The Scotsman back issues from September 2007:
Nimrod inquiry delays under fire
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE SNP's Westminster leader has criticised delays in inquiriesinto the deaths of 14 servicemen killed in an Afghanistan plane crasha year ago. Angus Robertson said the wait for the Ministry of Defence inquiryand a coroner's inquest was a "disgrace". Dates have still to be ...
Charitable act left duo GBP 11,000 in debt
Sep 01, 2007; ... AN EDINBURGH couple carrying out charity work in Malawi wereshocked to find that thousands rather than hundreds of pounds hadbeen withdrawn from their Bank of Scotland (BoS) account because ofan error over currency made by a South African bank. Dr Malcolm McKitterick and his wife ...
BoS sees Scottish economic growth picking up next year
Sep 01, 2007; ... SHARES in HBOS may have tumbled 25 per cent in recent panics, butthe bank's economists are still painting a rosy picture forScotland's economy. Latest readings from the Bank of Scotland Index of LeadingEconomic Indicators suggest that economic growth in Scotland is setto remain ...
Consumer service sector slowdown
Sep 01, 2007; ... INTEREST rate hikes and dreadful weather have slowed the demandfor consumer services as people forgo holidays, flights, fitness andbeauty treatments in a bid to tighten their belts, according toresearch by the CBI and Grant Thornton. Hardest hit during Q2, demand for outdoor ...
China uses its noodle to eat mangled menu words in time for the Olympics
Sep 01, 2007; ... OVER the centuries something has definitely been lost intranslation. But now officials have ordered Beijing restaurants to take namesof dishes like "burnt lion's head", "government abuse chicken" or"crap in the grass" off the menu to prevent their vivid descriptionsalarming ...
Corsie bowls along as it predicts growth
Sep 01, 2007; ... CORSIE Group, the East Lothian leisure firm run by former worldbowls champion Richard Corsie, pictured below, is confident it canincrease shareholder value after flagging a strong full-year outcome. The firm's shares have been stuck in the mire despite steadyfinancial progress and ...
Stand by for an election every year
Sep 01, 2007; ... ELECTIONS for Scotland's 32 local authorities will no longer beheld at the same time as the Holyrood ballot, the Executive promisedyesterday. The move to "de-couple" the Scottish parliamentary and councilelections raised the prospect of councillors elected this year havingtheir ...
Driven to despair by debt
Sep 01, 2007; ... AS DEBT levels spiral in Scotland, and across the UK, more peopleare being driven into the last resort of bankruptcy - known assequestration north of the Border. Debt is undoubtedly a major problem, amounting to more than GBP1.3 trillion in Britain, and this is likely to increase, ...
'Our guardian, friend, protector - the best mother in the world'
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE speech was folded in two and tucked into the right-hand insidepocket of Prince Harry's dark suit. Yesterday, as he and his brother,Prince William, stood at the top of the steps leading into GuardsChapel at Wellington Barracks, near Buckingham Palace, where theygreeted the Queen and ...
Suspended Scottish Enterprise executive vows to clear name
Sep 01, 2007; ... A SENIOR executive at Scottish Enterprise, suspended afterallegations of misconduct were levelled against her, last nightpromised to fight to clear her name. Charlene O'Connor, director of skills and learning at the economicdevelopment agency, said she was "hurt and shocked" at ...
How green fingers are good when you invest
Sep 01, 2007; ... WITH stock market turbulence continuing, investors are looking foralternative places to put their money to boost their returns. After being seen as a fad for years, some commentators say ethicalfunds are now coming into their own. The latest survey by Investment, Life & ...
Less than a grain of truth in fortune tales
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE impression is gaining ground that arable farmers are set tomake huge profits this year on the back of record prices for wheat,with London futures again moving upwards on Thursday by GBP 9 to GBP175 per tonne for November. However, the commercial reality issomewhat different in that ...
Star of Fringe wins chance to bridge gap
Sep 01, 2007; ... A WELL-KNOWN figure on the Fringe, the director, actor andplaywright John Clancy, was named yesterday as the winner of a GBP5,000 development award from the Edinburgh International Festival. The award was introduced by EIF director Jonathan Mills to build abridge between the ...
