it doesn't sound as though you're really focused on the scottish parliament. m saying there's opportunities to be a strong voice for scotland in both parliaments. the conservatives were the largest opposition party in the last scottish parliament, and this campaign seems to be focused on maintaining that position rather than forming the next scottish government. they talk about the opportunities in a hung parliament and denying the snp an overall majority to stop their push for another independence referendum. so it sounds as though the conservatives are in a race for second place with scottish labour. borisjohnson will not come campaigning. he has very low ratings in scotland. the tories want to point voters their way as a party that will vigorously defend the united kingdom without distraction. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. the spurs managerjose mourinho has been sacked. the portuguese coach was just 17 months in thejob. joe wilson looks at what went wrong. tottenham hotspur, a football club which sees itself among europe's elite. well, jose mourinho�*s gon

scottish parliament. english local— scottish parliament. types. _ local authorities of various types, as there are many. scented. _ types, as there are many. scented, welsh parliament, police — scented, welsh parliament, police and crime commission is in england, several mayors. the by—election. in england, several mayors. the inf-election— by-election. have a missed anything? _ by-election. have a missed anything? i _ by-election. have a missed anything? ithink_ by-election. have a missed anything? i think you - by-election. have a missed anything? i think you have l by-election. have a missed i anything? i think you have got it. i thought you would miss the police commissioner is. it's my favourite! i the police commissioner is. it's my favourite!— the police commissioner is. it's my favourite! i have a lot to hold you _ it's my favourite! i have a lot to hold you to _ it's my favourite! i have a lot to hold you to account - it's my favourite! i have a lot to hold you to account for. it's my favourite! i have a lot to hold you to account

voters across scotland will go to the polls on 6th may to elect members of the scottish parliament. andemic ahead of any independence referendum. our scotland editor, sarah smith, reports. as the smallest party in the last scottish parliament, lib dems have to make an effort to get noticed. today, their leader turned barista for the cameras. do you want the legs to move as well? willie rennie has made colourful photo calls a signature move... we like to organise our visits to send a message... ..including rather amorous pigs during the last election. you are the smallest party in the scottish parliament, what difference can the liberal democrats make? i can bring people together, i did that in the last year through the pandemic, working with scottish ministers to get things done. we got £120 million extra for mental health, we got £80 million extra for education, we challenged them on things like the police in previous years. this time, lib dem proposals include... the party are also against scottish independence and would oppose another referendum. no, i don't believe we should have

it's not technically in the scottish parliament's decision, right?ink about it, i know there's been huge attention on this but if they get that majority on their own, that does not mean there's going to be an independence referendum. there's going to be an almighty battle about whether or not there's going to be an independence referendum. remember, even the snp themselves disagree over when the right time to have one would be. so, you could say it will be seismic if they get a majority on their own, especially since holyrood is set up almost specifically to make it really hard for any one party to get a majority, the one doesn't automatically lead to the other, despite what the sort of narrative sometimes has been and if anything, actually, as sirjohn was saying, the snp appear to have been slipping back a bit in the last few weeks, so what felt... sorry, this is a very long answer but i suppose in westminster, people were starting to assume, oh, this is a kind of unstoppable drift towards independence in scotland but that's just actually not the ca

the uk government is to go to court to challenge two laws passed by the scottish parliament last monthe background to this, because it all boils down to the legislative competencies that scotland is permitted to have under the devolution legislation.— the devolution legislation. yeah, this is a big _ the devolution legislation. yeah, this is a big power _ the devolution legislation. yeah, this is a big power struggle - the devolution legislation. yeah, | this is a big power struggle which is going to be settled in the highest civil court in the land. uk ministers are concerned that this place has overreached, that it has legislated in two areas going beyond its powers. so, the scottish parliament has decided to pass laws that would incorporate into scott's law the un convention on the rights of the child, and the european charter on local self government. what's the problem? from the point of view of uk ministers, they think that this legislation places obligations on them that mean holyrood has gone beyond its powers. they want the judges at the uk supreme court to rule on that, but t

