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2023 in Scotland

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Events from the year 2023 in Scotland.

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Incumbents

Events

January

February

  • 9 February – The Scottish Prison Service concludes its review of accommodating transgender prisoners, and recommends that transgender prisoners initially be accommodated according to their sex at birth while an individual assessment is carried out.[12]
  • 10 February – Following a legal challenge by lap dance performers and club owners, a ban on lap dancing clubs in Edinburgh, scheduled to come into force in April, is overturned by Edinburgh's Court of Session after it finds Edinburgh City Council acted illegally by voting to limit the number of sexual entertainment venues in the city from four to zero.[13]
  • 15 February – Nicola Sturgeon announces her resignation as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party after eight years in the role; she will stay on until her successor has been elected.[14]
  • 16 February – Deputy First Minister John Swinney rules himself out of the SNP leadership contest.[15]
  • 17 February – The Royal College of Nursing recommends its members accept a new pay offer of 6.5%. The offer from the Scottish Government also includes changes to conditions.[16]
  • 19 February
    • Scottish Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former Minister for Community Safety Ash Regan become the first two candidates to announce they will stand in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[17] Keith Brown, the SNP's depute leader, Neil Gray, the Minister for International Development, and Màiri McAllan, the Environment Minister, all rule themselves out of the contest.[18]
    • In a speech to the Scottish Labour Party conference in Edinburgh, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer rules out a deal with the SNP "under any circumstances", and warns against complacency following the departure of Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and First Minister.[19]
  • 20 February – Finance Secretary Kate Forbes announces she is running in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[20]
  • 21 February
    • Kate Forbes insists her campaign to become the next SNP leader has not been derailed after she lost the support of several colleagues following comments about same-sex marriage and having children outside marriage, both of which she is opposed to as a member of the Free Church of Scotland.[21]
    • MSPs vote 68–57 to approve the Scottish Government's budget for the 2023–24 financial year, which includes a tax rise for everyone in Scotland earning more than £43,662.[22]
  • 23 February – Sir Iain Livingstone announces he will retire as Chief Constable of Police Scotland in the summer after five years in the post.[23]
  • 24 February
    • Nominations close for the SNP leadership election, with Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf having all reached the threshold of supporters to go forward into the contest.[24]
    • Two crew died after tugboat capsized & sank close to Greenock harbour.[25][26]
  • 25 February – Members of the Scottish Secondary Teachers' Association (SSTA) vote to accept a new pay offer from the Scottish Government, and announce they have suspended strike action scheduled for the following week.[27]
  • 28 February – Transgender rapist Isla Bryson is sentenced to eight years in prison with a further three years supervision.[28]

March

  • 1 March – Statistics released by the Scottish Government indicate Scotland's economy grew by 0.1% during the three months from October–December 2022.[29]
  • 2 March – Minister for Transport Jenny Gilruth announces plans to nationalise the overnight Caledonian Sleeper train service that links London with several locations in Scotland, taking effect from 25 June.[30]
  • 3 March
  • 6 March – BBC News reports that the Scottish Prison Service is to be investigated for corporate manslaughter over the death of Allan Marshall, a prisoner at HMP Edinburgh, who died after being restrained by 13 prison officers in 2015.[33]
  • 7 March – STV hosts the first televised debate of the Scottish National Party leadership election.[34]
  • 10 March – Members of Scotland's largest teaching union, the Educational Institute of Scotland, vote to accept a pay deal from the Scottish Government that will end ongoing strikes in schools.[35]
  • 13 March – Voting opens in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[36]
  • 14 March
    • Members of the NASUWT narrowly vote to accept a pay offer, ending the prospect of further strike action in schools in Scotland.[37]
    • BBC Scotland hosts the final televised debate of the SNP leadership election.[38]
  • 16 March – Scientists identify a gene variant that is known to increases the risk of breast and ovarian cancer, and trace it to people with Orkney Island heritage, more specifically those with ancestry on the island of Westray.[39]
  • 18 March – Peter Murrell resigns as chief executive of the Scottish National Party amid a row over party membership.[40] Mike Russell succeeds him as interim chief executive.[41]
  • 21 March – At 8pm, Times Radio airs a leadership debate from Edinburgh and featuring the three candidates in the Scottish National Party leadership election.[42]
  • 22 March
    • First Minister Nicola Sturgeon issues a "sincere, heartfelt and unreserved" apology to people affected by the practice of forced adoption in Scotland during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s.[43]
    • A major incident is declared, with 35 injuries reported, after the 76m-long RV Petrel research vessel tips over at a dock in Leith.[44]
  • 23 March
  • 24 March – Research led by the University of Edinburgh suggests one in 50 people in Scotland have had lasting ill-effects after contracting COVID-19.[47]
  • 25 March – HIV Scotland announces it will close due to issues with governance and financials.[48]
  • 27 March – Humza Yousaf is elected as the Leader of the Scottish National Party and subsequently, First Minister of Scotland. He is the youngest holder of the position in history at just 37 years of age upon entry to office, the first from an ethnic minority background, the first Muslim to hold the office and the first First Minister with facial hair.[2]
  • 28 March
  • 29 March – Humza Yousaf is sworn in as Scotland's First Minister at Edinburgh's Court of Session and begins naming his Cabinet.[51]
  • 30 March

