The Herald

The Herald | Politics


Councillor blasts masonic lodge not paying rent on town hall for 200 years
by clare.buchanan@newsquest.co.uk | Clare Buchanan
1 Jun 2026 at 10:29am
A Fife councillor has blasted a situation where a local masonic lodge has been able to use St Andrews Town Hall free of charge for over 200 years.


UK and France seize 'Russian' oil tanker in joint operation in Atlantic Ocean
by gaby.mckay@newsquest.co.uk | Gabriel McKay
1 Jun 2026 at 8:06am
The UK and France have seized an oil tanker in the Atlantic which is allegedly part of Russia's shadow fleet


Former First Minister calls for joint probe into Peter Murrell embezzlement s...
by gaby.mckay@newsquest.co.uk | Gabriel McKay
1 Jun 2026 at 7:27am
A former First Minister has called for Westminster to be involved in a probe into Peter Murrell's embezzlement of SNP funds


Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg: Thank you, Braveheart Nicola, for putting us st...
by alison.rowat@theherald.co.uk | Alison Rowat
1 Jun 2026 at 6:15am
Scotland?s former First Minister found herself back on BBC One?s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg yesterday for an encounter as gripping as any drama.


Pro?Palestine protesters unfurl giant flag on Trump?s Turnberry beach
by donald.erskine@newsquest.co.uk | Donald Erskine
31 May 2026 at 4:39pm
Protestors have taken to the golf course and beach outside Donald Trump?s Turnberry hotel.


Help requested after 100 homes evacuated in former mining village
by jody.harrison@heraldandtimes.co.uk | Jody Harrison
31 May 2026 at 10:41am
Clackmannanshire Council leader Ellen Forson said it continues to be ?an extremely difficult and distressing time for everyone affected?


Nicola Sturgeon: I'm determined Murrell scandal won't 'wreck my life'
by hannah.brown@newsquest.co.uk | Hannah Brown
31 May 2026 at 8:40am
Nicola Sturgeon has refused to apologise for the Peter Murrell embezzlement scandal, saying she feels she is "serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit" as she defends her role as SNP leader.


Recipe for disaster: The shunning of the 'awkward squad' who dared to ask que...
31 May 2026 at 5:01am
For many years senior figures in the SNP - including Alex Salmond - raised concerns with Nicola Sturgeon but they found themselves closed out, shunned and berated.


Nicola Sturgeon's interview was moving - but her answers raised eyebrows
by hannah.brown@newsquest.co.uk | Hannah Brown
31 May 2026 at 4:00pm
Nicola Sturgeon's account of betrayal was compelling, but questions remain about leadership, accountability and concerns raised over SNP finances.


John Swinney admits 'fundamental flaw' in having Sturgeon and Murrell at top ...
by hannah.brown@newsquest.co.uk | Hannah Brown
31 May 2026 at 11:09am
John Swinney has admitted there was a "fundamental flaw" in having Nicola Sturgeon and Peter Murrell leading the SNP, as the former first minister acknowledged she should have listened to Alex Salmond's warning about the arrangement.


Bosnian war refugee recounts persecution that led to White Armband Day
by hannah.brown@newsquest.co.uk | Hannah Brown
31 May 2026 at 5:00am
Ahead of White Armband Day, Bosnian refugee Sabina Kadic-Mackenzie reflects on her family's experience of the Prijedor atrocities and the importance of remembrance.


I have been left feeling old and very worried about university education in S...
31 May 2026 at 6:15am
Professor Murray Pittock is the leading expert on liberal arts education. He shocks our Writer at Large who can?t believe how times have changed since his student days


Can Cuba survive as the US closes in for the ?kill??
by david.pratt@heraldandtimes.co.uk | David Pratt
31 May 2026 at 6:15am
Threatened and rejected ever since its revolutionary birth, Havana?s communist government has faced many a stern test, but never one like this writes, Foreign Editor David Pratt


Watch: John Swinney insists Scots have ?trust? in SNP after Murrell plea
by Lucinda Cameron
30 May 2026 at 3:41pm
Peter Murrell is set to be sentenced in June, the same month the SNP faces by-election contests in Aberdeen South and in Arbroath and Broughty Ferry

The Scotsman

The Scotsman Politics


What to expect as the second tranche of the Mandelson files are published
1 Jun 2026 at 10:21am

The documents, which will give further detail into Mandelson?s appointment as US ambassador, are due to be published later today

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation said the Government?s latest tackling child poverty delivery plan is open to legal challenge

The former first minister was full of contradictions

Jack McConnell said the Commons Public Accounts Committee should hold a probe with the equivalent Scottish Parliament committee.