in the scottish parliament tribute to the scottish parliament tribute to the duke were led by the firstthe first minister nicola sturgeon. of course he face the additional _ minister nicola sturgeon. of course he face the additional challenge - minister nicola sturgeon. of course he face the additional challenge of. he face the additional challenge of being _ he face the additional challenge of being the — he face the additional challenge of being the husband _ he face the additional challenge of being the husband of— he face the additional challenge of being the husband of a _ he face the additional challenge of being the husband of a powerful. being the husband of a powerful woman— being the husband of a powerful woman were _ being the husband of a powerful woman were at _ being the husband of a powerful woman were at a _ being the husband of a powerful woman were at a time - being the husband of a powerful woman were at a time when - being the husband of a powerfull woman were at a time when that being the husband of a powerful- woman were at a time when that was even more _ woman we

it isa it is a week until the scottish parliament elections and we are in aberdeen are talking independence and economic recovery. and the noxious, neighbourhood dump, raising a stink for thousands of people, in staffordshire. welcome to bbc news. borisjohnson has sought to play down concerns about how the refurbishment of his downing street flat was paid for, saying he doesn't think there is anything to see or worry about. the prime minister has made clear the conservative party will comply with the outcome of an electoral commission investigation, but has refused to say whether he'll abide by the recommendations of his newly—appointed standards adviser. labour says it's a "ridiculous farce" that mrjohnson has failed to say who paid the initial cost of the refit. with more, here's our political correspondent, damian grammaticas. now haunting downing street and the prime minister, the question that borisjohnson still has not answered — who initially paid tens of thousands to renovate his flat? after six months leaving the post open, the prime minister has appointed an independent adviser on

parliament. to be confirmed, scottish labour _ next parliament. nd arrest and reverse a 20 year declined. i think already we have _ year declined. i think already we have demonstrated in a weeks and i've have demonstrated in a weeks and i've been— have demonstrated in a weeks and i've been in— have demonstrated in a weeks and i've been in the job that we are back— i've been in the job that we are back at— i've been in the job that we are back at the _ i've been in the job that we are back at the pitch, we're talking about — back at the pitch, we're talking about the — back at the pitch, we're talking about the issues that matter to people — about the issues that matter to people and i want to be able to talk about— people and i want to be able to talk about different kind of politics in about different kind of politics in a different colour country. a people agree _ a different colour country. a people agree with — a different colour country. a people agree with me, they like what i'm saying. _ agree with me, they like what i'm saying, they need to

a real revolution and children's rights every party in the scottish parliament supported it. even the scots -- there has been welcomed everywhere. except in westminster, instead of supporting this new law, the ox government is shamefully kicking the scottish parliament to court. on the basis of the u.k. government legal case, is that the law constrains -- so prime minister, can you do everyone a favor? by explaining how protect legislation in scotland threatens the saudi government in london? >> yeah. mr. speaker, this is complete nonsense, the government of the united kingdom ratified the u.n. con vngs on right to the child 30 years ago. we all supported it nothing to do with the, nothing to do wrights of vulnerable children which we all protect this is simply temple by the s&p to stir up constitutional chaos and create another, another fictitious fictitious bone of contention between themselves and rest of the country and if they care they would do much more to improve education in scotland where they're so failing, mr. speaker. the rights of the child supported by his gove

it doesn't sound as though you're really focused on the scottish parliament. e conservatives were the largest opposition party in the last

voters across scotland will go to the polls on the 6th may to elect members of the scottish parliament on the very rich. our scotland editor sarah smith has this report. as well as their obvious focus on environmental issues, the scottish greens are the only major political party, other than the snp, who support independence for scotland. now is the time to be bold. how they perform in this election could determine whether there is a parliamentary majority in favour of another independence referendum. whilst we are still dealing with a pandemic, there's a climate emergency that you are stressing. is the distraction of an independence referendum in the next five years really necessary? i believe that people in scotland taking their future into their own hands is necessary. not as an alternative to dealing with covid recovery or the climate and nature emergencies, but as a fundamental part of dealing with those issues effectively. the scottish greens policies include... a referendum on scottish independence in the next five years. new taxes on profit and wealth, including a levy on firms

