Heard the news? What we missed while transfixed by the circus

While the circus careered on in SW1, some other news that may have passed you by.

INDY ROAD CHECKS

Nicola Sturgeon launched a new paper detailing how key economic arrangements would work in an independent Scotland. It said the country would initially keep the pound but move to its own currency when the time is right. It said Scotland would look to join the EU, but would remain within the Common Travel Area with the UK and Ireland. She described claims this would lead to passport controls between Scotland and England as “nonsense” but admitted checks on goods would take place on the A1 and A74, the main routes south.

RUSSIAN SABOTAGE

Investigators said powerful explosions were responsible for destroying a 165ft section of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, that connected Russia to Germany and the rest of western Europe, after close-up images showed colossal damage. Drone operator Trond Larsen said: “It is only an extreme force that can bend metal that thick in the way we are seeing.” Moscow claimed the investigations were set up with the intention of falsely blaming Russia for the sabotage.

ABUSE CURBS

All people working with children, including priests, must be required by law to report allegations of sexual abuse to police or social workers, England’s child abuse inquiry has recommended. The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, set up in the wake of the Jimmy Savile scandal, said all internet providers should block known child abuse material and social media companies should be forced to introduce stronger age checks. The Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry is ongoing.

NHS BABY PROBE

A Fatal Accident Inquiry into the deaths of newborn babies has been launched in Scotland as it emerged that a health board has ordered internal inquiries into the deaths of three infants born around the same time. The deaths of Leo Lamont, Ellie McCormick, and Mirabelle Bosch all “occurred in circumstances giving rise to serious public concern” said the Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC when asking a sheriff to investigate. NHS Lanarkshire has launched its own investigation and it and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and the Scottish Ambulance Service will be investigated in the FAI.

BEIJING PILOTS

Former British fighter pilots are training the Chinese to shoot down Western aircraft, officials have warned. Up to 30 pilots have moved to China after securing £250,000-a-year contracts. Due to legal loopholes, there is nothing the Armed Forces can do to prevent the brain drain. It is seen as a potential threat to national security in which Chinese pilots could get a lethal advantage in any future conflict.