Wings over Scotland

The View From Row Z
31 May 2026 at 3:11pm
Sadly, this turned out to be prescient this morning. Laura Kuenssberg did give Nicola Sturgeon an uncomfortable time in their interview on her Sunday programme on BBC News, but when confronted with the one gaping open goal that Sturgeon has no answer for – and even when Sturgeon TWICE set it up on a plate …

Nicola?s Summer Reading List
30 May 2026 at 4:16pm
Now that Nicola Sturgeon is finally free of her gruelling MSP workload, which could give her anything up to two extra hours of spare time a week, she might like to start making a proper dent in the contents of her fully-loaded bookshelves. (At least until they’re seized and sold under the Proceeds Of Crime …

Marvola The Memory Woman
29 May 2026 at 7:53am
The multi-statement meltdown that has been the unravelling of Nicola Sturgeon this week has been quite something to behold. Last night, for example, we swear our Twitter feed presented these two tweets one after the other. But then we read something even more extraordinary. Firstly, as Conor Matchett of the Scottish Sun noted, that is …

Friends Without Benefits
28 May 2026 at 1:16pm
We’ll be honest with you, readers, if we were in a situation where a lawyer was issuing statements for us, this isn’t what we’d want to hear. “If my client had been charged, she’d be in prison right now” is a worrying distance short of a vote of confidence in your client’s innocence. But the …

All The Dirt From My Eyes
27 May 2026 at 12:21pm
So, having made a statement on Monday morning which asserted that she wouldn’t make any further statements, then making another statement on Monday afternoon, Nicola Sturgeon and her solicitor issued a third statement in 36 hours last night. And while we acknowledge that this is a very high bar to clear, it contained one of …

No Money Back, No Guarantee
26 May 2026 at 9:39am
Peter Murrell wasn’t even locked up in his cell at Saughton (we hope it’s the same one as Craig Murray’s) when the chump-suckering resumed. And as the Nicola Sturgeon Loyal, led by her most faithful of lieutenants, set out to try to take control of the post-conviction narrative, let’s take a look at just what …

The Final Robbery
25 May 2026 at 1:09pm
So there it is. We did tell you so. There will be no trial, no cross-examination, no explanation. The people of Scotland, the members and supporters of the SNP, the wider Yes movement, none of us will ever know what really happened. Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated? We’ll never find out how this …

Only An Excuse
21 May 2026 at 7:45pm
Despite what you or we might think, in the eyes of the Scottish Football Association this ISN’T a pitch invasion. This is simply what a football match in progress looks like. Because according to the absolutely extraordinary statement they’ve released this evening, that was game time. The clock was still running, nothing was being added …

The Queer Parliament
20 May 2026 at 1:36pm
We were excited to discover this old footage of a very young John Swinney. ? How thrilled he must be that he’s managed to make his dream come true. Because in the Scottish Parliament at least, there are now no men and no women, and indeed pretty much only wankers. Just days into its five-year …

The Land Of No Laws
17 May 2026 at 2:20am
This game of football is not over. Except for viewers in Scotland, where no laws apply. Don’t get us wrong, readers. In the (minimum of) 32 seconds that were left to play, it was highly unlikely that Hearts were going to score the two goals they needed to win the league. It is improbable that …

Craig Murray

The Power of the UK State Over Scotland
28 May 2026 at 7:50am

I went through yesterday’s preliminary hearing in the Scottish judicial review of the proscription of Palestine Action with a sense of mounting horror. We had the same judge as at the permission hearing, Lord Young. We had exactly the same arguments and the same case law being deployed again by the UK government as at …

The Power of the UK State Over Scotland

Palestine Action Scottish Judicial Review ? Stitch-Up Incoming?
27 May 2026 at 12:58am

The proscription of Palestine Action was sold to MPs and the media on the basis of a deliberate campaign of lies, fronted by Yvette Cooper, then Home Secretary, and Mark Rowley, Commissioner of the Metropolitan police. Both have deep commitment to Israel. Cooper is owned by the Israel lobby. What is worse, they then attempted …

Palestine Action Scottish Judicial Review – Stitch-Up Incoming?

Dr Manivannan
14 May 2026 at 6:00pm

The furore around the election of Dr Manivannan to the Scottish Parliament is deeply troubling. There is no argument whatsoever that they were eligible to stand for election. The law was changed specifically in order for those on temporary visas to be able to stand in Scottish parliamentary elections. I confess I am not sure …

Dr Manivannan

URGENT FILTON TRIAL UPDATE
13 May 2026 at 6:03am

While the Court of Appeal has now stopped the High Court contempt of court action against Rajiv Menon KC for defending his client, this is purely on procedural grounds. They ruled that Judge Johnson had to go via the Attorney General to the High Court, not direct. It is now referred back to Johnson who …

URGENT FILTON TRIAL UPDATE

Zionism Has Poisoned the UK?s Central Nervous System
11 May 2026 at 7:32pm

Unquestioning Zionism has for decades been the entry ticket to the British political and media Establishment. Anybody who was not a fully certified and compliant zionist would find their career limited – as Jeremy Corbyn, Alan Duncan, Robin Cook and David Mellor all found. Most others, of course, were never allowed to progress that far. …

Zionism Has Poisoned the UK’s Central Nervous System

The 2026 Scottish Elections
6 May 2026 at 5:40pm

We get so trapped inside the logic of the UK’s crazy electoral systems we often do not see what is really happening. Two thirds of active voters, voted against Starmer’s Labour at the last general election. He was always highly unpopular. Just as Starmer’s landslide victory in the 2024 general election was based on only …

The 2026 Scottish Elections

BBC Scotland

Call for Holyrood and Westminster to hold joint inquiry into Murrell crimes
1 Jun 2026 at 4:03pm
Former first minister Jack McConnell has backed a dual probe into the former SNP chief executive.

