5 h. ago Look inside chic Art Deco property appearing on Scotland's Home of the Year as tribute to owner's late wife

The duo poured a lot of love into their home

Society

17 h. ago The memoirs of a ‘Forrest Gump’ of banking shine light on an era

Scott Bok’s autobiography raises questions about the vast influence of those that have benefited most from a golden age of finance

Politics

62 h. ago Scottish Greens table amendment to scrap king’s stamp duty exemption

Changes to housing bill would require Charles to pay same tax as everyone else on property he buys in Scotland Opposition politicians in Scotland have called for King Charles to lose his unique exemption from paying stamp duty on his property transactions.The Scottish Green party has tabled changes to a housing bill which would require the king to pay tax on any new property he buys in Scotland in the same way as all other property buyers would. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Child sexual abuse scandal cast long shadow over Pope Francis’s papacy

Issue threatened to derail Francis’s papacy and dominated his trips abroadPope Francis: cardinals to meet in Rome to set date for funeral – liveIn 2002, the Boston Globe published a series of articles exposing the scale of child sexual abuse in the local Catholic church. It shone a spotlight – the title of a later movie based on the investigation – on the church’s dark shameful secrets.Eleven years later, Francis became pope. Wave after wave of abuse revelations continued to crash at the Vatican’s doors amid mounting anger and revulsion among the faithful and beyond. The issue threatened to derail Francis’s papacy and dominate his trips abroad. He was slow to grasp the scale and systemic nature of the issue and apparently reluctant to take firm action to deal with abusers and those who covered up abuse. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago Child sexual abuse scandal cast long shadow over Francis’s papacy

Issue dogged Francis throughout his time as head of Catholic church, with abuse survivors saying he failed to do enoughPope Francis: cardinals to meet in Rome to set date for funeral – liveIn 2002, the Boston Globe published a series of articles exposing the scale of child sexual abuse in the local Catholic church. It shone a spotlight – the title of a later movie based on the investigation – on the church’s dark shameful secrets.Eleven years later, Francis became pope. Wave after wave of abuse revelations continued to crash at the Vatican’s doors amid mounting anger and revulsion among the faithful and beyond. The issue threatened to derail Francis’s papacy and dominate his trips abroad. He was slow to grasp the scale and systemic nature of the issue and apparently reluctant to take firm action to deal with abusers and those who covered up abuse. Continue reading...

Events

3 d. ago Private landlord scheme helping Scotland’s housing crisis: Find out how much your property could achieve

Much-needed emergency housing which also provides landlords with guaranteed, long-term rental income is being provided by the City of Edinburgh Council’s Private Sector Leasing (PSL) scheme. Find out more.

Events

3 d. ago Councils lose over half a million jobs in ten years as new research lays funding crisis bare

As its funding crisis has deepened, Birmingham council has lost tens of thousands of workers

Economics

4 d. ago Prince Andrew takes up new hobby after threat of eviction from crumbling Royal Lodge home

The Duke of York is locked in a bitter dispute with King Charles over continuing to live at the 30-room mansion Royal Lodge in the shadow of Windsor Castle where major repairs are needed

Politics

4 d. ago ADVICE COLUMN: Lanarkshire mortgage expert on concessionary purchases

A concessionary purchase in Scotland refers to a property transaction where the buyer agrees to purchase a home for less than its full market value.

Politics

5 d. ago The leafy community in the shadow of Windsor Castle now filled with dozens of male migrants: PAUL BRACCHI

The village of Datchet is perched on the lush banks of the River Thames. On the opposite side, a little over a mile away as the crow flies, you can see Windsor Castle.

Events

5 d. ago Coronation Street bosses 'take new action to drum up funds' following rumours ITV soap is suffering from cash crisis

Soaring TV production costs and a collapse in advertising revenue are said to have put the future of the long-running soap in jeopardy and sparked a number of budget cuts.

