News Archive
15/1/2020
£100m Milestone For Building Scotland Fund
Paving the way for the Scottish National Investment Bank. Housing, regeneration and industrial and commercial developments are being supported by investments of £100 million through the Building Scotland Fund (BSF).15/1/2020
Less Favoured Area Support - Investment For Remote Rural Areas Underway
Loan payments are now being issued to provide financial support to hill farmers and crofters in some of Scotland's most remote and marginalised areas. Under the first tranche of the Less Favoured Area Support Loan Scheme payments, more than 7,500 eligible hill farmers and crofters will receive loans of up to 95% of their 2019 payment - more than the 90% offered last year.15/1/2020
£50 million Ending Homelessness Action Plan
Efforts to eradicate homelessness will be stepped up in 2020 as all measures in the £50 million Ending Homelessness Action Plan are progressed. Work to transform services and provide access to permanent, stable accommodation is already underway.14/1/2020
Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (January, 14th) sold 26 prime cattle. Prime bullocks (10) averaged 186.7p (N/C) and sold to 205.0p per kg and £1,367.10 gross.13/1/2020
Local Government Funding Is Not Keeping Up With Needs Say COSLA
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) has launched a campaign to persuade the Finance Secretary Derek Mackay MSP to invest in Scotland's councils before it is too late. COSLA has produced a briefing document Invest in Essential Services which clearly shows the reduction to Local Government funding since 2013/14 and how the flexibility councils have to spend their budget has been eroded by the Scottish Government.13/1/2020
From Brexit To Pensions
Employers will be given guidance on a range of issues, from the right to work in the UK after Brexit to pensions, in a series of meetings across the country. The Farm Advisory Service (FAS) roadshow will provide employers with a toolkit providing everything they need to know about employing people.
13/1/2020
Electric start to 2020 as Menzies Distribution brings zero-emissions fleet to Scotland
Menzies Distribution is hailing an electric start to 2020 as it unveils expansion of its zero-emissions delivery fleet to Scotland. The company already has the UK's largest all electric vehicle fleet as well as the largest commercial charging infrastructure in the UK through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Gnewt, delivering parcels across London.
13/1/2020
Scottish Budget Date Set - Finance Secretary Accuses UK Government For Delay
The Scottish Government's budget will be published on 6 February 2020, Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has announced. It comes after the UK Government confirmed their budget would be delayed until 11 March 2020.13/1/2020
Scottish Government Simplifying The Common Agricultural Policy
Simplicity, flexibility and consistency are at the heart of recommendations to improve how we support farming and food production in the future. A taskforce set up to look at changes to the way the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) is delivered during the transition period 2021-2024 has recommended a number of improvements.9/1/2020
Safe Loading In Rough Seas At Gills Harbour Pentland Ferries
With expert guidance from the crew of Pentland Ferries "Alfred" this lorry safely loads onto the ferry at Gills Harbour, Caithness, today (9 January 2019), for her crossing to St Margarets Hope. Sea swells were evident, making the job even harder & causing the ferry to be delayed.
9/1/2020
MV Helliar Replacing MV Hamnavoe 13th - 26th January
The MV Hamnavoe is due to be in dry dock from 13th to 26th January 2020 (inclusive), and there will be additional north and southbound calls into Kirkwall by the MV Hrossey and MV Hjaltland. During this time the MV Helliar will provide a replacement service on the Pentland Firth route.
9/1/2020
Archives Accreditation Award: Nucleus - The Nuclear And Caithness Archive
We are delighted to announce that the latest Scottish service to be awarded Accredited Archive Status is Nucleus - the Nuclear and Caithness Archive. Encompassing the national archive of the UK civil nuclear industry, Nucleus is also home to the historical archive for the county of Caithness.
9/1/2020
North Of Scotland Delays For Full Fibre Broadband
Delivery of full fibre broadband. The Scottish Government will go beyond its commitment to provide superfast broadband to all premises across Scotland, delivering the most ambitious investment in broadband in the UK.9/1/2020
Councils Empowered To Introduce Safety And Control Measures
Local authorities are to be given new powers to regulate short-term lets where they decide this is in the interests of local communities. Housing Minister Kevin Stewart announced measures in the Scottish Parliament to provide local authorities with the ability to implement a licensing scheme for short-term lets from spring 2021.9/1/2020
Holyrood's Finance And Constitution Committee Launches Inquiry Into Scotland And The Uk Internal Market Post-brexit
Brexit is almost agreed at Westminster but q year of negotiations will follow. However the complications we all may never have thought of are now coming up in the Scottish Parliament.9/1/2020
Supporting Innovation In Farming
Investment towards low-carbon future. A project which aims to keep calves with their mothers for longer is among those that will share more than £340,000 of investment.9/1/2020
Austerity Hits Housing Benefit
UK welfare cuts leave families struggling to pay rent. A total of 3,320 families in Scotland claiming help with housing costs are £64 a week worse off because of UK welfare cuts.9/1/2020
Scotland And Norway Are Natural Partners
Scotland and Norway can work together to play a major role in tackling climate change, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told Norwegian business leaders. Addressing the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise conference in Oslo, the First Minister highlighted offshore wind and carbon capture and storage as sectors where the two countries are at the forefront of developing technologies.8/1/2020
Caithness General Hospital secures a world first for pioneering environmental work
Caithness General Hospital in Wick is the first hospital in the world to gain the prestigious Alliance of Water Stewardship standard. Pioneering work in Wick has enabled the town's main hospital to be awarded international status for work undertaken to reduce the impact of pharmaceuticals on the environment.
8/1/2020
