Interesting News

A business incubator center is Hawick will help Borders business establish themselves and grow, thanks to a £3.6 million funding package. The funding will also; develop four industrial units at the edge of the town, upgrade existing business facilities in Hawick's Tower Mill and secure commitment by Scottish Borders Council to fund and undertake feasibility studies for regeneration of two further redundant mill buildings to inform potential investors. The Scottish Government is working with Scottish Borders Council, local businesses and community groups to further develop the local economy, building upon the Hawick Action Plan. The support is part of a £10m local economic development capital grant fund, which is also supporting businesses in North Ayrshire, Clackmannanshire and Fife. Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy, Paul Wheelhouse, said; "Supporting economic growth in the South of Scotland is a priority for this government, creating and protecting job...

Deputy First Minister, John Swinney, has set out his vision of empowerment and devolution for Scottish education, putting children at the heart of the system. At the School Leaders Scotland summer conference, the deputy First Minister reiterated his pledge to make teachers and parents the key decision makers in schools. It comes ahead of a statement of Parliament by Mr Swinney next week, subject to Parliamentary approval, when he will set out the next steps for education reform. Mr Swinney, said; "As part of the relentless drive to improve Scottish education, we must embrace the need to reform and reshape our education system. To close the attainment gap and raise the bar for all, decisions about a child's learning should be made as close to that child as possible. "That is why I have pledged to make teachers and parents the key decision makers in the life of a school. Reforms already introduced, such as Pupil Equity Funding, put the power to change lives dire...

The UK Government's pursuit of a hard Brexit would widen the inequality gap faced by disabled people, Social Security Minister, Jane Freeman has said. Ms Freeman raised her concerns on a visit to Strasbourg today, where she discussed Scotland's leading approach to promoting the rights of disabled people with the Council of Europe and Members of the European Parliament. Brexit poses a significant threat to the right that disabled people currently have under international conventions, rights, Ms Freeman said must be protected. Ms Freeman, said; "While the Scottish Government continues working hard to improve the lives of disabled people in Scotland, we know a hard Brexit puts jobs at risk and will create a further attack on their rights, eroding the protections and obligations we have come to expect. "Through my dialogue with the Council of Europe and the European Parliament, I stressed what we are already doing to uphold these principles. "The best w...

Of all the children who go missing everyday Madeline MacCann is virtually the only known face, or name on the register. Brought into the press again with the publication of The Truth of the Lie, by Portuguese police investigator Goncalo Amarla, Madeline MacCann seems to be the only cute child the press cares about. The Truth of the Lie states that the MacCann's killed their daughter, and then covered it up with an investigation, which of course the parents took to court. Whether this is true or not, the disappearance of Madeline was very much the parents fault anyway, having left her in a foreign hotel room while they went drinking all night and having different people check in with her every hour. If anything her disappearance should have highlighted poor parenting, the dangers of foreign travel with small children, or even just the extensive list of ongoing missing children cases. That is not how it went however, instead the press decided these parents care more than ...

Basic politics is easy to grasp, but trying to teach yourself politics, in an unbiased manner, is very difficult. In my high school Social Education was made a mandatory subject, taught once a week, for the entity of the high school education, And while repeatedly learning the same things about sex and drugs is SO important there is no education on basic politics to speak of. Also I was never taught how to write a cheque, pay bills, or set up insurance, but those are separate issues. The recent run of elections, and referendums, and the poor youth turnouts are a huge sign that the populace is not receiving any understanding of basic politics. However, making it a mandatory topic within high school education, such as embedding it into already existent classes like social education, could prepare the future generations for making strong, well educated decisions when it comes the the governing of our country. With most parents not even having the most basic grasp of unbiased pol...

Changing pounds into euros Sunday, following the General Election results was crippling, for my bank account.  In the two hours it took to get from my home to the currency exchange the pound plummeted, costing me an extra eight pounds sterling from the amount I would have paid two hours previously. While in the queue for the till the pound dropped an extra two pounds in fifteen minutes.  Having been given a chance to make positive changes to government and society as a whole the British people queued up on Thursday and said; 'Fuck you, I'm British. I like strife and conflict.' Resulting in the second hung parliament in ten years, not nearly enough time to recover from the Nick Clegg, and David Cameron partnership that got us here in the first place.  Though we could count back this awful system of government and snide politics to Tony Blair and his New Labour campaign.  The vote had a few interesting plot turns, such as Kennsington going home to...

