Sarwar says surprise by-election win could help Labour back to power at Holyrood
Anas Sarwar is hoping the results of the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election could help Labour oust the SNP in the 2026 Holyrood election. Source link
All posts tagged: Scottish
Success! Scottish Assisted Dying Bill passes first vote
The Scottish Parliament has voted in favour of the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill. Members of the Assisted Dying Coalition have welcomed the vote. MSPs voted 70 in favour, 56 against on Stage 1 of the Bill, which is about general principles. There will be another two rounds of voting and amendments before the Bill passes fully. No Assisted Dying Bill in Scotland has ever made it past Stage 1. Introduced by Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur, the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill is a Private Member’s Bill. It will allow terminally ill adults in Scotland to lawfully request, and be provided with, assistance by health professionals to end their own life. Fraser Sutherland, Chief Executive of Humanist Society Scotland, said: ‘Today’s vote is a major step forward in the fight for compassion and choice at the end of life in Scotland. ‘This is a victory for everyone who wants to see an end to needless pain and suffering for the terminally ill. It’s a victory for those who …
Scottish law to make withdrawing children from worship harder
The Scottish Government has introduced a bill to make it more difficult for parents to withdraw their children from collective worship, known in Scotland as religious observance (RO). The bill would also create an exemption to the public sector obligation to act in compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC). The changes could come into force by spring 2026. The National Secular Society, which supports an end to RO laws, has said the bill will create “a warped and distorted hierarchy of child rights”. Religious observance RO is defined by the Scottish Government as community acts which ‘promote the spiritual development of all members of the school’s community’. Government guidance says schools should provide RO ‘several times a year’. Non-denominational schools are “encouraged to draw upon” Christian traditions in RO. The Education (Scotland) Act 1980 provides the statutory basis for RO and allows parents to withdraw their children. However, there is no independent right to withdrawal for children, even when they are over 16. The Scottish Government said the bill …
Schools can teach faith-based sex ed, Scottish Government confirms
The National Secular Society has expressed disappointment at the Scottish Government’s renewed commitment to let state funded denominational schools teach faith-based relationships and sex education. A recent report on the Scottish Government’s 2023 consultation on guidance for relationships, sexual health and parenthood (RSHP) education said the Government will reinstate guidance that denominational schools can teach RSHP from a religious perspective. The NSS, which responded to the consultation, warned this will enable schools to teach distorted RSHP which stigmatises gay pupils or those with gay family members. Almost all denominational schools in Scotland are Catholic. The Catholic Church officially condemns same sex relationships, sex outside of marriage, abortion and contraception. U-turn on guidance follows “heavy handed” Catholic school lobbying The original 2014 guidance on RSHP included a section on “Denominational Education” which said the Scottish Government “supports the right of the Roman Catholic Church” to ” uphold the traditions of Catholic education”. It said religious authorities will retain the right to provide guidance on RSHP in denominational schools. This section was not present in the 2023 …
Scottish painter Jack Vettriano dies | UK News
Renowned Scottish painter Jack Vettriano has died at the age of 73, his publicist has said. The artist was found dead at his apartment in Nice, in the south of France, on Saturday. It is understood there are no suspicious circumstances around his death. Image: Pic: Neil Hanna/PA Image: The Singing Butler became a best-selling image in Britain. Pic: PA Vettriano was born Jack Hoggan on 17 November 1951 in Methil, Fife. He left school at the age of 15 to become a mining engineer but took up painting after a girlfriend gifted him a box of watercolours for his 21st birthday. The self-taught artist learned his craft by copying old masters, impressionists, surrealists and a plethora of Scottish artists. He drew inspiration from works at Kirkcaldy Galleries, studying paintings from artists such as Samuel Peploe and William McTaggart so intently that he feared arousing the suspicions of gallery staff. Image: Sweet Bird Of Youth. Pic: Jack Vettriano/PA Image: The Billy Boys. Pic: Jack Vettriano/PA His breakthrough came in 1998 when he submitted two paintings …
Scottish teachers to strike over pupil behaviour – my research shows what they’re dealing with
Teachers at a school in East Dunbartonshire, Scotland, are planning industrial action – not over pay but the behaviour of their pupils. It’s not the first time school staff in Scotland have taken this step. Teachers at a school in Glasgow took strike action in 2022 over “violent and abusive” pupil behaviour. A 2024 survey of staff in Aberdeen found that many had experienced violence and more than a third had been physically assaulted. Pupil behaviour is one factor – among others – severely affecting the wellbeing of teachers, as shown in my recent research with colleagues. Our national research project on teacher workload is a collaboration between the University of the West of Scotland, Cardiff Metropolitan University and Birmingham City University. We asked 1,834 teachers in primary, secondary and special schools in Scotland to fill out online diaries, logging how they spent their time over one week in March 2024. We found that long hours and high pressure were putting significant strain on teachers’ personal and professional lives. Time pressures Our study found that …
Scottish Children’s Commissioner calls for changes to collective worship in schools
The Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland has warned the Scottish Government that its proposed changes on religious observance in schools do not go far enough to ‘empower children to make a decision on their participation in collective worship.’ Similar issues with collective worship exist across the UK and a Private Members’ Bill is to be debated in the House of Lords next week seeking to tackle the issue. Humanists UK has welcomed the call. Collective worship: what the law says Throughout the UK, the law requires that there be periodic collective worship in state schools. Where schools are religious, this must be in line with the faith of the school, whereas in other schools it must be Christian. In Scotland such assemblies have to happen six times a year, whereas in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland the law says they must happen every day. Issues with Scottish Bill In seeking to give children more power over their engagement with collective worship, the Scottish Government has proposed schools have the power to reject parental …
Judge rules Biffa can continue with £160m case against Scottish Government
“On the alternative case on negligent misrepresentation, the pursuer mainly requires to prove that the pursuer’s contention on the proper interpretation of the letter, when viewed in its full context, is correct, and that the pursuer relied, and reasonably relied, upon it, causing the loss of costs. Source link
Somerville challenges UK ministers to ‘get on and deliver’ social energy tariff
It has established three separate winter heating payments, the pension age winter heating payment, which replaces the UK’s winter fuel payment, the winter heating payment, which is made to low-income families, and the child winter heating payment, which helps families which have higher energy costs because of a child with an illness or disability. Source link
Mom-To-Be Unboxes The Baby Gift She Received From The Scottish Government
Some countries are far better than others when it comes to supporting their citizens, particularly parents. Scotland, for example, offers employees up to 52 weeks of maternity leave, compared to America’s paltry 12. Another way the country helps their expectant parents is through its “Baby Box initiative,” which according to Scotland’s government website, was started in 2017 to “give every baby in Scotland an equal start in life.” One mom-to-be on TikTok unboxed the baby box she received from the Scottish government. Content creator and pregnant woman Maisie Elliott opened her baby box in a video, showing viewers just how well the Scottish government prepares moms-to-be. “I am 35 and a half weeks pregnant, and I’m gonna show you everything that I have got in my Scottish baby box,” she began. “Everyone who lives in Scotland is entitled to this free box,” Elliott explained. “It’s funded through the government, and you get it delivered … towards the end of your pregnancy.” “We’re gonna go through everything that is included in here,” she continued. “I think …