Sam Shedden Engagement Editor

Good morning,

Welcome to your Thursday newsletter from The Scotsman.

We start today back in Kenmure Street, the Glasgow residential road which was the scene of protests as Border Agency police attempted to deport two men. We now know Police Scotland was notified in advance by the Home Office about last week’s failed immigration raid, but the Scottish Government was not informed. 

Today Scotland's former Justice Minister and Alba Party MP Kenny MacAskill argues the incident showed the nation that "to all intents and purposes the political tanks are on the First Minister’s lawn" and adds "It was a clear reminder to Nicola Sturgeon that she might have won an election, but the UK’s still in charge."

Whether you agree with Mr MacAskill or not the incident raises a good question about Scotland's attitude to immigration, which has long been hailed by nationalist politicians to be more tolerant than England. But does this view stack up against the data? Jenna MacFarlane looks at opinion polls to work out decisively what Scotland's attitude towards immigration really is.

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You may have heard recently about 'amber list' countries. Red and green list countries are easy to understand, but amber? Do you stay or do you go? In recent days there has been conflicting advice on who can travel to these destinations and for what reason. So we looked at Scotland's amber list ourselves, what countries are on it, and what the current advice is for visiting them?

Let's end with a tale of romance and daring from the Scottish isles. A plucky Yorkshireman came up with a creative way to propose to his girlfriend as they travelled to the idyllic Scottish island of Barra. As their flight from Glasgow prepared to land on the famous beach landing strip, his partner looked out the window to see the message ‘Anna will you marry me’ written in big letters in the sand. Well played, sir.

Thanks for reading, more headlines are below,

Sam Shedden