Month: November 2020

Meerkat misery: big fine for ComparetheMarket

The CMA has fined ComparetheMarket £17.9 million after it found that clauses used in the company’s contracts with home insurers breached competition law.

An investigation by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has concluded that, between December 2015 and December 2017, the price comparison website ComparetheMarket breached competition law by imposing wide ‘most favoured nation’ clauses on providers of home insurance selling through its platform.

These clauses prohibited the home insurers from offering lower prices on other comparison websites and protected ComparetheMarket from being undercut elsewhere. They also made it harder for ComparetheMarket’s rivals to expand and challenge the company’s already strong market position as other price comparison websites were restricted from beating it on price.

As a result, competition between price comparison websites, and between home insurers selling through these platforms, was restricted. The CMA found that this is likely to have resulted in higher insurance premiums.

ComparetheMarket’s clauses meant:

  • The insurers bound by the contracts were prohibited from offering cheaper deals on other price comparison websites. In turn, this limited competitive pressures on all home insurers competing on price comparison websites.
  • Rival comparison sites were restricted in gaining a price advantage over ComparetheMarket, for example, by lowering their commission fees to encourage those insurers to quote lower prices on their platforms.
  • The competitive pressures ComparetheMarket itself was subject to were weakened. Without the clauses, it would have had to compete harder to get lower prices from the home insurers, for example by reducing the commission fees it charged.

Michael Grenfell, the CMA’s Executive Director for Enforcement, said: “Price comparison websites are excellent for consumers. They promote competition between providers, offer choice for customers, and make it easier for consumers to find the best bargains.

“It is therefore unacceptable that ComparetheMarket, which has been the largest price comparison site for home insurance for several years, used clauses in its contracts that restricted home insurers from offering bigger discounts on competing websites – so limiting the bargains potentially available to consumers.

“Digital markets can yield great benefits for competition, and therefore for consumers. We are determined to secure those benefits, and to ensure that competition is not illegitimately restricted. Today’s action should come as a warning – when we find evidence that the law has been broken, we will not hesitate to step in and protect consumers.”

Further information on this investigation can be found on the case page.

Rocio Concha, Director of Policy and Advocacy at Which?, said: “The actions of ComparetheMarket have fallen well below the standard you’d expect from a company who claims to be working in the best interest of consumers, so it is positive to see the CMA intervening to protect consumers and issuing this large fine.  

“Customers should be able to trust that they can find the best deals when using price comparison sites, and any business found to be flouting the rules should be held to account.”

A Positive View of Our Future

Holyrood’s Festival of Politics starts online tonight

Scotland’s Futures Forum, the Scottish Parliament’s in-house think-tank, has published the findings of its 2030 programme, looking at what sort of country we might become, and what our response might be to the great changes of the next decade and beyond.

The report, which examines the challenges and opportunities posed by climate change, technological innovation and an aging population, will also be debated at the Parliament’s first online Festival of Politics. The event, ‘Scotland 2030: What do we want, and how can we get there?’, opens the Festival today and will be chaired by the Presiding Officer, Rt Hon Ken Macintosh MSP.

The work, which aims to help parliamentarians think about long term challenges, outside of electoral cycles and party politics, found that:

• Around half a million babies are due to be born in Scotland in the 2020s. To give every one of them the best chance in life, fundamental change is required to end child poverty – either through ‘pre-distribution’ or radical redistribution via taxation and spending.
• Technological disruptors such as Uber and Amazon will continue to have an impact on jobs and society. We need a school and lifelong education system that helps people adapt to changing circumstances, giving them the freedom to be creative, to take risks and, on occasion, to fail safely.
• To meet our ambitious targets of net zero carbon emissions by 2045, radical change is required in our working lives. There are clear pathways to a more sustainable future if Scotland switches investment towards sectors and industries that bring long-term benefits.
• Scotland need to make more progress on creating gender equal workplaces. Realities of life for women such as menstruation, pregnancy and menopause need to be taken more seriously by employers. Increasing the uptake of paternity leave will also help redress imbalances in the distribution of unpaid work
• Aging and death need to be addressed earlier in life. Most of us will become dependent on other people as we age. We need to tackle the taboo of discussing these things by normalising planning for this inevitability in our 40s and 50s, if we are to support the right care at the end of life.