April

  • 2 April – Stand-up comedian Janey Godley wins the inaugural Billy Connolly Spirit of Glasgow Award at the Glasgow International Comedy Festival.[54]
  • 4 April – Data produced by Public Health Scotland indicated that one in three people referred with urgent suspicion of cancer are waiting longer than the target date of 62 days.[55]
  • 5 April – Police arrest former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell as part of their investigation into the party's finances, but release him without charge pending further investigation.[56]
  • 6 April – Following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh, Kashif Anwar is convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife, Fawziyah Javed, who he pushed from a rocky outcrop on Arthur's Seat, during a holiday in Edinburgh in September 2021. He is sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 20 years.[57]
  • 7 April
    • BBC News reports that Johnston Carmichael, the accountants who audit the SNP's accounts, have resigned from the role, citing a their decision to do so as having been taken following a review of their clients.[58]
    • The Unite union announces that around 1,300 offshore workers are to stage a 48-hour strike from 24 April over pa, affecting production at dozens of oil and gas platforms.[59]
    • Around 100 workers at Rosyth Dockyard belonging to Unite have voted to strike between 17 April and 10 July in a disagreement with their employers over pay.[60]
  • 8 April – SNP president Mike Russell tells The Herald newspaper he does not think Scottish independence can be achieved "right now", and that the party is facing its biggest crisis for 50 years.[61]
  • 12 April
  • 13 April – Representatives from BBC Scotland, STV, Viaplay and the Scottish FA meet to discuss the broadcasting of men's football in Scotland, the rights of which are owned by Viaplay until 2028. The meeting, to discuss showing free-to-air matches, ends without resolution, but is described by Gavin Newlands MP as encouraging.[64]
  • 15 April –
  • 16 April
    • The Sunday Mail publishes leaked video purporting to show Nicola Sturgeon playing down concerns about the SNP's finances.[67]
    • The SNP says that its finances are "in balance" following reports the party is facing a financial crisis.[68]
  • 18 April – SNP treasurer Colin Beattie is arrested and questioned by Police Scotland in connection with their ongoing investigation into the party's finances.[69]
  • 19 April – Colin Beattie resigns as SNP treasurer with immediate effect.[70]
  • 22 April – Police Scotland make several arrests at Ayr Racecourse as the protest group Animal Rising attempts to disrupt the Scottish Grand National by invading the course. The race is temporarily delayed but goes ahead, with the race being won by Kitty's Light.[71] 24 people are subsequently charged in connection with the disruption.[72]
  • 25 April – The Scottish Government introduces the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill, which includes measures to scrap the verdict of not proven and to reduce the number of jurors in Scottish trials from 15 to 12; bringing Scots law in line with England. The bill will also provides for a pilot scheme whereby some rape trials will be held without a jury.[73]
  • 28 April
  • 29 April – The constituency Labour parties of Rutherglen and Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse have written to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to make a formal complaint about the selection process for candidates, after being "inundated" with complaints by local members about a "lack of transparency".[76]

