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Worth remembering.....a poll of 65 per cent of Scots think Michael Matheson should resign as MSP.
A clear majority of Scots think Michael Matheson should resign as an MSP following the scandal over his near-£11,000 iPad bill, a poll for The Scotsman has found.
The poll by Savanta found 65 per cent believe the former health secretary should quit Holyrood, while just 15 per cent think he should not and 20 per cent don’t know.
Read more here.
A 10-year-old girl who died in a mudslide while on a school trip has been described by her family as a "happy, bubbly" girl.
Year Six pupil Leah Harrison, from Darlington, died following an incident at Carlton Bank on the edge of the North York Moors on Wednesday.
A major operation involving 30 mountain rescuers was launched to save her, as heavy rain fell in the area, but she could not be saved.
In a statement, Leah's family said on Thursday: "Leah Harrison, the happy, bubbly, go-lucky little girl.
"The beautiful smile, the giddy laugh, the silly jokes.
"You will never ever be forgotten baby girl.
The details of Michael Matheson's suspension have been confirmed
Former health secretary Michael Matheson has been suspended from Holyrood for 27 days and will lose his salary for 54 days after racking up a near-£11,000 data roaming bill.
Mr Matheson was found to have breached the MSP code of conduct by attempting to use expenses and office costs to cover the bill for a parliamentary device.
Later announcing he would cover the costs himself, Mr Matheson revealed his children had used the device as a wifi hotspot to watch football during a holiday in Morocco.
The SNP MSP’s punishment was handed down by the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee at Holyrood on Thursday following a long-running probe.
John Swinney has said the General Election will be a challenge given the “tough time” the SNP have had recently, but his party is coming together. The First Minister told Kay Burley on Sky News Breakfast: “I think it will be a challenging election for us Kay, we’ve obviously had a tough time as a party but I’ve come into the party leadership, I’ve been in for two and a half weeks and the party has come together already, it’s very united. “We’ve got our candidates in place and we’ve got a strong message that Westminster has done a lot of damage to Scotland through austerity, Brexit and the cost-of-living crisis and the way to address that is for Scotland to take these decisions for ourselves by being an independent country.”
Thousands of train passengers are suffering disruption as a major line between England and Scotland is closed due to flooding. National Rail Enquiries said the West Coast Main Line between Carlisle and Lockerbie is blocked. Operators affected include Avanti West Coast, TransPennine Express, ScotRail and Caledonian Sleeper. Major disruption is expected for the rest of Thursday. Avanti West Coast told passengers: “Please do not attempt to travel with us between Preston and Scotland.
Lorna Slater, co-leader of the Scottish Greens, said the party will stand at least 31 candidates, more than ever before in Scotland. She told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “Having Scottish Greens in the room at every hustings, at every media event, means that the climate and nature emergencies get a look-in because without us there they tend to get forgotten altogether.” Asked whether there is a concern that Scottish Greens standing in a greater number of seats might split the independence vote, she said that is “kind of neither here nor there”.
What happens now as Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer kick off campaigns ahead of July 4 election
Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer are kicking off their election campaigns on Thursday, six weeks before the country goes to the polls.
The Prime Minister is touring broadcast studios before embarking on a two-day whistlestop trip taking in all four nations of the UK.
Read more here.
The Playhouse: First-look inside new Edinburgh bar and restaurant
Finding a pre-theatre spot in the Scottish capital just got a bit easier as, this summer, the Edinburgh Playhouse will be opening a new eating and drinking venue, Little Picardy. Read more here.
How thousands of pupils in Scotland will be able to see their marked exam papers for the first time
Thousands of pupils will be able to access marked exam papers from their schools and colleges in Scotland this year as part of a pilot project.
The trial, involving five subjects, aims to help learners decide whether or not to appeal their results, as well as showing students and their teachers areas which could be strengthened.
Read more here. .
Why Rishi Sunak called a July general election and what it means for Scotland and the SNP
Rishi Sunak’s long-awaited general election announcement and pledge to lead the country through “uncertain” times came amid an improving economic situation, while Sir Keir Starmer said the vote represented a chance to “end the chaos”. Read more here.
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