The forum is also recommending ten ‘ideas for 2030’ to be debated in the Scottish Parliament from the creative suggestions heard during its events.

These include a Scottish island test site for autonomous vehicles, ‘digital havens’ with limited internet access – allowing visitors to switch off from their devices – and a Museum of Failure to show the role of failure in the path to achievement and encourage people to embrace risk.

Speaking ahead of the Festival, Chair of the Forum and Presiding Officer, the Rt Hon Ken Macintosh MSP, said: “How we tackle the great issues of the next decade will shape Scotland for generations to come. Climate change, technological advancements and an ageing population all present profound challenges for the country, but also opportunity.

“This report highlights the importance of taking a positive view of the changes we’ll experience by 2030. As the response to the Covid-19 pandemic has shown, people can and do respond positively when life throws up huge challenges. But it has also shown the importance of including people in the process when the decisions on how to respond are made.

“A key part of the Futures Forum’s work, a central theme throughout this programme from all our events, and one of the founding principles on which the Parliament operates, is the importance of including everyone in discussions about our long-term future.

“How we move forward, harness new technologies, create more environmentally sustainable jobs and tackle child poverty are all topics ripe for debate as we look ahead. I am sure it will be a very interesting discussion at this year’s Festival of Politics.”

You can find out more and watch the event in full on the Festival of Politics website here.

The festival takes place from Thursday 19th to Saturday 21st November. The first event starts at 7pm tonight.

Full programme details can be found at the Festival of Politics website.

You can read the full Future’s Forum report, ‘Scotland 2030: A Positive View of Our Future’, here.

Visit Scotland’s Futures Forum at: http://www.scotlandfutureforum.org/

You buy one, Morrisons & McVitie’s give one to a local food bank

Morrisons and McVitie’s are joining up with customers to ensure that those who really need it get a treat this Christmas. 

For every pack of McVitie’s 600g Victoria Biscuits sold in store, Morrisons & McVities will donate another to a local food bank or community group.

The offer is available until 24th November and forms part of Morrisons drive to restock Britain’s food banks and ensure no one is left behind as many struggle with the economic fallout of COVID-19.

The 600g selection of milk, white and dark chocolate biscuits costs £3. 

Rebecca Singleton, Community Director at Morrisons, said: “Many people have had a really difficult year and everybody deserves a treat this Christmas. This Buy One To Give One offer means customers can brighten up somebody else’s day as well as their own.” 

Morrisons also offers ‘Pick Up Pack’ parcels in stores that customers can purchase, containing items requested by local food banks.

They are also the first UK supermarket to trial an online donation mechanism that goes straight into the pockets of local food banks. Customers can purchase £10 vouchers on the Morrisons Food Boxes website, which are then sent directly to one of 50 food banks nationwide.

Witness appeal following Roseburn assault and robbery

Police are appealing for information following an assault and robbery in Roseburn.

The incident happened at round 8pm last night (Wednesday 18 November), when a 15-year-old male youth was assaulted and robbed outside a supermarket on Roseburn Terrace.

A black Nike bag with various personal items was stolen and the boy was taken to the Royal Hospital for Sick Children for treatment of minor injuries.

The suspects are described as three white men aged between 17 and 18-years-old and were all wearing face masks.

The first suspect was wearing a light coloured tracksuit with a black fur lined jacket and all black trainers.

Suspects two and three are described as wearing black hoodies, bottoms and trainers.

It is also reported that one of the men involved may have spoken with a scouse or Liverpudlian accent.

Detective Sergeant Rory Legge, of Edinburgh CID, said: “The boy involved has thankfully only sustained minor injuries but has been left evidently shaken by what has happened.

“The incident took place near a busy supermarket and we are asking members of the public to come forward with any information they may have.

“If you were in the area at the time and have any dashcam or mobile phone footage that could assist with our investigation I would urge you to contact police. I would also ask if you find a black Nike rucksack that you speak to officers.

