Student raises money for Help for Heroes

A SCOTS student has set up the UK’s first ever university society in support of the Help for Heroes campaign.

Seonaid Holsgrove, 21, from Wemyss Bay, is in her final year at Strathclyde University and set up the movement to help raise money.

She was spurred into action by anti-war protests and groups at the university against troop activities, and she wanted to do something to show that there is support for the forces.

Ahead of today’s Remembrance Sunday services, she said: “On campus it feels quite anti-war and anti-soldiers.“A Navy recruitment team came to the university and they had to leave because of the protests.

“The society is to give people like me an outlet and let people know that there is place supporting the guys.”

A stall was set up in the university last Monday to attract more members to the group which managed to raise £223.40 in donations.

The group has also organised a charity army pub crawl and is planning a black tie ball with the “I love my heroes” theme for Valentine’s Day.

Employers tighten their purse strings during festive period

SOME of Scotland’s biggest employers have lost some of the Christmas spirit as they reveal that they will be making no financial contribution to an office party this year.

A survey has revealed that organisations including Standard Life, Aegon, Scottish Enterprise and Northern Rock will not be funding Christmas parties.

Staff can still organise their own party but they will have to dip into their own pockets.  

Royal Bank of Scotland and Lloyds say they will only be making modest contributions to the cost of staff parties.

The number of legally owned firearms in Scotland soars

TEENAGERS as young as 13 have been granted shotgun licences in Scotland – according to Scottish Government figures.

And the number of legally owned firearms and shotguns in the country has rocketed by more than 25,000 in the last 10 years as there are now more than 200,000 legally held weapons in Scotland.

The law allows children as young as 14 hold a certificate for a rifle and use it without supervision and there is no lower age limit for owning a shotgun.

Frank Blake, whose wife Mary, a teacher at Dunblane Primary School, was seriously injured by Thomas Hamilton, hit out at the soaring number of legally owned firearms. He said: “Issuing children of 13 with licenses is madness. What does a child want with a gun?”

The Broons set to give Susan Boyle a run for her money

SCOTLAND’s first family – The Broons – are set to challenge Susan Boyle for the coveted Christmas number one spot with the release of their very first album.

The compilation CD named The Broons Family Album: A Braw Collection O’ The Broons Favourite Tunes was released a week ago and has already rocketed into the UK charts coming inside the top 30.

The iconic comic strip family from Glebe Street, who first appeared in the Sunday Post as far back as 1936, have the support of Beatles record label EMI.

And insiders are widely predicting The Broons will be locked in a full scale “battle” with Susan Boyle the week before Christmas for the number one spot in Scotland.

In some record stores it is already the number one compilation album.

A spokesperson for HMV in Dundee said: “Broons are the third biggest seller in the store for the week only being outsold by Susan Boyle and Bon Jovi.”

The album contains five CD’s with a mix of music mostly hailing from the sixties.

Call for Westminster to transfer the power of tobacco to Holyrood

SNP plans to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes could lead to a rise in counterfeiting – say critics.

The party hopes to introduce plain packaging for all tobacco companies and force them to display bigger health warnings.

But critics and the tobacco lobby have warned that standardised packaging could also have damaging effects.

They say that it could lead to a price war resulting in increased smoking rates thanks to cheap cigarettes and also to a rise in counterfeiting.

Families allowed on Fife beach awash with radiation

THE clean-up of a Fife beach has been halted putting families at risk of potentially lethal radiation.

For years radioactive waste has been found at the beach in Dalgety Bay which is thought to come from the luminous dials of wrecked warplanes.

Defence Estates, the MoD’s land agents, began removing the material two years ago after experts warned it posed a serious risk.

But now the clean-up has been halted and no agreement has been reached with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to resume, despite warnings the problem is set to get worse.

Police Chief says Forces should be trying to keep officers on the streets

ONE of Scotland’s most senior police chiefs has slammed a controversial new plan to introduce paid for career breaks for officers in a bid to save money.

Chief Superintendent David O’Connor, president of the Association of Scottish Police Superintendents, said that Forces should be trying to keep officers on the streets regardless of financial pressures.

He warned that a bid to introduce the breaks, which have been floated ahead of a meeting today (mon) by Lothian and Borders Chief Constable David Strang.

Chief Superintendent O’Connor said “It’s an idea that would not get the support from the association.

Prison bosses splash out on LCD televisions for inmates

PRISON bosses have come under fire over plans to buy new state of the art televisions for jails across the country.

The Scottish Prison Service has put out a tender for a two-year contract to supply around 3,200 new televisions for all but two of Scotland’s prisons.

It states that they will only accept new energy-efficient LCD models with in-built DVD players to meet “green targets”.

Although the tender doesn’t contain a guide price, estimations show that even £150 budget models would set them back £48,000.

The plans have been criticised by politicians, who say that prisoners shouldn’t be able to enjoy equipment that ordinary “law abiding people” can’t afford.

Scottish soldiers join forces with Afghan National Police

2 Scots joined forces with the Afghan National Police to drive out insurgants

SCOTTISH soldiers joined forces with the Afghan National Police to claim back a huge part of the country from the Taleban.

In just a few hours they drove out insurgents, arrested key leaders of the terrorist group and seized a massive haul of drugs and weapons.

Operation ZMARAY SARAK 5 saw three security forces come together, including the 2 Scots the Royal Highland Fusiliers.

Three drugs runners were captured along with 250 kilogrammes of heroin in the first part of the process to clear the area around Lashkar Gah in Helmand Province.

Man appears in court over Livingston rape

A MAN has appeared in court in connection with a serious sexual assault in Livingston on Wednesday.

Barry MacMillan, 26, appeared on petition at Livingston Sheriff Court today charged with rape and breach of the peace.

A woman was subjected to a “terrifying” sex attack near a public footpath in the town at 5.15pm on Wednesday.

It took place in bushes close to the path between Cedarbank and Colverbank in the Ladywell area.

MacMillan made no plea nor declaration and was committed for further examination.

He will remain in custody until his next appearance next week.

REPORT: Cara Sulieman