Hundreds of people will have the opportunity to study for degree-level courses while in employment thanks to a significant expansion of Graduate Level Apprenticeships. A total of 379 places will be made available for individuals to study for a degree, up to Masters levels, while in work in 2017-18. This builds on the investment that delivered a successful pilot of 27 places in the academic year of 2016-17. Skills Development Scotland is working with businesses, universities and colleges to deliver Graduate Level Apprenticeships. The programme aims to meet the needs of employers looking for high levels of academic and industry accreditation combined with experience in the workplace. Minister for Employability and Training, Jamie Hepburn, said; "We carried out a consultation with employers, which identified a need for skills that better support businesses and help them grow. "As a result we have committed to expanding the number of Graduate Level Apprenticeships, br...

Almost a third of golden eagles being tracked by satellite died in suspicious circumstance, scientists have found.  The Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) research identified that the majority of cases were found where land is intensively managed for driven grouse shooting.  Environment Secretary, Roseanna Cunningham, confirmed to the Scottish Parliament she will now set up an expert group to look at managing grouse moors sustainably and within the law.  Following a request by the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee the group will also advise on the option of licensing grouse shooting businesses.  The report studied the movements of 131 young golden eagles over a 12 year period, and found more than 40 had disappeared in suspicious circumstances. It also found there was no link between fitting satellite tags and the disappearance of the birds of prey and ruled out any connection with the position of wind turbines.  In response M...

Thousands more people are considering a career in teaching as a result of the Scottish Government's latest recruitment campaign, according to early evaluation findings. The Teaching Makes People campaign was launched by Deputy First Minister John Swinney in February, targeting undergraduates studying science, technology, engineering and maths subjects as well as people currently working in these industries. The campaign visited 11 universities and recruitment firs, supported by outdoor and targeted digital advertising, radio features and a dedicated teaching website. The early evaluation results have shown that almost 3,500 people visited the Teaching Makes People stand, with 1,090 spending significant time discussing a career in teaching. More than 42,000 unique visitors to the campaign website and more than 2,600 registered for updates about applying for a postgraduate teacher education course. More than a third of undergraduates surveyed, after seeing the campaign, t...

Keith Brown has announced the opening of the M8, M73 and M74 as part of the £500 million M8, M73 and M74 Motorway Improvements Project. The Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair work said all daytime lane restrictions on the M8, M73 and M74 will be removed progressively over the coming days, freeing up capacity on the key part of Central Scotland's motorway network. This will allow road users to experience the benefit of the widened motorways and help deliver the full journey time savings of the new M8 motorway opened in April and the M74 Raith Underpass opened in February. As part of the Motorway Improvements Project, a range of improvements have been built over the last three years, including a new M8 motorway, significant improvements to Raith and Shawhead junctions as well as widening of the M8 M73 and M74, with new lanes providing an increase in motorway capacity. Mr Brown, said; £We are just a few days away from seeing the last of the lane restrictions bein...

A full independent care review group has now been established, First Minister Nicolaa Sturgeon confirmed to a reception of care experienced young people from across Scotland on the 30th of May.   The members have been appointed to support the Chair, Fiona Duncan, to undertake an independent review into Scotland's care system.  The group will look at legislation, practices, culture and ethos of the care system across Scotland. They will listen to young people with experience of care and their families and providers of care and particularly, children and young people in care now, to inform its recommendations to improve both the quality of life and outcomes of young people in care.  The First Minister, said; "Every young person should have an equal opportunity to succeed in life, no matter their circumstances. We should celebrate the progress that has been made that has allowed many of our young people who grow up in care to do great things in life, and thos...

The next milestone in building Scotland's new social security system will be the delivery of the first benefits and these will be the increased Carer's Allowance, the Best Start Grant and the Funeral Expense Assistance. The new benefits will be subject to the scrutiny and agreement of the Scottish Parliament. Social Security Secretary, Angela Constance, said; "The delivery of these first benefits is the next milestone in building Scotland's new social security system - the largest, most complex programme of change in the history of devolution. "The benefits we will deliver may be different in nature but there is one common thread which binds them - an investment in the people of Scotland. "Our approach will always treat people with fairness, dignity and respect, and there is no better way to show this than providing the support that they need and when they need it. These steps are key to helping us create a fairer country for all. "Our plan...

Scotland's NHS is to see an additional £50 million investment to improve waiting times performance, announced health secretary Shona Robison. The investment will be distributed across the territorial health boards to improve performance in a range of areas; including outpatient consultations, diagnostic tests and treatment. This will support improvements in waiting times, particularly for inpatients who have been experiencing waits above the 12 week treatment time guarantee. Ms Robison, said; "This increased funding of £50 million will help us reduce waiting times at all stages of a patient's journey through the NHS - the original consultation, and tests required, and the final procedure itself. " This investment comes in addition to the £10 million that was recently invested to reduce outpatient waiting times focusing on areas such as orthopaedics, ophthalmology and gastroenterology. Following this investment, the most recent waiting times statistics, sho...