A further three youths have been arrested and charged in connection with the serious assault of a teenager in Edinburgh on Monday, 2 December, 2024.
Around 8pm, a 14-year-old boy sustained serious injuries when he was assaulted by a group of youths at Slateford Green.
Following enquiries, three male youths aged 16, 17 and 17 were due to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court yesterday – Monday, 9 December.
A report will be submitted to the Procurator Fiscal.
Detective Inspector Gordon Couper said: “Our enquiries are continuing to trace everyone who was involved in this unprovoked attack.
“Officers remain in the area carrying out high visibility patrols and I encourage anyone with information or concerns to speak to them.
“I would also ask anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident and may have dashcam or private CCTV footage to contact us as soon as possible.”
Anyone with any information is asked to contact Police Scotland via 101 quoting incident 2315 of 2 December, 2024.
Online marketplaces and vape producers to pay for recycling and cleaning up of household electrical waste
Online marketplaces and vape producers will soon be paying their fair share towards the cost of recycling waste electricals, from toasters to vapes and hair curlers, levelling the playing field for UK retailers, Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh has announced.
Ensuring large online retailers pay their fair share is fairer for UK businesses who already pay to cover the costs of recycling. It comes as the government delivers on its Plan for Change, and reflects a further step in the government’s mission to boost growth.
The changes will also help fund recycling services and kick-start the country on the road to a circular economy, which is a priority for the Government.
Before now, UK-based firms were shouldering the majority of costs around collection and processing of electronic waste and operating at a disadvantage. With 100,000 tonnes of household electricals binned every year, the changes will for the first time make sure the burden of these costs does not unduly fall on UK based retailers compared to their online rivals.
Waste electricals are difficult to recycle – and represent a huge drain on resources, when they are not collected separately. Valuable metals – such as copper – are chucked away needlessly, while electrical components and chemicals can pose a health and safety risk to the waste industry.
In conjunction with this government’s wider actions to tackle waste and end the throwaway society, today’s announcement will help to ensure that businesses take responsibility for the huge quantities of waste that might otherwise end up being littered or fly-tipped, and support our efforts to protect the environment.
Circular Economy Minister Mary Creagh said: “Electrical equipment like vapes are being sold in the UK by producers who are failing to pay their fair share when recycling and reusing of dealing with old or broken items.
“Today we’re ending this: creating a level playing field for all producers of electronics, to ensure fairness and fund the cost of the treatment of waste electricals.
“As part of our Plan for Change, we are helping UK businesses compete and grow, and we continue to get more households recycling, cracking down on waste and ending the throwaway society.”
Alex Baldock, CEO at Currys, said:“We believe that if you sell something, this comes with a commitment to help keep it working, and then to recycle it responsibly when it reaches the end of its life. We continue to do everything we can to give tech a longer life, but there are many who don’t.
“We welcome the Government’s new measures to help level the playing field for responsibility for waste, making online marketplaces do their part. Low value, low quality and unsustainable tech is piling up in landfills, and it’s good to see Government doing something to tackle that.
“We’ll continue to work with them to help ensure our industry performs its important role in helping protect our planet and be a force for good.
Scott Butler, Executive Director at Material Focus, said: “We welcome the Government’s vital new reforms to the waste electrical regulations. FastTech items such as vapes, have swamped the UK market, with half a billion items bought in the past year alone. These small, cheap and too easily thrown away items contain valuable materials such as copper, gold, and lithium which are lost forever and could instead power our tech future.
“These changes to regulations will mean that online marketplaces, many of which are selling FastTech and other electricals, must take on their producer responsibilities and contribute their share of the costs of recycling them.
“Creating a separate category for vapes also means that those who have been profiting from the boom in their sales can be held responsible for providing public takeback, communications and most importantly pay for recycling them.”
Research from Material Focus estimates that British households incorrectly throw away over 100,000 tonnes of smaller household electrical items, such as kettles and lamps, every year. In addition, an estimated 880 million unwanted items containing valuable commodities such as gold and platinum, are abandoned or ignored in the back of the UK’s cupboards and drawers.
Under the plans, online marketplaces will need to register with the Environment Agency and report data on UK sales of their overseas sellers. This data will be used to calculate the financial contribution the online marketplace will make towards the costs of collection and treatment of waste electricals that are collected by local authorities and returned to retailers. The cost of that annual registration will be subject to a consultation led by the Environment Agency.
