UK – The NEN – North Edinburgh News

Staycation Nation?

Scotland ranks third in GB tourist destinations survey

WITH the nation set to embrace staycations, Wales has been named the most popular UK destination to visit post-lockdown – closely followed by the south coast of England, leaving Scotland in third place.

The ranking of top destinations was formed following a survey by leading caravan and motorhome home supplier Kimberley – The Caravan & Motorhome People.

With 20% of the vote, Wales – famous for its rugged coastline and mountainous national parks – topped the list of the UK places where caravan and motorhome owners plan on visiting once coronavirus restrictions are fully lifted.

Scotland took 17% of the vote, just 2% behind the south coast of England.

More than 1,900 adults aged 35 and over were surveyed by YouGov as part of the research, which was commissioned by Kimberley and carried out in late June.

It comes after a record number of leisure vehicles were sold across Europe in 2020 – rising 12% to around 235,000 units, according to the European Caravan Federation

Chris Lowe, director at Kimberley, said: “When restrictions relaxed last summer, there was a huge rise in demand for passport-free holidays and once all lockdown measured are fully removed, it’s expected that British people will once again opt to remain on home turf.

“From the iconic Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands to the White Cliffs of Dover and Lake Windermere in the Lake District to the Welsh views of Snowdonia, it’s no secret that people have been enjoying so many of Britain’s beauty spots and discovering a new-found appreciation for what is on our shores.

“I’m quite surprised Scotland has come third in the poll. As a country with outstanding natural beauty, we know it’s a firm favourite with motorhome and caravanning fans due to the ability to enjoy everything from coastal views to mountainscapes.”

Malcolm Roughead, chief executive of VisitScotland, added: “Scotland’s incredible scenery provides stunning surroundings no matter the mode of transport. With our dynamic driving routes criss-crossing the country, it is no surprise Scotland has ranked so highly as a must-visit destination for caravan and motorhome owners.

“New driving routes – like The Coig covering Ayrshire and some Scottish islands, and South West Coastal 300 – have been a huge success for Scotland’s visitor economy, while showing off the incredible landscapes and attractions to be found across the country throughout the year.

“It is extremely important that we all do our upmost to preserve these special places and enjoy them responsibly. We would urge visitors to ‘know before they go’, checking online whether attractions and businesses are open, welcoming visitors and offering pre-booking – with this being especially important for caravan and motorhome owners. To ensure that visitors and the communities they visit enjoy the best experience possible, we urge all visitors to leave no trace and to dispose of waste and litter responsibly.

“We know that tourism is a force for good – creating economic and social value in every corner of Scotland and enhancing the well-being of everyone who experiences it. We all deserve a holiday, and Scotland, with all it offers, will be the perfect antidote after a series of restrictions and lockdowns.”

The south coast – including Brighton, Somerset, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall – came second in the list, with 19% of caravan and motorhome owners pining to visit once restrictions are eased. The east coast, including Norfolk and Suffolk, came in fourth place (10%) and the north west placed fifth (7%).

Of those surveyed, 8% of people said they had no plans to travel, with 4% being unsure about where to visit.

Chris said: “Sales of caravans and motorhomes have also surged due to this increase in staycations, with holidaymakers relishing the flexibility that leisure vehicles have to offer. With lockdown restrictions easing but foreign travel uncertain, more people are looking at the domestic holiday market and leisure vehicles allow them to conveniently take a break.”

Kimberley – which was set up in 1981 – has branches in Kimberley, Nottinghamshire; Darlington, County Durham; and is preparing to open its third site in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, in late summer 2021.

As well as supplying new and pre-used leisure vehicles, Kimberley offers a variety of exclusive caravans and motorhomes that leading manufacturers Compass, Coachman and Swift have tailored to its own specification – including the addition of multiple unique features and upgrades.

