Day: September 6, 2020

Eight tips to stay on track and achieve fitness goals

Writing down goals, talking to friends and family and getting enough sleep are all ways Brits can help themselves keep to their fitness goals.

The team from Trimtone, the natural clinically-proven appetite suppressant have offered eight tips to help keep Brits on track to achieve their fitness goals

Being realistic and focussing on smaller goals will make the harder long-term goals seem more achievable.

Gaining support from friends and family will also help keep accountability, as well as having people there to celebrate the successes.

A spokesperson for Trimtone said: “Achieving goals is difficult, and it’s very easy to give up after a few weeks or reward yourself and slip into bad habits again.

“Having a great support system and reminding yourself why you’re doing it will help keep you on track.”

These are Trimtone’s tips to help reach your fitness goals:

1. Write it down

Keep a regular checklist of everything you want to do, and everything you complete at the end of the day. This could be the exercises you want to do, or the foods you eat on a day. If your goal is “I want to run a marathon” write it down, then plan how you’re going to get there.

2. Keep it fresh

If you do the same thing every day it’s going to get boring, and that’s when you’re likely to slip back into your old habits. If you don’t like the exercises you’ve been doing, try something else. If you don’t like running, why not try Zumba or a HIIT class – there are so many different ways to exercise, try as many as you can until you find one you love.

3. Set small goals

Small goals, perhaps weekly or monthly, help everything seem more manageable meaning you’ll be able to keep your motivation up. It will give you a reason to celebrate the small victories and help you realise you’re one step closer to your bigger goal.

4. Eat real foods

Whatever your goal, make sure the food you eat is fresh, whole and includes minimally processed ingredients. Never starve yourself either as restrictive eating slows down your metabolism and deprivation only leads to cravings and future binges.

5. Reward yourself

Celebrate your successes by treating yourself to something you enjoy, but it’s important to celebrate in moderation. Everyone needs a “cheat meal” or two, but make sure it stays to just one meal, instead of a slippery slope back to old habits. You could always treat yourself to some new clothes, or an evening catching up with a friend.

6. Talk about it

If you talk about your goals to friends and family, it means that there’s other people to both support you – and hold you to account. Why not find a friend who also wants to reach the same goal as you, and do it together?

7. Be realistic

Unfortunately, thing don’t happen overnight and being realistic with your goals mean that they’re easier to achieve. If you set unrealistic goals, you’re more likely to lose motivation and give up halfway through. Changing lifetime habits isn’t easy, so start off slowly and makes small, gradual changes.

8. Get your beauty sleep

Sleep is restorative, meaning it’s important your body gets plenty of it to recover from the day and set you up for a new one. Shut off your phone about an hour before you hit the hay, experiment with relaxing essentials oils, or try out a few soothing yoga poses to ease you into bed.

Charity has safely and seamlessly continued to school all 20,000 of its pupils

With the re-opening of schools, many children are facing two significant challenges. Firstly, the need to adapt to a new physical and social environment, to ensure their complete safety and protection against the continued threat of Coronavirus.  Secondly many children have been out of full-time education for months, and now need to play catch up as they enter the next academic year.  

However, some educational focused organisations have not put their pupils through the challenge of playing catch up; ensuring safe, continued and full-time education for their children throughout the last few months. 

Once such organisation is the charity World Villages for Children. Their focus is on educating the world’s poorest children; ensuring they have the necessary skills to get out of, and remain out of poverty.

  • With education being the only means for thousands of the charity’s children to permanently escape their lives of poverty; it was absolutely crucial that the schools remained capable of continuing to educate the children and keep them safe.
  • During the last few months, the charity has achieved a remarkable feat by ensuring that over 20,000 of its children in over 13 schools have continued to have a full-time education in a 100% safe environment. 
  • Not a single child or staff member during this time has been affected by Covid nor taken ill and this is completely down to the environment that has been created within the schools. As a result, all the children from the ages of 11-18 have been able to carry on with their full-time studies and recreational activities safely. 

