POLICE in Edinburgh are appealing for information after a car was deliberately set on fire in Greendykes Road.
The incident happened around 11pm on Wednesday, 21 June, 2023, when a silver BMW was found on fire. The fire was put out by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service and no one was injured.
Detective Inspector Keith Fairbairn said: “It is fortunate that no one was hurt.
“We are appealing for anyone with dash-cam or private CCTV footage that could assist us with our investigation to contact us.”
If you can assist officers, please contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 4699 of Wednesday, 21 June, or make a call anonymously to the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
The vital importance of apprentices to the future health and prosperity of the printing industry in Scotland has been recognised right across the sector in the eighth annual Scottish Print Apprentice of the Year awards.
Four outstanding young apprentices received the approbation of their peers at the event earlier this month (June 16) organised by Print Scotland, the trade association and voice of Scotland’s graphic communication industry.
As well as representing Scottish print community and raising the profile of future leaders of the industry, the awards ceremony highlighted the way in which the industry is increasingly being seen as rewarding and socially worthwhile career option among younger people.
Garry Richmond, Director of Print Scotland, said: “The number of young people seeking life opportunities in the printing industry is growing all the time and 2023 could be a record year for apprentices, which is extremely encouraging.
“Employers are well aware of the imbalance in the age profile of their workforces and are very conscious of the need to introduce fresh, new talent, with new ideas and enthusiasms. Such people will be the future of the industry.
“The sector has significantly enhanced its support for apprentices the last two years and is definitely seeing the benefit of this forward-looking approach for employers and individuals. Now, we hope that the Scottish Government and its agencies will also loosen the purse strings to allow us to create more opportunities for our young people.”
The winners of the 2023 Apprentice of the Year Awards were:
Overall Apprentice of Year – Nathan Burns, CCL Design, East Kilbride.
Pre-Press Apprentice of the Year – Becky Young, J Thomson Colour Printers, Glasgow.
Press Apprentice of the Year – Fraser Galloway, NSD Labels, Dalkeith.
Post-Press Apprentice of the Year – Laura Macdonald, Bell and Bain, Glasgow.
Susan Graham, Print Scotland’s President,said: “As well as congratulating these very worthy winners, I want to thank all the employers who take on modern apprentices and the production teams and managers who take them under their wing to teach while hitting their own targets. Mentors have such an important role.
“The life choice of the apprentices is to be celebrated. We need to grow our own to control our own success.
“To illustrate the potential in the industry, I have just promoted someone who started as a graduate apprenticeship to commercial director and someone who started as an apprentice to manufacturing director.
“A big thank you also to Training Officer Jim McKenzie. He has modernised the whole process. It is no longer paper-based and is now a flexible model which works for everyone. His industry knowledge is second to none.
“Finally, and far from least we would like to thank our sponsors: Antalis, Muller Martini and CCL Design who have made this Award ceremony the success it has been.”
David McGinlay, of Muller Martini said: “As a Group, we are very proud to support young people across the world to help drive the latest technology and trends.
“Sustainable, professional, solid, we will always support Print Scotland in the quest to attract young people to our progressive industry.”
His remarks were echoed by Stephen Paul of Antalis: “We have sponsored the Scottish apprentice awards since their inception and are proud to continue to do so.
“These young people are the lifeblood and future of our industry and anything we can do to encourage them we would happily support. We wish all this year’s apprentices a long and successful career.”
Jim McKenziesaid: “The industry is more creative than many people think, and it has a great future. Of course, it has changed, but so has every sector, and there are terrific opportunities for people who can rise to the challenge.”
Print Scotland provides training for Modern Apprentices through the Scottish Training Scheme, which provides a grant from the Scottish Government to cover the cost of the training.
It also provides a range of Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) as well as Modern Apprenticeship (MA) certification.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt met the UK’s principal mortgage lenders and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) yesterday to agree support for people struggling with mortgage repayments.
