A man has been charged in connection with disturbing a pod of dolphins off the coast of Portknockie.
The incident happened on Saturday, 27 June, 2026. Police received a report of a boat disturbing dolphins in the water.
The man was later traced and charged in connection. He will be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
Constable Bryony Munro said: “We would like to remind members of the public to take care not to disturb any marine wildlife when they are encountered, and to follow the Scottish Marine Watching Code, whether they’re watching wildlife from the shore or sea.
“We understand many people enjoy the spectacle of seeing pods of dolphins and whales, but we must ensure we are not endangering them. It is vital they remain safe and protected in our seas. Anyone not adhering to the law will be investigated.
“Should you observe any human behaviour you consider to be a disturbance or harassment of dolphins, whales or other marine life, please note as much detail as you can and report the information to us.”
Applications to stand as a candidate in the next Scottish Youth Parliament elections are still open. If you know a young person who’s looking to expand their network, explore their interests and build their confidence, encourage them to apply.
Becoming an MSYP gives young people the opportunity to represent their peers, develop new skills and get involved in the issues that matter to them.
You can find further information on our website here:
New changes introduced to the sale and placement of foods high in fat, sugar and salt in shops come into effect
Following the passing of regulations by Parliament last year, new restrictions will be introduced from 1 October 2026 in Scotland to support people to make healthier food choices.
Businesses with more than 50 employees will no longer be allowed to display prepackaged junk food such as sugary soft drinks, confectionary, biscuits and breakfast cereals in prominent locations, such as entrances, checkouts and at aisle ends.
Certain price promotions including free refills of sugary soft drinks will also be restricted.
The regulations, which will apply both in-store and online, are intended to create a healthier balance of products on offer, support healthier eating habits and help lower levels of obesity.
Similar restrictions are already in place across England and Wales.
Public Health Minister Maree Todd said: “We want to make it easier for people to live healthier lives. “In Scotland, two out of three adults are overweight or obese, with those living in our poorest areas more likely to be overweight and experience the most harm as a result.
“We know that promotions and the prominent product placement can encourage over-consumption and impulse buying of foods with high levels of calories, fat, sugar and salt.
“By restricting the promotion of less healthy food and drink we can make it easier for people to make healthier choices, improving health and wellbeing and create a Scotland where everyone eats well and has a healthy weight.
”We have engaged extensively with business and industry extensively in developing this approach.
“These restrictions strike a balance between improving the health of people in Scotland whilst reducing any potential effects on smaller businesses and shops.”
Ewan MacDonald-Russell, Deputy Head of the Scottish Retail Consortium, said: “Scotland’s retailers are committed to helping consumers make healthier choices. For example, fresh fruit and veg are heavily price promoted and grocers have led the way on reformulating products to reduce salt, sugar, and fat. We’ve pioneered traffic light labelling and signage to help consumers make informed choices.
“We believe these new regulations are proportionate and will enhance the positive work being done by retailers in supporting consumers to make healthier food and drink choices. The choice to implement a consistent model with other UK nations should simplify and reduce the cost of implementation: albeit retailers will still invest around £20 million to deliver the policy.
“We hope this approach, where industry is meaningfully consulted and government acts in a constructive manner, can serve as a model going forward as we work in partnership to make Scotland a healthier and wealthier nation.”
Paul Linnet, co-creator of the popular Supertato series of children’s books, visited pupils at Stenhouse Primary School to read to pupils.
Each child received a signed book to take home, while the school’s library received 96 books donated by Paul and his publisher, Simon & Schuster Children’s Books.
The visit was arranged by Tesco as part of its National Year of Reading and Fruit & Veg campaigns.
Paul Linnet, the co-creator of the popular children’s book series Supertato, delighted pupils at Stenhouse Primary School in Edinburgh with a special storytelling session, encouraging their love of stories and reading.
The author recently visited P1 and P2 pupils at the school to read his latest book, Supertato: Despicable Bean, and share his love of stories with the young audience.
Thanks to Paul and his publisher, Simon & Schuster Children’s Books, each child also received a signed copy of the book to take home, with an additional 96 assorted Supertato books donated to the school’s library.
The visit was arranged by Tesco as part of its National Year of Reading campaign, which aims to encourage children to discover a love of reading.
The Supertato series follows the adventures of a superhero potato who uses his ‘potato powers’ to save his fellow vegetables. The series has sold over 1.8 million copies in the UK and is now a CBBC series.
Emily Sinclair, Headteacher at Stenhouse Primary School said:“As a school we were delighted to be selected, through Tesco’s Fruit for Schools initiative, to welcome Paul Linnet in to share his love of stories and vegetables with our children.
“This has been a wonderful experience for our children which has created a real enthusiasm for reading in the classroom. The children have loved reading and learning through Paul’s stories and engaging characters and they have been inspired to write their own stories based on Supertato.
“They have also become very enthusiastic about vegetables and the fun that can be had turning them into various characters.”
Timothy Hammertson, Lead Buying Manager on Books at Tesco said:“We’re delighted to have helped bring Paul Linnet and his Supertato stories to Stenhouse Primary School to inspire children to discover the joys of books, stories and reading.
