:00:00. > :00:12.A man accused of murdering a Glasgow shopkeeper has given a statement
:00:13. > :00:15.in court admitting he killed Asad Shah.
:00:16. > :00:17.In a highly unusual move, the statement also gave
:00:18. > :00:22.Mr Shah was found with serious injuries outside his shop
:00:23. > :00:32.Earlier, I asked Aileen Clarke what happened in court.
:00:33. > :00:37.The accused, 32-year-old Tanveer Ahmed, who is from Bradford,
:00:38. > :00:41.appeared from custody at Glasgow Sheriff Court today at what was a
:00:42. > :00:47.routine appearance in this case. That appearance was in private but
:00:48. > :00:50.we understand the course of it, Mr Ahmed made a statement and
:00:51. > :00:55.afterwards what we believe is a very similar statement was released to
:00:56. > :01:01.the media on Mr Ahmed's behalf by his solicitor. In this statement, he
:01:02. > :01:06.claims, and I quote, "Mac this happen for one reason and no other
:01:07. > :01:14.issues and no other intentions. Asad Shah disrespected the profit
:01:15. > :01:19.Mohammed, he's be upon him." He says that Mr Shah claim to be a prophet.
:01:20. > :01:23.He then goes on, "If I had not and this, others would, and there would
:01:24. > :01:28.have been more killing and violence in the world." He then says, "I wish
:01:29. > :01:34.to make it clear the incident was nothing to do with Christianity or
:01:35. > :01:39.any other religious beliefs." What happens now? This is very unusual
:01:40. > :01:45.for this to happen so early in this case. Remember, Jackie, this is the
:01:46. > :01:53.second time that Mr Ahmed has appeared in this case, this will
:01:54. > :01:58.become part of the court record and at a later stage Mr Ahmed will be
:01:59. > :02:04.formally asked to lodge his pay, either guilty or not guilty, to what
:02:05. > :02:08.would be a detailed charge of murdering Mr Shah, and the case will
:02:09. > :02:10.move to the High Court, where more serious cases are heard. Mr Ahmed
:02:11. > :02:12.was today remanded in custody. In the Holyrood election campaign,
:02:13. > :02:14.the Conservatives have made clear they will not support SNP plans
:02:15. > :02:17.to reduce air passenger duty. Labour says it would be
:02:18. > :02:20.a tax cut for the wealthy and Liberal Democrats and greens
:02:21. > :02:24.reject it on environmental grounds. But the First Minister,
:02:25. > :02:26.Nicola Sturgeon, insists it Here's our political
:02:27. > :02:41.correspondent, Glenn Campbell. When you take off from a UK airport,
:02:42. > :02:48.air passenger duty adds ?13 to the cost of a short-haul economy flight,
:02:49. > :02:58.?73 if you're flying long haul. Charges the SNP say they have, if
:02:59. > :03:02.re-elected, in May. That cut is not Labour's cup of tea. This is a
:03:03. > :03:09.regressive tax. The more wealthy you are, the more you benefit from this.
:03:10. > :03:14.We think that giving a tax cut to wealthy people is the wrong choice
:03:15. > :03:19.when we are cutting into schools. At the railway station in Paisley, the
:03:20. > :03:23.greens think aviation tax should go up to help keep the cost of train
:03:24. > :03:27.tickets down. We should be subsidising public transport so if
:03:28. > :03:30.your trying to get to London from Scotland, it is cheaper every time
:03:31. > :03:34.to take the railway instead of a plane. At the Edinburgh science
:03:35. > :03:38.Festival, the Lib Dems say facing up to carbon reduction targets is more
:03:39. > :03:43.important than cutting the cost of air travel. We should do everything
:03:44. > :03:48.we can to exceed those targets, not fail them yet again, and that's why
:03:49. > :03:53.we don't agree with the SNP to cut air passenger duty. In the BBC tax
:03:54. > :04:01.debate, conservative, whose campaign for the judges be abolished,
:04:02. > :04:03.confirms this won't be in his party's manifesto. We wouldn't
:04:04. > :04:14.follow the SNP in scrapping or halving the duty. At this butchers,
:04:15. > :04:18.his boss wants to keep it at the same level. We don't want to rack up
:04:19. > :04:25.peoples income tax. We think it is bad for jobs and growth in if we
:04:26. > :04:31.hang a sign over Scotland saying, higher taxes here. In another cafe,
:04:32. > :04:35.the SNP leader has little appetite for increasing income tax, either,
:04:36. > :04:39.and argues that increasing air passenger duty would be an economic
:04:40. > :04:44.sweeper. I make no apology for putting forward policies that will