The latest market indicators (FCA; UK Finance) show that mortgage arrears and defaults remain below pre-pandemic levels, which were themselves extremely low. The FCA reported 0.86% of total residential mortgage balances in arrears in the first quarter of 2023 which is significantly lower than the 3.32% rate in 2009.
The proportion of disposable income spent on mortgage payments is currently at 5.4%, compared to around 10% in the 1990s and prior to the financial crisis.
The average homeowner re-mortgaging over the last twelve months had around a 50% loan-to-value ratio. This indicates homeowners have considerable equity in their homes, which makes it easier to manage repayments.
Lenders have less than 10% ‘owner-occupier mortgages’ on their books with loan-to-value rates greater than 75%, compared to around 25% before the 2008 financial crisis. Taken together, this puts the market in a significantly stronger position than before.
The lenders – which cover over 75% of the market – agreed to a new mortgage charter providing support residential mortgage customers. These are:
Anyone worried about their mortgage repayments can call their lender for information and support, without any impact on their credit score and we would encourage you to contact your bank who are there to help.
Customers won’t be forced to have their homes repossessed within 12 months from their first missed payment.
Customers approaching the end of a fixed rate deal will be offered the chance to lock in a deal up to six months ahead. They will also be able to apply for a better deal right up until their new term starts, if one is available.
A new agreement between lenders, the FCA and the Government permitting customers to switch to an interest-only mortgage for six months, or extend their mortgage term to reduce their monthly payments and switch back to their original term within the first six months, if they choose to.
Both options can be taken without a new affordability check or affecting their credit score.
Support for customers who are up-to-date with payments to switch to a new mortgage deal at the end of their existing fixed rate deal without another affordability check.
Providing well-timed information to help customers plan ahead should their current rate be due to end.
Offer tailored support for anyone struggling and deploy highly trained staff to help customers. This could mean extending their term to reduce their payments, offering a switch to interest only payments, but also a range of other options like a temporary payment deferral or part interest-part repayment. The right option will depend on the customer’s circumstances.
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt, said: ““There are two groups of people that we are particularly worried about. The first are people who are at real risk of losing their homes because they fall behind in their mortgage payments. And the second are people who are having to change their mortgage because their fixed rate comes to an end, and they’re worried about the impact on their family finances of higher mortgage rates.
“So today I agreed with the banks and the principal mortgage lenders and the Financial Conduct Authority three very important things.
“The first is that absolutely anyone can talk to their bank or their mortgage lender and it will have no impact whatsoever on their credit score.
“The second is that if you are anxious about the impact on your family finances and you change your mortgage to interest only or you extend the term of your mortgage and you want to go back to your original mortgage deal, within six months, you can do so, no questions asked and no impact on your credit score. That gives people a powerful new tool for managing their monthly budgets – and it will begin taking effect within the next two weeks.
“And finally for people who are at risk of losing their home in that extreme situation, the banks and mortgage lenders have a number of things in place. The last thing that they want to do to repossess a home, but in that extreme situation they have agreed there will be a minimum 12 month period before there’s a repossession without consent.
“These measures should offer comfort to those who are anxious about high interest rates and support for those who do get into difficulty.
“Tackling high inflation is the Prime Minister and my number one priority. We are absolutely committed to supporting the Bank of England to do what it takes. We know the pressure that families are feeling. That’s why we’ve introduced big support packages around £3,000 for the average household this year and last.
“But we will do what it takes, and we won’t flinch in our resolve because we know that getting rid of high inflation from our economy is the only way that we can ultimately relieve pressure on family finances and on businesses.”
Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert.com said: “The unprecedented steep rise in mortgage rates is causing a nightmare for many with variable mortgages and those coming off fixes.
“Therefore, the most important thing we can focus on right now is appropriate, flexible forbearance measures. While the Bank of England’s aim is intended to squeeze people’s disposable incomes, no one wants people’s lives to be ruined by arrears and repossessions – and that is the urgent protection we need to focus on.