“It was fantastic to hear that pupils loved the visit and were hugely excited to receive their very own signed copy to keep
“Reading is a brilliant way to spark children’s imaginations, and initiatives like this help bring books to life while encouraging a love of reading from an early age.”
Stenhouse Primary School is also actively involved in Tesco’s Fruit & Veg for Schools campaign, which provides fruit and vegetables to pupils to help them discover healthy eating habits.
The latest book, Supertato: Despicable Bean, is currently featured in Tesco’s Kids Summer Reading Stack, which is available in 400 stores across the UK until 16 September. This initiative is part of the chain’s Go All In campaign, which aims to help get younger children into reading as part of the National Year of Reading.
Two Edinburgh-based Scots are among nine recipients of Scottish International Education Trust (SIET) Fellowships supporting international study, research and professional development.
Edinburgh-based researcher Andro Mathewson has been awarded a Fellowship to undertake final-stage doctoral research in Ukraine, while Edinburgh flautist Clio Scott will use hers to continue her advanced musical studies in Vienna.
Andro, who was born in Illinois and brought up in Scotland, is completing a PhD at King’s College London examining unmanned systems in the Russia-Ukraine war. His Fellowship will support a 10-day final-stage research visit to Ukraine, allowing him to undertake research on the ground as he completes his doctorate.
As part of his research, Andro has created the Unmanned Systems Tracker, an open-source, publicly available website showing some of the data behind his research and helping to raise awareness of the importance of unmanned systems in modern warfare.
Andro Mathewson said: “Being funded by the Scottish International Education Trust is a great privilege and honour for me. Beyond the financial award, which will help me to finish my PhD research, including on-the-ground in Ukraine, it means a lot that a Scottish organization is supporting research in the realm of defense and emerging military technologies.
“As part of my research I have already created the Unmanned Systems Tracker (unmannedsystemstracker.com), an open-source, publicly available website showing some of the data behind my research to help raise awareness about the importance of unmanned systems in modern warfare.”
Clio Scott has been awarded a Fellowship to study for a Master’s in Instrumental Studies (Flute Performance) at MDW – University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna.
The award will help Clio meet the costs of her advanced musical training and allow her to focus on her studies with an internationally recognised teacher in Vienna.
Clio Scott said: “Being given an award by the Scottish International Education Trust feels like a huge vote of confidence in me. Training to be a classical musician is a long, arduous path and is also incredibly expensive.
The assistance offered by the SIET will help me to be able to fully immerse myself in my studies without worrying about financial barriers. I am beyond excited to be beginning the next stage of my education in Vienna, where I’ll have the opportunity to study with an incredible teacher in a city that’s renowned for its classical music as well as its beauty!”
The Fellowships are two of nine awarded by SIET in its Autumn 2026 awards round, supporting Scots to pursue international study, research and professional opportunities.
SIET Chair Nick Bibby said:“We are delighted to support another group of talented Scots as they take the next step in their education, research and professional development.
“What unites our Fellows is not a particular subject or career path, but their ambition, drive and the potential of the international opportunities they have chosen to pursue. We are proud to play a part in helping Andro and Clio take these important next steps in their respective fields, and look forward to seeing where their international opportunities lead.”
SIET Director Ken Thomson said:“Our Fellows demonstrate the many different ways in which international education and experience can change the course of a life.
“These awards are about recognising ability and potential, but also about helping to remove financial barriers that can prevent talented people from taking up exceptional opportunities.
“We wish all nine Fellows every success as they embark on the next stage of their journeys, and hope that their experiences overseas will ultimately benefit not only their own careers but Scotland more widely.”
The Scottish International Education Trust was established in 1971 by founders Sir Sean Connery and Sir Jackie Stewart. For more than 50 years, the Trust has supported Scots to access transformative international educational experiences, particularly where financial circumstances might otherwise prevent them from doing so.
SIET typically supports postgraduate education overseas, but also funds musicians, artists, craftspeople and other professionals where education involves developing specialist skills outside a conventional academic setting.
Kids Operating Room reaches major global surgery milestone and sets ambitious 2035 goal
A SCOTTISH charity has hit a major milestone, helping create capacity for one million life-changing operations around the world.
Kids Operating Room, founded by Garreth and Nicola Wood MBE, has created over 135 dedicated children’s operating rooms in 39 countries, from Ukraine and Bangladesh to Peru and the West Bank and supported the training of more than 70 surgeons.
The couple marked the achievement at Murrayfield Stadium, returning to an early ambition to one day help enough children to fill its 67,000 seats.
Garreth Wood MBE, co-founder, said: “Standing here today is quite surreal. In the early days, Nicola and I talked about whether we could ever help enough children to fill Murrayfield. Looking around at 67,000 seats, even that felt like an enormous ambition.
“Today, 728 operations take place every day in operating rooms created by Kids Operating Room. That’s enough to fill Murrayfield again every three months.
“It’s incredible to think about, but every one of those operations is about much more than a number. It’s a child getting the surgery they need and the chance to get back to being a child. That’s what this milestone means to us.”