Mills will grind his way into history
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE new director of the Edinburgh International Festival saidyesterday he plans to stay in the job for at least five years after atumultuous first festival. Jonathan Mills, the Australian composer, celebrating a rarestanding ovation in the Queen's Hall for a concert by the ...
Fund in Focus: Ethical Equity Fund: Taking a 'dark-green' ethical stance need not cost you profit
Sep 01, 2007; ... INVESTORS with a conscience looking for something at the "dark-green" end of the spectrum will find Aegon Asset Management's (AAM)Ethical Equity Fund of interest. Launched in 1989 and managed by Audrey Ryan since 1999, the fundis valued at GBP 182.3 million. Ryan said: "It's very ...
Supporting your club and saving too
Sep 01, 2007; ... FOR many people nothing inspires more loyalty than their footballteam and with this season well and truly under way, passions arerunning high. You may ask what has this got to do with personal finance. Quite alot in reality, as an increasing number clubs are offering fans arange ...
It's a dog's life - millions in the bank, but no-one to spend it with
Sep 01, 2007; ... 'DING-dong the witch is dead', was the chorus ringing out acrossManhattan this week, with the news that larger-than-life propertymogul Leona Helmsley had at last shuffled off her mortal coil, aged87. And bless, she's proving as marvellously entertaining inpermanent repose as she was in ...
SNP's ascension has given us a renewed hope
Sep 01, 2007; ... IT MUST be a couple of decades, now, since Scotland's schoolsswitched the beginning of their autumn term to the middle of August.But, for me and thousands like me, this first weekend of Septemberwill always be the moment when summer ends and the smell of autumnfills the air, along with ...
Leader: How to help our troubled youth
Sep 01, 2007; ... THERE are nearly 2,500 children in Scotland's secure accommodationunits and residential special schools for those with disciplinaryproblems. Most are victims of broken homes and have been in troublewith the law. They are a complex and difficult community to deal withand, as a result, ...
Fort William cashes in on wheels of good fortune
Sep 01, 2007; ... SEVEN hundred riders from 50 countries, 40,000 visitors and atelevision audience of millions are set to deliver a GBP 2 millionboost for Fort William, which is gearing up to the mountain bikeworld this weekend. The town is hosting the UCI Mountain Bike and Trials ...
New fund aims to reach its peak over long term
Sep 01, 2007; ... FUNDAMENTAL Tracker Investment Management, a new Scottish company,is to launch its first investment, the Munro Fund on Monday. Based in Bearsden, near Glasgow, the firm is planning to launch arange of funds, firstly UK, then European and global, which "securegood returns from ...
And in other news that week...
Sep 01, 2007; ... CAN YOU remember anything that happened in the world in thatsombre week between 31 August and 6 September 1997, other than thedeath of Princess Diana? Most can't, looking back on that period nowas when a strange sort of madness had us in its grip. A nationalrelease of emotion, a mass ...
Big Brother viewing figures at lowest ever levels
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE latest series of Big Brother has drawn the lowest viewingfigures in its seven-year history. An average of 3.8 million viewers have tuned in to this year'sseries of the Channel 4 reality show. That is sharply down on the 4.5million who tuned in during 2006. The show's ...
Gunner killed in Afghan blast is named
Sep 01, 2007; ... A GUNNER based at RAF Lossiemouth who was killed in an explosionin southern Afghanistan was named yesterday. The Ministry of Defence said that Senior Aircraftman ChristopherBridge, 20, from Sheffield, of 51 Squadron, RAF Regiment, died in theblast in the early hours of Thursday ...
De Palma's Iraq war film stuns Venice festival
Sep 01, 2007; ... BRIAN De Palma, the director of Hollywood hits such as Mission:Impossible and Scarface, stunned the Venice Film Festival yesterdaywith a harrowing film about the Iraq war. Redacted, billed as a "fictional story inspired by true events",follows United States soldiers in Iraq who ...
Amir Khan's speeding trial is postponed
Sep 01, 2007; ... MILLIONAIRE boxer Amir Khan's trial over claims that he wasclocked driving at 140mph was adjourned yesterday following legalargument. Khan, 20, of Bolton, Greater Manchester, did not attend thehearing at Rochdale Magistrates' Court. He has denied the speeding charge after ...
