The Herald

The Herald | Politics


Kate Forbes: Cosla rejected £145m funding to boost teacher numbers
11 Oct 2024 at 4:09pm
Councils will not get £145.5 million in funding intended to increase teacher numbers from the Scottish Government amid a row over how it will be spent.


Starmer hails need to collaborate at first Council of Nations and Regions summit
11 Oct 2024 at 2:25pm
The Prime Minister has said it is important to ?harness? the different identities within the UK as the first meeting of the Council of Nations and Regions took place in Scotland.


Calls for ?improved relations? between Creative Scotland and Scottish Government
11 Oct 2024 at 6:59am
MSPs have called for ?substantially improved relations? between Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government, a year after a commitment to increase investment in culture by £100 million annually by 2028-29.


Swinney and Starmer had 'serious conversations' about challenges facing UK
11 Oct 2024 at 4:54pm
John Swinney pressed Sir Keir Starmer on the "critical nature" of investment for Scotland as he held "serious conversations" on the challenges in the UK.


Swinney: SNP 'very optimistic' after Starmer's first 100 days as Prime Minister
11 Oct 2024 at 4:02pm
John Swinney has said he is very optimistic for the 2026 Holyrood elections as Sir Keir Starmer nears 100 days as Prime Minister.


Members of public to meet MSPs to offer ways to tackle drug deaths crisis
11 Oct 2024 at 7:37am
Members of the public are set to meet with MSPs to offer ways to tackle the drug deaths crisis, the Scottish Parliament has announced.


Scots actor David Hayman to co-host conference on land ownership
11 Oct 2024 at 5:30am
Notable Scots actor David Hayman will co-host a land ownership conference in Perth next month.


Coalition of Scot charities issue 'stark' youth homelessness warning
10 Oct 2024 at 4:50pm
A coalition of Scottish charities believes plans to prevent youth homelessness are being hampered by cuts to funding


Scottish Government warned over 'short-sighted' cut to housing association gr...
10 Oct 2024 at 11:30am
Patients risk being 'trapped' in hospital due to 'short-sighted' Scottish Government cuts to funding given to housing associations, campaigners have warned


'No justification' for targeted school strikes says John Swinney
10 Oct 2024 at 3:40pm
John Swinney has said it is ?unacceptable? for a union to ?single out? his constituency for school strikes


UN peacekeepers hospitalised after 'direct hit' by Israeli tank
10 Oct 2024 at 3:02pm
Two UN peacekeepers have been hospitalised after a 'direct hit' from an Israeli tank


Trades unions and businesses react to UK Government's new Employment Bill
10 Oct 2024 at 12:31pm
The UK Government has published its new Employment Rights Bill saying it's the biggest upgrade in workers' rights in a generation - though one leading trade union warned it contains 'more holes than Swiss cheese'


Delay to opening of UK first drug consumption facility in Glasgow
10 Oct 2024 at 10:55am
The opening of a safer drug consumption room in Glasgow, which will be a UK first, has been delayed


Sturgeon and Yousaf hit out at Starmer over city Council of Nations and Regio...
10 Oct 2024 at 10:30pm
Former first ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf have criticised Sir Keir Starmer for not inviting Scotland?s cities to the first meeting of the new Council of the Nations and Regions.

The Scotsman

The Scotsman Politics


'Not plain sailing': Why John Swinney is suddenly 'very optimistic' about SNP...
11 Oct 2024 at 5:47pm

The First Minister made the comments after meeting Sir Keir Starmer in Edinburgh, at the first Council of the Nations and Regions summit

A row has bubbled over after millions in money was withheld from Scottish Council over a row about teacher numbers

Sanjeev Gupta - the steel tycoon - is facing questions over his accounts, with fears over the future for workers at the Dalzell steel plant in Motherwell and the Lochaber aluminium smelter

With NHS patients waiting up to seven years for treatment, voters must demand better from the Scottish Government

They spoke at an event in central London

Wings over Scotland

The King And Queen Of Cringe
11 Oct 2024 at 5:40pm
Honestly not sure which of these is the most nauseating. Click the pic to enlarge, if you can stomach it. Swinney was grinning like a yokel at the first meeting of the “Council Of The Nations And Regions”, held in Edinburgh but where he was the only Scot around a table of 18, placing him …

Two Spaces
10 Oct 2024 at 2:31pm
Everyone even remotely connected to Scottish politics has known for months that the below is the case. It’s an open secret. But what’s playing out right now is something much bigger than the fate of one or two or three individuals. It’s the entire future of the credibility of Scotland’s justice system. Like Robin McAlpine …

Coping with change
7 Oct 2024 at 3:19pm
Just a quick bit of housekeeping here with regard to the new Wings comments section, which offers far more functionality but has also attracted a few complaints because it’s no longer a straight chronology of oldest-to-newest tweets. (We could actually change that back, but the cost would be losing the ability to reply directly to …

Things happen slowly
6 Oct 2024 at 11:52am
When times are quiet in Scottish politics, as they currently are, our favourite genre of story is “mainstream press belatedly catches up with Wings Over Scotland”. And so to this morning’s front page splash in the Sunday Mail. The rumour mill has been grinding about Operation Branchform developments again in the last few days, although …