“I met the Chancellor on Wednesday and reiterated that the minimum we needed was to ensure that when people asked for help from lenders, they knew that if things changed, it wouldn’t be detrimental to their financial situation and their credit scores would be protected as much as possible.
“I’m pleased to see it looks like the Chancellor has listened and those measures are going to be put in practice by the banks. We need to make sure everybody knows their rights if they are in trouble with their mortgage, so they can feel comfortable speaking with their lender and understand the measures that they can request for help.”
Nikhil Rathi, chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority, said: “Today’s productive meeting builds on the work we’ve done over the last year to ensure those who get into difficulty receive the tailored support they need.
“We’ll move quickly to make any changes needed to support today’s commitments.”
Ian Stuart. Chief Executive Officer, said HSBC UK said: “We’re firmly focused on supporting our customers in this challenging economic environment, so we welcome the meeting with the Chancellor today, and with the support of the regulators, the concerted efforts across our industry to help customers through these measures.
“It’s important that customers feel comfortable contacting us if they feel they are getting into financial difficulty because whilst every customer’s situation is different we have a range of options that we can use to help them find their way through. We stand ready and remain committed to our customers.”
David Duffy, Chief Executive Officer, Virgin Money said: “Today’s commitments are an important next step in ensuring that customers feel supported as they navigate rising rates and high inflation.
“At Virgin Money, we are committed to supporting customers in the current economic environment and will continue to work with Government, regulators and industry to help those facing financial difficulty.”
Dame Alison Rose, Group Chief Executive, NatWest said: “Our priority is to help the people, families and businesses we serve to navigate this ongoing economic uncertainty.
“Today’s announcements, following very productive discussions between mortgage lenders, government and regulators, will provide further flexibility and reassurance to customers who may be anxious about their household finances.
“We stand ready to support those worried about the future, and encourage anyone experiencing financial difficulty to get in touch.”
The City ouncil has agreed to write to the UK Government about their decision to use the cruise ship to accommodate asylum seekers.
Council Leader Councillor Cammy Day said:“Over the last year and a half, we’ve shown solidarity with, and support for, thousands of Ukrainian refugees who have fled Russia’s illegal war on Ukraine, as we have for Syrian, Afghani and, most recently, Sudanese refugees.
“Thankfully most of us will never experience the horrors these communities have faced, and we remain absolutely committed to supporting them in whatever way we can.
‘As Ukrainian refugees continue to disembark MS Victoria following the Scottish Government’s decision to end its use next month, we were extremely surprised to be contacted by the Home Office about their intentions to commission the ship to house asylum seekers. All the more surprising given their previous advice that it would be impossible for it to remain.
‘We were not consulted on this and urgently require further details from the UK Government on their plans. I know the Scottish Government and COSLA are in the same position and, having written jointly to the Minister of State for Immigration, Robert Jenrick MP, we’ve yet to receive a satisfactory response to our questions and concerns.
‘The fact that Forth Ports, who own the dock and have said they can’t accommodate the ship, haven’t yet been contacted sums up the complete lack of engagement by the Home Office.
‘The potential consequences for the Council in terms of the pressures on our services – and the city as a whole – are severe and, barring robust partnership discussions involving NHS, police, and other colleagues, we will continue to oppose these plans in the strongest terms.
‘Many of these people have risked their lives to make it to Europe and what they need is recognition and rights, not an unknown future without the support they so desperately need.
‘While the MS Victoria has been a place of refuge for many Ukrainian people, until we have adequate reassurances from the UK Government regarding welfare and ongoing engagement and support, we cannot allow it to become a floating prison for asylum seekers.’
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The Home Office has a statutory obligation to provide accommodation for asylum seekers who would otherwise be destitute while we consider their claim.
“The significant increase in illegal, unnecessary and dangerous Channel crossings has put our asylum system under incredible strain and made it necessary to continue to use hotels to accommodate some asylum seekers.
“We are committed to making every effort to reduce hotel use and continue to engage with local authorities as early as possible whenever sites are used for asylum accommodation.”
