Help keep families together with their seriously ill children this Christmas

Dear Editor,

The festive season should be one of joy. Yet for many families, Christmas will be spent facing the fear and uncertainty of having a seriously ill child in hospital.

At The Sick Children’s Trust, we make sure families can stay together during their child’s most critical moments. But we cannot do it alone. We need your vital support.

Without our ‘Homes from Home’, families would face an average of 82 minutes of travel each day to be by their child’s hospital bedside, or be forced to sleep in hospital chairs, expensive hotels that they can’t afford, or even in their cars.

The stress and worry of being unable to be with their seriously ill child is unimaginable, especially at Christmas time. We urgently need donations so we can continue supporting families at this extremely traumatic time.

Families like Frances and Jack experienced this first-hand when their baby son, Milo, developed life-threatening sepsis. They stayed with us at our Acorn House ‘Home from Home’ for ten days while Milo received specialist care at Addenbrooke’s Hospital. 

Frances said: “At Acorn House we had somewhere comfortable to sleep, a shower and shared kitchen, meaning we could look after ourselves as best we could while still being on the hospital grounds.

“We never wanted to leave Milo’s side, but The Sick Children’s Trust gave us the chance to rest while being able to return to the hospital in minutes should he take a turn for the worse. We can’t describe how grateful we are to have had that vital support.

“After making a full recovery Milo is now a happy, thriving eight-month-old. We’re really looking forward to celebrating Milo’s first Christmas, which is even more special when we think about how critically ill he was.”

This year has been tough for our charity, with rising costs and supporters feeling the effects of the cost-of-living crisis but this Christmas, we expect all ten of our ‘Homes from Home’ to be full. For families, it’s free.

For us, it costs £40 to support a family for just one night, and we rely entirely on voluntary donations to make this possible.

Please donate what you can to keep more families together this Christmas.

Wishing you and your family a happy and healthy festive season.

Jane Featherstone

CEO, The Sick Children’s Trust

Matt Tebbutt joins ScottishPower to cook up weekend comfort food and help cut electricity bills

Research shows UK’s growing trend towards batch cooking with a third of us embracing the ‘Meal Prep’ revolution

TV personality and chef Matt Tebbutt has joined forces with ScottishPower to help families enjoy hearty, home-cooked meals this winter while saving money on their energy bills as more and more of us embrace weekend ‘meal prep’.

The partnership with the celebrity chef comes as new research commissioned by ScottishPower reveals that more than a third of us (39%) now prefer to batch cook at weekends rather than to traditionally prepare meals from scratch every evening.

This ‘Weekend Kitchen’ research commissioned by ScottishPower through Censuswide comes as more than 500,000 ScottishPower customers sign up for Half Price Weekends to pay less for their weekend electricity.

To help households make the most of the savings, Tebbutt has created a series of winter warmers and family favourites – including a rich Vegetable Tagine, spicy Chipotle Chicken Tacos, and Turkey Wontons – all designed for batch cooking during the cheaper weekend energy window.

“As someone who’s often juggling a busy schedule, I know how valuable it is to meal prep,” said Matt Tebbutt. “These recipes for ScottishPower’s Half-Price Weekends are perfect for batch cooking, meaning families can enjoy delicious, comforting meals through the week while making the most of the discounted weekend hours.”

But it’s not just cooking habits that are changing. The same research found that weekend chores split opinion across the UK:

  • Two-thirds (66%) of Brits surveyed said that they would prefer to complete their weekend to-do list for half the price than drag chores into the next week and pay full price.
  • One in three (35%) Brits would rather spend an hour ironing rather than having lunch with their in‑laws.
  • Over half (55%) even said they’d prefer tackling the laundry to dealing with surprise guests.

Andrew Ward, Chief Executive of ScottishPower’s Customer Business, added: “Our new research shows just how much people value getting household jobs done at the weekend. That’s why Half‑Price Weekends, part of our Power Saver initiative, make it easier and cheaper for customers to cook and clean – at half the usual electricity cost.