A new category of electrical equipment for vapes will also be introduced to ensure that the costs of collecting and treating vapes fall fairly on those who produce them.
Material Focus found almost 5 million vapes are either littered or thrown away in general waste every week in the UK. Vapes are rarely designed with the end of life in mind and are difficult and time consuming to recycle, a cost that is not always being borne by those who produce them.
Acting on these important issues now will help address unfairness and deliver on our commitment to kick-start the push towards a circular economy.
UK Government action to end the throwaway society
To further deliver this, the UK Government has formed a Circular Economy Taskforce, comprising of members from industry, academia, and civil society across the UK. They will lead on the development of a Circular Economy Strategy for England, which will be published next year outlining how individual sectors can contribute to ambitions in this area.
This is alongside plans to move forward with the implementation of the deposit return scheme for drinks containers and extended producer responsibility for packaging that will end the nation’s throwaway culture and stop the avalanche of rubbish that is filling up our high streets, countryside, and oceans.
These packaging reforms will collectively support 21,000 jobs, stimulate more than £10 billion investment in recycling capability during the next decade, and drive £1 billion worth of investment opportunities in plastics infrastructure.
Discussions between the UK Government and devolved governments on other proposals from the consultation will continue. Plans for wider reforms that reflect their strategic priorities in the drive towards a circular economy across the UK will be set out next year.
Road policing officers are appealing for information following a serious crash in Edinburgh city centre.
Around 1.50pm yesterday (Sunday, 8 December, 2024), police received a report of a crash involving a 63-year-old male pedestrian and a double decker bus on George Street.
Emergency services attended and the pedestrian was taken to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh Hospital for treatment to serious injuries. There were no reports of any other injuries.
The road was closed to allow enquiries to be carried out and re-opened around 9pm.
Sergeant Jamie Humpage said: “Our enquires are ongoing to establish the full circumstances and I am appealing to anyone who witnessed the crash and hasn’t already spoken to officers to get in touch.
“I would also appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time and who may have dash cam or private CCTV which could assist to contact us.”
Anyone who can assist is asked to call Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 1703 of Sunday, 8 December, 2024.
The Leith Collective launches new store at Livingston Designer Outlet
Christmas is coming and the shops are getting busy. But did you know us Brits throw away approximately £42million of unwanted presents each year? And of all the Christmas purchases made, just 1% will still be used six months after the big day?*
One Community Interest Company is hoping to help put an end to that waste and change consumer attitudes with the launch of its new sustainable store.
Opened today on Monday 9th December, The Leith Collective at Livingston Designer Outlet stocks a wide range of mindfully made items, each one handcrafted by local artists and designed to be treasured for a lifetime.
The Leith Collective makers are committed to ditching single-use plastics and opting for eco-friendly alternatives throughout their entire creative process.
From clothing and jewellery, homeware and furniture, to toiletries and gifts – the majority of goods have been created by reusing, recycling, reclaiming and repurposing items that may otherwise have been destined for landfill.
The result is a shop full of truly unique items, one that challenges the ‘throwaway’ mentality of Christmas gift giving and encourages everyone to think before they buy.
The Leith Collective at Livingston Designer Outlet is the latest addition to the award-winning CIC’s group of stores which consists of sites at Edinburgh Ocean Terminal, Edinburgh Fort Kinnaird and Dundee Overgate, as well as a temporary pop-up store at Edinburgh Waverley Market.
The stores are not just retail spaces but hubs of creativity, hosting a range of inspiring workshops, exhibitions and initiatives designed to engage, support and inspire the local community, with the ultimate aim of creating not just a more sustainable retail industry, but a more sustainable future for all.
Speaking ahead of the launch, The Leith Collective founder, Sara Thomson, said; “Opening a store within Scotland’s largest designer outlet is a major milestone. Our makers now have a place alongside some of the world’s most iconic brands, which just goes to show how much consumer attitudes are changing.
“There is now a significant appetite amongst shoppers to support local artists, makers and designers, and a real demand for items that have been thoughtfully crafted with the future of our planet in mind.
“It’s time to go green and switch to shopping sustainably, and not just at Christmas.”
