October 2013 – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

Letter: Offensive, Darling – bitter together

Dear Editor

I find it offensive that Alister Darling thinks that Scotland is not capable of self-government or of being a nation with full powers. How come small nations similar to Scotland can gain their independence and be successful, look after their people and economy without their neighbours ?

Lets look at what “Better Together ” has really done for Scotland. It has destroyed coal mining and ship building . It has given away our forests to the highest bidder,and our fisheries were sold down the river. Our whisky is taxed to the hilt . Gas, electricity,water and now the Royal Mail have all been privatised,but not for the benefit of ordinary people. Our hospitals ,schools and care homes can’t cope because budgets are cut year in, year out .

Scotland’s oil has been squandered to the extent that Mr Darling and his ilk say it’s running out, yet we are assured by experts there are still ample oil reserves. Denis Healey admitted to the people of Scotland that they were lied to in the 1970s about the oil supply running out then. New oil fields are being opened daily , weekly, monthly.

Under “Better Together ” Scotland has nothing – it all goes to Westminster! Our old , young unemployed , disabled , vulnerable are being driven into deeper poverty by a ‘better together’ UK Great Britain, whether you are a Tory, Labour or Lib/Dem.

As for George Osbourne telling the Scottish nation that should we get independence we would not be able to use the pound sterling? Have any Scottish people tried to exchange Scottish monetary notes in England ? It’s near impossible!

Another myth is having to use a Scottish passport to travel to England? Passports are not required to travel to the Republic of Eire. Yes identification is required but not necessary a passport.

As for defence Better Together have used their savage cuts to the MOD therefore Scotland has seen their regiments disappear. Teresa May’s recent comment that Scotland would be a target for terrorism. Scotland has been attacked once . We are more than capable of defending our country. How many times has England been attacked? Go back to the 1970s and as recent as the London bombings in 2012.

Any other nations who have gained their independence have never asked to be returned to their original countries.If the people of Scotland want more welfare cuts, ruled from Westminster, job losses, and unfair treatment of our nation , then I dare you never to be poor, ill, young, unemployed or old.

The Better Together campaign are scaremongering our nation. Scottish people have to realise that in the referendum we are NOT voting for any political party but to have the right to rule our own country . All I have heard from political parties has been the back stabbing of Alex Salmond for suggesting we can achieve independence . Joanne Lamont is one of the worst offenders. Having listen to her at the Labour Party Conference she put down Alex Salmond 23 times . ” Better Together “? More like “Bitter Together!”

Finally just to inform people I do NOT vote SNP – however I do want independence.

Stand up, Scotland and be a proud nation!

Anna Hutchison (by email)

Halloween Safety Tips

Police Scotland have issued some advice to help everyone to enjoy Halloween safely …

It’s Halloween tomorrow, so we are asking residents of all ages to make Halloween a safe and enjoyable celebration.

We are issuing some simple guidance for young people to ensure that Halloween passes safely and that anti-social or irresponsible behaviour is avoided.

The past few years have seen Halloween pass quietly in the area but there are still residents who are affected by the minority who behave anti-socially and ruin what should be a fun and family orientated time of the year.

Parents and young people are asked to consider the following advice:

Stay in well-lit areas and consider carrying a torch.
Don’t frighten elderly people or younger children.
Don’t enter a house unless you know the person. Young children should always be with an adult. Older children should ensure they are with friends.
If a sign says ‘No trick or treat’, respect that person’s wishes and move on.
Be visible, it will be dark and it’s important that passing traffic can see you.
If you have a mobile phone make sure you look after it so that parents/guardian can keep in touch.
Tell your parents or guardian where you are going and what time you will be back.
If you are given money keep it hidden away in a wallet or clothing.
Remember that it might be raining so wear appropriate clothing that keeps you dry but still lets you show off your costume.

Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership meets next Wednesday

The next public meeting of Inverleith Neighbourhood Partnership takes place on

Wednesday 6 November at 7.30pm in Blackhall Library.

As well as regular Neighbourhood Partnership business of small grant awards and roads funding, next week’s event will also be an opportunity to hear more about the Council’s budget proposals and find out how to have your say on this.

More info here.