May

  • 1 May – Former US President Donald Trump arrives in Aberdeen to visit his Scottish golf properties.[77]
  • 2 May – The Scottish Government reverses plans to give £46m to colleges and universities, having identified the money as an "essential saving".[78]
  • 3 May – The SNP signs a contract with a new auditor, Manchester-based AMS Accountants Group.[79]
  • 4 May – Deputy First Minister Shona Robison confirms the Scottish Government will go ahead with its pledge to provide free school meals for all primary school pupils in Scotland.[80]
  • 5 May – Junior doctors in Scotland vote to stage a three-day strike over their demand for a 23.5% above inflation pay increase from the Scottish Government.[81]
  • 10 May – UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak urges the Scottish Government to re-think its plans to introduce Highly Protected Marine Areas in Scottish waters, which would restrict fishing and other human activities to preserve the environment.[82]
  • 12 May – The Stand Comedy Club reinstates an Edinburgh Fringe show to be staged by SNP MP Joanna Cherry after previously cancelling it after it said staff were uncomfortable with her views about transgender people.[83]
  • 15 May – Stagecoach Group launches a driverless bus service on the Forth Road Bridge, believed to be the world's first.[84]
  • 16 May – COVID-19 in Scotland: The rules requiring people to wear face masks in Scottish care homes and healthcare settings come to an end after three years.[85]
  • 17 May
  • 20 May – The Annual General Meeting of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland hears that hundreds of churches may have to close as a result of falling numbers of attendees and income.[88]
  • 21 May – Ten people are injured, and two are taken to hospital, after a bus crashes into a bridge in Glasgow and has its roof torn off.[89]
  • 22 May
    • The Scottish Government offers junior doctors in Scotland a 14.5% pay rise.[90]
    • Margaret Ferrier loses her appeal against a proposed 30 day ban from the House of Commons over her breach of COVID-19 rules in September 2020.[91]
  • 24 May
    • Following a hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh, Rhys Bennett is sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 24 years for the rape and murder of Jill Barclay as she walked home in Aberdeen in September 2022.[92]
    • A group of eight former SNP councillors in North Lanarkshire form a new political party, Progressive Change NL, which becomes North Lanarkshire Council's second largest opposition party.[93]
  • 25 May – Responding to the outcome of a review of Police Scotland, its chief constable, Sir Ian Livingstone, says the force is institutionally sexist, racist and discriminatory.[94]
  • 27 May – First Minister Humza Yousaf accuses the UK government of sabotaging a pilot recycling scheme, the Deposit Return Scheme, by excluding glass from the project, glass having been a key part of Scottish proposals for the scheme.[95]
  • 31 May
    • Thomas Henderson, who along with his co-accused, murdered a man during a botched robbery at the deceased man's Dundee flat, is sentenced to life prison ent th a minimum of 18 years.[96]
    • A huge wildfire covering 30 square miles (80 km2), possibly the largest ever seen in the UK, is brought under control by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service at Cannich in the Highlands.[97]

June

July

  • 1 July – First Minister Humza Yousaf announces that the SNP has changed the way it records donations after the issue was highlighted by its auditors. Having previously only kept online records of donations under £250, the party will now keep documented records of the donations.[118]
  • 2 July – During an appearance on BBC Radio Scotland's The Sunday Show, Conservative MSP Jamie Greene alleges that he lost his post in the Shadow Cabinet of Douglas Ross for supporting the Scottish Government's controversial Gender Recognition Reform Bill.[119]
  • 3 July
  • 5 July
  • 6 July
    • The Scottish and UK governments confirm plans to collaborate on new legislation to prevent landlords excluding parents and people on benefits from renting properties.[125]
    • The 2023 Tiree Music Festival is cancelled a day before events are due to begin due to "extreme weather".[126]
  • 7 July
    • The Scottish Government urges Westminster to decriminalise the personal possession of all illegal drugs, and puts forward a number of proposals for the managed use of drugs.[127]
    • BMA Scotland calls off a planned strike by junior doctors in Scotland while it consults its members on a revised 12.4% pay offer for 2023–24.[128]
  • 8 July – The Union Chain Bridge, which spans the River Tweed, linking England and Scotland, is named as an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.[129]
  • 10 July – Bus operator First Glasgow announces it is withdrawing all of its night-time services from Glasgow, doing so from 31 July.[130]
  • 11 July – Following his trial and conviction at Glasgow High Court, Logan Doig is sentenced to a twelve and a half year extended sentence for the rape and sexual assault of four women, and the sexual assault of a fifth. He must serve at least nine and a half years in custody and is placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.[131] Doig's victims subsequently meet with Dorothy Bain, the Lord Advocate, to argue for a change in the way victims of sex crimes are treated in court.[132]
  • 12 July – Glasgow's Burrell Collection is named the 2023 Art Fund Museum of the Year.[133]
  • 13 July
    • Patients are evacuated from two wards at Paisley's Royal Alexandra Hospital after Legionella bacteria is found in the water supply.[134]
    • Emails regarding the arrest of Peter Murrell are released and show that the Scottish Government was informed of the arrest shortly after it occurred.[135]
  • 14 July – Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC orders a review of how diversion from prosecution (referring an offender to social services rather than prosecuting them) is used in sex crime cases.[136]
  • 15 July – Six members of the environmental protest group, Climate Camp Scotland, are arrested after the group occupies the Ineos gas power station at Grangemouth oil refinery.[137]
  • 16 July – A pod of 55 pilot whales dies after becoming stranded at Traigh Mhor beach at North Tolsta on the Isle of Lewis.[138]
  • 19 July – Police launch an operation to remove climate change protestors from Grangemouth Refinery, making 11 arrests.[139]
  • 21 July – Police Scotland confirms that climate change protestors have ended their demonstrations at two oil refineries at Grangemouth and Clydebank.[140]
  • 22 July – Four climate change protestors are arrested at Grangemouth after chaining themselves to an old washing machine.[141]
  • 25 July
    • Following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow, Connor Gibson, 20, is found guilty of the sexual assault and murder of his 16-year-old sister, Amber Gibson, in November 2021. Stephen Corrigan, unknown to the siblings, is convicted of concealing the body.[142]
    • The Scottish Government approves a £500m plan to expand Argyll's Hollow Mountain underground power station.[143]
  • 26 July – The Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry begins, with its opening hearing taking place in Dundee.[144]
  • 27 July – First Minister Humza Yousaf unveils a new Scottish Government paper on independence that includes plans for Scottish citizenship and passports.[145]
  • 28 July – Glasgow Life confirms it has cancelled the 2023 Bonfire Night event usually held on Glasgow Green and has no plans to hold any similar events in future.[146]
  • 29 July – Laura Mackenzie, whose offer of a job with Police Scotland was withdrawn when it emerged she had been prescribed antidepressants, launches legal action against the force. The offer was withdrawn after her medical history came to light during a health examination prior to starting the job, and because Police Scotland requires any recruits to be clear of antidepressant medication for at least two years.[147]
  • 31 July

