#scottish-parliament

#scottish-parliament

People look at Holyrood and think: Lets give them all a bloody nose', says Alex, a betting shop manager. Speaking in a focus group of people who voted Labour at the 2024 general election, Alex captured the downbeat mood of a cohort bitterly disappointed with the Labour government's early performance, frustrated by the record of the Scottish National party and wearied by what they described as scandal after scandal polluting public life.

Around 5,000 seats across 136 local councils will now be up for grabs, following the government's U-turn on council election delays. Ministers had granted 30 authorities permission to delay elections until May 2027 - including five areas where polls had already been put back from May 2025. But in February, the government said those elections would go ahead in May this year, following legal advice in the wake of a challenge from Reform UK.

Lord Hayward has warned that Labour will face a humiliating results and will be hit with a "battering in the Scottish Parliament," defeat in the Welsh Senedd and across England. Lord Haward said there will be a "cacophony of winners," and that the Tories will also lose seats and warned that Labour could well be on course for "one hell of a battering" in Scotland and the Greens, SNP and Reform could do well, including pro-Gaza Independent.

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground.

The by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse marks the first Scottish Parliament by-election since 2019, igniting competition ahead of next year's Holyrood elections.

Swinney emphasized that the NHS will be central in his government's plans, highlighting the need to tackle GP appointment frustrations and increase health service capacity.