Will Torness, client manager, looks at the top stories for the week ahead.
Holyrood MSPs will be getting back to business this week with the Scottish Parliament continuing its scrutiny of the 2025 budget as it nears a vote. First minister John Swinney will defend his government’s budget proposals when he makes his first speech of the new year today in Edinburgh to shore up support. The SNP minority government will need the assistance of at least one of the opposition parties to get the legislation over the line and avoid a (still unlikely) early election.
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar will also set the tone and direction for his party during his new year speech when he addresses supporters in Glasgow this morning.
Meanwhile, the UK parliament also returns to session just as Elon Musk wades further into British politics, expanding his swipes beyond the Labour government on social media. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage became the latest recipient of his ireon Sunday, with Musk posting that the party needed ‘new leadership’ after an apparent disagreement with Farage’s condemnation of far-right activist Tommy Robinson, whom Musk views as a political prisoner.
Later in the week, chancellor Rachel Reeves jets off to China where she will be the first UK minister to have formal economic talks with the government since 2019 as she aims to strengthen financial services trade ties.
In the US, a nearly week-long remembrance for former president Jimmy Carter will culminate on Thursday with a state funeral in Washington at the National Cathedral. The Royal Diary confirms that Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, will be in attendance to represent the Royal Family. Carter, who was president during the late 1970s, died late last month at the age of 100.
In brief - Scotland's economy and business
The Scottish Retail Consortium says it’s seen a ‘significant improvement’ in relations between the business sector and the Scottish Government, as reported in The Scotsman (£). Could the new year continue to turn over a new leaf? And what does the group say it still needs to see from the government in 2025?
The Herald (£) reports that ‘return to the office’ will likely be a big theme in the new year, as demand for high-end offices in Edinburgh and Glasgow reaches ‘unprecedented’ levels, driving rents upward amid competition for premium spaces.
The Times (£) reports that wind energy has overtaken gas-fired plants as the largest source of the UK’s electricity for the first time, with fossil fuel generation falling to a record low of 27%.
OpinioNation - columns of interest
Senior adviser Chris Deerin argues in The New Statesman (£) that as the 2026 Holyrood election begins to draw near, Scottish politicians should embrace a new technologically innovative vision to jolt the country into a new paradigm and address its ailing public services.
The inequality gap has been closing for years, so why do many people across economies perceive the reverse? John Burn-Murdoch theorises in the Financial Times (£) that aggregate statistics may be masking a more nuanced picture that is feeding into the politics of discontent.
Undoubtedly one of the most polarising global figures right now, Elon Musk has been central to shaping Donald Trump’s second term as president. In this short video, Sky News Asia correspondent Nicole Johnston analyses how Musk and his family’s complicated close ties with China present a tricky balancing act for the incoming administration.
The week ahead - fill your diary with key events
Monday
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Westminster
- House of Lords: Oral questions on supporting multilateral free trade and warning against the threat from tariffs and protectionism
- General Committee: meeting on Tobacco and Vapes Bill
- US Congress to certify Donald Trump’s election victory
- Blue Origin’s reusable ‘New Glenn’ rocket launch planned
- Benjamin Netanyahu’s testimony resumes in criminal trial
- Resolution Foundation report on child poverty
Tuesday
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In the Holyrood chamber
- Scottish Government debate: Tackling child poverty and inequality through the Scottish budget
- In the Holyrood committee rooms
- Finance and Public Administration Committee will take evidence on the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (additional amount: transactions relating to second homes etc.) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2024; will take evidence on the 2025-26 budget
- Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee will take evidence on ferry services in Scotland; will take evidence on a legislative consent memorandum on the Great British Energy Bill (UK Parliament legislation)
- House of Commons Westminster Hall debate: Fiscal impact of the Autumn Budget 2024 on Scotland
- General Committee: Oral evidence on Tobacco and Vapes Bill; Debate on Employment Rights Bill
- Culture, Media and Sport Committee: Oral evidence on British film and high-end television
- Science and Technology Committee: Oral evidence on science visa policy
- Communications and Digital Committee: Oral evidence on Competition and Markets Authority
- Business and Trade Committee: Oral evidence on the Employment Rights Bill
- Westminster
- Halifax House Price Index report
- British Retail Consortium retail sales monitor
- UK construction PMI report
- Results from the retailer Next
- 10 years ago: Charlie Hebdo attack in Paris
- Orthodox Christmas
Wednesday
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In the Holyrood chamber
- Portfolio questions: Constitution, External Affairs and Culture
- Finance and Public Administration Committee Debate on National Performance Framework
- In the Holyrood committee rooms
- Rural Affairs and Islands Committee to conduct follow-up inquiry into salmon farming in Scotland and continue its consideration of a draft report
- Economy and Fair Work Committee to take evidence on the 2025-26 budget
- Education, Children and Young People Committee to take evidence on the 2025-26 budget
- Prime minister’s questions
- Scottish Affairs Committee: Oral evidence on the work of BBC Scotland
- Westminster
- Electronic Travel Authorisation required for US travellers to the UK
- Five years ago: Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 shot down over Ukraine
- First Minister John Swinney and Net Zero Secretary Gillian Martin visit the Coalburn 1 battery energy storage site.
Thursday
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In the Holyrood chamber
- First minister’s questions
- General questions
- Portfolio questions: Education and skills
- Scottish Government debate: Building a migration system that supports Scotland’s economy, public services and communities
- Consulting Scotland
- Closing: Environmental protection (single-use vapes) (Scotland) regulations 2024
- Closing: Palliative care matters for all strategy
- General Committee: Debate on Tobacco and Vapes Bill; Debate on Employment Rights Bill
- Westminster
- State funeral for former US president Jimmy Carter
- MPs’ expenses report
- Results from: Marks & Spencer, TATA Consultancy Services
- Former Scotland rugby union captain Stuart Hogg to be sentenced after admitting domestic abuse charge.
Friday
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Scottish Government data
- Land and Buildings Transaction Tax Statistics for December 2024
- Scottish Government data
- Land and Buildings Transaction Tax Statistics for December 2024
- Chancellor Rachel Reeves to visit China
- US Supreme Court hearing in Tiktok challenge to ban/divestment order
- Nicolas Maduro begins new term as Venezuelan President following disputed election
- SpaceX Starship Orbital test flight planned
- Sir Rod Stewart’s 80th birthday
Sunday
- 25 years since the ban on lesbian, gay and bisexual people serving in the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force was repealed.