Sturgeon tells BBC: I'm serving a sentence for crime I didn't commit
31 May 2026 at 1:13pm
Scotland's former first minister is challenged by Laura Kuenssberg over the SNP embezzlement scandal, and at times struggles to hold back tears.

Sturgeon the master communicator was close to tears - but still faces more qu...
31 May 2026 at 3:34pm
The former Scottish first minister?s security in her own power and authority seems to have gone, writes Laura Kuenssberg.

Ofcom approves STV's plan to axe north news programme
1 Jun 2026 at 3:43pm
The controversial plan will see the end of the entirely separate news service for the north of Scotland, which is the legacy of the former Grampian Television.

Council seeks deputy leader to replace newly-elected MSP
1 Jun 2026 at 9:47am
Katie Hagmann stepped down from her post after winning a seat in the Scottish Parliament election.

Social media ban 'won't keep children safe', commissioner warns
29 May 2026 at 6:28pm
Scotland's children's commissioner has warned a social media ban could drive children to less regulated or riskier parts of the internet.

Sturgeon wishes she had not kept Murrell on as SNP chief executive
29 May 2026 at 6:49pm
The former first minister says she didn't think it was fair that Murrell - who embezzled more than £400,000 from the SNP - should lose his job when she became SNP leader.

Swinney rejects call for Holyrood inquiry into Murrell
28 May 2026 at 1:36pm
Peter Murrell, the former SNP chief executive, has admitted embezzling more than £400,000 from the party.

Sturgeon's personal life and politics collide in BBC interview
31 May 2026 at 2:15pm
BBC Scotland's political editor Glenn Campbell gives his take on Nicola Sturgeon's first media interview since her estranged husband admitted embezzling £400,000 from the SNP.

Organised crime and historic sex abuse cases driving trial backlog
28 May 2026 at 6:26am
The number of high court cases awaiting trial has nearly tripled since the Covid pandemic due to a backlog in complex cases.

Sturgeon says she was deceived and betrayed over Murrell embezzlement
28 May 2026 at 6:56pm
The former first minister said she was "coming to terms with being married to someone she did not know" after Peter Murrell's guilty plea.

First-time buyers offered up to £10,000 interest-free loans from next month
27 May 2026 at 4:15pm
The Scottish government has launched the First Homes Fund for those looking to get on the property ladder.

Scot Goes Pop

ASTOUNDING surge for SNP in new Norstat poll: how Stew's "Accidental Clouseau...
31 May 2026 at 3:27am
An audio podcast version of the above video can be heard HERE. Other recent videos: More polling reassurance for SNP as by-elections approach, while Greens reclaim second place GB-wideGreens almost...

More polling reassurance for SNP as by-elections approach, while Greens recla...
30 May 2026 at 2:21am
In view of recent requests, I've also uploaded a podcast version of the above video on Soundcloud as a trial run, just to see if there's any interest in the audio-only format.  It's on Spotify too....

Unveiling the new funding model for Scot Goes Pop
28 May 2026 at 7:26pm
Click here to visit my new Ko-Fi page.On Sunday I published a blogpost explaining that my experiment of using YouTube as a more sustainable funding model for Scot Goes Pop wasn't really working out...

Greens almost draw level with Labour in GB-wide YouGov poll, SNP have double-...
28 May 2026 at 8:00am
In view of recent requests, I've also uploaded a podcast version of the above video on Soundcloud as a trial run, just to see if there's any interest in the audio-only format.  It's on Spotify as w...

DEMOCRACY IN ACTION: Newly-elected Scottish Parliament decides by 72 votes to...
27 May 2026 at 8:36am
Other recent videos: Is Scottish independence "closer now than on the day before the 2014 referendum"?What was the REAL vote share for pro-independence parties at the 2026 Holyrood election?First M...

As "Self-determination Tuesday" dawns, is Andy Maciver right to say independe...
26 May 2026 at 2:05pm
For anyone who would like to help support my YouTube channel, I've set up a new Ko-Fi page HERE, which offers the options of either a small recurring monthly subscription, or a one-off donation.  (...

Let's examine the evidence: does RevStew's "brave" Ba'athist propagandist com...
25 May 2026 at 11:02pm
The controversial far-right blogger "Stew" has done yet another of his tweets about me without mentioning me by name - he does this regularly so that he can later do his schtick of "look! search fo...

Some thoughts on Peter Murrell's betrayal of SNP members
25 May 2026 at 2:20pm
So just some miscellaneous thoughts about today's news that Peter Murrell has pleaded guilty to embezzling a six-figure amount from the SNP - * Speaking as someone who is used to living on a shoest...

STV Politics News

Latest Politics News | STV News

UK will not have to pay Rwanda millions of pounds over failed migrant deal
1 Jun 2026 at 10:54am
The east African nation sued Britain for more than £100 million after Labour scrapped the Tories' plan under which four people had been deported.

No 10 braced for further embarrassment as more Mandelson papers to be published
1 Jun 2026 at 5:22am
The release of documents is expected to include messages between Lord Mandelson and ministers and government advisers.

Nicola Sturgeon says Murrell has never explained his embezzlement crimes to her
31 May 2026 at 3:43pm
Murrell pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh this week to embezzling the sum from the SNP between 2010 and 2022

Nicola Sturgeon: ?I feel I am serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit?
31 May 2026 at 10:15am
Murrell pleaded guilty this week to embezzling the sum of £400,000 from the SNP between 2010 and 2022.