The whole caboodle
5 Oct 2024 at 11:13am
While we get on with some tinkering behind the scenes in the absence of any Scottish political news – we have an exciting new comment system and the Contact form finally works again! – readers may wish to enjoy the full marathon three-and-a-quarter hours of last month’s fun indyref anniversary event at the Glasgow Science …

Mistaken identity
28 Sep 2024 at 6:59am

To Save Your Time
26 Sep 2024 at 1:23pm
Let us not be ungracious about the use of the term “leading figures” here. But equally, let’s not waste too much attention. The University Of Glasgow’s Centre For Public Policy yesterday put out a 56-page report discussing Scotland’s constitutional future. It purports, reasonably enough, to address the glaring democratic weakness in the Unionist policy position …

Dear Sandy
24 Sep 2024 at 3:18pm
The below is an open letter from a rape survivor, Paula, to Sandy Brindley, CEO of Rape Crisis Scotland. It is reproduced unedited, with Paula’s permission. Dear Sandy, I’m writing to implore you to stop doing press interviews. Each time you do, it feels like yet another slap in the face from Edinburgh Rape Crisis …

A Danger To Women
23 Sep 2024 at 5:31pm
As we write this article, Sandy Brindley (on the left of the picture below) is still in post as the CEO of Rape Crisis Scotland. For as long as that remains the case, rape victims in Scotland will not be safe. A few days ago, Brindley claimed to be unaware of calls for her resignation …

The Hand Of Friendship
23 Sep 2024 at 2:25pm
We’ll be honest, folks, we’re not 100% sure this is how you build unity. But what uplifting and powerful alliances might we be missing out on? “A few thousand”, eh? We were a bit surprised on Wednesday evening not to see BiS post more tweets and pictures from all these events that they’d made such …

Craig Murray

Simply No Red Lines At All
11 Oct 2024 at 2:03pm

There is literally no act so vile that the UK, US and Germany will not support if perpetrated by the terrorist state of Israel. Yesterday Israel: deliberately attacked UN peacekeepers in three separate bases; bombed residential central Beirut killing and maiming hundreds; abducted, beat up and held an American journalist; slaughtered 30 Palestinian refugees in …

Simply No Red Lines At All

In Praise of Civil Disobedience
9 Oct 2024 at 4:37pm

Western governments are deeply involved, strongly against the will of the majority of their population, in committing a colonial genocide of indigenous people. This happens because the political class have been bought by the Zionist lobby. The causes may run deeper, but that is the mechanism. Democracy has therefore failed, having been fatally corrupted. In …

In Praise of Civil Disobedience

A Very Peculiar Triumph
5 Oct 2024 at 9:30am

At the end of Julian Assange’s testimony before the Judicial Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, 95% of the entire room of 220 people rose in a standing ovation. The audience consisted of members of the Parliamentary Assembly, who are delegated members of their national parliaments, from all over Europe. Furthermore …

A Very Peculiar Triumph

Netanyahu Plays Chicken
21 Sep 2024 at 8:07am

Netanyahu is desperate to keep war simmering along and to draw the USA closer and closer to him. At the same time he cannot send ground forces into South Lebanon where they will take massive casualties. Israel can assassinate, it can employ indiscriminate terrorism and it can bombard from the air, and it has done …

Netanyahu Plays Chicken

A New Left Wing Party in the UK?
18 Sep 2024 at 9:24pm

Keir Starmer has left about 70% of the landscape of historic western political and economic thought vacant to his left. It is unsurprising that a new party will arrive to claim the unoccupied ground. A meeting at the weekend discussed a new party provisionally called The Collective, which may be led by Jeremy Corbyn, who …

A New Left Wing Party in the UK?

Some Truth Bombs At the UN
16 Sep 2024 at 7:08pm

Alongside Richard Medhurst I had the chance to state rather more truth than is generally heard inside the United Nations in Geneva: “Not only is the West complicit in the Genocide in Palestine, the ruling class of the West is so scared of its own citizens that it is now prepared to persecute its own …

Some Truth Bombs At the UN

BBC Scotland

Gilruth keeps £145m from councils over teacher numbers row
11 Oct 2024 at 6:27am
Government says the money has been earmarked to maintain teacher jobs, but Cosla disagrees with it being ringfenced.

Why are there so many people in Scotland's jails?
11 Oct 2024 at 6:29am
Scotland's prison population is again nearing a record high - but what can be done about it?

Council of Nations tackles challenge of UK power-sharing
11 Oct 2024 at 2:53pm
The prime minister, the devolved leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland and England's mayors are meeting in Edinburgh.

Ministers shelve plan for early release of long-term prisoners
10 Oct 2024 at 5:26pm
Inmates sentenced to less than four years would be freed after 40% of their term under new proposals.

Call for young to have legal right to live where they grew up
11 Oct 2024 at 6:30am
Community Land Scotland says young people are being forced to leave because of a shortage of homes.

Sue Gray will not attend summit in new regions role
11 Oct 2024 at 12:45pm
The prime minister's ex-chief of staff will not immediately take up a new role as his regional envoy.

Delay in opening of UK's first drugs consumption room
10 Oct 2024 at 10:43am
The facility, due to open on 21 October, has been delayed while checks are carried out on the building.