The decision was taken at Thursday’s Council meeting; the motion: 8.11 and addendum can be read on CEC’s website. A webcast recording can also be watched online.
‘I’M PROUD TO BE ME’ SAYS DUNFERMLINE AMAZON EMPLOYEE
A team member from the Amazon fulfilment centre in Dunfermline is sharing his story in celebration of Pride Month.
Pride Month, celebrated annually in June, honours the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan, which was a turning point for the Gay Liberation Movement in the United States. Celebrations now take place in countries all over the world and include parades, parties, workshops, symposia and concerts, attracting millions of participants.
This year, employees from Amazon will be taking part in Pride parades in Birmingham, Manchester and London.
John Aitken from Dunfermline is one of the employees taking part in the Edinburgh parade. Alongside his personal Pride Month celebrations, John is sharing his story to showcase Amazon’s #ProudToBeMe campaign in honour of Pride Month.
John , from Falkirk, is the general manager’s assistant at the Amazon fulfilment centre in Dunfermline.
Before joining Amazon, John attended a performing arts college in Cambridge and went on to work in entertainment on cruise liners in Los Angeles and Australia. During Covid, John wanted to be closer to his family and decided to move back to Scotland with his fiancée. Having discovered a passion for managing teams whilst working on the cruise liners, John found an opportunity to study a business management apprenticeship at Amazon.
Outside of work, John teaches and choreographs for children at a production company in central Scotland. Growing up in the performing world, John now passes down his passion and knowledge to children and watches them grow into their own performers. John also produces his own shows for a variety of theatres in Scotland.
John’s favourite thing about working at Amazon is the opportunities.
“I’ve been given so many opportunities during my time at Amazon, such as working in lead roles and then stepping up to an area manager role. I love to try every new challenge that comes along and Amazon is the place to do that,” John said.
John is also the site ambassador and regional lead in Scotland and Ireland for the Glamazon team, Amazon’s LGBTQIA+ affinity group, and plays a part in the community engagement side of the team.
Speaking on his experience with Glamazon, John said: “With my performance background, I’m the go-to guy for charity and site events.
“From having interest in Glamazon to approaching the team and becoming involved, it all grew quite naturally and organically until I took the role as regional lead. It was very much taking every challenge as it came and it’s been the best experience for me.”
“There is so much support at Amazon for the LGBTQIA+ community. They offer a range of programmes to help employees internally. From policies in the past that are now improving, to pronoun inclusivity, Amazon goes the extra mile to create an inclusive environment.”
Pride is a big event in John’s calendar, and he gets involved in a lot of events both through Amazon and outside of work.
This year, he is organising workshops for the Dunfermline site to educate team members on pronoun inclusivity, touching on identification. The Glamazon team will also be attending the Edinburgh Pride march.
He shared: “Pride is a moment to reflect and look back on how far the LGBTQIA+ community has come, from the civil riots to where we are now – it’s incredible. There are still inequalities, but Pride Month allows us to take a moment to understand the journey and that’s something I try to keep true to heart.
“That moment of standing there as a gay man makes you feel so at home with where you are and what you’re doing, especially when your workplace is as supportive as Amazon. We’ve all got journeys to take, we’ve all had journeys to get to where we are, but the journey that we still have to come is incredibly exciting.”
What’s next for John? He added: “I love working on the community side of Amazon and the more I do, the more my enthusiasm for it grows.
There’s so much more we can do for community engagement in the future and that’s really exciting.”
Ceysa McKechnie, Head of Glamazon in the UK says: “We are incredibly proud to have John as a member of Glamazon in the UK.
“Amazon believes that equality is a driver of innovation, and we strive to create environments that are inclusive to all employees regardless of their gender identity, sexual orientation or expression. It’s great to hear stories like John’s that inspire others to be accepting and inclusive to all colleagues in the workplace.”