August

  • 1 August
    • The UK's first permanent drone delivery service begins, with Royal Mail and Skyports establishing a daily inter-island mail distribution between three islands on Orkney.[151][152]
    • An investigation into NHS Lanarkshire by the Information Commissioner's Office finds that staff shared the personal details of patients through an unauthorised WhatsApp group on 500 occasions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Staff were allowed to communicate through WhatsApp during the pandemic, but it was never authorised for communicating patient details, and the health board has apologised.[153]
    • Climate change protestors from This Is Rigged throw paint over the entrance to the Scottish Parliament Building in response to the previous day's announcement of several new North Sea Oil contracts.[154]
  • 2 August
    • Edinburgh Sheriff Court rules that US citizen Nicholas Rossi, who faked his own death in 2020, can be extradited to Utah, where he is wanted on rape charges.[155]
    • Robin Harper, who in 1999 became the first Green parliamentarian after he was elected to the Scottish Parliament, resigns his life membership of the Scottish Greens claiming the party has "lost the plot".[156]
  • 4 August –
  • 6 August – Five people are arrested when protestors interrupt the Men's Elite Road Race at Falkirk. The environmental protest group This Is Rigged claims responsibility.[159]
  • 7 August –
    • Police Scotland confirms that the bodies of three hillwalkers have been found after they failed to return from a trip to Aonach Eagach Ridge in Glen Coe two days earlier.[160]
    • Education staff at ten local authorities who belong to the Unite union vote to take rolling industrial action after rejecting a pay offer from the Scottish Government.[161]
  • 8 August – Jamie Starrs is sentenced to ten and a half years in prison for the rape of Amber Gibson in June 2021, five months before she was murdered by her brother.[162]
  • 9 August – The names of several thousand people adopted as children going back 100 years are removed from the ScotlandsPeople website amid concerns over privacy and safety.[163]
  • 10 August – Social Security Scotland issues an apology over a staff quiz that included pictures of child killers. The Friday Fun Quiz asked staff to identify people called Ian from images, and includes pictures of Ian Brady and Ian Huntley.[164]
  • 11 August – At the High Court in Stirling, James White, the leader of one of Scotland's largest organised crime gangs who was extradited from Brazil to face trial, is sentenced to ten years in prison for series organised crime and firearms offences.[165]
  • 12 August – Police Scotland announces plans to cut civilian staff and freeze recruitment in order to maintain officer numbers.[166]
  • 14 August – Police are investigating the deaths of two 18-year-olds who attended an event at Glasgow's SWG3 venue.[167]
  • 16 August – Junior doctors in Scotland have voted to accept a pay offer from the Scottish Government worth 4.5% for 2022–23 and 12.4% for 2023–24.[168]
  • 17 August –
    • GMB Scotland announces that non-teaching staff in ten Scottish council areas will stage two days of strike action on 13 and 14 September.[169]
    • The Scottish Parliament plays host to Comedy Unleashed, starring Father Ted creator Graham Linehan, after the show is cancelled by two venues in Edinburgh.[170]
    • Carnbooth House, a listed building and former hotel in Glasgow, is destroyed by fire.[171]
  • 22 August – Broadcaster Nicky Campbell gives evidence to the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, where he alleges that a teacher who worked at two Edinburgh schools abused children on a "Savile scale".[172]
  • 23 August – Murray Foote is appointed as the SNP's new chief executive, replacing Peter Murrell.[173]
  • 25 August –
    • Alexander McKellar, who killed a cyclist on a remote road in the Scottish Highlands while drink driving in September 2017 and then hid the body, is sentenced to 12 years in prison.[174]
    • Members of Unison in 24 of Scotland's 32 council areas vote to take industrial action after rejecting a 5.5% pay offer.[175]
  • 26 August – A search for the Loch Ness Monster, described as the largest in 50 years, gets underway both in the vicinity of Loch Ness itself, and through an online stream of the loch.[176] A group of people looking for the creature subsequently claim to have heard sounds, but fail to record anything.[177]
  • 27 August – A large fire destroys Clune Park Primary School in Port Glasgow.[178]
  • 28 August –
  • 29 August – Data released by National Records of Scotland indicate there were 1,276 alcohol-related deaths in Scotland during 2022, a rise on the previous year, with figures at a 14-year high.[181]
  • 31 August – The first case of a new COVID-19 variant, BA.2.86, is detected in Scotland.[182]

