Connect with us

Published

on

Scotland’s new first minister is set to be announced today.

Nicola Sturgeon’s shock resignation sparked an explosive leadership contest with rows over religious beliefs, arguments about the recollection of past events, and widespread criticism of secrecy surrounding the vote.

The contest has also led to a number of other resignations, including that of Ms Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell as SNP chief executive.

Default…

Add to lightbox
Scottish National Party leadership election
(left to right) SNP leadership candidates Ash Regan, Humza Yousaf and Kate Forbes taking part in the SNP leadership debate in Inverness. Picture date: Friday March 17, 2023.
Image:
Ash Regan, Humza Yousaf and Kate Forbes at a leadership debate in Inverness earlier this month

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes, Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former community safety minister Ash Regan are all in the running for the top job.

Whoever becomes the new SNP leader and first minister will face a number of difficult challenges as they take office.

Here are five of the key priorities that are expected to be at the top of their agenda.

Scottish independence supporters march through Glasgow during an All Under One Banner march. Picture date: Saturday May 14, 2022.
Image:
Scottish independence supporters at an All Under One Banner march in Glasgow last year

Defining a clear plan for independence

The campaign for Scottish independence did not stop following the results of the 2014 referendum.

The SNP leadership candidates each believe they can lead Scotland to independence but are yet to define a clear route to indyref2.

A special conference due to be held earlier this month to discuss plans was postponed following Ms Sturgeon’s resignation.

Ms Sturgeon’s preference was to treat the next general election, which will be held no later than 24 January 2025, as a de facto referendum.

The new leader will not be obligated to follow the same course and an alternative could be to treat the next Holyrood election, due in 2026, as a de facto referendum.

However, the UK government refuses to consent to a second referendum and the UK Supreme Court last year ruled that the Scottish parliament cannot legislate for another vote without Westminster approval.

Independence supporters will be keen to hear what the new first minister’s plans are to overcome the block, while those who wish to remain part of the UK will be hoping for another decade of fruitless campaigning.

People take part in a demonstration for trans rights outside the UK Government Office at Queen Elizabeth House in Edinburgh. The UK Government made the decision on Monday to block the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, passed by the Scottish Government in December, to prevent it obtaining Royal Assent and becoming law. Picture date: Thursday January 19, 2023.
Image:
Protesters took to the streets after the UK government blocked the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill

How to progress with gender recognition reforms

The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill has been a contentious issue within the SNP.

In October last year, Ms Regan quit as community safety minister shortly before MSPs began debating the first stage of the bill. A total of seven SNP MSPs broke the whip to vote against the bill, which would make it easier for trans people to obtain a gender recognition certificate.

It then became a constitutional dispute in January when the UK government took the unprecedented step of using section 35 of the Scotland Act to block the bill from receiving royal assent and becoming law.

The new first minister may wish to challenge the intervention in court. The bill could also be dropped altogether or amended to satisfy the UK government.

Mr Yousaf has stated it would be “responsible” to drop a potential legal challenge if the lord advocate believed the Scottish government would lose.

Ms Regan believes any court challenge would fail, while Ms Forbes has previously pledged to amend the legislation to ensure it cannot be blocked again.

Whatever the decision, there will be displeasure from certain camps and allies of the party.

Peter Krykant lays a wreath depicting 1935 the number of overdose deaths in Scotland during a ceremony to mark International Overdose Awareness Day outside the Scottish Parliament, Edinburgh. Picture date: Tuesday August 31, 2021.
Image:
Campaigner Peter Krykant laying a wreath outside the Scottish parliament to mark International Overdose Awareness Day in 2021

Tackling Scotland’s drug deaths shame

Drug misuse continues to blight Scotland’s neighbourhoods.

Official data released last year showed there were 1,330 deaths in 2021 due to drug misuse.

