Politics - Scotsman.com

OFCOM and PCC to be called to Leveson inquiry

THE Leveson Inquiry into press standards will hear from the heads of the Press Complaints Commission (PCC) and broadcasting regulator Ofcom next week.

Mother of military policeman killed in Iraq plans legal action

THE mother of a military policeman killed by a mob in Iraq is planning legal action to force the Ministry of Defence to hold a public inquiry into his death.

Danny Alexander, with sports minister Shona Robison at Glasgows Commonwealth Arena

Scottish independence: Posing a simple question proves far from easy

POLLSTERS, academics and politicians are divided over the fairness of the SNP’s preferred referendum question, raising the prospect of it being thrown out by electoral chiefs in charge of overseeing the historic vote.

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Alex Eadie and his wife Janice celebrate his election success in 1987

Alex Eadie served ‘diligently’ says former PM Brown

TRIBUTES today poured in to former long-serving Midlothian Labour MP Alex Eadie, following his death at the age of 91.

Jenny Marra has called for an independent audit of cuts

Police ‘will axe 2,000 backroom staff’ even before single force

POLICE are planning to shed 2,000 support staff to meet budget cuts and prepare for a single Scottish force, in a move which has sparked fears of a depleted front line, with officers carrying out civilian roles.

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Cameron tells Europeans to be bold

David Cameron delivered a scathing assessment of Europe’s failure to promote economic growth yesterday as he urged it to be “bold” to promote business.

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Minimum pricing is seen by some as the solution to the nation's alcohol problems

Scots alcohol-related deaths double during last 30 years

THE number of alcohol-related deaths in Scotland has more than doubled in the past three decades, latest figures show.

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Moderator chides Israel over Palestinian rights

THE Moderator of the Church of Scotland has said Israel has acted “irrationally” in its treatment of the Palestinian people.

HMRC grants strike breathing space

PEOPLE who miss next week’s tax self-assessment deadline will not be fined because of a strike by tax office staff.

Donald Trump: Claims wind farm will ruin coastline. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump urges independent Scotland to defend coast

DONALD Trump has said an independent Scotland would need to protect its coastline after he failed to win support for his opposition to an “eyesore” offshore wind farm from a local planning authority.

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£15m fund to pay-off staff as part of college mergers

A £15 million “transformation fund” for Scotland’s colleges will be used to speed up mergers by paying for voluntary redundancy schemes.

Tributes after former MP Alex Eadie dies aged 91

Former Labour MP for Midlothian Alex Eadie has died, the party announced yesterday. He was 91.

Michael Kelly: Don’t forget the mothers in abortions row

NURSES’ rights aside, the overriding moral duty is to give grief-stricken women the best of care

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Anas Sarwar and Labour leader Johann Lamont need to strengthen their case

Joyce McMillan: ‘It won’t work’ is not good enough

Independence debate is fully joined and hell mend unionists who have nothing positive to offer

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David Arnott: Holocaust memorial offers way forward

JUST before Christmas I visited the Yad Vashem Memorial in Jerusalem. The name comes from the Old Testament book of Isaiah: “I will give them a memorial and a name.” Its function is to perpetuate the memory of the Holocaust for future generations.

Oil resources in the North Sea would be key to economic independence

George Kerevan: Oil will smooth way to economic independence

The UK, because of City influence, has not truly capitalised on North Sea bounty, but by creating a wealth fund Scotland could

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Tom Peterkin: World’s press are kept waiting for Salmond

WHEN Alex Salmond invited the world’s press to Edinburgh Castle this week, he was at pains to offer the cadre of 50 or so foreign journalists a “warm” welcome.

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Tam Dalyell: Why don’t we stop trying to annoy the English and just say goodbye to Holyrood instead

I INCURRED much displeasure from some (not all) of my Scottish colleagues in the Parliamentary Labour Party in 1989 for being the only Labour MP to decline to sign the Claim of Right.

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Ulster’s troubles ‘could flare again’ if Scots vote for independence

Independence for Scotland risks re-igniting conflict in Northern Ireland, a former first minister of the province has warned.

We need second question, says Wright

One of the architects of devolution is to launch a campaign for a second referendum question on more powers for Holyrood.

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The First Minister’s wit and wisdom have SNP back-benchers rolling in the aisles

AMID all this referendum talk, Alex Salmond has somehow found the time to renew his subscription to the “Laugh At Your Own Joke Club”.

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Mandarin rejects fresh calls for action against SNP adviser in fake letter row

Scotland’s top civil servant has rejected opposition calls for fresh action in the fake letter row surrounding one of Alex Salmond’s closest advisers.

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Alex Salmond taking First Ministers Questions yesterday at Holyrood

Alex Salmond: ‘Chancellor would bite our hands off to keep the pound’

ALEX Salmond insisted that a UK chancellor would be “biting our hands off” for an independent Scotland to keep the pound, as he told MSPs that 67 nations across the globe shared their currencies in the same way.

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UK’s Falklands defences ‘up to the task’

The Argentinians do not have the military power to seize the Falkland Islands, even if they wanted to, Defence Minister Gerald Howarth said yesterday as he accused the country’s government of “sabre-rattling”.

Stephen Hester will earn a bonus less that half the one he received last year

RBS bows to pressure with £900,000 bonus for Stephen Hester

A HIGHLY controversial bonus for the chief executive of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has been capped at just under £1 million, the organisation announced last night.