Economics

8 d. ago Voices: ‘Give councils more money’ Independent readers weigh in on Birmingham bin strikes

Birmingham’s bin strikes are widely seen as the result of decades of political neglect and a worsening funding crisis in local government

Events

8 d. ago Selling your home? Here’s how to boost your valuation – and sell fast

Whether you’re in Edinburgh, Dundee or the Highlands, here’s how to prep your home for a faster, stronger sale.

Politics

9 d. ago One fruit is 'greater' at lowering blood pressure than cutting salt from your diet

A new study shines a light on preventing the condition that can lead to a series of health complications, including heart failure and stroke.

Events

1 week ago ‘We’re on a knife edge’: Alex Gibney warns about the dangers of dark money

In two HBO documentaries, the acclaimed film-maker shines a light on corrupt political spending in AmericaWhen the Rev Robert Schenck saw Donald Trump secure the Republican presidential nomination in Cleveland, Ohio, in 2016, he turned to a fellow evangelical and asked: “Are we really going to do this? We’re going to choose this man who’s inimical to everything we believe?” The Christian leader looked at Schenck and replied: “I don’t care how bad he is. He’s going to get us the court we need.’”This anecdote about the devil’s bargain struck between Trump and the religious right is told in The Dark Money Game, director Alex Gibney’s new diptych of documentaries investigating how untraceable political spending has corrupted America’s highest court, corroded its democracy and put oligarchs in charge. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Hanks had Castaway, De Niro Raging Bull, now Alec Baldwin reveals he lost 10kg for Blue Jasmine

The great revelation from the finale of The Baldwins was that the actor had looked moderately slimmer for a bit part in 2013 and plans get back into that shapeYou’d be forgiven for not watching The Baldwins, the just-concluded TLC reality series about Alec and Hilaria Baldwin and all their children. This is because it was exactly the thing you assumed it to be.On one hand, The Baldwins desperately wanted to be a show in the traditional TLC mould; a zany happy-go-lucky series about the chaos of raising an enormous family. But on the other, it was also about what happened on the set of Rust in 2021. And so every wack-a-doodle moment of family fun found itself being counterbalanced with the explicit acknowledgment that Alec Baldwin fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins in an accident that caused untold pain to countless people and has cast a long dark shadow over Baldwin’s career. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago Asking prices hit new record high despite stamp duty hike, Rightmove says

Scotland, Wales, the Midlands and many northern regions saw average property asking prices rise this month, Rightmove said.

Events

1 week ago Home for sale: Dream cottage with sea views to front & back marries tradition with contemporary living

If you’re looking for the perfect cottage to escape to, right by the water with sea views to front and back then this delightful property new to the market in South West Scotland is a must-see.

Politics

1 week ago The Guardian view on Donald Trump’s Congo deal: mineral riches for protection | Editorial

Faced with regional chaos and shrinking options, Kinshasa seeks terms of trade that echo the old extractive order in modern disguise“The vilest scramble for loot that has ever disfigured the history of human conscience” is how Joseph Conrad described colonial-era concessions granted to private companies for Congo’s natural resources in Heart of Darkness. Under Donald Trump, that scramble may be back. If news reports are right, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is offering the US a blunt deal: minerals for military help – a slice of sovereignty traded for a shot at stability.The concern is this isn’t a return, it’s a sequel. For three decades, Washington supported Joseph-Désiré Mobutu, a cold war ally and brutal dictator who looted the Congo until his 1997 fall. That history of power politics still casts a long shadow. The Trump administration openly favours muscle over diplomacy. Fadhel Kaboub, an associate professor of economics at Denison University, notes that Biden-era ...

Politics

2 w. ago Shipping companies to pay for carbon dioxide produced by vessels

Compromise deal falls far short of carbon levy poor countries were hoping forShipping companies will have to pay for the carbon dioxide produced by their vessels for the first time, under new rules agreed by the world’s maritime watchdog.But the regulations agreed on Friday fall far short of the levy on CO2 that poor countries were hoping for, which would have funded their efforts to combat the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Politics