Tag: Pentlands

Edinburgh based reserves put through paces ahead of NATO training

Two Aberdeenshire born reserve soldiers from The Royal Regiment of Scotland have just returned home after completing an intensive weekend training exercise in the wild terrain and harsh weather conditions of the Pentlands.

Private David Gray (25), whose civilian job is a butcher, and Private Cameron Gillies (26), who works in Public Affairs in Edinburgh, spent their weekend undertaking the highly challenging patrol exercise designed to test the physical fitness and robustness, mental resilience, navigation, and military knowledge.

The soldiers took part in the exercise alongside other troops and had to navigate between a series of checkpoints and conduct a military task at each stand. One stand included a test of how quickly they could treat a casualty and extract them to a safe area 1km away from the incident point.

Troops will progress onto more arduous training in the months ahead and are currently working towards being selected for the Cambrian Patrol in Wales in October this year – widely considered to be NATO’s toughest patrolling test.

Private David Gillies, a reservist in the Royal Regiment of Scotland, said: “My civilian role is a different type of pressure, dealing with legislation and briefing politicians.

“The army reserve gives me the chance to do something completely different, to challenge myself and be surrounded with like-minded people who are committed to serving their country.

“Training weekends after a full working week is tough, but I love it – and it keeps me fit when I’m away from my desk”.

Operation Boxy: policing the Pentlands

Operation Boxy will run in the Pentland Hills Regional Park from 5 July to 31 July 2021 and will focus on the Edinburgh side of the hills: Bonaly Country Park, Harlaw, Torduff, Clubbiedean and Threipmuir reservoirs/areas.

This Operation involves partnership working between Police Scotland, the Pentland Hills Regional Park (PHRP) team, Scottish Water and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

The purpose of the Operation is to combat anti-social behaviour and encourage responsible access and use of the Pentland Hills, including the reservoirs.

There will be daily patrols during this time where Police Officers and PHRP Officers will engage with members of the public with the purpose of education and prevention – but, where necessary, there will be enforcement of the law.

To report any criminal issues please call 101, 999 in an emergency, and advise the call handler that the call relates to ‘Operation Boxy’.

Using the ‘what3words’ smartphone application is proving extremely effective in pinpointing exact locations.

Visiting reservoirs in the Pentland Hills

Please follow our advice on how to access reservoirs safely and responsibly:

Be safe: reservoirs are dangerous places to swim – read our safety advice and be aware of the risks. Note Blue-green algae bloom warnings.

www.pentlandhills.org/safety/safety-reservoirs.

Be considerate: keep clear of anglers – do not enter the water or let your dog in the water near anglers fishing from the bank and do not approach boats in the water. A fishing line can be cast out several metres from the angler.

Share the space: remember whatever your chosen activity is, either on the water or on the reservoir shores, that you share this space with others. Respect each other and give each other space.

Leave no trace: always take your litter to the nearest bin or home with you.

Respect wildlife: reservoir shores and islands are often preferred locations for some ground nesting birds. Avoid nesting sites during the breeding season (Apr-Jul), tread carefully and do not linger if birds sound repeated alarm calls.

#RespectProtectEnjoy

Holyrood Elections 2021: The count continues

SNP hopes of an absolute majority are hanging in the balance this morning as counting continues in the Scottish Parliament elections.

The SNP have gained three seats so far with no other party making any gains. Overnight the SNP sits on 39 seats (+3), the Liberal Democrats four (-), the Tories on three (-2) and Labour on two (-1). The ‘magic number’ for an overall majority is 65.

The final three Edinburgh Constituencies will declare this morning. All three are currently held by the SNP, and while pro-Union tactical voting has undoubtedly been a feature of this year’s election Gordon MacDonald (Pentlands, majority 2456), Ash Denham (Eastern, 5057) and Ben MacPherson (Northern and Leith, 6081) look likely to return to Holyrood.

Gordon MacDonald faces the toughest challenge – from the Tories – and if tactical voting is to feature here, Pentlands could be vulnerable. If there are to be any changes in Edinburgh this afternoon this would be the most likely upset.

Pentlands is due to declare between 5 – 6pm.

But despite being roundly defeated in the vast majority of constituency votes – with a handful of notable exceptions – opposition parties will see their seat numbers increase significantly today when the regional list results, calculated using a proportional representation system, are announced.

Ironically Holyrood’s ‘fair’ hybrid voting system punishes success. Any SNP constituency gains could be wiped out by resultant losses on the regional lists, and it’s not inconceivable that the new Scottish Parliament could look exactly the same as the 2016 one, with the SNP falling just short of an overall majority.

With 31 constituencies still to declare there’s no doubt the SNP will again be the biggest party – quite an achievement in itself – but if the SNP don’t quite win an overall majority, they will need the support of pro-referendum Green MSPs, voted in through the regional lists, to get them over the line.

2016 all over again? We’ll find out this afternoon.