Measures that World Villages for Children have supported at the Sisters of Mary schools include:

  • The use of efficient technology and proficient co-ordination to ensure that all 20,000 children have continued their lessons via conference call with their teachers
  • Utilising the skills of the most senior students as ‘student teachers’ to not only boost their skills but also keep the younger year groups on track with the curriculum
  • Running exams as usual with the help of exam texts set by the teachers remotely and marked by them remotely
  • The few teachers who have come back into the schools (mainly in the Philippines) have been temperature checked daily to check the state of their health
  • Regular temperature testing of children within the school 
  • Family grouping of the children at school and comprehensive mask use over the last five months so children have had a chance to get used to the process

If you are interested to find out more, the Head of the U.K. World Villages for Children, Nicola Lawson is able to discuss with you:

  • Why it is crucial that the charity keeps its schools open – as this is the children’s only means of getting themselves educated and out of poverty
  • How they have continued to run all 13 schools with zero risk during this crisis
  • How they will continue to ensure the children’s education is not disrupted moving forwards (should we have another significant global outbreak) 
  • How they have minimised disruption to the children’s social and physical interactions 
  • How the pupils themselves have rallied together within the schools to make hundreds of face masks for their community members at large 

Briggs hails Eat Out to Help Out initiative

Almost 1.4 million meals were claimed throughout August in Edinburgh, at an average of £6.90 a meal, under the Eat Out to Help Out UK government scheme to get people back to restaurants.

The scheme gave 50% off meals, up to £10 per person through August on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

A total of £9,630,000 was claimed for across 465 registered restaurants in the capital.

Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, has hailed the success of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme getting customers back into restuarants.

The figures also don’t yet highlight the figures from the last day of the scheme on Monday 31 August, meaning the final total will be higher.

Lothian MSP, Miles Briggs, said: “I am delighted that the Eat Out to Help Out scheme has been such a huge success in Edinburgh and that it has given restaurants a much needed boost after lockdown.

“The restaurant and hospitality sector is central to Edinburgh’s economy and the scheme will have helped many restaurants survive, as well as saving jobs.

“Almost £10 million in claimed discounts show just how big a success this scheme has been.”

Parliamentary constituency codeParliamentary ConstituencyTotal number of registered restaurants2Total number of meals claimed for3 5Total amount of discount claimed4 5 (£)Average discount per meal (£)
S92Scotland                  8,543            6,333,000     38,607,000                  6.10
S14000022Edinburgh East                      604                275,000        1,792,000                  6.52
S14000023Edinburgh North and Leith                      533                269,000        1,842,000                  6.84
S14000024Edinburgh South                      140                119,000           855,000                  7.17
S14000025Edinburgh South West                      527                416,000        2,928,000                  7.03
S14000026Edinburgh West                      522                319,000        2,213,000                  6.94
                        465            1,398,000        9,630,000                  6.90

UK Government to fund international Covid-19 studies in Scotland

The UK Government is investing £7.2 million in twenty research projects across the UK, including the universities of Edinburgh and Strathclyde, to help provide developing countries with sustainable solutions to respond to Covid-19 and future pandemics.

One of these projects, led by the University of Edinburgh’s Dr Thomas Molony, will receive £367,000 to investigate the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on elections in Africa.

Working in partnership with colleagues in the Central African Republic, Ghana and Tanzania, the study will find ways to protect the electorate from Covid-19 transmission.

The project team – comprising of country specialists, leading public health researchers, and election experts – plan to investigate multiple stages of each election, tracking patterns of turnout and using surveys (with gender-balanced samples) to investigate attitudes towards voting so that any emergent gender inequality is highlighted.

The University of Strathclyde project, led by Dr Pratima Sambajee, will receive £199,579 in funding to look at how Covid-19 has impacted workers’ rights in Mauritius and how improvements can be made.

The hardest hit are workers in tourism and hospitality, textile factories and the informal economy. Examples include reduced compensation, withholding of workers’ annual leave and exemption from negotiations with workers’ organisations (unions) by employers prior to reduction of the workforce.

UK Government Minster for Scotland, Iain Stewart said: “These remarkable projects will play a critical role in helping to address the issue of Covid-19 transmission at elections in the developing world and help ensure workers’ rights are protected.