as the smallest party in the last scottish parliament, lib dems have to make an effort to get noticede colourful photo calls a signature move. we like to organise our visits to send a message... including rather amorous pigs during the last election. you are the smallest party in the scottish parliament, what difference can the liberal democrats make? i can bring people together, i did that in the last year through the pandemic, working with scottish ministers to get things done. we have got £120 million extra for mental health, we got £80 million extra for education, we challenged them on things like the police in previous years. this time, lib dems proposals include... the party are also against scottish independence and would oppose another referendum. i don't believe we should have a referendum. i'm not in favour of one, i'm not in favour of independence. if people have voted for a majority of msps who do support independence, how can the liberal democrats stand in the way for democratic choice about scotland's future? because i have said during the election that i am against inde

instead of supporting this new law, the uk government is shamefully taking the scottish parliament tohe only basis of the uk government's legal case is that the law constrains westminster powers. so, prime minister, can you do everyone a favour by explaining how protecting children's rights in scotland threatens the tory government in london? hear, hear! the government of the united kingdom ratified the un convention on the rights of the child 30 years ago. we all supported it. it has nothing to do with the rights of vulnerable children, which we all protect, this is simply an attempt by the snp to stir up constitutional chaos and create another fictitious, fictitious bone of contention between themselves and the rest of the country. if they really cared about the rights of the child, mr speaker, they would do much more to improve education in scotland, where they are so lamentably failing, mr speaker. mps have heard that violence and abuse towards shop workers is "endemic" and has worsened since the beginning of the pandemic. retailers told the home affairs committee that coronavirus

it looks likely that the snp will win certainly most seats in the scottish parliament as of next week scottish political parties. the snp, scottish labour and scottish conservative. the last year has been challenging, but i think what is intriguing as well as the dispute, whoever wins has a lot of work to do besides concern about a second independence referendum. scotland's finance needs a real looking at, nhs needs are looking at, education needs looking at. it'll be interesting to see how priorities unfold.— it'll be interesting to see how priorities unfold. sam, there's a delicious irony _ priorities unfold. sam, there's a delicious irony of _ priorities unfold. sam, there's a delicious irony of boris - priorities unfold. sam, there's a delicious irony of boris johnson | delicious irony of borisjohnson going to spring courts. it's the court that slapped them down formally and announced his parliament was on the lawful and that parliament was not a dissolved as he had declared it to be. it was as he had declared it to be. it was a scottish nationalist mp —— scottish national mp, tha

it doesn't sound as though you're really focused on the scottish parliament. next scottish government. they talk about the opportunities in a hung parliament and denying the snp an overall majority to stop their push for another independence referendum. so it sounds as though the conservatives are in a race for second place with scottish labour. borisjohnson will not come campaigning. he has very low ratings in scotland. the tories want to point voters their way as a party that will vigorously defend the united kingdom without distraction. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. labour leader keir starmer was thrown out of a pub in bath today, after being confronted by the landlord over lockdown restrictions. icame i came here to speak to this man, not your security. you have failed me! ., ., not your security. you have failed me! ., ~' , ., a furious rod humphries, who co—runs the raven pub, had challenged mr starmer while he was on a walkabout. after the labour leader entered the pub, mr humpries tried to throw him out. that man is not allowed in my part! get out of

