Latest news with #TheHerald
South Wales Argus
6 hours ago
- Sport
- South Wales Argus
Stressfree victory proves enjoyable for O'Meara
Stressfree got up late under Danny Tudhope (Martin Rickett/PA) This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Stressfree set up a trip to Royal Ascot in finally getting his head in front in the Betfred 'Play Fred's £5 Million' Handicap at Haydock. David O'Meara's five-year-old only had three victories to his name on the Flat before this, which does not reflect the level of his ability, and looked to have a mountain to climb as Kildare Legend kicked clear off the front. But Danny Tudhope timed it to perfection on the 11-2 shot to win by a neck and the Duke of Edinburgh Handicap now beckons. O'Meara said: 'He wasn't winning out of turn, he's been very consistent. He's got a lot of ability, but he's often the bridesmaid. We sent him hurdling through the winter, more to toughen him up than anything. 'He was given an excellent ride. I'm never confident with him as he's often come out second best, but to be fair he did nothing wrong today. 'He could go for the mile-and-a-half handicap at Ascot and possibly the Ebor later, why not, he might stay that far, he keeps a little bit back.'
Rhyl Journal
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Rhyl Journal
Britain's Got Talent's most viewed audition that led to over 1bn streams of song
Britain's Got Talent's Calum Scott has shot to fame after appearing on the show in 2015. (Image: ITV) This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Britain's Got Talent has seen plenty of acts rise to stardom since the ITV talent show first hit our screens back in 2007. From dancing dogs to magicians, dance groups and singers – there's rarely been a dull moment. Many of the acts from the show have gone on to become household names, including the likes of series one winner opera singer Paul Potts and Scottish songstress Susan Boyle – who caused a media frenzy when her first audition aired back in 2009. Who won Britain's Got Talent over Susan Boyle? Susan was pipped to the post as winner of the show that year by street dance troupe Diversity. However, there's one act who has gone on to have an impact around the world since his first audition. Who is the biggest success on Britain's Got Talent? Ten years ago in 2015, singer Calum Scott had one of the most iconic moments in the show with his song choice. His haunting rendition of 'Dancing on My Own', originally released in 2010 by Swedish pop star Robyn, saw Simon press his golden buzzer, winning him a place in the live semi-final and eventually, the final. Calum, from Hull, has gone on to have huge success as an artist, performing with the likes of Ed Sheeran, Leona Lewis and Take That. His recorded version of his audition track now totals more than 1bn streams on Spotify alone. Dancing on My Own reached number two in the UK charts upon its release in 2016 and was Britain's best-selling single that summer. Calum's first Britain's Got Talent audition has now had a staggering 399m views on the official BGT account on YouTube. It's the most watched from the talent show, followed by Susan Boyle with 263 million views. Recommended reading: Did Calum Scott ever win Britain's Got Talent? Calum came in sixth place in the competition in 2015, losing out to winners Jules O'Dwyer and Matisse the dog. What time is the BGT final 2025? The 2025 series is the show's 18th and it comes to an end this weekend. Britain's Got Talent's live final airs on Saturday, May 31 at 7pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
The Herald Scotland
14 hours ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Higher costs and fewer journeys: these ferries make no sense
Further, the current Type 23 will be in service for many years to come supporting and protecting our aircraft carriers. Today, Business Editor Ian McConnell editor sets out to laud the Glen Sannox and her boost to the Arran economy ("Does 'ferry fiasco' vessel offer hope for Arran?", The Herald, May 30). The Caledonian Isles will return from Brigadoon soon, so we are told, and run from Ardrossan and so we have two mainland ports serving Arran with all the associated costs. Her design capacity is 1,000 passengers and 110 cars, and with five return journeys per day allows 10,000 and 1,110 passenger and vehicle journeys respectively. When augmented by the MV Isle of Arran, whose design capacity is 448 passengers and 76 cars, this allows an additional 4,480 and 760 journeys respectively and a total of 14,480 passenger and 1,870 car journeys per day from Ardrossan. The Glen Sannox is limited to 852 passengers with 127 cars. The higher capacity is not available in service because it can only do three of the longer Troon return journeys per day, allowing 5,112 and 762 respective journeys per day along with a 40 per cent increase in fuel burn, increased maintenance and running costs and the cost of an additional port giving massive and unnecessary overheads, all for the same capacity as the MV Isle of Arran. As and when or if the MV Glen Rosa comes on service, those overheads double and 4,256 passenger and 346 vehicle journeys will be lost per day, as will the popular day trips for tourism or necessary mainland visits. Apparently that is good business. Peter Wright, West Kilbride. • Stan Grodynski unfortunately continues to fail to understand the basic facts behind the Type 26 frigates, and the comparison to Arran's ferries, in