polling about the SNP’s chances of winning a majority at next year’s Holyrood election. Over the weekend The National published a report of an analysis of recent polling which suggested that the SNP could win a majority in its own right. This contrasts with other polling …

The lessons of Caerffili for Holyrood 2026
24 Oct 2025 at 3:04pm
Some great news from Wales today. Plaid Cymru has smashed over 100 years of Labour domination and swept its way to victory in the Caerffili Senedd by election, taking 47% of votes cast. Although pollsters and bookies had fancied Reform UK to take the seat, in the end, Plaid left Reform in the dust, far …

Starmer needs to learn that Holyrood won?t be pushed around
22 Oct 2025 at 4:25pm
Scotland’s colonial governor, Wee Dougie Alexander, Labour’s answer to the toxic oil slick that is Michael Gove, has said that Westminster would “take an SNP majority at Holyrood seriously” after being pressed by SNP MP Stephen Gethins to respond to Keir Starmer’s recent comment that “if there’s an SNP majority in Holyood, it’s got to …

The short sighted stupidity of Reform UK?s climate denialism
20 Oct 2025 at 3:23pm
A number of recent opinion polls have found that the hard right Anglo-British nationalists of Reform UK are on course to win the next Westminster general election. That alarming prospect is still four years off and it’s entirely possible that Farage’s latest political vehicle will implode before then just as all his other political parties …

The Courier

[CaRP] Can't open remote newsfeed [403].
Scottish Politics News From Holyrood and Westminster | The Courier

Could Rosyth-Europe ferry set sail thanks to Brexit reset?
27 May 2025 at 6:01am
Hopes have been raised for a simple solution to a cross-border problem.

Kirkcaldy MP demands pro-suicide forum is torn down
26 May 2025 at 6:01am
Around 100 suicides have been linked to the sickening forum which provides guidance to people on ending their life.

UHI Perth aviation students warn of ?unsettling times? after training firm?s ...
26 May 2025 at 6:00am
Worried Samuel Hughes, 19, is among students sharing their fears at a time of crisis for Perth College.

Fresh Dundee University strike begins over compulsory Levehulme Centre job cuts
26 May 2025 at 6:00am
University staff are taking five days of industrial action as the institution pushes ahead with plans to axe the forensic research hub.

NHS Fife nurse at centre of controversial trans tribunal suing her own trade ...
25 May 2025 at 2:32pm
A&E medic Sandie Peggie is now taking legal action against the Royal College of Nursing.

EXCLUSIVE: Dundee University still to strike rescue deal with government
23 May 2025 at 5:46pm
Opposition MSPs have expressed concern at the time taken to agree a deal almost a month after the fresh recovery plan was unveiled.

6 senior figures who left Dundee University during financial crisis
23 May 2025 at 5:10pm
Several university chiefs have moved on since £30m financial black hole emerged.

Dundee University activist artist leads degree show protest over financial cr...
23 May 2025 at 4:45pm
Duncan of Jordanstone student Finn Millar says he wants to play a part in "keeping the university alive".

John Swinney admits constituents have expressed Perth leisure concerns to him
23 May 2025 at 6:01am
The first minister wants further talks between both sides of Perth leisure debate.

EXCLUSIVE: Dundee University chief operating officer Jim McGeorge quits
22 May 2025 at 1:58pm
Dr Jim McGeorge ? who was responsible for good governance - had been on a period of extended leave.

Talking up Scotland

Talking-up Scotland 'Albatraz'

As ?worst in decade? flu season looms SNP Scotland?s longstanding history of ...
15 Nov 2025 at 12:52pm
Anonymous The flu season has started early this year all across the UK not just Scotland, according to the UK Health Agency (November 13) in its ?National flu and COVID-19 surveillance report?. And on past performance, flu vaccine uptake in Scotland will compare well with other parts of the UK, again based on UKHA?s official records. For data on the 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons see https://www.g...

New radiation exposure limits ?catastrophic? for women and girls likely to be...
15 Nov 2025 at 8:59am
Professor John Robertson OBA From the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists yesterday: In a May executive order, aimed at ushering in what he described as an ?American nuclear renaissance,? President Donald Trump declared moot the science underpinning decades-old radiation exposure standards set by the federal government. Executive Order 14300 directed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to conduct...

Scotland?s flu season starts early but 18 years of SNP administration means w...
14 Nov 2025 at 11:03am
Professor John Robertson OBA From BBC Scotland‘s Lisa Summers, the above graph, and: There has been a sharp increase in flu cases detected in Scotland over the last week, official figures show. Data from Public Health Scotland (PHS) shows there were 431 new positive flu cases in the week ending 9 November, a 70% increase on the previous week when 253 cases were recorded. The number of patients ...