“With these delicious recipes from Matt Tebbutt, we’re going one step further to provide batch cooking and meal prep inspiration for the week ahead. Taking the pressure off during the week, at the weekend our customers are rewarded with time and savings on their electricity while helping us balance demands on the grid.”

Best known for hosting several TV cookery shows, Matt’s approachable style and love of hearty, seasonal dishes make him the perfect partner for ScottishPower’s ‘Weekend Kitchen’ winter energy-saving push, featuring a range of recipes and top tips to help households maximise their time and money.

By signing up to ScottishPower’s Half-Price Weekends, households can tackle weekend tasks while paying just half the standard electricity unit rate every Saturday and Sunday, between 11am and 4pm.

By encouraging households to shift more of their energy use to off-peak hours, the Half-Price Weekends initiative helps balance demand on ScottishPower’s electricity grid and reduce household bills. More than 500,000 ScottishPower customers have already signed up to pay less for their weekend electricity with over £10 million collectively saved.

Full details are available at scottishpower.co.uk/half-price-electricity

Man jailed following violent offence and discharge of firearm in Edinburgh

A 27-year-old man has been sentenced to eight years and four months in prison following a violent offence and discharge of a firearm in Edinburgh.

Arran Reid pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh today, Tuesday, 9 December, 2025 to assault to severe injury, permanent disfigurement and to danger of life.

Officers were made aware of the attempted murder of a 54-year-old man on Pitcairn Grove in Edinburgh around 9.20pm on Thursday, 22 May.

Reid was arrested and charged in connection with the incident on Monday, 16 June. 

On Friday, 13 June, officers were made aware of a window having been damaged at a property on Walter Scott Avenue. 

Following enquiries, it was established that the damage had been caused by the discharge of a firearm. 

Reid was also charged in connection with this incident on Tuesday, 15 July.

Detective Chief Superintendent Dave Ferry, Specialist Crime Division, said: “I want to make it clear to those intent on being involved in serious criminality that we will not give up and you will be brought to justice.

“This conviction is testament to the hard work and dedication by detectives, specialist officers and partners across the country.

“It also highlights Police Scotland’s commitment to the Serious and Organised Crime Taskforce and its national strategy.”

Operation Portaledge is the ongoing investigation into violent incidents in the East and West of the country.

Covid fraud cost UK taxpayer £10.9 BILLION, reveals independent report

  • Independent Commissioner finds last government’s support schemes left the front door open to covid fraud with £10.9 billion lost to pandemic fraudsters
  • Government has already actioned recommendations in Covid Counter Fraud Commissioner’s report – including new fraud powers and voluntary repayment scheme
  • Further action planned to retrieve lost funds and prevent repeat of mistakes in future crises 

Taxpayers lost £10.9 billion to fraud and error as the previous government’s pandemic response left the front door open to fraud, an independent report reveals today. 

The Covid Counter Fraud Commissioner, Tom Hayhoe’s, final report to Parliament finds many schemes – including Bounce Back Loans and Eat Out to Help Out – were rolled out with huge fraud risks and no early safeguards – costing the taxpayer millions.

Weak accountability, bad quality data and poor contracting were identified as the primary causes of the £10.9 billion pound losses – which were enough to fund daily free school meals for the UK’s 2.7 eligible million children for eight years.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves appointed Tom Hayhoe in December 2024 to ensure mistakes of the past are never repeated, with this government already recouping almost £400 million of covid support cash.

Chancellor, Rachel Reeves said: “Leaving the front door wide open to fraud has cost the British taxpayer £10.9 billion — money that should have been funding our public services, supporting families, and strengthening our economy.

“We have started returning this money to the British people and we will leave no stone unturned in rooting out the fraudsters who profited from pandemic negligence.”

The government has already actioned many of the Commissioner’s early proposals. These include: 

  • A voluntary repayment scheme, launched in September, giving claimants until 31 December to pay up. 
  • Tougher sanctions powers through the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Bill, which became law on 2 December. 
  • Specialist fraud recovery teams to track down suspected fraudsters and recover taxpayer cash, from 2026.

