As part of the Edinburgh Living Landscape project (see below) I was recently appointed by the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh as their Urban Biodiversity Project Officer with the aim of developing projects to benefit people and wildlife in the city (writes Leone Alexander). Continue reading Our local Living Landscape: opportunities to get involved
PlayTalkRead, the Scottish Government’s early years campaign, has reached a record number of new families in 2015, the Children’s Minister Aileen Campbell has revealed. Continue reading Terrific year for PlayTalkRead
Dear Editor
There can be very few households in the UK who are not worried by their gas and electricity bills. The advice usually given is to shop around for lower tariffs, but this is no permanent solution. The absolute necessity for everyone to afford adequate fuel supplies is overwhelming but it seems that a few major suppliers have a near monopoly on the industry – and have been making millions of pounds profit.
Just a few examples:
£139 million Scottish Gas, February 2015
£549 million SSE, November 2015
£528 million British Gas (first six months 2015)
£860 million EDF, February 2014
£1.5 BILLION Southern Electric, Jan 2014
And yet there are perhaps millions of people who cannot afford adequate heating!
By any measure, this situation cannot go on like this in the 21st Century. As an essential necessity energy supplies MUST become publicly-owned industries, working in the interests of everyone; profits made not for private individuals or groups of investors but used to reduce prices and to maintain efficient industries.
Energy supplies must be seen as important to the people of the UK as the NHS has proved to be. Maximum unity of working people is needed to press for these vital public services: it is up to us.
A. Delahoy
Silverknowes Gardens
But the GMB union argues that we need more than renewable energy to keep the UK’s lights on
Community energy can go from strength to strength following a strong year for the sector, Energy Minister Fergus Ewing said yesterday. From large scale wind farms to small scale hydro projects, over £10 million was last year ploughed back into communities from renewable sources. Continue reading Ewing hails community energy schemes