It was the first time in eight years the figure had decreased, but Scotland continues to have the highest drug death rate recorded by any country in Europe.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Sky’s Beth Rigby was joined by Nicola Sturgeon earlier this month

The Scottish government has been attempting to increase access to rehabilitation and support for problematic drug use, including opening two family rehab centres.

An additional £250m has also been invested to tackle the “drug deaths emergency”.

Read more:
The downfall of SNP power couple in less than 150 days
SNP has lost around 30,000 party members since 2021
Does hunger for independence remain in Scotland’s ‘Yes’ towns and cities?

In Full: Watch the SNP Leadership Debate

The new first minister is being called to back the Scottish Conservatives’ Right to Recovery Bill and see it through parliament.

The proposed legislation would enshrine in law the right of those struggling with addiction to access their preferred method of treatment, unless ruled harmful by a clinician.

Wendy Duncan spoke to Sky News about her views on Scottish independence
Image:
Wendy Duncan said Scotland is an ‘EU leader when it comes to drug deaths’

When Sky News visited Scotland’s “Yes” towns and cities to see if the hunger for indyref2 remained, one woman said tackling drug-related deaths should be high on the agenda.

Wendy Duncan, 80, told us that the campaign for independence was a “waste of money and a waste of time”.

She added: “We’re an EU leader when it comes to drug deaths. It’s a scandal and the government should be concentrating on those types of things in Scotland.”

File photo dated 09/04/18 of money and a Scottish purse. Just 13% of Scots believe their community is equipped to deal with the cost-of-living crisis, a new poll has found. The poll, commissioned by Places for People Scotland between February 3 and 6, found that 56% of the 1,199 respondents to the ScotPulse survey did not think their community was thriving. Of these, more than a third (35%) said that a lack of good quality housing was what resulted in their communities not thriving. Issue date:
Image:
One woman told Sky News that ‘everything is going up in price, except wages’. File pic

Alleviating the cost of living crisis

The country barely emerged from the COVID pandemic before it plunged into a cost of living crisis.

Households are having to spend more on food and general bills and have seen their energy costs soar.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Inflation takes surprise leap with food and booze costs to blame

Businesses have also been hit. The chip shop industry is just one of many that has been battered recently with the price of fish, cooking oil and energy skyrocketing.

As one Glasgow woman told Sky News: “Everything is going up in price, except wages. The new first minister should make sure the minimum wage goes up.”

Jean Whyte spoke to Sky News about her views on Scottish independence
Image:
Jean Whyte said she fears for those living off benefits and those not in work

In Dundee, Jean Whyte, 66, said she fears for those living off benefits and those not in work.

Ms Whyte said: “[My partner and I] are lucky that we have a wee bit of money behind us. But we used to donate to a food bank every two weeks – that’s now once a month or every six weeks.

“I have heard that a lot of people who used to donate to food banks are now using them.”

Clinical staff and nurses make final preparations during the completion of the construction of the NHS Louisa Jordan hospital, built at the SEC Centre in Glasgow, to care for coronavirus patients.
Image:
Although a pay deal has been accepted, union bosses say this ‘will not solve’ the NHS Scotland staffing crisis

Turning the NHS around

Scotland’s NHS is yet to recover from an extremely difficult winter which saw A&E waiting times reach record levels.

Although A&E performance has improved since the start of the year, key treatment time targets were again missed earlier this month.

NHS 24 staffing has been increased to help cope with the demand and up to £8m is being provided to health boards to alleviate pressure from delayed discharge.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Scotland is in the grip of an NHS crisis

Unison, GMB and Royal College of Nursing members recently accepted the Scottish government’s pay offer, but union bosses have warned the deal “does nothing to solve” the NHS Scotland staffing crisis.

Patients are said to be “waiting too long for routine operations” and staff are working under “unacceptably stressful conditions”.

Margaret McGuire and Catherine McGroggan speak to Sky News about their views on Scottish independence
Image:
Margaret Maguire and Catherine McGroggan said Scotland was ‘suffering’

In West Dunbartonshire, Margaret Maguire and Catherine McGroggan told Sky News that the country was “suffering”.

