Outdoor meetings 'very safe' with little chance of covid spreading, says Nicola Sturgeon adviser

First Minister following the election on May 6. Scots will head to the polls later this week for the first time since 2016 to elect a new MSPs to the Holyrood chamber.

Alex Neil said while there must still be focus on tackling the coronavirus pandemic after Thursday’s election, there “is no reason why we should not also be pursuing our constitutional demands at the same time”.

Nicola Sturgeon has thanked the people of Scotland for their sacrifices over the last year of the coronavirus pandemic. The SNP leader wrote an open letter which has been published in a number of Sunday papers including the Sunday Mail.

Today programme the SNP leader said the Scottish Government would negotiate terms to "allow businesses to keep trading". Sturgeon said: "This is the frankness that certain sections of the media will seek to stir up trouble on - I am not denying that we would need to confront and resolve the issues of being in the European Union for the border between Scotland and England.

Alex Salmond 's Alba party which would instruct the Scottish Government to open discussions with the UK government immediately. Throughout the campaign the SNP leader has said her party would look at the independence question following the coronavirus pandemic.

SNP leader used an interview with an Irish newspaper yesterday to explain there would be detailed work to minimise "any practical difficulties for businesses" that rely on cross-border trade.The UK Government and the EU spent years negotiating how to avoid a hard border between the Republic of Ireland, which remains in the Euro bloc, and Northern Ireland after the UK voted for Brexit in 2016.Sturgeon said the resulting deal offered an example of how an independent Scotland would handle a border

Nicola Sturgeon today confirmed that her “number one priority” is keeping Scotland safe from coronavirus. It comes after Alba, a rival pro-independence party headed by Alex Salmond, called for action on independence immediately after next month’s Holyrood election.

Anas Sarwar today accused the Scottish Government of having “failed” children as he argued that the next Parliament should be focused on recovery from the pandemic rather than another independence referendum.

Conservative UK government is "becoming quite overpowering", Nicola Sturgeon has said.

could create jobs in the south of the country. But the First Minister insisted: “Nobody in the SNP wants to see a border between Scotland and England”.

Join thousands of others in getting the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox.First Minister Nicola Sturgeon vowed to secure the future of the Vale of Leven Hospital on a visit to Alexandria this morning.The SNP politician visited Dumbarton and the Vale earlier today on the campaign trail with local candidate Toni Giugliano, who is hoping to take the party’s first victory in Dumbarton since the creation of the current Scottish Parliament.Just 109 votes separated the SNP’s Gail

Nicola Sturgeon has announced that lockdown will ease across Scotland next week as cases continue to fall.The First Minister said the country would move to Level Three lockdown on Monday, April 26. The SNP leader, at a Scottish Government covid briefig, gave detail of travel between Scotland, England and Wales and the reopening of gyms, non-essential shops and the hospitality sector.

First Minister was given a shot of the AstraZeneca medicine on Thursday afternoon just hours after unveiling the SNP's manifesto for next month's Holyrood election.The SNP leader was vaccinated at 4pm and shortly after encouraged other Scots to receive their jab as soon as they are offered it.She tweeted: "Just had my first dose of vaccine (AZ for anyone wondering)."It truly is an emotional moment.

Join thousands of others and get the latest Scottish politics news sent straight to your inbox.Nicola Sturgeon’s “bold promises” at elections turn out to amount to very little, Douglas Ross has said.As the SNP launched their election manifesto the Scottish Tory leader said that the last 14 years of SNP government had been a failure.Ross listed SNP policy failures as he prepared to promote postal votes to potential Tory voters.He told reporters: “Their promises have never been delivered.

Parliament term, if she is re-elected.The First Minister revealed her plans for a second vote on Scotland's future during the SNP's manifesto launch earlier today.The SNP says it is seeking permission from the Scottish people to hold indyref2 following the devastating coronavirus pandemic that has killed more than 10,000 Scots.

@scotgov and the people of Scotland - to Her Majesty The Queen and her family." The Palace said in a statement: "It is with deep sorrow that Her Majesty The Queen announces the death of her beloved husband, His Royal Highness The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh."His Royal Highness passed away peacefully this morning at Windsor Castle."Further announcements will made in due course."The Royal Family join with people around the world in mourning his loss."

indyref2 by the end of 2023 if the country is still “grappling” with covid.She also insisted she would not speak to Alex Salmond after the election and criticised his refusal to blame Russia for the Salisbury poisonings in 2018.Polling suggests the SNP is on course to win an outright majority at next month’s election.A key part of an SNP fourth term would be seeking a joint agreement with the UK Government on a second referendum.She has said she wants a fresh vote on Scotland’s constitutional

former First Minister also hit out at an apparent absence of “will, determination and statecraft” over the last seven years - the period in which Sturgeon has led the country.Salmond launched a new pro-indy party, Alba, in the wake of his bitter fallout with Nicola Sturgeon.Alba’s aim is to secure a “super majority” of pro-independence MSPs and is only contesting the regional List elections for Holyrood.However, despite preaching pro-independence unity, Salmond has criticised his predecessor’s

SNP, even if that was not a Tory.Ross made the comments during a BBC Scotland radio phone-in, after one caller said he was thinking of voting Labour because their candidate had a better chance of unseating the SNP MSP.Asked “should a Conservative vote for Labour, who have a chance of winning?”, the Tory leader replied: “I think, across the country, people should look at their individual constituency and vote for the strongest candidate, which in most cases is a Conservative candidate, to defeat

Scotland. The First Minister made the announcement at her coronavirus briefing at St Andrew's House in Edinburgh earlier today.