The Ferret headlines: Recent Episodes
None
Efforts to tackle Scotland's drug deaths crisis have been in the news frequently in recent months. Glasgow made headlines after it was reported that the city council had "decriminalised" drug use in the city. Ferret Fact Service explains what happened. What did Glasgow City Council do? The council supported a motion, by SNP councillor Allan Casey, to formally support the decriminalisation of drugs for personal use. It called for "the decriminalisation of all drugs for personal supply" and sought "approval for the council to adopt a formal position in favour of decriminalisation." What powers do they have? While this was reported by some online as a move to actually decriminalise drugs in the city, Glasgow City Council has no powers to do this. The motion was a formalised show of support for decriminalisation proposals which were put forward by the Scottish Government. What is the Scottish Government view? In July, the Scottish Government announced a new drugs strategy. Its central policy was support for decriminalisation of drugs for personal use, stating that much of Scotland's drug use is hidden and "illegality contributes to the stigma and discrimination people face". The report, presented by drugs and alcohol policy minister Elena Whitham, stated that the UK Government's current drug policy "inhibits a public health approach" and that the Scottish Government was "limited by the UK's legal framework within which it must currently operate". Scottish Ministers asked the UK Government to reform its laws or devolve power to change drug legislation to the Scottish Parliament, but this was swiftly rejected by Number 10, which said Rishi Sunak was not planning to change his government's "tough stance" on drugs. The Glasgow City Council motion also backed another move in the Scottish Government's report, to pilot safe drug consumption rooms in Glasgow, which will likely be comfirmed in coming weeks. FFS explains: Drug decriminalisation policies Where do the powers of drug decriminalisation lie? Control of drug policy is split between the UK and Scottish governments. While the Scottish Government can legislate around the treatment and prevention of drug problems, control of drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 is reserved to the UK Government. This means the Scottish Government is unable to decriminalise drugs without the UK Government changing its policy or devolving powers. However, there are areas where Scotland can have a different policy than the UK. For example, while illicit drug law is reserved, Scotland has some power to set its own prosecution rules. It is under this power that safe drug consumption rooms are to be piloted in Glasgow. A statement published by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) from Scotland's Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain KC, said it would "not be in the public interest to prosecute drug users for simple possession offences committed within a pilot safer drugs consumption facility." This means people taking drugs for personal use in a drug consumption room would not be arrested, paving the way for a pilot to take place. She continued that this "does not amount to an exclusion zone whereby a range of criminality is tolerated". What's the difference between decriminalisation and legalisation of drugs? In places where decriminalisation of drug use has been adopted, you will not be arrested or charged for using drugs or cultivating a personal supply. Technically the drug remains illegal in these areas and it can be an offence to possess it or supply it. But there could be a policy of not enforcing this when possession is under a certain threshold. People caught in possession may have their drugs confiscated, and may face a small fine or referral to drug treatment services. Countries which have a policy of decriminalisation of drugs include Portugal and the Netherlands. Legalisation means the drug is no longer illegal, and can be sold and consumed through licensed premises. Drugs are tax...
If it wasn't for safer injecting sites I wouldn't be alive today that's for sure because I wouldn't be able to stay alive long enough to hit bottom - to have a moment of clarity where I was able to say 'I don't want to do this any more'. " Trey Helton, manager of the Overdose Prevention Society in Vancouver In part two of The Ferret investigates.the health gap - a three-part special podcast from The Ferret media co-op and Greater Govanhill magazine - we look at drug deaths, one of the key factors driving Scottish health inequalities. In Scotland, men in the most deprived areas of Scotland have a life expectancy of almost 14 years less than those in the most affluent areas. And for women that gap is ten and a half years. A total of 1,051 people died of drug overdoses across Scotland in 2022 - that's almost three people a day. And you're 16 times as likely to die of a drug overdose if you live in a deprived community than if you live in a wealthy one. In this episode we visit Simon Community Scotland's We See You project and hear from coordinator Jim Thomson and participant Owen Docherty about the power of finding connection. We also visit Vancouver where Trey Helton tells us how the Overdose Prevention Society is saving lives.and explains how it's helped the city's most prolific cat burglar go legit. We also hear from indigenous women at the Downtown Eastside Women's Centre - a group disproportionately impacted by the opioid crisis there - about the colonial roots of the crisis and how reconnecting with their culture is helping them heal. In the studio we hear from Simon Community Scotland's Claire Longmuir and Professor Andrew McAuley from Glasgow Caledonian University about what's working in Scotland and what more we need to do. You can find all three episodes of The Ferret investigates.the health gap on The Ferret or wherever you get your podcasts. Cover image ©Jackie Dives Podcast credits: Hosts: Karin Goodwin, of The Ferret and Samar Jamal, of Greater Govanhill magazine Interviews: Karin Goodwin Production: Halina Rifai and Karin Goodwin Episode editing and sound: Halina Rifai Music: Loris S. Sarid Package about indigenous culture Reporting, sound recording and writing: Karin Goodwin Editing and sound design: Flora Zajicek The Vancouver interviews were recorded on the territories of the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil Waututh Nations. This article is part of our Mind the Health Gap project, funded by the European Journalism Centre, through the Solutions Journalism Accelerator - a fund supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
A Scottish Government agency has again delayed plans to re-open a famous and popular footpath in Edinburgh, prompting angry denunciations from walkers and climbers. Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has told The Ferret that "further reviews" were needed about access to the Radical Road on Arthur's Seat. The issues were "complex" and the solutions could come at a "significant cost", it said. The historic footpath through Holyrood Park has been closed to the public for five years since a rock fall on 11 September 2018. Access has been barred by high wire fences lining the hillside. Outdoor campaigners condemned the prolonged closure as "farcical" and a "national embarrassment". They accused HES of "broken promises" and of "stringing us along". HES blamed delays on "challenging situations" with their properties across Scotland. It stressed, however, that its statutory obligation was to "manage public safety around a known risk". The Radical Road runs for three-quarters of a mile from near the Scottish Parliament, towards the top of Arthur's Seat. Giving panoramic views over Edinburgh, it used to be one of the main attractions in Holyrood Park, which is visited by more than two million people every year. The footpath was famously built by unemployed weavers from the west of Scotland two years after their general strike led to the Radical War in 1820. The project was suggested by Sir Walter Scott to try and avoid further political unrest. HES closed the footpath to all visitors in 2018 to protect them from rocks falling from Salisbury Crags above. The Ferret revealed in April 2022 that an internal HES study favoured making the closure permanent as the cheapest and safest course of action. Famous Edinburgh footpath facing permanent closure But after an intervention from a coalition of campaign groups in May 2022, HES agreed to review access to the footpath. A new strategic plan for Holyrood Park was promised for consultation in 2022, but then delayed. Now HES has told The Ferret that decisions on access to the footpath have again been postponed beyond 2023. "The Radical Road remains closed to the public while we undertake further reviews," said an HES spokesperson. "There are a number of complex issues to be addressed and a combination of interventions may be required, some of which could be at significant cost. We appreciate people are keen to access this wider route within the park, however, the health and safety of visitors must remain our first priority." They are 'stringing us along' The campaign group, Ramblers Scotland, urged HES to stop managing the Radical Road like a crumbling historical building. "Residents and tourists should be advised of the risks then allowed to make informed decisions, like everywhere else in Scotland," said director Brendan Paddy. "It is farcical that HES has failed to reopen the Radical Road, following half a decade of missed deadlines and broken promises. Rather than truly engaging stakeholders, it appears to be stringing us along." He added: "It is a national embarrassment that the body tasked with caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment has left this iconic 200-year-old path shut away behind ugly fences for five years, with no end in sight." The climbers' organisation, Mountaineering Scotland also expressed its frustration at the lack of progress. "It's almost five years since the access restrictions were put in place," said chief executive, Stuart Younie. "You might be forgiven for thinking that HES is not interested in finding a solution. Is it easier and cheaper to retain the barriers it installed and continue to deny public access?" The Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society (ScotWays) accused HES of closing the Radical Road without following the correct procedure. "I really should not be surprised that there are further delays to re-opening this historic route," said the society's chief operation officer, Richard Barron. 'Managed access' to footpath While the footpa...
