Holding the line: Scenes from Ukraine's frontlines as ceasefire talks fade
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A member of the White Angel unit of Ukrainian police officers who evacuate people from the frontline towns and villages, accompanies residents during an evacuation, in the frontline town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk region, Ukraine, April 12. REUTERS/Anatolii Stepanov
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Scottish Sun
7 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Six members of Russian spy ring to have ‘too lenient' jail sentences reviewed
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) SIX members of a Russian spy ring are to have their jail sentences reviewed for being too lenient, we can reveal. The Bulgarians — who lived and worked in the UK — plotted sex stings, and targeted Russian dissidents and journalists critical of President Vladimir Putin's war effort against Ukraine. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 7 Russian Spy Vanya Gaberova was sentenced to eight years in jail Credit: Reuters 7 The operations was run out of a Great Yarmouth guesthouse Credit: PA The ring included lab worker Katrin Ivanova, 33, and beauty shop owner Vanya Gaberova, 30 — dubbed 'killer sexy brunettes' by cell leaders. Ivanova got nine years and eight months and Gaberova eight years. They were both found guilty in March of breaching the Official Secrets Act by conspiring to provide information useful to an enemy between August 2020 and February 2023. Ivanova also got a concurrent sentence of 15 months for forged ID documents. read more on russia BRAND OF EVIL Ukrainian PoW released in swap left with 'Glory to Russia' burned on his body All six got a total of more than 50 years last month. The Attorney General's Office has been asked to consider the sentences under the Unduly Lenient Sentence scheme. The ULS scheme allows anyone to ask for a Crown Court sentence to be assessed by the Attorney General's office if they think it is too lenient. Law officers have 28 days from sentencing to make a decision. 7 Katrin Ivanova was sentenced to nine years and eight months Credit: Central News 7 Orlin Roussev ran the spy ring Credit: PA 7 Ivan Iliev Stoyanov was convicted of carrying out surveillance for Putin 7 Tihomir Ivanov Ivanchev was also jailed for his part in the spy ring Credit: PA 7 Biser Dzhambazov was convicted as part of the ring Credit: PA Unlock even more award-winning articles as The Sun launches brand new membership programme - Sun Club.
Edinburgh Reporter
9 hours ago
- Edinburgh Reporter
Lessons must be learned after publication of Day report
Lessons 'must be learned' after the publication of a report spelling out the council's handling of sexual harassment allegations against former leader Cammy Day, according to city councillors. The report found that Edinburgh council needed to improve its safeguarding measures, and that a 'prevalent' culture of hospitality needed to be looked at by the council. But it found that council officers had acted appropriately in handling complaints made to them. It also said that people who had complained about the behaviour of the former council leader experienced a 'significant perceived power imbalance' when making complaints about him. Council leader Jane Meagher said the report was 'largely reassuring' – but that recommendations made in the report needed to be carried out 'swiftly and comprehensively'. Kevin Dunion, former chair of the Standards Commission for Scotland, carried out the third party investigation that resulted in the report, which itself was commissioned by the council. Mr Dunion's investigation came after recent and historic complaints about alleged sexual harassment by former Labour council leader Cammy Day came to light. Councillor Day resigned in December 2024 soon after the first allegations were published in the press, and he was suspended from the Labour Party soon after. Multiple Ukrainian refugees said Cllr Day had sent them unsolicited images and messages on social media, even after being asked to stop. In one historic incident, which took place in 2010 and was reported in 2018, a then 15-year-old boy said he was sexually harassed online by Cllr Day. Since his resignation, a police investigation into his behaviour has found no evidence of criminality, with the former leader claiming he is the target of a political witch hunt. SNP group leader, Councillor Simita Kumar, said: 'It is imperative that lessons must be learned. 'A common thread throughout this report is that staff and complainants felt unable – or unwilling – to raise concerns due to the power and influence of the accused. 'We must establish better systems to support and protect those who come forward or the risk of abuse by those in positions of authority will persist.' Mr Dunion's report found that leaks of information about alleged leaks by councillors had impeded the city's whistleblowing process. Councillor Ed Thornley, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, said: 'I want to thank Kevin Dunion for his report and the work that's gone into it. He's highlighted several issues with the way the Council's processes aren't working correctly and the gaps in them. 'It's clear reading the report that where Council officers have been aware and informed, they acted appropriately and gave sound advice in line with the agreed processes. That is not the case for councillors. 