“Adapting to the risks of Covid-19 has been especially hard for the world’s most vulnerable communities.

“It’s great news that Scottish researchers are helping the international community respond to the pandemic and making an impact tackling Covid-19 globally.”

UK Business Secretary Alok Sharma said: “Defeating coronavirus is a truly global endeavour, which is why we’re backing Britain’s scientists and researchers to work with their international counterparts to find tech solutions to treat and combat this virus around the world.

“By backing these pioneering research projects in Scotland, we are equipping some of the most vulnerable communities with the resources they need to tackle pandemics now and in the future.”

Dr Thomas Molony, Director, Centre of African Studies at Edinburgh University said: Elections give people the opportunity to shape the future of their societies. Such decisions are crucial in the context of Covid-19, which has drastically affected lives around the globe.

“A number of elections are still due to take place this year in Africa, and there are a further 18 elections are scheduled for 2021.

“By working to reduce the risks of Covid-19 transmission during elections, we’re contributing towards one of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): to ensure healthy lives and promote the wellbeing for all at all ages.

“We are also interested in democracy. The Covid-19 pandemic has the potential for democratic back-sliding, where the quality and legitimacy of elections are undermined – either unintentionally because of safety measures, or intentionally where incumbents seek to instrumentalise the virus through authoritarian measures designed to benefit themselves.”

Other projects receiving UK Government funding include delivering mass vaccination capacity in Bangladesh, protective equipment for refugees in Jordan and remote healthcare access for patients in Nigeria.

The £7.2 million UK government funding will be managed by UK aid programmes, the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) and the Newton Fund.

The funding follows the launch of the government’s ambitious R&D Roadmap in July, which committed to boosting international collaboration in research and development and establishing global scientific partnerships that will create health, social and economic benefits across the world.

Sir David Attenborough narrates new short film about South Georgia

Armchair travellers can enjoy a new film that tells the story of a global rarity – an ecosystem in recovery

The Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (GSGSSI) is excited to announce the launch of its new film ‘South Georgia – A Visitor’s Guide’, narrated by Sir David Attenborough.

The film has two key messages; firstly, it encourages visitors to respect and protect the island so their visit can be truly sustainable, but there is another message which is relevant to us all; proof that nature can recover, if we give it the chance. 

The film tells the story of how with careful management, ambitious habitat restoration projects, dedication and the passing of time, an ecosystem was saved from disaster. Past human activities on South Georgia harmed the environment through sealing, industrial whaling and unregulated fishing.

The introduction of rats, reindeers and invasive plants upset the delicate ecological balance on land, pushing some species to the brink of extinction. Today, through hard work and commitment, South Georgia is a global rarity; an ecosystem in recovery. 

Fur seals now number around 5 million, that’s 95% of the global population. 400,000 nesting pairs of king penguins and their chicks jostle for space with nearly half a million southern elephant seals; South Georgia is home to the greatest concentration of seabirds and marine mammals on the planet. 

Professor Dame Jane Francis DCMG, Director of the British Antarctic Survey said: “South Georgia is a real gem in the Southern Ocean. The breath-taking scenery and stunning wildlife will fill you with awe and make you wonder at the incredible beauty of the island in its natural state. South Georgia shows us how much better our planet can be if we learn to live in balance with nature.”

Sir David Attenborough introduced the world to this remarkable place almost thirty years ago in the ground-breaking BBC series Life in the Freezer. His association with the island has continued over the years with subsequent wildlife documentaries including Blue Planetand Frozen Planet.

Passionate about the ongoing need to protect the ecology of South Georgia, Sir David has generously lent his voice and provided the narration for this new visitor film, in which he says “I’d like to invite you to… share the wonderful story of how an ecosystem can be saved from disaster. Let [South Georgia] it be your inspiration to seek out nature, and play your part in protecting and restoring our planet, whenever and however you can.”

Threats to South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands remain, but they are largely global environmental issues which need to be addressed on a global scale.