Scottish ministers begin budget talks with political rivals
9 Oct 2024 at 6:12am
The discussions have begun two months before the Scottish government has to publish its spending plans.

Take a look at the Scottish Parliament building on its 20th birthday
9 Oct 2024 at 6:13am
The Scottish Parliament officially opened 20 years ago - but did you know the meanings behind some of its key features?

Free asylum seeker bus travel scheme back by 2026 - Hyslop
9 Oct 2024 at 7:10pm
The policy had previously been scrapped in August due to budget cuts on public spending.

Strikes set to close Perth and Kinross schools for two weeks
8 Oct 2024 at 5:12pm
The Unison action is due to begin on 21 October and will affect 50 schools and early years centres.

Rebel Labour MSPs back SNP in winter fuel payment vote
8 Oct 2024 at 6:25pm
Two Labour MSPs backed an SNP government motion calling on Sir Keir Starmer to reverse his decision.

Scot Goes Pop

"We were supposed to have momentum!" laments Anas Sarwar, as Labour flatline ...
11 Oct 2024 at 10:43pm
Last week brought two SNP by-election wins in Dundee, this week has brought two Labour by-election wins in North Lanarkshire, including one in a ward where the SNP topped the poll last time around....

My US election dilemma (advice is welcome)
10 Oct 2024 at 9:02pm
Those of you of a certain vintage may remember that the Guardian newspaper was widely regarded as having made a complete fool of itself twenty years ago when it tried to influence the US presidenti...

James Cleverly's elimination is the perfect illustration of what can go catas...
10 Oct 2024 at 10:33am
Very long-term readers will recall that in past Holyrood elections, especially 2016, I cautioned at considerable length against the dangers of trying to "game the voting system".  Prominent Green s...

The Tories opt for a hard right turn - as they almost always do
9 Oct 2024 at 3:46pm
Well, if you needed any evidence that the betting markets are not some sort of predictive God, or that sudden movements on them are not proof that punters have inside knowledge, here it is (yet aga...

Crossover nears: Labour's GB-wide lead over the Tories cut to just one point
8 Oct 2024 at 4:51pm
The batch of three GB-wide polls that I mentioned the other day were ominous for Starmer, because they showed Labour had lower percentage support than under Jeremy Corbyn in the crushing 2019 defea...

"We are SO disappointed in you, Keir and Anas": Scots voters say they expecte...
7 Oct 2024 at 11:54pm
As you may have seen, there's a GB-wide YouGov poll on the topic of how sleazy the new Labour government is, and unsurprisingly the verdict of voters is: VERY sleazy.  The only sliver of consolatio...

Netanyahu fans on Twitter claim with a straight face that they might have vot...
7 Oct 2024 at 11:45am
There are numerous ironies to my potential forthcoming expulsion from the Alba Party, which if it happens will ultimately be due to a blogpost I wrote in April arguing for democratisation of the pa...

Tory MPs may have to *act* Cleverly to *stop* Cleverly
6 Oct 2024 at 8:02pm
What I'm about to say will to some extent contradict my previous post, because looking at the latest Tory members' poll from ConHome, I really do struggle to see why Robert Jenrick is still favouri...

STV Politics News

Latest Politics News | STV News

Swinney pushes Starmer for investment at Edinburgh meeting
11 Oct 2024 at 2:34pm
The First Minister said he had a ?helpful conversation? with the Prime Minister.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to chair meeting of devolved leaders at new s...
11 Oct 2024 at 6:50am
First Minister John Swinney will attend Friday's meeting with the first ministers of Wales and Northern Ireland

Ministers accused of ?poor leadership? after Bill to axe climate target backed
10 Oct 2024 at 8:01pm
The legislation was introduced after the Scottish Government announced it was ditching its goal of reducing emissions by 75% by 2030.

Labour delivers New Deal for Working People promise within first 100 days in ...
10 Oct 2024 at 3:39pm
The Labour government has published legislation which includes new maternity and paternity protections.

First Minister John Swinney to face questions on poverty and bus travel at FMQs
10 Oct 2024 at 12:04pm
Ministers are set to quiz John Swinney in the Scottish Parliament on Thursday.

Zelensky visits No 10 to lobby Starmer for greater support for Ukraine
10 Oct 2024 at 10:17am
The Ukrainian president and the Prime Minister embraced outside No 10 before a series of talks.

Nearly 3,000 Scots with diabetes waiting for insulin pumps on NHS, Scottish L...
10 Oct 2024 at 7:32am
Figures obtained by Scottish Labour show that 2,918 patients are still waiting for the technology across Scotland's health boards.

Climate Bill debate deemed ?shameful moment? after emissions target ditched
10 Oct 2024 at 7:21am
Friends of the Earth say Holyrood is having to undergo 'humiliating process of scrapping its critical climate commitments.'

SNP urges chancellor to deliver £1.6bn in extra funding for Scotland?s NHS in...
10 Oct 2024 at 7:05am
Party research found the UK Government has spent less on healthcare than nearly every other country in north west Europe since 2000.

Greens extend hand to Scottish Government over budget deal
9 Oct 2024 at 6:22pm
Due to a coalition agreement and before that an informal arrangement, the Greens have in recent years pushed the vote over the line.

