Ulster University academic Deirdre Heenan looks set to enter race for Irish presidency
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The National
4 hours ago
- The National
Alba MSP welcomes SNP adopting her policy at Donald Trump meeting
The Alba group leader at Holyrood first proposed the creation of pre-clearance facilities at Edinburgh Airport in December 2024. Several Irish and Canadian cities have such facilities on site, which allow passengers travelling to the US to go through customs and immigration before boarding the plane. Regan said that creating similar facilities at Edinburgh could give the city's airport 'a competitive advantage'. 'We can see the benefits of pre-clearance when we look at Dublin airport,' she added. 'Scotland has been constantly growing our direct American connectivity over the previous years and this would be a great opportunity to further boost links between both countries.' On Tuesday, First Minister John Swinney met with US president Donald Trump ahead of the opening of his new course at Menie links in Aberdeenshire. In a read-out of the meeting provided by the Scottish Government afterwards, it was revealed that Swinney had raised the Alba proposal directly with the president. It said: 'Mr Swinney also presented the President with a proposal to provide Edinburgh Airport with US Customs pre-clearance facilities which the First Minister said would help 'demonstrate the strength of America's enduring relationship with its friend and partner, Scotland'.' John Swinney pictured walking with aides at Donald Trump's Aberdeenshire course (Image: Colin Mearns/NQ) On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Regan said that she welcomed the news that the SNP leader was 'listening to her proposals and enacting them'. The spokesperson further pointed to the Budget deal which Regan and the [[SNP]] Government struck in January 2025, saying that she had agreed to support the spending plans 'in exchange for universal winter fuel payments and more free school meals'. 'Ash Regan will be happy to work with the Scottish Government if it leads to delivering for people in Scotland,' they added.
BBC News
10 hours ago
- BBC News
Pat Cullen: Sinn Féin MP says she never felt like a second-class citizen in NI
Sinn Féin's MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone has said she never felt like a second-class citizen growing up in Northern Ireland during the Cullen, who was elected to Westminster in 2024, said she was regularly stopped and searched by the Army as a young girl growing up in Carrickmore, County said this had become "normal" but did not make her feel like she was inferior."I always knew we were on the right side of history," she added. The youngest of seven children, Cullen said her mother made them say the rosary every night and sprinkled holy water over their car to keep them mother, who died when Cullen was 18, also made her leave the house over an hour earlier to collect her sister from work in Omagh just 15 minutes away in case she was MP, who is married with two children, recalled an encounter with a young soldier in the 1980s, when she was 17."It was about the fifth time he had stopped me that week," she told the BBC's Red Lines podcast."I remember saying to him: 'Why are you doing that, why are you doing this to me?' "He said, 'I have no choice'. I remember standing looking at him and he wasn't, I'm sure, much older than me. "I remember saying to him: 'We all have choices'." Cullen followed four of her sisters into a career in nursing which included working as a community nurse in north and west Belfast in the a mental health nurse, she did not wear a uniform and said this aroused suspicion from the Army as she travelled frequently between nationalist and loyalist areas."The women in those areas made things much easier for us and took us under their wing and supported us as we moved back and forward to do our jobs," she a number of senior roles in nursing, including with the Public Health Agency and as an advisor to health officials at Stormont, Cullen joined the nurses' union the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) before becoming its general secretary and chief said she joined the RCN because it was a non-striking union yet, during her tenure, she led members in unprecedented strikes as part of a campaign for better pay and conditions, first in Northern Ireland then in England and Wales. 'Take that Irish woman back home' Lobbying at Westminster brought her up against former Conservative Health Secretaries Matt Hancock and Steve Barclay and she said her presence was perhaps not always recounted on one occasion when an unnamed assembly member, who was visiting London, was encouraged to "take that Irish woman back home" with republican politician had particular praise for the Democratic Unionist Party Strangford MP Jim Shannon for his support during the nurses' strike. "Just as I was about to go on Sky TV [in London], I get a tap on the shoulder and it was Jim Shannon. He had seen me on the television and knew I was there," she said."I appreciated that very, very much because it was someone from home and it was someone who understood. "That was a decent thing for him to do and I'll not forget it." You can listen to the full interview with Pat Cullen on the BBC Red Lines podcast on BBC Sounds. The interview was recorded before the recent killings in Maguiresbridge.
The National
a day ago
- The National
John Swinney gives statement after Donald Trump meeting
The SNP leader attended the opening of the second golf course at Trump's Menie estate in Aberdeenshire on Tuesday, taking the opportunity to raise the concerns of Scottish businesses. A statement from the Scottish Government said that Swinney had urged the US president to consider economic protections for Scotland's whisky and salmon sector, including an exemption for whisky from the 10% tariff applied on UK exports into the US. The SNP leader also presented Trump with proposals – first floated by the Alba Party in late 2024 – to provide Edinburgh Airport with US customs pre-clearance facilities. Several Irish and Canadian cities have "pre-clearance" facilities on site, which allow passengers travelling to the US to go through customs and immigration before boarding the plane. The First Minister said a Scottish version of the same would help 'demonstrate the strength of America's enduring relationship with its friend and partner, Scotland'. The statement further said that the First Minister had been 'unequivocal in demanding action to tackle the 'unbearable, unjust and inhumane' situation unfolding in Gaza, as he urged the president to use his immense influence to bring an end to the humanitarian crisis'. Swinney also raised the issue of Ukraine, calling on Trump to 'stand firm in defence of democracy and peace against Russian aggression'. Speaking after the meeting, Swinney said: 'During our discussions, I was able to represent the interests and values of Scotland directly with the president, specifically, urging him to make the case for tariff exemptions for our world class whisky and salmon sector. 'I believe there is now a window of opportunity to make the case for whisky and at the invitation of the president, I intend to make further representation to him on this matter. READ MORE: Donald Trump in Scotland 'can only be a good thing', says Anas Sarwar 'I implored President Trump to use his immense influence on the Israeli government to end the unbearable, unjust, and inhumane situation unfolding in Gaza, and to bring an end to the humanitarian crisis we are witnessing. 'As a proud country that stands firm on the principles of equality and freedom for all, I urged President Trump to help make those ideals – American ideals – a reality for the people of Ukraine. 'Scotland has consistently stood with the people of Ukraine in defence of freedom, peace and a just society, and we want to see a world where those principles apply to all.'
