Health Secretary Michael Matheson is pictured on the front page of the Scottish Sun holding a bouquet of flowers the day after he admitted that the near £11,000 data roaming bill charged to his parliamentary iPad was caused by his sons watching football. The paper says he is facing mounting calls to quit and quoted the Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross who called Mr Matheson a “disgrace”.
The Times also leads with the story surrounding the health secretary, but it focuses on an accusation that Humza Yousaf misled the public after defending the near £11,000 iPad roaming bill, despite learning the truth days before. Michael Matheson admitted on Thursday that his teenage sons had used his Holyrood iPad to watch football matches while on a family holiday in Morocco, the paper reports. It says the Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the first minister must answer serious questions amid accusations of a cover-up.
One of the UK’s only two pandas makes the front page of The Scotsman, as Edinburgh Zoo offers visitors a final chance to see the bears before they return to China. But the paper’s top story is on Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and whether he is going to announce tax cuts in Wednesday’s Autumn Statement. It says the Scottish government is likely to come under renewed pressure to deliver fresh financial support to embattled businesses as a result.
The Daily Telegraph claims an exclusive double, as it not only interviews Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to find out that he believes the time is now right to “plot a path to lower taxes” – but also reports that Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick has backed Suella Braverman’s plan to break the deadlock on the government’s policy to send some asylum seekers to Rwanda.
A mother’s plea to medical bosses over an expensive cystic fibrosis drug, makes the front page of the Daily Record. Suzanne Doherty’s 15-month-old boy, Leo, has cystic fibrosis and faces a premature death without the “miracle” drug Kaftrio, the paper reports. Its front page reads “Is £100,000 more than my son’s life is worth?,” which Ms Doherty asked following a move to ban the medication on the NHS.
The Scottish Daily Mail highlights a positive development for the NHS, reporting that a “landmark” prostate cancer screening will initially see 300,000 men invited for MRI scans and other screening to detect the cancer. The paper hails the move as a “major victory” for a campaign it has been supporting.
The i weekend leads on what Labour is planning for the NHS if it gets into power next year. Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting tells the paper he wants the NHS to team up with entrepreneurs and tech firms to more quickly develop “cutting-edge treatments and technology”. The paper’s headline says he will “hold the door wide open” for people from the private sector who can help the NHS.
The National also leads with Labour, but it focuses on a claim that the party’s leader Sir Keir Starmer censored parts of a major report on devolution. The paper says that North of Tyne mayor Jamie Driscoll said key recommendations put forward by former prime minister Gordon Brown in his constitutional report had been cut out after being reviewed by Mr Starmer.
Sir Keir Starmer also makes the front page of The Herald after he moved to reassure oil and gas industry leaders as he promised the sector still has a future under a Labour government, despite the party’s promise to bring an end to new North Sea licences. The paper says he met energy companies and trade unions during a visit to Aberdeen which bosses described as a “positive step forward”.
The Press and Journal’s top story is on the “unexplained” death of a mother-of-two. The woman, named locally as Kiesha Donaghy, was found in a flat in New Elgin on Thursday night, according to the paper. It says online tributes described Ms Donaghy as “a lovely girl”.
A picture of police guarding a small blue tent outside a Dundee home after the sudden death of a 50-year-old, features on the front page of the Weekend Telegraph. Officers say the death of the man in Charleston is being treated as unexplained, the paper reports.
The Courier leads with a murder trial which heard a man accused of murdering his estranged wife told police he had a knife at his throat when they tried to get him to open the door at his mother’s house. The paper says a jury heard that John Lizanec had a 12-hour stand-off with officers at the Balunie street property on 14 February 2021.
Council chiefs have launched an online questionnaire about the possible introduction of a Workplace Parking Levy (WPL) in Edinburgh, the Edinburgh Evening News reports. The paper says a WPL is a charge on employers for the car parking spaces for employees in a bid to to discourage the provision of free car parking and encourage people to leave their cars at home and commute by public transport instead.
The Glasgow Times leads with driving instructors being angry after a test centre in Glasgow was closed and tests moved to another area. The paper says the Anniesland test centre was shut this week after it was flooded, with sewage in floodwater. The centre was closed on Wednesday until further notice and tests were moved to Shieldhall across the River Clyde, a move which instructors say is putting learner drivers at a disadvantage, according to the paper.
The Evening Express leads with a hunt for a masked thief after a street attack. The paper says CCTV was used to look for the armed thug who left someone in hospital.
Related Internet Links
The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites.
