The positive news continues thanks to @benmacpherson.bsky.social confirming to the ECYP committee the Scottish Government has ruled out imposing the International Student Levy on Scottish institutions.

So it seems that Glasgow's data on children whose first language is not English shows that overall these learners have higher than average educational achievements. Some important context for #Farage, the #Telegraph and the #BBC to reflect on. www.thenational.scot/news/2570331...

Huge new poll puts Plaid ahead of Reform with Labour and the Conservatives on just 10% each. willhaywardwales.substack.com/p/bombshell-...

Our winter open reading period for literary translations and new plays runs through Jan 12. We welcome volumes of poetry, collections of short fiction, and completed novels in translation and submissions of finished full-length plays (60-120 min. running time). www.cmu.edu/universitypr...

Important stuff in here, not least that Starmer is mentioned alongside his EU counterparts

A far more effective policy, as shown in Spain and elsewhere, is to ensure that people are able to regularise their status more easily, thereby being able to gain the requisite documentation to work, which not only reduces exploitation, but has also been shown to boost the whole economy.

Sarcastic response is obviously "Merry Christmas from the Home Office" More professional response is that, for this government's increased immigration raids in general, statistically they are targeting victims of trafficking more than the people doing the trafficking. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A few months ago I signed up for online #Esperanto classes and they were very good, well-taught. The same org is running new sets of beginners classes from January for the low low price of £10 for 12 weeks (yes, 83p a class!) and you can sign up at kursaro.net

The latest patch for the disastrous Online Safety Act? A "nudity blocker" installed on all UK devices. The OSA was supposed to protect kids online, but was so vaguely defined and unenforceable that the UK keeps inventing new, ever more invasive tools, like "nudity filters" and VPN bans as cover.

New study from LSE, York & Glasgow universities shows the Scottish Child Payment is transforming lives. Without it, 70,000 more children would face deprivation and food insecurity. We will keep investing in families and lifting children out of poverty.

The actress is an executive producer on Everybody to Kenmure Street, which tells the story of mass community resistance to an immigration raid in 2021

This is a really appalling editorial error on BBC Question Time "Apparently one in three children don't speak English as a first language, why does this matter?" Chair says "have English as a second language" Caption changes the meaning entirely "Don't speak fluent English"

JOBS (×2): Lecturer in Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of the West of Scotland (UWS). Two full-time, permanent posts with a salary of £50k – £65k. #Criminology #CrimSky www.glassdoor.co.uk/job-listing/...

With constructive amendments from colleagues across the chamber, our motion deploring recent comments by Nigel Farage about Glasgow’s schoolchildren passed unanimously. Reform didn’t even show up to try to defend their party line.

Ah, Christmas Full Council. Comes sooner every year.

I can’t help thinking that when, in future, people ask what UK political leaders said as it became undeniable that US saw European liberal democracy as its no1 strategic foe, Starmer and others will regret that the answer is “not much, shuffled awkwardly, looked at their feet”.

You might think from the headline that this is a story about a trans kid suffering medical consequences from a large drug dose but nope! It is just an interview with an estranged father who is angry that his child happily transitioned. archive.ph/Tmthz

Ooh gosh let me think about this one

It would appear that Baroness Falkner is somewhat flexible with her opinion of when it is or is not acceptable to question the judiciary. It could almost appear that she chooses depending on whether they align with her own gender critical beliefs.

Something I've noticed canvassing/in survey responses recently is a lot of people bring up immigration as one of their top issues, as they're concerned about the anti-migrant sentiment on the rise. Would be very interested to know if pollsters include that in "concerned about immigration"

🚨New Scotland Poll: SNP has opened a 17 point lead at 35% for Scottish Parliament. Labour collapses to 16% in third place behind Reform UK at 18%. 52% likely to vote in independence referendum saying they would vote YES. Details via Ipsos Scotland👇 www.ipsos.com/en-uk/snp-re...

That Ipsos/STV poll is absolutely brutal for Labour. "Labour retain just 38% of their General Election voters."

LGBT+ people in Scotland should see the Record the same way Scousers see the Sun imo

But the good news is, by doing this, we defeated racism in the UK.