Ms McGroggan, 73, claimed the Scottish government continues to blame a lot of the NHS’s struggles on the pandemic.

She stated: “That was two years ago, and people are still struggling to get an appointment with a doctor. I’m not online so how is someone on the phone supposed to see my hands if I’ve got an issue with them?”

Ms Maguire, 75, added: “They are playing on the pandemic too much.”

Other issues that will be high up on the agenda

  • The bottle deposit return scheme
  • The dualling of the A9
  • The future of Scotland’s oil and gas industry
  • The National Care Service
  • Lowering the poverty-related attainment gap in schools

Click to subscribe to the Sky News Daily wherever you get your podcasts

With all eyes on who becomes the new leader of Scotland, improving results in these key areas will be a crucial challenge for the next first minister.

Continue Reading

UK

Liverpool football star Diogo Jota killed in car crash

Published

on

By

Liverpool football star Diogo Jota killed in car crash

Liverpool star Diogo Jota has died in a car crash.

The 28-year-old Portuguese forward died in the accident in the early hours of Thursday morning near Zamora, in northwestern Spain.

His brother, Andre Silva, was also killed in the crash on the Rias Bajas Highway (A-52) near Palacios de Sanabria, heading towards Benavente.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Jota’s former teammate: ‘This can’t be real’

.
Image:
The site of the accident on the A52

Follow the latest updates following Diogo Jota’s death

Jota and Silva were driving to Santander to catch a ferry back to England ahead of the start of Liverpool’s pre-season training on Monday, CNN Portugal reports.

The news outlet reports that Jota was advised against flying back to England due to recent surgery.

Police said the accident happened at 12.30am when the Lamborghini the pair were travelling in veered off the road.

Palacios de Sanabria in the north of Spain
Image:
Palacios de Sanabria in the north of Spain

“A vehicle left the road and everything indicates a tyre burst while overtaking,” the Guardia Civil in Zamora told Sky Sports News in a statement.

“As a result of the accident, the car caught fire and both people were killed. Pending the completion of forensic tests, one of the deceased has been identified as Diogo Jota, a Liverpool FC player, and his brother, Andre Felipe.”

A Spanish government source told the PA news agency that police were investigating the crash as “a possible speeding incident”.

The aftermath of the crash. Pic: AP
Image:
The aftermath of the crash. Pic: AP

The aftermath of the crash. Pic: AP
Image:
Pic: AP

Police added that no other vehicles were involved in the incident.

Pictures of the aftermath of the crash showed debris scattered along the side of the road, including what appeared to be charred parts of the vehicle.

It comes just 10 days after the player married his long-term girlfriend, Rute Cardoso.

Diogo Jota holds the Premier League trophy aloft after the club's title win in the 2024/25 season. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Diogo Jota holds the Premier League trophy aloft after the club’s title win in the 2024/25 season. Pic: Reuters

Diogo Jota walks the pitch with his family in 2022.
Pic: PA
Image:
Diogo Jota walks the pitch with his family in 2022.
Pic: PA

He had three children.

The footballer, who played as a striker for Liverpool, began his career in his native Portugal and played at Atletico Madrid in Spain before moving to England.

He joined the Merseyside club from Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2020.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp gives instructions to substitute Diogo Jota during the UEFA Europa League quarter-final, first leg match at Anfield, Liverpool. Picture date: Thursday April 11, 2024.
Image:
Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp with Diogo Jota. Pic: PA

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Diogo Jota (right) during a training session at the SMiSA Stadium, Paisley. Picture date: Monday October 14, 2024.
Image:
Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo (left) and Diogo Jota (right) during a training session. Pic: PA

Jota played an important role throughout his five years with the Reds, including scoring six times in Liverpool’s recent Premier League-winning season.

He scored a total of 47 times in 123 matches for the club. He also played 49 times for the Portugal national side, scoring 14 times.