Former home secretary James Cleverly eliminated from Tory leadership race
9 Oct 2024 at 3:41pm
The ex-home secretary was pole position to make it through the latest stage after leapfrogging former frontrunner Jenrick to first place on Tuesday.

Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak to face off at PMQs
9 Oct 2024 at 11:44am
Tory MPs prepare to vote for the last time on Wednesday in the party's leadership ballot.

North East must become ?powerhouse of renewables revolution? ? John Swinney
9 Oct 2024 at 8:48am
The First Minister spoke ahead of a conference on Wednesday and Thursday in Aberdeen.

Scottish secretary Ian Murray begins process to devolve powers for new disabi...
9 Oct 2024 at 7:50am
Ian Murray will start the process to ensure new pension age disability payment can replace attendance allowance.

Daily Record

Daily Record - Politics

John Swinney urges Keir Starmer for 'critical' investment to secure future of...
11 Oct 2024 at 3:36pm
The First Minister said investment in a carbon capture project would "strengthen the response" to the impending closure of Scotland's last remaining oil refinery.

Scotland's mental health services 'ill-equipped to tackle patient needs'
11 Oct 2024 at 12:28pm
University team calls for a better co-ordinated approach to improve treatment for mental health patients who are also substance abusers

Scottish Greens urged to withdraw support for controversial National Care Ser...
11 Oct 2024 at 12:11pm
Unison has joined council leaders, the STUC, and senior NHS executives in expressing serious reservations about the proposed SNP plans.

Thousands of jobs 'at risk' if transition from boilers to heat pumps doesn't ...
11 Oct 2024 at 4:30am
Research by the Institute for Public Policy Research found some 6,000 manufacturing jobs will be threatened by slow progress.

Keir Starmer and John Swinney to hold talks in Edinburgh amid calls for more ...
10 Oct 2024 at 10:30pm
The Labour Prime Minister will meet privately with the SNP First Minister before both leaders attend the Council of Nations and Regions.

Lord Advocate refuses to comment on Operation Branchform as investigation int...
10 Oct 2024 at 4:30pm
Dorothy Bain was tight-lipped when asked questions by reporters in the Scottish Parliament.

Last SNP Government paper on Scottish independence downloaded just 316 times
10 Oct 2024 at 4:22pm
The number of downloads works out at around thirteen a week.

Scots prisoners on short sentences to be released after serving just 40% of t...
10 Oct 2024 at 3:05pm
Angela Constance said Scotland's prison population would be "unsustainable" if more inmates were not freed early.

John Swinney warns Scots jails 'bursting at the seams' as more prisoners set ...
10 Oct 2024 at 2:21pm
The First Minister warned the safety of prison officers and inmates was being threatened by overcrowding in some jails.

SNP Minister claims another council tax freeze could be delivered if Westmins...
10 Oct 2024 at 11:12am
Jim Fairlie made the claim when he was asked to defend last year's tax freeze by the SNP-led Government.

The National

The National | Politics

War crimes, murdered journalists and orphaned children: One year in Gaza time...
11 Oct 2024 at 9:05pm

7/10/23 ? A?surprise attack by Palestinian group Hamas on Israel saw gunmen breach security barriers and launch a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza.

'Utterly compromised': Pressure mounts on Keir Starmer to ditch controversial...
11 Oct 2024 at 7:27pm

PRESSURE is mounting on the UK Government to sack an advisor due to conflicts of interest highlighted by campaigners.

Wee Ginger Dug: Will Keir Starmer's plummeting popularity ever recover?
11 Oct 2024 at 6:47pm

PRIOR to this summer's General Election, there were predictions, not least from yours truly, that once in government Keir Starmer would soon fall from grace and become very unpopular indeed as his promise of change would be exposed as yet another of the many lies which litter his deeply unprincipled path to power.

Keir Starmer's amazing clown show does Scotland
11 Oct 2024 at 6:00pm

THE great Westminster travelling show has come to town ...

Message from the editor: Tomorrow's front page explained
11 Oct 2024 at 6:08pm

It is a year since Israel began the deadliest attack on Palestine in modern history.

Labour select former Tory candidate as hopeful for Glasgow by-election
11 Oct 2024 at 5:44pm

LABOUR has selected a former Tory candidate as among their hopefuls contesting three upcoming by elections in Glasgow.

I was one of only five reporters at this Palestinian press event. Why?
11 Oct 2024 at 5:30pm

IN the basement of a slightly shabby city office building, two women spoke of unimaginable, almost biblical horrors.

'Single island authority' is 'next step' for Western Isles, say council leaders
11 Oct 2024 at 6:08pm

COUNCIL leaders have refreshed calls for a "single island authority" to ensure decisions about public services are made within the region.

UK Government apologises for sharing email address of one of world?s richest men
11 Oct 2024 at 5:04pm

THE UK Government has apologised after accidentally sharing the email address of one of the world?s richest men in the run-up to a major global investment summit hosted by Britain.

John Swinney ?optimistic? about 2026 election after 100 days of Labour Govern...
11 Oct 2024 at 4:35pm

JOHN Swinney has said he is ?very optimistic? about the SNP?s chances in the 2026 Holyrood elections after the first 100 days of a Labour Government ...