they include the scottish parliament elections and we will hear the thoughts of the political scientistsnd pollster sirjohn curtis on how hollywood could change and the issues most concerning voters. and in england polls will decide who runs more than 140 councils and districts and as a by election in hartlepool and there are also 30 mayoral contests taking place including in london, birmingham, and liverpool. you are watching bbc news. in a week voters across the country will cast their ballots in a series of interactions. there are local councils and mayoral elections across england and national elections in scotland and wales. tonight it will be there voters in wales to hear from the leaders of the main parties in the bbc rails debate. we will be building up to that debate which starts in just under half an hour time. let us take a more detailed look at the elections. it is the biggest elections. it is the biggest election day until the next general election. and because of the cancellation of last year at�*s local elections, i may the 6th, thousands of seats across the uk are up for

also elections for the scottish parliament. ese are important on a national level because possible scottish independence is at stake. there is quite a lot of instability for the moment. for the governor -- the government to be seen this way, the most damaging allegations are that boris johnson made these flippant remarks many people will find highly inappropriate about he would rather see bodies piled up than go into another lockdown. at the end of next week, there will be elections. we will see whether there will be any pushback from the voters when it comes to everything being alleged at the moment for the british prime minister. brent: we will see you next week. thank you. a new exhibition in berlin charts the life and work of one of germany's most distinguished nazi hunters. the chief prosecutor at auschwitz trial in 1963. he is best known for bringing out off eichmann to justice in israel. >> the attorney general was determined to hold the national socialists legally accountable for their crimes when most in postwar germany

the uk government is to go to court to challenge two laws passed by the scottish parliament last month has decided to pass laws that would incorporate into scots law the un convention on the rights of the child and european charter or local self—government. the problem with that is from the point of view of uk ministers, they think that this legislation places obligations on them that mean holyrood has gone beyond its powers, and they want the judges at the uk sipping court to rule on that. that is a very controversial decision for them to go to court in the middle of a holyrood election campaign, the first minister and snp leader nicola sturgeon has reacted angrily, described this decision as jaw—dropping, as political catastrophic and morally repugnant. uk government sources say, whilst it is regrettable, it was avoidable that the scottish government could have made some small changes to this legislation that would have made it acceptable uk wide. in the end it is now going to be settled in court, but there is also going to be a lot of political argument in this election campaign. it

for tax raising and the transition to renewable energy cannot be achieved with the powers the scottish parliamentsmith, bbc news, glasgow. large sections of a cliff on dorset�*sjurassic coast have collapsed, dramatically changing the landscape. it's the biggest landslide in 60 years, with a substantial rock fall near thorncombe beacon. more movement is expected as fresh cracks have appeared. a further 300 metres of cliffs east of seatown also fell away, leading to the coastal path being cordoned off. dorset council is warning that with the ground drying out, there could be more landslips without much warning. manchester city are through to the semi—finals of the champions league after beating borussia dortmund in germany this evening. but liverpool are out, after only managing a goalless draw

nicola sturgeon of. course is aiming for a majority in the scottish parliament elections on may theye is expected to demand that boris johnson majority she is expected to demand that borisjohnson authorise another referendum. but the bad news for her in this financial times story is that an independent scotland would inherit quite a big hole in its public finances. because of lower—than—expected tax revenues due to brexit and coronavirus. this figures hear it would face a deficit of 10% gdp if it left the uk by figures hear it would face a deficit of io% gdp if it left the uk by the middle of this decade. and so it would have to raise taxes which wouldn't be very popular. it sort of pointing out to nicola sturgeon that economically it doesn't look terribly sensible to be maybe trying to leave the uk right now. because financially, scotland would find it quite hard. financially, scotland would find it uuite hard. g . a ., , financially, scotland would find it uuite hard. ., , ., quite hard. jason, quick thoughts on this. the interesting _ quite hard. jason, quick thoughts on this. the