“Police can be contacted by calling 101 and quoting incident number 3277 of Wednesday, 18 November, 2020.”

Edinburgh children’s services boosted by Amazon donation

A children’s charity based in Edinburgh has received a donation of £2,000 from Amazon Development Centre Scotland as it continues its services following the impact of COVID-19. 

The staff and volunteers at 16+ Edinburgh, part of Barnardo’s Scotland, received a £1,000 cash donation and a donation of products worth £1,000 from the Amazon team to help increase the reach of its services across the area. 

16+ Edinburgh works with young care leavers aged from 15 to 26 years to support them as they transition out of care and into independent living. 

The donation is part of a longstanding relationship between Amazon and Barnardo’s. At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Amazon donated £10,000 to Barnardo’s to help the charity during the early stages of lockdown. 

In late 2019, Amazon donated £30,000 to Barnardo’s and hosted STEM Christmas parties for children supported by the charity in dozens of Amazon buildings across the UK.   

Speaking on the donation, Graeme Smith, Managing Director at Amazon Development Centre Scotland, said: “The team at Amazon is passionate about supporting the young people in our community and we jumped at the chance to make this donation to 16+ Edinburgh.

“The work they do in partnership with Barnardo’s is needed now more than ever and they have our full support as they continue to have a positive impact on children across Edinburgh.” 

Claire MacDonald, Assistant Director from Barnardo’s Scotland, added: “The impact of COVID-19 continues to be deeply felt by children and young people in the Edinburgh community and it’s fantastic to get this support once again from the Amazon team.

“The donation is hugely appreciated by everyone at 16+ Edinburgh and Barnardo’s Scotland and will enable us to continue offering services to the young people who need us most.” 

Community donations are one of a number of ways in which Amazon is supporting communities across the UK during COVID-19. 

Throughout the pandemic Amazon has provided disadvantaged students with online STEM courses and supported virtual classrooms with no-cost resources from AWS and Amazon Future Engineer. The company has also teamed up with charity partner Magic Breakfast to deliver 1.4 million healthy breakfasts to disadvantaged families around the UK. 

For more information on how Amazon is supporting the UK during COVID-19, click here.

Grateful Edinburgh mum backs Sick Kids Christmas Appeal


An Edinburgh mum whose son has been in hospital at Christmas time every year since he was born is supporting a charity appeal to make this Christmas as magical as possible for children at the Sick Kids.

Claire Narrie’s son Josh, age 3, was born with a complex heart condition and has spent much of his short life in and out of intensive care.

Claire said: “When Josh was born in 2017, he spent six months in intensive care, so we knew his first Christmas would be in hospital.

“In December 2018 though, things were looking good. We allowed ourselves to get excited to finally be at home for Christmas. Josh had been invited to some little parties with his friends, we had bought lots of presents and we were desperate to take him to see the Christmas lights in town – something we’d tried to do the year before but missed out on.

“But Josh became really unwell and we found ourselves back in intensive care at the Sick Kids. He had a common virus but because of his heart, lung and immune system problems, it floored him.

“It’s devastating to be robbed of Christmas. Every year, as Josh’s friends have put their Christmas jammies on and laid out mince pies and milk for Santa, we have sat at our little boy’s bedside, willing him to keep fighting.”

Claire and husband John will always be grateful for all the care and support both they and Josh received while in hospital over the festive period.

Now, the family are backing Edinburgh Children’s Hospital Charity’s (ECHC) new Christmas appeal, which aims to “give Christmas back” to those children and young people who are unfortunately too ill to spend it at home this year.

Claire continued: “When you’re in hospital, everything goes on hold. Time just stops. Your baby is all that matters. Especially when you’re upstairs in critical care, it is isolating and the days are long. But the support provided by ECHC has made such a difference to every Christmas we have spent in hospital. 

“The activities and visitors arranged by the charity throughout December have always given us things to look forward to, and break up the day. On the most difficult days, we have left the hospital feeling uplifted.