Once more ? Don?t be fooled by our media ghouls ? this is not a ?rape groomin...
14 Nov 2025 at 9:56am
Professor John Robertson OBA One survivor, one family in Glasgow does not make a rape grooming gang on a par with those in England, raiding children’s homes for thousands of victims, much as Joani Reid, Kemi Badenoch and many of the ghouls in Scotland’s ‘media’ might wish it was. Here are the facts again They, Scottish Labour and the MSM, would just love it if Scotland had one of those grooming...

In mid-November, as resident doctors in England actually begin strikes which ...
14 Nov 2025 at 9:07am
Professor John Robertson OBA BBC Scotland‘s insert in BBC Breakfast this morning headlined the ballot which may or may not lead to action ‘next year’, as resident doctors do actually go on strike in England. Since when did trade union ballots become front page news? Not one newspaper in Scotland has front-paged it. BBC Scotland‘s website below also had a link to the story. This is an editorial ...

Only YouGov can dig out a big NO prediction regardless of surrounding events ...
13 Nov 2025 at 8:30pm
Professor John Robertson OBA YouGov, two days ago, published their latest poll of support for Scottish independence and found a 3% No lead, the first NO lead since June and the first major lead for NO since, again, their own two polls in March 2025, at a time where other pollsters find steady and increasing YES leads in the context of increasing frustration with Westminster governments. YouGov ...

Scotland has 3 322 district nurses and England has shockingly only 4 000 for ...
13 Nov 2025 at 7:54pm
UK Government plans to move more NHS England care into the community and out of hospitals won?t be achievable with far fewer district nurses than in Scotland By stewartb Another contrast in favour of Scotland?s healthcare system which will receive no MSM media attention and candidly, little or acknowledgement either from the relevant trade union, concerns District Nursing. Source: Nufffield Tru...

War of the Labour Roses! Can the mutual admiration of Jackie Baillie and Wes ...
13 Nov 2025 at 1:43pm
Professor and Agony Aunt, John Robertson OBA On 7 August 2023, we could read in the National: Wes Streeting: Jackie Baillie ‘one of sharpest political minds in UK’ Today, in the Guardian, we see: British Medical Association ?threat to future of NHS?, says Streeting ahead of doctors? strike – Health secretary accuses doctors? union of ?cartel-like behaviour? and tells it to ?get real? over pay d...

How can midwives be at ?breaking point? with 15% more than NHS England and fa...
13 Nov 2025 at 11:50am
Professor John Robertson OBA Remember the days, less than 20 years ago, when corporate media like the Herald would only have trade unions on the front page to suggest they were selfish, overpaid, dishonest, a threat to the economy, the nation even. These days, they’re ‘useful idiots‘ to be exploited in the campaign for Labour in the next Holyrood election. I have 1 bairn (born in Falkirk) and t...

Jackie Baillie sets new low desperately trying to hide SNP Government?s huge ...
13 Nov 2025 at 10:50am
Professor John Robertson OBA Jackie Baillie, Labour Unhealthy Spokesperson, in the terminally-ill Scotsman yesterday, with the above claim. From BBC Health last week and being broadcast widely and frequently: Flu strikes every winter, but this year something seems to be different. A seasonal flu virus suddenly mutated in the summer. It appears to evade some of our immunity, has kick-started a f...

Scotland and Independence

"scotland independence -guardian" - Google News

The new hero of Scottish independence? Nigel Farage - politico.eu
13 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
The new hero of Scottish independence? Nigel Farage  politico.eu

Swinney sets out latest plan for an independence referendum - BBC
4 Sep 2025 at 8:00am
Swinney sets out latest plan for an independence referendum  BBC

Twenty-five years of data shows how link between identity and views on Scotti...
9 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
Twenty-five years of data shows how link between identity and views on Scottish independence has grown stronger  The Conversation

What can the Picts teach us about a route to Scottish independence? - TheNati...
15 Nov 2025 at 5:09am
What can the Picts teach us about a route to Scottish independence?  TheNational.scot

Independence supporters ?wasting time? on legal routes to second vote, MSPs t...
14 Nov 2025 at 9:50am
Independence supporters ?wasting time? on legal routes to second vote, MSPs told  Nation.Cymru

A Fresh Start with Independence - The Scottish Government
8 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
A Fresh Start with Independence  The Scottish Government

Scotland to sell £1.5bn of ?kilts? bonds after getting same credit rating as ...
13 Nov 2025 at 10:49am
Scotland to sell £1.5bn of ?kilts? bonds after getting same credit rating as UK  Financial Times

