Day: December 9, 2014
If music be the food of love …
… then you’re in for a feast at St Serf’s Church Goldenacre with TWO concerts to look forward to this weekend!
Saturday 13 December 7.30pm
New Edinburgh Orchestra Concert conducted by Tim Paxton
for further details visit http://www.newedinburghorchestra.org.uk/
Sunday 14 December 6.30pm
Capital Concert Band concert
For further details go to http://www.capitalconcertband.com/
Play on!
Private Lives
Total Craigroyston recently carried out a short survey for people living in privately rented homes in Muirhouse and West Pilton – and the results are now in!
A total of 58 people responded to the October survey and the findings will now be presented at tomorrow’s Private Rented Sector Forum.
Total Craigroyston hopes the survey will encourage private landlords to be involved with the area’s regeneration and also help people living in privately rented accommodation to feel more secure in their homes.
Some of the main points are:
- 81% of people who responded were families with children
- 52% of people who responded said they did not feel settled in their home
- People wanted information on key services (47%), activities in the community (44%) and what to do with rubbish/recycling (41%)
- 54% had found their home through ‘informal’ routes – Gumtree, word-of-mouth, etc.
Scottish Minister urges UK government: take more refugees
“By providing a place of sanctuary here in Scotland we can transform the lives of individuals who have seen their world destroyed through no fault of their own’ – John Wilkes, Scottish Refugee Council.
The UK should accept more refugees from the crisis in Syria and the Middle East, International Development Minister Humza Yousaf said yesterday.
In a letter to the Home Secretary Theresa May, Mr Yousaf has called on the UK Government to commit to offer more UK resettlement places for refugees affected by the crisis.
Mr Yousaf’s call comes on the eve of an international Global Resettlement Pledging Conference to be hosted in Geneva by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), at which member nations including the UK will be invited to offer further support for refugees.
Mr Yousaf said: “Refugee integration in Scotland has enhanced our diversity and communities, with refugees making a valued contribution to our economy, society and culture.
“We have always made clear that Scotland is ready and willing to play its part in offering a safe and secure home to Syrian refugees, and we welcomed the introduction of the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme, as part of which refugees are already arriving in Scotland.
“But the number of refugees being supported through the VPR scheme remains small, at several hundred over three years with less than 100 arriving to date. This compares with pledges of 20,000 humanitarian admissions by Germany, 5,600 resettlement places by Australia and 1,500 by Austria.
“The crisis in Syria represents the biggest refugee crisis since the end of the Second World War. Scotland remains committed to offering support and protection to the victims of the crisis and the Scottish Government believes that, given the extreme gravity of the situation, the UK can and should be doing more to help alleviate the suffering and Scotland is ready to play her part.
“The Global Resettlement Pledging Conference represents an opportunity for the UK to pledge to do exactly that.”
Chief Executive of Scottish Refugee Council John Wilkes said: “We welcome the Scottish Government’s ongoing commitment to stand with the people of Syria and echo the minister’s call for the UK Government to provide sanctuary to greater numbers of Syrians in desperate need.
“We urge the UK Government to adopt the proposals contained in Oxfam’s recent report, A Fairer Deal for Syrians, and sign up to the target of resettling around 9,500 Syrian refugees in the UK.
“The scale and gravity of the crisis in Syria is immense, with nearly four million refugees expected by the end of the year, half of whom are children. These are people who have witnessed and survived unimaginable horrors and are desperately in need of safety and support.
“By providing a place of sanctuary here in Scotland we can transform the lives of individuals who have seen their world destroyed through no fault of their own.
“Scottish Refugee Council and many of our partners are ready to offer a welcome to these men, women, and children from Syria, and to make sure they have access to the services and support they will need to settle in to their new environment.”
Man dies in Ferry Road accident
A man has been killed after falling under a truck during a street altercation. Jaime Brynes, 36, died in hospital following the accident on Ferry Road in Leith yesterday morning.
Mr Brynes is believed to have fell into the road during a heated argument on the pavement. His death is being treated as non-suspicious, police said.
The section of road between North Fort Street and Newhaven Road was closed for several hours while the emergency services attended the scene and did not reopen until mid-afternoon.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: “Police in Edinburgh attended a road traffic collision involving a truck and 36-year-old Jaime Brynes on Ferry Road at around 9am.
“The Scottish Ambulance Service treated Mr Brynes at the scene but he later passed away at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. “His death is being treated as non-suspicious and a report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.”