Enquiry Begins on Holyrood Fiasco

The escalating costs and delays in the project to create a new building for the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood in Edinburgh have probably done more to disenchant the Scottish electorate towards devolution than any other single factor. In the run-up to the election earlier this year, First Minister Jack McConnell promised an independent inquiry into the development of the project from its inception. Perhaps he thought that by pinning the blame on someone would make the man in the street feel better. The inquiry under Lord Fraser, an eminent lawyer, got underway this week. But whether revelations of mismanagement, hasty decisions, ignoring the advice of Scottish Office officials and plucking estimates out of the air in the early days of the project, will do much to improve confidence in politicians is doubtful. The inquiry is to follow a roughly chronological sequence, from 1997 to the present day. So it was the decisions of the late Donald Dewar that were under scrutiny this week. Dewar was the Secretary of State for Scotland at that time and the main architect of the Scotland Act which restored a legislature to Scotland. His comment "I like that" on the opening sentence of the Scotland Act (see illustration) is now inscribed on a wall beside the site. But it appears that the original estimate of £40 million was for a basic building in a green field site - not a landmark building in a historic and constrained site, retaining a listed building. The idea of using the former Royal High School building as a temporary home - to allow the Members of the Scottish Parliament to decide on the issue at a later date - was rejected by Dewar as he did not want Scots to wait any longer for a new parliament.
But as the scaffolding begins to come down from around the building site, we have to hope that the end result is something to be proud of - it's the least the taxpayer deserves.

Scottish Museum Lands Concorde

A British Airways Concorde made a final flight from Edinburgh airport to London Heathrow on 24 October to join two other Concordes landing, one after the other, for a final farewell. BA have now withdrawn the supersonic airliner from service and announced a few days later where the remaining seven aircraft would be preserved. And the Museum of Flight at East Fortune in East Lothian is one of the successful bidders. Part of the Royal Museum of Scotland, the bid to secure one of the world's first supersonic airliners was backed by the Scottish Executive and Historic Scotland. Even before the announcement about a Concorde being displayed at East Fortune, the Museum had already planned a £6 million upgrade to its facilities. Other Concordes will be displayed at aerospace museums in New York and Seattle as well as in England.

Heart Mortality Rate Falls

First the good news. Deaths from heart disease in Scotland fell by 3% last year and the number of coronary operations in Scottish hospitals rose by 7%. But despite the drop in deaths, Scotland still has one of the highest rates of coronary heart disease in the world. The number of men diagnosed with some form of heart disease has also risen - the death rate is being held in check by prescribing drugs to alleviate the problem. In Europe, only Slovakia, Hungary, Czech Republic and Ireland have worse rates. The Scottish Executive has pledged to reduce deaths of those under the age of 75 by 50% between 1995 and 2010. Cutting heart disease and strokes have been identified as a national priority.

Health Officials Unswayed by Public Opinion

As a three month consultation period began on the plans to close the Queen Mother Maternity Hospital at Yorkhill in Glasgow, the planning director of the Hospital Trust said that a petition by a million people would not sway the decision - only "clinical evidence" would make the health board change its plans. Her comments came in response to a petition with 60,000 signatures, organised by a Glasgow evening newspaper, was presented. However, a number of doctors and consultants have come forward claiming that moving maternity services across the river to the Southern General hospital would cost lives as newly born babies can need life saving surgery. This is currently available at the Sick Children's Hospital, yards from the Queen Mother's.
It is not just in Glasgow that health officials are refusing to be swayed by public opinion. After years of campaigning, the future of Perth Royal Infirmary has been secured with a planned £32 million reorganisation. But the maternity unit is to be closed as a result of declining birth rates and all expectant mothers in the area will have to travel 20 miles down the Carse of Gowrie to Dundee, as from July 2004. But the changes will mean an expansion of other services in Perth, resulting in fewer journeys to Dundee by cancer and kidney dialysis patients.

Engineers Retraining to Stop Another Hospital Blackout

The private company running the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary building have admitted that engineers contributed to the recent 30-minute power blackout at the new hospital on the edge of the capital. They have now begun to retrain staff. The incident happened when electrical storms in the area caused a brief electrical surge from the National Grid, after overhead power lines were struck by lightning. Back-up generators kicked in for critical areas but low voltage power systems supplying electric light to large parts of the hospital failed to start up. Engineers then found that the mains supply had been restored and began reconnecting the hospital to the national grid but this delayed power being restored to other parts of the hospital.

