Politics

Latest politics news and opinion from expert Scotsman journalists and contributors. The latest from Holyrood, Westminster and a global outlook from a Scottish perspective.

A general view of staff on an NHS hospital ward

Health boards pay out more than £227m in 'eye-watering' compensation
The Tories warned frontline NHS staff are ‘dangerously overstretched and more prone to making mistakes’
Alistair Grant

An evidence-informed approach to curriculum design is sweeping the international educational stage with significantly improved learning outcomes for children in the countries which have adopted it

Exclusive SNP warned of looming crisis as shortfall in student teachers revealed

Susan Smith, left, and Marion Calder, directors of campaign group For Women Scotland cheer after the Supreme Court ruled "the terms 'woman' and 'sex' in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex" (Picture: Dan Kitwood)

£600,000 a year? How state-funded feminism has let Scottish women down Susan Dalgety

Donald Trump pictured with Vladimir Putin in 2017 during the US President's first term of office (Picture: Mikhail Klimentyev)

Why Trump may be about to reveal his true colours on Ukraine and Putin Scotsman comment

Transgender rights counter protestors disrupt a demonstration by Let Women Speak earlier this month in Edinburgh. Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

Exclusive SNP 'must end blame game' after requesting UK government meeting

Nicola Sturgeon at the launch of the Scottish National Investment Bank in November 2020 (Picture: Andy Buchanan/WPA pool)

How Scotland's quangos have usurped democratic power under SNP Brian Wilson

Politics

The man is in hospital.

Police Scotland orders policy review in wake of Supreme Court ruling

Police Scotland has issued an update in the wake of Wednesday’s ruling by the Supreme Court on the d...

Donald Trump suggests UK state visit planned for September

The visit by US President Donald Trump is not expected to see him return to Scotland

Cornton Vale women's prison

Prison bosses 'should now remove trans women from female jails'

Rhona Hotchkiss, a former governor of Cornton Vale women's prison, said there should be ‘no males in female jails’

Readers' Letters: When did 'activism' become a career in itself?

Scotsman Letters

Edinburgh University boss cannot rule out compulsory redundancies

Edinburgh University principal Sir Peter Mathieson has spoken about the esteemed institution’s finan...

Teachers' warnings over SNP's education reforms are grimly familiar

Teachers are warning of a ‘disaster’ in schools unless SNP ministers listen to them about major refo...

Scottish Independence

Donald Dewar and David Steel arrive at the opening of the Scottish Parliament in July 1999 (Picture: Ian Stewart)

Old unionist champions are gone, creating chance for independence push Stephen Gethins

Officers from Police Scotland outside the SNP headquarters in Edinburgh following the arrest of former chief executive Peter Murrell in April 2023. Mr Murrell was later released without charge, pending further enquiries. Picture: PA

Ex-SNP treasurer arrested under Branchform probe bids to stand again

Alex Salmond and Chris McEleny

Salmond wanted to build a new town called 'Independence' - Alba ally

First Minister John Swinney (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Swinney wants Northern Ireland-style trigger for independence poll

Scottish independence supporters on the march. Picture: Andy Buchanan/AFP via Getty Images

Exclusive Last indy strategy damaged 'credibility', Pete Wishart says

Keir Starmer's plans to bulldoze through housing and infrastructure construction ─ including the relentless march of wind turbines ─ may not go down well with voters (Picture: Chris Radburn)

Labour's disastrous start is setting up a 2029 independence showdown John McLellan

Any decision to scrap independence spending from the Scottish Budget next month could have consequences

SNP must not axe independence spending in Budget, say Greens

More Scotsman politics

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay delivering his speech at the Novotel in Edinburgh.Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Findlay rejects John Swinney's Reform rise summit

Teachers are already under pressure (Photo: Shutterstock)

Scottish teachers fear 'disastrous' impact of looming education reform

The Supreme Court ruling is expected to have wide-ranging implications

NHS in Scotland awaits new national guidance on single-sex spaces

First Minister John Swinney.

