Scotland to be freed from face masks for the first time in almost two years
While face mask rules south of the border have varied since the start of the pandemic, they have remained in place constantly in Scotland since they were…
‘Grossly offensive’ Scottish minister compares women’s rights activists to racists and anti-Semites
Feminists who fear a radical overhaul of transgender laws in Scotland will threaten their rights and safety have been compared to racists and anti-Semites by a minister…
Cochrane’s Scotland: Secret Sturgeon’s press blackout makes a mockery of local elections
Civil servants don’t normally get a good press. They are frequently written up as feather-bedded, nine-to-five wallahs who drink tea all day whilst working out how much…
Calorie counts to be made mandatory on menus in Scotland
Restaurants, cafes and takeaways in Scotland are to be forced to add calorie counts next to every dish on their menus, under SNP government plans that are…
Scottish independence still matters to voters, even if Anas Sarwar wishes it didn’t
Anas Sarwar has had a pretty successful couple of weeks as Scottish Labour leader. First, he cracked the political joke of the decade when he asked Nicola…
10 of Britain’s coolest campsites to stay in this summer
In spring, once the sun appears and the British countryside’s simple pleasures beckon, the pick of the nation’s campsites will book up fast. If you want meadows with…
Scottish government criticised for its ‘failure to remobilise’ a ‘struggling’ NHS
Nicola Sturgeon’s government has been accused of failing to “remobilise” Scotland’s NHS after official figures disclosed that it is still performing a third fewer operations than before…
Scotland is entering the space race – so will its rocket company ever take off?
Skyrora, a start-up with some £40 million of private and government investment, is currently planning to launch the biggest in its range of British-built payload-carrying rockets into…
Disgraced ex-SNP minister Derek Mackay will give evidence over Nicola Sturgeon’s ferry scandal
Nicola Sturgeon’s “micromanaging” method of running her government means she must have given the final approval to a scandal-hit ferries contract, it has been alleged, after it…
Nicola Sturgeon’s litany of blunders is finally catching up with her
It is, in Scotland, the eternal question: how have the SNP managed to defy political gravity for so long despite an ever-growing list of policy failures? The…
All at sea, Nicola Sturgeon is knocked off course over shipyard’s ‘Lionel Messi’-style wages
That is easily the best way to get under the SNP leader’s skin. All politicians hate to be laughed at, this First Minister more than most. The…
Nicola Sturgeon nationalises Scotland’s rail franchise amid warnings of repeat of ferries debacle
Ms Sturgeon’s announcement came with her government embroiled in scandal over the spiralling cost of two ferries being built by Ferguson Marine, a shipyard she nationalised. They…
Mountain deaths in Scottish Highlands are almost all men as ‘guys tend to overestimate their ability’
Mountain deaths in the Scottish Highlands are 90 per cent men because “guys tend to overestimate their ability,” a mountaineering instructor has claimed. Heather Morning, the chief…
Nicola Sturgeon insists ‘normal processes’ followed in awarding of controversial ferries contract
But last week’s Audit Scotland report found that in 2015, shortly after being named the preferred bidder, Ferguson Marine went back on a pledge to guarantee a…
Cochrane’s Scotland: The SNP must stop blaming Boris and start putting policy over presentation
Not having been very often on the same side of many arguments with Gordon Brown, I was happy to agree with his recent pronouncements about the likely…
The 20 best beaches to visit across the UK this spring and summer
Britain is home to some exemplary beaches. And with spring in full swing and the sun finally shining, it’s time to start planning a day at the…
I lost my ability to walk, then my husband – but I was determined to fulfil my promise to him
This time last year, I was enjoying a fresh start. I believed that 2021 would be the year that we would finally say goodbye to a period…
Middle-class Scots face income tax bills £2,000 higher than English counterparts
His decision to increase National Insurance starting thresholds to £12,570, which applies across the UK, will benefit 2.4 million working people in Scotland. But the income tax…
SNP costs taxpayers £150,000 after failed attempt to ‘redefine’ women to include transgender people
Judges also ruled that the flawed definition of women included in the legislation, which stated that anyone “living as a woman” should count towards female quotas on…
Scottish government accused of ‘relentless incompetence’ as cost of two new ferries hits £240m
In 2019, the Scottish government nationalised Ferguson Marine to prevent it from collapsing. However, the report said this was done “without a full and detailed understanding of…
SNP and Greens ‘glossing over failures’ after telling speechwriters to skip their policy details
The 126 pages of guidance covered each minister’s preferences for their meetings, engagements, speeches, letters and briefings. The detailed list of demands included the font and size…
Skip to the good bits and don’t mention our ‘failures’, SNP and Greens tell speechwriters
The 126 pages of guidance covered each minister’s preferences for their meetings, engagements, speeches, letters and briefings. The detailed list of demands included the font and size…
Boris Johnson’s one saving grace in comparing Brexiteers to Ukrainians? He’d left Scotland before he said it
And if there is one saving grace in his theme that Brexiteers are as much freedom fighters as Ukrainians, it is that he saved that utterance until…
The Highland clans’ very modern chiefs: ‘The stereotype of a tweedy figure strutting about is no longer valid’
I ask him if there’s pressure to hand over land to the community. ‘No. There’s not much you can do with this type of terrain and, anyway,…
Douglas Ross: Scotland has become ‘bitter and inward-facing’ under the SNP
He will warn that Scotland is becoming worse off “both economically and intellectually” thanks to a Scottish Government blaming Westminster rather than taking any responsibility for its…