Silva, 25, played for Penafiel, a Portuguese second division club.

Diogo Jota holding the trophy on the team bus during the Premier League winners parade in Liverpool.
Image:
Diogo Jota holding the trophy on the team bus during the Premier League winners parade in Liverpool. Pic: PA

Teammates and football legends pay tribute

A statement issued by Liverpool FC said the club was “devastated” by their player’s death.

“The club have been informed the 28-year-old has passed away following a road traffic accident in Spain along with his brother, Andre,” the club said in a statement.

“Liverpool FC will be making no further comment at this time and request the privacy of Diogo and Andre’s family, friends, teammates and club staff is respected as they try to come to terms with an unimaginable loss.

“We will continue to provide them with our full support.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Sky’s Greg Milam reports from Anfield Stadium where Liverpool fans are hearing about the death of Diogo Jota.

The Portuguese football federation said it was “utterly devastated by the deaths”.

“Far beyond being an exceptional player, with nearly 50 caps for the national team, Diogo Jota was an extraordinary person, respected by all teammates and opponents, someone with a contagious joy and a reference within his own community.

“We have lost two champions. The passing of Diogo and Andre Silva represents irreparable losses for Portuguese Football, and we will do everything to honour their legacy daily.”

The Portugal and Spain women’s teams held a minute’s silence for Jota and Silva before their match in the Women’s Euros in Switzerland on Thursday evening.

Floral tributes left at Anfield this morning. Pic: Sky
Image:
Floral tributes left at Anfield this morning. Pic: Sky

It came after Liverpool’s manager Arne Slot said in a statement: “What can anyone say at a time like this when the shock and the pain is so incredibly raw? I wish I had the words but I know I do not.

“All I have are feelings that I know so many people will share about a person and a player we loved dearly and a family we care so much about.

“My first thoughts are not those of a football manager. They are of a father, a son, a brother and an uncle and they belong to the family of Diogo and Andre Silva who have experienced such an unimaginable loss.”

Jota’s former manager at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, offered his thoughts in a post on Instagram.

“This is a moment where I struggle! There must be a bigger purpose, but I can’t see it,” he said.

“I’m heartbroken to hear about the passing of Diogo and his brother Andre. Diogo was not only a fantastic player, but also a great friend, a loving and caring husband and father.

“We will miss you so much. All my prayers, thoughts and power to Rute, the kids, the family, the friends and everyone who loved them.”

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk posted on Instagram: “What a human being, what a player, but most importantly what an unbelievable family man.

“You mean so much to all of us and you always will!”

Cristiano Ronaldo, Jota’s captain in the national team, said: “It doesn’t make sense. Just now we were together in the National Team, just now you had gotten married.

“To your family, your wife, and your children, I send my condolences and wish them all the strength in the world.

“I know you will always be with them. Rest in Peace, Diogo and Andre. We will all miss you.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Diogo Jota married his long-term girlfriend just two weeks ago

Jota’s Liverpool teammates Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai have also paid tribute.

Szoboszlai wrote: “Words cannot describe how heartbroken and devastated we are… Your smile, your love for the game will never be forgotten.

“We will miss you so much, but you will stay with us forever, on and off the pitch.”

Jota’s former teammates Trent Alexander-Arnold, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Thiago Alcantara have also shared messages on social media.

Mane posted a picture of himself and Jota with heartbreak emojis.

It came as Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish wrote on X: “You feel helpless, knowing there’s so little we can do to ease the pain for his wife of just two weeks, his three beautiful children.”

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard shared an image of Jota on Instagram and wrote: “Condolences to his family and friends during this incredibly sad time.”

Liverpool owners Billy Hogan, John Henry and Tom Werner, who are part of the Fenway Sports Group, said: “This tragic situation and the reality of it is truly shocking, devastating and has left us numb with grief.”

