Third of exam results at Kirkcudbright Academy could have been downgraded before Scottish Government U-turn

independence referendum “must” take place next year. The First Minister said she would not be “diverted” from her daily covid briefing and said her thoughts on indyref2 will be set out in the SNP’s Holyrood manifesto.

woman as told of her 10-years of hell at the hands of sadistic bullies who tortured her over a birth-defect. Jenny McGibbon, 26, says she was relentlessly bullied between the ages of seven and 17 after being born with a condition called Gastroschisis.The condition meant Jenny was born with her intestines outside of her body and she had to undergo life-saving surgery which left her with a 20cm scar across her abdomen, no belly button, and several chronic health problems.

Scottish independence could take place in spring 2022, a former Yes campaign chief has predicted. Blair Jenkins said the on-going fight against coronavirus meant it was unlikely that a major vote on the constitution could take place next year - despite a pledge from SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford, who said his party must plan for a plebiscite in 2021.

a new £4.5 million scheme aimed at helping people install renewable and energy efficiency measures in their homes.The new Scottish Government cashback initiative will also help homeowners save money on their future energy bills.People will be able to apply for 75 per cent cashback up to the value of £7,500 towards the cost of a renewable heating system and a further 40 per cent cashback up to £6,000 for installing energy efficiency measures.The new initiative is in addition to the £4 million

coronavirus in Scotland in the past 24 hours. The low figure is a result of Register Offices being closed over the weekend, and may not be a true reflection of the figures.

Richard Leonard has suffered a blow over his plans for guaranteeing women the top candidate slots for Holyrood. The party’s governing body yesterday supported legal advice which warned the proposals would be unlawful.Leonard’s party has been split over the best way to ensure the next round of Labour MSPs reflects the diversity of society.Labour has a track record of using positive action to boost female representation and Leonard wanted to go further for this election.

coronavirus in Scotland in the past 24 hours, the Scottish Government has confirmed.The latest figures show there were 1,357 new Covid-19 cases recorded overnight, bringing the total number of positive cases to 79,017 since the pandemic began.Leading today's briefing, deputy First Minister John Swinney said Scotland's death toll now sits at 3,244.According to the data, 1,228 people are currently being treated in hospital with 96 in intensive care.It comes as three parts of Scotland officially

Perthshire to help the Scottish traditional music community stay connected during lockdown has now notched over 2.5 million views across the globe.Musician Martin Macleod (56) and his son, also Martin (24), started ‘Tunes in the Hoose’ in the first few weeks after the UK went into its initial lockdown on March 23.The simple idea is based on a Facebook group that sees one musician take the lead on a song and others coming in with different parts to the same tune.Concern as four in five residents

Get the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.A battle between two councillors to become the SNP's parliamentary candidate for Renfrewshire North and West next year is set to go on for another two weeks after the initial vote ended in an historic tie.In what is understood to be a first in the party's history, an equal number of members got behind Michelle Campbell and Natalie Don as they fought for the right to represent the nationalists in the Holyrood

However, SNP opposition members branded the Labour plea as “hypocrisy”, claiming Labour had already voted against a review of Third Sector funding and refused to spend reserves to help the community.Depute SNP group leader, Councillor Frank Anderson, branded Labour’s approach as an: “Oliver Twist financial strategy of  ‘Can we have some more’.”Councillor Anderson said: “Perhaps if they were serious, instead of playing politics, they would use their £2million reserves, or the ability they have to

Get the stories that matter to you sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter.AIRDRIE'S parliamentarians have welcomed news that miners convicted of certain offences relating to the strike in 1984-85 will be pardoned in order to aid reconciliation within the affected communities.The move by SNP Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf follows John Scott QC’s independent review of the impact of policing on communities during the strike which recommends that, subject to establishing suitable

Kenmore to stay open throughout the rest of the year to deliver guided tours in a COVID-safe environment. The Perthshire attraction will also be able to run a number of small Yule events and workshops with help from the local crannog community of craftspeople and volunteers.

McDonald's meal of a lifetime to celebrate. Melissa Russell, 27, and Shannon McKenna, 26, had been engaged for six years but had no plans to tie the knot until the coronavirus pandemic made them realise they wanted to get hitched.

Geoff Ellis and DF Concerts put together a blueprint to stage live shows that involves securing a superfast, highly accurate and affordable coronavirus test.A pilot gig is expected to take place in eastern Europe in December - but the Scottish Government has issued a statement that may dampen the enthusiasm felt by music lovers after the revelations in the Record on Saturday.The Scottish Government claims testing is only accurate at the exact point of the test being taken and that symptoms may

Covid restrictions have left theatres closed indefintely.The children's entertainment company are now asking for donations in a desperate bid to keep their heads above water as coronavirus threatens to pull the final curtain on the much-loved show for good.The family-favourite has been entertaining children since 2015 when it was born as a spin-off of the hugely popular, The Singing Kettle, which ceased performing after 23 years when husband and wife owners Cilla Fisher and Artie Trezise hung up

Fire officers attending a meeting of the council’s Services for the Community Policy Development and Scrutiny Panel (PDSP) earlier that afternoon heard concerns about the deadline from both council leader, Councillor Lawrence Fitzpatrick and John Sives from the Joint Forum of Community Councils.After the delay was announced, Councillor Fitzpatrick welcomed it but added: “How are they going to do this for every house in Scotland in the next 15 months. It has been poorly thought through.

botched handling of allegations against Alex Salmond was the result of "incompetence and secrecy", an MSP has claimed. Jackie Baillie, a member of the committee investigating why ministers ultimately lost a judicial review to the former SNP leader, said newly published documents revealed the process was flawed months before its conclusion.

Salmond Inquiry.Barbara Allison initially denied receiving an email from Scottish Government Permanent Secretary Leslie Evans which referenced a “war”.However, she said material retrieved from her mobile phone has confirmed she received the message on the day Salmond won his legal battle against the SNP Government.A Holyrood committee is investigating how in 2018 the SNP Government handled complaints of sexual misconduct against Salmond when he was First Minister.Salmond pursued a judicial