Competition for Rail Franchise Hots Up

Three companies have submitted bids to run the Scotrail services in Scotland, all of them promising to bring forward fresh ideas to improve train services. National Express Group, which has held the franchise since 1997, points to its experience of the business and initiatives to improve service quality standards. The bid by rival Aberdeen-based bus company FirstGroup may give rise to competition issues if both train and bus services are operated by one company but should lead to a more integrated service. FirstGroup is also bidding to run the Anglian and Northern rail services and is seeking a two-year extension on its franchise to run the Thameslink service. Arriva Trains say that they aim to deliver maximum benefits for rail travellers - but has been criticised for its performance in providing reliable rail services in parts of England. The Scottish Executive, which pays substantial subsidies on rail services in Scotland, has said that the winner (to be announced early next year) will face financial penalties if it fails to meet strict performance targets and will have to improve reliability and reduce overcrowding.

Scotland Avoids Recession

Economists were surprised this week by figures published by the Scottish Executive which showed that Scotland's gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 0.4% in the second quarter of 2003, after contracting in the first three months of the year. Revised figures for the first quarter even showed that the decline was only 0.1% compared with an initial estimate of -0.3%. But despite the slightly more positive data, Scotland was still lagging the UK average. As usual, it was the Scottish service sector - including financial services, construction and business services - which produced positive figures to overcome the continued decline in manufacturing.

City of Light Making a Spectacle of Itself

Glasgow's ambition to become Scotland's City of Light took several steps forward this week as more of the city's landmarks became illuminated. Victoria, Glasgow and George V bridges across the Clyde became bathed in blue and white from light emitting diodes. This was sparked off at a champagne reception on the Clyde cruise boat "Pride o' the Clyde". Later in the week, the "Celestial Sky Winter Lighting" scheme was switched on, featuring thousands of small lights suspended between the Gallery of Modern Art (housed in an elegant early 19th century building) and the properties across from it in Royal Exchange Square. The canopy of star-like lights is believed to be the largest of its kind in Britain. A few hundred yards away, the 17th century Tolbooth Steeple in Trongate now features coloured lighting on its staircase windows and bell tower.

Spectacular Northern Lights

There may be concerns that the solar flares which have been erupting from the sun's surface might disrupt communications satellites and cause power failures in northern latitudes. But there is no doubt that the charged particles have been contributing to a marked increase in the aurora borealis or "Northern Lights" visible at night in the north of Scotland. Of course, it needs clear skies for these to be visible and these have been in short supply this week. In July 2000, a large solar flare disrupted hi-tech systems on the ground and in space and the latest outpourings are being compared to that event.

Major City Centre Store Safe

Retail giant Selfridges has assured Glasgow that its plans for a 200,000 sq ft city centre store will go ahead, despite the cancellation of similar developments in three other UK cities. Selfridges was recently the subject of a successful £628 million takeover by Canadian millionaire Galen Weston who owns a string of retail outlets in Canada and Dublin. His investment company has decided to cut back on the multi-site building strategy which Selfridges began last year. Current plans are for a new store on Glasgow's Trongate opening in 2007. It is hoped that the project will give a boost to the regeneration of what has become a run-down part of Glasgow's city centre - the illustration shows the derelict site which will be transformed by the new store..

Anchor Store for Ayr Development

Retail giant Debenhams has signed up for 40% of a 200,000 sq ft retail development in the centre of Ayr. More than 70% of the Ayr Central site has already been let with construction starting next spring and completion due by Christmas 2005.

Daily Flights to Dubai

Glasgow airport has announced a major boost with Middle Eastern airline Emirates starting a daily service to Dubai in the Arabian Gulf, starting from April next year. This will be the first direct air connection between Scotland and the Gulf. The airline will use 285-seat Airbus 330 aircraft and will offer quick connections onwards to destinations such as Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and India.