Football icon Lionel Messi has also paid tribute, sharing an image of Jota on Instagram with the message “QEPD” – short for the Spanish phrase ‘que en paz descanse’, which translates to “may he rest in peace'”.

European football clubs such as Barcelona and AC Milan have also shared messages, along with basketball player LeBron James and tennis icon Rafael Nadal.

Meanwhile Liverpool FC have opened a physical and digital book of condolence for supporters and members of the public to sign.

The physical book is at the club’s stadium, in the Anfield Road Stand reception area until Sunday evening.

An avid video gamer, Jota also owned an eSports team and regularly streamed on Twitch.

Continue Reading

UK

Diogo Jota’s joyous final weeks make his death even more devastating to comprehend

Published

on

By

Diogo Jota's joyous final weeks make his death even more devastating to comprehend

The joy that filled the final weeks of Diogo Jota’s life makes his death even more devastating to comprehend for his family and millions of fans worldwide.

The most illustrious title of his career was won in May, when he paraded through Liverpool with his teammates and the Premier League trophy.

More success came with Portugal as he won the Nations League for a second time alongside Cristiano Ronaldo in June.

And then came the bliss at marrying his childhood love Rute Cardoso, watched by their three children.

Latest: Liverpool players pay tribute to Jota

Just yesterday Jota posted a video from the ceremony on social media alongside the message “a day we will never forget”.

The happiest of days was remembered before the tragedy that killed Jota and his brother Andre Felipe in northwest Spain.

Diogo Jota and wife Rute
Pic: rutecfcardoso14/Instagram
Image:
Diogo Jota and wife Rute. Pic: rutecfcardoso14/Instagram

Brothers – whose careers both developed at their hometown club, Porto – so tragically dying together.

“Football has lost two great men,” Porto president Andre Villas-Boas said, as fans descended on the club’s stadium to mourn.

At Anfield, Liverpool fans are grieving the versatile forward who was so often in the shadow of Mohamed Salah, as he was under Ronaldo at Portugal.

But he knew how to sacrifice stardom to contribute to the squad.

Liverpool's Diogo Jota holds the  Premier League trophy with Wataru Endo and teammates.
PIc: Reuters
Image:
Diogo Jota holds the Premier League trophy with Wataru Endo and teammates. PIc: Reuters

The last of his 65 Liverpool goals was the winner in the Merseyside derby against neighbours Everton in April – helping the club become the record 20-time champions of England.

A Premier League winners’ medal joining those from the FA Cup and League Cup, won by the 28-year-old after he joined the Reds in 2020.

It was Wolverhampton Wanderers who gave Jota a platform to shine in England after he joined from Atletico Madrid.

Promotion was gained to the Premier League in 2018, and they more than just avoided relegation, but secured back-to-back top-seven finishes.

Jota was a reason why.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Fans react to Jota death

He was also why Wolves could embark on such a memorable European campaign, and scored two hat-tricks in the run-up to the Europa League quarter-finals in 2020.

“The memories he created will never be forgotten,” Wolves said.

For the football world, the loss of such a talent so young will be hard to comprehend.

And so many are reflecting on the fragility of life as football grieves from Liverpool to Portugal – and beyond.

Continue Reading

UK

Grooming victim ‘lives with trauma every day’ – as force investigates crimes involving more than 700 survivors

Published

on

By

Grooming victim 'lives with trauma every day' - as force investigates crimes involving more than 700 survivors

The father of a grooming victim who was raped by more than 60 men has said she still lives with the “trauma every single day”.

Marlon West, 51, said Scarlett, now 20, was an academic student at a school in Greater Manchester.

She was happy with a good friendship group and enjoyed riding her horse, Jasper.

But her life changed after she was attacked by a gang at a bus station – they started bullying her and she decided it was better to become their friends.

An older female member then started grooming her for rape gangs made up of Muslim men, her father told Sky News.

Scarlette's school photo before the abuse began
Image:
Scarlett before she was groomed

Mr West said six men were involved in grooming her from the age of 14 but she was raped by more than 60 before the abuse finally stopped shortly before she turned 18.

