IT is, as billed, bold and ambitious. The 120-page Programme for Government presented to Holyrood on Tuesday by Nicola Sturgeon wasn’t just her legislative slate for the year ahead (perhaps just as well, as many of the dozen new bills are decidedly...

The Scouting movement in Scotland is to open its doors to four and five year olds for the first time to help support children after the isolation of lockdown.

SCOTLAND'S crofters are furious that a long awaited plan to help keep the traditional system of farming alive has been dropped by the Scottish Government.

MINISTERS spent nearly £500,000 of public money on a four-year-old pledge to provide cheap state-owned energy as a key part of Scotland's green recovery before dropping it.

THE SOUTH Korean-owned company running Britain's only UK facility for manufacturing onshore and offshore wind towers based in Scotland has gone into administration.

A LEADING think tank has urged both Holyrood and Westminster to stop the “finger pointing” and urgently tackle poverty rates in Scotland.

I like statistics. I especially like the way they can give you an utterly wrong impression of the truth. The First Minister gave a speech at Holyrood this week to launch her 2021/22 Programme. In all, she said 4588 words. She said “child” 16 time...

SCOTLAND’S labour market is “full steam ahead,” with an unprecedented surge in hiring activity during August, according to a new report.

THE much-heralded opening this week of the Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky attraction in Edinburgh was a big moment for its owner, the drinks giant Diageo, which spent four-and-a-half years bringing the project to life.

With shocking levels of destitution and hardship in Scotland, and looming child poverty targets for the Scottish Government, the task of tackling poverty in Scotland has never been more urgent.

Exclusive

IN soap operas there is a classic shot used to show a character’s existential despair. If the camera operators in the Scottish Parliament were allowed more creative freedom, such framing would have come in handy on Tuesday.

By Ian McConnell

THEY have overcome heartache and the battle to survive in the hospitality sector during a global pandemic.

More than half of voters in Scotland oppose Nicola Sturgeon’s preferred timetable for a second independence referendum, a new poll has suggested.

By Kristy Dorsey

THROUGHOUT the continuing Covid pandemic, many thousands of those who died were disastrously dependent on what the Westminster Government and UK media now refer to as the care “industry”.

CUTS in UK gas production could put pressure on prices and slow the energy transition according to experts who have said comments by Nicola Sturgeon have created uncertainty in the sector.

By Scott Wright

By Kristy Dorsey

INTERNATIONAL energy sector heavyweights have underlined their belief in the potential to develop floating windfarms successfully off Scotland in projects they reckon could generate big economic benefits for the country.

A WIND farm in Shetland that will power 475,000 homes has reached a new milestone.

A SKINT Scotland, western hoarding and the social care crisis were the issues raised by columnists and contributors in the newspapers.

Mexico has decriminalised abortion at a time when across the border in Texas restrictions are tightening. The Mexican Supreme Court has ruled that criminal penalties for terminating pregnancies are now unconstitutional.

Taste test

MOTIONS tabled for debate at the SNP’s party conference prove that independence supporters inhabit some sort of fantasy Scot-la-la-land, where economic reality is allowed to stand on its head. Motions that promise an independence campaign that puts...

IT’S often the little things which are most revealing about a person or an organisation. With the SNP, it’s the unlikely matter of rubbish piling high in the streets of Glasgow.

Drinking alcohol-free wine improves heart health as much as consuming modest amounts of normal wine, new research suggests.

Priti Patel has ordered officials to rewrite laws to allow Border Force to redirect boats to be dealt with by French authorities, reports say

Now open at 8-10 Mill Street, Candleriggs, Alloa, Fosters Funeral Directors believe that every life is unique.

The finalists for this year’s The Herald & GenAnalytics Diversity Awards in association with Arnold Clark have just been announced and they include organisations and individuals from across a wide spread of businesses and enterprises who are active...

A leading Scottish respiratory doctor has said he is yet to see any "compelling evidence" for giving Covid boosters to healthy people.

MANY had Scotland written off after their performance against Denmark last week but after two victories against Moldova and Austria, there is an air of optimism about the national team once again.

Ministers are under fresh pressure over school standardised assessments after international experts told MSPs they were not considered an “appropriate” method for monitoring the overall success of Curriculum for Excellence and its impact on pupi...

MPs from across all parties have clashed over Boris Johnson’s plans to raise National Insurance contributions to fund social care and the NHS in England.

Emma Raducanu extended her stunning progress at the US Open by beating Belinda Bencic 6-3 6-4 to reach the semi-finals.

KATE Forbes has insisted her Government is “pro-prosperity, pro-business and pro-jobs" to try and allay growing fears her administration’s partner’s are "actively hostile" to economic growth.

A CONSERVATIVE minister has apologised after confusing two black sportsmen.

RURAL tourism and hospitality businesses in Scotland face a “double whammy” of Brexit and Covid exacerbating labour shortages, MSPs have been warned.

The creators of what is said to be Scotland’s first alcohol-free spirit have teamed up with the North Coast 500 to offer designated drivers a drinking alternative at partner venues along the popular tourist route.

The Cleaner is a weird and wonderful comedy about an ordinary man with an extraordinary job. Georgia Humphreys meets writer and star, Greg Davies.

SNP ministers have been accused of an “embarrassing downgrade” after “halting” work on setting up a public energy company - despite also being an ask of their new partners in government.

AN SNP MP will stand trial next month after a crash involving a teenage biker.

BORIS Johnson has been criticised from all sides over his plans to increase national insurance to pay for social care and NHS support.

SCOTTISH MPs have clashed over the drugs crisis and independence plans in Scotland during a tense session in the Commons.

An expert offers tips on prairie planting, inspired by the eco-systems of the grasslands of North America. By Hannah Stephenson.

It’s lovely to see the children back at school. The wee ones tripping along the street with their oversized school uniforms, the older ones, with outfits that look like they’ve shrunk in the wash. Takes me back. In my day, a treat after school wa...

Born: March 11, 1956;

A POLICE probe has been launched after a two-year-old girl fell from the top floor window of a four-storey block of flats.

A CAMPBELTOWN wind tower manufacturer, which served the onshore and offshore energy sectors, has collapsed into administration after succumbing to deteriorating market conditions.