TODAY’S WEATHER

☀️ It’ll be another warm and sunny day for Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, with temperatures in the mid-to-high 20s and warmest in the west. London will be much the same. (Here’s the UK forecast).

THE BIG STORIES
Europe struggles under heatwave | “Reckless” inaction on tower blocks | Free speech fears

📣 We’re headed for a warm day across Scotland today, and much of Europe is now gripped by “unprecedented temperatures”, with a swathe of the continent - stretching across France, Croatia, Italy and Spain - facing “remarkable” maximum temperatures reaching into the high thirties, 12c above the recent norm.

Beyond Europe, “dozens” of temperature records have been broken across Canada, and 50 degree-plus heat in Iraq was blamed for a blackout. (Guardian)

• Scotland faces a “very high” wildfire risk today. It’s the tenth wildfire warning of the year. (BBC)

• “We’re being cooked alive”: Europe burns as temperatures soar (CNN)

📣 The Scottish Government has been accused of “reckless inaction” over dangerous cladding on high-rise buildings in Scotland, with just 11% of a £97 million safety fund spent on making buildings safe. The fund was set up in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster in London: up to 1,500 towers in Scotland may need repairs, but “as of June two are being made safe while funds committed have gone unspent,” Martin Williams reports. (The Herald (£) has the exclusive)

📣 The gender self-ID row continues to spark claims of censorship, with two examples in one day today.

• The Times reports that staff at the National Library of Scotland “banned” a book about feminists’ battles against Nicola Sturgeon’s gender self-ID law after staff complained its contents were “hate speech” comparable to racism. The book - The Women Who Wouldn’t Wheesht - got double the nominations necessary to be included in the Dear Library public display but wasn’t included because of concerns about “the potential impact on key stakeholders”. (The Times £)

• The Mail reports that a fringe venue which hosted Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes last week has apologised to other performers for its “oversight” in allowing her to be interviewed on stage. Forbes has spoken up against gender reform in the past. “Now,” reports the title, “bosses at the venue have indicated that they will develop ‘robust, proactive inclusion and wellbeing policies that would prevent this oversight in our bookings process happening again’.” (Mail)

IDEAS
Dark Hyde on Trump and Putin | Let’s smash the gig economy | Beware migrant rhetoric | Farmers in crisis

A quartet of interesting opinions, all on anything other than Nicola Sturgeon’s new book (see note, above).

🗣️Marina Hyde offers a helpful and darkly humorous primer for Friday’s talks between Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska, largely based on Trump’s press conference on the matter earlier in the week. “Trump spent quite a lot of time talking suspiciously nebulously about ‘land swapping’”, she notes. “Can you swap things on behalf of someone who doesn’t want to swap them, and without them being present at the table?” (Guardian)

🗣️Keir Starmer should “smash the gig economy,” suggests Gavin Mortimer. The likes of Deliveroo, Uber and Just Eat were once hailed as “the exciting future of the British economy”, he writes.

But, says Mortimer, “It has become increasingly obvious in recent years that many of the people working for these companies are illegal immigrants. In 2023, a random Home Office screening of delivery riders found that 40 per cent fitted this description.”

Not only does that encourage more illegal immigration, says Mortimer, it means those already here are vulnerable to exploitation. “Perhaps smashing the gig economy and not the gangs should be Keir Starmer’s priority,” he suggests. (Spectator)

🗣️A counterpoint: politicians must dial down the rhetoric on migrants, writes Alice Thomson. Reform - and Conservative Robert Jenrick - are attempting to mobilise women against Muslims in the middle of a long, hot summer of unrest in some English towns that has become one of “women v immigrants”. There is a populist narrative, says Thomson, that “young males from distant climes who clamber off the small boats are likely to molest women and girls and to disrespect them.”

But Thomson struggles to find convincing data to back that up. “The government needs to get a grip before these battles escalate,” she says. (The Times £)

🗣️ Farmers are facing a crisis, and Ian Johnson is grateful that an entirely convinced Jeremy Clarkson is doing all he can to bring it to the world’s attention.

This year’s harvest will - according to Clarkson - “be catastrophic.” Writing on X, the presenter points out “That should be a worry for anyone who eats food. If a disaster on this scale had befallen any other industry, there would be a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth... Normal weather would help. It never stopped raining in 2024 and never started in 2025.”

It is, reflects Johnson, “a message that many farmers would like the rest of us […] to hear”. Around the world, 86% of farmers have been affected bty extreme rainfall, and 78% by drought. Only 2% have not experienced some form of extreme weather. Action, say farming leaders, is needed to adapt and build resilience. Famous figures like Clarkson can do a lot to spread the word. (Scotsman)

AROUND SCOTLAND

📣 Organisers of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe have called for an end to big concerts at Murrayfield stadium in August because of the impact they have on the city during its annual festival season. The Fringe Society says Oasis and AC/DC shows have caused a big increase in travel and accommodation costs. (Herald (£))

📣 Canadian prosecutors have won a legal battle in an attempt to extradite three Scots wanted in Ontario for their alleged involvement in the death of a restaurant owner. They will not, however, be extradited immediately. (STV)

📣 Restaurant chain Six by Nico has raised £1.75 million… from its diners, in a crowdfund campaign in which they’ll recieve benefits in return for their investment. (Daily Business)

AROUND THE UK & WORLD

🌎 Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has hinted that ceasefire efforts in Gaza are now focused on a deal that would release the remaining hostages all at once, rather than in phases. (AP)

🌎 Vladimir Putin has demanded Ukrainian forces withdraw from Donetsk as part of a ceasefire deal Volodymyr Zelensky says. But the Ukrainian president said his country would “never leave” the Donbas, and warned Putin’s troops could use the region as a springboard for a future invasion. (Independent)

🌎 The UK Government plans to expand the use of facial recognition vans to spot suspects for a variety of crimes in England. (BBC)

🌎 The public should stand up to shoplifters, rather than rely solely on police officers, the Thames Valley Police and Crime Commissioner has said. “If you’re not even going to challenge people, you’re not going to try and stop them, then people will get away with it,” he said. “That’s a bigger problem with society, people who [don’t do anything] – you’re part of the problem.” (Telegraph (£))

🌎 Donald Trump has nominated a “partisan economist” to oversee the United States’ data. E.J. Antoni lacks a history in research, but has a solid record in backing the US President’s narrative of the economy. (🎁 WSJ - gift link)

SPORT

⚽️ Rangers made it to the Champions League play-offs with victory over Viktoria Plzen… but only on aggregate after taking a 3-0 lead to the Czech Republic, and only after surviving an onslaught in a game they lost 2-1 on the night. (BBC)

• Manager Russell Martin was, again, unhappy with the performance (Record)

• At least pints were only £3 in the “home of lager” (The Sun)

⚽️ Lennon Miller completed his transfer to Udinese, leaving a poignant video message for Motherwell fans. (Scotsman)

⚽️ Real Madrid has “firmly” rejected plans for a Spanish league game to be played in the US, warning of “a turning point in the world of football”. (AP)