:04:45. > :04:47.make our economy stronger and more vibrant, and reducing air passenger
:04:48. > :04:51.duty, of course, means it is more cost-effective for businesses doing
:04:52. > :04:56.international trade, more cost-effective for families to go on
:04:57. > :05:00.holiday. On air passenger duty and the other taxes devolved to
:05:01. > :05:01.Holyrood, the differences between the parties will define this
:05:02. > :05:04.election choice. Scotland's economy grew by 0.2% last
:05:05. > :05:06.October to December, and contracted slightly
:05:07. > :05:08.during the previous quarter, that's according to official
:05:09. > :05:12.figures released today. Output across the UK in the final
:05:13. > :05:15.quarter of 2015 is estimated to have And Scottish growth over the whole
:05:16. > :05:22.of last year, at 0.9%, was less than half the 2015 UK
:05:23. > :05:28.growth rate. A 70-year-old man has been arrested
:05:29. > :05:31.and charged with the murder Elizabeth Mackay's body
:05:32. > :05:34.was discovered in her home in the Hilton area of the city last
:05:35. > :05:37.Thursday. The man is due to appear
:05:38. > :05:40.at Inverness Sheriff Court tomorrow. In an apparently unrelated tragedy,
:05:41. > :05:43.it's the same house where another The man in charge of
:05:44. > :05:50.the Scottish Football League says Rangers have been missed
:05:51. > :05:52.from the top division. The Glasgow club won promotion
:05:53. > :05:55.to the Premiership last night Neil Doncaster, from the SPFL,
:05:56. > :06:01.says that the four-year absence has Here's our senior football
:06:02. > :06:33.reporter, Chris McLaughlin. Liquidation four years ago. Fans
:06:34. > :06:38.feared the worst. The big house must stay open! The big house being Ibrox
:06:39. > :06:41.feared the worst. The big house must Stadium could stay open. Just. The
:06:42. > :06:46.club was forced to play its football Stadium could stay open. Just. The
:06:47. > :06:50.in the lower leagues. Some of the games administrators had warned of
:06:51. > :06:54.dire consequences. The word Armageddon was even used. There is
:06:55. > :06:59.no question that the absence of ranges from the top flight has hurt
:07:00. > :07:05.attendance two at some of the clubs, so I think the warnings and
:07:06. > :07:11.predictions and comment at the time was fair. Scottish football relies
:07:12. > :07:15.heavily on TV revenue. How will the broadcasters fewer Rangers return?
:07:16. > :07:17.There's been a huge gap. People who look from a distance will see
:07:18. > :07:20.There's been a huge gap. People who everything is back to normal. And I
:07:21. > :07:26.think, certainly, where the commercial decisions are made on
:07:27. > :07:29.funding and sponsorship inside the M25 or M4 corridor, they've been
:07:30. > :07:34.acutely aware of what is going on and they will think, business as
:07:35. > :07:36.usual. But Rangers absence has coincided with smaller clubs winning
:07:37. > :07:44.bigger prizes. This is St Johnstone coincided with smaller clubs winning
:07:45. > :07:48.winning in 2014. This one big thing to be taken out of what has happened
:07:49. > :07:52.in the last four years. Scottish football can't be viewed through the
:07:53. > :07:57.prism of western Scotland. There are so many clubs around the country who
:07:58. > :08:00.have so much to give to the game. And I think that is a hugely
:08:01. > :08:07.important thing that Scottish football and Tony Glasgow. When the
:08:08. > :08:12.celebrations end, attention will turn to next year. For now, for
:08:13. > :08:14.Rangers, being back in the top table will do.
:08:15. > :08:17.A woman and child killed in a road collision in Fife have been named
:08:18. > :08:19.as 8-year-old Bartek Plachta from Poland and 36-year-old Monika
:08:20. > :08:24.The car was involved in a crash with a lorry near Kirkcaldy
:08:25. > :08:31.Some tenants are being threatened and bullied by landlords
:08:32. > :08:33.if they make a complaint, according to Citizens
:08:34. > :08:36.It's calling for more to be done to tackle bad landlords
:08:37. > :08:39.in the private housing sector after receiving calls from more
:08:40. > :08:42.than 6,000 tenants last year who were reporting problems.
:08:43. > :08:44.The Scottish Association of Landlords said existing rules
:08:45. > :08:50.New rules have just come into force which mean bookmakers and casinos
:08:51. > :08:52.have to compile a risk assessment, to help protect vulnerable punters.