September

  • 1 September – Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth confirms that Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) has been found in 35 of Scotland's council-run schools after the roof of privately run Queen Victoria School in Dunblane had to be secured. The announcement follows revelations about the discovery of the concrete in schools in England, where more than 100 have been told to close affected buildings while repair work is carried out.[183]
  • 3 September – Neil Gray, Scotland's Wellbeing and Economy Secretary, says there is no immediate risk to schools in Scotland from defective concrete.[184]
  • 4 September – Connor Gibson is sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 22 years for the sexual assault and murder of his sister, Amber Gibson, in November 2021.[185]
  • 5 September –
    • First Minister Humza Yousaf outlines the programme for government legislation for the year ahead, including improvements to childcare, an extra £1bn for social security and pay improvements for social care staff.[186] There are also plans to ban disposable vapes over environmental concerns.[187]
    • Former SNP MP Natalie McGarry is ordered to pay £66 for embezzling £25,000 from the SNP and a pro-independence group.[188]
  • 6 September – Nicola Sturgeon makes her first speech in the Scottish Parliament following her arrest in June.[189]
  • 7 September – Network Rail admits responsibility for a series of failings that led to the deaths of three people as a result of the Stonehaven derailment in August 2020.[190]
  • 8 September – Network Rail is fined £6.7m after admitting a series of failings that led to the Stonehaven train crash.[191]
  • 10 September – As the newly discovered BA.2.86 COVID-19 variant (known unofficially as Pirola) continues to spread, Professor Rowland Kao, an infections expert from the University of Edinburgh, calls for lateral flow COVID tests to be made freely available again.[192]
  • 13 September – Alister Jack, the Secretary of State for Scotland, confirms the UK government will not block Scottish Government plans for a drug consumption room pilot scheme in Scotland.[193]
  • 19 September – The Scottish Government begins its legal challenge against Westminster over the UK government's decision to block the controversial Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill.[194][195]
  • 20 September – Elena Whitham, the Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy, announces plans to launch a consultation on raising the minimum price of alcohol in Scotland to 65p a unit.[196]
  • 21 September – Hunter Street Health Centre in the East End of Glasgow is earmarked as the site of the UK's first legal drugs consumption centre.[197]
  • 26 September – Data released by National Records of Scotland indicates life expectancy in Scotland has fallen for the third consecutive year, with the average age now 76.5 years for men and 80.7 years for women; the decrease from 2022 is three weeks for men and six weeks for women.[198]
  • 27 September – Glasgow's Integration Joint Board approves the UK's first official drugs consumption room for illegal drugs.[199]
  • 28 September – Following a trial at the High Court in Stirling, Christopher McGowan, 28, is found guilty of the murder of Claire Inglis, his girlfriend who he battered and strangled, before burning her with a lighter and pushing a wet wipe down her throat.[200]
  • 29 September –