Climate change is a shocking reality in South Georgia with glaciers retreating rapidly, whilst albatross numbers are declining as they remain vulnerable to unregulated fishing activities when foraging on the high seas far from our protected waters. Sadly, marine plastics are now reaching even the most remote places on earth. 

His Excellency Nigel Phillips CBE, Commissioner for South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands, said: “It is a privilege to be Commissioner and custodian of one of the most remarkable places on earth.

“This film beautifully encompasses the outcomes of tireless work of many people over the decades that Sir David Attenborough has been visiting. It is only as a result of their endeavours that this film can tell such a moving story of an ecosystem in recovery. It will inspire, it may even take your breath away.

“With an understanding of how small actions can have big repercussion, we aim to inspire visitors to live in a more environmentally sensitive way, that sustains our planet, and does not destroy it.

“I extend my thanks to all those who have worked on this project, not least Sir David Attenborough, and the UK government for their funding support.”

Prior to landing on South Georgia, visitors will watch the film to better understand why it is important to follow the environmental protection guidelines set out by the GSGSSI.

Gina Greer, Executive Director of the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) said: “As a non-profit association dedicated to advocating safe and environmentally responsible travel to Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands, IAATO is thrilled by the release of ‘South Georgia – A Visitor’s Guide.

“This beautifully shot short film perfectly encapsulates the years of partnership working between GSGSSI and IAATO Members to facilitate responsible travel, create ambassadors for this unique region and encourage environmentally sensitive behaviour by all those fortunate enough to visit the island.

“IAATO is proud to have played a part in bringing ‘South Georgia – A Visitor’s Guide’ to fruition and we look forward to sharing it with future visitors.”

‘South Georgia – a Visitor’s Guide’ was produced by Silverback Films Ltd, using specially shot new footage, as well as footage donated by the BBC Archive and private individuals, Danny Georgeson, Ramon Benedet & David Sugden. 

GSGSSI wishes to thank all who volunteered their passion, commitment and love of South Georgia to make the film possible, with special thanks to the crew and passengers of Hanseatic Nature, Bremen and Pharos SG. 

You can see it for yourself at http://www.gov.gs/south-georgia-a-visitors-guide/

PICTURES: Ian Parker and Steve Brown

Improving opportunities for minority ethnic people

£470,000 to fund 50 leadership placements.

A new development programme will aim to remove barriers that can be faced by minority ethnic people moving into leadership positions in society.

Up to 50 people will benefit from a nine-month professional and personal development programme backed by mentoring, and living wage placements across the public, third and private sectors.

The programme will focus on young people, and will be delivered by the John Smith Centre, backed up by £470,000 of Scottish Government funding. The programme will focus on developing the professional and personal skills of participants, including negotiating and communication.

Social Security Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said: “The Scottish Government is committed to achieving equality for all minority ethnic people and part of that means taking tangible steps to remove barriers and improve opportunities across society.

“Improving representation across all walks of life is key to achieving this aim and I am pleased that the John Smith Centre will deliver this important programme. The programme will provide up to 50 people with a fantastic opportunity to develop the skills they need to succeed.

“The programme will be developed and delivered in consultation with relevant organisations and people to ensure that we are learning from lived experience.

“I want to see talented participants from all walks of life taking part, including those who haven’t taken traditional academic routes to success. I hope the result will be an increase in numbers of minority ethnic people in leadership roles that reflect the society we live in.”

Director of the John Smith Centre Kezia Dugdale said: “The John Smith Centre exists to break down the barriers disadvantaged groups face accessing public life. We listened carefully to the call for action emanating from the Black Lives Matter movement and reflected hard on what we could do that would make a meaningful difference.

“We have a strong track record in supporting young people from disadvantaged backgrounds develop the confidence, the networks and the experience they need to break through the challenges they face. We are therefore extremely proud to now be collaborating with the Scottish Government to increase the scale of this work with a particular focus on minority ethnic young people.

“At every stage of this programme we’ll listen to, learn from and involve people with lived experience of the barriers that minority ethnic communities face, and combine it with our experience of what makes a real difference and delivers long term change.”