reporter: in the scottish parliament in edinburgh, tributes to the duke were led by the first ministereon. >> of course he faced the additional challenge of being the husband of a powerful woman at a timehen that was even more of an exception than it is today. the reversal of the more traditional dynamic was highly unusual in the 1940's, 50's, and 60's, and even now isn't as common as it might be. reporter: a virtual session of the welsh parliament heard from the first minister, mark drakeford. >> to have lived such a life at the center of world events and in a way which made almost every experience of public rather than simply private interest, makes it even more remarkable still. and that was the life of the duke of edinburgh. reporter: and at stormont in northern ireland, tributes were paid across the political divide. >> he redefined the role of a royal, working with hundreds of different organizations, with younger people, service, and driving british innovation at the center of his efforts. >> i acknowledge that the queen and prince philip and their family were directly impacted

next in the next in the next week we are having local elections scottish elections for the scottish parliament so it does give the conservative party quite a lot of headache at the moment and they will see if their polls are dropping as a result of this i think it's the sort of drip drip of allegations of of sleaze because of the refurbishment issue up of the flat is not the only point that came up there were other allegations that business people like for example james dyson the businessman had access to johnson and private messages and that boris johnson from this to fix a tax issue that the businessman were facing also lobbying by david cameron the former prime minister on behalf of financial cut company lobbying with the government and there are quite a few allegations that are beginning to the people are beginning to notice it but i think the most worrying one for the bridge you know in the guise of the british public i would think is there are the remarks the alleged remarks of course johnson when it comes to the victims of the coronavirus crisis is. allegedly a very flippant remark that

right across the whole of scotland and into england we head to the capital and seat of the scottish parliament in edinburgh to see what people think about independence many here tell us they'd be happy to leave britain. be home say it's a great assets and i think throughout this well interestingly especially in edinburgh in the capital there's been a real community feel. in your shit so i think that that will be to the benefit of our country i think scotland is a lot more liberal has a country rather than england and those choices. we can make and are making aren't really and you know have to get onto westminster for approval which those that we get others meanwhile feel that after the bracks turmoil scotland needs to let the dust settle either we stay in the union i think. i didn't want bracks and that has been. you know an absolute nightmare so why would you want to break up being in this you know hundreds and hundreds of years i think it would cost a lot of money i think it would be terrible for the economy and i don't think scotland can afford to be independent we have devolved parliament

right across the whole of scotland and into england we head to the capital and seat of the scottish parliament in edinburgh to see what people think about independence many here tell us they'd be happy to leave. the home of us a it's a great assets and i think throughout this well interestingly especially in edinburgh in the capital there's been a real community feel. in your shit so i think that that will be to the benefit of our country i think scotland is a lot more liberal has a country rather than england and those choices. we can make and are making our own really and not have to get on to westminster for approval which i don't think we get others meanwhile feel that after the bracks turmoil scotland needs to let the dust settle i think we should stay in the union i think that i didn't want bracks and that has been. you know an absolute nightmare so why would you want to break up the union as you know hundreds and hundreds of years i think it would cost a lot of money i think it would be terrible for the economy and i don't think scotland can afford to be independent we have devolved par

is that there are local elections next week at the end of next week also elections for the scottish parliament these are very important also on that on a national level because of possible scottish independence is at stake so there is quite a lot of instability at the moment in the u.k. and for the government to be seen in this way i think the most damaging allegations are that those johnson allegedly made these flippant remarks that many people will find highly inappropriate about he'd rather have see bodies pile up and go into another coronavirus locked i think this is what's most potentially most damaging at the moment but at the end of next week there will be the elections so we'll see whether there will be and the pushback from the vote is when it comes to everything that's being alleged at the moment for the british prime minister you know we will see you next week for sure w.'s big of moss on the story force in london tonight big thank you a new word submission here in berlin charge the wife and work of one of germany's most distinguished nazi hunters fritz was the chief prosecutor at t