October

  • 1 October – Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announces £20m of levelling up funding to help regenerate seven Scottish towns that are described as having been overlooked.[204]
  • 2 October – ScotRail begins a six months trial during which peak time train fares are scrapped.[205]
  • 3 October – Aberdeen City Council says that reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) is likely to have been used in hundreds of properties in the city.[206]
  • 4 October – Police Scotland pays £60,000 compensation to four traffic officers told to shave off their beards before the force implemented its delayed proposals for a clean shaven policy.[207]
  • 5 October – Labour's Michael Shanks wins the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election.[208]
  • 6 October – Police Scotland scraps plans to recruit an extra 200 officers in January 2024 as it attempts to save costs following a projected overspend of £19m.[209]
  • 7 October –
    • The Met Office issues an amber weather alert for heavy rain in Scotland, while roads and train services are disrupted by flooding.[210]
    • Ten people are airlifted to safety after heavy rain causes landslides on two roads in Argyll.[211]
  • 9 October –
  • 10 October – After making contact with his parents-in-law in Gaza, Humza Yousaf calls for a humanitarian corridor to be established.[215]
  • 11 October –
    • Sean Hogg, who was given a 270-hour community order after being found guilty of twice raping a 13-year-old girl when he was 17, has the conviction quashed on appeal after prosecutors admit making mistakes during the original trial.[216]
    • Police are investigating fresh revelations about the Bible John killings after a podcast, Bible John: Portrait of the Serial Killer, alleged a cover up by police at the time, and that the perpetrator could be John Irvine McInnes, the cousin of a senior police officer.[217]
  • 12 October –
  • 13 October – After sharing a video of his mother-in-law, Elizabeth El-Nakla, describing the situation in Gaza, First Minister Humza Yousaf says that Israel is "going too far" and that innocent civilians can not simply be "collateral damage".[221]
  • 14 October –
    • Scottish Green MSP Maggie Chapman says she regrets the "upset and anger" caused by her social media post in which she described the Hamas attack on Israel as "decolonisation" rather than "terrorism". She has since deleted the post.[222]
    • Former SNP MP Lisa Cameron claims she and her family have had to go into hiding since she switched to the Conservatives after receiving threats of violence.[223]
  • 15 October – First Minister Humza Yousaf signals a change in his party's Scottish independence strategy, now saying that an SNP win in a majority of Scotland's Westminster seats would give the party a mandate to begin independence negotiations with the Westminster Government.[224]
  • 17 October –
    • Humza Yousaf announces a freeze on council tax for Scottish households during his closing speech at the SNP Party Conference.[225]
    • French authorities increase security for a football match between Scotland and France in Lille following a terrorist incident in Brussels the previous evening that resulted in the deaths of two football fans.[226]
  • 18 October –
    • The Met Office issues a red weather warning for Scotland ahead of the arrival of Storm Babet, which is expected to bring heavy rain and flooding.[227]
    • Following a trial at the High Court in Edinburgh, Andrew Miller, also known as Amy George, is sentenced to 20 years in prison after he was convicted of abducting a 13-year-old girl and subjecting her to a series of sexual assaults while holding her captive.[228]
  • 24 October –
    • Data from National Records of Scotland indicates there were 24,427 deaths in Scotland between December 2022 and March 2023, 11% higher than the previous year, and the highest number since the winter of 1989–90.[229]
    • Jason Grant, who was hired as Scotland's first period dignity officer in 2022 but then lost the post after it was discontinued amid controversy over the appointment of a male, has settled with his employers out of court for a case of sex discrimination.[230]
  • 24 October – Anas Sarwar, the leader of Scottish Labour, accuses Israel of a "clear breach" of international law in Gaza and says there is "no justification for the withholding of essential supplies" from the people of Gaza. His comments come after a number of Scottish Labour resignations by officials who disagree with Keir Starmer's stance on the conflict.[231]
  • 25 October – Christopher McGowan is sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum term of 23 years for the murder of his girlfriend of eight weeks, Claire Inglis, which took place after he was bailed to her address.[232]
  • 26 October –
  • 27 October – Former Health Secretary Alex Neil calls for an urgent review of the use of WhatsApp by government following revelations that National Clinical Director Jason Leitch deleted messages on a daily basis during the pandemic; he also says that many government ministers did not understand the rules for using the app.[236]
  • 28 October – Ash Regan, who stood as a candidate in the 2023 SNP leadership election, defects to the Alba Party after becoming disillusioned with what she describes as the SNP's "wavering commitment" to Scottish independence.[237]
  • 29 October –
    • First Minister Humza Yousaf says he has made contact with his in-laws trapped in Gaza for the first time since a communications blackout two days earlier.[238]
    • The Sunday Mail reports that WhatsApp messages relating to the COVID-19 pandemic sent by First Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, were manually deleted from her phone.[239]
  • 30 October – First Minister Humza Yousaf says that allegations he deleted WhatsApp messages relating to the COVID-19 pandemic are "certainly not true".[240]
  • 31 October – Scotland's Deputy First Minister, Shona Robison, confirms that Scottish Government will hand 14,000 electronic messages relating to the pandemic to the UK COVID-19 Inquiry.[241]