Once coronavirus restrictions are fully lifted, which one, if any, of the following places in the UK do you plan on visiting first?
Location	Percentage of caravan and motorhome owners aged 35 and over
Wales	20%
South coast (e.g. Brighton, Somerset, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall)	19%
Scotland	17%
East coast (e.g. Norfolk and Suffolk)	10%
North west (e.g. Cumbria and Lake District)	7%
Midlands (e.g. Peak District)	4%
Yorkshire	3%
Isle of Wight	1%
Northern Ireland	0%
No plans to travel	8%
Other	7%
Don’t know	4%

For more information on Kimberley, please visit www.kimberleycaravans.co.uk.

Cameron: ‘a national coalition to challenge and speak out against extremism”

Prime Minister hosts first meeting of new Community Engagement Forum today

The Prime Minister will today host the first meeting of the new Community Engagement Forum to discuss countering extremism. He will announce that for the first time, police forces in England and Wales will be asked to record anti-Muslim hate crimes as a specific category in the recorded crime statistics, bringing them in line with reporting of anti-Semitic attacks.

In 2013-14 police recorded crime statistics showed religious hate crimes increased by 45% and race hate crime by 4%. New statistics being published by the Home Office this morning are expected to show further rises. Creating a separate category will enable police, prosecutors, local authorities and the communities they serve to have a better understanding of the prevalence of anti-Muslim hate crime and allocate resources accordingly. It will provide the first accurate picture of the extent of anti-Muslim hate crime in England and Wales.

The Prime Minister will also say that new funding will be made available for the security of all faith establishments, including mosques.

This issue will be covered at today’s meeting in Downing Street, which the Prime Minister announced he would convene in his speech in Birmingham earlier this year. The Forum will principally discuss the themes and objectives of the forthcoming counter-extremism strategy including mobilising a national coalition to challenge and speak out against extremism in all its forms. It will also consider what more government can do across the board to help support young British Muslims to reach their full potential.

Prime Minister David Cameron said:

As I said last week, I want this government to be as bold in delivering social reform as we have been in economic – and a big social problem we need to tackle to rebuild Britain as an even greater country is extremism.

We all have a role to play in confronting extremism. That’s why I have invited important Muslim and non-Muslim figures to join the new Community Engagement Forum so I can hear directly about their work in our communities, the challenges they face and so that they can be part of our one nation strategy to defeat it.

I want to build a national coalition to challenge and speak out against extremists and the poison they peddle. I want British Muslims to know we will back them to stand against those who spread hate and to counter the narrative which says Muslims do not feel British. And I want police to take more action against those who persecute others simply because of their religion.

Home Secretary Theresa May said:

Hate crime has no place in Britain and I am determined to make further progress to ensure we can eradicate this deplorable act.

Working with police to provide a breakdown in religious-based hate crime data will help forces to build community trust, target their resources and enable the public to hold them to account.

Our counter-extremism strategy will be published later this month and will introduce a wide range of measures to defeat all forms of extremism. These will empower communities to confront extremist ideologies, and build more cohesive communities where everyone feels able to succeed.

The Forum will initially include around 30 multi-faith representatives from across the country and is an opportunity for the Prime Minister to hear directly from those taking a leading role challenging extremism in our communities. They will also be consulted on how best to improve the security of faith institutions and their recommendations will be considered as part of the wider work of the Prime Minister’s Extremism Taskforce.

Ebola in Scotland: risk ‘relatively low’ but health chief urges vigilance

The Scottish Government Resilience Committee (SGoRR) met last night to discuss preparedness related to the Ebola situation in West Africa. The meeting was chaired by First Minister Alex Salmond.

The First Minister said: “It is crucial our health service is geared up to deal with any potential confirmed cases of Ebola in Scotland.

“That was the basis of the meeting and I am confident our NHS is ready to respond. But we must not only asses our preparedness in Scotland, we must also ensure we are doing all we can to support the efforts to contain the spread of Ebola in West Africa. I have asked for an urgent assessment of what we can do to build on the £500,000 we have already provided to the World Health Organisation and Scotland will do whatever we can to assist.”