Holyrood Magazine

Holyrood Website

Swinney: ?Swift decision-making? on the Acorn project critical to address Gra...
11 Oct 2024 at 5:26pm
The first minister was speaking to the media following a meeting with Prime Minister Keir Starmer

Keir Starmer and John Swinney meet as Council of Nations and Regions gathers ...
10 Oct 2024 at 11:30pm
Ahead of the meeting, the prime minister confirmed ?24bn of private investment had been secured for green energy projects

?Historic? US-UK partnership to boost global online safety
10 Oct 2024 at 4:32pm
Both countries will work to ensure the benefits of technology can be maximised for society

No early release for long-term prisoners, justice secretary confirms
10 Oct 2024 at 4:22pm
But legislation will bring forward the release point for those serving under four years

Swinney takes aim at Labour's first 100 days in FMQs jibe
10 Oct 2024 at 2:03pm
Questions over donations 'inequity'

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set to deliver ?most consequential? Budget in over a...
10 Oct 2024 at 1:01am
In new analysis, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said the public finances are on a "knife edge"

New government office to deliver regulatory reform in tech sector
9 Oct 2024 at 4:55pm
The new Regulatory Innovation Office will ?curb the burden of red tape? by updating legislation and speeding up approvals

James Cleverly eliminated from Tory leadership race
9 Oct 2024 at 4:51pm
After topping the ballot yesterday, the former home secretary fails to make it to the final two

Search begins for next generation of ?elite? cyber talent
9 Oct 2024 at 2:18pm
A new competition is looking for young talent to become part of UK Cyber Team, which will take part in international event and work to boost national defence

Multi-million tech fund to build NHS that is ?match-fit for the future?
9 Oct 2024 at 11:17am
A raft of new?tech-enabled?treatments will be trialled across the UK in a bid to speed up cancer diagnosis and improve treatment.

Guardian - Scottish Politics

Scottish politics | The Guardian

Jenrick denies privately telling Tory MPs he would pivot back to centre if he...
11 Oct 2024 at 5:00pm
Tory leadership also suggests it was a mistake for him to order murals at a children?s asylum centre to be painted overKeir Starmer was ?appalled? by reports that Israel deliberately fired on peacekeepers in Lebanon, Downing Street said this morning.Asked about the prime minister?s reaction to th...

Tories shocked at Cleverly exit while Labour MP says Badenoch-Jenrick contest...
9 Oct 2024 at 6:07pm
Audible gasps as apparent frontrunner is eliminated while political rivals are gleefulBookmakers have cut the odds on Kemi Badenoch becoming next Tory leader because there has been a surge of money going her way in the last 24 hours, according to Oddschecker, a betting prize comparison website. L...

Cleverly, Badenoch and Jenrick stay in Tory leadership race as Tugendhat knoc...
8 Oct 2024 at 6:03pm
Trio face one more round of voting by MPs before party members have their say on final twoThe prison system in England and Wales was ?teetering on disaster? when Labour came to power, James Timpson, the prisons minister said today.Speaking at his first Prison Governors? Association conference in ...

Scottish ministers ?mismanaging NHS?, say opposition, as huge hourly rates re...
8 Oct 2024 at 6:00am
SNP government lambasted by Lib Dem, Labour and Tory MSPs over sums paid to locum emergency psychiatristsScottish opposition leaders have accused ministers of mismanaging the NHS after the ?jaw-dropping? costs of hiring emergency psychiatrists came to light.The Liberal Democrats, Labour and Conse...

Scottish NHS boards pay up to £837 an hour for locums amid psychiatry crisis
7 Oct 2024 at 6:00am
Quarter of posts in adult psychiatry vacant, forcing hospitals to rely on expensive private cover?No care left in the system?: patients on use of locum psychiatrists in ScotlandScotland?s health boards have paid up to £837 an hour for locum psychiatrists to help cope with a deepening staff shorta...

UK politics: Tom Tugendhat suggests Chagos Islands deal could lead to China e...
3 Oct 2024 at 5:36pm
Former security minister says UK decision to cede sovereignty means Mauritius could lease islands to ChinaThree of the four Tory leadership candidates have issued statement strongly denouncing the government?s decision to return the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.Robert Jenrick, the favourite in the...

10 years of the long read: Is this the end of Britishness? (2014) ? podcast
2 Oct 2024 at 5:00am
As the Long Read turns 10 we are raiding the archives to bring you a favourite piece from each year since 2014, with new introductions from the authors.This week from 2014: A shared history of 300 years could be washed away if Scotland votes for independence. What was the complex identity the Uni...

Scottish Tories must tackle Reform UK threat, says new leader Russell Findlay
27 Sep 2024 at 12:23pm
Findlay says he is ?acutely conscious? of danger posed by Farage?s party as he is confirmed as Douglas Ross successorUK politics live ? latest updatesRussell Findlay, the newly elected leader of the Scottish Conservatives, has said his party faces a significant threat from Reform in Scotland.Find...

Scottish salmon farm cleared tonnes of dead fish before inspection, charity says
25 Sep 2024 at 5:54pm
Footage taken by Animal Equality UK before MSPs? visit was a daily procedure, says Scottish Sea Farms The removal of tonnes of dead fish from a salmon farm before a Scottish parliament fact-finding mission there gave a misleading impression of conditions, an animal rights charity says.Footage sec...