his ongoing deflection from the SNP's total mishandling of Ferguson Marine. Of course the Type 26 programme did begin in 1998 – with an evaluation phase. Unlike CalMac and the Scottish Government, the Ministry of Defence makes plans decades ahead to assess ship replacement programmes, with current plans under way for the Type 83 destroyer as replacement for the Type 45 and provisionally planned for around 2040. From 1998, the extensive planning stage led to a contract being awarded for the design of the Type 26 – itself a lengthy process –at the same time evaluating future overall fleet requirements, with the actual construction contract then awarded in 2017. The design of a complex warship understandably takes a little longer than that of a ferry. From construction contract award to delivery, it remains the simple fact that the Type 26 budget excess is 5% against Ferguson Marine's 670%. Additionally, the Global Combat Ship's design has also been sold to Australia and Canada for their construction of a further 24 vessels. I don't recall any other countries rushing to order 24 "Glen" ferries. With regard to the aircraft carriers, HMS Queen Elizabeth was ordered in 2007 with delivery due in 2015. Being commissioned in 2017 – two years late – her overrun is still five years fewer than that of the Glen Sannox. Her contract was initially costed at £4.1 billion, eventually rising to £6.2bn, an increase of around 50% in part attributable to delays caused by the global financial crisis, and including changes to the planned aircraft to be deployed – still considerably less than Ferguson Marine's 670%. Unlike the Glen Sannox, HMS Queen Elizabeth also has the added benefit of being able to fit into her home port. Perhaps Mr Grodynski would acknowledge that an 80,000 tonne state of the art warship is a rather more complex build than a 1,200-tonne ferry. Steph Johnson, Glasgow. Read more letters Prized strengths of our MSPs The supposed controversy over Scottish Labour's Hamilton candidate, Davy Russell, following a low profile ("Labour's by-election candidate denies he has hindered campaign", The Herald, May 29), rather raises the question: what do we want from our MSPs? Which strengths do we prize? Perhaps we should not expect individuals to be proficient in every dimension? While the Scottish Parliament is about laying down well-worded and structured laws, there is clearly much more for MSPs than that. Serving the needs and tackling the problems of individuals and communities, for one. Organising a small team to respond to constituents, for two. Being open to ideas across party boundaries, influencing colleague MSPs and aware of what's going on in the country, for three. Contributing that knowledge and previous experience to debate whether in the chamber or on the 16 committees, also important. Increasingly, it feels that being grounded in the constituency can add great value to representation. Appearing on television and speaking in public seem to me to be rather less important. And of course, the modern way – good regular use of social media – is an attribute. I provided radio snippets on BBC Radio Scotland for 20 years and much preferred that medium to television because I could have my notes laid out in front of me, unseen. Could I have spoken well without notes on television? Possibly. Did I want to? No. Philip Gaskell (Dr), Drymen. • Question Time from Cheltenham (BBC1, May 29) had a distinctly cautious air about it. With the exception of politics blogger Ava Santina-Evans who tried (and failed) to stir controversy with bizarre remarks and facial expressions, the three politicians – Heidi Alexander (Lab), David Simmonds (Con) and Jess Brown-Fuller (Lib Dem) – and political commentator/journalist Tim Montgomerie all acquitted themselves well. Their responses were waffle-free and well delivered. No talking over one another. It was as if a pre-arranged consensus had been agreed. Perhaps with the newly-arrived "spectre on the block" represented here by the loquacious Tim Montgomerie "own goals" were to be carefully avoided. Apart from one impassioned tirade on the deteriorating Gaza conflict the panel were given an easy ride by a polite Cheltenham audience. Overall, not a memorable session. It does however confirm that political opponents can and should work for the common wealth of all. That augurs well in these troubled times. Allan C Steele, Giffnock. A penny for our NHS Our NHS hits the headlines once again ("One in nine Scots face long waits for planned treatments on NHS", The Herald, May 28) and yet opposition parties jump up and down and engage in political point-scoring. Those same parties have been in charge of the NHS in other parts of the UK and have failed to come up with a solution to long waiting are no constructive ideas, no examples of better practice, only criticism which demoralises loyal and dedicated NHS staff. There is no magic wand. We all need to take some responsibility for the system, for instance, by not missing appointments, using the fully-joined-up approach of considering a visit to the pharmacy first, taking pressure off other services further down the line. NHS nurses and doctors in Scotland are the best-paid in the UK. The Scottish Government's latest accepted pay offer continues this theme with staff, including nurses, midwives, paramedics and porters, receiving a 4.25% pay rise this year, backdated to April 1, and a further 3.75% increase in 2026/27. This is