Halloween

As kids dressed up on Friday - Halloween - as ghosts and goblins, few will know that the origins of All Hallows (Saints) Evening goes back to the days when October 31 was the end of the old Celtic year. It was celebrated by the Druids as "Samhain" from "Sain" meaning summer and "fuin" meaning "ending" and was regarded as a "Feast of the Dead" when they would sometimes return as evil spirits. In Scotland, the traditions sometimes get mixed up with the celebration of Guy Fawkes night on 5 November with fireworks symbolising the plot to blow up King James VI and the Houses of Parliament in London in 1605. The traditions of "brownyis and bogillis" was very much a part of country folk lore in the time of Robert Burns who not only wrote about Halloween but about witchcraft and superstition in "Tam o' Shanter." For more on Halloween in Scotland and Guy Fawkes, see the Halloween and Guy Fawkes pages.

Glasgow Style Best, Bar None

Many years ago, Glasgow used to have a reputation for bars which, if they didn't have sawdust on the floor, were certainly rough and tough and not the place for anyone looking for a drink in cultured surroundings. But all that has changed. Now the author of a new guide "Scotland's Top Style Bars" says that Glasgow is the undisputed capital of such establishments. 42 of the 92 most trendy bars in the book are in Glasgow, with Edinburgh contributing just 26. Scotland is said to be far ahead of English cities like Newcastle and Manchester in providing up-market, stylish bars.

Church Appoints First Woman Moderator

With only two women being put forward for the most senior post in the Church of Scotland, it was inevitable that the church was going to elect its first female moderator this year. Dr Alison Elliot won the support of the majority of the voters and became not only the first woman moderator, but also the first elder, rather than an ordained minister, to hold the post. In the devolved structure of the Church of Scotland, the moderator chairs the annual Assembly of the church and will hold the position for one year as the representative of the church. It was 35 years ago that the church agreed that a woman could - at last - become ministers in the Church of Scotland on the same terms as men. In another move towards equality of men and women, a Glasgow synagogue has appointed Scotland's first female rabbi. Nancy Morris has been appointed to the post at the Glasgow New Synagogue in Newton Mearns. Orthodox synagogues do not allow women rabbis but smaller branches of Judaism have around 20 women rabbis in England and Wales.

Victim of Success

The Diageo drinks company, the largest producer of whisky in the world, has been successfully marketing the 12-year-old single Cardhu malt in its distinctive square bottle for a considerable time. It has been their fastest growing malt whisky in the last five years. But the whisky, which retails at around £25 a bottle, is now a victim of its own success. The company is now anticipating that there will be a shortfall in production from its Speyside distillery. So they are changing over to a blended malt which they say consumers are unlikely to be able to distinguish from the original. But they are introducing new packaging, calling it "pure malt" instead of "single malt" and going back to the original name Cardow, last used in1975. Some purists are concerned about the change. But whisky experts suggest that if the sales of malts keeps increasing, other companies may have to follow suit. After all, it takes a long time to mature premium malt whisky and current output is based on decisions made 12/15 years ago.

Dial "P" for Parking

It says much for the changes in modern life styles that Edinburgh became the first city in the UK to allow motorists to pay for time on parking meters using their mobile phones. Clearly, the city council believes that people are more likely to have a mobile phone in their pocket rather than loose change. More than 250 pay-and-display machines in the city centre have been equipped with state-of-the-art technology to allow motorists to pay by phone and then collect a ticket as proof in the usual way. They can even arrange for a text message to be sent ten minutes before their ticket expires.

Call for Scottish Anthem Falls on Flat Note

A petition to the Scottish Parliament to create a new national anthem fell on deaf ears this week. George Reid, who has succeeded in an earlier petition to get the Scottish Parliament to pronounce on the correct shade of blue (Pantone 300) in the country's flag, said that the present "Flower of Scotland" was an "embarrassment" which was "ungrammatical, backward-looking and vindictive." Recently, the chief executive of the Scottish Football Association described the anthem as a "dirge" which did not inspire either the team or the fans. In his petition, Mr Reid called for a new anthem to be written. A competition was launched by a national newspaper some years ago and produced "Land of Light" but little light has fallen on that since then. The Petitions Committee, however, concluded that the national anthem was a matter reserved for the UK parliament. The football or rugby authorities could commission an unofficial anthem to be played before matches if they wished, but only the UK government could sanction an official anthem.

