Digest of the week's news

Published on Friday 25 April 2003 01:00

SCOTLAND

SNP fury at bid to block referendum

THE Scottish National Party accused Labour of being anti-democratic over plans to veto any future referendum on independence. The constitutional row erupted as the Nationalists and Labour squared-up over the legality of a referendum. The SNP described the plan to deny Scots their voice as a "major election bungle".

Read the full story here.

Scots officer dies of war injuries

AN ARMY officer injured when his Scimitar tank overturned in Iraq has died in hospital in Edinburgh. Lieutenant Alexander Tweedie, 25, from Hawick, never recovered from the injuries from the accident on 1 April, which killed Lance Corporal Karl Shearer.

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Scottish public spending highest in world

SCOTLAND’S government spending is set to become the highest in the developed world, relative to the country’s economic size, as a result of Gordon Brown’s tax-and-spend bonanza.

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Castle for a peppercorn rent

IT IS the chance of a lifetime - to live next door to the Queen and pay only a peppercorn rent. But keeping up with the neighbours could be harder than they think for the prospective tenants of one of Scotland’s prime sporting estates.

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UK

Blair tells the IRA to end war now

TONY Blair yesterday issued an unprecedented and uncompromising challenge to the Provisional IRA to destroy all its weaponry, declare its war is over and make a clear commitment to peace.

Read the full story here.

Galloway 'in 375,000 deal with Saddam spy masters'

GEORGE Galloway has been accused of taking hundreds of thousands of pounds in payments from Saddam Hussein’s regime as a reward for his continued support.

Read the full story here.

INTERNATIONAL

Tariq Aziz in Coalition custody

Iraq’s former deputy prime minister and one of the best-known figures in Saddam Hussein’s regime is in the custody of the United States.

Read the full story here.

SARS closes major cities as death toll spirals

THE SARS virus appeared to be spiralling out of control last night as major cities across the world were effectively closed down in the face of a rising death toll.

Read the full story here.

SPORT

Celtic through to UEFA Cup final

A 1-0 win over Boavista has given Celtic a place in their first European final for 33 years. Read the full story here. The prospect of continental silverware will ease some of the pain of losing to Hearts last weekend. Read the match report here. They also lost their chief executive this week. Read about that here.

United tip hat to Ronaldo

MANCHESTER United scored the goals they needed, but, alas for their Champions League ambitions, so too did Real Madrid on a night of drama at Old Trafford. St George’s day was allowed to pass without new heroes of a nation being anointed.

Read the full story here.

BUSINESS

Standard Life holds firm in face of investor wrath

STANDARD Life’s directors yesterday faced up to the wrath of policyholders at a fiery general meeting in Edinburgh, which saw the giant mutual’s board branded complacent, arrogant and clubby.

Read the full story here.

THE STORIES OUR READERS FOUND MOST INTERESTING

Finding their voices in free Iraq

FOR Iraq’s Shiite majority, it was a day of celebration; for United States and British forces, a day of warning.

Read the full story here.

Scots losing taste for eating out

SCOTLAND is saturated with restaurants because diners are turning to the cheaper comforts of luxurious ready-made and home-made meals, according to leading chefs.

Read the full story here.

Galloway 'in 375,000 deal with Saddam spy masters'

GEORGE Galloway has been accused of taking hundreds of thousands of pounds in payments from Saddam Hussein’s regime as a reward for his continued support.

Read the full story here.