In his Members’ Business today, Gordon Macdonald SNP welcomes Heriot-Watt University's £35m ambition to create a new Centre for Sustainable Brewing & Distilling 🍺🌱 The centre will build on 120+ years of innovation in brewing & distilling. Watch live from 5pm: https://ow.ly/nPpJ50Xq5XC

Since Labour came to power unemployment scross the UK has risen from 4.1% to 5%. The UK's jobless rate has risen to a level not seen since late 2020, according to the Office for National Statistics who reported a figure of 5% covering the three months to September.

Real living wage employers reach record high as of November 2025, benefiting around 72,000 workers. Proportionately, Scotland has about FIVE times more accredited employers per capita than the UK average. IN LABOUR RUN WALES ONLY 5 OF 22 COUNCILS ARE REGISTÈRED WITH THE LWF.

CalMac is pursuing legal action against Birkenhead’s Cammell Laird shipyard to recover multi-million repair costs for the MV Caledonian Isles dry-docked in Jan 2024 at Cammell Laird for repairs of £5m. After repairs a hull deformity was discovered. welovestornoway.com/index.php/ar...

Currie Community High School opened without fanfare After a long community campaign to retain a school in the area, Currie Community High School was opened in a closed doors ceremony without press or MSPs officially invited. Only the Education Secretary, Jenny Gilruth, was asked to cut the ribbon,…

The NFU Scotland is calling for a dedicated ‘Buy Scottish’ campaign to help raise consumer awareness and celebrate Scotland’s world-class food production. Plus improved country-of-origin labelling to ensure accurate, transparent information. www.ruralnetwork.scot/news/shelfwa...

Corporate Welfare Drax receives subsidies for burning wood to produce electricity. £869m last year. £458.6m a year for 2027-2031. UK Govt not taken equity stake. In 2024, paid £97m dividend, £300m share buyback Drax electricity is the most expensive. It is the biggest single UK carbon emitter.

This is more of a threat to national security! UK's MOD has announced the 1st delivery of 50 Ajax armoured vehicles, 8 years behind schedule & costing £10m each. An order for 589 was placed in 2010 but delivery deadlines of 2017, 2020 & 2021 were missed. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

UK national debt is now the 4th highest in the world! What happened to the deep pockets of the UK?

Good to meet the new Swiss Ambassador Dominique Paravicini. Scotland and Switzerland share a commitment to deepening ties across culture, trade and innovation and will work toward a future of even closer cooperation. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🤝🇨🇭

NEW: Independence is necessary to protect Scotland from a Nigel Farage-led Westminster Government, John Swinney is set to say

The number of GPs by headcount in Scotland has increased in the last 10 years - from 4,393 in 2015 to 4,582 in 2025. Scotland has more GP's per head of population than other parts of the UK. GPs, nurses and more - provide 720,000 appointments a week in Scotland. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

In 2010, the four UK nations put in about the same amount per head to cover NHS dental care. In 23/24, Scotland's support for NHS dental care is nearly double that of England and higher than any other UK nation.

Fantastic result for @lindsay_whittle and @plaid_cymru Labour held the Caerphilly constituency in the Senedd for 26 years, from the first election in May 1999 and at Westminster for over a century!

The 7.4m people on NHS waiting lists in Labour-run England now far exceed the entire population of Scotland. Meanwhile, in Scotland, waiting lists are coming down with an additional 213,000 appointments and procedures thanks to record funding from the SNP Government.

“Keir Starmer’s reverse Midas touch even extends to his own political attacks, he points to waiting lists and police numbers, when waiting lists are falling in Scotland and rising in England, and Scotland has more police officers per head than Labour-run England and Wales.

Reform led North Northamptonshire Council is planning to reduce its housing waiting list not by building more homes but by removing more than 3,000 people off the social housing waiting list after its executive voted to progress the scheme. www.bbc.com/news/article...

Scotland has the highest proportion of college students - 1.6m in England, 218k in Scotland, 127k in Wales, 37k in N.Ireland. Completion rates for apprenticeships show: England 53%, Wales 66%, N.Ireland 48%, Scotland 70-80 % for much of the last decade. And no tuition fees!

Scotland is a nation - and nations have the right to decide their future. Let’s make Scotland’s voice heard loud and clear. Add your name here: yes.scot/decide Sign and share with family, friends, and work colleagues.

Attending Community Pharmacy Scotland event with the opening comment being our system of 1,200 community pharmacies in Scotland are world leading with our focus on service delivery, including #NHSpharmacyfirstscotland

Seconding the SNP conference resolution attacking LABOUR'S JOB TAX HIKE, which impacts our public, private, and voluntary sectors!

Visited @SAMHtweets Redhall Walled Garden this morning, along with some MSP colleagues, to be thanked for our successful cross party campaign to keep this fantastic oasis in the city open. Much appreciated.