Sturgeon: I didn?t shut down people raising concerns about SNP finances
29 May 2026 at 8:45pm
Scotland?s former first minister said critics were saying things about her that were ?not true?.

Sturgeon ?learned of items bought by husband with SNP money in the papers?
29 May 2026 at 6:12pm
The former first minister spoke to audiences at a book festival in Wales on Friday as the fallout from her estranged husband's conviction continues

Nicola Sturgeon begins giving her account of husband?s embezzlement
29 May 2026 at 10:38am
The former first minister is appearing at book festivals just days after her husband Peter Murrell pled guilty to stealing £400,000

Nicola Sturgeon: ?This has been worst week of my life? after husband jailed
28 May 2026 at 5:03pm
The former first minister of Scotland said the revelations of her husband's crimes showed she 'didn't know him at all'

John Swinney to face FMQs amid mounting pressure for Peter Murrell probe
28 May 2026 at 11:56am
The First Minister has rejected calls for an independent probe into Peter Murrell's crimes

First-time buyers offered up to £10,000 interest-free loans from next month
27 May 2026 at 3:57pm
The First Homes Fund will provide successful applicants with a £10,000 contribution towards a deposit

Sturgeon says ?no comment? answers during arrest standard legal advice
26 May 2026 at 9:18pm
The former first minister?s lawyer said it was standard legal advice.

MSPs back John Swinney?s independence motion but Westminster rejects referendum
26 May 2026 at 7:48pm
The Scottish Parliament has voted for Westminster to transfer powers to Holyrood to allow a second independence referendum to be held.

How long will Peter Murrell be jailed for after admitting he embezzled £400,0...
26 May 2026 at 1:21pm
Murrell, the estranged husband of former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, pled guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh on Monday

Holyrood set to back Swinney on second independence referendum
26 May 2026 at 6:59am
Swinney has tabled a motion calling on the UK Government to make a Section 30 order

Daily Record

Daily Record - Politics

John Swinney is an SNP diehard but loyalty to Nicola Sturgeon could damage hi...
1 Jun 2026 at 1:34pm
Refusing to accept the SNP as an organisation was at fault, and insisting all answers surrounding the Murrell scandal have now been answered, is a terrible look for the First Minister, says Chris M...

Nicola Sturgeon BBC interview on Peter Murrell scandal was 'Oscar-winning per...
1 Jun 2026 at 12:28pm
EXCLUSIVE: Sean Clerkin said the former SNP leader's interview with Laura Kuenssberg had only made campaigners demanding refunds from the party "even more determined".

Illegal e-bikes in Scotland pose 'serious risk to public safety' amid calls f...
1 Jun 2026 at 11:12am
Neil Gray has been urged to support the use of drone technology so Police Scotland can trace unlicensed e-bikes for seizure.

It's time for Scotland to stop paying the price for Westminster failure
1 Jun 2026 at 4:30am
In his regular column for the Record, the First Minister argues powers over energy should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament.

Nicola Sturgeon's BBC interview over Peter Murrell scandal - 5 key moments
31 May 2026 at 5:00pm
The former first minister refused to accept responsibility or say sorry after the party she led was fleeced for a decade by her estranged husband, Peter Murrell. But what did we learn from Sturgeon...

Defiant Nicola Sturgeon refuses to apologise for Peter Murrell scandal as Lab...
31 May 2026 at 12:41pm
Scottish Labour warned the Peter Murrell scandal was "not story of domestic deception that can be brushed under the carpet".

SNP 'surrounded itself with control and secrecy' as calls grow for inquiry in...
31 May 2026 at 11:50am
Labour's Pat McFadden has called on MSPs at the Scottish Parliament to "step up to the plate and show that it can do this".

John Swinney admits he hasn't spoken to SNP whistleblowers since Peter Murrel...
31 May 2026 at 10:46am
The First Minister said he had not called former MPs Douglas Chapman and Joanna Cherry - both of whom resigned from the SNP's governing body in 2021.

Nicola Sturgeon 'never saw motorhome as it was parked round the side of house'
31 May 2026 at 10:00am
The former SNP leader flatly refused to accept whistleblowers were blocked from trying to raise issues with the party's accounts.

Nicola Sturgeon: ?I feel I am serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit?
31 May 2026 at 8:37am
The former First Minister's estranged husband Peter Murrell pleaded guilty this week to embezzling from the SNP.

The National

The National | Politics

6 things we learnt from the latest Mandelson files release
1 Jun 2026 at 3:20pm

THE UK Government has released three 500-page files containing key documents and personal WhatsApp messages between Peter Mandelson and senior government ministers and staff.

Here's what Keir Starmer said to Peter Mandelson before he was appointed
1 Jun 2026 at 2:52pm

MESSAGES between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Peter Mandelson prior to his appointment as US ambassador have been released

John Swinney 'deeply concerned' after STV regional news cuts approved
1 Jun 2026 at 2:49pm

The First Minister has written to Ofcom following the decision to accept STV?s proposals to alter their regional programming commitments

This is what must be top of new SNP ministers' to-do lists
1 Jun 2026 at 2:47pm

WE know that the new Scottish Government and its Cabinet ministers will face a challenging workload ...

