The Scotsman back issues from May 2005:
How the road from Fife led to the blue waters of the Gulf
May 02, 2005; ... ABUZZING trade hub in an oil-bloated, conservative region, Dubaihas thrived on odd contrasts. No other economy in the world shows faster growth than its 17 percent 2004 GDP rise. No other economy pipes in more speculative cashor attracts more fortune-seeking labour from the ...
Attack your anxiety
May 02, 2005; ... DO YOU wake up in the small hours, fretting about whether you gotthrough enough work today? Do you struggle to concentrate on yourfavourite soap because you are worrying whether it was wise to useall that equity in your house to create the kitchen of your dreams? Our time-poor, ...
HBOS predicts strong economic growth in 2005
May 02, 2005; ... BANK of Scotland is already predicting stronger economic growththis year than last, with a shifting of emphasis from consumerspending to industrial growth, supported by strong business andinvestor confidence. Its latest index of leading economic indicators has also suggestedthat ...
Loyalty put to the test as new owners axe Jenners credit cards
May 02, 2005; ... ACCOUNT cards at Jenners, the Edinburgh department store, are tobe scrapped as new owner House of Fraser begins a major review of thehistoric Princes Street business. Thirty thousand customers will find their accounts closed andtransferred to the House of Fraser (HoF) storecard in ...
Leader: An issue that won't go away
May 02, 2005 ... With the election campaign now in the final lap, Tony Blair foundhimself on the back foot over Iraq yet again yesterday. The latest fire-fighting was over the publication of a leakedmemorandum of a meeting held in July 2002, eight months before thewar began. It suggested that ...
School nurses' role now beyond just nit-picking
May 02, 2005; ... CHECKING for nits and screening for height and weight probably sumup the role of the school nurse - at least in the eyes of the public.For Ruth Paton-Smith and hundreds like her, however, the days whenthe nit comb was the chief weapon in the armoury of the school nurseare long gone ....
Election 2005: Galloway rails at divorce story
May 02, 2005; ... GEORGE Galloway, the leader of the anti-war party Respect,yesterday claimed that a newspaper was seeking to damage his electionchances by publishing a story about his marriage split. His Palestinian-born wife of five years, Dr Amineh Abu-Zayyad,told the Sunday Times that she wants ...
Election 2005: Labour express anger at rejected Tory poster 'attack' on First Minister
May 02, 2005; ... LABOUR last night condemned the Scottish Tories over a plannedelection poster which suggests that Jack McConnell's policy on earlyprisoner-release had led to deaths. The poster, featuring a gravestone and the caption "Who'll be JackMcConnell's next victim?" was commissioned by the ...
Simon Pia's Diary: Masons get in the swing
May 02, 2005; ... THE Masons, a much maligned body, are indeed unsung heroes, as oneof the Brotherhood once tried to convince us. We were never too sure until we picked up our erstwhile colleagueChris Cairns's new book No Tie Required (Headline) about the unsungdelights of Scotland's public golf ...
One Scot in every 100 applies to be classed as homeless
May 02, 2005; ... SCOTLAND's homeless population has soared to an all-time high,with the Executive's new policy on vagrancy prompting homelessapplications from one in every 100 Scots. An analysis by The Scotsman reveals the number officially countedas homeless by Scotland's 32 local authorities has ...
Election 2005: Blunkett set for return to Cabinet when Blair unveils reform plans
May 02, 2005; ... DAVID BLUNKETT is set for a return to the Cabinet on Friday asTony Blair plans to follow up his expected election victory with animmediate rollout of his reform agenda. After only five months in the political wilderness the former homesecretary is being tipped to return at an ...
Election 2005: We'll take Howard's seat and force out Letwin and Davis, say Lib Dems
May 02, 2005; ... CHARLES KENNEDY predicted yesterday that a Liberal Democratresurgence will decapitate the Conservative Party on Thursday -deposing four shadow cabinet members including Michael Howardhimself. The Lib Dem leader said his party stood on the brink of itsstrongest showing for a ...
Reviews: Triptych Festival: Prince Buster
May 02, 2005; ... PRINCE BUSTER **** LIQUID ROOM, EDINBURGH WHAT mystery elixir are these old reggae stars on? Ska pioneerPrince Buster will soon turn 67 but, at the first of his two Triptychshows, he was as spry as a man half his age and as impish as ateenager. His voice, too, was unspoiled, and ...