Gordon Macdonald MSP said the Scottish Budget an “enormous step forward” in achieving the Scottish Government’s mission of eradicating child poverty in Edinburgh as progress begins in ending Labour’s two-child cap.
The two-child cap was introduced by the Tories as part of their programme of austerity and has been subsequently adopted by Labour as one of their policies, despite their previous promises to scrap it.
Across Scotland the cap impacts 83,000 children and 26,000 households – that’s 1,600 families in Edinburgh alone. By ending it the SNP government will lift 15,000 children out of poverty.
Commenting, the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Pentlands said: “The two-child cap is an abhorrent policy that has harmed 1,600 households in Edinburgh.
“Yet it is another Tory policy which Labour has adopted as one of their own.
“With 83,000 children across Scotland impacted, it is right that this SNP Government has made the decision to end the cap once and for all – lifting 15,000 children out of poverty and making progress on the key mission of this government: to eradicate child poverty once and for all.
“It is disappointing that the Labour UK government has chosen to maintain the cap, and I would urge their colleagues in the Scottish Parliament to choose differently and back this budget; made for Scotland, by Scotland.”
Striking the perfect balance when it comes to location can be difficult for house hunters, but the charm of suburban living is enticing an increasing number of professionals and families to the outskirts of the city.
Stuart Brown, 41, and his partner Lucy Forbes, 29, recently took the plunge and moved out of the hustle and bustle of Edinburgh to its leafy outskirts at David Wilson Homes’ Cammo Meadows development.
The couple, who both work as estate agents, weren’t necessarily looking for a new build apartment, just one that had three bedrooms and plenty of living space – a feature that has worked in their favour since welcoming their first child earlier this year.
Stuart, who is originally from Glasgow, said: “Lucy and I agreed that we needed more space, so decided to take the plunge and move from Morningside to the outskirts of Edinburgh.
“We were looking for a three-bed property with some green space close by, and good transport links as we both work in the city centre. As estate agents, we had a rough idea of what we wanted, but we weren’t set on any particular area or house type.
“From the minute we walked into the Shearwater show home, we knew this was the apartment for us. It felt like home. The location, the high-quality finishing touches and the three spacious bedrooms ticked all the boxes for us. We didn’t know at the time, but the ample space would end up being essential as we welcomed our little one to the family.
“The flooring and finishes were also to our liking, meaning minimum work required from us and we could move straight in. However, the living space was what really sold the property. Our apartment has an open-plan kitchen/living area which leads out onto its own terrace. The airy layout really enhances and connects the space, with plenty of light coming from the number of windows throughout.
“We’ve just experienced winter in our new home and, because we get a lot of sun through the windows, we’ve found this helped keep the apartment cosy. It’s a much more energy-efficient property than our last home.”
When they aren’t relaxing in their open-plan living space or on their suntrap terrace, the family venture out into the local area.
Cammo Meadows benefits from having Cammo Estate back onto the development, providing residents and four-legged friends with an array of woodland trails and scenic routes. Cramond’s golden sands are also just a ten-minute drive from the development.
Stuart said: “The development is well located next to Cammo Estate, which has been great for walks at weekends.
“The City Bypass and motorway are also nearby so it’s been easy for us to drive into town or travel to Glasgow or St Andrews to see family and friends. Lucy’s family live just five minutes down the road too, which is always handy with a little one!”
When it came to the final touches, Lucy and Stuart had no doubts that the apartment would be perfect from the 5-star house builder due to the care and attention to detail the builders and the David Wilson Homes team had taken.
Stuart added: “It helped that the buying and moving in process was straightforward – the team quickly responded to any queries and provided clear information on our new apartment as soon as they had it. We really couldn’t fault the customer service.
“Initiatives such as free flooring and a contribution towards our deposit were also massively beneficial in helping us get our key in the door – especially during the cost-of-living crisis.
“As a family, we are thoroughly enjoying living in the suburbs. It’s the perfect retreat from busy city life.”
A final phase of apartments launched at Cammo Meadows on Saturday 30th November. Prices start at £272,995 for two and three-bed apartments. For more information on apartments at Cammo Meadows, visit:
“I have today resigned as Leader of the City of Edinburgh Council.
“The recent commentary on my personal life is detracting from the important work this Labour-led Council does for the people of Edinburgh.