Six Highland community councils have united to pressure the local authority to fix long standing issues at a ferry crossing which they claim are causing an exodus. The Corran ferry provides a roughly five minute lifeline connection to Lochaber communities and is reportedly Scotland's busiest single vessel crossing, used by 270,000 cars annually. But repeated mechanical failures this year have left communities with a passenger only service and insufficient capacity, meaning some people face a round trip of up to 86 miles instead. The disruption has reportedly seen businesses shut due to a fall in trade, while locals have faced long trips to reach medical appointments and supermarkets, and struggled to receive deliveries, which is allegedly causing some to move away. The situation led the community councils of Acharacle, Ardgour, Morvern, Nether Lochaber, Sunart and West Ardnamurchan to join up and demand financial compensation for businesses and residents from Highland Council, and for the procurement process for a new ferry to start now. Communities 'won't survive' ferry disruption Andy Tilling, chair of Acharacle Community Council, called for a joint meeting with groups, which led to the formation of Corran Action Group. "We've been demanding that Highland Council fulfil its obligation and provide us with a reliable crossing service for months, but they just don't seem to understand the drastic impact this situation is having," he said. "They have an ambitious proposal for electric ferries and new infrastructure which will take years to deliver, but our communities are hurting now and we simply won't survive another few years like this. "People are putting their health at risk by skipping medical appointments, businesses are failing to generate sufficient income to pay their bills, and friends, family and tourists just aren't coming to visit." He added: "I'm hearing more and more people saying they have no alternative but to move out of the area." The ageing ferry went for an annual service last October but had unresolved mechanical failures. This led to a reliance on a much older back-up vessel, which has also suffered breakdowns. Highland Council has been working on a replacement strategy since forming a steering group in 2019, which includes community council representatives. The councils support the steering group's proposed bid to the UK Government's Levelling Up Fund, "but even if successful, it will arrive too late," they argue. There is a longer-term plan to replace ferries with a bridge or tunnel, but Tilling said communities need a solution now. "We won't sit by and watch them collapse while Highland Council go through their bureaucratic procedures," he added. Highland Council has been approached for comment. Header image thanks to W. L. Tarbert. CC BY 3.0
Episode six - Matters of the heart "The heart can carry on beating almost to the bitter end." Professor Sebastian Lucas, expert witness Physiologically speaking, the human heart is the body's engine room, pumping blood and oxygen around the body. It contracts with a regular rhythm and a steady beat from the second we are born to the moment we die. That mechanism runs on repeat, contracting, pumping, carrying, returning. Until - sometimes suddenly - it stops. Sheku Bayoh slipped out of consciousness on the morning of Sunday, the 3rd May 2015 after he had been restrained by police for about eight minutes. He went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance. In Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital, the medical team spent more than an hour attempting to resuscitate him and restart his heart. But ultimately he was pronounced dead at 9:04 in the morning. And so it is that, at 2pm on Monday, 4 May 2015, forensic pathologists Dr Kerryanne Shearer and Dr Ralph Bouhaidar found themselves standing in front of Sheku Bayoh's body at Edinburgh's city mortuary. The heart of the matter This episode is a pivotal one. It summarises what the experts have told the inquiry about the cause of Sheku Bayoh's death. His family and friends believe that he was killed as a result of the police restraint. Police, meanwhile, have always denied wrongdoing. But what did the postmortem evidence show? We look at what expert witnesses told the public inquiry about Sheku Bayoh's cause of death in hearing three. Credits: Written and produced by Karin Goodwin Research by Tomiwa Folorunso Recording, editing and sound design by Halina Rifai Original music by Alan Bryden Listen to all the evidence from the Sheku Bayoh Inquiry, or find out how to get a ticket to attend in person at www.shekubayohinquiry.scot To make this podcast we're spent hours listening to all of the evidence so we can summarise it for you, our listeners. And we need your support to do more. Join us at theferret.scot/subscribe and get three months free with the code PODCASTOFFER Read the script in full
As the public inquiry into the death of Sheku Bayoh Inquiry re-starts on Monday, The Ferret looks back on hearing three, which tried to get to the heart of what caused his death. Physiologically speaking, the human heart is the body's engine room, pumping blood and oxygen around the body. It contracts with a regular rhythm and a steady beat from the second we are born to the moment we die. That mechanism runs on repeat, contracting, pumping, carrying, returning. Until - sometimes suddenly - it stops. Sheku Bayoh lost consciousness on the morning of Sunday, 3 May, 2015, after he had been restrained by police for about eight minutes. He went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance. At Kirkcaldy's Victoria Hospital, the medical team tried to resuscitate him until he was pronounced dead at 9:04am. And so it was that at 2pm the next day, forensic pathologists Dr Kerryanne Shearer and Dr Ralph Bouhaidar found themselves standing in front of Bayoh's body at Edinburgh's city mortuary. Their findings were at the heart of the evidence heard during the third hearing of the Sheku Bayoh public inquiry, which looked at the cause of death. Bayoh's family are convinced he died as a result of the restraint by police. But police have always denied any wrongdoing and those representing officers said criticism of them is "wholly unwarranted". More than 200 people died after contact with Police Scotland In previous hearings it emerged the family were not informed the postmortem was taking place on that Monday afternoon in Edinburgh and did not see his body in advance. As a result some felt robbed of the chance to say goodbye. But Dr Shearer told the inquiry, it was normal for a postmortem of a suspicious death to be carried out the following day to ensure evidence that could help determine the cause of death was not lost. So that day - as with every postmortem - she got to work noting everything in methodical detail: tiny scars, abrasions, cuts and bruising, including those consistent with baton strikes and the use of handcuffs. A number of petechial haemorrhages - tiny burst blood vessels in the eyes sometimes caused by asphyxia or lack of oxygen supply - were noted. His first rib, which sits up near the collarbone, was broken. Later the inquiry would hear it was most likely to have been when he fell on his arm to the ground. Tissue samples, blood and urine were sent to the lab and the initial conclusion of the postmortem was recorded: "unascertained: pending investigation". It took several weeks for the tissue sample from the organs to come back from the lab. They included samples from his heart, which Dr Shearer examined down the microscope to check for damage - "scarring or anything like that which can maybe give me an idea of a disease process that may be happening and potentially [find] a cause of death." After looking at both the heart in its entirety and at those samples she had one clear finding - everything was completely normal. So what caused it to stop? The family waited for answers and the weeks ticked on. It wasn't until 12 June that the toxicology report came back. It was positive for MDMA - the main ingredient of ecstasy and Alpha PVP, a synthetic stimulant also known as Flakka or Bath Salts. At the inquiry questions centred around the role those drugs played in his death. Expert psychiatrist Dr Maurice Lipseige confirmed it was "rare" for MDMA or ecstasy to lead to paranoia. But Alpha PVP, a "very potent form of amphetamine" has the potential to "cause extreme paranoia fairly quickly," he told the inquiry, with suspicion moving to paranoia and "intense fear that other people want to harm you". Previous evidence suggests Bayoh was indeed paranoid. He left his friend Martyn Dick's in the early hours of the morning in the belief his friends were talking about him, and then accused his friend Zahid Saeed of being an undercover CID officer and attacked him. In January 2016, following a request from PIRC, Dr Lipsedge offered a psychiat...
A community group bidding to create a bitterly disputed golf course has been attacked as an "astroturfing front" for sharing an address with the US developers tipped to build it - and because the group plans to disband if the bid is successful. Communities for Coul (C4C) is applying for planning permission for a "world-class" golf course at Coul Links, an important coastal wildlife site north of the Dornoch Firth. But The Ferret has seen evidence that the group's meeting place and postal address is the same as that used by a golf development company run by two US businessmen. The company, Coul Links Limited, was set up by Americans Todd Warnock and Mike Keiser, to promote their previous plan for a golf course at the site. This was rejected by Scottish ministers in 2020 because of fears it would damage "protected habitats and species". C4C has also said it will disband if it wins planning permission for the golf course. It then plans to hand over the development to Keiser, a billionaire businessman and builder of golf courses from Chicago. Local campaigners accused C4C of being a "sham" and a "stalking horse" for Warnock and Keiser. They are expecting its planning application to be considered by Highland Council on 12 September - and they want it to be rejected. C4C said Coul Links Limited had been "extremely helpful" in sharing information and the shared address was "convenient" for collecting correspondence. C4C described itself as a not-for-profit community company with five British directors who lived locally. The proposal for making Coul Links into a golf course was first put forward by Warnock and Keiser in 2016. But it ran into fierce opposition from environmental groups who said it would harm a unique network of sand dunes home to rare plants, insects and birds. Trump 2.0: new row over golf and wildlife Highland Council gave the golf course the go-ahead, but this was overturned by the Scottish Government in February 2020. Then, in 2021, C4C was formed "to gain planning permission for a new, environmentally sensitive, world-class golf course on Coul Links". C4C claimed the new golf course had community support, with nearly 70 per cent of people backing it in a ballot. But environmental groups, including the government's wildlife agency, NatureScot, have again come out against it. Now an email released under freedom of information law - and seen by The Ferret - has disclosed links between Warnock and Keiser's company, Coul Links Limited, and C4C. In January 2023 the company asked the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) to use Coul Farm as a postal address for golf course irrigation licences. "We would like to change the correspondence name for Coul links Ltd to [redacted] at links house," the email said. "Or if possible to Coul Farm itself as it's easier to collect mail etc, or indeed both." Coul Farm is a holiday home belonging to the Coul Links landowner, Edward Abel Smith. He has won initial planning permission for a £20m hotel development there, which is dependent on the golf course going ahead. Coul Farm is also used as a meeting place by C4C, and is the address cited on its Facebook page. C4C told The Ferret that it was a "convenient spot" for C4C members to collect correspondence about the Sepa licences. At the same time, C4C said it will dissolve if it wins planning permission for the golf course. "When this is all finished, C4C will disband," the group's spokesperson, Graham Sutherland, told a meeting of Dornoch Community Council in May 2023. "We're only here to take the planning application through." The disclosures have angered a local group opposing the golf course. From the moment C4C said it would disband, its promise to build an environmentally-friendly golf course "disappeared out the window", said Dr Tom Dargie, the lead campaigner from Not Coul. "Everything C4C since early 2021 has been a sham, their local support misled. It is now obvious that C4C is the astroturfing front for the 2017 deve...