Scottish Tories hope new leader will banish toxic legacy
25 Sep 2024 at 10:56am
Three candidates ? Russell Findlay, Meghan Gallacher and Murdo Fraser ? vie for top job in contest ending on FridayUK politics live ? latest updates?We?ve used opposition to independence as a crutch,? says Shane Painter, the Scottish Tories? youngest candidate in the recent, disastrous general el...

Wee Ginger Dug

Wee Ginger Dug

Defending the Scots language from the Tory MSP for Mordor
10 Oct 2024 at 4:20pm
Yet again Scotland’s languages are making the news, following on from Andrew Marr’s factually incorrect and ignorantly dismissive comments about Gaelic, for which he eventually apologised, this time it’s Scots which is the object of British nationalist ignorance. The graciousness free zone which is the Scottish Tory MSP for Mordor Stephen Kerr has taken to …

Starmer?s colonial office mentality
8 Oct 2024 at 2:35pm
Keir Starmer’s government has not been in power for three months, but it is already shaping up to be as vile and corrupt as the Conservatives it replaced. A new poll has found that Starmer is now viewed as more sleazy than his predecessor Rishi Sunak. A YouGov poll asking people to compare the two …

100 days of Starmer, lies, hypocrisy, and freebies
3 Oct 2024 at 2:25pm
Keir Starmer’s hypocrisy is off the charts, over 43,000 Palestinians and Lebanese have died, the great majority innocent civilians, in Israeli attacks since October 7 last year, none of which have elicited much in the way of sympathy or concern from Keir Starmer, yet when Iran launched its missile attack on Israel yesterday, Starmer took …

Andrew Marr, Gaelic and Scots
28 Sep 2024 at 8:27pm
This is an expanded version of a piece I wrote for The National a few days ago. I’m reposting it here with some additions in the light of Marr’s apology for his insulting and ignorant comments about the Gaelic language and its place in Scottish culture. It’s the sad and ignorant old trope that never …

Starmer?s honeymoon is well and truly over
25 Sep 2024 at 11:14am
Before Labour’s inevitable victory in July’s Westminster general election, I predicted that Starmer’s government would soon become very unpopular as voters realised that the ‘change’ which he had promised was no real change at all, it was simply the continuation of the same old damaging Tory neoliberal nostrums, delivered somewhat less chaotically and corruptly. What …

Ten years on
17 Sep 2024 at 11:39am
On Wednesday it will be the tenth anniversary of the independence referendum. This is always a poignant time of year for me, not only because of the what might have been had Scotland grasped the thistle and chosen independence on that fateful day, but because this time of year is also the anniversary of the …

Vote Labour: freeze your granny to help the rich
11 Sep 2024 at 11:13am
It’s only been nine weeks but we already have resounding answer to the question of how much influence Labour’s Scottish branch office has over policy making in Keir Starmer’s government. The answer to that question is none at all. Prior to July’s Westminster general election Anas Sarwar loudly proclaimed that he and his Tory-lite party …

Only with independence can Scotland escape the rise of the right
4 Sep 2024 at 11:14am
Last weekend, there were elections in the Germans states of Thuringia and Saxony. In both these states the far right Alternative für Deutschland party, which favours the ‘repatriation’ of immigrants and even of some naturalised German citizens – the ones who are muslim or not white of course – performed alarmingly well, coming top of …

Time for a new indy strategy
30 Aug 2024 at 1:02pm
With the SNP conference about to start and the post mortem of the party’s poor performance in July’s Westminster general election under way, it’s fair to say that there is now general agreement within the wider Scottish independence movement that the independence strategy inherited from Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon is dead. No matter how …

BBC Scotland?s definition of propaganda
24 Aug 2024 at 12:26pm
Words have a dictionary definition, they also have emotional colouring which can be either positive or negative, that emotional coloration is an essential part of the word’s meaning and it is disingenuous to use a word with a strongly negative emotional colouring and to pretend that your use of the word was intended in a …

The Courier

Scottish Politics News From Holyrood and Westminster | The Courier

EXCLUSIVE: Emails reveal Eljamel police faced ?challenging? hunt for medical ...
11 Oct 2024 at 6:02am
Correspondence between detectives and health officials reveal how hard police are finding it to prove the disgraced NHS Tayside surgeon's behaviour was criminal.

John Swinney says son among Perthshire pupils ?singled out? in union?s school...
10 Oct 2024 at 1:18pm
School staff plan to walk out for two weeks as Unison directly target the first minister?s constituency.

Eljamel scandal: NHS Tayside staff provide statements to police investigation
9 Oct 2024 at 3:27pm
Officers probing the disgraced neurosurgeon?s botched operations have also met NHS Tayside executives.

John Curtice says SNP in ?doldrums? despite Dundee election wins
9 Oct 2024 at 1:03pm
First Minister John Swinney had celebrated the results, which strengthened the SNP's city council majority, saying it showed the depth of trust between his party and Dundee.

How Tayside debt collection trial could ease child poverty
9 Oct 2024 at 6:00am
Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis compared the way council tax debt is collected to the "worst loan sharks". But could a trial in Tayside pave the way for change?

?Forgotten? Angus hamlet fears repeat of Storm Babet devastation
8 Oct 2024 at 6:00am
One in five homes in Milton of Finavon were flooded last October but worried residents say they don't know where to turn for help.