#SandiePeggie tribunal and the ongoing gender critical movement are setting back feminism by decades. The amount of misogynistic backlash unleashed on people who disagree with them says it all really. www.heraldscotland.com/opinion/2568...

Home Office Ministers state publicly, on the record, that they are deliberately making life worse for older people and people with disabilities who depend on care services, but it's worth it because it reduces net migration.

Oh look, coverage that isn't premised on the briefings folks got from FWS or Peggie's lawyers.

The state of Scottish journalism. I mean it's not news to us, but this onslaught of unashamed bias and twisting of facts just hits you. They'll write a column about the rise of Farage as if they aren't part of the problem.

The ruling panel said the trans doctor’s account of the confrontation was “more reliable and cohesive” than nurse Ms Peggie’s.

the way this fife story is being covered is going to make lose my sanity what on earth do they think they're doing it's so irresponsible

If the reporting on the Peggie decision tells us anything, it should be that the way news gets reported in this country has little to do with truth, and much more to do with narrative - as well as whose heavily spun press release lands on journos desks first.

🚨 STATEMENT 🚨 Please read Out for Independence's statement on the Employment Tribunal ruling in the Sandie Peggie v Fife Health Board case. ✌️

This is the key paragraph in the Sandie Peggie decision.

Decision in the Sandie Peggie case. She was not directly or indirectly discriminated against, her claim of victimisation fails entirely, her claim of harassment fails largely and her claim against Beth Upton fails entirely. www.judiciary.uk/judgments/sa...

If the headlines spinning this as a win for Peggie seem pre-written, I guarantee it's because they were, however carefully couched they might seem after some hasty editing.

Sandie Peggie's claims against Upton dismissed & most of her claims against NHS Fife are dismissed. Questions remain for NHS Fife over the process they pursued, which led to Peggie's harassment claim being partially upheld. The tribunal ruled Upton's use of female changing facilities not unlawful.

Noticeable that most news outlets are reporting the Peggie/Fife tribunal decision as a victory for Peggie, while Sex Matters have put out a statement attacking the decision; the tenor of coverage might well change between today and tomorrow’s press.

This morning the First Minister set out the future Scotland's renewables future can have, if it's governed by and for Scotland's benefit. Deindustrialisation 2.0 would be a disaster for people in Scotland, and we can't risk history repeating itself.

⚡️ Scotland is energy rich, yet has some of the highest energy bills in Europe. It's time for a fresh start with lower energy bills. Support our campaign by pledging your support and encourage your followers to do the same. www.snp.org/energy

Keir Starmer’s policies on Scottish industry risk repeating the economic devastation caused by Thatcher in the 1980s. This morning, I’ll set out how independence is fresh start we need - putting Scotland’s wealth in Scotland’s hands. Tune in live on the SNP channels at 10am.

Unfortunately my MP is Zubir Ahmed. When I emailed him about this he replied that “Labour is a party of integrity, and remains the party that will best protect the most vulnerable in our society,” presumably with a straight face.

@davidbirkettsnp.bsky.social @thesnpmedia.bsky.social @snp-dmg.bsky.social Please get all SNP politicians posting here This letter from Seamus Logan to Wes Streeting I saw on Facebook is important

I’ve made this point before but it bears repeating: do these people think Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization didn't change the rights women had? That any abortion rights they had in the decades between Roe and that judgment were a fiction?

This is why: 1. Never stop writing. If you are using AI only use it as a light editor. 2. Politicians should write the first draft of all their speeches to organise their thoughts. 3. Prose is vital to democratic societies.

From the @wsj.com chief foreign correspondent

plenty of women stepping up to the challenge here, who are the men who fail to answer the call

Observed here presumably part of the etymology in the same way that laws in English were once said to be “found,” from the theory that laws were universal moral perspectives or naturally-existing rules that were noticed and codified rather than being invented from scratch.

this keeps coming up in the american context but it's true everywhere if you join a party in scotland you'll get made a branch officer the first meeting you turn up and if you stick around a few months you'll be arguing with the party leader if you have the time and energy seriously just do it