https://aseannow.com/rss/44-thailand-news.xml/National and regional news from all around ThailandenScotland's former first minister Nicola Sturgeon has said she feels as though she is "serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit" following the admission by her estranged husband, Peter Murrell, that he embezzled more than £400,000 from the Scottish National Party (SNP). Get today's headlines by email In an interview with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg, Sturgeon rejected calls to apologise for the scandal, insisting she was not responsible for Murrell's actions and had no knowledge of the wrongdoing. Murrell admitted embezzling party funds between 2010 and 2022 and is due to be sentenced later this month. Sturgeon, who led the SNP from 2014 until 2023 and served as Scotland's first minister for more than eight years, said she would accept responsibility for her own decisions but would not apologise for crimes committed by someone else. She argued that holding her accountable for Murrell's actions risked reinforcing the idea that women should bear responsibility for the conduct of men in their lives. While acknowledging the impact the affair has had on her personally and politically, she maintained that Murrell had deceived both the party and its leadership. Emotional Account of BetrayalThe former first minister became emotional while describing gifts she received from Murrell that were later found to have been purchased using SNP funds. Among them was a pendant from a Shetland jeweller that she said she treasured and wore frequently. Sturgeon said she believed it had been a thoughtful gift from her husband and found it painful to discover it had been bought with party money. She said learning that items presented as personal gifts had been funded in that way caused her lasting distress and left her struggling to come to terms with what had happened. Sturgeon also addressed questions about a luxury motorhome purchased with party funds and stored at Murrell's mother's property. She said she had no clear recollection of seeing the vehicle and would not have had any reason to suspect it belonged to the SNP. Questions Over Party OversightMurrell, who served as SNP chief executive for more than two decades, resigned in March 2023 amid controversy over party membership figures. He was arrested weeks later as part of the police investigation into SNP finances known as Operation Branchform. Sturgeon was also arrested and questioned during the inquiry but was released without charge. She stressed that prosecutors and investigators had not found evidence linking her to the embezzlement. Asked whether she should bear responsibility given her role overseeing the party, Sturgeon said there had been no warnings about the criminal behaviour to which Murrell later pleaded guilty. She added that if information in the accounts had pointed to wrongdoing, investigators might have reached a different conclusion about her involvement. She also rejected suggestions that her personal assets should be used to repay money lost through the embezzlement, saying she was not guilty of the offence and should not be expected to contribute to any recovery process. Calls for Further ScrutinySturgeon's comments prompted criticism from some political opponents and former SNP figures. Former SNP MP Joanna Cherry said concerns centred not on Murrell's criminal actions but on whether legitimate scrutiny of the party's finances had been obstructed. Meanwhile, UK government minister Pat McFadden backed calls for a parliamentary inquiry into the affair, arguing that questions remained about the SNP's culture and governance. Conservative shadow home secretary Chris Philp also supported an inquiry, saying public trust in politics had been damaged by the scandal. However, Scotland's First Minister John Swinney rejected demands for a Holyrood investigation, arguing that the police inquiry and resulting guilty plea had already established the facts of the case. Murrell remains in custody after pleading guilty and is scheduled to be sentenced on 23 June. Join the discussion? Already a member? Adapted by ASEAN Now. Source 1 June 2026 View full articleSun, 31 May 2026 20:27:01 +0000Georgie, wrong again. You labour voters, re electing Albo should be ashamed of yourselves, he's destroying the Australia I was born in and grew up in. The only one who can save us now is Pauline. They love her in Bali. video_20260524_152734_edit.mp4Sun, 31 May 2026 20:22:33 +0000Thanks for your reply, very concerning. You've spoken about the government expenses, outgoings. What about incoming, Mining, iron ore, coal, gas, etc. also taxes. Poor Georgie pays around 30 or 40 cents in every dollar he earns from mopping floors. We're one the highest taxed country in the world. Australia is a major global supplier of fossil fuels, I would have thought the money coming in would balance outgoing.Sun, 31 May 2026 20:19:31 +0000Lies!! It is confirmed, also by him, that the drone was a Geran-2 type Russian drone.Sun, 31 May 2026 19:47:31 +0000Its probably not as rare as you think. What about ones that perhaps existed before we were even around. They could have existed 1 billion or 5 billion years before us. Their civilization may have expanded to parts of the universe and died off before our time. Maybe they were around for 200 million years.... but a spec in time. Travelling at just 10 percent the speed of light we could colonize the galaxy in 1 