Eljamel inquiry: Patients share their views in first public hearing as major ...
7 Oct 2024 at 6:38pm
Dundee campaigner Pat Kelly warned against leading UK health watchdogs being excluded from the investigation into the scandal.

EXCLUSIVE: Tayside children?s mental health delays as referrals spike by 400%
7 Oct 2024 at 6:00am
The health board blamed a shortage of medics for delays in assessment for conditions like ADHD and autism, with only urgent cases being seen.

COURIER OPINION: Dundee by-election results show voters sceptical of Labour a...
5 Oct 2024 at 8:00am
The SNP saw off a confident challenge from Labour in Dundee after a difficult first few months in power for Sir Keir Starmer's side.

John Swinney: Double Dundee election victory shows city?s trust in SNP
4 Oct 2024 at 7:07pm
The First Minister joined the newly elected councillors in the city on Friday to celebrate.

Talking up Scotland

Talking-up Scotland

The simple facts that reveal the extent to which the SNP Government better pr...
11 Oct 2024 at 4:12pm
By Professor John Robertson OBA I’m grateful to @amaccj for reminding me of this and for the link to the source. When the final assessment is made, we need to set the scene with these facts: Two years later, in February 2022, as the pandemic receded, the simple consequences in terms of mortality in different parts of the UK can be see in this table from the UK Covid 19 Inquiry report6: Other th...

Texas takes fight against massive federal Sellafield-like nuclear dump propos...
11 Oct 2024 at 1:21pm
By Professor John Robertson OBA In the Texas Tribune, two days ago: The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to take up a yearslong dispute over a plan to ship highly radioactive nuclear waste to rural West Texas, a case that could have sweeping implications for how the nation deals with a growing stockpile of waste generated by nuclear power plants. A company called Interim Storage Partners has long ...

So the Envoy will not attend the first collective meeting of those towards wh...
11 Oct 2024 at 1:00pm
By stewartb So the Envoy will not attend the first collective meeting of those towards whom she will be the Envoy! What a missed opportunity to forge relationships! This Council of Nations and Regions ? which will have the Mayors of London and of England?s ?combined authorities? invited to attend ? fails even in its own terms to be representative. The Institute for Government (IfG) on 24 June 2...

What they don?t want you to know about in the ?teacher numbers row?
11 Oct 2024 at 11:05am
By Professor John Robertson OBA Headlining on BBC Scotland today: The Scottish government has withheld £145.5m in funding to councils because of a row over teacher numbers. It says the money has been earmarked to maintain teacher jobs, but local government body Cosla disagrees with the ringfencing. Most Scottish councils are looking at education cuts ? including proposals to reduce learning hou...

Drug gangs from Aylesbury and Liverpool exploiting children and vulnerable ad...
11 Oct 2024 at 10:53am
From Merseyside Police yesterday: Three people who exploited children to sell drugs as part of a county lines network have been sentenced today (Thursday 10 October). James O?Keefe, 23, of no fixed address, Kerry Russell, 39, of Titherington Way, Liverpool and Ruby O?Keefe, 19, of Colby Close, Liverpool were sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court today (Thursday 10 October). Officers from Merseysid...

?Prof? Kezia Dugdale? You?re having me expletive deleted on!
11 Oct 2024 at 6:57am
By Professor John Robertson OBA The host didn’t introduce Kezia Dugdale as ‘prof’ but the above appeared when she began to speak. After 30 years in HE, I got ‘prof’. To get it, I had to publish research in peer-reviewed journals, have a PhD myself and supervise PhD students. I spoke at conferences and chaired a Faculty research ethics committee. Long before I got ‘prof’ I taught research method...

Religious hate crime in England & Wales surges to the highest since 2012, TWI...
10 Oct 2024 at 12:41pm
From the Guardian today: Religious hate crimes in England and Wales have soared by 25% to record levels, coinciding with the Israel-Hamas conflict, government statistics show. The increase, from 8,370 to 10,484 offences reported to police forces in the year to March, was driven by a rise in offences against Jewish people and to a lesser extent Muslims, the Home Office said. According to the sta...

11 year-old explains that England has more in common ? 4 times as many homes ...
10 Oct 2024 at 12:09pm
Watching BBC 24 last night, up popped a story suggesting that Scotland had similar worries to Florida. I had to the check the date wasn’t 1 April. Then Liz Lloyd (background booing) popped up to talk vaguely about the notion. I had to the check the date wasn’t 1 April. When did she become a spokesperson for the Scot Gov? You won’t be surprised to hear that I was more exercised by those numbers ...

Scotland?s free prescription costs static in line with inflation despite 29% ...
9 Oct 2024 at 4:10pm
By Professor John Robertson OBA From Public Health Scotland, yesterday: The total (net) cost for dispensing items and providing services in 2023/24 was £1.62 billion, increasing by 6.5% from £1.52 billion in 2022/23. This follows a period of largely rising cost, increasing by 35.3% over the last 10 years.1 UK general inflation in the same period was 34%.2 The inflation rate specifically for pha...

Drug possession offences drop by more than 10 000 cases, 34%
9 Oct 2024 at 3:46pm
From Recorded crime in Scotland statistics: FOI release published today: Information requested – An age breakdown for the figures presented within Table A9 of the Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2023-24 Accredited Official Statistics for the years 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24. Specifically, age breakdowns showing how many children of various age groups (under 16 and 16-18) were recorded as ha...