A fictionalised video portraying first minister Humza Yousaf and Green minister Patrick Harvie being rated by the investors in Dragon's Den has gone viral in recent days. The clip was published by Mercurius, a channel which describes its content as "recording the decline and fall of the corrupt, incompetent and failed SNP", on 20 August and it gained nearly 100,000 views on Twitter. An image of a quote attributed to Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie - included in the video - was shared by a number of prominent accounts, but one Twitter user questioned whether the quote was accurate The video quotes Harvie as saying: "For the wellbeing of most people in the world, industry is dying, will die, must die." Recording of Patrick Harvie saying: "For the wellbeing of most people in the world, industry is dying, will die, must die." Mercurius video Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence The video intercuts sections from speeches by Humza Yousaf and Patrick Harvie with clips from the popular BBC show, Dragon's Den. The sections of Harvie come from a speech made remotely to an Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council (ELREC) conference in November 2020. In it, he makes a case against new investment in the fossil fuel industry, and talks about how many of the reductions in emissions are a result of deindustrialisation, rather than policy choices from governments. Deindustrialisation is the decline in the size and importance of the industrial sector to the economy. In Scotland this included the closure of power stations at Longannet and Cockenzie which were significant emitters of greenhouse gases. In the speech, Harvie says: "The arguments that the Green movement brought to the table back in the 70s and 80s - that there were limits to growth - that argument still holds strong. "Most politicians and most economists have still not moved away from the idea that everlasting economic growth from a finite planet is either achievable or meets the social needs for the wellbeing of most people in the world." Later in his speech, Harvie says that fossil fuel lobbyists should be excluded from the then-delayed COP26 event, and that pension funds should stop investing in the fossil fuel industry. He concluded by saying this would signal that "we recognise that the fossil fuel industry is dying, will die and must die and we should not be invested in the delusion that it has a long term future ahead of it". These two parts of the speech have been edited together in the video to suggest Harvie said: "For the wellbeing of most people in the world, industry is dying, will die, must die." In fact, this is two parts of the same speech, which take place nearly three minutes apart, and it omits the phrase "fossil fuel" which is the specific industry Harvie was referring to, rather than industry in general. Harvie is also misquoted at another point in the video. He says "most of the reductions in carbon emissions have happened through deindustrialisation not through policy choices" at 2:16 in the ELREC speech. Then at 2:56, he says the Green movement has had success in "challenging the more of everything approach that most government's offer on transport. We need to be reducing demand for transport by making sure that people have access to things that they need". In the Mercurius video, these two sections are edited and spliced together to say: "We need to be reducing demand through deindustrialisation by challenging the more of everything approach that most government's offer". This not an accurate representation of his speech. Ferret Fact Service Verdict: False Patrick Harvie did not say the quote as attributed to him in the viral video. The audio has been edited together from two parts of the same speech he made to an Edinburgh equalities charity event in November 2020. The video misleadingly omits the words "fossil fuel" to make it seem as though Harvie is calling for the end of industry in Scotland, rather t...
The area of new woodland being created in Scotland has fallen to its lowest level in five years, a new analysis by The Ferret has found. According to figures from the Scottish Government's forestry agency, 8190 hectares of new woodland were created in the past year - a lower total than in each of the four previous years. The total area of new woodland created has been falling every year from a high of 11210 hectares in 2018/19. Two years ago, during the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow, environment minister Mairi McAllan stated: "Planting more trees, and sustainably managing our forests is one part of the global solution" to global warming. Highlighting Scotland's record in this area, she invited world leaders to "share our success story so that other nations can grow and protect their own forests and woodlands." Since then, the Scottish Government has increased its tree planting targets annually. However, at the same time, the area of woodland actually being created has been falling. In the past year, just 8190 hectares were created against a target of 15,000 hectares - falling short by 45 per cent. Conservation groups described the missed targets as "disappointing" and called for the government to act with "greater urgency and ambition." The Scottish Liberal Democrats accused ministers of "making sweeping climate pledges that are all surface and no substance," and called on them to "start showing leadership and delivering on their own commitments." Scottish Forestry, the government agency responsible for forestry policy, said the equivalent of 102 million trees had been created in five years, despite the challenges of Brexit and Covid, describing progress as a "tremendous achievement". The past year also saw the Scottish Government miss its target for creating native woodland, with 2945 hectares planted against an objective of 4000. Peat restoration targets have also been missed for the fifth year running, as reported by The Ferret. Scotland's native woodlands include iconic landscapes such as the Caledonian Forest and the temperate rainforests of the west coast, which are particularly important for wildlife and biodiversity as well as fighting global warming. As a result, conservation groups have called for greater action to restore these fragments of habitat, pointing to Scotland's status as one of the most nature-degraded countries in the world. Vicki Swales, head of land use policy at RSPB Scotland said: "We support woodland restoration and expansion, especially of our native woodlands such as our Caledonian Pinewoods and Scotland's own rainforest - it's Atlantic Oak woods. She added: "These wonderful habitats are already fragmented and under pressure - just one reason why Scotland is the 28th most nature degraded country on the planet. We need action to restore them and to create new native woodlands; this will help wildlife and tackle climate change and provide places for people to enjoy. The native woodland target of 4,000 [hectares] is already too low so it's disappointing to see that progress in meeting it has been slow in recent years." Steve Micklewright, CEO of rewilding charity Trees for Life, said: "With Scotland ranking among the most sparsely wooded nations in Europe, and with native woodland able to make a massive contribution to overcoming the nature and climate emergencies, the government now needs to act with greater urgency and ambition if it stands a chance of delivering on these vital commitments to nature, people and climate." However, others gave credit to the ambition of Scotland's woodland targets, and compared its record positively to other parts of the UK. George Anderson, spokesman for the Woodland Trust, said that Scotland has "consistently set the most ambitious woodland creation targets in the UK and is the only part of the UK" that comes anywhere near meeting its targets. He added: "It is important to look at any figures in that context. It is disappointing when targets ar...
The use of snares for catching animals is to be banned by the Scottish Government after years of campaigning by animal welfare groups. A snare is a thin loop of wire, anchored and positioned to catch an animal around the neck. They are often used on or near sporting estates to protect game birds from foxes, but also target rabbits and hares. Animal welfare charities have been calling for a ban for years, arguing snares are cruel and trap or kill other wild animals and pets. The Scottish Gamekeepers Assocation argues that new humane traps could be used. The Ferret reported in April this year that dogs, deer, cats and badgers were among non-target species caught by snares in 2022. In one case, a woman discovered her 15-month-old Border Terrier, trapped by his neck in a snare, choking in distress, two and a half hours after the pet had gone missing. The government has now started a consultation on its plans to ban the use of snares. Environment minister, Gillian Martin, said snare traps lead to "unnecessary suffering" and the proposals are part of efforts to ensure that wildlife management is "both sustainable and humane". She added: "Currently, only a small number of farmers and land managers use snare traps. More effective and humane forms of managing wildlife are available and we will continue to support the industry to make use of these methods." Dogs, cats and badgers caught in "cruel" snares, says new report Bob Elliot is director of the animal welfare charity, OneKind, which has long campaigned for a ban. He welcomed the move and urged the government to make the ban "watertight" and not consider any exceptions that could weaken it. Elliot added: "The regulation of snares has failed to protect animals from the extreme physical and mental suffering caused by these archaic devices." Chris Packham, the wildlife TV presenter and conservationist who is a patron at OneKind, said: "These torture devices ought to have been banned a long time ago and I'm glad that the Scottish Government has finally recognised snares for the unacceptably cruel traps that they are. "Snares inflict so much suffering on wild animals and so I'm delighted that both the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government have taken a stand against snares. The UK Government must not lag behind." However, Alex Hogg MBE, chairman of the Scottish Gamekeepers Association, argued there should be a transition towards "humane holding devices" which should be "legally available to trained operators only". The new devices enable non-targets such as badgers and deer to trigger a "break-away", enabling them to free themselves, Hogg said. He added: "When the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission recommended a snare ban, they did so without having seen these new devices in field operation in Scotland. These torture devices ought to have been banned a long time ago and I'm glad that the Scottish Government has finally recognised snares for the unacceptably cruel traps that they are. Chris Packham, wildlife TV presenter, conservationist and patron at the animal welfare charity, OneKind. "We feel these new devices strike exactly the right balance between animal welfare and the needs of land managers, in a rural country, to be able to legally control fox numbers to prevent serious damage to livestock and ground-nesting birds of special conservation concern." The new provisions could be included in the Scottish Government's upcoming Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Bill. The consultation runs until 3 October. Photo credit: Alexis Fleming
"The things I've seen." Laura - script gripped in one hand, her other on her hip - delivers her line with convincing knowingness. That her performance has such authority should be no surprise. It's drama night at Simon Community Scotland's We See You project, and she and other participants taking part in this rehearsed reading of their play, about the homeless hotel system in the city, have got plenty of experience to draw on. This seven-day-a week, out-of-hours Simon Community service launched last summer, aimed at keeping homeless people using drugs and based in Glasgow's city centre, safe from harm. People here include those most at risk in Scotland's drug death emergency, many of them using multiple substances at often dangerous levels including benzodiazepines, heroin and crack cocaine. The majority are also accommodated in the city centre's homeless hotels for months on end where there are lots of rules but not much in terms of facilities or support. In the last year almost 300 people have been welcomed through the doors, almost all at risk of dying from a drug overdose on any given day, according to workers. But none have died - they are all still here to tell the tale. Such is the success of the We See You project - open five evenings from 5.30 to 8pm and during the day on Saturday and Sunday - the charity is now planning to launch in Edinburgh in coming months. In recent years, the number of people dying from preventable drug overdoses has been heralded as 'Scotland's shame'. In 2020 a record-breaking 1,339 people died across Scotland with the number falling marginally to 1,330 in 2021. But this year there's finally been a shift - the number of deaths has fallen for the first time in nine years to 1,051, the lowest number since 2017 and the highest decrease on record. Analysis by the National Records of Scotland, which published its latest report on 22 August, found Greater Glasgow and Clyde health board had the highest rate of drug misuse deaths with 34 deaths per 100,000 people over the period 2018-2022. The death rate in Glasgow City was higher in 2022 than the rate in Dundee, which was previously tagged drug death capital of Europe. But though the reduction in deaths is welcome, there's widespread agreement it's still unacceptably high. Scotland still holds the unenviable title as the country with the highest rate of drug deaths both in the UK and across Europe. Everywhere you go in the town there's someone offering you something. Valium, smack, cocaine.every drug you can think of, every corner you go past. You never get left alone anywhere in the town. Owen, We See You participant Over toasted sandwiches and a cup of tea, Owen - who has been coming to the We See You group from the start - tells me what it's like to be a compulsive drug user in the city centre. "Everywhere you go in the town there's someone offering you something," he explains. "Valium, smack, cocaine.every drug you can think of, every corner you go past. You never get left alone anywhere in the town." Coming here, he says, gives people a safe place to go. Owen has a long past with drugs that includes heroin use, treatment with methadone and then swapping to street Valium (or benzodiazepines) and cocaine. "At one point I was taking 100 of those street valium a day," he says. He was also smoking crack pipes, buying more until he had no money left, unable to stop. "Money's a trigger for me," he says. He's never overdosed. "I don't know how," he admits. "But people around me have taken overdoses hundreds of times. I've had to use Naloxone [which reverses opioid overdoses] on people and I've also lost a lot of pals to overdoses." The worst loss, he says, was that of his brother two years ago. It inspired him to start trying to change things. "It's been working," he says. "But I keep on slipping." Here, he tries to be honest about his drug use, knowing people at We See You know what he's up against and have his back - and that's been helping. When w...