:08:53. > :08:54.Gambling charities welcome anything that might help reduce harm
:08:55. > :08:59.But, as Huw Williams reports, there's some scepticism
:09:00. > :09:11.The fixed odds terminals warn of the dangers but they will tempt you,
:09:12. > :09:15.too. For some compulsive gamblers, the habit can destroy their lives.
:09:16. > :09:20.One man told me that even though he hasn't placed a bet for 14 years,
:09:21. > :09:24.every day is still a struggle. I can't sleep at night. Through
:09:25. > :09:32.worrying about... Financial pressures. I have to get loans to
:09:33. > :09:43.cover the money I've lost. And that brings in lies, stop telling lies to
:09:44. > :09:48.family members, all stuff like that. From today, bookies and casinos have
:09:49. > :09:52.to complete a risk assessment. That allows a betting shop to really
:09:53. > :09:56.target the preventative and protective measures it has around
:09:57. > :10:00.problem gambling to the local community. The other element is an
:10:01. > :10:06.upgrade to our soft exclusion system. Previously, you had to go
:10:07. > :10:10.into every shop in a town to exclude yourself from betting. Now, with
:10:11. > :10:20.just one call, you can exclude yourself may be from the shops near
:10:21. > :10:25.your home, the shops near your, or way you spend your leisure time.
:10:26. > :10:31.There is scepticism. I believe the new legislation is well-meaning.
:10:32. > :10:35.Even if you shut down all the casinos, all the bookmakers and
:10:36. > :10:40.bingo halls in Glasgow, a compulsive Ambler will still be a compulsive
:10:41. > :10:46.gambler. Now John, which isn't his real name, uses his experience to
:10:47. > :10:49.give talks in schools. There is obviously a growing problem with
:10:50. > :10:58.youngsters and compulsive gambling today. With all these smartphones
:10:59. > :11:02.about, access to online gambling. So we are going in there, making the
:11:03. > :11:08.kids aware there is a place to come, if anybody has a problem with
:11:09. > :11:11.gambling or thinking they have a problem, to contact gambling
:11:12. > :11:15.anonymous. Gambling charities say they welcome the new rules but say
:11:16. > :11:17.they will only make a difference if they are properly enforced.
:11:18. > :11:30.Good evening. We have had a real mix this evening, too, with cloud spells
:11:31. > :11:34.and scattered downpours, and we have had downpours through the day, too,
:11:35. > :11:42.this one from one of our weather Watchers, a rainbow after a shower.
:11:43. > :11:45.We will see clear spells and some showers overnight tonight. Across
:11:46. > :11:49.Northern Ireland as well and spreading to northern England,
:11:50. > :11:54.merging two longer spells of rain. Under those clear scars,
:11:55. > :11:58.temperatures falling to around freezing, and perhaps for the
:11:59. > :12:04.Southern uplands, we might see a touch of frost, but elsewhere, 5
:12:05. > :12:10.degrees. Tomorrow morning, a bright start. ATM, a good deal of sunshine
:12:11. > :12:13.around in Dumfries Galloway and the Central Belt. The bulk of the
:12:14. > :12:16.showers confined to the north of the country for the first part of the
:12:17. > :12:23.morning, and they could be heavy with a risk of thunder. And a bit of
:12:24. > :12:27.a fresh wind across the western fringes, western coastal areas in
:12:28. > :12:30.particular. Taking a wider look at the UK, there is brightness across
:12:31. > :12:35.the north of England as well as southern parts of Scotland with
:12:36. > :12:40.longer spells of rain spreading into Wales and the south of England.
:12:41. > :12:44.Temperature wise, 10-12 is possible across Glasgow and Dumfries as we
:12:45. > :12:49.head into the afternoon. Heading into the rest of the evening, some
:12:50. > :12:53.showers around, but more in the way of clear spells tomorrow night, and
:12:54. > :12:57.a greater chance of some frost as temperatures dipped to freezing for
:12:58. > :13:03.some, maybe down to minus one in Aviemore. On Friday, a good deal of
:13:04. > :13:07.sunshine with a few scattered showers on the east coast, in
:13:08. > :13:11.particular, and the winds freshening as another weather front bushes in
:13:12. > :13:16.by the end of the day. Temperature wise, it is cooler along the east
:13:17. > :13:21.coast, but maybe 11 or 12 in the West. Towards the weekend, this
:13:22. > :13:24.weather front will bring more cloud, and also potentially some stronger
:13:25. > :13:25.winds, so it is unsettled for the start of the weekend.
:13:26. > :13:30.Our next update is during Breakfast at 6:25am tomorrow morning.