SAS Embassy Siege: The Inside Story: Part Two A series of slip-ups that left hostages close to disaster
May 02, 2005; ... CLIFF Thorburn was grinding down Alex Higgins in the final of theEmbassy World Snooker Championships when coverage was dramaticallyhalted. Suddenly, the eyes of the nation were transfixed on a differentkind of embassy as the SAS stormed 16 Princes Gate in central London,where ...
Scutineer: Why STS's defence against PIGIT looks a three-way winner
May 02, 2005; ... THOSE who thought the staid world of investment trusts held nosurprises have been delivered of two in the battle for control ofSecurities Trust of Scotland (STS). The first has been the feisty way in which the bidder, PerpetualIncome and Growth (PIGIT), has fought its campaign ....
Tracker: B&Q targeted
May 02, 2005 ... PRIVATE equity groups are lining up takeover bids for the owner ofDIY chain B&Q, it emerged yesterday. Permira and Apax Partners areexamining a potential GBP 7 billion offer for Kingfisher. Otherinvestment companies, including Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and US DIYgiant, The Home Depot, are ...
Weekend Review: Gandalf's rinding over at the Rovers
May 02, 2005; ... Coronation Street, ITV1, Fri and Sun All Points of the Compass, BBC2, Sat Scotsport SPL, ITV1, Sun Every critic - all hacked-off curmudgeons please take note -should offer sweet thanks for the magisterial spree of acting talentoozing right now from the box. There's ...
Whistling a happy tune
May 02, 2005; ... RICKY ROSS is walking his dog in the little park opposite hishouse on the south side of Glasgow, just like he does every day. Heturns his collar up to the wind while Phamie the fox terrier ("shortfor Euphemia") trots around happily investigating new scents. It'sall regulars, here, he ...
Karaoke violins are step too far
May 02, 2005; ... E XPECTATIONS surrounding the debut album of Ayrshire teen-violinist Nicola Benedetti have been enormous. The 17-year-old from West Kilbride was catapulted into the medialimelight just over 12 months ago, winning the BBC Young Musician ofthe Year last May. From appearances in a ...
PUNTERS' HAMILTON HIGH
May 02, 2005; ... PUNTERS don't always get it right but, if they did, days like theone Hamilton produced yesterday wouldn't be half as much fun. Favourite Salout D'Amour (10-11) set the tone when she landed theopener in the same colours as the 2,000 Guineas winnerFootstepsinthesand. Dispol ...
Election 2005: Embattled Blair hit by two new leaks
May 02, 2005; ... TONY Blair was unable to shake the spectre of Iraq yesterday asthe flow of leaked documents continued - the latest showing hedecided to go to war a year before telling the public. A 10 Downing Street memo written in June 2002 showed the PrimeMinister saying he would "work on the ...
Election 2005: How Rifkind is relishing role amid mix of Prada and politics
May 02, 2005; ... IF THERE is a general election in the offing, news has yet tofilter through to Kensington and Chelsea. In this central Londonconstituency, there are more signs for the "cashmere and pashminashow" than election posters. Ladies in Barbour jackets and velvetalice bands go about the serious ...
Derby glory added to CV as Chisholm stock rises
May 02, 2005; ... Dundee 1 Lovell (pen 64) Dundee Utd 2 Wilson (52), McIntyre (69) Referee: D McDonald. Attendance: 11,263 GORDON Chisholm could easily be excused his loose grip on thearithmetic of the battle to avoid relegation in the immediateaftermath of Dundee United's first ...
Down the swanee Saltires opener washed out - to the delight of one visitor
May 02, 2005; ... THE Scottish Saltires' season got off to a soggy start at theGrange yesterday when their opening Totesport League match againstDurham Dynamos was cancelled due to an unplayable surface. The enforced abandonment of the fixture means the teams receivetwo points apiece. The afternoon ...
Obituary: Lord Campbell of Croy
May 02, 2005; ... Gordon Thomas Calthrop Campbell Soldier and politician Born: 8 June, 1921, in Lossiemouth. Died: 26 April, 2005, inLondon, aged 83. WHEN Gordon Campbell (Lord Campbell of Croy) left office after theConservatives' defeat in the February 1974 general election, he hadbeen ...
Hibs deny Celtic home comforts
May 02, 2005; ... Celtic 1 Beattie (59) Hibernian 3 O'Connor (7), Sproule (79), Scott Brown (81) Referee: K Clark. Attendance: 58,322 LIKE Willie Nelson, Celtic must long to be on the road again. Theyearning, however, is unlikely to be born of the gypsy in their soul,but of the ...
