The Scotsman back issues from March 2005:
Why is it women don't like Tony?
Mar 01, 2005; ... HE IS the most powerful man in Britain, a strong champion offamily values and he has just agreed to give mothers up to 12 months'paid maternity leave. But why is it that women find Tony Blair such a turn-off? Despite a raft of family friendly policies Mr Blair is ...
Binge drinking costs GBP 1bn a year
Mar 01, 2005; ... EXPERTS delivered a stark "wake-up" call on the shocking scale ofalcohol abuse in Scotland yesterday as they unveiled a report showinga culture of binge drinking is costing GBP 1.1 billion a year. The NHS study found that the number of alcohol-related deaths hasrisen from fewer ...
BPI holds divi despite misery
Mar 01, 2005; ... BRITISH Polythene Industries has attempted to draw a line under amiserable 2004, saying prices have stabilised and that it is on thehunt for acquisitions. The Greenock-based plastic-bag maker - one of the few remainingmanufacturers in Scotland - said the cost of raw materials ...
Prince's visit boosts republican drive
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE first trip by the Prince of Wales to Australia in more than adecade has drawn intense media scrutiny ahead of his wedding toCamilla Parker Bowles and reignited a debate among Australians onwhether to keep the Queen as head of state. As Charles sets foot "down under" for the ...
Scientific wizards find real cloak of invisibility
Mar 01, 2005; ... A CLOAKING device that makes objects invisible is being developedby researchers, bringing the magic of Harry Potter into the world ofscience fact. While Harry uses his cloak of invisibility to move about HogwartsSchool unseen, electronic engineers at the University of ...
Tenants must co-operate in bid for rent reductions
Mar 01, 2005; ... TENANT farmers are being urged to break the habits of a lifetimeby telling each other how much rent they pay. Doing that, say the Scottish Tenant Farmers' Association, willboost the chances of rent reductions round Scotland this year. Angus McCall, the association's chairman, ...
HSBC hits record GBP 10.1bn profit
Mar 01, 2005; ... HSBC posted the biggest-ever profit recorded by a UK companyyesterday - GBP 10.1 billion - as the world's second-biggest bank gota tailwind from acquisitions and a benign bad-debts situation. Stripping out goodwill amortisation, underlying pre-tax profitsleapt 35 per cent to ...
International Markets:Inflation concern and drugs blow drags down Wall Street
Mar 01, 2005; ... FRESH concerns about higher prices and inflation pushed US stocksmodestly lower yesterday, threatening to reverse last week's three-day rally. Trouble in the pharmaceutical sector also put pressure on themarket, while a brokerage downgrade on General Motors and a drop inAIG hurt ...
Jackson 'showed boy porn on first visit to Neverland'
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE pop star Michael Jackson was yesterday accused of exploiting ayoung teenager and "exposing him to strange sexual" behaviour. On the first day of the star's trial for child abuse, the districtattorney Thomas Sneddon said Jackson showed the boy adult material onthe internet from ...
Outcry as judge imposes 'lenient' 17-year sentence on hot-tub killer
Mar 01, 2005; ... A JUDGE provoked a furious reaction in court yesterday when shesentenced a double murderer to 17 years in prison. Lady Smith said Shaun Alexander would have served at least 24years of a life sentence, had he gone to trial instead of pleadingguilty to murdering his estranged wife ...
500 jobs promised in medical research as US firm moves in
Mar 01, 2005; ... A WORLD-CLASS research centre which could create 500 jobs over thenext three years is to be established in central Scotland by anAmerican-based life sciences company. The GBP 67.5 million investment by Inverness Medical Innovations(IMI) will develop home diagnostic tests for ...
North Sea faces staffing crisis
Mar 01, 2005; ... AN ACUTE skills shortage and continuing recruitment problems couldthreaten the long-term future of the North Sea oil and gas industryby delaying projects and increasing costs, it was claimed yesterday. A new report, commissioned by Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber ofCommerce, ...
Toeing the party line
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE SHUTTERS will be closed and the blinds drawn at LA's bestaddresses today. The hard work will be left to countless clean-upcrews who will dismantle labyrinths of fairylights, unpin miles offabric flounces and strip sun-baked sidewalks of their seasonalstretch of red carpet. For this ...