the SNP recognising their dedication. The Government has invested massive amounts in our NHS, yet services still demand more. Perhaps a tax increase of 1p in the pound ring-fenced for the health service is one to put on the table. This option would be more palatable here than UK Labour's approach of back door privatisation. Catriona C Clark, Falkirk. Trans question was valid In his reply to Jane Lax's letter of May 29, Tim Hopkins, LGBTI campaigner and former CEO of Equality Network, seems to backhandedly accuse her of specifically transphobic discrimination (Letters, May 30). Why? Because, in essence, she asks a valid question about the use of debating time in the chamber of the Scottish Parliament and expresses criticism of the Presiding Officer's decision to allow a topic which many fellow voters in Scotland may deem not as pressing as, for example, issues around policing, transport, taxes and more. Whether Mr Hopkins likes it or not, in a democracy this kind of questioning, expressed publicly, is not only allowed but also desirable. His whataboutism about disabled wheelchair users doesn't distract from that. Regina Erich, Stonehaven. • Tim Hopkins is always very keen to speak on behalf of the trans community, so I wonder if he could answer a simple question. He writes to these columns claiming that toilet arrangements mean that trans people cannot visit or work in the Scottish Parliament with dignity and privacy, so can he please tell us what is undignified or non-private about using one of the gender-neutral toilets in that building? (I would also point out that using a toilet is not a very dignified process for any of us, necessity that it is.) Peter Russell, Glasgow. Davy Russell, Labour's candidate in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by election, campaigning with Angela Rayner on Thursday (Image: PA) Digital hang-ups I was amused to see BT's full-page advertisements in The Herald this week. Our village has been connected to the fibre network so in November I called BT asking to be upgraded to Full Fibre. Although I called BT, I was advised that I would be going with EE as BT was becoming EE – are you following me so far? There was a period of four weeks when our 01786-numbered landline was now a 01360 number. When the 01786 number was reinstated, I could not call numbers within my area code for a week or so. Four months and over seven hours of phone calls later, during which time I was speaking to either BT or EE all over the country, we are finally sorted. BT's advertisement states that we'll get protection from scams and nuisance calls although I haven't found that to be the case. Steve Barnet, Gargunnock. The Flying South African Your photograph of the post-war resumption of the non-stop run of the Flying Scotsman train from Edinburgh to London ("Remember when … the Flying Scotsman went back into active service', The Herald, May 29) evokes memories of the age of steam-hauled rail travel. In this instance, the Flying Scotsman train was not hauled by the eponymous Gresley Class A3 Pacific which operated for British Railways under the number 60103. As the photograph depicts, the engine was number 60009, a Gresley Class A4 Pacific named Union of South Africa. Following withdrawal by British Railways in the 1960s, both engines were preserved. Richard Dent, Bearsden.
The Herald Scotland
14 hours ago
- Business
- The Herald Scotland
Scotland's Hong Kong community thriving despite China fears
Chan (not his real name) is one of those involved in the running of the market. He tells The Herald: "Our community was established three years ago, a lot of Hong Kong people moved to Scotland and the UK because of the political situation. 'The oppression is still going on so there are still a lot of people moving here. Read More: 'Three or four years ago we had some volunteers who gave us the idea to set up a community for our own people and think about how we could contribute to the city and how to integrate into this country. 'We started from zero. One day I spoke to a manager at the Barras and we had the idea to do a Hong Kong market, and that's where it all started. This is the third year we've done. "We have lots of authentic street food, stuff you can't even imagine. Most of the traders make homemade food, it's not something you can find in the restaurant. "We also have traditional Hong Kong crafts, an exhibition on connections to Scotland, workshops where people can learn traditional Chinese calligraphy and also some cultural exchange workshops and a kung fu performance and Hong Kong music." As of the 2021 census the population of Scotland born in Hong Kong was just under 12,000 but the data was collected less than two months after a new visa scheme was introduced. Following the introduction of a new national security law by the Chinese government, British National (Overseas) residents and their dependents can apply for a renewable five-year visa. This year the first wave of Hong Kongers who arrived under the scheme will be eligible to apply for permanent residency. The Hong Kong market in Glasgow (Image: Gordon Terris) Lok Pui Lo tells The Herald: "When I first arrived here four-and-a-half years ago it was Covid times so there wasn't a lot of community. 'In the last one or two years there have been a lot of organisations set up by people from Hong Kong like the badminton club, events specifically for Hong Kong people, the New Year market "Before we get the permanent residency we're still immigrants who don't have a home. If we aren't granted the indefinite leave to remain that means we could be sent back to Hong Kong at any time. 