So we’re a week into the new year, and already two teenagers have been murdered - most recently Faridon Alizada, 18, found stabbed to death in a block of flats that, according to those living nearby, should have been demolished years ago. The site and circumstances of his death couldn’t have been any more depressing, or less surprising. for more click here
The SNP has welcomed an international report which found civil liberties were better protected in Scotland than other parts of the UK.
The human rights group Privacy International ranked Scotland separately in its annual report for the first time. for more click here
Energy firm Npower has announced that electricity prices for its domestic customers will rise by 12.7%, while gas bills will see a 17.2% increase. Npower, the UK’s fourth-largest energy provider, said it had been “forced to put up prices” because of soaring wholesale energy costs. for more click here
The outstanding feature of this year’s weather was undoubtedly the devastating summer floods. But there was plenty of other weird weather across the UK.New year came in with a bang in Torbay, Devon, as a great big ball of light dropped out of the sky and exploded — a possible case of ball lightning. At the end of March, drivers across England and Wales found their cars covered in dust swept over from Sahara Dust in Libya. for more click here
The Forth Replacement Crossing is to be a cable-stayed bridge upstream of the existing road bridge.
The option agreed by Ministers will be delivered in the quickest possible timescale and at the lowest cost. It will also improve transport connections and reduce the CO2 emissions generated by the current crossing.
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Scottish fishermen were yesterday given the green light to catch more cod next year after a decade of cuts, in return for their pioneering approach to conserving the fragile stock. for more click here
Alarmed as a scientist by global warming trends, ten years ago I published a book called “Jane Austen and the Black Hole of British History. Colonial rapacity, holocaust denial and the crisis in biological sustainability” (see: here ). My argument was a simple and straightforward one about rational risk management – history ignored yields history repeated, genocide ignored yields genocide repeated, or in 21st century terms, spin-based denial or ignoring of horrendous realities permits their continuance because of lack of requisite ameliorative action. for more click here
The largest survey of Scottish young people has revealed a remarkable snapshot of the nation’s views.
Nearly 3000 young Scots were questioned on a whole range of issues for Youthlink, the national youth work agency, primarily in a bid to inform policy-makers.
More than one-half believe they enjoy a healthy lifestyle but many are unhappy with their figures. for more click here
One has big hair, a $2.9bn fortune and an ego the size of the moon. The other is a former racing tipster whose own prodigious vanity is swollen by the knowledge that he is his nation’s most impressive politician. for more click here
SCOTLAND HAS been accused by the European Union (EU) of 65 violations of laws meant to prevent pollution, protect wildlife and control waste, according to a secret government database released to the Sunday Herald.
The number of alleged breaches of European legal directives over the past six years is twice as high as previously admitted, prompting accusations yesterday that Scotland’s record was “shocking” and had been “covered up”. for more click here