Just two communities have applied to take neglected land into public ownership since the Scottish Government launched the initiative more than five years ago, The Ferret has found. Since 2018, communities have been able to bid for the compulsory purchase of land that is abandoned, neglected or detrimental to the local environment or area, meaning that ministers can force owners to sell, even if they have no plans to do so. Local communities can apply for the right to buy neglected land and property including greenspaces, woodlands, retail and industrial units, churches, halls, lochs, bridges, canals and foreshores. However, just two groups have attempted to do so, and neither were successful, according to official data. Community ownership campaigners said the initiative set "too high a bar" for applicants to get past. An overhaul is needed to make it work for communities, they argued. The largest 10 vacant and derelict sites in Scotland To support land reform and help local communities to own and manage local land, right to buy legislation was introduced in Scotland in 2003. Local groups can apply to register an interest to buy land when it comes up for sale. The right for communities to compulsorily purchase neglected land - subject to approval by ministers - was introduced in April 2018, but has attracted just three right to buy bids from two groups. The battle to buy 'neglected' Argyll woodland The Helensburgh Community Woodlands Group (HCWG) is one of the two applicants. In 2019, it made a case under the land reform act to acquire two woodlands in the west end of Helensburgh. Andy Donald, a chartered engineer who joined the group in 2015, told The Ferret how the bid stemmed back to 2004, when a group of local residents formed HCWG to try and stop a landowner from turning woodlands at Cumberland Avenue and Castle Wood into housing. After failing to get planning permission, the owner allegedly let the woods become overgrown by invasive species, felled trees without authorisation and neglected drainage ditches, which would flood nearby gardens and closes during heavy rain, HCWG claimed. After the owners declined the group's offer to buy the land, HCWG applied to ministers to force a right to compulsory purchase - a task that was not easy. To demonstrate support, to group had to raise around £3,500 - later reimbursed by the government - to ballot some 2,000 homes, and repeatedly knock doors to ask locals to cast their vote. Their efforts paid off when the vote was overwhelmingly in favour. It spent months working on 80-page applications for each woodland, alongside other documents. But "the biggest difficulty" was producing an accurate map of the area. It took months for Registers of Scotland to review the map, which found that a narrow path and old fence at the end of a block of adjoining flats had been incorrectly included. Ministers classified the area as two land holdings - invalidating the application - and rejected the bid. "You can imagine how we felt at the time," said Donald. "It was a hell of a lot of work for it to be thrown out on a technicality that could have been easily addressed." The application for Cumberland Avenue was also rejected by ministers, "but the decision was very difficult for us to interpret and accept," he added. Since buying the woodland, HCGW have, among other things, addressed the drainage ditches to stop nearby flooding, and begun removing invasive species. They have also made plans - and funding applications - to create a pond in collaboration with the local primary school, and an all-abilities path through the woods. HCGW is now evolving from a group of campaigners, to a collection of community land managers. "The main challenge is that effectively as a group we're taking ownership of land and we're taking public money to buy it," added Donald. "So you really do feel obliged not just as a group but as individuals to stay the course. You've just got to be brave enough to do it." Barriers...
The multinational owner of Scottish rugby's new "green" sponsor drills for oil and gas and has backed fracking, prompting accusations of greenwashing. Scottish Rugby and Scottish Gas - which is the trading name of British Gas north of the border-- announced a five year partnership in July which saw the national rugby stadium rebranded as "Scottish Gas Murrayfield". Scotland's women's team will also wear strips bearing the company's logo. According to Scottish Rugby, the partnership will create a "greener Scotland" by helping the "rugby community. reduce their energy bills and carbon footprint". The two parties pledged to invest £2m to help clubs reach net zero emissions while Murrayfield itself will switch to being powered by renewable energy. But Scottish Gas' parent company, Centrica, actually doubled its own emissions in 2022. Centrica is heavily involved in the production and distribution of fossil fuels in the UK, the burning of which is the main cause of the climate crisis. The company faced criticism last month as it announced its highest ever half-year profits of nearly £1bn. The profits are a result of the ongoing energy crisis which has left customers facing soaring bills. Campaigners have branded the deal with Scottish Gas "pure greenwash" and argued fossil fuel sponsorship in sport needs "kicking into touch". One young climate activist told The Ferret he was considering cancelling his Murrayfield season ticket as a result of the sponsorship. Scottish Rugby, responding on behalf of itself and Scottish Gas, called the partnership a "landmark deal" which could help clubs with bills and reduce their energy consumption by 50 per cent. It pointed out the sponsorship was supported by the Scottish Government and welcomed by Holyrood's net-zero secretary, Màiri McAllan. Centrica and fossil fuels As well as British Gas, Centrica owns Spirit Energy and Centrica Storage in the UK, and Bord Gais in Ireland. Spirit drills for gas - and some oil - off the coast of the UK and the Netherlands. The company produces the equivalent of nearly 17 million barrels of oil each year. Spirit also holds 54 licences to explore for fossil fuels offshore, and stakes in two fracking projects in the north of England. Spirit claims it does not explore for oil and gas anymore and has no plans to use these licences. However Centrica's chief executive has publicly supported fracking - the controversial technique used to recover gas from underground shale rock - in recent years. Chris O'Shea said in April 2022 that the process was "worth exploring" and backed Liz Truss' decision to lift a moratorium on fracking during her brief period as prime minister. Fossil fuel advertising and sponsorship of sport is like the new tobacco. Andrew Simms The effective ban on fracking was reintroduced in October last year after Rishi Sunak replaced Truss in Downing Street. Centrica said that its emissions doubled in 2022 because the Whitegate gas power station in County Cork was brought back online by Bord Gais after an outage due to a fault in 2021. In January 2023, Bord Gais started work on two new gas power stations in Ireland which are due to be completed in 2024. It says these will be flexible and only turned on when energy generation from renewable sources like wind turbines and solar farms is low. Centrica Storage owns the Rough gas storage facility off the east coast of Yorkshire, which reopened in 2022, and provides around half of the UK's gas storage capacity. It also processes gas produced by other companies at a terminal in the north east of England. Centrica says it now has a 'green investment strategy' and is building a portfolio of low carbon assets. The company opened its first solar farm in England in June. It is also keen on carbon capture and storage and was granted a carbon storage licence by the UK's North Sea regulator earlier this year. Glossary: Scotland and the Climate Crisis 'Green spin' The debate about so-called 'greenwashing' in sport ha...
Evidence of scallop dredging has been found inside an Orkney marine protected area, prompting calls for the Scottish Government to "urgently deliver" on its promise to better regulate coastal waters. Campaign group Open Seas said it found "clear evidence of dredging" after visiting the small island of Papa Westray, to investigate reports by locals that a scallop dredger had been working close to shore. Dredges are heavy-duty metal framed nets which are pulled over the seabed but they damage species and the ecosystem. Open Seas has urged the Scottish Government to do more to protect vital habitats in an area that was designated for protection eight years ago. The Scottish Government said it is "currently developing fisheries management measures" for the Papa Westray marine protected area (MPA). In 2014, the seas around most of the island was designated as a MPA to safeguard the feeding grounds of black guillemots, and they are home to vulnerable species like spurdog sharks. There are currently no restrictions on dredging inside the MPA, however, despite the fact it was found to be in need of protection nearly a decade ago. Revealed: protected waters at centre of illegal scallop dredging allegations Open Seas pointed out that when a MPA is designated, this decision actually has no impact on fishing activity inside the area. Until additional laws are passed to regulate fishing within the MPA, activities can continue as before, Open Seas said, "despite being shown by government scientists to be incompatible" with the site's conservation objectives. Researchers with Open Seas undertook a trip to Papa Westray in June following "multiple reports and photographic evidence" sent by islanders capturing the presence of scallop dredging vessels south of the Holm of Papay. "We found clear evidence of scallop dredging - parallel lines of [an] artificial nature running across the seabed, together with broken shells including scallops, razor clams, and other species within the MPA boundary, with dredging falling inside the proposed management action area that would prohibit the use of mobile gear, including scallop dredging," Open Seas said in a report. The campaign group said that scallop dredging is not practiced by the Papay community, and likely "mostly done in the area by nomadic boats originating from mainland Scotland". Open Seas' research officer Anna Safryghin told The Ferret: "We documented evidence of nomadic scallop dredging inside the Papa Westray marine protected area, and in areas that were identified as deserving protection eight years ago, but for which still no management is in place. We documented evidence of nomadic scallop dredging inside the Papa Westray marine protected area, and in areas that were identified as deserving protection eight years ago, but for which still no management is in place. Open Seas' research officer, Anna Safryghin "The scientific advice has been clear for many years - the task now is to implement effective management for the long-term resilience of our seas." A spokesperson for the Scottish Government said it is "developing fisheries management measures" for MPAs where these are not already in place, including for Papa Westray. "The proposed management measures will be based on advice from our statutory nature advisor NatureScot and will focus on ensuring the site conservation objectives can be met. The use of scallop dredges is not restricted within the (Papa Westray) MPA," they said. "However, we take the enforcement of fisheries management measures for MPAs extremely seriously, investigate all allegations of illegal activity thoroughly and act to enforce the law and rules governing fishing where illegality has been found to have taken place." The government spokesperson added that the "vast majority of fishing vessels in Scottish waters adhere to the law" and that it has seen "high voluntary take up of remote electronic monitoring (REM) technology" - in particular amongst pelagic and scall...
