News Archive

27/3/2024

Monthly GDP Scotland Estimates For January

Scotland's onshore GDP grew by 0.6% in January 2024, according to statistics announced by the Chief Statistician.  This follows unrevised 0.4% growth in December 2023.  

27/3/2024

 
Scottish Secretary Alister Jack Responds To January 2024 GDP

Priority remains achieving sustainable growth says Secretary of State, as latest encouraging figures published.   Latest figures published this morning, 27 March 2024, show Scotland's onshore GDP is estimated to have grown by 0.6% in January 2024.  

26/3/2024 : Educational Institutions

Highland And Islands MSP Rhoda Grant Refused A Meeting With Ministers As College Budgets In Scotland To Be Slashed

Highland and Islands MSP Rhoda Grant has hit out at a lack of engagement by the Scottish Government over planned cuts to UHI.   Despite consistent requests for engagement and discussion with Scottish Ministers, there has been no commitment on holding talks.  

26/3/2024

 
Sellafield Clean-up Skips Ahead After Triple First In Legacy Pond

It's a huge moment in one of the site's most challenging decommissioning programmes.   Operators have removed the first zeolite skip from Sellafield's First Generation Magnox Storage Pond.  

26/3/2024 : Advisory / Counseling Services

 
Gad Develops Bespoke Benefits Modeller As Nuclear Decommissioning Authority Reforms Pension Benefits

GAD has built a pension benefit modeller to support the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority as it undertakes a pension reform programme.   The Government Actuary's Department (GAD) has supported the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) as it undertakes a pension reform programme.  

26/3/2024 : Other Public Services

 
North Highlands Team Headed For International Robot Challenge

NRS Dounreay and socio economic partners hosted the second FIRST® LEGO® League Challenge North Highland Tournament in March with local schools taking part.   The North Highland tournament took place in March at ETEC on the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) North West and Hebrides Thurso Campus.  

26/3/2024

 
What Is The Interim Storage Facility?

It's a key building on the Sellafield site that stores waste from one of our highest hazard legacy waste ponds.   The challenge One of our biggest challenges at Sellafield is the need to take waste out of our legacy silos and ponds on the Sellafield site.  

26/3/2024

 
£5bn To Tackle Housing Crisis Made Available By RBS

Royal Bank of Scotland, as part of NatWest Group, has unveiled a £5 billion lending package to bolster the social housing sector over the next three years.   The ambition, spanning from January 2024 to the end of 2026, aims to support local housing authorities and associations in delivering and maintaining affordable homes as well as improve living conditions in existing properties, thus improving the availability and quality of social housing in Scotland.  

26/3/2024

Record Number Of Junior Doctors Take Up Posts

Applications for medical training posts in Scotland are at record levels with more junior doctors joining the NHS than ever before.   Data from NHS Education for Scotland shows that 1,231 posts were advertised throughout 2023 and 94% (1,156) of these filled successfully.  

26/3/2024

 
UK Forces Airdrop Over 10 Tonnes Of Food Supplies To Civilians In Gaza

The Royal Air Force airdropped over 10 tonnes of food supplies into Gaza for the first time on Monday (25 March 2024), as part of international efforts to provide life-saving assistance to civilians.   The aid, which consists of water, rice, cooking oil, flour, tinned goods and baby formula, will support the people of Gaza.  

26/3/2024

 
New Guidance To Improve Biodiversity Across Government Estate

The Government Property Agency (GPA) published its Biodiversity and Nature Recovery Annex today, detailing how it will protect the natural environment across its extensive estate.   A new guidance document was launched on Monday, 25th March 2024, with the aim of tackling biodiversity loss.  

26/3/2024

 
One-off Payments Of Up To £3,000 For Over 27,000 Health Workers

Those in frontline roles such as community nurses and physiotherapists will benefit, with organisations receiving funding for the payments in the coming months.   Tens of thousands of staff at non-NHS organisations including community nurses, physiotherapists and cleaners will soon receive two one-off payments.  

26/3/2024

 
Poverty And Income Inequality In Scotland 2020-23

This report presents three-year averaged estimates of the proportion of people, children, working-age adults and pensioners in Scotland living in poverty, and other statistics on household income and income inequality.  These estimates are used to monitor progress in reducing poverty, child poverty and income inequality.  

26/3/2024

Consumer Card Spending, Flow Of Spending Across The UK - 2019 To 2023

Analysis of consumer card spending trends covering where UK cardholders are spending money.  This analysis shows consumer spending habits on a local level, by publishing a dataset showing where consumers originated from for merchants at every postal district across the UK.  

26/3/2024

 
Royal Navy Warships To Be Boosted With New Cutting-edge Launchers

UK security will be bolstered through a new contract worth £135 million that will equip the Royal Navy with new decoy launchers to counter missile and drone threats.   £135 million contract for cutting-edge launchers for Royal Navy warships.  

26/3/2024

 
Gaza Conflict - Snapshot Of A Population Being Starved Into Submission

Israel has banned the UN aid-coordinating agency, Unrwa, from accessing the population of northern Gaza where a major famine is now believed to be imminent.  The country has accused UNWRA staff of involvement in the October 7 Hamas attack but has provided no evidence this was the case and the agency denies the allegations.  

25/3/2024

 
UK Space Agency Announces New Headquarters And Regional Offices

The UK Space Agency is opening new headquarters at the Harwell Science Campus' Space Cluster in Oxfordshire, and offices in Scotland, Wales and the Midlands.   The UK Space Agency is opening new headquarters in Harwell, Oxfordshire and regional offices in Scotland, Wales and the Midlands as it works to support the space sector across the UK.  

25/3/2024

 
UK Firm Appointed To Build Australian AUKUS Submarines

The partnership between British firm BAE Systems and ASC Pty Ltd could be worth billions of pounds, in a major boost to the UK's defence industry.   British firm BAE Systems will partner with ASC Pty Ltd to build Australia's nuclear-powered submarines, in a major moment for the AUKUS programme.  

25/3/2024

 
First Ukrainian Pilots Graduate From RAF Flight Training

The first Ukrainian pilots to have undergone intensive training under the guidance of Royal Air Force instructors have graduated from flight school.   The 10 pilots received basic flying, ground school and language training in the UK and will one day form the first line of defence in protecting Ukraine's skies from Putin's forces.  

25/3/2024

Council Tax Reduction Tool

Citizens Advice Scotland has a handy tool to tell you if you can get a council tax reduction.   This tool will ask you a set of questions to help you find out whether you are exempt from having to pay council tax or you are eligible for a discount or reduction in your bill.