Hi ,

After 498 long months of winter [Editors note: double check these numbers], the sun has finally reached Scotland again, and people everywhere have emerged from their blanketed burrows blinking into the light.

Big things are stirring at Ferret HQ too, where we are gearing up for a frankly massive month of investigation.

Tomorrow, we will launch our Who Runs Scotland series, a major project funded by you! We have an array of stories coming out in April and beyond, looking at the power in our country that is unseen and under scrutinised. So keep your eyes peeled for the full launch!

AND if that wasn't enough, we've got our AGM this Saturday, where an expert panel (and your humble newsletter writer) will be discussing the potential impact of Trump's second presidency on Scotland! Final tickets are available here, so don't delay.

Yours,

Ali

Story of the week

An in-depth look at a Ferret investigation

“He works on the night shift and is probably asleep,” says an elderly woman as she walks past us and opens the door to her ground floor flat.

She’s referring to her neighbour across the landing whose front door has empty beer bottles outside, and a large bag of garden fertiliser on the doormat. We knock on the door. No response. We wait a few moments and chap again. Still nothing.

The Ferret is in Edinburgh on a dank winter’s day trying to track down a ‘company’ linked to an international money laundering scandal – involving an estimated £770m. We’re in Muirhouse to be precise, a housing estate in Scotland’s capital made famous by its favourite son, Irvine Welsh, who immortalised the working class area in his 1993 novel, Trainspotting.

What did we dig up this week?

A round up of our investigations in the last seven days

Far right group condemned for targeting teenager who posted racist content

A far right group has been condemned for targeting young men after one of its teenage activists posted racist, misogynistic and Islamophobic messages on social media.

Abused by fraudsters: A timeline of Scottish Limited Partnerships

They have been linked with money laundering, internet fraud, and one of the worst bank robberies in recent history.

FFS explains: The CalMac ferries contract

But how did CalMac come to the decision to build the ferries in Poland? And could the Scottish Government have intervened?

How could the benefit changes impact Scotland?

The UK Government’s changes to disability benefits have been criticised by campaigners and politicians in Scotland. 

Question of the week

Are you concerned about the impact of Donald Trump’s tariffs?

We now have a platform exclusive for Ferret Underground subscribers where you can share ideas about future investigations, answer polls and more!

Create an account here to get access.

Best of the rest

Investigations we've enjoyed from around the world

US health agency buried a measles forecast that stressed the need for vaccinations

The move — along with the explanation — is a sign that the agency may be falling in line under health secretary and vaccine critic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (ProPublica)

‘I begged them, my daughter was dying’: how Taliban male escort rules are killing mothers and babies

The need for women to be accompanied by a man in public is blocking access to healthcare and contributing to soaring mortality rates, say experts. (Guardian)

HMRC prosecutions of tax evasion enablers plummet

Legal actions against facilitators stand at next to nothing – and new figures differ wildly from those given to parliament two years ago. (Bureau)

Any comments? Have you seen something we could include? Email us at contact@theferret.scot.

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