As the World Cup reaches its climax, For Fact's Sake podcast looks at the abuse that some women footballers face online. We spoke to Dr Beth Fielding-Lloyd from Sheffield Hallam University, an expert on women's sport and its representations in media. She explained how abuse suffered by women footballers differs from men, how certain 'trigger' events can lead to misogynistic pile-ons, and why myths and misinformation about women's sport stoke the hateful abuse that athletes and pundits face. Elsewhere in the podcast, Ali and Paul look at a dodgy claim about the education attainmemt gap in Scotland, and have a look at some myths about dieting and exercise. Show notes: Dr Fielding-Lloyd's research on 'trigger events' that lead to pile-ons of gendered online abuse is here. Our fact check on the attainment gap is here. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers' code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo credit: Steffen Prößdorf, CC BY-SA 4.0
First minister Humza Yousaf was interviewed as part of the Edinburgh fringe festival on Friday. During his chat with LBC presenter Iain Dale, there were several interruptions from protestors in the audience, including one who claimed Yousaf previously made a speech that was "the most bigoted thing Scotland has ever heard". Claims that Yousaf made a racist, anti-white speech have been regularly repeated on social media. Humza Yousaf made a bigoted, anti-white speech Socual media posts Ferret Fact Service looked at the evidence and found this False. Evidence The event in Edinburgh was one of a series of interviews Iain Dale is doing throughout the fringe with political figures including Yousaf, former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, Conservative minister Penny Mourdant and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. During the event, the first minister's interview was interrupted by a heckler, who made reference to a comment made by Yousaf on a podcast where he told people to say "f you" to anyone who discriminated against them. The heckler then referenced a speech made by Yousaf in the Scottish Parliament in 2020, and argued that it was in fact "bigoted". What did Yousaf's speech say? The speech made by Yousaf, who was then the justice secretary, was part of a debate on a motion to show solidarity with anti-racism activism in the wake of the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis in May 2020. In a lengthy speech, he referenced racism that he had experienced since being elected to the Scottish Parliament, and then went on to examine structural racism in Scotland. This section of his comments has been clipped up and posted numerous times on social media, often accompanied by the suggestion that Yousaf is being racist against white people. He said: "Some people have been surprised or taken aback by my mention on my social media that at 99 per cent of the meetings that I go to, I am the only non-white person in the room. "Why are we so surprised when the most senior positions in Scotland are filled almost exclusively by people who are white? Take my portfolio, for example. The Lord President? White, the Lord Justice Clerk? White, every High Court judge? White, the Lord Advocate? White, the Solicitor General? White, the chief constable? White, every deputy chief constable? White, every assistant chief constable? White, the head of the Law Society? White, the head of the Faculty of Advocates? White and every prison governor? White. "That is not the case only in justice. The chief medical officer? White, the chief nursing officer? White, the chief veterinary officer? White, the chief social work adviser? White, almost every trade union in the country, headed by people who are white people. In the Scottish Government every director general is white. Every chair of every public body is white. That is not good enough." This section of the speech was in reference to underrepresentation of people from an ethnic minority in Scotland's powerful positions. He continues to say: "I do not doubt that across the private sector, black and minority ethnic people are similarly underrepresented at senior levels. That is a collective failure that includes every single one of us. I hope that we are sitting uncomfortably, because those should be uncomfortable truths for us all." Nowhere in the speech does he say there are too many white people in Scotland, or that white people shouldn't be allowed to take top jobs. His speech was made in the weeks after the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May 2020 - and was aimed at highlighting the structural racial inequalities which are still existent in modern Scottish society. He ended the speech by recounting the final words said by George Floyd as he died, then said: "I hope that we are all angry. That should be our overriding emotion when we are confronted with racism. I hope that every single one of us takes that anger and uses it to recommit ourselves as anti-racist. Let us be judged by our deeds, ...
A German MEP has accused Eurosceptic former UK MEPs of hypocrisy for signing up to a taxpayer-funded, luxury top-up pension fund, which has an "almost criminal energy". Daniel Freund, a Green MEP and member of the European Parliament's budgetary control committee, said it was "incredible" that European Union taxpayers are "funding the luxury pensions of Brexiteers". Freund has called for the tax haven fund, which is facing bankruptcy, to be scrapped for all MEPs, rather than bailed out with more public money. Data revealing the members of the European Parliament fund, obtained by Investigate Europe and shared with The Ferret, includes 110 former UK MEPs such as Nigel Farage and the Conservative Lord and co-founder of the pro-Brexit Vote Leave group, Lord Daniel Hannan of Kingsclere. Others enrolled in the fund include politicians from across the political spectrum including current or former or government ministers, MPs, and lords - all roles which come with their own high salaries and generous pension schemes. FFS Explains: Travelling to the EU after Brexit The European Parliament top-up pension scheme, more than 30-years-old, was set up as a private company in the tax haven of Luxembourg and reportedly held corporate assets in other tax havens including the Cayman Islands and Bermuda. Funded mostly by taxpayers, it has reportedly allowed longtime members to claim up to £5,800 a month - on top of the £5,900 standard monthly pension - from age 65. Until 2008, MEPs were allowed to have their contributions to the controversial scheme automatically deducted from their general allowance, which is supposed to cover office expenses. However, the fund's risk of bankruptcy due a £260m black hole means that the more than 900 MEPs enrolled will see their payouts cut in half and the pension age rise to 67 - despite more than £73m of additional public money being used as a bail out. Members can now exit the scheme and collect their contributions with a 20 per cent top-up - an incentive aimed to encourage members to withdraw and reduce the deficit. But the concessions have left some beneficiaries of the fund angry, and they are now gearing up for a court battle with the European Parliament. One MEP told Investigate Europe that many enrolled were encouraged to do so by parliament administrators, while others "were just greedy". Who can claim the top-up pension? Among those who can draw from the fund, aside from Farage and Hannan, is Theresa Villiers, a pro-Brexit Tory MP and former UK Government minister, and Gerard Batten, 69, who once led UKIP and compared EU leaders to Adolf Hitler. Investigate Europe found that other Eurosceptics like the French far right politician Marine Le Pen were signed up to the fund, as well as other politicians holding the EU's top jobs. Le Pen refused to comment when asked by Investigate Europe. However, pro-EU MEPs from across the political spectrum are also named members of the fund. They include the late SNP giant, Winnie Ewing - the pension was under the care of her daughter Annabelle - a current MSP. Labour politicians include the long-serving MEP, David Martin, and Eluned Morgan, a Welsh government minister and lord. Christopher Huhne, a former Liberal Democrat MP and coalition government minister, also claims, alongside other former MPs and current lords belonging to his party. Struan Stevenson, a former executive member of the Scottish Tories is also enrolled. Daniel Freund, a Green MEP and member of the European Parliament's budgetary control committee, said: "We Greens have been calling for the end of this fund for 20 years. Here, with almost criminal energy, a system was set up that was doomed to bankruptcy from the start. For years to come, a number of lords, commissioners and MPs will be paid over €2,000 per month from taxpayers' money in addition to existing pensions. "Parliament must prevent this at all cost. Not a single taxpayer euro should be wasted in this fund." He added: "This is just th...
A row has erupted between marine conservationists and a fishermen's organisation over Scotland's first 'no take zone' where fishing is banned, with both accusing each other of spreading misinformation. In an open letter to MSPs, the Community of Arran Seabed Trust (Arran Coast) claims that Shetland Fishermen's Association (SFA) produced a report on the Lamlash Bay no take zone (NTZ) that contained "multiple errors, misleading and biased statements". The SFA defended its report, however, and said it provides an "accurate review of the published scientific evidence" about the protected area. It accused Arran Coast of making "inaccurate" claims. The Lamlash Bay NTZ was the first community-led marine reserve of its kind in Scotland when established in 2008. No fish or shellfish can be taken from its waters or seabed, including the shore area. Arran Coast was part of a coalition that created the NTZ, which is frequently cited as evidence to justify the creation of highly protected marine areas (HPMAs), or similar zones where fishing would be outlawed. HPMAs proved controversial, however, and in June the Scottish government scrapped its plan to restrict fishing in 10 per cent of Scotland's waters following an uproar from some coastal communities. In July, the SFA claimed there was no clear evidence that establishing a NTZ in Lamlash Bay had helped fish stocks or fishermen. Its report - entitled Fishy Falsehoods - questioned whether claims about the success of the Lamlash NTZ had been exaggerated. Fishermen in Shetland re-iterate their call for a truly independent assessment of the Lamlash Bay NTZ before it is used in the formation of any more Scottish Government policy proposals. Daniel Lawson, SFA executive officer The SFA claimed that brown crab and juvenile lobster stock levels had fallen in Lamlash Bay, and there had been an increased abundance of scallops outside the area. The "anti-fishing lobby" had "conveniently failed to mention the whole truth" and had only publicised "cherry-picked information that suits their political agenda", the SFA claimed. In response, Arran Coast has written to MSPs arguing that the SFA's document "runs counter to scientific opinion and is without merit." The letter says that the conservation benefits - "increases in biodiversity, key habitats and marine life in general" - provided by the Lamlash Bay NTZ have been largely ignored by the SFA. Specifically, Arran Coast said the claim by SFA that there was a greater increase of scallops outside the NTZ was "a very misleading" statement. "The increase they appear to be referring to was in the South Arran MPA (marine protected area) which was heavily exploited by scallop dredgers prior to protection in 2016 - resulting in very low scallop densities," Arran Coast said. "This meant scallop numbers increased rapidly from a low level when they were protected from high levels of fishing." Arran Coast was backed by the Coastal Communities Network, a conservation group. Its spokesperson Alan Munro claimed the SFA's report "deliberately excludes certain data" and "completely ignores" the surrounding South Arran MPA, which, he said, is a "crucial aspect of Arran's spatial management and provides a wide-ranging, albeit more complex, picture of ecosystem recovery". Munro added: "These nuances are important. It's also important to note that ecosystem recovery takes time, and during that time there will be natural fluctuations in what species recovers and when, due to the inherent dynamics re-establishing themselves. Again this is totally ignored by the SFA. CCN stands in solidarity with Arran Coast and condemns these attacks from afar to discredit the marine protection that the Arran community campaigned for themselves." Ecosystem recovery takes time, and during that time there will be natural fluctuations in what species recovers and when. Alan Munro, Coastal Communities Network Daniel Lawson, SFA executive officer, told The Ferret he stood by the Fishy Falseho...
