Tracy Gilbert MP has called on Rockstar Games, creator of Grand Theft Auto, to recognise the Rockstar Game Workers Union, urging the company to give workers an independent voice in their workplace.
In a letter to Rockstar Games, Tracy highlighted the importance of trade unions in protecting workers’ rights and called on the company to show leadership by voluntarily recognising the union.
Rockstar Games is one of the world’s leading video game developers, and Gilbert said that as an industry leader, the company has an opportunity to set an example for workers’ rights across the games sector.
Only one other UK games studio currently recognises a trade union, and Gilbert has urged Rockstar to take steps to progress discussions with workers and their representatives.
If Rockstar does not voluntarily recognise the union, Tracy has pledged her support for the Independent Workers’ Union of Great Britain’s (IWGB) application for statutory recognition through the Central Arbitration Committee.
Tracy Gilbert MP said: “I strongly support the work of trade unions and believe that every worker should have an independent voice in their workplace. Rockstar Games has an opportunity to show leadership and recognise the union representing its workers.
“I look forward to hearing what steps Rockstar is taking to move discussions forward.”
An expanded monitoring programme carried out by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has detected PFAS in surface water and groundwater samples collected from sites across Scotland.
The programme found PFAS at just under 90% of surface water sites monitored and around 60% of groundwater sites monitored. Higher concentrations were generally associated with locations where sources are already known or expected, including activities linked to higher PFAS use or emissions, such as airports and landfills.
No samples exceeded relevant environmental or groundwater standards in this initial dataset.
PFAS, sometimes referred to as “forever chemicals”, have been used globally for decades in industrial processes and consumer products. Because they break down very slowly, they can remain in the environment for long periods and are now recognised internationally as a complex environmental challenge.
SEPA have monitored PFAS in Scotland’s water environment since 2009, but in 2025 the organisation significantly expanded monitoring to include more sites across Scotland and a broader range of PFAS compounds.
The pilot programme covered 97 surface water sites and 37 groundwater sites and was designed to provide a clearer picture of where PFAS are present in Scotland’s water environment. The findings will help identify where future monitoring, investigation and regulatory effort should be focused.
The results provide an early indication of PFAS distribution across Scotland and contribute to a growing UK-wide evidence base supporting the development of future standards, guidance and approaches to managing PFAS.
Professor Paul Dale, SEPA Chief Regulator, said: “PFAS are being detected more widely around the world and, given how extensively they have been used for decades, their presence in Scotland’s water environment is not unexpected.
“It is understandable that people have questions about PFAS and what these findings mean. This expanded monitoring programme gives us a clearer understanding of where PFAS are present across Scotland and helps identify where further investigation and future regulatory effort may be needed.
“Environmental monitoring helps us understand where substances are present in the environment, but monitoring data alone does not determine human health risk and should not be interpreted as evidence of direct impacts on human health.
“PFAS are a complex environmental challenge that will require long-term action across governments, regulators and industry. By continuing to strengthen the evidence base, we can ensure future decisions are informed by the best available science and targeted where they will have the greatest environmental benefit.”
SEPA will continue to expand monitoring and work with regulators, governments, industry and researchers across the UK to improve understanding of PFAS and support the development of future approaches to managing these substances.
Monitoring will continue as part of a multi-year programme, with additional sampling planned in 2026 to further improve understanding of PFAS distribution across Scotland’s water environment.
We all love sharing holiday photos, but posting in real-time could alert criminals that your home is empty. It also puts you at greater risk of identity theft if your personal details or travel plans are shared publicly.
Top tip: Save the snaps for after your trip and keep location tags off your posts.
The cross-party Work and Pensions Committee has backed calls for the Government to increase Universal Credit for 66-year-olds to prevent hardship as the State Pension age rises to 67, in a report published yesterday.
The Transition to State Pension Age report, says the Government should consult on the change with a view to implementing it by the end of 2026 as a temporary measure, allowing time to develop longer-term support.