to 5 million years .....But a spec in time.Sun, 31 May 2026 19:44:24 +0000Most laptops have a door that allows you to remove the HDD. Have a look underneath the laptop, for a small screw holding closed a door. Remove the HDD, destroy it or store it in a safe place. BTW, There may be a door for RAM upgrade, ignore this door.Sun, 31 May 2026 19:44:01 +0000You need to also wipe it by overwriting. There's a few ways to do this. You could simply fill it with multiple copies of a large file. Or use BCWipe or 'File Shredder' or something like that. Or encrypt the entire drive with something like Veracrypt then remove it and throw it away. I would go with BCWipe - it has a free trial and you're only going to need it once.Sun, 31 May 2026 19:28:58 +0000Burnham may well not win in Makerfield.Sun, 31 May 2026 19:22:05 +0000Strictly IMO here. A presidential candidate has to have "it." Yeah, it's a silly term, it goes back a ways, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_girl In this case I mean someone who grabs people's attention and keeps it, and will say things that make people say "yeah!" Newsom has it. Talarico has it. Mark Kelly has it. Harris does not, nor Booker, nor Klobuchar. I've heard their speeches and none of their stuff sticks -- when I catch them on tv I don't think about what they're saying, instead I drift off and try to remember if I put the milk in the fridge and other menial stuff. AOC is a phoney. I lived in the area of NYC close to where she claims to have grown up, and it's obvious it's not so, her family moved to a more comfortable part of NY state when she was a kid. No way is she a barrio girl, and she better watch out because the real ones would gladly kick her ass. Would I vote for her? If she could defeat MAGA/GOP then yes. Would I vote for a barrio girl? Absolutely, if she has what it takes. AOC should live out here political career in the House. Pete is pretty cool-headed, the only time I've seen him do attitude was when a tv host was trying to get him to say something about how Harris became the 2024 candidate back when that was going on. I don't think enough US voters are ready for someone openly gay, even with his "every mothers' son" personality; there was a reporter hanging around outside a poll on the day of the Iowa caucus asking people who they voted more. He approached a bunch of middle-aged ladies, and they all said they voted for Pete, and in the exchange one them brought up him being gay, and another said "what?" One said he yes he is and her response was "how come no one told me this? Can I get my ballot back so I can change it?" Vance comes off like a "I want to see the manager!" type of blowhard, Marco is an empty suit. It looks like DT has weened the GOP of anyone with a spine. But of course the real MAGA agenda is to have no presidential election. no_more_vote.mp4Sun, 31 May 2026 19:16:20 +0000Falling birth rates have become a defining political battleground across the West, with conservative leaders warning of demographic decline and urging families to have more children. But as populations age and workforce shortages deepen, a difficult question is moving to the centre of the debate: can declining birth rates be offset without immigration? The answer may shape economies, public services and political discourse for decades. A Demographic Squeeze Tightens From the United States to Europe, fertility rates have fallen well below replacement levels. In England and Wales, birth rates have dropped to their lowest level in decades, while deaths are beginning to outpace births in some years. The consequences are already visible. Schools face shrinking enrolment, workforces are ageing, and governments are confronting rising pension and healthcare costs with fewer taxpayers available to support them. The Right Pushes for a Baby Boom Conservative figures including JD Vance, Elon Musk, Giorgia Meloni and Viktor Orbán have framed declining birth rates as a civilisational threat. Their solutions often centre on tax incentives, family support measures and policies designed to encourage larger families. The goal is straightforward: reverse demographic decline through higher domestic birth rates rather than increased migration. Economic Reality Refuses to Cooperate The challenge is that many of the forces suppressing birth rates are deeply economic. Housing costs, expensive childcare, insecure employment and uncertainty about the future continue to weigh on family decisions. Evidence from multiple countries suggests financial incentives alone rarely produce sustained increases in fertility. Governments can influence decisions at the margins, but reversing long-term demographic trends has proved far more difficult. Immigration Moves From Political Flashpoint to Economic Necessity As populations age, demand for workers in healthcare, social care and other essential sectors continues to grow. Many economists argue that immigration provides the fastest way to offset workforce shortages while longer-term demographic solutions are pursued. That creates a growing tension at the heart of right-wing politics. Leaders who promise sharp reductions in migration must also explain how ageing societies will fund pensions, staff hospitals and sustain economic growth. A Debate No Longer About the Future What was once a discussion about distant demographic trends is becoming an immediate policy challenge. Birth rates are falling now. Populations are ageing now. Labour shortages are emerging