Clint's Baby wins a fistful of Oscars
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE Oscars made Clint Eastwood's day, as the 76-year-old Hollywoodveteran carried off best director and best picture awards for hisboxing drama Million Dollar Baby. The star of his film, Hilary Swank, won the best actress award -beating Britain's Kate Winslet, who has now been ...
University condemned for decision to keep looted manuscripts
Mar 01, 2005; ... A DECISION by the University of Edinburgh court not to returnlooted manuscripts to Ethiopia was yesterday condemned as a"retrograde step" by a lobby group. The university, which holds a number of sacred Ethiopianmanuscripts stolen by British soldiers following a battle in ...
Boy racers face fines or jail as city's police use new powers
Mar 01, 2005; ... NEW powers of dispersal are to be used by a Scottish police forcefor the first time in a pioneering move against "boy racers" using acity street as a nighttime race track. Grampian Police yesterday said the force was to use the powers ofthe Antisocial Behaviour (Scotland) Act 2004 ...
Catholic Church in Scotland to ordain first married priest
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE first ordination of a married priest into the Roman CatholicChurch in Scotland is to take place tomorrow. The Rev James Bell, a former priest of the Scottish EpiscopalChurch, will be ordained by the Bishop of Aberdeen, Peter Moran, atSt Mary's Church in Inverness. While ...
Reopening Waverley railway line 'would cut number of car journeys by 750,000 a year'
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE reintroduction of passenger trains between Edinburgh and theBorders will cut the number of car journeys by more than 750,000 ayear, say promoters of the Waverley rail project. A committee of MSPs was also told the railway would generate amuch bigger demand for housing than ...
Rebel trio have eyes on role at Standard Life
Mar 01, 2005; ... EDINBURGH life assurance giant Standard Life confirmed last nightthat it had received the nominations from the three rebel candidateswho are standing for election to the board. Last week Standard Life confirmed that it had received 374signatures in favour of Michael Hogan, the ...
Workman dies after fall at site of Royal Bank's new HQ
Mar 01, 2005; ... A BUILDING labourer died yesterday after an accident at the siteof the Royal Bank of Scotland's new headquarters on the outskirts ofEdinburgh. The man, described by the police as being Indian and in his 40s,was taken to Edinburgh Royal Infirmary by ambulance at 10:45amfollowing ...
Bute House bill now tops GBP 330,000
Mar 01, 2005; ... MORE than GBP 330,000 has been spent turning Bute House into theofficial residence of Scotland's First Ministers, it emerged lastnight. Documents released under the Freedom of Information Act revealedthat a whole series of major changes and renovations have taken placeat the ...
Pearson suffers Penguin blow
Mar 01, 2005; ... PUBLISHING giant Pearson was reeling last night as its misfiringPenguin division forced down 2004 profits - leading to increasedspeculation that the group might be broken up. The blue-chip company, which confirmed the exit of veteranchairman Lord Stevenson at the weekend, was hit ...
Scotland key to revival at Persimmon
Mar 01, 2005; ... SCOTLAND has led a new year revival for housebuilding giantPersimmon, spearheading a surge in new-property sales during theearly part of 2005. Chief executive John White said the market north of the Border had"beaten strong growth in the rest of the group" - which has ...
In the land of Knox, religion isn't what it was
Mar 01, 2005; ... SCOTLAND has a weaker sense of religious identity than the rest ofthe UK, according to a new report that shows the changing face ofreligion in modern Scotland. Despite a strong Christian past, just 67 per cent of Scotsidentified with a religion in 2001, compared to 86 per cent ...
Scrutineer:Savings paradox as HSBC hits record profit levels
Mar 01, 2005; ... SIR John Bond at HSBC outlines a frighteningly believable scenarioon the UK (indeed, the western world's) personal savings front. It is well-known that vast swathes of the population are currentlynot saving enough to prepare for their retirement. That is a badthing: for the ...
Clarke under fire on terror bill as plane plotter is convicted
Mar 01, 2005; ... CHARLES Clarke tried to beat a retreat yesterday over his plans toplace terror suspects under house arrest, but he suffered a secondCommons rebellion after angry MPs on all sides accused him of panicand disorganisation. The Home Secretary was told to produce further concessions in ...
TV Review:Long-term price of 'drift back to work'
Mar 01, 2005; ... FAITH, BBC 1 SOLIDARITY is much sought after: between nations, partners, andproles. Between nations, it happens in war. We stand by the UnitedStates, and the United States stands on other countries. Between partners, it happens at first through passion, thenthrough loyalty ....