“Josh had met the Scotland Rugby Team in the past and when they came to the ward they remembered him and spent special time with him. Christina the ballerina was wonderful and he loved Rhys the musician who sang songs with him. When he was well enough, we would go for little walks and he loved to find the charity’s Living Advent Calendar Doors hidden around the hospital.

“This year, we are desperate for Josh to be well and at home but the anxiety is crippling. We really hope we don’t have to spend another Christmas in hospital but we know if we do, ECHC will be there for us and all the children like Josh. Alongside the amazing NHS teams, they’ll make sure that families won’t miss out on the magic and joy. The kids will be treated like the heroes they are.”

Victoria Buchanan, from ECHC, said: “After such a difficult year, ECHC needs help now to give Christmas back to children at the Sick Kids. Due to the pandemic, restricted visiting is in place on hospital wards, which means no visits from siblings, grandparents or friends.

“With all the worry and limitations of lockdown and shielding for thousands of families this year, it is more important than ever that we ensure no child or young person in hospital misses out on the joy of the festive season.

“Every year, ECHC makes Christmas magical for children in hospital by creating a living advent calendar around the wards with a new surprise behind each door. It’s going to be a little different this year as we are unfortunately unable to have visits from large groups, such as Edinburgh’s football and rugby teams, but we are determined to make this the biggest and best Christmas yet, with everything from a real ballerina to festive magic sessions and a samba band!

“We also fund the parents’ accommodation so families can stay close to their children at Christmas, the hospital play team and Christmas gifts to make sure treats and distractions are always available to bring smiles and comfort.

“We rely solely on donations in order to do this. Please help by making a donation to ECHC this Christmas. You could give a child in hospital their Christmas back.”

To donate now to ECHC’s Give Christmas Back appeal, visit 

www.echcharity.org/christmas

#GiveChristmasBack

Children across Scotland stage Shakespeare in lockdown

Children across Scotland stage Shakespeare in lockdown with Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation 

Thousands of children from over two hundred schools nationwide will be performing the works of Shakespeare this coming week in a unique initiative, One Night of Shakespeare, to be broadcast online at 7pm on Friday 20 November.

Schools from across Scotland are taking part, including from Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow. 

In a year of unprecedented disruption due to the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdowns, Coram Shakespeare Schools Foundation (CSSF) has adapted its annual festival. Children and teachers have worked remotely and under Covid-secure conditions to rehearse performances that demonstrate their creativity and show that theatre lives, despite the closure of arts venues. 

The annual Festival is the flagship project of award-winning charity CSSF. In a usual year, after months of preparation, children perform on professional stages in arts venues up and down the country.  

Throughout the pandemic, the charity has worked to innovate and adapt its programme so that children can continue to gain the crucial life skills that the arts and performance give.

This has included creative online CPD sessions with teachers, sending specialist theatre practitioners into schools to run workshops, and providing a wealth of resources to enable teachers to guide their students through the Festival journey and become directors in their own right. 

Schools have responded with creativity and ingenuity, filming their performances, rehearsing in bubbles and online and finding innovative ways to persevere, providing their school and wider local community with moments of joy and celebration in what continues to be an otherwise dark time.  

Primary, secondary and special schools from right across the UK are participating and patrons of the charity including Harriet Walter, Hugh Dennis, Paterson Joseph, Alfred Enoch and John Heffernan are helping to celebrate the achievements of young people and their teachers. 

Ruth Brock, CSSF Managing Director, says: “This is a unique Festival in a unique year. Thousands of children from communities from every corner of the UK will lead the way and show us that out of the hardest times, children can show incredible resilience and creativity.

“Using our greatest writer, CSSF is giving children the skills and creativity they need for life and teachers the tools to accelerate learning. The arts prepare children for their future and help build a better society; this year, next year and far into the future.” 

One Night of Shakespeare is supported by a grant CSSF received as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to help face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure they have a sustainable future. 

Watch the live broadcast at 7pm on 20 November at 

shakespeareschools.org/livestream. 

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Another Edinburgh is Possible

Campaigners ‘mourn the death of public services’

THIS MORNING, before the City of Edinburgh Council meeting, Another Edinburgh is Possible campaigners held a socially distanced protest at 9am outside the City Chambers to mourn the death of public services, and make the case for a new beginning – properly funded local public services.