Scotland casts fresh eye on independence vote as UK's political landscape shi...
24 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
Scotland casts fresh eye on independence vote as UK's political landscape shifts  Courthouse News

'Settled will' is the only route to indyref2 MSPs told - The Herald
13 Nov 2025 at 4:23pm
'Settled will' is the only route to indyref2 MSPs told  The Herald

Alan Cumming: I?ve seen Nicola Sturgeon blossom since she quit as first minis...
16 Nov 2025 at 12:01am
Alan Cumming: I?ve seen Nicola Sturgeon blossom since she quit as first minister  The Irish News

SNP

"SNP" - Google News

SNP take over running of Stirling Council - BBC
10 Nov 2025 at 5:49pm
SNP take over running of Stirling Council  BBC

?500 days of failure? in office for Keir Starmer, says SNP - lbc.co.uk
16 Nov 2025 at 6:37am
?500 days of failure? in office for Keir Starmer, says SNP  lbc.co.uk

Abortions based on sex of babies could be legalised under plans considered by...
14 Nov 2025 at 7:10pm
Abortions based on sex of babies could be legalised under plans considered by SNP  The Telegraph

Keir Starmer has had ?500 days of failure? in office, says SNP - The Independent
16 Nov 2025 at 12:01am
Keir Starmer has had ?500 days of failure? in office, says SNP  The Independent

Cash-strapped Scots NHS bosses pay out £45M in compensation as SNP Gov slamme...
15 Nov 2025 at 8:04pm
Cash-strapped Scots NHS bosses pay out £45M in compensation as SNP Gov slammed  The Scottish Sun

Fears SNP's ScotWind projects at risk of collapse without Chinese firm's fact...
16 Nov 2025 at 6:00am
Fears SNP's ScotWind projects at risk of collapse without Chinese firm's factory approval  The Scotsman

Nicola Sturgeon: I understand why people doubt my ignorance of alleged SNP em...
7 Nov 2025 at 8:00am
Nicola Sturgeon: I understand why people doubt my ignorance of alleged SNP embezzlement  The Guardian

Chris Mason: SNP are the latest proof that things change quickly in politics ...
13 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
Chris Mason: SNP are the latest proof that things change quickly in politics  BBC

Carmichael Blames SNP For Reduced Funding To Scottish Fishermen - The Fishing...
15 Nov 2025 at 8:13am
Carmichael Blames SNP For Reduced Funding To Scottish Fishermen  The Fishing Daily

Neil Bibby: How Greenock shows SNP's law enforcement priorities are all wrong...
15 Nov 2025 at 4:30pm
Neil Bibby: How Greenock shows SNP's law enforcement priorities are all wrong  Greenock Telegraph

Referendum (Google News)

"Scotland referendum -guardian -telegraph" - Google News

Swinney sets out latest plan for an independence referendum - BBC
4 Sep 2025 at 8:00am
Swinney sets out latest plan for an independence referendum  BBC

Independence supporters ?wasting time? on legal routes to second vote, MSPs t...
14 Nov 2025 at 9:50am
Independence supporters ?wasting time? on legal routes to second vote, MSPs told  Nation.Cymru

The new hero of Scottish independence? Nigel Farage - politico.eu
13 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
The new hero of Scottish independence? Nigel Farage  politico.eu

Scotland casts fresh eye on independence vote as UK's political landscape shi...
24 Oct 2025 at 8:00am
Scotland casts fresh eye on independence vote as UK's political landscape shifts  Courthouse News

Why Alberta?s push for independence pales in comparison to Scotland?s in 2014...
27 May 2025 at 8:00am
Why Alberta?s push for independence pales in comparison to Scotland?s in 2014  The Conversation

First Minister John Swinney sets out latest plan for independence referendum ...
4 Sep 2025 at 8:00am
First Minister John Swinney sets out latest plan for independence referendum  Sky News

John Swinney's Scottish independence plan branded 'not sensible' by top const...
13 Nov 2025 at 11:31am
John Swinney's Scottish independence plan branded 'not sensible' by top constitutional expert  The Scotsman

In the United Kingdom, prime minister rejects possibility of Scotland indepen...
3 Jun 2025 at 8:00am
In the United Kingdom, prime minister rejects possibility of Scotland independence referendum  ConstitutionNet

SNP majority only way to secure second referendum - Swinney - BBC
28 Jul 2025 at 8:00am
SNP majority only way to secure second referendum - Swinney  BBC

Starmer says no independence referendum while he is prime minister - BBC
3 Jun 2025 at 8:00am
Starmer says no independence referendum while he is prime minister  BBC