Scottish Government requests urgent meeting over court gender verdict

Donald Trump has a blatant contempt for media freedom and diversity (Picture: Anna Moneymaker)

How Trump is transforming US into an enemy of freedom and democracy Joyce McMillan

China's President Xi Jinping looms large over visitors to the Museum of the First National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party in Shanghai (Picture: Hector Retamal)

China's stance on granny 'threat' shows it's no friend of UK Alistair Carmichael

I'm not rewriting history on support for gender reforms, claims Sarwar

A ward at a NHS-run hospital

Watchdog will 'pursue' NHS if gender policies don't change

John Swinney has made a commitment on the two-child benefit cap. Picture: Getty Images

Swinney makes payment guarantee to parents on two-child benefit cap

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay

Ditch ‘dishonest’ just transition and back nuclear, Findlay tells SNP

Susan Smith (L) and Marion Calder, directors of For Women Scotland, cheer as they leave the Supreme Court in London. Picture: Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

'Watershed' gender case will have 'significant' equality implications

For trans people, the Supreme Court's ruling on the definition of a woman is a real problem (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell)

Why Supreme Court gender ruling is a historic setback for trans rights Vic Valentine

Many GP surgeries in rural areas are desperately short-staffed (Picture: Anthony Devlin)

Collapse of rural healthcare is so bad it's fuelling depopulation Alastair Redman

Mikhail Gorbachev wanted to make the Soviet Union great again, but ended up hastening its demise (Picture: Bryn Colton)

Why Donald Trump may be America’s Gorbachev – and not in a good way
Striking parallels between the last leader of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Donald Trump suggest the American ‘empire’ may be in trouble, writes David Martin
David Martin

Susan Smith, left, and Marion Calder, co-directors of gender-critical campaign group For Women Scotland, celebrate the UK Supreme Court's decision about the definition of a woman (Picture: Lucy North)

Supreme Court's gender ruling is a welcome injection of common sense Scotsman comment

Susan smith (centre left) and Marion Calder (centre right) co-directors of For Women Scotland with campaigners celebrate outside the Supreme Court in London after terms "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman and biological sex, the Supreme Court has ruled. Picture: Lucy North/PA Wire

UK Supreme Court rules in favour of For Women Scotland in gender case

Sandie Peggie

NHS Fife urged to concede Sandie Peggie case after court ruling

Campaigners celebrate outside the Supreme Court in London after terms "woman" and "sex" in the Equality Act refer to a biological woman and biological sex, the Supreme Court has ruled. Picture: Lucy North/PA Wire

Analysis Sex definition will have huge impact and could revive gender reforms

Campaigners for For Women Scotland, including former SNP MP Jo Cherry (second from left), celebrate outside the Supreme Court in London. Picture: Lucy North/PA Wire

Joanna Cherry: Nicola Sturgeon owes woman an apology following ruling

Members of campaign group For Women Scotland which brought a case to the UK Supreme Court over whether trans women could be regarded as female for the purposes of the 2010 Equality Act (Picture: Lucy North)

Gender ruling is victory for women dismissed as 'bigots' by Sturgeon Susan Dalgety

Campaigners celebrate outside the Supreme Court in London

Supreme Court ruling branded 'abject humiliation for the SNP'

Activists sing as they hold placards including "women are born, not some bloke with a form" and "women are women, men are men, you can't change sex with the stroke of a pen" during a protest in Parliament Square across from the Supreme Court in London. Picture: Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images

Explainer The key points from UK Supreme Court's gender case ruling

For Women Scotland campaigning outside the UK Supreme Court

Supreme Court rules women in the Equality Act refers to biological sex

US Consulate in Edinburgh

US Consulate in Edinburgh set to close under Trump cuts

Explainer Why the Supreme Court is ruling on the definition of a woman

University staff protest against planned job cuts in a rally outside the Scottish Parliament (Picture: Lisa Ferguson)

SNP must tackle university crisis or it will never be forgiven Scotsman comment

Cocaine hospital admissions have reached their highest ever level in Scotland

Cocaine hospital stays reach record level as drug admissions soar

Humza Yousaf under fire for meeting with wife of Turkish president

Brexit

Even ardent Remainers know the SNP's Brexit stance makes no sense Murdo Fraser

First Minister Humza Yousaf will rally against Brexit during an address in London.

Humza Yousaf accuses Labour and Tories of being in denial over Brexit

Brexiteers and Scottish nationalists are united by an enthusiasm for censorship Euan McColm

Brexit supporters celebrate as the United Kingdom exits the EU on January 31, 2020 (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Brexit myths created 'Schrodinger’s Britain' but the reality is very different

First Minister and SNP Leader Humza Yousaf who will make the case for righting the "historic wrong" of Brexit as he delivers a speech on independence. PIC: Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Humza Yousaf: Independence can "right historic wrong" of Brexit

The clock face of Elizabeth Tower, known after the bell Big Ben, shows the hands at 11 o'clock as a Union Flag flies in front of it in London. Picture Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images

Committee on cost-of-living would 'waste taxpayers money’, UK Government say

Has the UK Government turned into a 'Just Say No' machine?