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Alex Salmond believes Scotland would have much to offer a post-independence currency. Picture: Jane Barlow

Chancellor would welcome post-independence currency union - Alex Salmond

Alex Salmond today claimed a British Chancellor would be “biting our hands off” for an independent Scotland to keep the pound as its currency.

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First Minister Alex Salmond launches the consultation at Edinburgh Castle. Picture: Jane Barlow

Webchat: Debate the SNP’s independence referendum plans with Kenny Farquharson

Scotland on Sunday deputy editor Kenny Farquharson is online from 3pm today to discuss the SNP’s consultation paper on a referendum on Scottish independence.

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Danny Alexander questions timing of Scottish independence referendum

THE Scottish Government’s referendum plans came under scrutiny today as Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander questioned why Scots will have to wait “a thousand more days” before the vote is held.

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Catalonia, like Scotland, is on Jacques Attalis new nations list

Tom Nairn: Creation of the future means unravelling past

2014 and all that is part and parcel of a re-evaluation of the idea of nation state

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Is there room for another question in Alex Salmond's independence referendum? Picture: Jane Barlow

Scottish independence referendum: One question, ten words, you choose video

SCOTLAND would embark on a future as an independent country in May 2016 if voters support the SNP’s plans to secede from the UK, Alex Salmond has declared.

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Tavish Scott: Home rule parliament within UK is best option

IT is all over. Well it is now. That, to paraphrase the famous, or for the Tartan Army, infamous, commentary which accompanied Geoff Hurst’s third goal in the 1966 World Cup Final, is the position in Scottish politics today.

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Martin Sime: Time to take stock of devolution’s future

NOW that both UK and Scottish consultations on the referendum have been published, it’s a good time for politicians to step back from the wrangle about legal powers and timing, and for calm heads to think about the kind of Scotland we want to see.

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An independent Scotland reliant on the Bank of England presents huge problems

Bill Jamieson: A question of money for Scotland

Could we really go it alone while relying on the Bank of England as our lender of last resort?

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Flags fly at the border crossing in Berwick Upon Tweed

Scottish independence referendum: The nuts and bolts of the most important vote in 300 years

THE clearest picture yet of Alex Salmond’s route map to independence has emerged in the SNP’s referendum document.

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Alex Salmond arrives for a short performance of Tam O Shanter. Picture: PA

Scottish independence referendum: Alex Salmond takes to the world stage to sell Scotland’s story

HIGH on the Edinburgh Castle ramparts, stormy gusts buffeted the 16th-century Great Hall where Alex Salmond told the world of the plans he hopes will change the course of Scottish history forever.

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Poll shows Scots are evenly divided over independence

A NEW poll shows Scots are more or less evenly divided between those in favour of independence and those against.

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Peter Mandelson says criticism of the shadow PM has become

Mandelson says Ed Miliband struggling to fight Tories on two fronts

Labour leader Ed Miliband is “struggling” with the duel tasks of attempting to redefine the party while fighting the coalition government on the economy, Lord Mandelson said today.

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John Swinney: Measures will help the economy

SNP forces through budget amid claim of anti-business tax

A NEW £1.5 billion Forth Replacement Crossing and £840m on spending for Glasgow’s Southern General Hospital projects were confirmed in John Swinney’s budget yesterday.

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The Scotsman cartoon 26/01/2012

Today’s cartoon

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Benefits shake-up suffers another defeat in Lords

The House of Lords dealt the government’s welfare reforms another major blow last night as it threw out plans to charge single parents for using the Child Support Agency.

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Senior judge criticises quality of Scottish legislation

THE standard of some legislation being produced by the Scottish Parliament has been strongly criticised by a senior judge.

Wind farms paid £14m by National Grid for switching off turbines

SCOTTISH wind farm operators received more than £14 million in the past two years in return for switching off their turbines, it has been revealed.

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Cameron: ‘It’s time to stop tinkering, for boldness not caution’

DAVID Cameron will tell European leaders today that the time for tinkering is over and that the European Union needs to be overhauled to make it competitive.

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Government loses solar panel ruling

THE Government is to fight on after losing its bid in the Court of Appeal to cut subsidies for solar panels on homes.

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Alex Salmond unveiled his referendum plans today. Picture: PA

Scottish independence referendum: Alex Salmond unveils referendum plans

FIRST Minister Alex Salmond today unveiled his plans for a “straightforward” vote on independence which could see Scotland leave the United Kingdom.

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Salary plan ‘good for tram project’

Introducing an “earn-back” scheme for top public-sector salaries could have been used to good effect in the Edinburgh trams project, a leading economist told MSPs.

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Free bus passes for over-60 workers ‘barking’

Taxpayers are footing a £34 million annual bill to fund free bus passes for over-60s who are still working, MSPs have been told.

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Prime Minister David Cameron looked to Burns for ammunition. Picture: AFP

Scottish independence: MPs gripped by the question: was Rabbie Burns a Nat or a Unionist?

A BATTLE emerged in Westminster yesterday over which argument in the independence debate Scotland’s Bard Rabbie Burns would have supported as both sides tried to claim him as their own.

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Paxman’s Zimbabwe jibe raises viewers’ hackles

THE BBC received 152 complaints after Newsnight presenter Jeremy Paxman compared Alex Salmond to the Zimbabwean dictator Robert Mugabe during an interview.

Chicken pox isn’t keeping Moore away from work

Officials insisted it was business as usual for Scottish Secretary Michael Moore, even though the minister had been struck with a dose of chicken pox.