The landmark achievement, and ambitious new goal, follows a review of the charity’s strategy and a new brand built around the idea “Make anything possible”, reflecting what safe surgery means for children: the chance to grow up and live their life to the full.
Nicola Wood MBE, co-founder, said: “We started with one surgeon, one operating room and one country. To now be talking about a million operations is something we could never have imagined.
“The real heroes of this story are the surgical teams we support, working in some of the toughest conditions on earth and doing incredible things every single day. This milestone is theirs as much as ours.”
David Cunningham, Chief Executive of Kids Operating Room, said: “Reaching one million children proves the model works. But there are still millions more waiting for surgery that could change their lives.
“That’s why we’ve sharpened our focus, backing local surgical teams, investing in innovation like solar-powered operating rooms and making children’s surgery a core part of every country’s health system.
“One million operations a year by 2035 is a big ambition, but that’s what it takes and we can only get there with governments, funders and partners behind us.”
The charity’s story began in 2015, when the Woods learned about Dr John Sekabira, Uganda’s only paediatric surgeon, working in Kampala to care for a population of 20 million children without a dedicated children’s operating room. After that first room opened, requests for more poured in, and the couple formally launched Kids Operating Room in 2018.
By 2021, the charity had created 50 operating rooms. Today, it has 136.
The charity transforms unused or derelict spaces, usually in public hospitals, and fits each room with 3,300 pieces of specialist equipment, shipped from its global operations centre in Dundee. Solar technology keeps the lights on during power cuts and bright, colourful artwork helps children feel safe before surgery.
Unlike “fly-in” medical missions, Kids Operating Room never sends in medical professionals from richer countries. Instead, it backs local surgical teams, funds specialist training in partnership with ministries of health, and works with local engineers to keep every room running, with the aim of handing each one over to the local health system as soon as possible.
The charity’s own data, drawn from their paediatric surgical database, shows the difference a dedicated operating room makes.
At one partner hospital in Nigeria, the rate of sepsis after surgery fell from 19.1% to 3.8%, and children’s average hospital stay dropped from 12 days to three. Surveys of school-age patients found that more than half of those missing school were doing so because of their surgical condition.
The charity estimates the operations made possible by its rooms will generate more than £23billion in economic benefit, as children who might otherwise have died or lived with lifelong disability grow up to work, earn and contribute to their communities.
Garreth Wood MBE, said: “Every one of those million is a child who can now run, play, go to school and grow up. Behind every number is a family who didn’t know if their child would make it, and a childhood that hasn’t been stolen by a treatable condition.”
An estimated 1.75 billion children still live in areas without reliable access to safe surgery . You can learn more about Kids Operating Room and help them reach these children here.
Garreth and Nicola Wood were both awarded MBEs in 2025 for services to international health and children’s surgery.
Members of the University and College Union (UCU) Scotland at Edinburgh University will strike for 25 days over five weeks from today (28 September) in a long running dispute over £140m cuts and 1,800 job losses.
Staff at Edinburgh have already taken multiple days of strike action and participated in a marking and assessment boycott because of the refusal of management to rule out compulsory redundancies. The latest action starts today and will continue through to 30 October.
The dispute centres on £140m cuts announced by the principal, Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, in early 2025 and an estimated 1,800 job losses. The scale of cuts are the largest cut in staff seen in Scottish higher education and is happening at one of the wealthiest institutions in the country and which, earlier this year, confirmed that there was no deficit.
Hundreds of staff have already lost their jobs through hidden redundancies including by fixed term contacts not being renewed as would normally happen and hourly-paid staff having their hours reduced.
Despite 18 months of campaigning and industrial pressure, including three ballots and strikes, the threat to jobs and student education remains while staff continue to face increased workloads because of ongoing restructures.
UCU members voted to undertake the five-week strike earlier in the summer. Since then the union has been pressing senior management to make a serious proposal that could avoid the strike.
The union has called for management to commit to no compulsory redundancies; to address hidden redundancies and workloads; engage in meaningful negotiation to avoid redundancies; and to reconsider the balance between staff and non-staff cuts.
UCU Edinburgh branch co-president Lena Wånggren said: “Our members have been clear that compulsory redundancies must not be the university’s answer to its financial challenges.
“Five weeks of strike action is not what anyone wants, but members are prepared to take action to protect jobs. UCU members are prepared to take action for our colleagues and our students – we want to safeguard students’ education not just for five weeks in Autumn but for the future.”
UCU Edinburgh branch co-secretary Nik Matheou said: “Staff are facing increased workloads, the threat of redundancies, and continuing uncertainty created by restructures and cuts.
“We have given management another opportunity to avoid the strikes. We need a commitment to no compulsory redundancies, meaningful consultation and action to address hidden job losses and increased workloads. We are ready to continue to negotiate and hope management will now come forward with a serious proposal.”
UCU general secretary Jo Grady said: “The unprecedented cuts and job losses at Edinburgh are forcing members to take five-weeks of strike action.
“I previously called the cuts at Edinburgh ‘academic vandalism’ and nothing I’ve seen during this dispute gives me any reason to change that view. Even at this late stage, it’s not too late for the principal to rule out compulsory redundances, engage meaningfully with the union and take action to end this dispute.”