Amazon has 13 affinity groups, also known as employee resource groups. They play an important role in bringing Amazon employees together and create a sense of community globally while encouraging inclusivity and diversity. These groups include Glamazon, the Black Employee Network, Asians@Amazon, People with Disabilities and Women@.
Glamazon helps Amazon employees build a network with other LGBTQIA+ colleagues and allies across the business on a global level. The group promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion, and gives mentorship opportunities to members.
There are over 200 active Glamazon affinity group chapters around the world who work with Amazon to create an inclusive workplace, host hundreds of community events, and celebrate Pride annually.
Amazon has also been listed in The Stonewall Top 100 Employers list, the UK’s leading benchmarking tool for LGBTQIA+ inclusion in the workplace.
West Princes Street Gardens will welcome a parade of serving personnel, veterans and their supporters today as special events are held to celebrate Armed Forces Day.
Celebrations in Edinburgh will start from 10.30am on Saturday 24 June as the annual parade of up of 300 – 500 serving personnel and veterans takes place along George Street and round to Castle Street. Then they will reassemble in West Princes Street Gardens where they will be welcomed by Edinburgh’s Lord Provost Robert Aldridge, and there will be live music until 3pm.
Highlights will include: The Band of The Royal Regiment of Scotland, Amy Hawthorn, Stuart Mclean, Maria Townsley and Angus Munro. The event will be hosted by BFBS Broadcaster Mark McKenzie.
On Monday (19 June), the Armed Forces Day flag was presented to the Depute Lord Provost Lezley Marion Cameron and Council Leader Cammy Day and raised above the City Chambers to honour Armed Forces personnel past, present and future.
‘Raise the Flag Day’ is when hundreds of civic and government buildings throughout the United Kingdom will fly the Armed Forces Day flag until just after the weekend.
The Armed Forces Day events in Edinburgh are open to all to show their support for the Armed Forces and veterans.
Edinburgh’s Lord Provost Robert Aldridge, said: “This city has a long and proud tradition of supporting the Armed Forces and our veterans. Holding a day of celebration in their honour is just one of the ways the people of Edinburgh can show their support.
“This is the city’s way of saying thank you and allows us to show our gratitude and appreciation for the enormous sacrifices being made every day on our behalf by so many courageous men and women.”
Brian Ward at Legion Scotland, said: “Legion Scotland is proud to play a part in the Edinburgh Armed Forces Day parade to honour Armed Forces personnel and show our gratitude and support for our veterans.
“We stand together to pay tribute to so many brave members of our Armed Forces who made enormous sacrifices to help protect our freedom.”
Similar events will take place across the UK, enabling people to come out and show their support, and giving a much-valued morale boost for Armed Forces personnel and their families.
Congratulations to local project FRESH START, who won the Community Action category at last night’s SCVO Charity Awards!
Well done to Biddy and the team at Ferry Road Drive!
The winners of the Scottish Charity Awards recognising Scotland’s voluntary sector were announced in a celebratory awards ceremony last night (Friday 23 June) at the Sheraton Hotel, Edinburgh.
Hosted by Sally Magnusson and run annually by the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO), the Scottish Charity Awards celebrates the best of the voluntary sector. This year’s shortlist included 32 individuals and organisations from charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups across the country.
The winner of each of the nine categories was decided by a judging panel, with the tenth People’s Choice category winner decided by the public with over 14,000 votes cast online. The winners of the Scottish Charity Awards 2023 are:
Anna Fowlie, chief executive of SCVO, said: “What a fabulous event to celebrate the achievements of organisations and people across the voluntary sector in Scotland.
“Our finalists and winners are all shining examples of the great things happening thanks to the commitment of people working and volunteering in charities, community groups and social enterprises, all championing good causes, providing vital support and making our communities better places to live.
“Every community, and every part of our society, benefits from the work that SCVO is lucky to see on a daily basis. Thank you to everyone who participated in the Scottish Charity Awards this year, including our sponsors, the Sheraton Hotel for hosting us and of course to Sally Magnusson who was lovely as ever.