'It's proof that I'm a UK citizen, finally, and I won't have to go back to Hong Kong if things don't work out.' The fear of going back to Hong Kong is a real one. In 2019 a proposed bill which would have allowed for the extradition of accused criminals to other territories, including mainland China. Its introduction came after a 19-year-old Hong Kong resident, Chan Tong-kai, murdered his pregnant girlfriend in Taiwan and flew back to Hong Kong. He admitted to the authorities that he had killed her, but he could not be tried for her murder as it happened in Taiwan, and could not be extradited due to Hong Kong's status as a 'special administrative region' of China since it was handed over by the British in 1997. Hong Kong had no extradition agreements with mainland China as a safeguard to its separate legal system, and could not do a treaty with Taiwan as Beijing does not recognise it. When the bill was proposed critics immediately raised fears it could be used to arrest political dissidents, with the largest in the history of Hong Kong erupting. Protests in Hong Kong The bill was eventually withdrawn on October 23, 2019 but in June the following year a new national security law was passed criminalising "separatism, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference", punishable up to life in prison, which many feared would lead to a crackdown on civil liberties. In response the British government offered the visa programme to those at risk. The reach of the Chinese Communist Party is long though, with Amnesty International reporting that students studying abroad are harassed and subject to surveillance to prevent them engaging with "sensitive" issues while overseas. In 2022 a human rights group alleged the CCP was running a secret police station at the Loon Fung restaurant in Glasgow, though Police Scotland found no evidence of any criminality. Safeguard Defenders said the Chinese government was using a network of such offices to intimidate dissidents and criminal suspects and try to pressure them into returning to China. The group's report said 'persuasion to return' involved techniques such as refusing to renew passports; surveillance or punishment of family back in China; or direct threats, surveillance and harassment by undercover agents, embassy and consulate staff, and secret police. Officially all the police stations were shut down in 2023, but the Hong Kong community feels the eyes of Beijing at all times. Chan says: "This is something very real for us, it's something we fear every day. "We see news from Hong Kong and we still see the government arresting people when they arrive there. Three months ago there was a girl who posted something on Facebook when she was living in Japan, she went back to Hong Kong to visit her family and the police arrested her at the airport. 'This tension is always there in our community, the tension hasn't left us even since we moved to this country. 'The long-armed repression is something very real, especially in Glasgow where we know secret police stations are being run in Chinese restaurants. Police Scotland have said they can't find any evidence but to run something like that you don't need any paperwork, all you need is a back room. 'Even when I'm speaking with you, I said going into the interview that I don't want to disclose my identity, and that's for the same reason. "It's a very broad law, and after it passed they did arrest a lot of people. 'That's why as an organisation we always keep a very low profile and are very careful about what we're doing, and a lot of organisations have been silenced. 'A lot of us have family who still live in Hong Kong, so even when we're just making a market like this we are very careful. 'There are a lot of Chinese students who study here and we are sure that not all of them are students. We're being monitored, that is something that is undeniable for us. 'This fear still exists even living in this country.' The Hong Kong market in Glasgow (Image: Gordon Terris) The Hong Konger community may be small but it's growing, and keen to become a firm part of Scotland's cultural milieu. Chan says: "When we started our community we started to research some of the links between Scotland and Hong Kong and we found there's a big historical relationship. 'Three governors of Hong Kong were Scottish and one of the most well-regarded governors of Hong Kong, David Wilson, has the longest footpath in the country named after him. 'We tried to dig out the history and we've made an exhibition that we'll show at the Hong Kong market. 'We want local people to understand that we are moving here but we're not coming to claim benefits we're coming to integrate in this country. The Hong Kong market is a chance to show that too. "We welcome everyone, and the most important thing is that we want to help local people understand why we're here and what we're doing. 'In the exhibition we have a small part where we interview some of the Hong Kong people about what they've been doing since they moved to this country: what have they contributed, what have they established? 'One of the interviewees started a bicycle charity, and that's the kind of thing we want to show especially since immigration has been such a hot topic recently. 'We want to break the bias against immigrants.'