The varied forces opposed to Scottish independence have not gone anywhere
1 Jun 2026 at 2:42pm

MORE than a decade ago, between 2012 and 2014, as arguments rose and fell and opinions were developed, held silently or loudly proclaimed, it became increasingly clear that a consolidated opposition to Scotland?s independence was forming. That hasn?t changed from then to the 2020s, so it would be as well to identify it clearly.

How and when to see the next set of Mandelson Files today
1 Jun 2026 at 2:20pm

Documents relating to Peter Mandelson?s appointment as ambassador to the United States have been released

London SXSW festival issues statement as speakers barred from UK over Israel ...
1 Jun 2026 at 2:12pm

A LONDON festival has spoken out after two left-wing speakers due to appear at the event were banned from entering the UK by the Labour Government.

Thousands of files on Peter Mandelson's ambassador appointment released
1 Jun 2026 at 2:11pm

THOUSANDS of documents and messages giving details of Peter Mandelson?s appointment and activities as UK ambassador to the US have been published by the Government.

The Scottish constitutional debate must now extend to deeper questions
1 Jun 2026 at 2:03pm

SCOTLAND?S constitutional debate is not only about nationhood or statehood ...

Home Office tells kids as young as 5 they have to leave UK
1 Jun 2026 at 2:00pm

THE Home Office has told children as young as five who are living legally in the UK that they must leave the country even if their parents have been given permission to remain, it has been reported.

Holyrood Magazine

Holyrood Website

Jack McConnell calls for joint Holyrood-Westminster inquiry into Murrell scandal
1 Jun 2026 at 10:25am
The former first minister said the Commons' Public Accounts Committee should hold a probe with the equivalent Holyrood committee.

Sturgeon says she?s ?serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit?
31 May 2026 at 3:15pm
The former first minister spoke to Laura Kuenssberg following the guilty plea from her estranged husband Peter Murrell

Social media ban ?won?t keep children safe?, children commissioner warns
29 May 2026 at 5:23pm
Nicola Killean has said that a ban would not currently be a proportionate, effective, or enforceable way to protect children?s rights, and that it could inadvertently push children to less regulated or riskier parts of the internet

Scottish Affairs Committee urged to carry out inquiry into Peter Murrell
29 May 2026 at 12:48pm
Tory MP Andrew Bowie, the shadow Scottish Secretary, has called for the probe following First Minister John Swinney?s rejection of a parliamentary inquiry at Holyrood

John Swinney: Beastie House horror reveals Scottish child protection failures
28 May 2026 at 2:46pm
FM issues apology to children harmed by Glasgow abuse ring

John Swinney: No new inquiry over Peter Murrell scandal
28 May 2026 at 2:21pm
Electoral Commission says it has 'no evidence' of misuse of public funds

Scotland?s only cybersecurity social enterprise reinvests ?3m to combat threa...
27 May 2026 at 4:11pm
Vulnerability testing, cyber MOTs and executive education programmes have been provided to charities and SMEs

Nicola Sturgeon?s solicitor defends ?no comment? police interview after arrest
27 May 2026 at 1:20pm
Nicola Sturgeon's solicitor Aamer Anwar said the response was ?standard advice offered on a regular basis in our jurisdiction?

Lack of humanoid robotics regulation risks ?misuse?
27 May 2026 at 11:48am
The rapid growth of such technology is outpacing lawmakers and public understanding

Net zero sector worth over ?10bn to economy, report finds
27 May 2026 at 4:00am
But some in the sector warn delays to infrastructure and policy uncertainty is creating a ?transition gap? amid efforts to move away from fossil fuels

Guardian - Scottish Politics

Scottish politics | The Guardian

Mandelson described Starmer?s No 10 operation as ?beleaguered and bereft? in ...
1 Jun 2026 at 4:18pm
Peter Mandelson?s unfiltered remarks to cabinet officials are made public in hundreds of pages of documents relating to his appointment as US ambassador Mandelson files show no mitigation of security concernsAt the Downing Street lobby briefing the PM?s spokesperson said the release of the Mandel...

The Guardian view on the Aberdeen South byelection: the politics of energy ta...
31 May 2026 at 5:30pm
While Westminster?s attention is focused on Andy Burnham and Makerfield, another pivotal byelection is taking place in Scotland?s north-eastThe coming byelection in Makerfield, from where Andy Burnham aspires to make rapid progress towards Downing Street, is perhaps the most consequential in Brit...

Nicola?s only crime was to love too much. And to not notice the Jaguar on the...
31 May 2026 at 5:27pm
Rather than being one of the shrewdest operators in British politics for a decade, it turns out Sturgeon was just too trustingYou know how it is. You wake up and look out the bedroom window. You see a brand new Jaguar worth £81,000 parked in the driveway. You smile to yourself. That?s what you lo...

Nicola Sturgeon: I feel as if I?m serving a sentence for a crime I did not co...
31 May 2026 at 3:47pm
Former Scottish first minister says she will not apologise for actions of her ex-husband found guilty of embezzlementNicola Sturgeon has said she feels as if she is serving a sentence for a crime she did not commit, as she denied ever ?consciously? seeing the motor home bought by her estranged hu...

