Story here: www.heraldscotland.com/news/2558009...

As if you'll be able to sleep...

Gah. Fixed.

Read all the numbers, analysis and reaction in today’s
@heraldscotland.bsky.social heraldscotland.com

...“Scottish parties, seeing the difficulty this has created in Westminster, must instead be honest about the fiscal position. Unfunded promises and unrealistic assumptions about potential efficiency savings simply will not cut it anymore.”

IPPR Scotland Director, @stephenboydippr.bsky.social said: “Last year’s UK election was described as a conspiracy of silence because the parties would not be explicit about the choices the UK faced: whether to let public services deteriorate further or to raise taxes...."

Scots want better public services — but not higher taxes.

47% say taxes are already too high. 44% don’t trust government to spend more wisely. Only 23% would pay higher taxes for better services.

Just 1 in 4 Reform UK voters (25%) say “protecting and investing in the NHS” would motivate their vote.

Nearly half (49%) say their top priority is stricter immigration controls — more than double the share of Labour voters (20%) and five times that of SNP supporters (10%).

While voters are united on what matters most — the cost of living and the NHS — few believe any government can deliver on those priorities.

The polling was commissioned by @ipprscotland.bsky.social ahead of its 10th anniversary conference. It also found that Scots are deeply pessimistic about the country’s future — and doubt the next Scottish Government will deliver on its promises. www.heraldscotland.com/news/2557155...

While the SNP remains Scotland’s largest party — John Swinney would be around 10 seats short of a majority, throwing his independence strategy into chaos.

It is the first time a poll has Reform in second place on both the constituency and regional list votes — overtaking Labour.

Basically, the direct mental health budget line has halved mid-year. Ministers say it’s just accounting shifts, but won’t publish the details. When I went to them for clarity they answered questions I didn't ask.

Now, Scotland’s Mental Health Partnership has written to Tom Arthur MSP demanding clarity.

They want to know if this is a real-terms cut, and where the money has gone.

Officials are also comparing the new figures to the 2024/25 ABR, not to the original 2025/26 Budget — the figure Parliament approved.

That’s the proper benchmark for seeing whether spending has gone up, down or been moved since the Budget was set.