It’s the end of another busy month at The Ferret. Wherever you are, be it sipping your morning coffee or indulging in the sweet drama of Glasgow’s Willy Wonka experience, we hope you’re having a great weekend.
From day one, transparency has been at the core of our work at The Ferret. If you snoop around our website, you’ll even find a whole page about it. We believe in not just sharing our stories but also revealing the dedication that goes into them.
For this reason, last year we started updating our members and newsletter subscribers about our monthly adventures, highlighting the real-world effects of our journalism. This year, we have decided to keep you up to speed about our stories, team, and events with a blog too.
So, what have The Ferrets been up to lately? Read on to find out.
We launched a new series 🐋
Our journalists have been delving into some fishy business. In February, we launched a new investigative series, ‘Scotland’s Seas in Danger.’ Over the coming months, we’ll be shedding light on the complex challenges affecting our marine environment – from overfishing to pollution.
Carried out with the support of Journalismfund Europe, the investigation is part of a cross-border project in partnership with the Investigative Reporting Project Italy, which is conducting fieldwork in (the much sunnier) Sardinia, Sicily, and Apulia and will publish its work later this year.
The initial stories of the project examined the state of play in our marine environment, from Scotland’s marine protection measures to the species in decline.
Our reporting inspired political action
At the end of January we published a secretly filmed video allegedly featuring the controversial businessman, Mark Fortune, threatening a tenant in a row over rent payments.
The footage led to renewed accusations from campaigners that authorities are guilty of inaction. Watch the video here.
Following our story, Labour’s Sarah Boyack MSP urged the Scottish Government and Edinburgh city council to open a “proper investigation” into the case. Boyack said those who subject tenants to “abusive” behaviour should “face serious consequences”.
…and raised some questions
Scottish Labour MSP Monica Lennon questioned Scottish Government ministers Màiri McAllan and Mairi Gougeon about our report on the Scottish National Investment Bank’s investment in the Gresham House forestry fund.
Unleashing change: a law proposal to ban greyhound races
After years of reporting on greyhound racing and the animal welfare concerns connected to it, Scottish Green MSP Mark Ruskell launched a consultation for a bill that would make it illegal to hold races in Scotland.
The proposal cites one of our reports, ‘Dozens of greyhounds racing in Scotland test positive for banned substances such as cocaine’, which we published in 2019.
And speaking of politics…
This past month, The Ferret revealed that arms companies supplying Israel with bombs and parts for warplanes had been invited to the Scottish Parliament despite the rising death toll in Gaza and allegations Britain could be complicit in war crimes.
The Holyrood reception was also sponsored by Labour MSP Paul Sweeney, who previously worked for BAE Systems. However, Sweeney withdrew his sponsorship after The Ferret asked him to respond to criticisms of the event. Not only that, following the publication of our report a protest was organised for the event on 21 Feb at Holyrood.
That’s all for this month! If you have any questions about our work, or would like to help us shape our future investigations, you can get in touch with the team at contact@theferret.scot.
As you know, here at The Ferret we pride ourselves in making good journalism that changes things. And you can help us do more of it.
It’s easy: you can contribute by becoming a member today or with a one-off donation. If these options are not for you, you can always subscribe to our free newsletter to support our work.
Main image: François Xavier TESTU