UK Market Report:HSBC shares slump despite profits leap
Mar 01, 2005; ... LEADING shares closed at their lowest level for three weeksyesterday, led down by bank giant HSBC, which slid 2.8 per cent, or25p, to 868p as its annual results came in at the low end ofexpectations. The world's second largest bank announced a 37 per cent jump inpre-tax profit ...
Two communities compete to buy part of Vestey family estate
Mar 01, 2005; ... TWO Highland communities are competing to buy the same area ofland being sold by the wealthy Vestey family. Residents in Coigach in Wester Ross yesterday voted 127 to 76 tolaunch a bid to buy Drumrunie Forest which is being sold by Tim andRobin Vestey, the sons of millionaire ...
Leader:Tackling the drink problem
Mar 01, 2005 ... SCOTLAND has a colossal and growing problem with alcohol. The GBP1.1 billion cost to the country of excess drinking barely begins totell the full story. The number of alcohol-related deaths in Scotlandhas risen from fewer than one in a hundred in 1980 to one in 30 now.Alcohol-related ...
Reviews:RSNO Pops
Mar 01, 2005; ... MUSIC, RSNO POPS, GLASGOW ROYAL CONCERT HALL *** CALL it a hunch, but I'm not convinced a huge amount of rehearsalwent into Sunday's RSNO Pops programme in Glasgow. If true, this wasunfortunate for the orchestra's associate conductor, James Lowe,making his official debut ....
Reviews:Sondre Lerche
Mar 01, 2005; ... MUSIC, SONDRE LERCHE, KING TUT'S, GLASGOW **** THERE are times when you suspect Glasgow audiences are slippinginto self-parody in their efforts to maintain their reputation as thewarmest in Britain. Sondre Lerche is a boyish Norwegian singer-songwriter with a gorgeous, silky voice, ...
Size matters for artist with a clever twist on subversion
Mar 01, 2005; ... SIMON PATTERSON, FRUITMARKET, EDINBURGH **** KIRSTY WHITEN: FERALLINGERIE MODEL, WASPS, PATRIOTHALL STUDIOS, EDINBURGH **** ALANSHIPWAY, INGLEBY GALLERY, EDINBURGH **** IT WAS Edward Johnston who designed the inimitable LondonUnderground logo. Frank Pick, visionary director of the ...
Simon Pia's Diary:Lord Fraser gives his verdict: let's curry on
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE esteemed m'lud Fraser of Carmyllie is such a man of probity itwould be impossible to curry favour with him ... unless, that is, youslipped some Nihari Gosht (diced lamb), Kasmirir Zafrani Korma (dicedbreast of chicken), Bangan Aloo (thinly-sliced aubergine and potato)and Gobhi ...
Jackson jury hears abuse details
Mar 01, 2005; ... MICHAEL Jackson sexually abused a teenage cancer patient at hisNeverland Valley Ranch - first by showing him pornography and laterby performing a sex act on him - a jury heard on the first day of thesinger's trial. Santa Barbara County District Attorney Tom Sneddon gave ...
Parents in shock after boy, ten killed by half-tonne snowball
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE parents of a ten-year-old schoolboy crushed to death by agiant snowball as he played with a friend were in "absolute shock"last night. Peter Strang was killed when the snowball, believed to haveweighed nearly half a tonne, rolled down a slope in a farmer's fieldand struck ...
Growing sense fate may be with Hibs
Mar 01, 2005; ... A SCOTTISH Cup run which has seen Hibs blessed with home advantageat each stage continued to display evidence of fortune yesterday whenit paired Tony Mowbray's team with a club who have been fightingindifferent form throughout much of this season. It might have been holders Celtic ...
Suicide car bomber kills 115
Mar 01, 2005; ... A SUICIDE car bomber blew himself up next to dozens of police andnational guard recruits yesterday, killing at least 115 people andwounding more than 130, in Iraq's bloodiest single attack since thefall of Saddam Hussein. Torn limbs, feet and other body parts littered the street ...
Reopening Waverley Line would 'cut car journeys by 750,000'
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE re-introduction of passenger trains between Edinburgh and theBorders will cut the number of car journeys by more than 750,000 ayear, say promoters of the Waverley rail project. A committee of MSPs was also told that the railway would generatea much bigger demand for housing ...