The State Pension age is already being gradually increased and will reach 67 by April 2028. A growing number of 66-year-olds may have to rely on the £425-a-month standard rate of Universal Credit for longer, despite worsening health. Pension Credit, which guarantees £1,031 a month, is only available once they reach State Pension age.
This leaves many pre-pensioners, particularly those with health issues, caring responsibilities or long histories in labour-intensive jobs, relying on the savings they may have set aside for retirement until they reach the State Pension age.
Rising poverty and uneven health outcomes
The Committee warns that when the State Pension age last rose in 2020, poverty more than doubled among people in the year approaching it, rising from 10% to 24%, putting 100,000 below the poverty line. With people now waiting a further year, and many already frail, the “impact is likely to be greater this time”.
Meanwhile, only 42% of 66 year-olds are in paid work, while almost a quarter (24%) of the poorest 60-65 year-old pre-pensioners are working while frail, which research has shown deepens health problems.
Giving further support through Universal Credit to 66-year-olds would cost £600 million of the potential £10.5 billion savings made from the rise. While the impact on efforts to boost employment may be a consideration, the report says, “impact on work incentives being outweighed by the imperative to reduce poverty”.
Concerns over outdated evidence base
In the report, MPs on the Committee raise concerns about “poor policymaking”, after hearing that the most recent impact assessments for the State Pension age increase are more than a decade-old (2011 and 2013), and none are planned until after the rise is complete. This has caused a “significant gap in the Government’s understanding” of the impact of the rise.
They added that “an opportunity to inform mitigations has been missed” after the Government failed to act on committee recommendation last year in its Pensioner Poverty report to conduct an impact assessment ahead of the State Pension age rise.
Work and Pensions Committee Chair Debbie Abrahams said: “We can’t just allow people who are already struggling as they approach pension age to be forced to choose between continuing work in poor health or prolonging their poverty as they wait for their State Pension to kick in.
“This is not the later life that anyone wants or to see their loved ones endure after providing for decades.
“We should recognise that pre-pensioners have greater needs and greater barriers into employment due to ill-health, age discrimination, lack of opportunity to upskill. More than half of people are not in paid work in their mid-60s, and they’re not likely to get it if they’ve been effectively written off.
“Additional social security payments are essential in reducing the compounding effects of the lottery of life and the state pension age increase.
“The harm has already been done for some planning retirement if policymakers are using out-dated impact assessments in making the changes they are. As a result, we know there will be an impact, but we don’t know how big it will be.
“But it’s not too late; if the Government takes action quickly those who face poverty because they deplete their savings before reaching pension age can be helped.”
A plant-based diet is now acknowledged as a major contributor to a healthier life-style but there are other benefits besides eating more fruit and vegetables that can boost your health and wellbeing.
Rather than popping down to the supermarket or ordering on-line, growing your own – organically if you can – brings with it benefits beyond the delicious fresh produce you can enjoy at your dining table.
“The physical creation and tending of your plot – whether it’s a patio container, a corner of your garden, an allotment or a full-blown kitchen garden – can help keep you fit and motivated, and inspire a great sense of optimism”, says National Garden Scheme CEO, Dr Richard Claxton.
“And, if you get your planning and storage right, you can enjoy home-grown produce throughout the year,”
Many National Garden Scheme gardens include greenhouses and vegetable patches where owners produce edibles for their own consumption, others work on a more commercial scale like the stunning Goldstone Hall Gardens in Shropshire – opening 15 July, 12 August and 9 September, or try Thyme in Gloucestershire opening 5 August.
Situated on the edge of the water meadows, Thyme’s carefully managed kitchen gardens ensure abundance from the land while protecting and maintaining the fertile alluvial soil.
The garden is productive for much of the year and features a herb garden, cutting gardens and polytunnels to extend the seasons. They grow a large variety of flavoursome and unusual varieties to supply their restaurants.
Ryton Organic Gardens in Coventry, which opens on 11 July and 12 September, is an inspirational and sustainable demonstration garden containing a wonderful fruit and vegetable potager, together with several large ornamental flower beds. Packed full of ideas for gardens of all sizes, it features a large glasshouse, polytunnel, composting area, water features, no-dig and container gardens plus two National Plant Collections.
