It’s a crunch week for the Conservative leadership race with the four remaining candidates front-and-centre at the party’s annual conference in Birmingham. Kemi Badenoch, Robert Jenrick, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat will each have Q&A sessions in front of members over the next few days before giving speeches on Wednesday. The current pool will be cut down to just two candidates by October 10, however, the new Conservative leader will not be announced until November 2.
Meanwhile, the newly elected leader of the Scottish Conservatives, Russell Findlay,addressed the conference on Sunday, telling members that the pursuit of independence in Scotland “is dead”. Findlay also acknowledged the challenges his party faces with less than two years to go until the 2026 Holyrood elections, saying that members in Scotland need to “face some hard truths”.
World diplomats are frantically working to contain an all-out war in the Middle East after more airstrikes by Israel in both Yemen and Lebanon in the past few days, which have killed Hezbollah’s leader and, reportedly, the leader of Hamas. Foreign secretary David Lammy – who spoke to Lebanon’s prime minister over the weekend – has again called for an immediate ceasefire.
In the US, attention will be on the vice-presidential candidates as governor Tim Walz and senator JD Vance meet on Tuesday for their first, and likely only, debate ahead of the November election.
In brief - Scotland's economy and business
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As peak fares return from today on Scotrail trains, the BBC reports on the impacts that passengers can expect and whether the scheme might one day return.
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Amidst the backdrop of Scotland’s housing emergency, a new report in The Herald (£) shows that nearly a quarter of councils in Scotland built no new homes last year. According to the Scottish Government, the seven councils listed in the report had instead increased the housing supply through other means such as acquiring empty properties.
- As Scotland looks to offshore wind as a major component of the energy transition, the Financial Times (£) reports that at least one energy giant says that threats to marine birdlife are presenting significant barriers to getting planning consent.
OpinioNation - columns of interest
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One month out from chancellor Rachel Reeves’s first budget, there are indications that Labour may be reconsidering its stance on borrowing to invest. Lewis Goodall writes in The New Statesman (£) that this would be a welcome change to avoid both political and economic decline.
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Welcoming John Swinney’s shift from pursuing another independence vote in the near term, Kenny Farquharson writes in The Times (£) that the first minister must nonetheless be more explicit in his aims and how they will be incorporated into the SNP manifesto ahead of 2026.
- In The Scotsman (£) Ashkay Kaul of Ofgem highlights the importance of a holistic plan to construct the green infrastructure needed for Scotland’s net zero transition and lower energy costs, citing how one major project is a pivotal move in the right direction.
The week ahead - fill your diary with key events
Please note that Westminster is in recess until 7 October.
Monday
- Day 2 of the Conservative Party conference in Birmingham: Q&As with Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat
- Revised estimate of Q2 GDP
- Nationwide September house price index released
- UN General Assembly concludes in New York
Tuesday
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In the Holyrood Chamber
- Aggregates Tax and Devolved Taxes Administration (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3 proceedings
- In the Holyrood committee rooms
- Finance and Public Administration Committee: pre-budget scrutiny 2025-26
- National Performance Framework: inquiry into proposed National Outcomes
- Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee: Consideration of draft Stage 1 report for the Climate Change (Emissions Reductions Targets) (Scotland) Bill
- Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee: pre-budget scrutiny 2025-26; Housing (Scotland) Bill: consideration of draft Stage 1 report
- Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee: evidence for the Human Rights (Scotland) Bill; pre-budget scrutiny 2025-26
- A&E activity and waiting times
- Closing: Revising small area statistics geographies – data zones and intermediate zones
- Closing: Changing the international territorial level geography for Scotland
- Scottish Government data
- Consulting Scotland
- Day 3 of the Conservative Party Conference: Q&As with Robert Jenrick and James Cleverly
- US vice-presidential debate between governor Tim Walz and senator JD Vance
- Claudia Sheinbaum sworn in as Mexico’s first woman president
- Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte takes over as NATO secretary general
Wednesday
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In the Holyrood Chamber
- Portfolio Questions: Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands
- Scottish Labour Party Debate on housing
- In the Holyrood committee rooms
- Rural Affairs and Islands Committee: follow-up inquiry into salmon fishing in Scotland; pre-budget scrutiny
- Economy and Fair Work Committee: evidence for the Fair Work Convention
- Higher education students and qualifiers at Scottish institutions 2022-23
- Scottish Government data
- Final day of the Conservative Party conference: leadership candidates’ speeches
- Prime minister Keir Starmer in Brussels to meet European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen
Thursday
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In the Holyrood chamber
- First Minister’s Questions
- General Questions
- Portfolio Questions: Social Justice
- Economy and Fair Work Committee debate: Just transition inquiry for Grangemouth and the North East and Moray
- Consulting Scotland
- Closing: The Scottish road worker consultation 2024
- Home secretary Yvette Cooper to attend G7 interior ministers meeting
- Rosh Hashana
Friday
- UK, Eurozone, France, Germany, Italy: S&P Global/HCOB September construction PMI data