now. The political argument may focus on culture and identity, but the underlying pressure is increasingly practical: who will work, who will care for the elderly, and how societies adapt when there are fewer young people to carry the load. The right is desperate for a solution to falling birth rates. Who’s going to tell them that the answer is immigration?Sun, 31 May 2026 19:15:17 +0000Are you going back as well, wherever you come from?Sun, 31 May 2026 18:47:05 +0000I have an old Laptop I don't use anymore. Now my question is how to delete everything on the Laptop? I do know how to delete everything, but it will leave traces on my hard drive. So, can I delete everything, or is that impossible? I just don't like anybody reading my old letters and so on. I got nothing illegal on the laptop, so just restore it to the factory settings? Like to hear from you. And no, I am not in LOS at the moment; please refrain from advising me on shops in Thailand. And I have to add, I am not a computer wizard. Thanks in advanceSun, 31 May 2026 18:30:03 +0000You always get sedation, diazepam I think. That's why they require that you don't come to the endoscopy driving your own car because you stay groggy for some time afterwards. The sedation helps you "swallow" the tube, ie helps you relax so that the tube goes down smoothly. It is not more unpleasant than having a tooth pulled. And once it's finished it's much better than having had a tooth pulled. It is the only way to rule out cancer.Sun, 31 May 2026 18:27:14 +0000https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1BKVb5GBb9/Sun, 31 May 2026 18:15:28 +0000Gamma, Did Elon Musk Just Rig The Stock Market? NO! The market was rigged from the beginning. Elon is just playing the stock market, as everyone does. Is this wrong, just because Elon is ELON???Sun, 31 May 2026 17:58:49 +0000Collateral Alcohol Damage at 5 am ... By the title , I was expecting a real clash of Titans , like a a 100 people involved ... boring .Sun, 31 May 2026 17:57:29 +0000Thx So, I visited all 7/11 in my neighborhood, 10 stores. One actually had themSun, 31 May 2026 17:57:06 +0000Goomba, I appreciate your enthusiasm for someone, or some kind of supernatural messiah, that you wish actually existed to help save the planet. It’s hard not to share that dream for earth, or any other planet inhabited by semi intelligent life. But the fact that you still can’t grasp how evil, damaging, and destructive people like Trump or Musk really are is probably because you’re simply too buried in a purple haze of 60's stardust to grasp the true state of affairs. Critical thinking, good judgment, and rational decision making are not things that can easily be taught. Even a decent IQ is often not enough to nurture them. And they rarely develop out of nowhere over time. In my experience, you either already have them when you exit the placenta or you don’t. As the oracle once said: I'm sorry, kiddo. I really am. You have a good soul. And I hate giving good people bad news. Don't worry about it. Here. Take a cookie. I promise, by the time you're done eating it, you'll feel right as rain.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:35:23 +0000Considering the fact that French fur traders had their reach from Canada to New Orleans (the Missisipy river) is amazing. Getting along with local indian treibes nicely What's left is Quebec. Unfortunately, Napoleon III neeeded money, Sold Luisiana for 7 million Dollars, not knowing how large Luisiana was. Next great real estate deal. Seward bought Alaska from the Russians also for 7 million Dollars. Talk about great "real estate " deals. Dwarfing Donalds efforts by far.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:29:02 +0000I would like to see a concentration of some of Thailand's finest Toms, many of which are so gorgeous they have a hard time hiding their beauty behind their masculine and bulky clothes.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:18:18 +0000Though my heart certainly goes out to these young men and their families, as their deaths are no doubt a tragedy. But Russia has brought this upon themselves and Putin is certainly getting what he deserves. Let us hope there's a real uprising sometime soon.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:16:01 +0000I was traveling the Mekong in the 80s and stopped in Mukdahan for the night. Next door to the hotel was a completely dark as night restaurant. Even the waiters didn't use flashlights. But there was a thin line of line, maybe as thick as a pencil. I had to peer in and there were lots of teenagers. I spent time living in a brothel in Ubon and a couple of the girls gave me their school photos. All this is not unusual even today.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:14:40 +0000The only place I can think of that would be appropriate to have his name displayed is on an outhouse. It's would somehow be appropriate considering the amount of s*** that this creep has dumped on the world and just 16 short months.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:14:35 +0000Yeah I was impressed by his willingness to donate his salary and then grift billions of dollars from the American people using the presidency. That's what I call real honor, elegance and integrity.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:11:58 +0000On a number of occasions there was some bits on display for all to see. Not exactly family or public friendly.Sun, 31 May 2026 17:10:44 +0000