More Than Hot Air at Renewable Energy Conference

Around 1,000 delegates attended the 25th annual British Wind Energy Conference in Glasgow this week. They heard that Scotland's ambitions for renewable energy production outstrip that of the UK as a whole, with the Scottish Executive committed to a target of 40% of our electricity from renewable sources by 2020. Scotland has a good base from its long-established hydro-electric power stations and wind farms projects are marching across the landscape. Even so, progress in implementing these projects has often been slow. The planning process, involving many agencies, including the production of environmental studies, often moves forward at a snail's pace.

Sunday Flights Soar

It hardly seems like a year since Sunday air services to Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis were introduced by Loganair. There were protests at the time from many on the island who strongly advocate Sunday as a day of rest, when no work of any nature should be undertaken. But clearly there are others on the Western Isles who do not agree with strict Sunday observance. As a result, 107,000 passengers passed through the terminal in the last twelve months - an increase of 18.5% on the previous year, with much of the increase attributed to Sunday flights.

Art Gallery for Car Showroom

The Audi car showroom being built near the Braehead retail shopping centre in Renfrew, is planned to do more than just sell cars in the largest car showroom in Scotland. It will also host film premieres and fashion shows and incorporate an art gallery and an Audi museum. There will also be an outdoor 4x4 vehicle test area. The new complex, currently being built, is visible from the M8 motorway at the Braehead roundabout. The development is part of a project to transform the regional shopping centre at Braehead into a more rounded community with 300,000 sq ft of business space, 2,000 new homes and leisure and entertainment facilities including a "real snow" indoor ski slope.

Weather in Scotland This Week

Temperatures fell as the week progressed, with a maximum daytime temperature in Edinburgh and Glasgow of only 7C (45F) by Thursday. Sunshine was in short supply this week although Aberdeen recorded over seven hours on Monday and Glasgow over six hours on Friday. But despite the cloudy skies, there has not been much rain, with only light showers in the main. The outlook for next week is continuing changeable but the thermometer is forecast to rise to around 13C (55F) by Thursday.

In the shorter days and gloomier weather, the surviving yellow flowers are a welcome sight. The bloom above is a potentilla, a plant which has a long flowering season. The photo here shows a primrose, after a shower of rain. Both pictures were taken this week in my own garden.

Rebuilding Plan for Buchanan Castle Rejected

The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park has rejected a proposal to demolish the internal walls of Buchanan Castle, near Drymen in Stirlingshire. The plan was to retain only the south and east walls and then build 39 flats in the interior space of what is currently a ruin. To make the development viable, six houses were proposed for the adjacent wood, which would have to be felled, apart from 19 specimen trees. There was strong local opposition and all the agencies involved raised serious objections. But the National Park's planning board has left the door open for a "more sympathetic development". The castle became a ruin in the 1950s because the empty building had its roof removed to avoid the owner paying local taxes. The gardens of the castle (originally designed by "Capability" Brown) have become a golf course and a number of houses have already been built on the estate.

12th Century Motte and Bailey Castle to Rise Again?

The Clanranald Trust for Scotland, a charitable organisation dedicated to raising awareness of Scottish culture and heritage, is reported to be planning to build a replica 12th century motte and bailey castle in the Carron valley, 15 miles north-east of Glasgow. The £250,000 project would recreate a traditional clan chief's residence and other buildings on a steep-sided hill (the motte) enclosed by a wooden pallisade (the bailey). Visitors would be able to see a community living as the clans of 800 years ago. Authentic buildings would house a blacksmith, weavers and dyers dressed in 12th century clothes. Planning consent for the fort has been obtained, with work due to start before the end of the year.

19th century Sampler Gifted to the Stirling Museum

A framed needlepoint sampler, sewn in 1841, has been bequeathed to the Stirling Smith Art Gallery by a Scottish-born Canadian woman. The sampler was created by a Jessie Mercer, the maternal great grand-aunt of the donor. The scene depicted in the sampler illustrates a story passed down through the Mercer family, and is the legend of a young woman, the daughter of a wealthy man in the north of England, who fell in love with her father's shepherd. When her father found out, he had the shepherd "done to death". The heartbroken girl left home taking the flock of sheep with her, wandering the countryside until she was found dead by the roadside with the few remainders of her flock. As was fashionable then, there is also a stitched quotation from the Bible on the sampler. Research is currently underway to establish more details about Jessie's identity.