Nicola Sturgeon: ?I should not be held responsible for the wrongdoing of men?
29 May 2026 at 7:41pm
Ex-SNP leader says she appeared on more front pages than her husband this week, adding: ?I don?t think that?s right?Nicola Sturgeon said she ?should not be held responsible for the wrongdoing of men? after Peter Murrell, her estranged husband, admitted to embezzling hundreds of thousands of pound...

We know what former SNP chief Peter Murrell bought with £400,000 of embezzled...
29 May 2026 at 6:00am
His guilty plea means motive will for ever be a mystery. It just proves that the world can look as hard as it likes at someone?s marriage and never know what?s going onIt sounds like the haul of an unhappy trophy wife, filling her empty days with retail therapy. Three Fortnum & Mason advent calen...

Sturgeon says she was ?deceived, misled and betrayed? by ex-husband Murrell
28 May 2026 at 9:54pm
Murrell has been remanded in custody after pleading guilty to embezzling more than £400,00 from SNPNicola Sturgeon said she was ?deceived, betrayed and lied to? by her estranged husband, Peter Murrell, as he embezzled hundreds of thousands of pounds from the SNP.The former first minister told an ...

Much of what Blair said in essay criticising Labour was wrong, says Starmer ?...
28 May 2026 at 6:06pm
This blog is now closed, you can read more on this story herePat McFadden, the work and pensions secretary, is introducing Alan Milburn.He says Milburn?s report is ?really important and powerful?.I could see in the first few weeks after being appointed as the secretary of state what was happening...

Humza Yousaf says Peter Murrell deserves ?hefty? sentence for embezzlement
27 May 2026 at 11:09am
Former first minister speaks out after SNP?s ex-chief executive pleaded guilty to stealing £400,000 from party UK politics live ? latest updatesHumza Yousaf, Scotland?s former first minister, has called for Peter Murrell to get a ?hefty? jail sentence after he admitted stealing £400,000 from the ...

Labour says Reform UK ?in chaos? as Zia Yusuf publicly tells Jenrick he?s got...
26 May 2026 at 5:40pm
?Robert?s answer is not Reform policy?, Yusuf said about an answer that Jenrick gave to journalists days earlierKeir Starmer has said that SNP leaders need to explain why they did not realise that Peter Murrell was stealing more than £400,000 from the party.Asked about yesterday?s court proceedin...

Wee Ginger Dug

Wee Ginger Dug

Seeing the path ahead clearly
31 May 2026 at 2:45pm
I’m not going to be blogging so much over the next couple of weeks. For the past year or so I’ve had a cataract in my right eye, which has rapidly worsened over recent months such that at an eye test at the opticians last week I found to my horror that I could not …

The first salvos have been fired in the latest stage of the independence camp...
27 May 2026 at 4:20pm
On Tuesday, the first working day of a new Scottish Parliament, with a record pro-independence majority, the fourth such majority in a row, MSPs voted by 72 to 55, a majority of 17 to adopt a motion calling on the Westminster government “to make a Section 30 order under the Scotland Act 1998 to devolve …

Explaining a parliamentary mandate for the staunch of hearing
26 May 2026 at 3:16pm
Today Holyrood gets the ball rolling on putting into action the pro-independence mandate given to it by the people of Scotland at the recent election, which as we all know by now resulted in the largest ever majority of pro-independence MSPs in the history of the Scottish Parliament. I’ll blog about the debate and vote …

Branchform?s over and the SNP is still standing
25 May 2026 at 1:41pm
Well, after five long years, murder tents, and over £2 million in police costs, it’s all over bar the inevitable shouting, and of course the not insignificant matter of what is likely to be a substantial custodial sentence. Former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than £400,000 from the party. …

The supposed ?Once in a generation? pledge is a Westminster myth
23 May 2026 at 12:31pm
On Thursday evening’s edition of BBC Reform Time, Fiona Bruce, the completely unbiased and neutral right wing unionist host, editorialised in aid of Tory MP Harriet Cross who had insisted that the question of independence had been “settled” in 2014 and attempts to revisit the matter “have to end, they have to end.” Bruce interjected …

John Swinney fires the starting gun on independence push
22 May 2026 at 1:30pm
He’s not mucking about. On the back of Holyrood’s record pro-independence majority, John Swinney has announced that there will be a debate and vote in the Scottish Parliament on Tuesday on securing a Section 30 order for an independence referendum. With 72 pro-independence MSPs in the chamber, the motion will pass easily despite the predictable …

The British media is hiding Holyrood?s independence majorities
20 May 2026 at 5:01pm
Something interesting, and entirely predictable, has been happening in the British media since the SNP comprehensively defeated the parties of Westminster rule in this month’s Holyrood elections, being returned for a fifth term in office in a Scottish Parliament which has its largest ever pro-independence majority, making this the fourth Scottish Parliament in a row …

Something wicked this way comes
17 May 2026 at 1:27pm
We are rightly concerned about Reform UK, which has now gained representation in the Scottish Parliament, although as I had hoped, it performed more poorly than most polls forecast and failed to win a single constituency seat, narrowly missing out to the SNP in the Banffshire and Buchan Coast constituency which had been widely tipped …

The Celtic Alliance can break Westminter?s constitutional logjam
15 May 2026 at 6:33pm
One of the biggest developments in British political history came to pass after the recent parliamentary elections in Scotland and Wales, yet it predictably went all but unnoticed by a British media which struggles to comprehend England outwith the M25 and for which Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are terra incognita marked “here be dragons” …