In advance of the protest campaigners projected the ‘Another Edinburgh is Possible’ message on City Council, Scottish Government and Westminster Government buildings around Edinburgh.

Why we are protesting

In its public consultation document (www.edinburgh.gov.uk/budget) Edinburgh City Council states that:

The Council has already identified over £80m of savings and funding in 2020/21, but has to find at least £5.1m more because of extra costs and lower income resulting from the pandemic. Over the next three years, the Council has identified £40m of savings, but needs to find at least a further £47.5m in savings or service cuts.

The Edinburgh Integration Joint Board, through which the Council and the NHS administer integrated health and social care, has already agreed cuts of £8 million.

Since 2012/13, Edinburgh City Council budget cuts have amounted to £320 million. Year on year cuts – so called savings – have resulted in a hollowing out of jobs and services to Edinburgh residents.

The impact of a decade of cuts

These cuts have had a terrible effect on essential services. The most vulnerable, who have also been hit by cuts in social security benefits, have suffered most. Edinburgh has the lowest expenditure per capita on local services in Scotland.

Covid19 has added to an already bleak picture with increases in unemployment, child poverty and mental distress. The pandemic has shone a harsh light on the gaps in local services and underlined the importance of key workers and health, social care, housing and education.

Another Edinburgh is Possible

Another Edinburgh Is Possible brings together council workers, trade unionists and community activists around a common belief that the cuts need to stop; enough is enough. We argue for local public services that meet local needs. We call on councillors to unite with campaigners to argue the case for properly funded, democratically controlled local public services.

Contact email: edinburghjustrecovery@gmail.com

Celebrate Christmas with the magical Santa at Home

20% discount for EH postcode holders

First 100 bookers eligible to win two-night London stay

Edinburgh’s Christmas producers, Underbelly and Mr and Mrs Santa Claus of 1 Forest Drive, Reindeer Road, North Pole NP47 2020, today announce the launch of an exclusive partnership to bring the magic of Santa’s Official Grotto ONLINE this Christmas to all Edinburgh residents, big or small!

Santa Claus runs the world’s biggest manufacturing and delivery company from his workshops in the North Pole, with the help of his longstanding staff of over 600,000 elves and 10,000 reindeer.

As we prepare for what sadly might be a mainly digital Christmas this year, Santa at Home will give children of all ages, from all over the world, the unique opportunity to meet Santa in a personalised and private Zoom session live from the North Pole.

We will bring the magic of Santa’s Grotto to a safe, socially distanced and wonderful online experience for everyone in the Scottish capital to enjoy. All EH postcode holders will receive a 20% discount when booking for Santa at Home Official.

Up to 6 children can meet Santa in any one session and unlimited family members can also join a session to watch their children, grandchildren, cousins, nieces or nephews meet Santa LIVE from the North Pole.

Thanks to Santa’s unique magical powers (and a bit of elbow grease from his elves and the “big children”), Santa will know each and every child on the call by name and will also have inside information on them to ensure the experience is completely personalised to the children that he meets.

And with the consent of you ‘big children’, we’ll even record the session and send you a video file FREE as a very special Santa present to cherish forever.

The first 100 people to book sessions with Santa will automatically be entered in a prize draw to win a 2-night stay in an Apex Hotel when restrictions allow.

Santa at Home is a magical opportunity for family and friends, grandchildren and grandparents, and cousins and aunts to come together in a shared and special moment online, allowing everyone to cast aside worries of the last year and to enjoy a moment of pure festive joy with Mr Claus himself.

Santa at Home is proud to be supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity (GOSH Charity) and The Brain Tumour Charity this Christmas. All customers will be given the option at checkout to make a donation, with all proceeds being split equally between the two charities, supporting their invaluable work.

To develop his Zoom presence in preparation for this special experience aimed at children and their loved ones, Santa has been working with Gill Robertson, Artistic Director of the internationally acclaimed Catherine Wheels Theatre Company, Musselburgh-based producers of work for children and young people. 