Talks held to resolve prison staff pay row
Sep 01, 2007; ... PRISON officers' leaders held "constructive" talks with thegovernment today in an attempt to resolve the row over pay which ledto a wildcat strike in jails across England and Wales on Wednesday. Leaders of the Prison Officers' Association (POA) met with JackStraw, the UK justice ...
Comparison sites are hard to compare But it seems they are here to stay
Sep 01, 2007; ... MANY of you will have used one of the plethora of price comparisonsites that are now around. Perhaps to book your travel insurance for your summer holiday, or,for the more internet-friendly among us, even to arrange something asbig as your mortgage. There are too many sites ...
S&N has eyes on 20 per cent growth in the untapped Far East
Sep 01, 2007; ... SCOTTISH & Newcastle is targeting volume growth of over 20 percent annually in India in coming years, according to a seniordirector. John Hunt, S&N's managing director for Asia, said on the sidelinesof a conference in Mumbai that S&N expected big things of itsinvestment in ...
Saturday Profile: Jim Mather: The moment of truth near for Mather
Sep 01, 2007; ... SHOWTIME is fast approaching for Jim Mather, the minister forenterprise, energy and tourism. After the hot gospel of his election campaign, and the subsequentmonths of meeting and "mindmapping" with Scottish business, the manwho claims to be their champion in the new SNP ...
Insiders 'are too scared of legal costs' to speak
Sep 01, 2007; ... WHISTLEBLOWERS were given legal safeguards by the Public InterestDisclosure Act 1998, which introduced specific protection againstvictimisation and dismissal for staff who "blow the whistle" onemployers for wrongdoing. It had been clear under common law that it was in the ...
Teacher lifts the lid on special school that's 'failing pupils'
Sep 01, 2007; ... A TEACHER is using whistleblower legislation to lift the lid on aresidential school which he says is failing some of Scotland's mostvulnerable youngsters. William Graham, who was a maths teacher at Springboig St John'sSchool in Glasgow for six years, has logged a catalogue of ...
Broker Snaps
Sep 01, 2007; ... Cobham 201p +8.75p Broker says BUY AEROSPACE and defence group Cobham took off as JP Morgan repeatedits "overweight" rating despite cutting its target price to 220p from235p as it believed the market storm creates more opportunities thanrisks. The broker lowered its target ...
One to Watch: Origo
Sep 01, 2007; ... Origo 46.5p -0.5p Scotsman says BUY ORIGO Sino-India is an investment and consultancy company, focusedon private equity markets in India and China. Quoted on AIM, it cameto the market at the end of last year at 53.5p and has a currentmarket cap of around GBP 30 million ....
Rumour of the Day: Deutsche silent on closure talk
Sep 01, 2007; ... DEUTSCHE Bank is thought to have shut its London proprietarycredit trading desk, according to a source. "Some of the team are leaving and some of the team are beingreassigned internally and that process is still ongoing," the sourcesaid of the 14-strong team. "More than half will ...
Scots Stocks: Cairn Energy jumps 2.9 per cent on the back of an increase in crude oil prices
Sep 01, 2007; ... SHARES in Scottish companies were on the up yesterday after abattling performance across the UK market. Oil and gas producers benefited as the price of crude oil edgedhigher. Cairn Energy advanced 51p to 1,797p, a gain of 2.9 per cent, whileDana Petroleum crept up 19p to ...
Scrutineer: Poor judgment on credit
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE unceremonious removal of the head of Standard & Poor's amidthe subprime mortgage meltdown suggests standards at the world'sbiggest credit rating agency were lax and performance was poor. Kathleen Corbet quit as both American and European politiciansthrash around to blame ...
Small But Beautiful: Modern Water floats higher after floatation
Sep 01, 2007; ... WATER technology investment outfit Modern Water said the businessremained on course following its first set of results, having madegood progress since floating on AIM in June. The firm, with a market capitalisation of around GBP 64 million,reported a loss before tax of GBP 1.065m ...
Blue-chips end turbulent week firmly in black
Sep 01, 2007; ... LONDON FTSE 100 CLOSE 6,303.3 +91.3 LONDON'S benchmark index closed the week comfortably in positiveterritory - and above the psychologically important 6,300 mark - asthe Federal Reserve and the US president, George Bush, teamed up tooffer reassurance on America's subprime woes ....