Scotland and Independence

"scotland independence -guardian" - Google News

Sturgeon predicts independence and united Ireland in UK 'shake-up' - BBC.com
17 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Sturgeon predicts independence and united Ireland in UK 'shake-up'  BBC.com

Ten years on from Scotland?s independence referendum - The Economist
18 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Ten years on from Scotland?s independence referendum  The Economist

10th anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum - Sky News
18 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
10th anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum  Sky News

There's now an honest perspective from parties and activists on independence ...
10 Oct 2024 at 4:04pm
There's now an honest perspective from parties and activists on independence  The National

Scottish independence: 10 years on - YouGov
17 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Scottish independence: 10 years on  YouGov

How can Christians contribute to the future of Scotland? - Evangelical Focus
11 Oct 2024 at 5:55pm
How can Christians contribute to the future of Scotland?  Evangelical Focus

Humiliated, Scotland?s independence warriors lick their wounds - POLITICO Europe
31 Jul 2024 at 8:00am
Humiliated, Scotland?s independence warriors lick their wounds  POLITICO Europe

Why Scotland gave up on independence - The New Statesman
19 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Why Scotland gave up on independence  The New Statesman

Representing Scotland: Conservative narratives of nation, union, and Scottish...
24 Jun 2024 at 12:17pm
Representing Scotland: Conservative narratives of nation, union, and Scottish independence  Frontiers

Scottish independence referendum: legal issues - Commons Library
16 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Scottish independence referendum: legal issues  Commons Library

SNP

"SNP" - Google News

Genome-wide association testing beyond SNPs - Nature.com
7 Oct 2024 at 1:34pm
Genome-wide association testing beyond SNPs  Nature.com

Swinney: SNP very optimistic after Starmer's first 100 days - HeraldScotland
11 Oct 2024 at 5:30pm
Swinney: SNP very optimistic after Starmer's first 100 days  HeraldScotland

First Minister John Swinney ?very optimistic? SNP will win 2026 Holyrood elec...
11 Oct 2024 at 7:27pm
First Minister John Swinney ?very optimistic? SNP will win 2026 Holyrood election  The Telegraph

Rebel Labour MSPs back SNP in winter fuel payment vote - BBC.com
8 Oct 2024 at 9:19pm
Rebel Labour MSPs back SNP in winter fuel payment vote  BBC.com

SNP Group expands reach with Dubai office opening - ERP Today
10 Oct 2024 at 2:00pm
SNP Group expands reach with Dubai office opening  ERP Today

So Mr Flynn, was the £30,000 given to the SNP by a firm you lobbied for 'just...
11 Oct 2024 at 7:55pm
So Mr Flynn, was the £30,000 given to the SNP by a firm you lobbied for 'just from the kindness of a filthy-ri  Daily Mail

Former SNP farming minister says party siphoned off rural funds - The Times
11 Oct 2024 at 11:46pm
Former SNP farming minister says party siphoned off rural funds  The Times

Humiliation for SNP after by-election nightmare in former heartland - Express
11 Oct 2024 at 2:04pm
Humiliation for SNP after by-election nightmare in former heartland  Express

Scotland's papers: SNP 'fake firm' probe and £1m in LEZ fines - BBC
6 Oct 2024 at 9:20am
Scotland's papers: SNP 'fake firm' probe and £1m in LEZ fines  BBC

SNP finances probe 'delays' threaten independence movement, whistleblower say...
5 Oct 2024 at 2:35am
SNP finances probe 'delays' threaten independence movement, whistleblower says  Sky News

Referendum (Google News)

"Scotland referendum -guardian -telegraph" - Google News

The agony and ecstasy of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum - BBC.com
17 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
The agony and ecstasy of the 2014 Scottish independence referendum  BBC.com

Ten years on from Scotland?s independence referendum - The Economist
18 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Ten years on from Scotland?s independence referendum  The Economist

10th anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum - Sky News
18 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
10th anniversary of the Scottish independence referendum  Sky News

How can Christians contribute to the future of Scotland? - Evangelical Focus
11 Oct 2024 at 5:55pm
How can Christians contribute to the future of Scotland?  Evangelical Focus

Scottish independence: 10 years on - YouGov
17 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Scottish independence: 10 years on  YouGov

Why Scotland gave up on independence - The New Statesman
19 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Why Scotland gave up on independence  The New Statesman

10 years after Indy Ref: Reflecting on Scotland's anti poverty politics - IPPR
26 Sep 2024 at 12:01am
10 years after Indy Ref: Reflecting on Scotland's anti poverty politics  IPPR

Scottish independence referendum: legal issues - Commons Library
16 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
Scottish independence referendum: legal issues  Commons Library

Humiliated, Scotland?s independence warriors lick their wounds - POLITICO Europe
31 Jul 2024 at 8:00am
Humiliated, Scotland?s independence warriors lick their wounds  POLITICO Europe

John Swinney: Scottish independence vote left 'positive legacy' - BBC.com
18 Sep 2024 at 8:00am
John Swinney: Scottish independence vote left 'positive legacy'  BBC.com