Scottish Ambulance Service to recruit 300 new paramedics

Image copyrightScience Photo LibraryImage captionThe ambulance service was given a funding increase of 1.7% in the draft budget The Scottish Ambulance Service has said it will recruit about 300 paramedics over the next five years with new funds allocated from the budget. The service saw a total increase in funding of £11.4m in the 2016-17 draft budget announced earlier this month. Some of the funds will go towards additional clinical advisers and control room staff. SAS chief executive Pauline Howie said ambulance crews were "busier than ever". The draft budget announced by Finance Secretary John Swinney included an increase of 1.7%...

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Homes evacuated as flooding persists

Out of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue. Media captionA man is rescued from his near-submerged car in Mytholmroyd, Calderdale Emergency teams are working to evacuate people from homes in York, as flooding continues to hit northern England. Police advised between 300 and 400 people to evacuate near the River Ouse and River Foss in York, with up to 3,500 properties at risk. Hundreds of flood alerts and warnings are in place for England, Wales and Scotland, including more than 30 severe warnings - indicating danger to life. The environment minister said the government will review flood defences. Liz Truss...

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Will pollsters redeem themselves in 2016? By David Cowling

Image copyrightGetty Images There is a theory that political polls in the UK suffer a car crash once every 20 years or so. In 1970, the majority of polls suggested a Labour victory but the Conservatives won the election. In 1992, 38 out of 50 campaign polls suggested narrow Labour leads yet the Conservatives won with a seven-point lead in the national vote. And in 2015, out of 92 campaign polls, 17 registered a dead heat between the Conservatives and Labour and 42 recorded Labour leads when the election outcome was a seven-point Conservative lead. % gap between Conservative and LabourAll pollsConservative leadsLabour leads 017-- 1321517 222715 31037 4752 511- 6321 Total923342 In...

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Argentina activist reunited with 'wrong granddaughter'

Image copyrightAFPImage captionMaria "Chicha" Mariani (left) met the woman mistakenly identified as Clara Anahi Mariani Teruggi (right) on Thursday A 92-year-old Argentine activist who spent nearly half of her life looking for her missing granddaughter will need to resume her search after a case of mistaken identity. Maria Isabel Mariani, known as Chicha, announced on Thursday that she had finally met her granddaughter. Clara Anahi Mariani Teruggi was abducted by the military in 1976. But a prosecutor working on the case said Ms Mariani had been introduced to the wrong woman. The announcement on Thursday was hailed as another triumph for...

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