Key Facts:

  • Fully private and personalised sessions for Santa at Home are now available to pre-book at www.santaathomeofficial.com with slots available from Monday 23 November until 24 December.
  • EH postcode holders receive 20% discount.
  • Sessions start at £42 for up to 6 children from multiple households (equivalent to £7 per child).
  • Unlimited invited grown-ups
  • Free recording of the session will be shared with participants (adult consent required)
  • Each bespoke Santa at Home session will last up to 12 minutes and is a unique and personalised experience for children, parents, friends and extended family alike. Big children will be expected to help Mr Claus and his Elves in gathering vital information.

Mr Santa Claus said: “I’ve been elf-isolating for hundreds of years and absolutely nothing is going to stop me from zooming down your chimney on Christmas Eve – I am a key worker after all! 

“I’m also really excited to be able to meet all you wonderful children of Edinburgh via the tippedy-tap computers, tablets and other gadgets this year.  My new online grotto will allow me to meet up to six children at any one time and all the people you most care about can join in the magic as well.”

Ed Bartlam and Charlie Wood, Directors of Underbelly said: “Christmas is all about family and we wanted to make it possible for families to gather together to share in a special festive moment.

“With so many of us experiencing difficult times and maybe facing a lonelier Christmas this year, we are very pleased and honoured to partner with Santa Claus to offer Santa at Home Official to residents of Edinburgh, big or small.

“We are also delighted to be able to offer a 20% discount to all EH postcode holders who we hope will enjoy the magical opportunity to meet the man himself at his base in the North Pole.

“We are pleased to be supporting two amazing charities on this special project, GOSH Charity and The Brain Tumour Charity, both of which are very close to our Underbelly hearts. Their life-changing work is incredibly important, and we hope that our Santa at Home visitors will be able to help support them as much as possible.

“Whether you’re a Santa’s elf or a little Grinch, Santa at Home is bound to put Christmas joy in your heart, so get booking!”

Producers of Santa at Home Official, Underbelly, also revealed the special digital programme for Edinburgh’s Christmas earlier this month which focuses on helping Edinburgh residents and businesses in these unprecedented times of hardship.

Advent Stories, daily bedtime stories written by Edinburgh and Lothians young budding writers and read by Santa Claus himself, will be published online and freely accessible, every day of the Advent for everyone to enjoy.

Shining a special light on the amazing array of artisan producers, makers, local retailers, bakers, gift companies, accessory and clothing businesses, hotels and restaurants in the Scottish capital, Neighbourhood Market is a digital platform established to support and celebrate local, independent businesses and it is live now!

For information on how to submit a story or to explore and shop in the Neighbourhood Market, visit www.edinburghschristmas.com.

Letters: The deadliest common cancer doesn’t stop for COVID-19

Dear Editor,

Around 780 people are diagnosed with the pancreatic cancer every year in Scotland: tragically, and more than half of people with will die within the first three months of diagnosis.

Pancreatic cancer hasn’t stopped because of COVID-19.

We know that during the first lockdown people were reluctant to go to their GP, that’s why during this year’s Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month we’re doing all we can to raise awareness of the symptoms and, urging anyone whose systems persist, to use the NHS. There’s no time to wait.

If more of us know the symptoms – which include tummy and back pain, indigestion, itchy skin or yellow skin or eyes, unexplained weight loss and oily floating poo – it could lead to more people being diagnosed earlier. Crucially, this could increase their chances of being eligible for life-saving surgery.

I urge your readers to find out more about the disease and if they are worried that they have the symptoms of pancreatic cancer they should speak to their GP as soon as possible.

We’d like to make sure people living with pancreatic cancer and their loved ones across the UK (NI/Wales) know that Pancreatic Cancer UK is here for them. Our free and confidential Support Line is run by Specialist Nurses, my colleagues and myself.

If you would like to speak to a Specialist Nurse you can call 0808 801 0707 or email nurse@pancreaticcancer.org.uk, available Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday 10am- 4pm  and Wednesday 10am – 6pm.

Thank you,

Dianne Dobson

Pancreatic Cancer UK Specialist Nurse