The fossil fuel multinational, Ineos, has been accused of falsifying a record and flaring gas from a chemical plant at Grangemouth in breach of multiple pollution rules, The Ferret can reveal. In July the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) served the company with a final warning letter alleging that a "deliberate deviation of procedures" had caused gas to be burnt off in a major incident in December 2022. According to Sepa, the incident occurred because a valve was "falsely" recorded as shut when it had been left open for over two months. The flaring was "preventable" and "unacceptable", Sepa said. Sepa listed 11 alleged breaches of pollution regulations, made 13 recommendations for improvements, and threatened Ineos with prosecution if there were further breaches. Environmental campaigners described Sepa's accusations as "very serious" and called on Ineos to "get its house in order". A local community group expressed "shock and dismay" at the revelations. Ineos did not comment. At the time of the incident, it apologised to the local community for the "inconvenience" caused, and said staff worked hard to reduce the flaring. Sepa released its seven-page warning letter to Ineos Chemicals at Grangemouth in response to a freedom of information request from The Ferret. Dated 4 July 2023, it described "significant elevated flaring" for over five hours on the night of 1 December 2022 from two stacks at a plant making ethylene for plastics. What is happening at Grangemouth? I can hear it from inside. Rab (@rabross_) December 1, 2022 After an investigation, Sepa concluded that the "root cause" of the incident was the failure of management to erect scaffolding to enable a valve to be accessed and closed. This failure led to "a deliberate deviation of procedures to falsely record" that the valve had been closed, the letter said. According to Sepa, operators on the night assumed the valve had been closed "because the procedures had been signed off to that effect". If the valve had been closed "the incident would have been prevented", it said. The letter added: "Sepa considers that the incident was preventable, and the failures identified are unacceptable as they resulted in significant flaring and disturbance to the public." The flaring prompted "community complaints", Sepa said on its website. On the night it happened members of the public around Grangemouth posted pictures and expressed concern on social media. @ScottishEPA Extreme flaring coming from Grangemouth tonight. This cannot be good for the environment and for those breathing this in! Very concerning! ✨C✨ (@CD0355) December 1, 2022 Sepa said this was the sixth flaring incident at the site in 2022. It reinforced the need for Ineos to "secure compliance" with environmental regulations "as an urgent priority", it stressed. The flaring was made worse by a "malfunction" preventing a less noisy ground-flaring system from kicking in for six hours, Sepa added. The agency's investigation also found that Ineos "had failed to notify a previous incident on 11 January 2022 where the ground flare had tripped". Sepa's letter detailed a total of 11 alleged breaches of pollution rules in relation to the flaring incident. "Local communities are not being afforded the highest and most effective protection required under the law," it concluded. Sepa urged Ineos to conduct a series of reviews and checks to prevent a repetition of the incident, and report back before the end of August. "This letter constitutes a final warning," Sepa cautioned. "Any further/continued contraventions of the legislation are likely to result in enforcement action being taken against you by Sepa. Such enforcement action could include the submission of a report to the Procurator Fiscal recommending prosecution." Grangemouth giving it what for tonight Andy Willo (@Birchscrub) December 2, 2022 Friends of the Earth Scotland demanded that Ineos "urgently get its house in order" to minimise pollution and keep peop...
More than 50 authors due to appear at the Edinburgh International Book Festival have called on the event to drop Baillie Gifford as a sponsor if the firm continues to invest in fossil fuels. High profile authors such as Ali Smith, Zadie Smith and Gary Younge, have signed an open letter condemning Baillie Gifford and saying that they stand in "solidarity with those harmed by the climate crisis". They have accused oil and gas firms of "corporate greed" while "millions across the UK suffer from fuel poverty and the cost of living crisis". The letter's signatories have asked the book festival to put pressure on its main sponsor, Baillie Gifford, an investment firm which had approximately £4.5bn invested in companies involved with oil and gas in 2022, as revealed by The Ferret. The authors have threatened to boycott the 2024 book festival if Ballie Gifford refuses to divest from fossil fuels. Following our revelation earlier this month, the world famous climate activist, Greta Thunberg, pulled out of an event at the book festival, accusing Baillie Gifford of "greenwashing". Greta Thunberg pulls out of book festival event after Ferret revelations She said then: "As a climate activist I cannot attend an event which receives sponsorship from Baillie Gifford, who invest heavily in the fossil fuel industry." Baillie Gifford denied being a "significant fossil fuel investor". Writers who signed the letter include Yara Rodrigues Fowler, author of There Are More Things. She said: "This summer has been defined by global wildfires, flooding and extreme heat: the climate crisis is here. In the midst of climate breakdown, Baillie Gifford is investing almost £5bn into the cause of this crisis: companies that profit from the fossil fuel industry. "Edinburgh International Book festival allowing them to sponsor cultural events gives them a social licence to continue funding the destruction of our only home. The book festival must adopt an ethical sponsorship policy and drop Baillie Gifford as a sponsor next year if they do not end these deadly investments." Mikaela Loach, author of It's Not That Radical: Climate Action To Transform Our World, said: "Edinburgh International Book Festival wouldn't burn books, so why are they ok with burning the planet? "Baillie Gifford's whopping £5bn in investments in corporations making money from the fossil fuel industry is unjustifiable in a climate crisis caused and exacerbated by these same companies who have invested more into climate denial and delay than they have into green energy. Edinburgh International Book festival must stand by their "climate positive" commitment and drop Baillie Gifford as a sponsor." Guy Gunaratne, author of Mister, Mister, said: "In recent years the Edinburgh International Book Festival has gone a long way in facilitating conversations about climate and environmental justice, featuring some of the most prominent authors currently writing on the issue. He added: "For these conversations to go beyond words on the page, they must send a clear message to their sponsors. We call on them to show us that they truly understand the urgency of the situation, and its impact on people's lives worldwide." Baillie Gifford declined to comment on the letter and referred The Ferret to a previous statement which said: "We are not a significant fossil fuel investor. Only two per cent of our clients' money is invested in companies with some business related to fossil fuels. This compares to the market average of 11 per cent. "Of those companies, some have already moved most of their business away from fossil fuels, and many are helping to drive the transition to clean energy. Book festival sponsor has major investments in fossil fuels Currently, five per cent of our clients' money is invested in companies whose sole purpose is to develop clean energy solutions. "We believe in open debate and discussion which is why we are long-term supporters of the Edinburgh International Book Festival." Edinburgh ...
Addressing the difference in attainment between Scottish pupils has been a major part of the Scottish Government's policy platform over the past decade. Ahead of the forthcoming by-election in Rutherglen and Hamilton West, SNP MP David Linden made a claim about the SNP government's progress in reducing the gap between rich and poor students in an interview with BBC Radio 4. "In terms of education, we've closed the attainment gap by two-thirds". David Linden MP Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Mostly False. Evidence In 2016, the SNP called education "the defining mission" of its government, and then-first minister Nicola Sturgeon said closing the attainment gap between rich and poor students was "a priority". This has continued under Humza Yousaf's time as first minister, who said his government would "continue to focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap in schools". Research has shown that the poverty-related attainment gap has a significant impact on social mobility and can have "real consequences for the life chances of those from disadvantaged backgrounds". Progress on Scotland's educational attainment gap is published by the Scottish Government. There are a number of different measures recorded, including attainment of literacy, numeracy and reading for those in school across different levels, and school leaver destinations. The attainment gap is defined as the difference in attainment between students in the most deprived areas and the least, measured using the Scottish index of multiple deprivation (SIMD). The latest statistics for in-school achievement covering 2021-22 were published at the end of last year. It should be noted that the Covid-19 pandemic affected the statistics in 2020-21. Attainment is measured for pupils in Primary 1, 4 and 7, then for Secondary 3 across five categories: reading, writing, listening & talking, literacy and numeracy. For Primary 1 pupils the attainment gap increased slightly across all categories between 2016-17 and 2021-22. The largest increase was in numeracy where the difference was 1.1 percentage points. In Primary 4, the picture was mixed. There were small increases in listening and talking, as well as numeracy, and slight decreases in reading, writing and literacy. The largest decrease between 2016-17 and 2021-22 was 0.6 percentage points in literacy. A more significant decrease was found in Primary 7 attainment. The gap between the least and most deprived students decreased across all categories. A 3.4 percentage point decrease in listening and talking was the most significant. Attainment for Secondary 3 pupils is measured against two levels: SCQF level three and level four. The attainment gap for achievement of level 3 increased in all categories, with a 2.6 point increase in reading. For SCQF level 4, the attainment gap between 2016-17 and 2021-22 stayed fairly static, with small increases in writing and literacy, and a small decrease in listening & talking. None of these statistics showed a reduction in line with David Linden's claim. Statistics are also released on the attainment gap for school leavers. This is measured by percentage of pupils from the poorest and richest areas who gain at least one passing grade at SCQF 4, 5 and 6. These numbers equate to National 4, 5 and Higher level respectively. Since 2009-10, the gap in those achieving at least one level 4 pass has narrowed from 11.3 to 5.8 percentage points. For level 5, the gap has reduced from 33.3 to 19.1 points, while at level 6 it has narrowed from 45.6 to 37 points. The attainment gap is also measured in leaver destinations. This is measured as where young people who leave school in Scotland end up three months afterwards. Those who are in either employment, further or higher education are measured as a percentage. The attainment gap for school leavers has decreased more significantly than across other measures. Since 2009-10, it has narrowed from 13.2 points to 4.4 in 2021-22. I...