Ghost Shirt Heads North

When the original Lakota Souix ghost dance shirt was returned in 1999 by the City of Glasgow to South Dakota, from the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, a replica was presented to the museum by the grateful Wounded Knee Survivors Association, who had petitioned for its return. The replica and an associated exhibition on the Battle of Wounded Knee in South Dakota in 1890 has been on display since then. Now the special exhibition is travelling north to the Marischal Museum in Aberdeen to be displayed until January. The shirt was given to Kelvingrove in 1891 by an Indian with the touring Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. The shirt, a sacred object in Sioux culture, was taken from a warrior after the battle of Wounded Knee. The return of the shirt to South Dakota won wide praise for the Glasgow museum service.

This Week in History

• November 3 1698 - The Darien Expedition landed at "Caledonia" in Panama.
• November 3 1975 - Queen Elizabeth officially opened an underwater pipeline to bring the first North Sea oil ashore.
• November 4 1650 - Birth of King William III.
• November 5 1688 - William of Orange landed in South-West England.
• November 5 1877 - Opening of the original Mitchell Library, Glasgow, now the largest public reference library in Europe.
• November 5 1879 - Death of Edinburgh-born mathematician and physicist James Clerk Maxwell.
• November 6 1887 - Celtic Football Club formally constituted in Calton, Glasgow, to alleviate poverty in Glasgow's East End parishes.
• November 7 1974 - Writer Eric Linklater died in Orkney.
• November 8 1308 - Scholar and philosopher John Duns Scotus died. His dry subtleties led to the word "Duns" or "dunce" meaning dull and incapable of learning. Beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1993.
• November 8 1736 - First regular public theatre in Scotland opened in Carrubber's Close, Edinburgh.
• November 8 1891 - Author Neil M Gunn born in Caithness. Best known for "Highland River" (1937) and "Silver Darlings" (1951).

Falkirk Wheel Turns Up Success

The rotating boat lift which links the Forth and Clyde Canal to the Union Canal, replacing a long series of locks, has become a major tourist attraction and one of the more successful of the projects financed by the Millennium Fund. The Falkirk Wheel is a graceful feat of unique engineering and has attracted 350,000 visitors in the six months from April this year and 130,000 people have been carried in canal boats which are slowly lifted by the rotating arms, while still floating in the water. Having successfully cracked the general tourism market, the management of the Falkirk Wheel say that they are now launching the attraction as a venue for corporate hospitality activities. With its testament to Scottish innovative, engineering, it should do well in that enterprise too.

Scottish Opera Must Cut Costs

The troubled arts organisation Scottish Opera is reported in the media to have been told in no uncertain terms by the Scottish culture minister that it will have to cut its costs or go bankrupt. Scottish Opera has been bailed out of financial difficulties on a number of occasions. But as the management refuses to compromise on quality (they performed an expensive and challenging production of the Wagner Ring Cycle at the Edinburgh International Festival this year), they frequently overspend their budget. Debts have reached nearly £3 million despite receiving additional sums of £2.1 million in 1999 and £5 million over three years in 2001. Scottish Opera has a core grant of £7.4 million each year.

Scots Wannabes Target MTV Awards

There may be concern in some quarters about the amount of money being spent to subsidise the MTV Europe Awards which will take place in Leith next week, but there was no shortage of support from a hundreds of Scots who came along to the Usher Hall to audition for supporting roles in the extravaganza.

Sunday Football Results

Dundee United 1 Dundee 1

CIS Insurance Cup, Round 3

Aberdeen 5 Brechin City 0
Clyde 2 Dundee 5
Dundee United 0 Livingston 1
Hearts 2 Falkirk 1
Hibernian 2 Queen of the South 1
Rangers 6 Forfar Athletic 0
St Johnstone 3 Dunfermline 2

Bank of Scotland Premier League Results - 1 November 2003

Aberdeen 0 Motherwell 3
Dundee 1 Hibernian 1
Dunfermline 2 Dundee United 0
Kilmarnock 0 Celtic 5
Hearts 3 Livingston 1
Rangers 3 Partick Thistle 1

Scottish First Division Results - 1 November 2003

Brechin City 4 Ross County 2
Inverness Falkirk 2
Queen of the South 1 St Johnstone 1
St Mirren 2 Raith Rovers 1

League Tables

Football pundits are speculating that although Rangers have the 2202/2003 Premier League flag fluttering over Ibrox, the club will have to replace it soon with a white one. Two points (and only two goals) from three recent league games left the champions five points adrift from rivals Celtic. Because Celtic played Kilmarnock earlier in the day, to fit the TV schedules, Rangers knew they had to win on Saturday or go even further behind. This they managed to do, keeping the gap at five points. Rangers in turn are six points ahead of Hearts. At the foot of the Scottish Premier League, Partick Thistle have still to record their first win and are five points behind Aberdeen who are also having a poor season.
In the First Division, Queen of the South are still at the top, despite losing two points against St Johnstone. Ross County, St Johnstone and Falkirk are all two points behind Queen of the South but Inverness, with one point less than these three, have a game in hand.