Prso soars as missiles rain down
May 02, 2005; ... Aberdeen 1 Clark (33) Rangers 3 Ferguson (10), Prso (43, 59) Referee: H Dallas. Attendance: 17,198 JUST like the army of Aberdeen groundsmen who came out at half-time brandishing forks in an attempt to rectify the harm inflicted bythe sustained rain-fall, Rangers ...
Coin-throwing is 'ruining beautiful game', says Ricksen
May 02, 2005; ... FERNANDO Ricksen has issued a plea for sanity to return toScottish football stands after further incidents of missile-throwingdisrupted yesterday's meeting between Aberdeen and Rangers atPittodrie. The Rangers skipper was hit by a coin before taking a corner in amatch Rangers ...
Marshall saves Motherwell and frustrates Hearts
May 02, 2005; ... Hearts 0 Motherwell 0 Referee: I Brines. Attendance: 9,337 A SAVE, a miss and a few fluffed chances. That just about sums upthis forgettable game and why it finished goalless. The save came from Gordon Marshall - a magnificent dive low to hisright to keep ...
Pars anchored as Livingston set sail for safety
May 02, 2005; ... Livingston 2 O'Brien (33), McPake (74) Dunfermline 0 Referee: C Thomson. Attendance: 5,700 FORWARD momentum is everything in the struggle against relegation.Once a team has strung a few decent results together, the sense ofpurpose attached to moving onwards and ...
Great golfing engines ruined by a putt-putt
May 02, 2005; ... IT IS always painful to watch great golfers being mugged by theirputters. Something seems dreadfully wrong when a mean little itemlike a putt can undo, in one nervy moment, a sequence of perfectlystruck "proper" shots. During the third round at New Orleans at theweekend, Vijay Singh, ...
Reviews: Triptych Festival: KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN
May 02, 2005; ... KARLHEINZ STOCKHAUSEN ***** QUEEN'S HALL EDINBURGH ANOTHER capacity crowd turned out on Saturday for KarlheinzStockhausen - the great German composer's second Scottish appearancein the Triptych festival. This time, in Edinburgh, they whooped andcheered, even before a note ...
Tom Lappin's Sporting Week: 'One by one British women surrender to the allure of a pallid, satin-painted sportsman leaning over the green baize'
May 02, 2005; ... MAY bank holidays used to be hell before snooker. It's difficultto credit, but demanding wives would suggest that their husbands, whoknew instinctively that these precious Mondays were intended to offerthe relaxation of an afternoon on the sofa catching up with arcanesporting pursuits, ...
STILL MISSING YOU
May 02, 2005; ... DID THEY bang their head and lose the memory of who they are? Didthey decide to start afresh? Were they a victim of a crime, or didthey commit one and decide to hide forever? A myriad of agonisingquestions are asked when someone goes missing, but all too often,they are never answered ....
BT Cup Final: Party time as Muir power home
May 02, 2005; ... Boroughmuir 39 Dundee HSFP 25 Referee: G Hannah (Kirkcaldy). Attendance: 6,205. IF, AS Frank Hadden has suggested, professional teams are to driveforward elite rugby in this country, then the kind of carnival seenat the national stadium on Saturday must represent the ...
Reviews: Triptych Festival: THE TELEVISION PERSONALITIES
May 02, 2005; ... THE TELEVISION PERSONALITIES * TRON THEATRE, GLASGOW YOU couldn't exactly have called this a gig. A circus, possibly. Apantomime, maybe. Glasgow's Geographic label, run by the Pastels, hadput together a quirky international bill for this Triptych showcase,but their headline ...
Reviews: LAURIE ANDERSON
May 02, 2005; ... LAURIE ANDERSON *** TRAMWAY, GLASGOW GIVEN Laurie Anderson's many musical connections (she had a properpop hit once, with O Superman, has collaborated with Peter Gabriel,and is the partner of Lou Reed), it was tempting to think of thisTriptych festival show as a gig - which in ...
Reviews: Tears For Fears
May 02, 2005; ... TEARS FOR FEARS ** CLYDE AUDITORIUM, GLASGOW THE venue was close to full and the stage was nicely dressed withtheatrical drapes and Disney-meets-Dali cut-outs to compensate forthe group's lack of stage presence, but there was somethinginescapably half-hearted about this Tears For ...
Audit flaws wipe dollars 2.7bn off AIG's value
May 03, 2005; ... DISCOVERIES of improper accounting at American International Group(AIG) are to knock dollars 2.7 billion (GBP 1.4bn) off the value ofthe world's biggest insurer. AIG said yesterday it is now beingforced to restate its accounts for each of the last five years from2000 onwards, lowering ...