MoonWalk boost for Western’s Mammography Unit

MoonWalkers transform Edinburgh’s Mammography Services!

Care for breast patients in Edinburgh will be transformed thanks to the opening of a state-of-the-art Mammography Department at the Western General Hospital.

The upgraded and extended department at the Western General Hospital was funded by donations of £1.4 million raised by the annual MoonWalk Scotland in Edinburgh and the unit was officially opened by Nina Barough CBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Walk the Walk Worldwide on Friday.

Walk the Walk, the charity which organises The MoonWalk, has been working in partnership with NHS Lothian and The Breast Cancer Institute to improve facilities and care for breast patients.

Over the last eight years, Walk the Walk has donated £1.5m for the construction of the new theatre in the breast unit, with NHS Lothian funding the remaining internal work. Another £500,000 from the charity has gone towards the £1 million revamp of Ward Six at the hospital, to transform it into a dedicated breast surgery ward.

Elaine Anderson, Clinical Director of Breast Services, said: “The opening of our extended Mammography Department will enhance the specialised diagnosis and care which we are able to offer to our patients. The Edinburgh Breast Unit has been at the forefront of developments in the treatment of breast cancer for 30 years and Walk the Walk’s assistance will ensure it stays there.”

Nina Barough CBE, Founder and Chief Executive of Walk the Walk Worldwide, (pictured above (centre) and below) said: “All of the Walk the Walk Team are delighted to see the completion of the new Mammography Unit at the Western General.   “We have been granting funds for the projects at the Western for almost eight years, so with a new operating theatre, and the re-designed breast care ward, we have been able to help transform the facilities not only for the patients, but also the staff, so that those receiving and those giving care, feel supported by a nurturing and healing environment. MoonWalkers should feel very proud of what they have achieved for Edinburgh.”

Brian Houston, Chair, NHS Lothian, said: “It’s great to see the scope of facilities here in the mammography department. Patients from across Lothian will receive diagnostic care and treatment in a world-class facility.

“We are committed to providing patient-centred effective care and we recognise the importance of working in partnership with Walk the Walk on this particular project.”

Drylaw Telford Community Council meets tonight

Agenda DTCC Mtg. 30th October 2013

Just a reminder that Drylaw Telford Community Council meets tonight at 7pm in Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre off Groathill Road North.

Among items on tonight’s agenda (see above) are the election of office-bearers for the forthcoming year, as well as updates on a variety of local community initiatives.

As ever, the meeting is open to the public – all welcome!

Granton Sur Mer to set sail once again?

Remember Granton Sur Mer? The imaginative scheme to establish an international garden competition, artists’ village and seafront lido constructed from sea containers? The scheme seemed to have sunk without trace, but now it appears the Granton Sur Mer initiative is afloat once again!

Granton Improvement Society is the name of the organisation taking the regeneration ideas forward and they are staging a presentation of updated plans tomorrow (Wednesday 30 October).

Society secretary Barbara Robertson said: “Trustees would like to invite you to come to a presentation on Wednesday 30^th October, of the community regeneration project for the Walled Garden www.granton-sur-mer.co.uk and surrounding sites which will be transformed into the Garden Festival, Artisans’ Village and Lido,

“This exciting and dynamic project in Granton will not only bring community benefit, employment, fun, leisure and learning opportunities to North Edinburgh but will develop into Edinburgh’s next Festival. This will certainly add to Edinburgh’s reputation as a Festival City, gold medal winner of Britain in Bloom, World Heritage City and a great, green place to live and work for all of its people.”

participants can enjoy a site visit at 11am followed by a light lunch at Royston Wardieburn Community Centre, a project presentation by Studio DuB’s Gordon Duffy with an open discussion planned to end the afternoon session.

Interested and like to find out more? Contact

barbara.robertson@grantonimprovementsociety.org

or telephone 551 3050.

Health inequality gap continues to widen

Scotland’s Chief Statistician today announced the publication of the latest Long-term Monitoring of Health Inequalities: Headline Indicators report, the sixth annual publication on headline indicators following the Equally Well (2008) report of the Ministerial Task Force on Health Inequalities.

