Today we speak to Scottish pundit Lesley Riddoch an award-winning broadcaster, journalist and author about Scotland's new first minister and the issues faced by the SNP.

Humza Yousaf has pledged to be a "first minister for all of Scotland" after being chosen by party members to replace Nicola Sturgeon. Mr Yousaf, who had been serving as health secretary, also vowed to "kickstart" a grassroots campaign that would "ensure our drive for independence is in fifth gear".

Here are some of the other issues that are looming in his in-tray:

1. The mammoth task required fixing the problems across health and social care. More than 600,000 people are on a waiting list; A&E departments are regularly full; one in every six patients in hospital cannot get out, despite being ready to be discharged.
2. Education: Before the pandemic, the Scottish government saw education as its defining mission. It wanted to be judged by its progress in raising attainment and helping children and young people from disadvantaged areas. Inevitably, the pandemic has thrown up new problems which are still real issues.
3. Scotland's business lobbies hope for a reset in their relations with Bute House. Several feel their concerns have taken a low priority under Nicola Sturgeon.
4. Climate change: Tackling climate change was one of Nicola Sturgeon's priorities, with the Scottish Parliament setting some of the most ambitious targets in the world. But year after year those targets have been missed and the government's independent advisers have said Scotland's lead has been lost.
5. The government's track record on the NHS is never far from a political rammy, but increasingly those working within health and social care are asking policymakers to step back from arguing among themselves and give some candid consideration to what kind of reform is needed. The new FM says his priority is to recover and reform the NHS but he won't deviate from its founding principle, to be free at the point of use.

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Mekey Gabriel is a long-term investor who is passionate about finance, tax, investments and estate planning. She helps us today to look at the recent banking crisis across the globe.

This month has seen the largest U.S. banking failure since the 2008 financial crisis when regulators closed SVB and seized its deposits, and the second largest ever with the buyout of the 167-year-old Swiss bank Credit Suisse. The SVB collapse was due to the need for it to raise $2.25 billion to shore up its balance sheet, while the Credit Suisse crisis was a result of changes in top management, questionable acquisitions, and penalization leading to a deterioration in reputation and a 10% drop in business growth. Members of the VC community have bemoaned the role that other investors played in SVB’s demise, while UBS, the biggest number one Swiss Bank, bailed out Credit Suisse at a cheap rate and wrote off the AT1 bonds worth 17 BN $.

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This weekend, Match of the Day was broadcast without presenters, pundits, or commentators after Gary Lineker was suspended from the BBC for breaching impartiality guidelines with his criticism of the government's asylum policies. In solidarity with Lineker, Ian Wright, Alan Shearer, and other pundits have refused to present the show, leading the BBC to only feature match footage. Initially, the BBC had put pressure on Lineker to agree to their terms on his future use of social media, but on Monday, the Corporation did a u-turn in the face of public pressure after Lineker's suspension had been widely criticized. This has now led to calls for BBC chair Richard Sharp to resign for his mishandling of the affair.

Roifield is joined by a group of British pundits to discuss this momentous weekend in British politics, in which football, immigration policy, and free speech all collided.

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Bo Shuff serves as the Executive Director for DC Vote having been promoted from Director of Advocacy in June of 2017. Bo has spent the last twenty years on the front lines of both electoral and advocacy politics. From being a member of the Gore election team in Florida in 2000 to being on the staff of HRC from the Lawrence decision through the 2006 Marriage Amendments, Bo somehow finds himself engaged in some of the hottest political moments. In addition to organizational advocacy work his electoral efforts led to a progressive majority in the Washington State Senate and, as Campaign Manager, the election of Mayor Muriel Bowser. He joined DC Vote in 2016 with an eye to achieving full equality for the residents of the 51st State, Washington DC.

https://www.dcvote.org

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Leslie Herod

The first openly gay, Black person elected to the Colorado state legislature. She was first elected in 2016 and most recently re-elected for a fourth and final term to the Colorado State House of Representatives - representing House district eight. During the 2021 legislative session, Herod was appointed to the state's coveted Joint Budget Committee. During the previous session, Herod was vice-chair of the Judiciary Committee. She's now a mayoral candidate in Denver. The election is on April 4, 2023.

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My guests today are Moj Mahdra a founding member of the Iranian Diaspora Collective, which was just created in response to the Iranian uprisings and Helen Kamali an Iranian-American and Co-Founder of The Azadi Co which is a streetwear for freedom project that donates funds to Iran-centric charities. 

Human Rights activists in Iran claim that At least 470 people have been killed since the demonstrations began and more than 18,000 have been arrested. We ask if these protests will topple the regime of the Ayatollah

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