Scotland's First National Park
Scotland was the birthplace of John Muir, who was so instrumental in getting the idea of National Parks accepted in the USA and other parts of the world. It is perhaps surprising, therefore, that Scotland does not have any areas designated in this way. Part of the reason may have been the lack of available time for legislation at Westminster, but it became one of the early priorities of the new Scottish Parliament. And so on Wednesday the Princess Royal officially opened the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. The park is home to 21 Munros (mountain peaks over 3000 feet), 20 Corbetts (hills between 2,500 and 3,000 feet) and 162 public rights of way, encompassing more than 1250 miles of path network.
It is a sign of modern priorities that the first visible sign of the National Park is the Lomond Shores visitor centre incorporating an IMAX large screen cinema, two restaurants, a tourist information centre and adjacent retail shops, including an outpost of the Edinburgh department store Jenners. The visitor centre (named Drumkinnon Tower) is modelled after a Scottish round tower or castle. It has an enclosed walkway on its outer wall which spirals down from the top to the ground floor, allowing visitors views in all directions.
Battle of the Skies
A report by the UK transport minister has sparked a debate on the future of aviation in the UK, including Scotland. Air passenger numbers in the UK are expected to more than double from 180 million a year to 400 million by 2020. More than 50 million people are expected to fly from Scotland's airports over the next 30 years. Scots, who average 1.7 trips a year, are second only to those living in the south-east of England for the number of flights per head of the population. Edinburgh airport has seen a phenomenal rise in passenger numbers in recent years and it seems that the case for a second runway there is well established. But Glasgow City Council is keen to see expansion of the airport there, which is currently the busiest in Scotland. The government report calls for the creation of an international hub airport in Scotland, with a second runway being required at either Edinburgh or Glasgow - with Edinburgh estimated to have a better financial case.
New Cut-Price Airline for Prestwick
A new airline, offering cut-price fares, is planning to operate out of Prestwick Airport in direct competition with Irish airline Ryanair. MyTravel, previously known as Air Tours, is expected to start with four scheduled flights to European destinations such as Malaga and Nice.
Scottish Nationalists Changing Their Colours
There are newspaper reports that the Scottish Nationalist Party are consulting advertising agents with a view to changing the colours of the party's advertising symbols. The present yellow and black colour scheme (pictured here) is said to be too "macho" and turning off women voters. The party polls 9% fewer women than men in elections. Design experts agree that yellow and black are associated with disease and danger - they are found in wasps as a warning signal. The aim is to create a softer palette, but without too radical a change from the existing scheme, perhaps by adding a third colour. The SNP leader has already had a "makeover" and now appears in lilac shirts and ties. In recent years, the Labour party has adopted imperial purple instead of their traditional red.
Scotrail Getting Back on Track
Trains between Glasgow and Edinburgh will return to a service every 15 minutes on 5 August - well in advance of the Edinburgh Festival which usually sees an increase in traffic between Scotland's two largest cities. The flagship service was reduced to every 30 minutes in January when drivers began a ban on overtime working. Even when that dispute had been settled with drivers being given an increase of £5000 a year, Scotrail could not restore a full timetable, claiming that there was a backlog of driver training to be dealt with first. Some services are still working on a reduced frequency and may continue like that until the winter timetable is introduced at the end of September.
Design of New Bridge Unveiled
The winning design for a striking new bridge across the river Clyde between Finnieston and Govan were revealed this week for the first time (see artist's impression). The tied arch construction gives it a slight resemblance to the Sydney Harbour bridge, though on a much smaller scale. The four-lane bridge (with two lanes dedicated to buses and taxis) will provide access to Pacific Quay, the location of the BBC's new Scottish headquarters. Depending on how long it takes to obtain detailed planning permission, the bridge could be in operation by 2004. The bridge will also provide a direct link for vehicles and pedestrians between the Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre on the north bank and the Glasgow Science Centre on the opposite side of the river. However, Clydefast who had planned to introduce a high-speed link between Glasgow and the Clyde coast resorts of Greenock, Dunoon and Rothesay, say that they will fight the plans for the bridge as it does not allow clearance for their 200-plus capacity catamarans.
ScottishPower Profits Surge
Profits at ScottishPower, the UK's largest electricity group, jumped by 44% in the first quarter, despite a drop in UK turnover. There was a strong performance from the company's US arm, PacifiCorp, even though there had been a fall in wholesale prices for electricity in the western US.
Firefighters Rally in Glasgow
3,000 firemen from all over the UK gathered in Glasgow on Monday to demonstrate in support of their pay claim and their demand to be able to go on strike. Currently, a fireman with ten years experience earns only £21,500 a year. The last time firefighters went on strike was in 1978 when the army had to be called in to provide a basic service using old WW2 "green goddess" fire engines.
Scottish Retail Sales Soar
The Scottish Retail Consortium has reported that purchases in Scotland's high streets jumped by 4% in June, compared with the same period last year. This was an improvement on May when sales increased by a meagre 1.6%. The poor weather in June had an impact on shoppers but they were tempted by a string of early summer promotional offers. Retail sales in the rest of the UK declined in June as many shoppers were glued to their TV sets watching the World Cup in Korea and Japan - Scotland had failed to qualify, so there was less interest here.
Six-Year Career Breaks
The Bank of Scotland has announced that it will allow staff with a minimum of one year's service to take unpaid sabbaticals of up to six years and guarantees that it will keep the jobs open for the full six years. The Royal Bank of Scotland says that it will introduce a similar scheme next year. The aim is to keep valuable staff and allow them to develop and remotivate themselves.