November

  • 1 November – Non-teaching staff belonging to the UNISON union at schools in Dundee City, Stirling, Clackmannanshire, Angus and Perth and Kinross announce strikes in the areas on 15 November.[242]
  • 2 November – The City of Edinburgh Council declares a housing emergency, citing the high number of homeless people in the city coupled with a shortage of social housing and high private renting costs.[243]
  • 3 November –
    • First Minister Humza Yousaf confirms his in-laws have crossed the border from Gaza into Egypt.[244]
    • The Unison trade union suspends further school strikes in Scotland after receiving a revised pay offer from the Scottish Government, which will be put to its members in a ballot.[245]
    • Fiona, a sheep believed to have been stranded on the banks of the Moray Firth for two years, is rescued.[246]
  • 4 November – Pro-Palestinian protestors occupy two of Scotland's major railway stations, Edinburgh Waverley and Glasgow Central, during another day of protests as the war in Gaza continues.[247]
  • 5 November –
    • Eight police officers are injured following Bonfire Night clashes with youths during which fireworks and petrol bombs are thrown; the most serious incident takes place in the Niddrie area of Edinburgh, where 50 youths clash with police.[248] Two people are subsequently arrested over the Niddrie incident.[249]
    • Humza Yousaf's parents in-laws return to Scotland.[250]
  • 7 November – Scottish ministers say they will not comply with UK government legislation to enforce a 40% minimum service during strike action, with Neil Gray, the Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy, describing the plans, outlined in the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act, as "appalling".[251]
  • 9 November – First Minister Humza Yousaf defends £11,000 worth of roaming charges accrued Health Secretary Michael Matheson as he used his parliamentary iPad during a holiday to Morocco as a "legitimate parliamentary expense". Matheson has blamed the charges on an "outdated sim card".[252]
  • 10 November –
    • Around 500 employees of Scottish Water belonging to the GMB, Unite and Unison trade unions, begin a four-day strike over a pay dispute.[253]
    • Scotland's Health Secretary, Michael Matheson, agrees to pay back the £11,000 of roaming charges he built up while using his iPad during a holiday in Morocco.[254]
  • 11 November – Edinburgh will become the first city in Scotland to make pavement parking illegal, starting in January 2024.[255]
  • 12 November – NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Scotland's largest health board, is named in a corporate homicide investigation following the deaths of four patients at a Glasgow hospital.[256]
  • 14 November –
  • 16 November – In a statement to the Scottish Parliament, Health Secretary Michael Matheson admits the cause of his £11,000 roaming charges bill came from his sons watching football on his parliamentary iPad while the family was on holiday in Morocco. Matheson confirms he has repaid the money and referred himself to the parliamentary watchdog.[259]
  • 17 November –
  • 22 November –
    • Petroineos announces to repurpose Grangemouth oil refinery, Scotland's only oil refinery, as a fuels import terminal with the loss of 400 jobs.[262]
    • The McDonald's fast food outlet in Fort William says it has had to ban under 18s from the premises after 6.00pm because of verbal abuse targeted at its staff.[263]
  • 23 November – The Scottish Parliament Corporate Body confirms it has launched an investigation into Health Secretary Michael Matheson's £11,000 data roaming bill.[264]
  • 24 November –
    • Former First Minister Alex Salmond launches a fresh legal case against the Scottish Government over its mishandling of harassment allegations against him.[265]
    • Universities Scotland adopts a new policy that requires potential students offered a place at a university in Scotland to declare any charges for violent offences.[266]
  • 25 November –
    • A police officer is taken to hospital after a civil disturbance breaks out in the East Ayrshire village of Auchinleck.[267]
    • Stella Maris, the newly elected rector of St Andrews University, faces calls from students to apologise or resign after she said in an email that Palestinians had suffered "apartheid, siege, illegal occupation and collective punishment" during the Israel-Gaza war.[268]
  • 28 November – The Scottish Government publish a consultation for a new heating bill that will see the phasing out of gas boilers in Scotland, but the original start date of 2025 is expected to be delayed by three years.[269]

