Scotland's political leaders will go head to head tonight in the second live televised debate ahead of the Holyrood election.

Follow along with the latest coronavirus news in Scotland and further afield.

By Kristy Dorsey

THE ‘Kent’ Covid variant which has turbo-charged Scotland’s second wave and led to a prolonged lockdown is no more deadly or likely to cause Long Covid than the original strain, according to major new studies.

I HAVE drinks planned in the middle of May with friends, in real life. In person drinks in a public place with more than one other human at once.

Pupil access to school trips would be significantly boosted under plans announced by the SNP and Greens.

NEW national parks and millions of extra trees on the Liberal Democrats’ wish list as the party sets out its plans to draw up a new nature recovery law.

IT was intended to capture the stories of traditions, a way of life, and dialects feared to be dying out seven decades ago.

THE SNP has been accused of having “massively let down” rural communities amid a warning climate responsibility “needs to be integrated into every sort of decision” the Government takes.

DOUG Marr tells us very correctly that Holyrood is not perfect, but complains that the alternatives are much worse ("Holyrood is far from perfect but the alternatives would be much worse", The Herald, April 12).

YOUNG people from deprived communities should be offered free gym memberships to make it easier for them to exercise and get fit, medics have said.

By Scott Wright

No, it isn’t something you’d find on the buffet car of a ghost train – instead it’s a fully-staffed kitchen whose function is to prepare meals for delivery only.

WORK is set to begin on affordable housing at one of Scotland’s largest residential development schemes.

THE Scottish capital and St Andrews have been named in the list of top destinations for investors looking to develop purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) this year, research by Savills has revealed.

WOOD chief executive Robin Watson has seen his total pay fall by around 30 per cent after the company scrapped bonuses as the fallout from the coronavirus crisis weighed on key markets such as the North Sea.

Back in more youthful days, when my skin seemed to fit my face a bit better and I didn’t waste astonishing chunks of time doddering around looking for my bloomin’ spectacles, I was one of the press officers at The Open Championship.

NORTH Sea-focused Independent Oil and Gas (IOG) is on track to start production from a landmark development after making progress amid challenging conditions.

WOE is me! – or, in Latin, "Vae! I think I am becoming a god", as Vespasian said before handing in his dinner pail in 79AD, a year otherwise notable for the eruption of Vesuvius that destroyed Pompeii shortly afterwards.

THE 2010 General Election was held in the aftermath of the financial crash, and after 13 years of Labour government. PM Gordon Brown sought to counter the sense it was time for a change by arguing it was “no time for a novice”. His appeal fail...

Bruce encounters

NEXT year, the BBC – creation of a brilliant Scot, John Reith – celebrates its centenary, respected and envied (and resented by autocrats) around the world; the heart of Britain’s highly successful broadcasting ecology and creative industrie...

THE SNP's Westminster leader has paid tribute to the Duke of Edinburgh's links to Scotland during his speech in the House of Commons.

PATRICK Harvie has raised Prince Philip’s “extreme wealth, privilege and status” as he admitted the Scottish Greens considered boycotting the Holyrood tribute to him.

A NEW campaign advert by Alex Salmond's Alba Party has been branded "pathetic" and "embarrassing".

POLICE are appealing for witnesses after a cyclist died following a crash with a van in Dumfries.

Wales has become the first nation of the UK to give a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine to half its population.

An investigation has been launched after scaffolding crashed to the ground at a luxury flat development in Glasgow's west end.

A private healthcare group is offering Long Covid patients free rehabiliatory support after a pilot led to positive results.

THE UK Government has mounted a controversial legal challenge to two Holyrood Bills, arguing parts of them are unsound and encroach on Westminster sovereignty.

Officers in Edinburgh are appealing for the help of the public to establish the movements of a man whose body was found in the Water of Leith.

A FORMER cabinet minister and Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Shirley Williams has died at the age of 90.

ALEX Salmond has issued a stark warning to those who abuse female Alba party candidates after several are claimed to have received threats over the weekend.

Alex Salmond’s Alba Party has yet to perform well in the polls that indicate how the people of Scotland will vote in May.

Two dental practices that have been established for more than 30 years have become part of Scotland’s biggest dental group after agreeing a new partnership.

Since inception, the Scottish Parliament has experienced regular sniping and spasmodic calls for abolition. An Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party is standing candidates in next month’s election. The party’s website suggests the “£100 mil...

ALEX Salmond has accused Nicola Sturgeon of causing "total consternation" in the independence movement due to her "lack of urgency".

THE UK's largest LGBT charity has demanded an Alba candidate retract a "dangerous and misleading" statement suggesting that it was campaigning to reduce the age of consent to 10.

There have been 199 new cases of Covid-19 reported in Scotland in the past 24 hours.

NICOLA Sturgeon has led MSPs in tribute to Prince Philip who the First Minister described as “deeply interesting and fiercely intelligent”.

Prince William has paid tribute to his "extraordinary" grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh, who passed away on Friday.

The Duke of Sussex said his grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh was “a man of service, honour and great humour, adding that “he was my grandpa: master of the barbecue, legend of banter, and cheeky right ‘til the end”.

BORIS Johnson has led the tributes to Prince Philip in the House of Commons by repeating some of his most well-known gaffes.

A PROBE has been launched into the extent of David Cameron's lobbying for Greensill Capital.

NICOLA Sturgeon led MSPs in tributes to Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, following his death on Friday at the age of 99.

GORDON Brown has said former ministers and prime ministers should 'never be lobbying' the government for commercial gain.

More than 2,600 teachers have dropped or lost their professional registration over the last five years, sparking fears of a classroom crisis as schools battle to recover from Covid-19.

The Prime Minister has so far rejected calls by Scotland’s First Minister to give the go-ahead for a referendum

An arrest warrant has been issued after a man who posted an inflammatory tweet suggesting Scotland’s Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf sympathised with terrorists. failed to appear at court for sentencing.

The country has entered a period of ‘National Mourning’ following the death of Prince Philip.