Features of the Minority Ethnic Emerging Leaders Academy are expected to include:

  • A residential development weekend focused on developing employability skills such presentation, negotiating and communication skills and networking/social events to build early cohesion in the group in order to establish a peer support network.
  • Internship with an MSP or Non-Government Organisation over the course of the nine month placement.
  • Employability events at the University of Glasgow with high level politicians and public service practitioners.
  • Programme management by experienced providers of high-quality development opportunities. Developed by the John Smith Centre with extensive involvement of the minority ethnic community in all aspects of the programme.

Edinburgh Airport chief: dark days ahead

An open letter to Humza Yousaf

Dear Cabinet Secretary,

The First Minister has said at her daily press briefings and in the Chamber that any life lost to Covid-19 is the loss of someone’s loved one and should rightfully be recognised as such.

Protecting public health has rightfully been the focus of the government’s strategy and we have always been clear that we understand the need to do that and have supported that work which is absolutely paramount at any time, not just during a pandemic.  Airports and their process have safety at their core.

However, absolutely paramount at any time is also a strong economy, one that allows government to protect livelihoods, improve the lives of people and further Scotland’s ambitions and credentials at home and abroad.

Last night (02/09/20) I listened to your comments on STV and was dismayed to hear you say that although you were concerned about the impact of Covid-19 and quarantine on the aviation industry, “We can bring the economy back to life, we just can’t bring people back to life.”

Cabinet Secretary, I am sorry that you felt that such a comparison was appropriate. No-one in aviation has advocated trading lives for the economy, and it is unhelpful to be using anyone’s loss to make a political point that side-steps or ignores our open request for engagement in seeking better policies.

In all our engagement with your Government, we have agreed that health measures must be what we build policy around. It has never been in question because business aside, we are human beings first and foremost and we know the true cost of Covid-19.

But this isn’t a binary choice as you have seemed to suggest. It is not a choice between public health or the economy. It is not a choice because we need to do both if Scotland is to rebound and recover.

The First Minister’s Programme for Government this week made promises on jobs, especially the jobs guarantee for young people. That is an ambitious policy planning for Scotland’s future and that is to be commended but, and I’m sorry to be so blunt, you can’t guarantee anyone access to jobs that don’t exist. A strong economy will be key to this and is exactly why the Scottish Government needs to support businesses in sustaining and creating jobs if such promises are to come to fruition.

As an airport, we are a facilitator of many things, from business and tourism to education, research and culture, and all these things are drivers of economic activity. But we’re also one business in Scotland’s economy and there are many more who want to help and who want support from the government to get the recovery started.

Yes, rates relief your Government has put in place has of course been welcome, something we have said in public and in private. And yes, we know that it isn’t available in England or Wales. But what is and isn’t available in other parts of the UK is not our concern – saving Scotland’s aviation and travel industry and rebuilding our economy is.

A quarantine policy that is a travel ban in all but name makes this incredibly difficult, if not impossible. It is ineffective and unworkable as your own figures show and it is having a damning impact on a range of industries. If this is the path the Scottish Government is to continue down then there are some incredibly dark days ahead. I only have to look at my own business to see the real impact it is having. Saying goodbye to 250 colleagues through no fault of their own was one of the toughest experiences in my career. I don’t want others to have to do the same.

If we are to live with Covid-19 for months and years to come then this is simply not a sustainable approach. We need a robust testing regime that protects public health and provides confidence and reassurance to those who need and wish to travel.

We have to manage and mitigate the risk in the best way possible, and that simply has to be a dual approach with balanced attention given to health and prosperity.

Decisions taken now will have an enduring impact on the many quality jobs our industry supports up and down the country, and – if those are too cautious and short-sighted decisions, will significantly undermine the county’s future connectivity and competitiveness.

We are ready, willing and able to help design better systems and processes to protect the health of passengers and staff. We and our colleagues at AGS have spoken with the National Clinical Director, Jason Leitch to explore how best to partner with the Scottish Government on testing. We’re hopeful that our ideas are being listened to and we have a tentative path forward.

We have great respect for the First Minister’s leadership through this health crisis. However, we urge you to make good her words in recognising that the economic emergency is of equal importance to the health crisis.

