Overall alcohol consumption in Scotland fell to a 26-year low during 2020, according to a comprehensive report published today by Public Health Scotland. The annual Monitoring and Evaluating Scotland's Alcohol Strategy (MESAS) report brings together data on alcohol consumption, price and related harms into a single publication.
Despite unprecedented challenges presented by the coronavirus (COVID-19) the Scottish Budget was balanced last year. The 2020-21 Provisional Budget Outturn shows 99% of the £48 billion budget was spent, meaning the Scottish Government has fulfilled its legal obligation to deliver a balanced budget.
UKAEA is launching the Fusion Industry Challenges, a £2m project to support the development of the UK fusion private sector, sustain clean energy needs in the UK and facilitate the UK's transition into an exporter of fusion technologies. Tim Bestwick, Chief Technology Officer and Director of Strategy, Communications and Business Development, gives an overview of the challenges and more details on the application process.
950 new cases of COVID-19 reported. 29,254 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results 3.5% of these were positive.
1,317 new cases of COVID-19 reported. 30,990 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results 4.6% of these were positive.
Highlands and Islands Labour MSP, Rhoda Grant, supported a Scottish Parliament cross-party members' debate yesterday about the downgrading of the consultant-led maternity unit at Dr Gray's Hospital in Elgin. "It is a huge disappointment that the service at Dr Gray's has not been reinstated, and we need to see more tangible action now," she said.
Two Highland Council by-elections to take place. Following the recent resignation of two Councillors, preparations are underway to hold by-elections in both the Inverness West ward and the Wick and East Caithness ward.
More than seven out of ten children in Early Learning and Childcare (ELC) are now receiving the full 1,140 funded hours. The number of children has risen by 10,510 since February - an increase from 65% to 72%.
1,129 new cases of COVID-19 reported. 35,638 new tests for COVID-19 that reported results 3.4% of these were positive.
The Government has extended temporary insolvency measures providing further support to businesses during the pandemic in England. Update June 2021 Regulations are set to be laid that will mean restrictions on statutory demands and winding up petitions will remain for a further three months until 30 September 2021 to protect companies from creditor enforcement action where their debts relate to the pandemic.
With two weeks to go before the deadline, small and medium sized businesses in Scotland are being encouraged to apply for funding to help them adapt to new customs and tax rules when trading with the EU. The £20m Brexit Support Fund, which closes 30 June, enables businesses who trade with the EU to access up to £2,000 of funding for practical support including training and professional advice on new customs, rules of origin and VAT processes.
600,000 people to benefit from extension of free care. New measures to provide free NHS dental care for all young people aged 18 to 25 (inclusive) have been introduced at the Scottish Parliament yesterday (Tuesday 15 June).
Tony Syme, expert in macroeconomics at the University of Salford Business School, looks at what is driving a huge increase in house prices since the start of the pandemic. Some economic think-tanks predicted double-digit reductions in house prices this year as a result of the pandemic.
From 1 July, British retailers selling to the EU face huge changes to VAT regulations. ParcelHero reveals five reasons the new IOSS scheme is great news for UK sellers and five reasons it's also frustratingly flawed.
The Chief Statistician has released statistics showing that the economy contracted by 1.9% during January to March 2021. Change in gross domestic product (GDP) is the main indicator of economic growth.
Support for people to upskill and retrain. An initial 25 projects designed to help meet skills needs in a range of sectors will receive a share of up to £20 million as part of the second phase of the National Transition Training Fund (NTTF).
The UK HPI shows house price changes for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In the past 12 months all those involved in the property market have been impacted by the effects of coronavirus (COVID-19); HM Land Registry is no different and, as a result, this release of the UK House Price index is not as complete as it could be.
More than 30 million people in the UK have received a second dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, the latest figures published today (15 June) show, as the vaccination programme continues at unprecedented pace and scale. More than 30 million people in the UK have been vaccinated with a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, giving them the fullest possible protection More than 79% of people in the UK now vaccinated with a single dose Public urged to come forward for second doses to help protect against the threat of new variants 41,831,056 people across the UK have now been vaccinated with a first dose (79.4%), while 30,209,707 people have had both doses (57.4%).
The launch today (Tuesday 15 June 2021) of Highland Nature, the biodiversity action plan for 2021 to 2026, shows the commitment to positive work for nature all across the region. Creating the plan has been coordinated by the Highland Environment Forum and funded by NatureScot and The Highland Council, but the actions for nature will be carried out by the 43 partners who represent land managers, local conservation groups, nature conservation membership organisations and government agencies.
There are two measures of greenhouse gases presented in this release: SOURCE EMISSIONS A measure of the actual emissions or removals of greenhouse gases in Scotland, including international aviation and shipping. Source emissions were 47.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2019; falling by 43.8 per cent between 1990 and 2018 and falling by 2.3 per cent between 2018 and 2019.