'The two leaks of confidential information by councillors seriously undermine the integrity of the systems in place, and call into question the judgement of the individuals responsible. 'Such leaks represent a deliberate and blatant breach of the Councillors' Code of Conduct. The Lib Dem group will consider Mr Dunion's recommendations thoroughly over the coming days.' Edinburgh Council's leader, Labour councillor Jane Meagher said: 'I want to thank Mr Dunion for leading this review, and for his report. 'While I'm largely reassured by Mr Dunion's findings about how recent complaints have been handled by officers, clearly, there are elements of this report which are of serious concern to us as elected members and we must act on his recommendations swiftly and comprehensively. I have already taken practical steps to begin to change the culture in the City Chambers. 'Our priority must be to nurture positive working relationships throughout the Council where colleagues feel able to speak up if something isn't right, they know and trust the channels open to them and they feel safe and supported in doing so. 'I'm fully committed to taking Mr Dunion's recommendations forward and, subject to approval by councillors next Thursday, look forward to agreeing concrete actions when officers bring a further report back in August outlining our proposed actions in response to Mr Dunion's recommendations.' Independent councillor Ross McKenzie, who was part of the Labour group until 2023, said: 'It's now up to the Labour Party to decide whether they are comfortable with Cammy Day being a Labour councillor. 'The report contains details of an extraordinarily serious allegation made in 2018 and a pattern of sexual harassment allegations since. 'If Labour are serious about safeguarding then they will have conducted an exhaustive investigation into all of these allegations.' By Joseph Sullivan Local Democracy Reporter Like this: Like Related
STV News
12 hours ago
- STV News
Handling of complaint against council leader had ‘inadequacies'
There were 'inadequacies' in the City of Edinburgh council's handling of complaints against former leader Cammy Day, an investigation has found. Day stepped down as the leader of the local authority in December 2024 after two years in the position following allegations that he sent messages asking about refugees' sexual preferences on a dating app. He resigned following a story in the Sunday Mail and said he would co-operate with a police investigation. In April, police concluded that there was 'no evidence of criminality'. Following that investigation, the council asked the former information commissioner Kevin Dunion to independently review how the complaints made against Day were handled. In his report, Mr Dunion was asked to evaluate the way a potential complaint about Day from 2006 was handled, alongside of one made last October, and two made at the end of 2023. Mr Dunion found no evidence of the potential complaint from 2006 – before Day was a councillor. However, he concluded that were 'some inadequacies' in the handling of the complaint from 2018. The complaint from 2018 was anonymously sent directly to then council leader, Adam Nols-McVey, claiming that a 'senior Labour councillor' had 'groomed' a 15-year-old boy. A social media post on X earlier this year named Day as the alleged 'senior Labour councillor' in question. The report found the complaint from 2018 was apparently forwarded to the council business manager to handle. Emails relating to the complaint have since been lost. Mr Dunion said there could be multiple explanations for that, including migration to a new email system, laptop upgrades, or deliberate deletion. However, he concluded that the loss of related emails was an 'unintended and unexpected consequence' of the information not being shared. Mr Dunion said the seriousness of the claim should have triggered the former council leader to share it with the council's chief executive and senior monitoring official instead of just the business manager. More importantly, Mr Dunion said the council still lacks sufficient safeguards to prevent this type of incident in the future. Regarding the most recent complaints about Day from 2023, which claimed he had sent 'unsolicited messages' to Ukrainian refugees, Mr Dunion said the complaints were handled properly and in line with the council's policies. He concluded, overall, that complaints were for the most part handled properly and that the policies and procedures in place are broadly effective. Four months after resigning, Day said he was not interviewed by police and described the situation as a 'co-ordinated political attack'. He previously said he sought legal action and attributed the allegations to SNP figures. Edinburgh City Council chief executive Paul Lawrence said: 'I want to thank Kevin Dunion for leading this sensitive review and for his report, not least given the complexity of the brief and tight timescales. 'I know this must have been challenging and a difficult experience for many people and I particularly want to thank those who came forward to be interviewed or provided information to the review. Your input is very much appreciated. 'Subject to approval by councillors next Thursday, we will bring a further report back to the Policy and Sustainability Committee in August, outlining our proposed actions in response to Mr Dunion's recommendations.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