Content warning: violence against women, sexual violence. When Russia launched its full-scale invasion on Ukraine in February 2022, it created the fastest growing European refugee crisis since the second world war. Millions fled to the country's western borders, seeking safety and a home in Poland, Romania, Moldova, Germany, France, the UK and elsewhere. In times of trouble, the hope is that people reach out the hand of friendship. But some saw an opportunity to harm and exploit women and girls at their most vulnerable. The Ferret has been investigating claims of coercion, trafficking and abuse by women's organisations who have documented cases where traffickers present themselves to young women as boyfriends, promising safety and the chance to start a new life in a new country. Having tricked their victims into trusting them, they traffic the women and girls across borders, into a life of sexual violence. Support organisations say some women are raped by up to six different soldiers, resulting in unwanted pregnancy and trauma. Inna - whose real name we are not using in order to protect her - was just a teenager when she fled her home in Ukraine and met a man offering her a relationship and a fresh start together. She believed they were in love, but his promises turned out to be lies. Shortly after meeting him Inna was trafficked, drugged and sold into sexual exploitation. "It is known as the 'boyfriend model'," explains Nastya Podorozhnya, a Ukrainian journalist and activist living in Krakow, Poland, and founder of grassroots feminist organisation Martynka. It was at Martynka where, having escaped her abusers, Inna found a sanctuary. "We hear a lot from women who are made to believe they are in a relationship with a man who then assaults them". Arriving in Poland, Inna became a refugee again, this time aged 19 and pregnant with her first child. "We had to organise an escape plan for Inna to get from where she was trafficked and to Krakow," says Nastya. "Now Martynka will have its first baby." Nastya was first alerted to the scale of the humanitarian crisis brewing on her doorstep in the immediate aftermath of the full-scale invasion by NGO workers she was interviewing about the situation facing Ukrainian refugees coming to Poland. "They started talking to me about trafficking and how the problem was huge," she says. Data on the scale of trafficking is hard to come by, due to the hidden nature of the crime, but according to the EU Common Anti-Trafficking Plan, launched months into the full-scale invasion, the threat of trafficking in persons was considered "high and imminent". The US State Department confirmed that trafficking "likely worsened after Russia launched its all-out war against Ukraine in February 2022". "They explained that what was happening in the first few weeks of the full-scale invasion was Easter and Christmas combined for traffickers," says Nastya. "There was so much chaos in those early days," she continues. "People not knowing what to do. You might not be experienced enough to know not to give your passport to someone, you might not know the rules of safety - plus gender socialisation, especially in Eastern Europe, means women are told not to be assertive, not to question people." Recognising that Ukrainian refugee women and survivors of trafficking would need to access support from fellow Ukrainians, Nastya and her sister set up Martynka. A family affair, Nastya's sister designed the logo - an illustration depicting a girl based on Nastya's niece. The organisation provides access to Ukrainian-language psychotherapy for refugee victims and survivors of sexual violence, as well as sharing safety advice, practical resources to help refugees navigate their new home, and information on sexual and reproductive health. "We made online content and put stickers in public bathrooms," Nastya explained. "We set up a hotline for women and girls to call. Now we have grown to operate a safehouse for women like Inna. ...
Two Norwegian carbon capture projects - used by the Scottish Government to justify its support of the controversial technology - reportedly faced problems which could have caused carbon dioxide (CO2) to leak. The Scottish Government is a big financial backer of carbon capture and storage (CCS) and claims Scotland has the potential to be the "centre of a European hub" for CO2 storage. CCS involves catching CO2 from the production and burning of fossil fuels, or other dirty industrial processes, and storing them under the ground or the sea. As long as it stays in place, this stops the CO2 entering the atmosphere and contributing to the climate crisis. Scottish ministers have pointed to the apparent success of CCS at the Sleipner and Snøhvit gas fields in Norway as proof that its reliance on the technology to help Scotland meet its climate targets is "credible". But recent analysis of expert research on the two projects by the global think tank, the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), found that both projects had seen unexpected storage behaviour "that could have led to leakage". FFS explains: carbon capture and storage Rather than being lauded as "pioneers" of CCS as they have been by the Scottish Government, Sleipner and Snohvit's issues should actually "call into question the long-term technical and financial viability" of storing carbon underground, the IEEFA report argues. Environmental campaigners said the research showed the Scottish and UK governments had "fallen for industry greenwash" on CCS. Because there are no large-scale CCS projects operating in the UK, attempts to store carbon off Scotland's coast would be "proceeding by trial and error", one argued. The Scottish Government pointed out that its independent advisers had described CCS as "a necessity, not an option" to achieve net zero. Its energy secretary, Neil Gray, said studies found "a 'very high level' of confidence in the long-term security of CO2 contained in typical UK CCS storage complexes". The government believes that five million tonnes of CO2 could be stored under the North Sea as soon as 2030. It estimates 46 billion tonnes of CO2 storage capacity exists under Scottish waters. Sleipner and Snøhvit have only stored a combined 22 million tonnes of CO2 in total so far, having first come online in 1996 and 2008, respectively. Both projects capture and store CO2 from the production of natural gas. Despite their relatively small size - and the fact their storage locations were in areas studied extensively - the IEEFA study argues that "CO2 had not behaved as geologists initially expected at either project". At Sleipner in the Norwegian North Sea, CO2 moved upwards from the original storage site into a previously unknown geological layer three years into operations. "Had this unknown layer not been fortunate enough to be geologically bounded, stored CO2 might have escaped," the report claims. Meanwhile, at Snøhvit in the Barents Sea pressure in the storage site "rose rapidly to alarming levels" just a year and a half after CO2 was first injected. The storage capacity there was far lower than predicted by engineers, a problem which required expensive investment to fix. On Monday, the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, announced that Scotland's first CCS facility, the Acorn Project at St Fergus in Aberdeenshire, will receive a share of £20bn of funding from the UK Government. The Scottish Government had already pledged £80m of support for Acorn. The announcement came alongside renewed commitments by Westminster to allow new oil and gas exploration in UK waters. Opponents of CCS claim it distracts from the need to invest in renewables and is being pushed by the fossil fuel industry so that it can continue drilling for oil and gas. Acorn - which lists fossil fuel giants Shell and Harbour Energy as partners - will transport CO2 and store it in old oil and gas reservoirs a mile and a half under the North Sea. Initially this captured CO2 is ...
Greta Thunberg has pulled out of an event at this year's Edinburgh book festival after Ferret revelations about its sponsor's investments in firms who profit from fossil fuels. Last week we revealed that Baillie Gifford, the lead sponsor of this year's Edinburgh International Book Festival, had billions of pounds invested in firms that profit from oil, gas or coal. According to its own climate report, on 31 December 2022, two per cent of Baillie Gifford's total investments were in companies which make at least five per cent of their money from the oil or gas industries, while 0.3 per cent were in firms which profit from the mining and sale of coal. Baillie Gifford's total investments were worth £223bn at the end of 2022. Based on this number, The Ferret calculated that Baillie Gifford had approximately £4.5bn invested in companies involved with oil and gas, and up to £670m in companies involved in the sale and mining of coal at that time. In a statement released on the book festival's website, Thunberg said: "I am unfortunately unable to attend the Edinburgh Book Festival. As a climate activist I cannot attend an event which receives sponsorship from Baillie Gifford, who invest heavily in the fossil fuel industry. "Greenwashing efforts by the fossil fuel industry, including sponsorship of cultural events, allow them to keep the social licence to continue operating." The book festival's director, Nick Barley, said he fully respected Thunberg's decision. "However, in applauding Greta for standing by her principles, we too must stand by ours," he said. "The Book Festival exists to give a platform for debate and discussion around key issues affecting humanity today - including the climate emergency. As a charitable organisation, we would not be in a position to provide that platform without the long-term support of organisations such as Baillie Gifford. "We strongly believe that Baillie Gifford are part of the solution to the climate emergency. They are early investors in progressive climate positive companies, providing funds to help them grow. While they acknowledge there is still work to do, we have seen them make rapid progress throughout our 19-year relationship." A Baillie Gifford spokesperson said: "We are not a significant fossil fuel investor. Only two per cent of our clients' money is invested in companies with some business related to fossil fuels. This compares to the market average of 11 per cent. "Of those companies, some have already moved most of their business away from fossil fuels, and many are helping to drive the transition to clean energy. "Currently, five per cent of our clients' money is invested in companies whose sole purpose is to develop clean energy solutions. "We believe in open debate and discussion which is why we are long-term supporters of the Edinburgh International Book Festival." Photo Credit: Stefan Müller, CC BY 2.0.