The main findings are:

The highest level of relative inequality continues to be seen in alcohol-related deaths among those aged 45 to 74 years. However, this rate has fallen to its lowest level in the reporting period (1998 to 2011). Relative inequality levels for first alcohol-related hospital admissions have remained stable since 1997.
Despite stabilising in recent years, the level of relative inequality for deaths among those aged 15 to 44 years has increased since 1997. A similar pattern can also be seen in deaths among those aged under 75 years.
Between 1997 and 2011, the death rate for coronary heart disease (CHD) among those aged 45 to 74 years fell by 61%. The reduction was slower in the most deprived areas of Scotland than elsewhere, meaning that relative inequality has increased slightly over the long-term while the absolute inequality gap has narrowed. However, there are signs that relative inequality has stabilised in recent years.
Despite no clear long term trend, in recent years heart attack hospital admission rates have increased and inequalities widened.
Over the longer term, most indicators have shown signs of stability in one or both measures. Inequalities in low birthweight are now stabilising having decreased between 2006 and 2008, while other indicators, such as CHD deaths, have stabilised following increases in inequality.
Additional inequalities information, regarding healthy birthweight babies (babies with an appropriate weight for gestational age) as well as incidence and mortality rates by cancer type, is included in this report for the first time in 2013.
Full results for all indicators are available in the publication.

The gap in health outcomes between the most deprived and least deprived areas of Scotland is reported for a variety of indicators in both absolute and relative terms. The latest figures include data up to 2011 for most indicators.

Commenting on the latest statistics, Minister for Public Health Michael Matheson said that tackling income inequality is the root of the challenge. He said:

“Overall, health in Scotland is improving, and people are living longer, healthier lives. Reducing the health gap between people in Scotland’s most deprived and affluent communities is one of our greatest challenges.

“At the root is the issue of income inequality – we need a shift in emphasis from dealing with the consequences to tackling the underlying causes, such as ending poverty, fair wages, supporting families and improving our physical and social environments.

“In the face of the UK Government’s welfare cuts, we are working with all of our partners to tackle poverty and inequality and help those who want to work to get into work.

“Many people in Scotland are concerned about the welfare policies of the UK government and the implications they could have on them and their families. And that is why we want to develop a Scottish system which provide support for those who need it.

“This illustrates the fact that the full powers of independence would provide the opportunity to make substantial progress on tackling health inequalities.

“We are continuing to take decisive action in areas we have control, for example to address alcohol consumption, reduce smoking rates, encourage active living, healthy eating, and promote positive mental health. But without full control over areas like welfare, we are left having to deal with UK Government welfare policies that only threaten to make things worse.”

Adios, Anita!

Anita Aggarwal, popular Senior Development Worker at Pilton Community Health Project, is taking a career break and is off with her family on the adventure of a lifetime – to South America!

You can follow Anita’s progress on her blog at

http://anitaisraandmiguelsgreatadventure.wordpress.com/

Good luck, Anita – it was great working with you and we’ll be following your adventures all the way!

Anita serves up smoothies to NEN charity walkers

Geraldine O’Riordan fills Anita’s role at PCHP and she can be contacted by email at geraldineoriordan@pchp.org.uk or telephone 551 1671.

Scotland and the UK: safer together?

Threats to Scotland and the UK from organised crime gangs, cyber criminals and global terrorism are best confronted with Scotland inside the UK, Home Secretary Theresa May claimed today. However ‘Yes’ campaigners have been quick to challenge the Home Secretary’s analysis and say that Scotland will continue to work closely with international partners on security issues.

The Home Secretary (pictured below) was in Edinburgh to launch ‘Scotland analysis: Security’, the seventh in a series of UK government papers to inform the debate ahead of next year’s independence referendum.

The paper examines how the UK and Scotland derive mutual benefit from an integrated approach to security, cyber, justice and policing, as well as from security exports and our international alliances and relationships.

The possible consequences for both Scotland and the continuing UK of a vote for independence are subject to analysis in the paper. It stresses that while the UK does work with other countries, such as the Republic of Ireland, to improve security and fight organised crime, there is a significant difference between these relationships and Scotland’s current position as a privileged and influential part of the UK.

