Milly Hean, associate, looks at the top stories for the week ahead.
Michael Marra emerged victorious as he was announced Scottish Labour’s new leader on Saturday, confidently beating his competitor, Joe Fagan, to secure the top job. But there will be little time to celebrate as Marra must now rally his party and reach out to those who not only backed his opponents, but who actively briefed against him during a leadership race that threatened to turn bitter.
His first hurdle will be assembling a new frontbench with just 16 MSPs at Holyrood to consider, with Marra reportedly planning to engage MSPs individually before announcing his top team. Those close to the new leader believe he must bring deputy leader Jackie Baillie into his inner circle as she remains a powerful figure in the wider Labour party, as Joe Fagan and Monica Lennon are also likely to be considered for key roles.
Marra’s early conversations with John Swinney suggest a focus on practical policy and finding areas where Labour can collaborate with the SNP as it must fight to regain relevance in Scottish politics, but it remains to be seen whether warmer early overtures mark a real shift.
With Westminster in recess, party conference season is well underway. The Liberal Democrats made tax cuts and tackling the cost-of-living a priority this weekend, with Ed Davey pitching an immediate 10p cut in fuel duty. Labour, meanwhile, is preparing to unveil its “Hope Again” message at its conference, which kicks off in Liverpool on Sunday.
Andy Burnham will take to the stage for his first party conference as Labour leader and prime minister this weekend as speculation around the autumn Budget grows. Mansion tax thresholds, agricultural inheritance tax and support for high street businesses all feature in the pre-Budget rumour mill, offering a reminder of the chancellor’s tough fiscal choices ahead.
And then there is the small matter of the world. The UN General Assembly is taking place in New York this week, giving the prime minister his first opportunity to meet US president Donald Trump face-to-face. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine is expected to be high on the agenda, with Burnham seeking US support for additional Patriot air defence missiles, alongside discussions spanning defence, energy and wider international affairs.
Also on international relations, former prime minister Gordon Brown has proposed a new global partnership without China and the US (£) to reflect a move to a “multipolar world” where the latter does not have the “hegemonic power” it once held.
In brief - Scotland's economy and business
Scottish Labour leader Michael Marra will urge the prime minister to approve both the Rosebank and Jackdaw fields in the North Sea to support the oil and gas sector. He believes the party should push ahead with ensuring production continues in the North Sea and that the replacement for the Energy Profits Levy is brought forward.
A coalition representing around 200 rural community councils across Scotland is calling for an independent inquiry into the cumulative impact of major renewable energy and electricity infrastructure projects. The calls follow a Scottish Government request for communities to identify areas facing multiple energy projects. The coalition argues this evidence should have been gathered earlier, while ministers say existing planning rules already require cumulative impacts on communities and nature to be considered.
Apatura, a hyperscale artificial intelligence data centre company, has said it will create nearly 2,100 permanent on-site jobs across its five planned locations in Scotland – including at the former Ravenscraig steelworks site in North Lanarkshire. The other sites are in Falkirk, Edinburgh, West Calder and East Dumbartonshire and together, they are projected to contribute £2.2 billion in net annual gross value added to Scotland’s economy. This comes after the Scottish Government unveiled plans to tighten planning controls for large data centre developments, falling short of a full moratorium as proposed by the Greens.
OpinioNation - columns of interest
Reflecting on several subpar performances in Holyrood’s committee rooms in recent weeks, Rachel Amery suggests in The Scotsman (£) that many MSPs are not sufficiently across their briefs. She also questions whether Reform UK’s new MSPs have yet delivered on their promise to disrupt Holyrood, arguing that the opening weeks of the new parliamentary term have exposed some gaps in political experience and scrutiny.
Andy Burnham is plotting to work with the Liberal Democrats to stay in power after the next election (£), according to senior Labour sources, writes Dan Hodges in the Daily Mail. Westminster observers believe there are signs of a more collegiate approach from Burnham as he looks to hold off the threat of Reform UK as polling figures show a slight bounce for the prime minister and dip for Nigel Farage’s party.
The idea of keeping politics out of music is relatively recent, The Guardian’s Jason Okundaye explains in relation to the controversy surrounding Macklemore being dropped from Ed Sheeran’s tour last week. While the industry once punished artists such as Madonna and the Chicks for speaking out, streaming has since given artists greater freedom to take political positions, and younger audiences increasingly expect them to do so. The result is a shifting relationship between musicians and their audiences, where political silence can now attract as much scrutiny as political statements.
CSP sector spotlight – energy and infrastructure
Scotland is at the forefront of the UK’s broader renewables transition and is host to a range of complex infrastructure projects. Abundant natural resource, however, is matched by significant regulatory, community and political nuances.
We specialise in helping infrastructure projects – from renewable energy to digital connectivity – communicate their objectives effectively and reach the political audiences and stakeholders who really matter.
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The week ahead - fill your diary with key events
Monday
- Westminster is in recess and will return on 12 October
- Reform UK Wales is expected to announce its new leader after Dan Thomas resigned following his arrest on suspicion of assault and controlling or coercive behaviour
Tuesday
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In the Holyrood chamber:
- First Minister’s Questions (backbench members)
- Scottish Government debate: Scotland’s right to decide
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In the Holyrood committee rooms:
- Economy, Tourism and Energy Committee will take evidence on the state of the Scottish economy and labour market and Scotland’s energy sector
- Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee will take evidence on Historic Environment Scotland
- Scottish Government data: Homelessness in Scotland 2025/26
- Liberal Democrat party conference wraps up with speeches by Scottish leader Alex Cole-Hamilton and leader Ed Davey
- UK: Public sector net borrowing, August 2026
- UN General Assembly: speeches by US president Donald Trump, French president Emmanuel Macron and prime minister Andy Burnham.
- Donald Trump and Andy Burnham meet at the UN General Assembly
Wednesday
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In the Holyrood chamber:
- Portfolio questions: climate action and rural affairs; education, culture and Gaelic
- Ministerial statement: addressing drug harms
- Scottish Government debate: building a flood resilient Scotland: delivering action for communities in a changing climate
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In the Holyrood committee rooms:
- Criminal Justice Committee will take evidence on domestic abuse, advocacy and victim experience, and justice system responses
- Finance and Public Administration Committee will take evidence on the affordability and sustainability of Scotland’s tax and spending plans
- Health, Care and Sport Committee will take evidence on building on the 2026 Commonwealth Games and widening access to sport
- Transport Committee will take evidence on regional transport partnerships
- Scottish Government data: Drug-related deaths in Scotland, 2025
- UN General Assembly high level week: speeches by Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and foreign secretary Ed Miliband co-hosts a ministerial discussion on climate security
- S&P global flash manufacturing PMI
- OECD interim economic outlook
Thursday
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In the Holyrood chamber:
- First Minister’s Questions (party leaders)
- Scottish Government debate: growing Scotland’s creative economy
- US: Donald Trump hosts Chinese president Xi Jinping at the White House
- UN General Assembly: speeches by Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, European Council president António Costa and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Friday
- Northern Ireland: Ex-DUP Leader and convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Donaldson’s prosecution and defence submissions heard at Newry Crown Court
- Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey speaks
Saturday
- Labour Party women’s conference takes place in Liverpool
Sunday
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Labour Party conference begins in Liverpool with a speech from deputy leader Lucy Powell