is that there are local elections next week at the end of next week also elections for the scottish parliament these are very important also on that on a national level because of possible scottish independence is at stake so there is quite a lot of instability at the moment in the u.k. and for the government to be seen in this way i think the most damaging allegations are that johnson allegedly made these flippant remarks that many people would find highly inappropriate about he'd rather have seen bodies pile up and go into another coronavirus locked and i think this is what's most potentially most damaging at the moment but at the end of next week there will be the elections so we'll see whether they will be and the pushback from the vases when it comes to everything that's being alleged at the moment for the british prime minister you know we will see you next week for sure w.'s big of moss on the story force in london tonight big thank you will a clash of cultures in and of suits towards women is emerging in the austrian capital b. which is home to a close knit community of chechen migrant

for tax raising and the transition to renewable energy cannot be achieved with the powers the scottish parliament currently has. they think an independent scotland could take a much more radical path. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. large sections of a cliff on dorset�*sjurassic coast have collapsed, dramatically changing the landscape. it's the biggest landslide in 60 years, with a substantial rock fall near thorncombe beacon. more movement is expected as fresh cracks have appeared. a further 300 metres of cliffs east of seatown also fell away, leading to the coastal path being cordoned off. dorset council is warning that with the ground drying out, there could be more landslips without much warning. manchester city are through to the semi—finals of the champions league after beating borussia dortmund in germany this evening. but liverpool are out, after only managing a goalless draw at home to real madrid. 0ur sports correspondentjoe wilson has all the details. the streets outside anfield, as close the crowd could get, supporting their team. but look at what happened to real madrid's bus. damag

democracy" if the electorate voted for a majority of msps who support independence in next month's scottish parliamentis election is crucial because they believe a victory for them will lead to another referendum on independence. so, the future direction of the scottish nation is on the ballot. it's a huge question but not the only one on voters' minds. the snp are asking for an unprecedented fourth term. so, that means voters will notjust be looking at their plans for the future, the party also has to defend their record over the last 14 years in government. after seven years as first minister, nicola sturgeon is facing questions about whether she has delivered on education and poverty reduction, as well as scrutiny of how she's handled the covid crisis. do you owe voters an apology for the tragically high death rate in scotland's care homes? i will never, ever say that i didn't get things wrong i didn't get things wrong in covid, i did. i think it is inevitable that that would have been the case, given what we were dealing with, and i think it's really important that there is full scrutiny and accou

in the scottish parliament in edinburgh, tributes to the duke were led by the first minister, nicolaonal challenge of being the husband of a powerful woman at a time when that was even more of an exception than it is today. that reversal of the more traditional dynamic was highly unusual in the 1940s, �*50s and �*60s, and even now isn't as common as it might be. a virtual session of the welsh parliament heard from the first minister, mark drakeford. to have lived such a life at the centre of world events, and in a way which made almost every experience of public rather than simply private interest, makes it even more remarkable still. and that was the life of the duke of edinburgh. and at stormont in northern ireland, tributes were paid across the political divide. he redefined the role of a royal, working with hundreds of different causes and organisations, with younger people, service, and driving british innovation at the centre of his efforts. i acknowledge that the queen and prince philip and their family were directly impacted by the conflict and regrettably endured sorrow and

the scottish parliament election is double _ mentioning.uency msp, the other is for a party list. underthese constituency msp, the other is for a party list. under these two elements are combined to produce hollywood. essentially, we have 73 constituencies in which a single msp is elected as the local constituency msp. but then we also divide scotland into eight separate regions, in each of which there are seven additional msps to be elected on the basis of that second party list vote. what then essentially happens is that the typical region has 16 msps in total, nine constituency, seven regional lists. and what happens is that first of all we count the constituency votes and see who has won those. we then add up the list votes. we then allocate the seven additional seats in such a way that the total number of seats, constituency and lists won by each party in each region is as proportional as possible to the outcome in the list. so potentially, most likely, it is the outcome on that second list vote that is potentially the crucial one. we

