YESTERDAY’S SOLUTION
ACROSS: 1 Again and again, 10 Near thing, 11 Ripen, 12 Hits out, 13 Seaside, 14 Sedate, 16 Relevant, 18 Minister, 20 Yemeni, 23 Braille, 24 Interim, 26 Alibi, 27 About turn, 28 On the safe side.
DOWN: 2 Giant, 3 Introit, 4 Aviate, 5 Digested, 6 Garbage, 7 Implicate, 8 In the same boat, 9 Entertainment, 15 Dentation, 17 Generals, 19 Selfish, 21 Estates, 22 Tip off, 25 Round.
Glasgow City Council is suing First Bus, the former employers of the bin lorry driver Harry Clarke, over the job reference the firm provided to them ahead of the fatal bin lorry crash.
A six-day hearing has been set for the civil case. Mr Clarke collapsed while at the wheel of a bin lorry in the city centre in December 2014. The vehicle crashed into pedestrians and killed six people.
During an initial hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh on Thursday, Roddy Dunlop QC, representing First Bus, told the court he would not focus heavily on the issue of automatism.
He added: “My point is a simpler one and it’s this – the pursuers must prove the reasonableness of the settlement and the defenders are entitled to test the evidence in that regard.
“So that is the sum and substance of the line and it will not be advanced further.”
Andrew Smith QC, representing the local authority, agreed with Mr Dunlop that no meeting of the two parties should take place before the full hearing as they had “polarised positions” on the issue.
Judge Lord Ericht set the six-day hearing for September 28.
Erin Mcquade, 18, and her grandparents Jack Sweeney, 68, and Lorraine Sweeney, 69, from Dumbarton; Stephenie Tait, 29, and Jacqueline Morton, 51, both from Glasgow; and Gillian Ewing, 52, from Edinburgh, died in the crash.
A further 15 people were injured when the Glasgow City Council truck veered out of control. It travelled along the pavement in Queen Street before crashing into the side of the Millennium Hotel in George Square.
An inquiry into the incident held in 2015 heard the tragedy took just 19 seconds to unfold. During the course of the incident, numerous members of the public saw Mr Clarke unconscious and slumped forward in the driver’s seat.
The inquiry also heard that he had a history of health issues dating back to the 1970s – including a previous blackout in 2010 when at the wheel of a stationary bus – but had not disclosed his medical background to his employers or the DVLA.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer used Parliament's half-term break to set out his post-coronavirus vision for Britain in a speech delivered virtually. from the 30-minute speech.
Theriseofthethree-wordslogan: Labour has clearly been impressed by Boris Johnson's penchant for three-word slogans. While the Prime Minister "took back control" and "got Brexit done", then moved on to "hands, face, space" during the coronavirus crisis and a promise to "build back better", the Labour leader took to the stage to deliver his big economic speech from a podium that stated"secure,protect,rebuild".
Harking back: Sir Keir showed it is not just Churchherearefivethingswelearned ill fan Mr Johnson who likes to hark back to the Second World War. For the Labour leader, it is Clement Attlee and the "new Jerusalem" that the post-war government sought to build which are the inspiration. In his speech, Sir Keir referenced the Beveridge Report, which paved the way for the NHS and welfare state, sayingthecurrentcrisisshould be a similar "call to arms".
Bring on the policies: The Opposition leader has often said he did not want to get into specific policies with an election still three years away. But, having seen Labour's progress stall in the polls, he unfurled not one but two policies that he would deploy if he becomes prime minister in 2024.
No regrets: Labour has faced flak for failing to offer sterner criticism of the Government's handling of the coronavirus crisis.
But, speaking to reporters after his speech at Labour's headquarters in central London, Sir Keir said: "I think the public would say, in a time like this, you back the things the Government is doing right and you challenge them where you think they are getting it wrong in order that they improve on that."
Personality politics: The idea of party leaders needing to sell to voters not only their policies but also their personalities and background has become dominant in modern politics and Sir Keir responded in kind.
The former shadow Brexit secretary said his motivation for being leader was to "put right" injustices and that he had spent "two decades fighting human rights cases".