The Herald Scotland
14 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Parents slam council over new phone policy for schools
As part of work to develop a new policy around smartphones in schools, officials at East Dunbartonshire Council opened online surveys for teachers, parents, secondary school students and upper-primary school pupils. Each survey, which did not collect names but did record information on the schools that young people attend, ran for around two weeks, with the council receiving a total of more than 11,000 responses across the four different groups. In order to process the survey data 'efficiently and consistently', council officers made use of several AI tools to process the contents of open text boxes in which respondents were invited to add 'any additional information' that they wished to be considered as part of the review. This material, including that produced by young children, was input to ChatGPT, Gemini AI and Microsoft Copilot, which were used to 'assist in reviewing and summarising the anonymous comments.' Officials say that this generated a 'breakdown of key messages' that were then provided to the project working group, but when asked to share the summary of survey responses claimed that this 'is not available as yet.' Asked to explain how the output of AI platforms was checked for accuracy, the council stated that cross-validation, human oversight, triangulation and bias-monitoring processes were all applied, with reviews by officials ensuring 'fidelity' to the more than 11,000 responses that were received. Officials stated that these 'safeguards' would ensure that 'the final summaries accurately reflect the breadth and nuance of stakeholder views gathered during the consultation.' However, those taking part in the survey were not informed that their information would be processed using AI platforms. The Information Commissioner's Office, which regulates areas such as data protection across the whole of the UK, told The Herald that they would expect organisations including local authorities to be "transparent' about how data is being processed, including advising of the purpose of AI tools that are to be used and explaining what the council intends to do with the outputs that are generated. The council has told The Herald that the surveys closed on 13 or 14 May, that work on a new policy began on 19 May, and that a full draft policy had been produced and submitted to the legal department by 27 May – the same day on which the council had been approached about the issue. However, material seen by The Herald shows officials advising parents that the policy had been written and submitted to the legal department by 20 May, just one day after the council claims to have begun drafting the document. An explanation has been requested from the council. READ MORE A comparison of the surveys issued to each group also confirms that a key question about was not included in the parents version of the survey, although it was present in the versions that were issued to teachers and pupils. Parents were asked the extent to which they support either a ban on phone use during lessons, or a ban on use during lessons unless their use is approved by a teacher. However, the other versions of the survey also asked explicitly whether respondents support a ban on the use of phones during the whole school day. The omission has provoked an angry response from some parents. As a result of these and other concerns, formal complaints have now been submitted to East Dunbartonshire Council alleging that the 'flawed survey information and structure' is not fit for purpose, and that the views of parents have not been fully explored or fairly represented. Commenting on behalf of the local Smartphone Free Childhood campaign group, one parent raised significant concerns about the council's approach: 'The fact that parents were the only group not asked about a full ban shocked us. But we were assured that the free text answers we gave would be properly looked at and considered. 'As a result, many parents left long, detailed and personal stories in response to this survey question. 'They shared heart-breaking stories of kids losing sleep at night after seeing things they shouldn't have. Other stories included girls and teachers being filmed without their consent - and kids being afraid to report the extent of what they're seeing in school because of peer pressure. 'There were long, careful responses outlining their concerns - where has this all gone? 'We have been told that an AI tool was used to summarise all this into five 'top-line' policy considerations. We're not sure if the rest was looked at? 'Not only is it not good enough - it's a betrayal of parents who have trusted the council to listen to their concerns. 'It's also not clear how they've shared and processed these highly personal responses from parents, children and teachers - some containing identifiable details, to an unknown 'AI platform' without our consent. We don't know who can access the data.' The Herald contacted East Dunbartonshire Council asking whether the information in the open text boxes was checked for personal or identifying details before being submitted to AI systems. Officials were also asked to provide a copy of the council's current policy on AI use. The response received from the council did not engage with these queries. We also asked why the council had given two different dates in response to questions about when its new draft policy was completed, and whether the council has provided false information as a consequence. A spokesperson insisted that "the draft policy was formally submitted to Legal on 27 May for consideration" and asked to be provided with evidence suggesting otherwise so that they could investigate. Finally, the council was asked to explain why the surveys for pupils and teachers included an explicit question about full bans on smartphones during the school day. Their spokesperson said: "The pupil survey included a specific question on full day bans to gather targeted data from young people. The working group which consisted of Head Teachers, Depute Head Teachers, Quality Improvement Officers and an EIS representative, felt that the young people may be less likely to leave an additional comment in the open text box and so wanted to explicitly ask this question. Parents were intentionally given an open text box to avoid steering responses and to allow respondents to freely express their views. The open text box was used by parents to express their view on a full day ban which many did."