“Congratulations to all the finalists – I’m already looking forward to what the next year brings!”
The new head of the European Movement in the UK (EMUK) will on Saturday mark the seventh anniversary of the disastrous vote for Brexit by urging Scots to boost the campaign to Rejoin the European Union.
Scotland voted 62-38 to Remain on 23rd June 2016, with current polls showing an even bigger majority – more than 70% – in favour of rejoining the EU and viewing Brexit in the words of Nigel Farage as “a disaster.”
Dr Mike Galsworthy, EMUK’s new chair, will urge a public meeting in Glasgow organised by the European Movement in Scotland to join in a “society-wide, cross-party campaign to propel Scotland towards its European future.”
Dr Galsworthy, founder of Scientists for EU and a leading grassroots campaigner, is spearheading a EMUK drive to expand its membership base, including in Scotland, as the scale of the economic and political damage wrought by Brexit visibly grows with each passing day.
“As European Movement grows at pace, I’m keen that we start building up local groups and membership all over the UK.
“Scotland has always been passionately pro-European and I am delighted to be visiting European Movement in Scotland (EMiS) to meet its team and promote its campaigning across an array of EU-related issues.
“Scotland has its own society-wide cross-party campaign to drive the country forward towards its European future. I’ll be talking about how we can extend and expand that.”
Dr Galsworthy’s visit comes in the immediate aftermath of MPs’ overwhelming vote – 354-7 – to back the privileges committee findings that Boris Johnson, Brexit’s architect, deliberately misled (lied to) the House of Commons – showing utter contempt for the body whose sovereignty he claimed to be restoring.
It also follows the publication by the Scottish Government of a new paper showing the scale of damage seven years on from the Brexit referendum.
These include:
· An expected loss of £3 billion every year in public revenues for Scotland.
· Food price inflation at a 45 year high with Brexit responsible for an estimated one third of it.
· Damaged trade with 44% of businesses in Scotland naming Brexit as the main cause of difficulties trading overseas.
· Staff shortages reported by 45% of tourism businesses in the Highland and Islands, as a result of the loss of freedom of movement.
The European Movement is growing. Membership has tripled in the last four years, reaching almost 20,000 and growing every day.
The EMiS meeting is at Strathclyde Business School, 199 Cathedral Street, Glasgow G4 0QU, at 6pm.
Further details, including for registration, can be found here.
This summer at Cats Protection we’re inviting cat lovers to hold a Pawsome Tea anytime, anywhere. Whether you choose to hold a casual coffee morning or a yummy bake sale at work, any funds raise will then be put towards our vital cat welfare work.
By taking part you’ll be truly ‘baking a difference’ for cats in need and you can choose whether to donate to your local branch or centre or to the charity as a whole.
With every pot of tea poured, biscuit dunked and cake cut you will help give our feline friends a chance at finding their furever home. A £10 donation could feed a cat in care for 50 days, while £50 would cover neutering a cat or kitten.
At Cats Protection we help an average of 157,000 cats and kittens a year through our national network which includes around 210 volunteer-run branches and 34 centres. Our vision is to help people see the world through cats’ eyes and your cat-themed tea will help us achieve that goal.
Anyone wishing to take part can sign up by visiting:
where you will also find plenty of resources to make planning your event a piece of cake – from DIY bunting and invitations to recipe ideas and advertising posters. We can’t wait to have a cuppa with you!
A joint position paper created by One Parent Families Scotland and Close the Gap sets out principles for a childcare system that works for women, children and families, including those on low incomes:
The availability of accessible, affordable, and flexible childcare is critical to the realisation of women’s equality, and to improving children’s outcome in Scotland.
This position paper, produced in partnership with Close the Gap, presents a set of principles which should drive the next stages in the development of Scotland’s childcare offer.
These principles describe a system of childcare that promotes women’s socio-economic and labour market equality, advances children’s rights, and addresses child poverty.