Labour?s rigged electoral system has bitten it on the bum
13 May 2026 at 3:51pm
Ever since the Holyrood election last week in which the SNP won a crushing victory over the dependency parties, those parties and their client media have been crowing that John Swinney must drop his “obsession” with independence because the SNP “failed” in the election and did not win an outright majority for the SNP. Alex …

The Courier

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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

When Jack McConnell?s constituency treasurer stole £11 000 over 5 years, 22 y...
1 Jun 2026 at 3:28pm
Former Labour First Minister Jack McConnell is everywhere in the MSM calling for ‘both parliaments to probe SNP.‘ From the Telegraph in April 2004, the above, and: Internal inquiry eh? That’ll be fair eh? Also: Did she get the jail? Ex-Labour party embezzler fined The probe focused on the Motherwell and Wishaw constituencyA former Labour treasurer has been fined £2,400 for embezzling £11,000 fr...

UK Labour Government?s NHS Modernisation Bill expected to save only 0.009% of...
1 Jun 2026 at 3:26pm
In the Guardian today, the above headline and: Sharing access to patients? health data across NHS providers in England could result in 20,000 fewer A&E visits a year and save £20m annually, the government has claimed, before the second reading of the NHS modernisation bill on Monday. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/jun/01/single-patient-records-sharing-health-data-nhs-england There wer...

Scotland?s additional stricter regulations mean that none of 18 000 nurses wi...
1 Jun 2026 at 3:24pm
From Nursing Standard, four days ago, the above and: Hundreds of nurses are set to have their registrations reviewed after the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) failed to follow due process for declaring health conditions and criminal convictions for 12 years.  A member of staff raised concerns about an historical failure to consistently refer declarations of health issues and criminal record...

Latest poll suggests SNP support apparently immune to media feeding frenzies ...
1 Jun 2026 at 3:22pm
In the days since Peter Murrell was found guilty of embezzling SNP member’s funds, we’ve seen an astonishing and sickening feeding frenzy with commentators from every part joining in and frankly disgusting misogynistic attacks on his wife. Ever the optimist, informed by our recovery from all the other exposures, I looked forward to the next polls, expecting but never certain, that they’d reveal...

?Two decades of havoc? ? Here?s what a real, current, international expert ON...
1 Jun 2026 at 3:13pm
By stewartb It?s not that hard to find educationalists internationally who are either sceptical or straightforwardly negative about the OECD?s PISA rankings. This from one ?expert? in a peer reviewed journal: Zhao, Y. Two decades of havoc: A synthesis of criticism against PISA. J Educ Change 21, 245?266 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10833-019-09367-x Abstract: ?The Programme for Internationa...

Major comparative study by respected Nuffield Foundation found higher educati...
1 Jun 2026 at 9:25am
Note - Do you think Prof Paterson noticed this at the time? Professor John Robertson OBA, for nearly 40 years a schoolteacher, a teacher education lecturer, Associate Dean for Quality Assurance, research methods lecturer, PhD supervisor and Faculty Research Ethics Chair From Comparing inequality and outcomes across post-16 education in the UK, published in August 2025, utterly ignored at the ti...

Building standards and regulations in Scotland are generally more strict and ...
1 Jun 2026 at 9:16am
In the Guardian on 11 February 2026: Even multimillionaires can?t escape Britain?s cowboy builders, it seems. Last week, residents of One Hyde Park, the UK?s most expensive flats, won a £35m court case against the contractor that built their homes. The high court ordered the construction company Laing O?Rourke to fix defective pipework that was discovered to be causing problems in 2014, only th...

When Labour?s Helena Kennedy said ?Scotland has proudly led the way in many a...
1 Jun 2026 at 9:08am
The horrific story of Gisele Pelicot dominates discussion of the abuse of women and girls. The comment below may trigger faux rage and deliberate misrepresentation in a few comments. However, to deal with a problem, which Scotland still has ?in spades?, we have know how we are progressing, if at all. Helena Ann Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws, is a Scottish barrister, broadcaster, and La...

How, thanks to SNP, around Scottish 200 000* families on low income receives ...
1 Jun 2026 at 8:45am
Thanks once more to Dottie for alerting me to this. In the Guardian yesterday: The emergence of ?welfare nationalism? in the UK has created striking differences in benefit entitlement that result in a Scottish family on a low income receiving £15,000 a year more in state support than an identical household over the border in England. A typical out of work couple with four children would have re...

Talking-up Scotland?s reporting has increased 56% since 2024 but Arty Hetty ...
31 May 2026 at 2:20pm
We have many friends here and they are all deeply appreciated but I feel sure that no one will be surprised to see that, over the years, Arty Hetty has often been there, and quickest there, to back us up. The above figures seem huge but bear in mind they only represent the period from around mid 2019, when perhaps in reaction to my recovery from arthritis-triggered opioid painkiller addiction, ...