Health Secretary Alex Neil was also part of the meeting, along with experts in infectious diseases from Health Protection Scotland and acting Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Aileen Keel.

Mr Neil said: “Our public health experts, including those at Health Protection Scotland, have been monitoring the position very closely since the outbreak began and putting in place the awareness and advice to ensure our health service is as well prepared as possible to respond.

“While the risk remains relatively low, we are ensuring that we have the robust procedures in place to identify cases rapidly. Our health service also has the expertise and facilities to ensure that confirmed Ebola cases would be contained and isolated effectively minimising any potential spread of the disease.

“Indeed, the CMO has written to clinicians across our NHS today to reinforce the need to be vigilant and take the appropriate steps in any suspected or high risk cases.

“Scotland’s NHS has proved it is well able to cope with infectious diseases in the past, such as swine flu, and I am confident we will be able to respond effectively again.

“We will go on monitoring the situation and maintain a high state of vigilance across our health system. SGoRR will meet again in the coming days to continue to closely monitor developments and ensure robust resilience arrangements are in place.”

Earlier yesterday the Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on plans to protect the UK against the Ebola virus and combat the disease in West Africa.

A Number 10 spokesperson said:

“The Prime Minister chaired a COBR meeting on Ebola this afternoon. The attendees included the Chancellor, Home Secretary, Defence Secretary, Health Secretary, Transport Secretary, International Development Secretary, Public Health Minister, Chief Medical Officer, Chief Scientist and Dr Paul Cosford from Public Health England. The Foreign Secretary in the US and UK team in Sierra Leone joined via a video link.

“The meeting covered both the UK preparedness for potential cases of Ebola in this country and the UK’s efforts to combat the disease in West Africa.

“There was a detailed discussion about plans for protecting the UK against Ebola. The Chief Medical Officer, Dame Sally Davies, and Dr Paul Cosford set out that the UK had some of the best public health protection systems in the world and the risk to the UK remained low. The Chief Medical Officer detailed the procedures in place for dealing with any Ebola case in the UK, and the training and preparation that had already taken place with key organisations and staff, including ambulance medics, hospitals, NHS 111, GPs and other key public health workers.

“The case of Will Pooley had demonstrated the UK’s ability to deal with an identified case without wider infection, with a world-leading specialist unit at The Royal Free. Contingency planning would continue and will include a national exercise and wider resilience training to ensure the UK is fully prepared. The Chief Medical Officer has now issued further advice to medical professionals across the country and would continue to do so in the coming weeks. Information posters for passengers would be put up in UK airports.

“The Prime Minister was updated on the situation on the ground by the UK team in Sierra Leone, where the number of cases continues to rise. The UK was already taking a leading role in the efforts to support the government to deal with the outbreak. Using British expertise and local building contractors, the UK has committed to build at least 5 new Ebola Treatment Facilities with a total of 700 beds near urban centres including Port Loko, Freetown and Makeni.

“The package will help up to nearly 8,800 patients over a 6 month period. The UK was also supporting infection training for workers and support to ensure burial sites, and the Department for International Development is undertaking a rapid trial of 10 local community care units to isolate Ebola cases more quickly, with clinics providing swift and accurate diagnosis and appropriate care.

“It was agreed that the UK will increase the level of support further. This will include more training capacity, new treatment centres and helicopter support.

“750 Ministry of Defence personnel will be deployed in total to help with the establishment of Ebola Treatment Centres and an Ebola Training Academy. This will include:

the deployment of RFA Argus to take and support 3 Merlin helicopters, aircrew and engineers in the region to provide crucial transport support to medical teams and aid experts. This will involve around 250 personnel.

over 200 military staff will be deployed to run and staff World Health Organisation-led Ebola training facility that will assist in the training of healthcare workers, logisticians and hygiene specialists who are needed to staff treatment units

300 military personnel making up the existing UK taskforce plans focussed on delivering support to the Sierra Leone government.”