The aviation and travel industries are not too big to fail. If the Scottish Government position remains as it stands, you are putting tens of thousands of jobs at risk in aviation the next few months alone. The knock-on risks to our tourism sector are even more profound and we would hope you might reflect carefully on our concerns and respond accordingly.

We urge you to reconsider your approach and work with us to find a way to protect public health and rebuild our economy. It is in Scotland’s best interest to do both.

Regards,

Gordon Dewar

Chief Executive, Edinburgh Airport

Which? exposes car hire insurance rip-offs

Car hire insurance sold by rental companies can be up to 14 times more expensive and provides worse cover than policies bought online, according to new research from Which?.

The consumer champion compared the cost of car hire insurance policies from major car rental companies with top-rated independent insurance policies that can be bought online, for a week’s hire in Malaga, Spain.

The most expensive policy was from Europcar, costing £203 a week. By comparison, the cheapest top-rated policy from a major online provider was from Chew Insurance, and cost just £14 a week – a saving of £189.

The research found that, on average, the six biggest car hire firms charge £147 for a week’s insurance, while the six top-rated independent insurance policies sold online cost just £23 on average.

The lowest price from a car hire company that Which? found, for a week’s insurance in Spain, was from Enterprise at £115. Avis, Alamo, Europcar, Goldcar and Hertz’s policies were all more expensive.

Additionally, all of the more expensive policies offered by the car hire insurance firms provide inferior cover to the top-rated independent insurance policies. Which? insurance experts gave the top six independent providers a policy score ranging from 75 per cent to 82 per cent. When car rental firms’ policies were rated, the highest scoring policies received a mediocre 61 per cent.

The best car hire insurance included cover for damage to a car’s tyres, windscreen and underbody, flat battery cover, admin charges, car-jacking, towing cover, personal accident cover, among other features.

Questor Insurance, which received the top policy score of 82 per cent, charged just £24 for a week’s insurance in Spain. Questor offered cover for misfuelling, getting locked out, and lost or damaged keys. Despite costing £179 more, Europcar didn’t offer any of this cover as part of its policy.

The policies sold by major car hire companies contained a significant number of exclusions. Examples of incidences where a driver wouldn’t be covered include if an Avis customer had a stone chip their windscreen, if an Alamo customer got a flat tyre, or if a Hertz customer got locked out of their rental. 

As well as offering cover for these accidents, the top-rated independent policies also offer cover for drivers who get locked out of the car, if they accidentally put the wrong type of fuel in the car, or are forced to cut short their hire. They also offer cover (usually up to £300) for any personal items that are stolen from the car. None of the more expensive policies from the car rental firms cover all of these incidents.

The only disadvantage of taking out an independent policy is that customers would still have any charges deducted from their credit card by the hire company, having to claim them back from their insurance afterwards.

As car hire has become an increasingly competitive market, the price of rental has dropped as low as £1 per day in some cases, meaning car hire companies often make their money from the sale of extras.

Which? has previously exposed car hire companies using pressure selling tactics to persuade customers to pay for these extras. Last year, Which? caught Europcar’s budget arm, Goldcar, on camera lying to and bullying customers into buying expensive cover.

Additionally, one in four (26%) Which? readers in the consumer champion’s most recent car hire survey said they were stung with unexpected charges, and a quarter of those who paid extra, ended up forking out an additional £200 or more. 

While cover bought online can be significantly cheaper than policies bought from a car rental firm, Which? is also reminding holidaymakers looking for car hire insurance not to be swayed by the lowest price available online. Not all policies available online from independent providers are worth it, so always check the terms of the policy and the cover on offer before buying.

Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel, said: “Car hire is an industry plagued with unscrupulous practices, with wildly excessive charges for sub-standard insurance policies just one of the pitfalls customers should be wary of when choosing a rental company.

“The good news is that, no matter how a car hire salesperson may try and persuade you at the desk, you don’t have to fork out for one of these eye-wateringly expensive policies. Much more thorough cover is available online for a fraction of the cost, meaning you can enjoy your holiday with peace of mind that you’ll be covered if something goes wrong with your rental.”