Scotland’s college sector is facing a financial problem that cannot be solved simply by asking colleges to cut their cloth a little tighter. That is the uncomfortable message from a new Audit Scotland report which shows colleges cutting staff, reducing courses and relying increasingly on short-term financial support while the number of students being taught continues to fall.
Donald Trump has come up with an extraordinary election promise. If Republicans retain control of Congress in November, he says every American adult will receive a $5,000 “Trump dividend”.
With fast moving oil prices we have updated from $100 to $102 at 10.00am today. The price of oil breaking through $102 a barrel is no longer just a story for financial markets.
For the past week or so, $100 a barrel has been the number everyone in the oil market has been watching. Now it has happened.
More than 500 jobs will be created and supported by 22 new projects funded through the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund. The First Minister officially opened the 2026 funding round, worth £17.5 million, during a visit to Hydrasun, a North East manufacturing firm receiving £1.9 million in support.
Can two people be doing jobs of equal value but quite legitimately be paid different amounts? That is the awkward question sitting behind the latest ruling in the long-running equal pay battle involving retailer Next. The Employment Appeal Tribunal has overturned a key part of a 2024 decision which had found that Next could not justify paying its predominantly male warehouse workers a higher basic rate than its predominantly female shop workers.
The Highland Council has welcomed an increase of £750,000 of funding from the SSE Renewables Highland Sustainable Development Fund to support private householders experiencing extreme fuel poverty in Highland. The two-year grant will support the delivery of the Council’s Energy Efficient Scotland: Area Based Scheme (EES:ABS), funded by The Scottish Government, which funds energy efficiency home improvements that can help lower fuel costs and improve living conditions for Highland residents.
Businesses and entrepreneurs are being invited to develop technology solutions to some of the country's most pressing public service challenges. Scotland's world-leading public sector innovation programme, CivTech, launches its 12th round today with six new challenges, supported by £5.7 million investment.
The $100 oil barrier has been broken. Now the market is looking towards $105.
Britain's housing market may finally be showing signs of finding its feet, but the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors suggests that anyone expecting a rapid recovery should probably wait a little longer. The August RICS Residential Market Survey paints a mixed picture.
Following the close of nominations on Monday 7 September noon, the statements of persons nominated for each community council have been published on the council’s website. Now able to confirm that out of 20 Community Councils seeking membership, 15 have formed, 4 have not formed and 1 may require an election as they exceed the number of available vacancies.
There are few subjects more important to parents than the education their children receive. It determines not only what they know when they leave school, but increasingly their opportunities throughout adult life.
The Government is changing the rules for migrant workers who are victims of exploitation, while also opening new opportunities through Erasmus+. Changes to the UK's immigration rules announced by the Government on 3 September could have consequences for employers who rely on overseas workers, although the changes are more targeted than some headlines might suggest.
A change in Japanese interest rates could have consequences for Britain's borrowing costs, mortgages and public finances At first sight, the Japanese yen seems to have very little to do with the cost of borrowing money in Britain. The yen is Japan's currency, the Bank of Japan sets Japanese interest rates and the Bank of England sets British interest rates.
There has been a significant escalation in attacks on Saudi energy infrastructure, but there is an important distinction. The latest attacks on Saudi oil facilities have been carried out by the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen, rather than by Iran's regular armed forces directly.
There is a revealing document sitting quietly in the public domain which raises much bigger questions about the future of the NHS than its relatively technical title might suggest. A Government Gateway Review of NHS England's Frontline Productivity programme has given the programme a Red Delivery Confidence Assessment.
Pressure to make cuts in public spending has intensified in recent weeks, with increased calls on Prime Minister Andy Burnham to find savings urgently. The need to reduce expenditure has become more pressing as the cost of loans used to pay for services has shot up.
Britain is once again facing a huge infrastructure challenge. We need new electricity transmission lines, upgraded railways, new housing, roads, renewable energy and the infrastructure needed to support a rapidly changing economy.
Anyone who has dealt with a major planning application will probably recognise the experience. A project is proposed then the developer spends months, sometimes years, preparing an application.
Britain has a problem. We know that we need new railways, electricity networks, housing, roads and other major infrastructure.