Kwik-Fit Sold for £350 Million
It was reported this week that Kwik-Fit, the Edinburgh-based vehicle repair company which was bought by Ford in 1999 from its founder, Sir Tom Farmer for £1 billion, has been sold to a venture capital company for £350 million. Ford are said to have retained a small stake in the firm so that they can share in any expansion in future earnings. It is thought unlikely that Sir Tom Farmer will remain with the company which he founded 31 years ago. Kwik-Fit employs 11,500 people in 2,400 branches across Europe.
Choice of Gaelic HQ Condemned
The vice-convenor of the Western Isles Council has condemned the selection of Inverness as the location of Bord Gaidhlig na h-Alba. He says that there was a golden opportunity to locate the organisation in the Western Isles where Gaelic is one of its unique selling points. The local Highlands and Islands Enterprise organisation had also recommended that it should be set up in the Western Isles.
PC's More Popular Than Dish Washers
A nationwide survey has found that more than half of UK adults own a personal computer, twice as many as those owning a dish washer. 74% own a mobile phone and 41% have digital TV.
Maternity Hospital Rubble Sells Like Hot Cakes
Paperweights made from the rubble of Glasgow's famous Rottenrow Maternity Hospital are being snapped up at £10 each - often by people who were born there. More than 350 of the mementoes have been sold - and no doubt a lot more will be purchased now that their availability has been flagged up in local newspapers. The one-ich stones come with an imprint of a baby's face and "Rottenrow 1834-2001" round the edge.
Hospitals Raise Patients' Blood Pressure
Two Edinburgh hospitals have been named and shamed by patients for making them suffer - by playing incessant piped music. It is claimed that the constant playing of such classics as "Bridge Over Troubled Waters", "Greensleeves" and Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" are driving many patients to distraction. One patient commented that undergoing chemo-therapy was bad enough without the dreadful wailing over the loudspeakers. Piped music has been shown in studies to be bad for health - raising blood pressure and depressing immune systems in some people. It can also aggravate tinnitus and other hearing problems. But hospital administrators defend the piped music, saying that "most patients enjoy the musical offerings".
Demand Grows for Daffodil Bulbs at £5
Gardeners from all over Britain have been flocking to Brodie Castle to buy rare daffodil bulbs at up to £5 each. The bulbs cannot be obtained anywhere else as they were bred by the 24th Brodie of Brodie, the father of the present clan chief and a keen horticulturist. The money raised from the sale will be used to help fund work on the gardens at Brodie.
Picture courtesy of Scotland for Visitors.
Deep Fried Mars Bars for USA
The media giant AOL Time Warner is sending a TV crew to Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire to make a film about deep fried Mars bars. The "delicacy" is said to have originated in Stonehaven and the Carron Chipper says they sell 200 Mars bars suppers (with chips - French-fried potatoes) a week in the summer. They also deep fry Snickers and even Cadbury Flake. The Food Network who are making the program say that is a "really interesting way to cook food and something quite alien to us. It seems to have developed a cult following with tourists coming back from vacation in Scotland." So that's who's buying all those deep fried Mars bar suppers...
A MacDonald Buys Glen Coe
The last remaining lands of Lord Strathcona's Glen Coe estate have been bought in a successful private bid by a MacDonald. The sale of the estate caused a dispute between two rival local community groups last year. As a result, both applications for funding from the Scottish Land Fund were rejected as they look for "local support" for any community bid. But Alistair MacDonald has managed to secure financial backing for a bid which is thought to be in the region of £100,000. He had help from friends and family from as far away as Australia. The land purchase includes a stretch of the River Coe and a half share of Eilean Munda, the traditional burial ground of the MacDonalds of Glen Coe. The purchase also includes part of the old Glen Coe Estate which was owned by a succession of MacDonald chiefs, including Alistair MacDonald (MacIain) who was killed in the massacre in 1692.
Nessie's Monster Bike Bash Sinks
A rally in Drumnadrochit in Inverness District was predicted to attract 10,000 cyclists, motorcyclists and scooters but had to be cancelled last weekend when only 10 people turned up. Certainly, the poor weather did not help but lack of advance publicity is also being blamed.
King of the Drams
A 27-year-old Isle of Jura single malt whisky won the top award at the International Wine and Spirits Competition this week. The distillery on the Inner Hebridean island also won a silver medal for its 21-year-old malt and a bronze for its 16-year-old whisky. Only 250 cases of the 27-year-old creation were produced.
Whale and Dolphin Watch
A survey of numbers of whales and dolphins off the coastline of Scotland is being promoted by the Sea Watch organisation. Passengers on Caledonian MacBrayne ferries in the Western Isles are being encouraged to complete questionnaires which are being made available on participating ferries. Observations from coastal vantage points are also wanted. Hot spots for sightings include off the Moray coast, Oban, Firth of Clyde and Ullapool to Stornoway.
Weather in Scotland This Week
After the heavy rain and low temperatures of 14/15C (57/59F) last Saturday which marred the Open Golf Championship at Muirfield, the weather became bright and sunny on Sunday, the final day of the match. In the west, Glasgow had 9.8 hours of sun and temperatures around 19C (66F). Of course, it didn't last - Edinburgh had nearly 20mm (0.8 inches) of rain on Tuesday.The remainder of the week was mainly overcast with the odd blink of sun - though the micro-cliamte in St Andrews managed over 7 hours of sunshine on Friday.
This week's illustration of current flowers in Scotland is of an unusual variety of Primula called "Viali" in the woods of Cluny Gardens near Aberfeldy in Perthshire. The photograph was taken earlier this week.
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