Cook 'will not stand against Chancellor' for Labour leadership
May 03, 2005; ... ROBIN Cook has ruled himself out as the "stop Brown" candidate inthe Labour leadership race, saying he believes the Chancellor'ssuccession is now inevitable if Labour wins the general election. The former foreign secretary told The Scotsman he was a "Labourloyalist" and a "party ...
Dairy sector's young generation not quite so game
May 03, 2005; ... JOHN Brown is the sixth generation of a farming family milkingcows in north Lanarkshire. He could be the last. Until recently thatwould have seemed most unlikely. His father, Jim, was a pioneer ofthe high-yielding Holstein cattle that now dominate British dairying,their Gaindykehead herd ...
Plant more colour in your diet to cut levels of killer cholesterol
May 03, 2005; ... EATING fruit and vegetables can double the effectiveness of a low-fat diet in reducing levels of harmful cholesterol, scientists haverevealed. The US-based research has demonstrated that while low-fat mealswere healthier, they were not all equally healthy - making it ...
Election 2005 Clarke slaps down McConnell drive for new talent
May 03, 2005; ... LABOUR'S Scottish election campaign suffered an embarrassingsetback yesterday when Jack McConnell's flagship policy of attractingforeign immigrants to live and work in Scotland was undermined by asenior Westminster colleague. The First Minister has been lobbying the Home Office ...
Election 2005 Cook backs Brown as logical choice to be Prime Minister
May 03, 2005; ... NEVER mind rewriting the rules of political warfare; after thiselection we may have to rewrite the thesaurus. Just how many ways arethere to say the Prime Minister has not told the truth? From Michael Howard's bald assertion that Tony Blair is a "liar"through numerous allegations ...
Election 2005 Party leaders join final dogfight for voters in key seats
May 03, 2005; ... A TRIO of battleground areas in England look set to decide the2005 general election as party leaders turn their campaign into adogfight in the Midlands, Yorkshire and the south-east. Michael Howard and Tony Blair have started chasing each other andthe Liberal Democrats, as a core ...
Election 2005 Ex-BBC chief slams Blair
May 03, 2005; ... TONY Blair was yesterday branded a "danger to democracy" by GregDyke, the former director general of the BBC, who accused the PrimeMinister of sexing up the legal advice on the Iraq war. The former Labour supporter said he was severing his 40-year linkto the party to switch to the ...
Election 2005 We'll do better in Scotland than last time, predicts Hague
May 03, 2005; ... WILLIAM Hague returned to Scotland yesterday in a tour of Angusand Perth where he predicted the party would have more success thanit did after his 2001 campaign. Touring with David McLetchie, the Scottish Tory leader, Mr Haguesaid his party would claim its right to overtake the ...
Election 2005 Labour in plea to supporters as internet poll suggests it could lose nine seats in Scotland
May 03, 2005; ... LABOUR has played down a YouGov poll which predicted the partycould lose as many as nine Scottish seats in the election. The Daily Telegraph's poll put Labour support at 35 per cent withthe Lib Dems second on 22 per cent, the SNP a close third on 20 percent and the Tories fourth ...
Fear hits harvest in fresh threat to Darfur
May 03, 2005; ... TWO million people who have fled their homes in the Darfur regionof Sudan to escape the genocide there face a new crisis next yearbecause they have been too scared to return to plant crops, aidworkers warned yesterday. Oxfam said there was little chance of a harvest this year ...
Move Over DArling After years in the shadows, Laura Bush seems to be heading for centre stage. Or is it simply that George W has finally learned how to cash in on his most valuable political asset.
May 03, 2005; ... THE SCENE: A dark, stuffy office in the White House. The time:4am. The cast: The White House Communications Team. Everyone in the room is hard at work. Sleep is no longer relevant.They're due in the Oval office at 9am, and know that if they can'tdeliver the speech by morning, ...
Warning to skippers over 'black fish' scam
May 03, 2005; ... A MULTI-million-pound "black fish" scam involving tonnes ofillegally landed herring and mackerel was just the tip of theiceberg, the head of the Scottish Fishery Protection Agency claimedyesterday. Paul Du Vivier, chief executive of the SFPA, told The Scotsmanthere would be no ...
