News Archive
17/11/2010
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (November, 17th) sold 516 weaned calves and store cattle and 138 OTM cattle. Bullocks (282) averaged 168.3p and sold to 225p per kg for a 320kg Charolais cross from Wester Tomloan, Glenferness, and �840 gross for a 560kg Charolais cross from 16 Balvaird, Muir of Ord.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (November, 15th) sold 129 adult head of breeding cattle. Bulling heifers (20) sold to �950 gross for a Simmental from Blackford Farm, Croy.
DINGWALL, Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd., (November, 16th) sold 87 prime cattle. Prime bullocks (37) averaged 166.9p (+1.1p) and sold to 176p per kg and �1,167.75 gross.
16/11/2010
Companies with an interest in working in the marine renewables sector are being invited to attend Scotland's largest renewable marine energy conference in Inverness next week (24 and 25 November). The free-to-attend event at the city's Drumossie Hotel is being organised by trade association Scottish Renewables with support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).
Highland residents have been making full use of the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) recycling facilities that were introduced at Recycling Centres across the region in January 2010 - so much so that the Highland Council has won two "WEEE Collector of the Month" awards. The Recycling Electrical Producers' Industry Consortium (REPIC) has a contract with The Highland Council to collect WEEE from the Council's Recycling Centres.
Preparations for the potential delivery of The Highland Council's Community Learning and leisure Services through an arms length organisation took a further step forward last week. Members of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee agreed that the preferred business model for any arms length organisation which might be set up by the Council would be a company limited by guarantee with charitable status and with the option of a trading subsidiary.
15/11/2010
OVER 400 people from Caithness and North Sutherland turned out in Thurso last week to find out more about the world's first commercial wave and tidal stream energy projects in the Pentland Firth & Orkney waters. Taking place over two days, the exhibition in the Pentland Hotel was hosted by The Crown Estate and developers.
15/11/2010
Obama advisor supports business community find opportunities in changing North economy Global entrepreneur Ken Morse will consider the challenges facing the Moray, and wider Highlands and Islands economy as part of a live web cast tomorrow (Tuesday 16th November 2010) looking at how communities can create opportunities from change. Businesses from across the region can take part in the event with the founding Managing Director of the MIT Entrepreneurship Center who has recently been appointed by President Barack Obama to the new US National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Highland Council has committed to the continuation of an innovative approach to the funding and delivery of social care services. The Council was one of three authorities who piloted the use of Self Directed Support for the Scottish Government, over the last two years.
A fairer system of charging Council house rent has been agreed by The Highland Council's Housing and Social Work Committee following consultation with tenants and an examination of rent structures of other local councils and recognised rent systems. Consultation indicated that the size and the type of the property were important to tenants in setting rent charges as was the condition and energy efficiency of a property.
The North Territory hub Programme Board has announced that Alba Community Partnerships (comprising of Cyril Sweett Investments Ltd and Miller Corporate Holdings, part of The Miller Group) has been selected as the preferred bidder for the hub North Territory. hub North was the second hub territory to move into procurement and expects to deliver projects with an estimated value of �435 million over the next 10 years.
Members of The Highland Council's Housing and Social Work Committee have expressed their disappointment and concern that Rok plc has gone into Administration. Rok have a number of Council contracts and also provide a sub-contracting service on other projects.
Highland council house tenants , who have spare accommodation, are to be offered an incentive to move to a smaller council home that better meets their needs. The Highland Council's Housing and Social work Committee agreed on Wednesday 10th November 2010, a downsizing policy to encourage and support tenants of Highland Housing Register landlords to transfer to a smaller home.
11/11/2010
The rights of children with additional education support needs will be strengthened on Sunday (November 14) when the Education (Additional Support for Learning)(Scotland) Act 2009 comes into force. It will ensure that children and young people with additional support needs and their parents can make out of the area placing requests for specific schools and receive mediation and dispute resolution help following such requests.
11/11/2010
First year students at Aberdeen's Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment recently enjoyed a week of activities aimed at helping them adjust to University life. Among them was Wick local, Peter Adamson, who began the BSc Architectural Technology degree programme in September this year.
11/11/2010
Bill seeks to reform centuries-old property law Plans to reform centuries old property law by converting long lease properties into ownership got underway today as Community Safety Minister Fergus Ewing introduced a Bill into the Scottish Parliament. The proposed changes, introduced through the Long Leases (Scotland) Bill, could affect 9,000 long leases in certain parts of Scotland.
Highland Wide Local Development Plan to be discussed at joint Caithness Wards Forum The Highland Council's, Highland Wide Local Development Plan is the main topic to be discussed at a joint Caithness Wards Forum being held on Monday 15 November at 7.30 pm in the Mackays Hotel, Wick. The Highland Wide Local Development Plan, represents the Council's land use vision, strategy and principal, general policies for the whole Highland Council area except that part within the Cairngorms National Park Authority boundary.
Highlands and Islands Enterprise has been in contact with Rok's administrators, Pricewaterhouse Coopers (PwC). We are seeking an early meeting with PwC to discuss both the future of the business as a whole and how we progress specific HIE projects currently being delivered by Rok.
Following a night of severely windy weather The Highland Council is encouraging landowners to check trees and vegetation near to public roads which have been damaged by the gales. Landowners are being asked to check for damage to their trees and to remove debris from roads or footways without undue delay.
Four experts from the Autorit� de Suret� Nucleaire, the French nuclear safety inspectorate, spent a day at Dounreay discussing the decommissioning of alkali metal cooled fast reactors. The visit was hosted by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate as part of international collaboration over nuclear health and safety matters.