Josh Simons, Cabinet Office Minister, said: “We’re taking more action to bring fraudsters to justice and make the state the hardest possible target: giving investigators new powers to take on cases, using artificial intelligence to speed-up counter-fraud work, and setting up a repayment scheme to claw back money into the public purse.”

The report highlights that counter fraud controls were ‘inadequate’ and only improved later in the pandemic. Hayhoe makes further recommendations to ensure the country is prepared for further crises that need an economic response from government – emphasising that future preparation and robust controls will provide the best value for money for taxpayers.

The government will consider the report in full and respond early in the new year. 

Letters: Farage’s racist Glasgow remarks betray the true, welcoming spirit of Scotland

Dear Editor,

I am deeply pained by Nigel Farage’s recent remarks about immigrant schoolchildren in Glasgow not only as a Scottish political activist, lifelong Scottish Independence supporter and educationist, but as a father and immigrant who has proudly called Scotland home for two decades.

To describe diverse multilingual classrooms as evidence that Glasgow has been “culturally smashed” is not commentary on policy,  it is a racist attack on children who are already striving to belong, learn and contribute.​

Scotland has long aspired to be “One Scotland, Many Cultures”, welcoming those who come here to build a better life and contribute to the prosperity of Scotland.

From Irish workers in the nineteenth century to South Asian, African and European communities today, migration has helped shape modern Scotland’s economy, arts and civic life. Surveys consistently show that people in Scotland tend to hold more positive attitudes to immigration than elsewhere in the UK, reflecting an instinctive sense of fairness and solidarity.​

As a proud Indian‑origin Scot, I have tried to live up to those values. For over twenty years, I have taught thousands of students from Scotland, the rest of the UK and every corner of the globe.

They are now professional marine engineers, shipbuilders, skilled engineers, entrepreneurs and public servants. My two children are proud second-generation Scots who speak with Glaswegian confidence and carry both Indian and Scottish heritage with ease. They, like the pupils smeared in Mr Farage’s video, are not a threat to Scottish culture; they are its future.​

In 2025, working with colleagues across parties, I helped bring forward the first motion in the Scottish Parliament condemning Hinduphobia and affirming the contribution of Scotland’s Indian Hindu community.

That moment showed what our politics can be at its best: listening to minority voices, challenging prejudice and strengthening the social fabric rather than tearing it. It stands in stark contrast to attempts to win votes by stoking resentment against children in our classrooms.​

As a promoter of Scottish business, I have also championed Scotland’s most successful global product, Scotch whisky, in India, now the world’s largest market for Scotch by volume.

A deep UK–India trade agreement that cuts India’s punitive tariffs could unlock up to £1 billion in extra Scotch exports and around £190 million a year for the Scottish economy, supporting jobs from Speyside to Glasgow.

It is an immigrant like me, with roots in both Scotland and India, who has been working to tell Scotland’s story to Indian consumers and policymakers, proof that migration is not a burden but a bridge.​​

Newspapers help define the boundaries of what is acceptable in our public discourse. When racist language about children is normalised, real harm follows in playgrounds, buses and workplaces. Scotland and the wider UK face serious debates on housing, public services and the pace of change, but these arguments must never be conducted by dehumanising those who are already here and already Scottish.​

I urge editors and readers alike: challenge the politics of scapegoating. Celebrate, instead, the quiet success stories, of classrooms where many languages are spoken, of new Scots helping sell Scotch to the world, and of a nation confident enough to know that welcoming others does not weaken its identity, but deepens it.

Yours in shared ambition,

Dhruva Kumar

Former Glasgow South MP Candidate

Depute Convenor, Alba Party, Glasgow

Help us honour a West Pilton War Hero in Norway

CAN YOU HELP TRACE AIRMAN’S FAMILY?

Seeking information on RAF Sergeant George Lyon Mitchell (Last known address: 35 Ferry Road Avenue, West Pilton).