the uk and scottish governments — this time, over a bill on children's rights passed by the scottish parliamenton could exceed holyrood's devolved powers. the snp�*s westminster leader sees another motive. apparently, the only basis of the uk government's legal case is that the law constrains westminster powers. so, prime minister, can you do everyone a favour by explaining how protecting children's rights in scotland threatens the tory government in london? hear, hear! borisjohnson disagreed, and accused the snp of seeking to stir up division. if they really cared about the rights of the child, mr speaker, they would do much more to improve education in scotland, where they are so lamentably failing, mr speaker. mps sanctioned by china for spreading what it called "lies and disinformation" about the country have stepped up their campaign to highlight human rights abuses against the uighur muslim minority group in xinjiang. one of those sanctioned spoke out against the government's refusal to include in the trade bill a measure to prevent britain trading with countries committing genocide. with

in the scottish parliament tribute to the duke were led by the first minister nicola sturgeon.l challenge. of being the husband - of a powerful woman were at a time when that was even more of an exception then _ it is today. that reversal of the more - traditional dynamic was highly unusual in the 1940s, 50s and 60s. - an even now isn't as . common as it might be. a virtual session of the welsh parliament heard from the first minister. to have lived such a life at the centre of world events and in a way which made almost every experience in public rather than simply private interests. makes it even more remarkable still. and that was the life of the duke of edinburgh. in northern ireland tributes were paid across the political divide. he redefined the rule of a royal. working with hundreds of different causes and organisations with younger people, service and driving british innovation at the centre of his efforts. i acknowledge that the queen and prince philip and their. family were directly impacted | by the conflict and regrettably endured sorrow and pain. having endured suc

millions of votes will be cast in scotland next week on thursday may 6th in the election for the scottish parliamentas been held by labour since 1999, when the parliament was opened. the scottish national party have the seat in their sights, as our scotland editor sarah smith reports. working out how to vote really matters in a key constituency in the midst of a crucial election, as these voters will help shape scotland's future. the gym just reopened yesterday. the owner thinks the pandemic should shape political priorities. i think there needs to be a real key focus on mental health and physical health as well. i think its key for economic recovery and its key to saving the nhs as well. 0n scotland's west coast, dumbarton is essential to this election. is central to this election. this is the most marginal seat in scotland. labour have a majority ofjust 109 votes, with the snp in second place. if the snp can win seats like this, it could be the key to them securing an overall majority, which would then allow them to claim a mandate for another independence referendum. the constituency of dumbarton

the flag has been lowered as it has across the scottish parliament which is just a few steps from here is going to be a special sitting of parliament on monday, coming back a bit earlier than planned in order to pay tribute to the duke of edinburgh. there will be a special debate which will run from 2:30pm on monday. the prime minister will lead the tributes, sir keir starmer will respond and then individual mps will be able to pay their own tributes to the duke of edinburgh, it's expected that will run for several hours until about 10pm monday night and the speaker of the house of commons lindsay hoyle says he expects it to be a day of sadness, fun memories as well as one thing prince philip did have, humour. many mps and politicians from political parties have already expressed their condolences and have talked warmly about the duke of edinburgh's work. yesterday when the cabinet met, ministers discussed the recollections of meeting prince philip, praising his work as an environmentalist and setting up the duke of edinburgh award for young people. those informal tributes have been pa

military and enact members of the scottish parliament today.ish greens are the only major political party, other than the snp, who support independence for scotland. now is the time to be bold. how they perform in the selection could determine whether there is a parliamentary majority in favour of another independence referendum. whilst we are still dealing with a pandemic, there's a climate emergency that you are stressing. is the distraction of an independence referendum in the next five years really necessary? i believe that people in scotland taking their future into their own hands is necessary. not as an alternative to dealing with covid recovery or the climate and nature emergencies, but as a fundamental part of dealing with those issues effectively. the scottish greens policies include... a referendum on scottish independence in the next five years. new taxes on profit and wealth, including a levy on firms who have made profits during the pandemic. warmer green homes for all with homeowners unable to sell properties that don't meet ener