December

  • 1 December – Michael Russell steps down as chairman of the Scottish National Party as he bids to become chairman of the Scottish Land Commission.[270]
  • 5 December – The Scottish Prison Service issues new guidelines on transgender prisoners. Trans women who have hurt or threatened women or girls will not be sent to a female prison unless there are "exceptional" circumstances.[271]
  • 6 December – The Court of Session in Edinburgh rejects a bid by the Scottish Government to prevent the publication of details of an inquiry into whether former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon broke the ministerial code over a meeting with Alex Salmond's aide in the aftermath of allegations against Salmon in 2021.[272]
  • 7 December – Conservative councillor Wendy Agnew resigns as chair of Aberdeenshire Council's Kincardine and Mearns area committee following comments made about gypsies during a council meeting in November. Agnew is also being investigated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner following a complaint about the comments.[273]
  • 8 December – The Court of Session in Edinburgh rules that the UK government acted lawfully by blocking the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from becoming law, and rejects the Scottish Government's appeal against the decision.[274]
  • 9 December – An earthquake measuring 2.1 magnitude is felt in parts of the Scottish Highlands.[275]
  • 10 December – Foreign Secretary David Cameron threatens to withdraw co-operation with Scottish ministers following a meeting between Humza Yousaf, the First Minister of Scotland, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference, which took place without the presence of a UK official and was consequently a breach of protocol.[276] In response, Yousaf calls the threat "petty" and "misguided".[277]
  • 11 December –
  • 12 December –
  • 13 December – Nuns Sister Sarah McDermott, 79, and Sister Eileen Igoe, 79, and carer Margaret Hughes, 76, are convicted of mistreating children at Smyllum Park, an orphanage in Lanark, from 1969 until its closure in 1981.[282]
  • 14 December –
    • Robert O'Brien, aged 45, Andrew Kelly, 44, and Donna Marie Brand, also aged 44, are convicted of the 1996 murder of Caroline Glachan following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow. All three were teenagers at the time the crime was committed.[283]
    • US citizen Nicholas Rossi, wanted in Utah on rape charges, loses his appeal against extradition from the UK.[284]
    • The Scottish Government confirms it will delay plans to set up a National Care Service by three years, moving it back from 2026 to 2029.[285]
  • 15 December – The Met Office issues an amber weather alert ahead of an expected month's worth of rain on 17 December affecting the Highlands and northern Argyll.[286]
  • 17 December – The UK's first spaceport for vertical rocket launches is granted planning approval by the Civil Aviation Authority. Full orbital launches from the site, on the remote Scottish island of Unst, are expected to commence from 2025.[287][288]
  • 19 December – Finance Secretary Shona Robison presents the Scottish Government's budget for 2024–25. Measures announced include a new 45% tax rate for people earning between £75,000 and £125,140, and a rise in the top rate of tax, paid by those earning over £125,000, from 47% to 48%. The £43,663 tax threshold is also frozen for the year.[289]
  • 20 December –
  • 22 December – A 78-year-old man has been charged in connection with the death of Marion Hodge of Lockerbie, who was last seen in 1984.[294]
  • 23 December – Multiple warnings for severe weather are issued for the north and west of Scotland following overnight snowfall.[295]
  • 24 December –
    • Humza Yousaf delivers his first Christmas message as first minister, using the address to pay tribute to volunteers and frontline workers.[296]
    • A fleece from the world's first cloned mammal, Dolly the Sheep, is donated to National Museum Scotland.[297]
  • 26 December – A yellow weather warning is issued for heavy rain and high winds ahead of the arrival of Storm Gerrit, expected to cause disruption the following day.[298]
  • 27 December – Storm Gerrit brings widespread disruption to Scotland, with heavy rain, snow and high winds affecting much of the country.[299]
  • 28 December –
    • Around 3,000 properties remain without power following Storm Gerrit.[300]
    • BMA Scotland, the Scottish branch of the British Medical Association, expresses its concerns about staffing levels in the NHS in Scotland, which it says is "dangerously low".[301]
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