I am writing to you from Drammen, Norway, near where Sergeant Mitchell is buried.

On December 28, 1944, Sgt. Mitchell was aboard a Short Stirling bomber flying a mission to drop supplies to the Norwegian Resistance. Tragically, the plane was shot down and crashed near the church in the village of Sande, just outside Oslo. Seven young men (5 British, 2 Australian) lost their lives that night helping our country.

While their graves are tended to and honoured, the local community today knows little of their story. We are working to change that by erecting a permanent information memorial at the site, to be unveiled on May 17, 2026.

We need your help. I have found photos of 6 of the crew members, but I am missing a photo of George Lyon Mitchell. We desperately want to include his face on the memorial to properly honour his sacrifice.

His parents were William K. and Elizabeth Mitchell.

Do you have any information, or know of surviving family members who might have a photograph? A picture puts a face to the history and ensures he is fully remembered.

All information is valuable. Please contact me.

On behalf of Guardians of History, Ben Lonrusten

NOTE: The appeal was shared by West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre. Please pass on any info you may have to me here at NEN or contact West Pilton Neighbourhood Centre directly – hope you can help! -Ed.

Empty Kitchens Full Hearts: Still time to donate to BIG GIVE appeal

7 days of match-funding closes at NOON TODAY – any donation you make before the 12pm deadline will have twice the impact!

If you donate £20 before midday, you will support a person in need with healthy meals and wraparound care for two weeks.

To donate to our Big Give appeal, please click here:

https://donate.biggive.org/campaign/a05WS000005BQfSYAW

Thank you for your support.

Over £16 Billion needed in the Scottish Budget to protect essential services, COSLA Warns

COSLA is urging the Scottish Government to provide a £16 billion boost in revenue in the Scottish Budget, to secure fair and sustainable funding for councils.

A demand for a £844 million general capital settlement has also been requested, plus a restoration of the Affordable Housing Supply Programme to £955 million, to maintain, repair, expand and secure the future of Council estates.

COSLA has today launched a lobbying campaign urging the Scottish Government to use the upcoming Scottish Budget to provide councils with the fair, sustainable and multi-year funding needed to protect essential local services.

The campaign – ‘Strong Councils, Strong Communities’ – highlights growing pressures facing local government and the very real consequences of continued underfunding for communities across Scotland. The financial pressures in social care and housing are two key areas COSLA are asking the Scottish Government to specifically address in their upcoming budget.

COSLA warns that without urgent action in January’s Budget, councils will be unable to maintain essential services such as social care, education, housing support, roads, and community safety.

COSLA Resources Spokesperson, Councillor Ricky Bell, said: “Scotland’s councils deliver the services that people rely on every single day — from caring for older and vulnerable people to keeping schools open, streets safe and communities thriving. Councils are facing greater demand than ever and are required to do more with significantly less. This is unsustainable.

“The upcoming Scottish Budget is a pivotal moment. The Scottish Government must deliver a settlement that matches the scale of the challenge. Without fair funding, communities will see services reduced and inequalities deepen, and we will struggle to meet national targets in key areas such as child poverty, housing, and net zero”

This year, councils continue to face rising inflation, increasing demand for services, and the continued impact of workforce pressures across social care and education. COSLA’s analysis shows that even maintaining current services requires substantial additional investment.

As a fair and sustainable overall financial settlement COSLA’s key asks from the campaign include:

  • An immediate £750m investment in social care.
  • Flexibility for councils to make local decisions that respond to community needs.
  • Recognition of local government as an equal partner in delivering national priorities and tackling inequalities.

COSLA President, Councillor Shona Morrison, added: “Councils work tirelessly to deliver for Scotland’s communities, however, continued pressure on resources makes this increasingly challenging.

“This is about safeguarding what matters most, support for the most vulnerable, opportunities for young people, support for families, and safe, thriving communities. We hope the Budget will reflect the vital role Local Government plays in Scotland’s public services.”

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