Keir Starmer suggested that the SNP 'want Britain to fail' in a speech at the Labour Party conference. I have news for you Keir, Britain has failed Scotland for the last 300 years. If you say that you love our flag, Why not respect those who fly it & stop denying us our democracy? #AreYouYesYet

Met with John Lee of @TOMRAGroup in parliament to talk all things reverse vending. UK DRS scheme will not be up and running before 2027. DRS is already up and running in Ireland, where 1 BILLION bottles and cans were recycled in its first year.

I'm sponsoring in parliament next week an exhibition by the National Robotarium in Edinburgh on why greater investment into Scotland's robotics ecosystem could transform public services, improve lives, and stimulate economic growth. #NationRobotarium

So building costs up 17% before labours NI hike; which is a tax on jobs. No wonder the number of private homes being built has dropped putting further pressure on the social housing sector!

How can any government justify pushing children into poverty? It beggars belief that the UK Labour government still hasn’t committed to scrapping the cruel two-child cap. We are doing it in Scotland - while also delivering the Scottish Child Payment, the Baby Box, and more.

I am opposed to mandatory digital ID - people should be able to go about their daily lives without such infringements. That aside, by calling it BritCard, the Prime Minister seems to be attempting to force every Scot to declare ourselves British. I am a Scot. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

We’re against Starmer’s Brit-card.

This latest Survation poll for Holyrood (September 2025) gives the SNP its highest constituency vote share in almost three years and puts us within touching distance of an outright majority in the Scottish Parliament.

This #OrganDonationWeek, we remember that one donor can save or transform up to 9 lives. Please register and share your decision at organdonation.scot. #LeaveNoDoubt @Kidney_Research @scotorgandonor

Thanks to SNP public ownership, Scotland has not only removed peak fares but also has the lowest % of cancelled trains in the UK. 🚂👇

The latest Westminster poll has the SNP on 46 seats and Reform ZERO!

150 countries now recognise the State of Palestine as a sovereign entity. This represents approximately 77.7% of the United Nations' 193 member states.

Great fun launching our Tree Equity Action Plan at Good Roots Community Garden yesterday. Massive thanks to the children from Stenhouse Primary who helped plant some trees with Edinburgh's Depute Lord Provost @lezleymarion.bsky.social , @cajardinemp.bsky.social and @gmacdonaldsnp.bsky.social 🧵1/2

Thank you @gmacdonaldsnp.bsky.social for shouting out Edinburgh Traditional Building Festival in Parliament yesterday! Read the full motion here: www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-...

When Labour came to power inflation was 2.3% but it now stands at 3.8% with food inflation hitting 5.1%. Britain is bankrupt its time to leave!

DICE Europe - 150 global gaming industry leaders come to Edinburgh for key talks on Scotland’s rise to become a global powerhouse in the industry & the role of Artificial Intelligence. Scotland is home to 130 gaming companies with a £340m turnover with staff doubling since 2015.

In Labour controlled Wales, water bills rose by 27% in April to an average of £639 per year, with further rises due until 2030. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

Nae change under Labour! The latest City AM/Freshwater Strategy poll shows 75% are expecting taxes to rise. Just under 60% expect to be worse off as a result of the UK Budget & just under 80% were concerned about the impact of tax rises on the wider economy. www.cityam.com/starmers-new...

Scottish Water, your SNP Government publicly owned water company, provides £133 of savings on your water bill compared to elsewhere in the UK. Helping you to make ends meet!

Scotrail, your SNP Government nationalised rail service, is slashing rail fares helping you to make ends meet. From 1 September 2025, you’ll pay the same train fare no matter the time of day or the day of the week you travel.

OFGEM has announced today that the Energy Price Cap will go up again to £1,755 from October, with campaigners warning that 43% of households are struggling to pay their energy bills. Labour promised to cut energy bills by £300 but they're up £187 since Starmer came to power.

The "Deep Pockets" of the UK is an illusion as over the last 80 years, there have been only 10 years when a surplus occurred in UK government expenditure. It's credit rating has dropped from the top AAA to AA3 making borrowing more expensive. Its borrowed money! National debt is now £2.9 trillion!

Funny isn`t it all those things the SNP were blamed for are now improving - under the SNP, SNP has 2 decades of fixing unionist inflicted damage, all whilst unionists fight tooth and nail to stop them, unionists demanding the right to keep wrecking Scotland, if you are not a yes to indy by now, why?

SQA results show that the number of students achieving passes at National 5, Higher, and Advanced Higher levels has increased not only compared to 2024 but also compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. Encouragingly, the poverty-related attainment gap has continued to narrow.

Scottish Arthroplasty Project reported that 17,399 first hip or knee replacements performed in NHS Scotland hospitals in 2024 compared to 15,908 in 2019. Over the last 10 years the mean length of hospital stays, for both procedures, has decreased from 5 days to 2.6 days.

Thanks to Jen and David for the tour of the @RoyalMailStamps Centre in Edinburgh with @simitaSKumar. It fulfils postage stamp orders from across the UK and sells first day covers, etc to collectors. Maybe one day we will have commemorative stamps for the Scottish Parliament.