And, of the many gardens that also have kitchen gardens, edibles and grow your own, why not try one or more of these delicious options:
Goldsborough Hall, Yorkshire opens 26 July. This historic 12 acre garden and formal landscaped grounds in a parkland setting surround a Grade II, C17 house, the former residence of HRH Princess Mary, daughter of George V and Queen Mary. Gertrude Jekyll inspired the 120 foot double herbaceous borders, rose garden and woodland walk. And a jewel in the crown is the large restored kitchen garden with rill, fountain and large glasshouse which produces fruit and vegetables for the Hall’s commercial kitchens.
If you’re in Wales on August 8 or 9 – visit Cefncoed Uchaf in Dyfed this lovely family garden set around a 200 year-old farmhouse, blends traditional planting with contemporary touches. Features include a newly renovated Dutch barn, raised vegetable beds, perennial borders, pond, greenhouse and shell-mulched area. Designed with sustainability, wildlife and seasonal interest in mind.
Woodpeckers, Woking, Surrey opens on 30 August and 6 September(pictured top, copyright Clive Nichols) and offers a journey through a horticultural designer’s own garden, where plants take centre stage in succession, providing year-round colour and interest.
The garden is divided into three rooms, each with a different planting style and purpose: vibrant colours in the jewel’s amphitheatre, leafy textures and pastels in the social room, and a productive area featuring a glasshouse and ‘grow your own’ space.
For more gardens with grow your own elements CLICK HERE
Watch England-Norway World Cup quarter-final clash on the big screen at Vue Edinburgh
Football fans can witness one of the most talked-about matches of the FIFA World Cup yet in spectacular fashion at Vue Edinburgh Omni as England face Norway in a blockbuster quarter-final clash this Saturday.
Following popular screenings of Scottish group matches at Vue venues across Scotland, fans will now have the opportunity to follow more of the action on the big screen, whether they are cheering on another home nation, or feeling Norwegian for the weekend!
Those wishing to enjoy some quarter-final drama with fellow fans can do so with the ultimate seat, screen and sound by coming along to Vue where every moment will play out on the big screen.
Kicking off at 22:00 BST, England will be aiming to take the next step towards World Cup glory, but standing in their way is a Norway side boasting world-class talent across the pitch.
Norway’s squad is packed with Premier League experience, with a host of players who know England’s stars inside out and will be hoping to use that knowledge to halt the Three Lions’ march to the semi-finals, while players like Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze, Noni Madueke and Declan Rice will look to do the same.
Harry Kane and Erling Haaland will step onto the biggest stage in world football as they continue their competition for the crown as the world’s best striker. With both the strikers aiming for the coveted golden boot, fans can expect a duel between two generational goalscorers in what promises to be one of the stand-out matches of the tournament.
Rachel Bland, Senior Screen Content Manager at Vue Entertainment, said: “Even though Scotland is out of the championship, we wanted to make sure fans here could continue to follow the action on the big screen after earlier successful screenings.
“No matter who you’re supporting, there’s no better place to experience the drama than at Vue. Our next-level screen and sound technology brings every tackle, every goal and every unforgettable moment to life, making you feel like you’re right there in the stadium.”
Vue’s Big Screen Sports line-up
Saturday: England vs Norway (Quarter-Final) – 22:00 BST
Last few places left for Monday’s performance of Gaggle!
Gaggle is a joyful, non-verbal physical comedy made especially for young audiences with complex additional support needs (ASN), and their families.
Join three lighthouse keepers as they spend three days and three nights watching the sea. By day they work, watch and wait, whatever the weather. By night, lanterns are lit and things get weird, wonderful, and wild.
“We all loved the sensory experience which we could all enjoy together. It was a truly inclusive experience.” – Audience feedback
Heading out this weekend? Whether you’re at a festival, beer garden, night out or house party, be aware of the signs of spiking.
Call NHS 24 on 111 for advice
Call 999 if it’s a life-threatening emergency
Report suspected spiking to Police Scotland on 101
