Digest of the week's news

This is our summary of the major stories of the week ending 18 April.

SCOTLAND

Blair: Wake up or lose the election
TONY Blair delivered a blunt wake-up call to Labour activists, warning they could lose the Holyrood election to the Scottish National Party unless they do more to motivate traditional supporters.
Read the full story here.

Highlands are as hot as Rio de Janeiro
LOCH Carron, in the west Highlands, enjoyed the hottest April day in Scotland since records began. The sea loch, ten miles north-west of the Kyle of Lochalsh, was also the warmest place in Britain, with a temperature of 26.6°C. The remote area experienced the same temperature as Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil, and was hotter than Buenos Aires, in Argentina, which reached 24°C.
Read the full story here.


UK AND WORLD NEWS

US general: The war is over
THE battle to take control of Iraq was over last night, as Washington’s attention swung firmly on to Syria and its suspected links with terrorists and arsenal of chemical weapons. Tony Blair declared "victory" for the first time, and the Pentagon said that "major combat operations are over" after Tikrit, the home town of Saddam Hussein, was secured.
Read the full story here.

US gives Israel 3 years to quit occupied Arab land
AN independent Palestine will be created as early as 2005 under a US-backed 'roadmap to peace' in the Middle East. The ‘carrot and stick’ policy adopted by the US means the Arab world will be rewarded with a Palestinian state if it stops supporting terrorist attacks against the US, Israel and their allies.
Read the full story here.

Military dealings with loyalists revealed
THE fragile peace in Northern Ireland was dealt a severe blow when a report confirmed the suspicions of many Catholic nationalists - that members of the security forces colluded with loyalists to murder civilians at the height of the Troubles.
Read the full story here.


BUSINESS

Global vision for Stagecoach comes off rails
STAGECOACH's ambitions to expand into global rail operations have been dealt a major blow following a row with New Zealand's national rail operator. The Perth transport group, headed by founder Brian Souter, was the front-runner to operate commuter railway services into the New Zealand capital, Wellington. But it has pulled out after the rail operator, Tranz Rail, refused to hand over control of track maintenance, train control and driver training.
Read the full story here.

Scots output crumbles as UK retail sales dive
SCOTLAND’S economic output shrivelled for the third straight month as UK retail sales appeared to fall for the first time in four years. The Royal Bank of Scotland said its closely-watched barometer of Scottish GDP skidded to a reading of 47.1 in March from 48.6 in February. Any number below 50 shows output is shrinking.
Read the full story here.

Takeover deal sets Amey on new path
AMEY, the troubled building services group which maintains hundreds of miles of Scotland’s road network, including the busy M8 , agreed to an £81 million takeover by a Spanish construction company. Ferrovial, which is listed on the Madrid stock exchange, said it was offering 32p cash for each Amey share.
Read the full story here.


SPORT

Weir proves extra special
MIKE Weir won the US Masters, becoming the first Canadian golfer ever to win a major title as well as the first left-hander to slip into a green jacket at Augusta, when he defeated Len Mattiace at the first extra hole of a scrappy play-off.
Read the full story here.

Old Firm fixture row
CELTIC caused a row in the SPL as they battled to have their Old Firm derby match fixture moved from April 27, three days after the second leg of the UEFA Cup semi-final against Portuguese side Boavista.
Read the full story here.


HERE ARE THE STORIES YOU FOUND MOST INTERESTING

Blair hints at new role as EU president
TONY Blair increased speculation that he wants to become the president of Europe when he claimed that the European Union must speak with a single voice on foreign policy. The call was the clearest sign yet that Mr Blair could pitch to become the future president of Europe after stepping down as Prime Minister.
Read the full story here.

CNN makes a deadly mistake
CNN inadvertently broadcast a series of pre-prepared obituaries of world figures, who remain very much alive. The network, which prides itself on staying ahead, got too far ahead by announcing on the internet that the Pope, Fidel Castro, Bob Hope, Nelson Mandela, Dick Cheney and Ronald Reagan had perished in what looked like a celebrity cull. The obituaries were removed after just 20 minutes, but not before thousands had logged on to the gaffe.
Read the full story here.

Saddam may have fled as house of cards collapses
ON Saturday, the seven of diamonds handed himself in; the five of spades - Saddam Hussein’s half-brother Watban al-Tikriti - was captured. Yet the ace of spades, Saddam Hussein himself, remains elusive. The collapse of the house of cards that is Saddam’s regime continues to gather pace.
Read the full story here.