Communities launch competing plans to buy part of Vestey family's Highland estate
Mar 01, 2005; ... TWO Highland communities are competing to buy the same area ofland being sold by the wealthy Vestey family. Residents in Coigach, Wester Ross, voted 127 to 76 yesterday tolaunch a bid to buy Drumrunie Forest, which is being sold by Tim andRobin Vestey, the sons of the millionaire ...
Jackson jury hears abuse details
Mar 01, 2005; ... MICHAEL Jackson sexually abused a teenage cancer patient at hisNeverland Valley Ranch - first showing him pornography and laterperforming a sex act on him - a jury heard on the first day of thesinger's trial. Santa Barbara County district attorney Tom Sneddon gave hisopening ...
Former grammar school boy admits shoe bomb conspiracy
Mar 01, 2005; ... SCOTLAND Yard's counter- terrorism chief last night hailed a "veryimportant conviction" after a British man admitted plotting to blowup a passenger jet with a shoe bomb. Former grammar school pupil Saajid Badat, 25, from Gloucester,agreed to down a US-bound passenger jet in an ...
7,000 ready to fly into space with Branson
Mar 01, 2005; ... MORE than GBP 800 million has been pledged to Sir RichardBranson's extra-terrestrial adventure, years before the spaceship haseven been built, the entrepreneur said yesterday. The 54-year-old is investing GBP 74 million into his plan to flythe paying public 70 miles above the ...
Lib Dems plan top tax rate of 50 per cent
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE Liberal Democrats will abolish the council tax and create anew 50 per cent top-rate of income tax for high-earners, the partyleader, Charles Kennedy, confirmed yesterday. The announcement was made at the launch of the party's AlternativeBudget just weeks ahead of the expected ...
Commons humiliation for Clarke as plane plotter convicted
Mar 01, 2005; ... THE government last night suffered a massive Commons rebellionover new anti-terror legislation. Dissenting MPs supported a cross-party amendment which would haveensured all "control orders" for terrorist suspects were imposed by ajudge, not the Home Secretary. The rebels ...
Spice is right for specialist taste
Mar 01, 2005; ... VARIETY is the spice of life, and that adage has never been moretrue now that a deli in Gorgie, Edinburgh, has dedicated half of itspremises to become an offshoot of the Spice Shop in London, with arange of over 2,500 products. Almost as soon as Johnson's Deli opened 18 months ...
Making a meal over your mother
Mar 01, 2005; ... WHILE you're scratching your head and saying you can't think whatto give your mum for Mothers' Day, give yourself a good kicking atthe same time, please. Imagine you are a mother. What single thing do you suppose youspend most of your life doing? It has been estimated that ...
War of the wardrobes
Mar 01, 2005; ... AT TIME of going to press, Scotland is still in the grip ofwinter, with the first daffodils smothered under a fleecy white layerof snow. The January blues should, by all rights, be dusted off bynow. New Year resolutions will either have become a firm part ofdaily living or, more likely, ...
Capital derby is denied in draw
Mar 01, 2005; ... HIBERNIAN'S hopes of ending a 103-year wait to get their hands onthe Tennent's Scottish Cup received a significant fillip last nightwhen they were paired with outsiders Dundee United in the semi-finaldraw. The other tie saw holders Celtic drawn against Hearts in a matchthat is ...
Women right to be wary of politicians' bribes
Mar 01, 2005; ... ARE you, by any chance a married man? If so, it is my sad duty toinform you that a rich, trim, smooth-talking barrister is after yourwife. While you've been snoring behind the newspaper during News atTen, he has been making all sorts of promises. He's also beencontacting her while you've ...
Flamboyant Faulkner, the 1951 Open champion, will be fondly remembered
Mar 01, 2005; ... LONG before Ian Poulter took to the links in Union Jack trousers,Max Faulkner, who has died at the age of 88, added flamboyance to thegolf scene. When he won the Open at Royal Portrush in 1951, theEnglishman arrived on the tee wearing hand-made shoes, a horizontalstriped shirt and, ...
An Irishman poised for back-up role at the K Club
Mar 01, 2005; ... WHILE Ian Woosnam's status as the frontrunner to succeed BernhardLanger at the K Club near Dublin next year has been widely endorsedsince The Scotsman broke the news on 21 January - the appointment isdue to be considered by the European Tour's Tournament committee at ameeting in Dubai ...