GBP 1.1m funding boost for audio pioneers
Sep 01, 2007; ... A FIFE audio company whose technology can turn almost any surfaceinto a loudspeaker has secured a further GBP 1.1 million in funding,writes Scott Reid. Dunfermline-based SFX Technologies said it would use the freshinvestment to ramp up its commercial activities and grow its ...
SMG offloads Primesight billboard arm in GBP 62m deal
Sep 01, 2007; ... SCOTTISH Media Group, the owners of STV, is selling its billboardadvertising business Primesight GBP 62 million to private equity firmGMT Communications. The sale forms part of SMG's strategy of selling what it calls non-core assets and focusing on its television and new media ...
Barclays ploughs GBP 700m in to SIV-lite
Sep 01, 2007; ... BARCLAYS is to plough dollars 1.44 billion (GBP 714 million) ofrescue financing into a debt-structured special investment vehiclecreated by its own investment bank and now run by hedge fund CairnCapital. Cairn High Grade Funding - which has a structure known as a SIV-lite - ran ...
Corbet quits S&P as row grows over US credit rating agencies' 'failures'
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE president of Standard & Poor's, Kathleen Corbet, has left theratings agency amid strong market criticism that it and rival Moody'shad failed in their ability to spot financial market crises earlier. Corbet, pictured right, had been at the firm owned by Americanpublisher ...
The Week: 25-31 August
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE death toll from the wildfires sweeping through Greece rose to60 on Sunday. The Greek government blamed arsonists for the blazes,which covered up to half of mainland Greece. Camilla, the Duchess ofCornwall, turned down an invitation from princes William and Harry toattend a memorial ...
Wife of World's End accused tells murder trial of his 'fishing trips'
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE wife of the man accused of the World's End murders 30 yearsago took to the witness box yesterday. Sarah Sinclair told the jury how estranged husband Angus used togo on fishing trips. Sinclair would use a caravanette he had bought in 1977, and wouldtake his ...
Boxer's speeding trial on hold
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE millionaire boxer Amir Khan's trial over claims that he wasclocked driving at 140mph was adjourned yesterday following legalargument. Khan, 20, of Bolton, did not attend the hearing at RochdaleMagstrates' Court but has protested his innocence, after allegedlybeing caught ...
Amid the tragedies, football shows that it has a compassionate side
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE understandable consensus is that football is an inherentlyvenal and insensitive business, where everything has a price tag.Sometimes though it can surprise you with an unwonted indication ofsensitivity to the popular mood. With due acknowledgment to therestless ghost of Bill Shankly, ...
Musselburgh ushers in new Gambling Act
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE nights are fair drawin' in but the fact they take a wee bitlonger to do so in God's own country than they do across the Borderhas earned Musselburgh a welcome bonus. As of today, the Gambling Act2005, the first major piece of government legislation to affectracing in more than 40 ...
Pressure builds on New Zealand to end 20 black years of hurt
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE rugby world has long viewed the famous All Blacks with ameasure of awe, but the pressure is building on the men entrustedwith the iconic jerseys this year to entrench their fearsomereputation with a World Cup crown. Not since David Kirk lifted the inaugural trophy in Auckland ...
Sick of elections? Get set for one almost every year in polls revamp
Sep 01, 2007; ... ELECTIONS for Scotland's 32 local authorities will no longer beheld at the same time as the Holyrood ballot, the Executive promisedyesterday. The move to "de-couple" the Scottish parliamentary and councilelections raised the prospect of councillors elected this year havingtheir ...
Suspended Scottish Enterprise executive vows to clear name
Sep 01, 2007; ... A SENIOR executive at Scottish Enterprise suspended afterallegations of misconduct last night promised to fight to clear hername. Charlene O'Connor, director of skills and learning at the economicdevelopment agency, said she was "hurt and shocked" at the action. Ms O'Connor ...
Big Brother winner revealed but show is the loser
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE latest series of Big Brother has drawn the lowest viewingfigures in its seven-year history. An average of 3.8 million viewers have tuned in to this year'sseries of the Channel 4 reality show. That is sharply down on the 4.5million who watched during 2006. Last night, ...