By then, she was too terrified to leave home.

“Scarlett isn’t a survivor and a lot of these other girls aren’t survivors,” he said. “The reason being is they’re still living with the trauma every day.”

Mr West, an advanced nurse practitioner for mental health services at the NHS, said his daughter was thrown out of school aged 14 and would go missing for weeks at a time.

On one occasion, he tracked her down to a property in Derbyshire, but when he eventually persuaded police to attend, he was told Scarlett was “safe” with the woman who groomed her and “her friends”.

Scarlett enjoyed riding her horse
Image:
Scarlett enjoyed riding her horse

Mr West said he was “absolutely furious” when police and social services dismissed the abuse as “a lifestyle choice” and was so desperate he put Scarlett into care when she was 15.

“I couldn’t keep her safe,” he said. “It’s the hardest decision of my life.”

But within a week of her returning home, when she had to leave the care system after turning 16, she was going missing again.

Mr West said the female groomer had stayed in contact with Scarlett and “was literally waiting for her” when she came home.

She was then trafficked all over the country, including Bradford, Birmingham and London.

Marlon West and his daughter Scarlett look information on her case
Image:
Marlon West and his daughter Scarlett

Mr West said he had to “scream” at police to track her down before they raided a property in Rochdale where she was found along with heroin and crack cocaine.

Scarlett was arrested and released on bail, but wasn’t charged because she was on a Home Office database as being at risk of trafficking, he said.

“Even though that [arrest] was inappropriate, that stopped it because she was terrified of going out of the house, which she still is now to a certain extent.”

Mr West believes the abuse also came to an end because she was getting older and her abusers were no longer interested.

“This is not just about child sexual exploitation but also criminal exploitation – she was doing county lines, she was picking up firearms for them,” he said.

Scarlett and her dad Marlon
Image:
Scarlett and her dad Marlon

Mr West said any child can be at risk of grooming.

“They’re stereotyping a lot of these survivors, that they’re coming from broken homes, or they’re in care,” he said.

“A groomer doesn’t stand outside a school gate and think, ‘I’m not grooming her because her dad’s a doctor or her dad’s a GP’ – they don’t care. Once they target, that’s it.”

Mr West was speaking as a report by police watchdogs revealed Greater Manchester Police has live grooming investigations involving 714 victims and survivors.

The force said it has 1,099 lines of enquiry relating to potential suspects but only 269 who are confirmed.

“I think there’s more – a lot of survivors haven’t come forward. One, because they’re probably still being groomed and secondly because they’re terrified of GMP and how they’ve been treated in the past,” he said.

“It’s higher than it’s ever been. Services such as police and social services are terrified of political correctness.

“The groomers know they can get away with it because there aren’t many arrests and so it’s increased.”

GMP Chief Constable Sir Stephen Watson promised to go after child rapists and paedophiles “relentlessly” after the publication of the report, which was largely positive about the force’s turnaround in tackling the gangs.

But Mr West believes they are “still failing”, although he welcomed the investigation opened into his daughter’s case.

He said he is “hopeful” the national inquiry into grooming gangs by the government last month “will expose a lot of the cover-ups and give accountability” but is worried about the involvement of services such as councils and police forces because of a lack of trust.

A GMP spokesperson said: “We have met with Scarlett and her father and we’re conducting an extensive investigation into their allegations.

“While we understand the impact of their experiences cannot be undone, we aim to ensure that the experience of the GMP of today would be much improved from that of previous years.”

A Tameside Council spokesperson previously said they were legally unable to comment on Scarlett’s case.

But they said: “Where any concerns or issues are raised we work closely with individuals, families and our partners to provide support and resolve, as appropriate.

“Where individuals aren’t satisfied with the services received, we do have a statutory complaints procedure and individuals can ultimately take their complaint to the Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman.”

Continue Reading

Trending