How the book world's worst enemy became its best friend
Mar 01, 2005; ... NORMALLY I shy away from confrontation, but it's been a great weekfor arguments. Great, because these fights are about literature, andit was only a few years ago that it seemed as if television, computergames and the internet would kill off books. Instead, book groups areomnipresent, ...
Fortune to favour brave Maloney
Mar 01, 2005; ... WHILE betting a novice chaser who isn't the best jumper in theworld might seem about as sensible as employing an acrophobicsteeplejack, if jockey Paul Maloney is man enough to ride Thyne Manat Catterick this afternoon, we've surely got enough bottle to showour support by having a few ...
Melrose in frame to host World Sevens Series in two years
Mar 01, 2005; ... TALKS are underway to bring the IRB World Sevens Series toMelrose, birthplace of the abbreviated game. A study is to belaunched this week to investigate the feasibility of hosting theprestigious event in Scotland within two years. Melrose is the intended destination and if the ...
BAT chief attacks smoking ban
Mar 02, 2005; ... BRITISH American Tobacco has hit out against the up-coming smokingban in Scotland, calling the move "unnecessary" and in defiance ofnatural market forces. Chief executive Paul Adams said there were "more sensiblesolutions" that could accommodate smokers, such as ...
Shock profit warning from Boots
Mar 02, 2005; ... BOOTS sent a shiver through the high street yesterday as it issueda shock profit warning - prompting fears that winter shopping hasbeen even less popular than previously thought. The stuttering chemist saw its shares slide 4 per cent on thenews, which it blamed on penny-pinching ...
Binge-drink ban on happy hours
Mar 02, 2005; ... MINISTERS published plans to tackle the scourge of binge drinkingyesterday, including an outright ban on happy hours and tough newlaws to curb under-age drinking. The proposals were contained in the Executive's Licensing Bill -the first revamp of Scotland's licensing system in 30 ...
Britannic ready to target acquisitions
Mar 02, 2005; ... BRITANNIC Group said yesterday that it was ready to wade into theincreasingly hostile battle for closed life assurance funds - andinsisted it remained keen on Scottish Provident and Scottish Mutual. Chief executive Paul Thompson said he wanted to secure a majoracquisition in 2005 ...
vCJD drug hope after campaign by parents
Mar 02, 2005; ... THE parents of a young woman with the brain disease vCJD havepersuaded government researchers to consider trials of acontroversial drug which they believe has slowed the deterioration inher condition. Data on the impact of pentosan polysulphate (PPS) will now becollected by the ...
Fears parents will lose out in move to axe school boards
Mar 02, 2005; ... A ROW broke out yesterday over a Scottish Executive plan to scrapschool boards to try to encourage more parents to get involved intheir children's education. Euan Robson, the deputy education minister, said the boards -which are made up of representatives of parents, staff and the ...
Rates hike back on cards as house prices rise again
Mar 02, 2005; ... ECONOMISTS yesterday raised their expectation of a rise ininterest rates, most likely in June, as Nationwide figures showed asurprise rekindling in the housing market, while the Bank of Englandannounced that January mortgage lending rose at the fastest pace inseven months. The ...
Flu pandemic that could kill 50,000 is inevitable, Scots warned
Mar 02, 2005; ... A FLU pandemic that could kill between 5,000 and 50,000 people inScotland is inevitable, the country's chief medical officer saidyesterday. Amid fears a new strain of Asian bird flu could develop into aworldwide epidemic, UK and Scottish ministers have set outcontingency plans ...
Boss of Three Chimneys restaurant to stop slaving over hot stove
Mar 01, 2005; ... ONE of Scotland's best-known chefs is to take a break from full-time cooking after 20 years. Shirley Spear, who runs the award-winning Three Chimneysrestaurant on Skye with her husband, Eddie, has appointed a new headchef and front-of-house manager. The couple say they want ...
Laurels for local heroes
Mar 01, 2005; ... A CRASH of pallets can be heard coming from behind the kitchen.Sitting in another room, several yards away and out of sight, ShirleySpear can identify the sound without even blinking. "Scallops," sheexplains - briefly interrupting a monologue on the importance ofcooking with fresh ...