McArthur hits out at above inflation ferry fare rise Responding to the news that ferry fares across Scotland will increase by 10% from next year, Orkney MSP Liam McArthur said: This fare hike will come as a serious blow to households and businesses in Orkney who rely on these lifeline services and who continue to struggle with cost of living pressures. When the Scottish Government 'froze' fares last year, Ministers congratulated themselves for having protected island communities. At no time did they suggest that their generosity would be clawed back in future years through an inflation-busting increase. People in Orkney ...
If you want an accurate picture of Britain in the Seventies, forget Dominic Sandbrook. Look instead for an archive of Nationwide or of TV commercials from the decade. As everyone is so young these days, this post probably needs a link to something about Derek Nimmo. What this obituary doesn't say is that, along with Clement Freud and Nicholas Parsons, he was part of the Just a Minute cell of Liberal Party supporters.
This just in from our Trivia Desk... His father, Erwin, had arrived in Glasgow in 1939 after fleeing Hungary. Erwin Knopfler was a chessplayer & was runner-up in the Scottish championship of 1953. (Credit to the formidable Alan McGowan for establishing the identify of E. Knopfler in the cross-table below.) (2/2) pic.twitter.com/xIqc2bmN6x — Douglas Griffin (@dgriffinchess) September 19, 2020And a word too for James Aitken, who not only won the title that year but beat all the other competitors in doing so. As well as winning this championship on ten occasions, he was a codebreaker at Bletchley Park during the ...
Roz Savage explains why she has tabled her Climate and Nature Bill: "While I was out there, alone in the middle of the ocean, I witnessed the beauty and strength of the natural world first hand. I realised how utterly reliant we are on the health of our planet, and how vulnerable we are to the Earth's changing climate." "It is certainly true that the two remaining candidates, Robert Jenrick and Kemi Badenoch, stand on the far right of the party. Both make Margaret Thatcher, a famously right-wing Conservative prime minister, look like a sopping wet liberal. But anyone who ...
We've published a series of maiden speeches from the House of Commons, as our new MPs dip their toes in the water for the first time. But we've also had a new peer take her seat, as Caroline Pidgeon has joined the ranks of our Parliamentary Party in the Lords. The Second Reading of the Passenger Railway Services (Public Ownership) Bill took place last Monday, and Caroline took this opportunity to make her (well-received) debut... My Lords, it is an honour and a privilege to speak in your Lordships' House for the first time. Over the last few weeks, I ...
Succinct? I forget. Past equinox. Nights draw in. Let's share warmth – winter comes soon. Your smile drops, eyes haze. Can you grip... Do you remember? Please.
Generative artificial intelligences such as ChatGPT and DALL-E, once considered science fiction in the belief that creativity was the reserve of human consciousness, now threatens the livelihoods of professional creatives, and to undermine democracy through misinformation. Its recent advent means that it is largely unregulated. This demonstrates why we should take advantage of any opportunities to openly debate and consider all the implications of technologies which we know are on the horizon but will not be commonplace for years. One such technology that this would apply to would be in vitro gametogenesis. In vitro gametogenesis is an assisted reproduction technology ...
DUNDEE CITY COUNCIL - WEEKLY ROAD REPORT REPORT FOR THE WEST END WARD - WEEK COMMENCING MONDAY 14 OCTOBER 2024 Seafield Road, Dundee - closed from its westmost end (in cul-de-sac) extending for a distance of no more than 20 metres in an easterly direction to facilitate a site access for a new housing development until November 2025. Blinshall Street (Douglas Street to 50 metres south) - closed until December 2024 for construction works. Douglas Street (Blinshall Street to Brown Street) - temporary traffic lights until December 2024 for construction works. Brown Street (south of Douglas Street) - closed until ...
I was on holiday when the final vote by MPs excluded favourite, James Cleverly from the deciding members ballot for Tory leader so didn't have an opportunity to comment on it. The outcome means that whatever the final result the Conservatives are set to move even further to the right to the extent that they might as well just rename themselves as 'Reform' and invite Nigel Farage to take the reins instead. One of the choices now is Robert Jenrick, whose supporters were selling baseball caps at Tory Conference emblazoned with the legend 'Bobby J'. I read one report in ...
