IS Scotland a nation or not? If you believe, like this newspaper does, that we are indeed a nation equal to any other - then it is beyond ridiculous, beyond insulting and beyond toleration that Scotland is being denied its own nightly news programme. Any free country must be able to reflect the world as it sees it through its own independent media.

As such the decision by BBC chiefs in London to permanently rule out a Scottish Six TV news programme could not be more toxic. Scotland's will is already being flouted over Brexit - and now grey men in London have added insult to injury by crushing the opportunity for us to have a simple news programme.