Scotland Scrape Into Rugby World Cup Quarter Finals

Scotland's rugby squad saved giving their supporters red faces on Saturday by scraping into the quarter-finals of the Rugby World Cup currently being held in Australia. They defeated Fiji 22-20 but took to the final minutes to snatch victory from a brave Fijian side. The Scots had looked as though they would miss out on the final stages of the tournament for the first time in their history as they went into the final five minutes 20-15 down. But with the Fijians reduced to 14 men with a player "sin-binned", they managed to score their only try of the match - all their earlier points had come from penalties. Scotland now face Australia in the last eight on 8 November. Perhaps the best they can hope for is not to be humiliated as they were against France a week ago, which saw their biggest-ever defeat by that country.

Hundred Years of Hampden

Hampden Park in Glasgow celebrated its 100th birthday this week, having first opened its doors on October 31 1903 as the home of Queen's Park Football Club. In 1937 a British record attendance at a football match was set when 149,547 watched Scotland play England at Hampden Park. Until 1950, this was a world record. Now the National Stadium and home to the Scottish Museum of Football, the ground is still used by Queens Park Football Club, now in the Third Division.

Manager Agrees Pay Cut

When Bobby Williamson went to Hibernian as manager in February 2002, he signed a five year contract and was reputed to be the highest paid football club manager in Scotland, outside of Rangers and Celtic. But 18 months later, the club's management triggered a 12-months notice period to terminate the contract. Many managers are just summarily fired by the chairman or board of directors. But Hibernian gave the notice while renegotiating the terms of the manager's contract. The directors were honest enough to admit that serving notice was aimed at negotiating a lower salary for Williamson and that they really want him to stay on. Now Williamson has signed a new contract - at a lower salary.

Hearts May Still Move Out

Even though Hibernian Football Club have definitely ruled out joining Edinburgh rivals in a new custom-built stadium at Straiton on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Hearts are reported to still be looking at the possibility of a move on their own. Which comes as a surprise, as the land in question is owned by a firm in which Hibs owner Sir Tom Farmer has a major interest. If the joint project had gone ahead, the land was going to be handed over at a knock-down price. Whether Hearts, on their own, will be offered the same terms, remains to be seen.

Supermarket Rush for Euro 2004 Tickets

48 Safeway supermarkets will be the centre of a mad scramble on Saturday as they put on sale tickets for the home leg of the Scotland v Holland play-off for a place in the final stages of the Euro 2004. There are no phone or Internet sales so supporters must turn up in person to buy a maximum of two tickets. The Scottish Football Association say that they expect all the tickets to be snapped up quickly.

Liz McColgan Competing Again?

39-year-old Liz McColgan has said that she would not rule out a return to either the European or Scottish cross-country championships after she won a race at Livingston last weekend, beating a current world champion in the process. Her daughter Eilish won her race too. It is seven years since Liz McColgan raced at senior level. In a star-studded athletics career, she won a world championships gold (in 1991), two Commonwealth gold medals and an Olympic silver in the 10,000 metres (1987). To qualify for the European race (being held this year in Edinburgh), she would have to reach the required standard in the Great Britain trials in Liverpool next month. She intends being there - but because her daughter was running in a junior race. She says that if she is fit she "might as well race too."

Boost for Scotland from London Olympics?

In an effort to secure support for the bid by London to host the Olympic Games in 2012, the organisers of the bid were in Glasgow this week claiming that the city could benefit if London was successful in winning the games. They claimed that Hampden Stadium could stage a number of main events and the city could also be a prime location for training camps and pre-Olympic events. Football is traditionally dispersed away from the main city hosting the games and Glasgow's three major stadia could be attractive for this.