RAF gunner killed by Afghan explosion is named
Sep 01, 2007; ... A GUNNER based at RAF Lossiemouth who was killed in an explosionin southern Afghanistan was named yesterday. The Ministry of Defence said that Senior Aircraftman ChristopherBridge, 20, from Sheffield, of 51 Squadron, RAF Regiment, died in theblast in the early hours of Thursday ....
Drug-dealing convictions up but fewer serve time
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE number of drug dealers receiving prison sentences has droppedto less than half in the past 20 years. In the period 1985 to 1986, some 244 people were convicted ofsupplying illegal drugs, 72 per cent of whom received prisonsentences. But in the period 2005-6, some 1,536 people ...
Ministers defend UK role in Iraq
Sep 01, 2007; ... CABINET ministers have launched a robust defence of Britain's rolein Iraq, rebuffing American criticism that UK forces had failed intheir mission. Des Browne, the Defence Secretary, and David Miliband, the ForeignSecretary, took the unusual move of writing an editorial in ...
Let's vote on Constitution for EU, urges ex-minister
Sep 01, 2007; ... A FORMER Labour Europe minister yesterday joined calls for areferendum on the new European Union Treaty. Keith Vaz urged the Prime Minister, Gordon Brow, to allow a voteon the treaty, which critics claim is a replica of the old EUconstitution. Labour promised a referendum ...
GBP 500 for staff who broke prison strike
Sep 01, 2007; ... STAFF who worked during this week's wildcat strike by thousands ofprison officers are to receive a GBP 500 bonus, it emerged lastnight. The Prison Officers' Association expressed anger at the news andsaid it would protest strongly to the government. Earlier, prison ...
Sir Tom 'deeply concerned' at threatened school closures
Sep 01, 2007; ... SCOTTISH philanthropist Sir Tom Hunter yesterday waded into theEdinburgh schools row, saying he was "deeply concerned" over plans toaxe two secondaries to which he has given hefty donations. The millionaire has committed GBP 750,000 to schools in the city,including Wester Hailes ...
'Our guardian, friend, protector - the best mother in the world
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE speech was folded in two and tucked into the right-hand insidepocket of Prince Harry's dark suit. Yesterday, as he and his brother,Prince William, stood at the top of the steps leading into GuardsChapel at Wellington Barracks, near Buckingham Palace, where theygreeted the Queen and ...
Platini loses his bite with 'compromise' deal for Champions League
Sep 01, 2007; ... THE widespread assumption that Michel Platini's plan to revamp theChampions League will present the first serious test of his UEFApresidency fails to take proper account of the political frameworkwithin which the proposal will be judged. It should be realised that the ...
Hearts bring in striker Nade but lose Bednar
Sep 01, 2007; ... HEARTS have bolstered their attack with the capture of strikerChristian Nade from Sheffield United on a three-year contract. The Tynecastle side have scored just two goals in their openingfour league matches but hope the arrival of the French forward willincrease their potency in ...
Rangers finally land Naismith as Miller exits Celtic
Sep 01, 2007; ... TWO of Scotland's international strikers were on the move on adramatic day of transfer activity yesterday, with Celtic's KennyMiller moving to English Premier League side Derby County and StevenNaismith finally making his much-touted switch to Rangers justminutes before the transfer ...
Rock veteran Cooper climbs his fairway to heaven as a golf addict
Sep 01, 2007; ... WHEN Alice Cooper ran into Lou Reed in New York last year, youmight have expected these grizzled rock veterans to reminisce abouttheir halcyon days at the Chelsea Hotel in 1972 when drug addicts,transvestites, groupies and boozers crowded into their rooms aftergigs to party into the ...
Frenchman bolsters Hibs' attack
Sep 01, 2007; ... HAVING last night tied-up the signing of French striker MickaelAntoine-Curier from Norwegian club FK Haugesund, Hibs manager JohnCollins will hope his new acquisition can offer even half as much asCraig Brewster, who returns to Easter Road today for the second timein a week ....
Ryder Cup man hits back after Gleneagles gripe by Clarke
Sep 01, 2007; ... SANDY Jones, the chief executive of the Professional GolfersAssociation and a member of Europe's Ryder Cup committee, yesterdayrebutted Darren Clarke's criticism of the PGA Centenary course as aninappropriate site for the 2014 Ryder Cup match and said it was atleast as good a test as the ...