“It undermines the dedicated efforts of my colleagues and Council officers. That’s why it’s time for me to step aside as Leader.
“It undermines the dedicated efforts of my colleagues and Council officers. That’s why it’s time for me to step aside as Leader.
“I have yet to be contacted by the police but want to reiterate that I will cooperate fully with their ongoing enquiries.
“I am hugely proud of what we’ve achieved for the Capital during my time as leader and truly believe that Edinburgh is a better, fairer city as a result.
“I’m also proud to have led a way of successfully doing politics across divides, finding a way to deliver on our priorities for our people and our city.”
LIB DEM Group leader Kevin Lang commented: “I’m pleased Cllr Day has resigned. The allegations made against him are extremely serious. The police investigation and other processes need to be allowed to run their course.
“For the Council, it’s now important to choose a new Leader who can focus properly on the big issues facing our City. We need to agree a new budget, grapple with a worsening crisis in homelessness, and have a big decision to take next month on the new visitor levy.
“Liberal Democrat councillors will be considering carefully how all of this is best achieved ahead of the next Council meeting and the election of a new Leader.”
25 new jobs to be created as coach tour operator extends coach fleet with £2.5m investment
The exponential growth of coach tourism remains strong in Scotland with the country’s leading coach tour operator investing more than £2.5million to enhance and upgrade its coach fleet and seeking to recruit a new generation of driver-guides trained to tell ‘Scotland’s story’.
Timberbush Tours, which specialises in day and multi-day coach trips across Scotland and the North of England as well the private and corporate travel sectors, has placed orders for seventeen new coaches of varying capacity. The new vehicles, from manufacturers MAN, as well as agents BASE Coach Sales and Coachtraders are scheduled for delivery in March and early April.
The vehicles will be distributed across its three Scottish locations – Inverness, Glasgow and its Granton, Edinburgh hub.
Additionally, the company is about to embark on a recruitment drive. It is seeking to employ driver guides who will be trained by the company to enhance the visitor experience. Driver guides provide a fun and informative insight into Scotland’s historical places of interest, ancient culture, and breath-taking natural landscapes.
In total, Timberbush Tours will look to recruit and train 25 driver guides, to be based at each of its centres.
Commenting on its new investment round and recruitment strategy, Steve Spalding, CEO of Timberbush Tours, said: “We are excited to invest in new state-of-the-art vehicles to bolster our fleet and they’ll be manned by driver guides who we consider to be the best in the Scottish coach tour business.
“Our training will be intensive and rigorous in preparation for the season ahead.
“We want our customers to see the very best of Scotland narrated by driver guides who inject fun and their own personality into the experience whilst they sit back and enjoy the experience of travelling in the most environmentally advanced coaches available.”
MONDAY 16 DECEMBER from 4 – 6pm at DRYLAW NEIGHBOURHOOD CENTRE
Anyone interested in finding out more about our wonderful new project in the secret Orchards in Drylaw – we are having a drop-in session to talk about what you would be interested in doing. We will be offering special activities for children and adults.
Come and meet the new Good Apples, Alia ( youth worker), Paul ( gardener) and Natalie (project lead) for a chat, apple pie and mulled apple juice.
Monday 16th Dec 4-6pm drop-in at Drylaw Neighbourhood Centre.
Craigroyston Community Youth Football Club would like to take this opportunity to thank Denise Syme of the Shaun Woodburn Memorial Trust for their very generous donation of £1,465.
This donation will go towards helping our teams who are travelling to Craig Tara Tournament in May 2025.
The purpose of the Shaun Woodburn Memorial Trust was to raise funds for children up to 18 yrs of age and to help them in any sporting endeavour that they have. The fund is registered as an SCIO in Scotland and is registered with the appropriate government bodies.
The funds generated by the Trust will be used to help individuals, and clubs to purchase equiptment to be used in any sporting endeavour, football, rugby, hockey, basketball etc, these funds will only be used within Edinburgh and the Lothians and focusing on the more under priveliged areas of our community.
Shaun was a very talented young man, and not only in a sporting sense.
He regularly sponsored and mentored others in various ways , particularly fitness, and the trustees are all family and close friends of Shaun , and as such we are determined to keep his legacy going forward into the future.