Police sent to girls' football match
May 03, 2005; ... POLICE were called by a referee to help restore order at a girls'under-13 football match after the crowd began swearing and shoutingat the official and some of the young players, it was revealedyesterday. Officers from Tayside Police were sent to North Muirton Park inPerth at ...
Gallery in frame for GBP 14m facelift
May 03, 2005; ... THE Scottish National Portrait Gallery in Edinburgh is to undergoa GBP 14 million revamp to increase massively its hanging space andboost visitor numbers, The Scotsman can reveal. Some of the money will be used to turn old store rooms intodisplay spaces for more than 150 paintings ...
UK soldier killed as casualties in Gulf rise Guardsman becomes 87th British soldier to die as MoD reports number of injured evacuated exceeds 3,000
May 03, 2005; ... A BRITISH soldier was killed in a bomb attack in southern Iraqyesterday as the Ministry of Defence revealed that the number ofcasualties medically evacuated from the Gulf since the start of thewar has risen above 3,000. Guardsman Anthony John Wakefield died when a bomb exploded ...
When public interest beats human rights
May 03, 2005; ... AN ACCUSATION levelled frequently at Scotland's criminal justicesystem, especially in the modern era of human rights legislation, isthat it bends over backwards in favour of the accused. From the fundamental principle of the presumption of innocence,under which juries are told to ...
Urgent need for North Sea minnows to mature
May 03, 2005; ... INDEPENDENT North Sea oil and gas companies must become far moredynamic and broadly focused if the region's 25-30 billion barrels-worth of estimated reserves are to be tapped successfully, a newreport has found. According to the latest "state-of-the-industry" report fromventure ...
Police probe Deepcut-linked hanging
May 03, 2005; ... POLICE are investigating a suspicious death at an army barracksamid allegations that other soldiers have attempted suicide there, itemerged yesterday. Private Gregory Bruce, 28, was found hanged in his barracks roomat Bicester, Oxfordshire, on 12 April. He was serving with ...
Runaway horses halt motorway traffic
May 03, 2005; ... RUNAWAY horses brought traffic on the M8 to a standstill yesterdaywhen they galloped along the motorway. The two horses, thought to have come from the Blochairn area ofGlasgow, had managed to reach the busy Cathedral Street area of thecity centre. They then doubled back on ...
Stars and their ayes for Labour
May 03, 2005; ... A CELEBRITY-STUDDED Labour election broadcast will tonight warnthe party's supporters that avoiding the polls could decimate itschances of winning. The advert - featuring Sir Alan Sugar, the millionaireentrepreneur and star of reality TV show The Apprentice, and theScots actor ...
Experts tip N Sea investment to hit GBP 35bn
May 03, 2005; ... NORTH Sea investment is expected to reach GBP 35 billion over thenext five years, despite oil output from the region falling almost 16per cent during the last 12 months. According to the annual industry report from 3i, UK spending onthe sector will rise from GBP 8.9bn to GBP 9bn ...
Murrayfield drink ban lifted for final
May 03, 2005; ... A BAN on drinking at Murrayfield is to be relaxed for this month'sEuropean Rugby Cup final, in a move that could pave the way foralcohol sales at future sporting events in the stadium. The Scottish Rugby Union is to be granted a licence allowing fansto enjoy a beer inside the ...
Protesters to form 'human wristband' around city centre
May 03, 2005; ... TENS of thousands of protesters will form a "human wristband"around Edinburgh city centre in a striking visual call to end globalpoverty. The Make Poverty History coalition wants people taking part inwhat is expected to be Scotland's biggest-ever demonstration to wearwhite tops ...
Rover workers paid GBP 20m
May 03, 2005; ... THOUSANDS of workers who lost their jobs following the collapse ofMG Rover have received redundancy payments totalling more than GBP 20million, the government has announced. The payments, averaging GBP 5,000 per worker, have been speeded upto help those hit by the crisis ....
SAS Embassy Siege: The Inside Story: Final Part Trained by Saddam to test the Iron Lady
May 03, 2005; ... IT WAS her first major test, a defining moment that helped toestablish her reputation as one of Britain's most fearsome primeministers. When six Middle Eastern terrorists, armed to the hilt, stormedinto the Iranian Embassy in Kensington, they plunged Britain intocrisis. But when ...
Bloody introduction to a new enemy for the West
May 03, 2005; ... WHILE the Iranian Embassy siege was a watershed for the SAS,thrusting Britain's elite forces into the limelight for the firsttime, the dramatic events of April 1980 also put a formidableadversary on the international map. For, all the time, it was the shadowy hand of Saddam ...