The analysis concludes that independence could disturb the united protection provided to Scotland by the UK’s security and intelligence architecture. The report suggests:

Scotland facing a technically complex and expensive requirement to establish its security infrastructure. In the meantime, there would be a risk to both Scotland and the continuing UK of diminished security.
Scotland no longer being covered by the UK’s National Cyber Security Programme, which strengthens the services the public rely on and makes the UK a safer place for businesses to operate.
Co-operation between Police Scotland and other UK forces may not be as straightforward as it is now. Long established UK-wide laws make it easier to pursue justice across borders despite different legal systems and police jurisdictions.
A limit to the amount of information the continuing UK would be able to share with Scotland. Under the “Control Principle”, the UK could not share the kind of information used to fight and counter terrorism with Scotland, passed to it by another country, unless the UK had that country’s consent.

Home Secretary Theresa May said:

“This report sets out in plain terms the security consequences of independence, not just for Scotland but for the UK as a whole. Undoubtedly we are stronger and safer together.

“The national security risks the UK faces are complex and changing. Terrorists and organised criminals will seek new ways to exploit any weakness in our justice and policing capabilities, and the scale of emerging threats, such as cyber crime, demands a comprehensively resourced response.

Now is the time to work more closely together for the security of all citizens of the UK.”

The UK government believes that Scotland is better off as part of the UK, and that the UK is stronger, safer and more secure with Scotland as part of it.

In the event of a vote in favour of leaving the UK, Scotland would become an entirely new state and would have to establish its own security arrangements.

However, supporters of independence have been quick to refute the Home Secretary’s claims. The Scottish government said that, in the event of independence, Scotland would work closely with the rest of the UK and international partners on security and intelligence matters.

Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill (pictured above) told the BBC: “These claims are wrong – not least because Scotland is already an independent jurisdiction when it comes to policing and justice issues, and current cross-border cooperation shows how well that can work to combat terrorism and other threats.

“An independent Scotland will have first-rate security arrangements to counter any threats we may face. And we will continue to work in very close collaboration with the rest of the UK and international partners on security and intelligence matters, which is in everyone’s interests.”

£300 million government boost for affordable housing

Fund to help deliver 6000 affordable homes

Hundreds of millions of pounds are to be spent across Scotland on increasing the supply of affordable housing, creating jobs and boosting the economy, it was confirmed today.

All 32 of Scotland’s local authorities have today been allocated a share of £300 million in subsidy for affordable homes as part of the Government’s investment of £391 million to the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) in 2015/16.

The remaining £91 million will be managed centrally, with £30 million for the Low Cost Initiative for First Time Buyers, £10 million for the Home Owners Support Fund, and funding for increased subsidies for homes built to a greener standard. The rest will go to other affordable housing projects, including those that promote innovation.

The funding will support delivery of over 6000 affordable homes, including 4000 social homes.

The funding for councils comes on top of an extra £27 million which was added to their 2014/15 allocations earlier this month , and brings the Scottish Government’s four-year investment in local programmes to over £1 billion, out of a total AHSP budget of £1.35 billion.

Housing Minister Margaret Burgess made the announcement in Edinburgh today.

She said: “This is a substantial funding boost that will support house building across Scotland. We have listened to councils and housing associations and put in place a system of funding for housing which will provide greater certainty and allow councils to make plans for the future.

“Housing is and will remain a priority for this Government and we will continue to invest in new affordable homes. Despite the severe cuts to our budgets by the UK Government, this is a substantial funding boost that will support house building across Scotland.

“This funding keeps us on track to deliver more than 6000 affordable homes per year, of which 4000 will be social homes. But we must continue to work together to get the most from our resources and ensure that we deliver our vision that everyone should have a safe, warm home which they can afford.”

Alan Ferguson, Director of the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Scotland, said:

“When the budget announcement was made in September, CIH Scotland was very happy to join with other bodies in welcoming the outline budget of £391 million for the Affordable Housing Supply Programme in 2015/16.

“This budget represents an increase of around 21 per cent on the average annual spend of £323 million within the current programme. Making these Resource Planning Assumptions now gives councils and their housing association partners the best possible chance of pushing ahead with building much needed homes across Scotland.”

Earlier this year Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced an increase to housing subsidies, which will give councils and housing associations an extra £16,000 per home. Councils now receive around £46,000, towards the cost of building a new home, while RSLs get around £58,000, or more in certain remote areas.