members of the scottish parliament were also recalled today to pay their tributes to the duke.he first minister, nicola sturgeon, had to say. in public. he was a thoughtful man and fiercely intelligent. he was also a serious bookworm, which i am too, so talking about the books we were reading was often, for me, a real highlight of our conversations. prince philip was, without a doubt, a devoted consort to the queen but of course he also carved out a distinctive individual role. he took a particular interest in industry and science and he was far—sighted in his early support for conservation. it's a big step back to normality for much of the uk today, with the high street reopening in england and wales and some restrictions also relaxed in scotland and northern ireland. so, from today, non essential shops are open again in england, along with pubs and restaurants which can now serve customers outside. hairdressers, gyms, and swimming pools are also back in business. in wales, shops and some high street services are open, and the ban on travelling to and from england has ended. n

the scottish parliament is going to be recalled on monday.used at the moment. of course, the duke has attended many royal events at holyrood across the years. he has got deeper roots here in scotland and that has been very clear today. there is a political dilemma here today, part of this whole election campaign is in part driven by the debate about the future of scotland and whether it is... will remain part of the united kingdom and subject to the monarchy. on the same time, on a personal level, that attachment, even for scottish nationalists, who have grown up with the queen and with prince philip, has led some prominent figures of scottish nationalism to want to send their condolences to the queen. remarkable roots prince philip had here in the city of edinburgh. he was the chancellor of the university of edinburgh for more than 50 years, almost 60 years. he is very well recognised, he is very well respected here across the political spectrum, and that was shown yesterday. all of the political parties paused their election campaigns and c

as the smallest party in the last scottish parliament, lib dems have to make an effort to get noticeding rather amorous pigs during the last election. you are the smallest party in the scottish parliament, what difference can the liberal democrats make? i can bring people together, i did that in the last year through the pandemic, working with scottish ministers to get things done. we have got £120 million extra for mental health, we got £80 million extra for education, we challenged them on things like the police in previous years. this time, lib dems proposals include... the party are also against scottish independence and would oppose another referendum. i don't believe we should have a referendum. i'm not in favour of one, i'm not in favour of independence. if people have voted for a majority of msps who do support independence, how can the liberal democrats stand in the way for democratic choice about scotland's future? because i have said during the election that i am against independence. i will never vote for it, i will never encourage it, i will never support it, because i do

so, let's run through exactly what's happening. 129 msps will be elected to the scottish parliament.an nicola sturgeon�*s party do enough to govern on its own? and what difference might alex salmond's new alba party make? it's already attracted some snp defectors. he says he's complementing the campaign for independence, but could it end up undermining the cause? the conservative and labour parties in scotland have new leaders keen to make an impact. it'll be a fascinating contest. now, 60 senedd members will be voted for in wales and, like scotland, anyone over 16 can vote. labour have been the largest party in all previous devolved welsh elections, and current leader mark drakeford hopes to repeat that this time. this is what happened in 2016. the conservatives and plaid cymru are used to fighting it out for second place. and what will happen to those seven ukip seats? six of them have since left the party. elsewhere, there's the vote for london mayor, along with the 25 members of the london assembly, with more than 6 million eligible to vote in the capital. there are votes for sev

in the scottish parliament in edinburgh, tributes to the duke were led by the first minister, nicolaof being the husband of a powerful woman at a time when that was even more of an exception than it is today. that reversal of the more traditional dynamic was highly unusual in the 1940s, �*50s and �*60s, and even now isn't as common as it might be. a virtual session of the welsh parliament heard from the first minister, mark drakeford. to have lived such a life at the centre of world events, and in a way which made almost every experience of public rather than simply private interest, makes it even more remarkable still. and that was the life of the duke of edinburgh. and at stormont in northern ireland, tributes were paid across the political divide. he redefined the role of a royal, working with hundreds of different causes and organisations, with younger people, service, and driving british innovation at the centre of his efforts. i acknowledge that the queen and prince philip and theirfamily were directly impacted by the conflict and regrettably endured sorrow and pain. yet having