Scotland and Independence

"scotland independence -guardian" - Google News

Scottish independence - Institute for Government
29 May 2026 at 8:00am
Scottish independence  Institute for Government

Is Scotland still divided on independence? - The Week
28 May 2026 at 1:34pm
Is Scotland still divided on independence?  The Week

The varied forces opposed to Scottish independence have not gone anywhere - T...
1 Jun 2026 at 2:45pm
The varied forces opposed to Scottish independence have not gone anywhere  The National Scot

Nationalist Governments Now in Both: The 2026 Parliamentary Elections in Scot...
31 May 2026 at 7:13pm
Nationalist Governments Now in Both: The 2026 Parliamentary Elections in Scotland and Wales  Open Canada

There?s little love for the SNP ? so why does the party look set to win in Sc...
6 May 2026 at 8:00am
There?s little love for the SNP ? so why does the party look set to win in Scotland?  The Conversation

Scottish Nationalists Hang On to Power, Without Authority - Jacobin
29 May 2026 at 1:42pm
Scottish Nationalists Hang On to Power, Without Authority  Jacobin

A Greek tragedy in three acts: Nicola Sturgeon, Peter Murrell, and the SNP's ...
30 May 2026 at 8:24am
A Greek tragedy in three acts: Nicola Sturgeon, Peter Murrell, and the SNP's ruin  The Herald

New poll finds Scots would vote for independence in second referendum - The N...
1 Jun 2026 at 12:36pm
New poll finds Scots would vote for independence in second referendum  The National Scot

What the dead hand of the SNP has done to Scotland - The Times
30 May 2026 at 6:00pm
What the dead hand of the SNP has done to Scotland  The Times

Scottish Parliament to move on new independence vote - RTE.ie
26 May 2026 at 5:30am
Scottish Parliament to move on new independence vote  RTE.ie

SNP

"SNP" - Google News

Sturgeon's personal life and politics collide in BBC interview - BBC
31 May 2026 at 2:15pm
Sturgeon's personal life and politics collide in BBC interview  BBC

We know what former SNP chief Peter Murrell bought with £400,000 of embezzled...
29 May 2026 at 8:23am
We know what former SNP chief Peter Murrell bought with £400,000 of embezzled funds. What I?d like to know is why  The Guardian

Sturgeon tells BBC: I'm serving a sentence for crime I didn't commit - BBC
31 May 2026 at 1:13pm
Sturgeon tells BBC: I'm serving a sentence for crime I didn't commit  BBC

Scotland's papers: SNP donors' 'court threat' and Sturgeon's 'England move' -...
31 May 2026 at 9:17am
Scotland's papers: SNP donors' 'court threat' and Sturgeon's 'England move'  BBC

Watch: Key moments from Nicola Sturgeon's interview with Laura Kuenssberg - BBC
31 May 2026 at 9:17am
Watch: Key moments from Nicola Sturgeon's interview with Laura Kuenssberg  BBC

Sturgeon showed 'remarkable lack of curiosity' over SNP finances, Cherry says...
26 May 2026 at 1:53pm
Sturgeon showed 'remarkable lack of curiosity' over SNP finances, Cherry says  BBC

Nicola Sturgeon denies any knowledge of items husband Peter Murrell bought wi...
25 May 2026 at 6:59pm
Nicola Sturgeon denies any knowledge of items husband Peter Murrell bought with embezzled £400,000  Sky News

Final YouGov MRP of the 2026 Holyrood election shows the SNP falling short of...
6 May 2026 at 8:00am
Final YouGov MRP of the 2026 Holyrood election shows the SNP falling short of a majority  YouGov

Former Scottish National Party chief pleads guilty to embezzling $540,000 - R...
25 May 2026 at 2:42pm
Former Scottish National Party chief pleads guilty to embezzling $540,000  Reuters

Sturgeon defends 'no comment' police interview after SNP funds probe arrest -...
27 May 2026 at 5:50pm
Sturgeon defends 'no comment' police interview after SNP funds probe arrest  BBC

Referendum (Google News)

"Scotland referendum -guardian -telegraph" - Google News

Scottish independence - Institute for Government
29 May 2026 at 8:00am
Scottish independence  Institute for Government

Scottish Parliament endorses SNP call for independence referendum - BBC
26 May 2026 at 6:10pm
Scottish Parliament endorses SNP call for independence referendum  BBC

Scottish Parliament backs move for new independence vote - NZ Herald
26 May 2026 at 9:41pm
Scottish Parliament backs move for new independence vote  NZ Herald

Is Scotland still divided on independence? - The Week
28 May 2026 at 1:34pm
Is Scotland still divided on independence?  The Week

Scotland Renews Push for Independence With Labour in Turmoil - Bloomberg.com
26 May 2026 at 5:45pm
Scotland Renews Push for Independence With Labour in Turmoil  Bloomberg.com

Scotland's head of government vows to hold another independence referendum - ...
11 May 2026 at 8:00am
Scotland's head of government vows to hold another independence referendum  ConstitutionNet

Downing Street rejects Holyrood call for independence referendum - The Nation...
26 May 2026 at 8:59pm
Downing Street rejects Holyrood call for independence referendum  The National Scot

Democratic mandate reached for independence referendum - Scottish Greens
26 May 2026 at 8:41am
Democratic mandate reached for independence referendum  Scottish Greens

Scottish Parliament backs plans for route to second independence referendum -...
26 May 2026 at 6:01pm
Scottish Parliament backs plans for route to second independence referendum  Holyrood Website

What do the May Election Results Mean for Devolution? - The Constitution Society
26 May 2026 at 10:31am
What do the May Election Results Mean for Devolution?  The Constitution Society