Rough sleeping in Scotland's largest city has escalated dramatically in recent weeks following a decision by Glasgow City Council to cut homeless accommodation to reduce spending. One legal firm supporting homeless people said the situation felt like "getting in a time machine" and returning to the "dark old days" when rough sleeping was endemic across the city. They warned that the "bleak" situation was likely to get worse. In most of the UK emergency accommodation is provided only to those judged to need it most. But under Scottish housing law, passed in 2012 and widely heralded as groundbreaking, anyone who is not found to be "intentionally" homeless is entitled to be accommodated. Local authorities often breached the law but during Covid-19 additional money was provided by the Scottish Government meant everyone on the streets was accommodated and rough sleeping in Glasgow declined to virtually zero. Sources told The Ferret that in recent weeks charities were again handing out sleeping bags, particularly to single men, including to those who had not been accommodated by local authority homeless services. In some cases this was said to be due to them being evicted from the Rennie Mackintosh homeless hotel due to "behavioural issues". The city centre hotel - which has been used to house homeless people for many years - is being decommissioned as part of cuts to services planned by Glasgow City Council. The Ferret understands that will mean 78 fewer emergency accommodation beds will be available. One source suggested the evictions were part of a "clearing out" ahead of the decommissioning process. This was denied by the council which said it was not responsible for the decisions of other accommodation providers. A spokesperson for the Rennie Mackintosh said cancellations were made by "the booking agencies" and referred The Ferret back to the council. Homeless hotels Campaigners have long raised concerns about the hotel and other similar ones, in which there have been over 50 drug related deaths in the last three years. Five deaths - two in the Rennie Mackintosh and three in the Queens Park Hotel - were reported in May with concerns again raised about the lack of staff trained to deal with people in crisis as well as the accommodation standards. Activists called for more supportive, alternative accommodation to be provided. However the council said that its financial situation was the driving force behind the decision for the closure with savings of £3.6m expected over nine months. In a Glasgow City Joint Integrated Board paper dated 28 June it admitted that, given the "level of demand for emergency accommodation", there was "a risk that Glasgow Homelessness Services will breach statutory duties". It also warned of "an increased likelihood of rough sleeping and hardship for service users". In response to queries a council spokeswoman told The Ferret it was aware of six people who were sleeping rough and claimed most had refused help. But Wendy Malloy, project manager of homeless services at Govan Law Centre, said the public law firm had been dealing with several cases in which people had been refused accommodation, including men who had been told they had "no local connection to Glasgow". Shelter Scotland is also understood to be dealing with cases. Govan Law is currently appealing these decisions but said some people were left without accommodation while these were processed. Glasgow City Council denied it had changed its "local connection" policy and confirmed that since the law changed in November 2022 it was responsible for providing people with accommodation from all local authorities in Scotland, not just those from Glasgow. It's an absolute regression to the dark old days of rough sleeping in the city. It's like we've got into a time machine. It's a bleak picture and we are really concerned about it. Wendy Malloy, Govan Law Centre, But Malloy said: "We've taken calls from workers and people are in a tailspin. We've ha...
A second Scottish NHS health board is considering offering heroin on prescription to drug users following an evaluation of a "successfully implemented" Glasgow-based pilot. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde's enhanced drug treatment service has offered about 30 of the city's most "complex" drug users, living with "extreme levels of trauma", up to two daily injections of diamorphine - known as medical grade heroin - along with access to other support services since it launched at the end of 2019. The approach is used in many countries across the world including Switzerland, Germany, Denmark and Canada, for those for whom other replacement medications such as methadone has not been effective. Evidence shows that drug users gradually move from diamorphine injections to oral treatments. Glasgow's service was first developed by city authorities in response to concerns about rising HIV rates amongst injecting drug users as well as an increasing number of drug deaths. In 2021 1,330 people died of a drug overdose across Scotland. Though suspected drug death figures for 2022 suggested the rate had fallen, particularly in Glasgow, the statistics for the first three months of this year suggest that decrease may not be sustained. From March to May, about 100 people were still dying each month. Now NHS Tayside, which has previously seen a high level of drug deaths in the health board area, particularly in Dundee, has commissioned research into the "potential" for opening its own service offering heroin treatment to drug users. A report will be considered by "relevant authorities" in the coming months, it said in response to queries from The Ferret. Glasgow treatment evaluated A recently published evaluation of the Glasgow-based pilot found that the majority of those prescribed medical grade heroin at an NHS-run clinic had reduced their use, reported better health and wellbeing, and had found more stable housing. They were less likely to end up at Accident and Emergency (A&E), and public injecting and begging amongst this group decreased. However not everyone remained in the project, with six out of an initial 15 people who had been signed up leaving it, most within the first six months. All six were then referred to mainstream treatment services, but two people subsequently died. Other limitations of the pilot were also highlighted. Though those who remained on the programme reduced their heroin use, their use of other drugs including cocaine and benzodiazepines "did not decrease to the same extent", according to the evaluation. Feedback from both participants and staff was that the service was "over-clinical" making it harder to offer therapy-focussed services. Researchers stressed that specialists in mental and physical health, housing, relationships and life skills must be a key part of the service. Covid restrictions were particularly challenging for the early months of the service, it was claimed. These were people who couldn't engage with any other form of treatment previously. Dr Andrew McAuley, Glasgow Caledonian University Dr Andrew McAuley, of Glasgow Caledonian University, was the principal investigator on the Glasgow evaluation. He said those involved in the Glasgow pilot had "very complex needs" and high levels of polydrug use - taking different drugs at the same time - and had struggled to stay engaged with traditional treatment services. "With that in mind, the fact that the majority of people who commenced treatment were still engaged after twelve months was a success in itself," he added. "These were people who couldn't engage with any other form of treatment previously. We know that treatment is protective against mortality, but it helps people in a whole host of other ways - it's really important." He acknowledged costs for the service were high. Earlier this year the NHS revealed almost £4million had been spent on the project, including start-up costs. But added: "Some cost benefit analysis has been done and it shows red...
The UK Government Raised concerns that a far right group led by a Scot had applied "by stealth" to become a political party, The Ferret can reveal. The Home Office contacted the Electoral Commission after learning that Homeland - a splinter group of the white nationalist outfit Patriotic Alternative (PA) - had formed, according to communications we obtained via freedom of information. Skye-based Kenny Smith, a former British National Party Scottish organiser and election candidate, led a breakaway faction of PA to form Homeland in April. Homeland then made an application to the Electoral Commission under the name Homeland Party, which is still under review. White nationalist Homeland group applies to be political party An anti-racism organisation branded the group "a fringe but extreme fascist organisation". Smith rejected claims that Homeland was "extreme", "fascist" or "neo-Nazi". PA failed with seven applications to become a political party, one of which breached equality laws as it would prevent certain people from becoming party members, internal Electoral Commission communications show. In a leaked recording of a Homeland meeting in April, Smith said members who were not "well known nationalists who might be on the radar" were writing an application under a different party name. But the group registered as the Homeland Party. This caught the attention of the Home Office, which monitors potential terrorist threats from far right groups and others. "I've just seen a report concerning [redacted] and a new group being formed, Homeland, which has aspirations to political party status [sic]," the Home Office told the Electoral Commission's director of regulation, Louise Edwards in a 25 April email. After a phone call, Edwards told a colleague that once she had explained how the commission processes applications, the Home Office staffer "understood immediately that the concept of an 'application by stealth' doesn't make any sense". The Home Office employee "agreed that if through their work they get any relevant intel about the group or the way in which they might be applying to us, he'll let me know", Edwards added. Homeland an 'extreme fascist organisation' Last year, The Ferret gained access to a private chat group which Smith used to PA recruit neo-Nazis who posed with weapons, shared a bomb-making manual, quoted a mass murderer, and said members should kill "for the greater good". Revealed: supporters of Scots far-right group possess weapons Smith also expressed support for a PA supporter who pleaded guilty to terrorism offences and urged PA members to write to him in prison. David Lawerence, senior researcher at HOPE not hate said: "Homeland is a fringe but extreme fascist organisation that recently splintered from PA, a neo-Nazi group led by a man who recommends Mein Kampf to his followers. "Despite their identical ideologies, Homeland hopes to distinguish itself from its parent group by successfully registering as a political party. much rides on the application, as failure to register would severely undermine its already questionable reason for existing." Smith told The Ferret that Homeland members were already local councillors in Scotland and England. Examining his group's activities would "expose the much discredited far-left organisation Hope Not Hate's lie that we are 'extreme', 'fascist' or 'neo-Nazi'," he argued. "Nothing could be further from the truth. I have a well-established reputation of trying to guide people away from extremism and I do not shy away from encouraging folk who get tempted into fringe groups to get back onto the right path and into community politics. "You are deliberately twisting the facts and know full well that I have no patience for anybody advocating for violence or other forms of extremism," he added. The Electoral Commission declined to comment, but shared guidance which states that all applicants "are subject to detailed assessment against the criteria set out in law". Applicant...
Women wait longer than men for emergency medical care in Scotland despite the fact they are more likely to be admitted to hospital after being seen in A&E. The Ferret analysed data on monthly waiting time rates for women and men in 27 of 30 emergency departments in Scotland, obtained from Public Health Scotland through a freedom of information request. Our research found that women waited twelve minutes longer than men in April 2023, with 60.5 per cent of women seen within four hours, compared to 64 per cent of men. Women's average wait can be up to 44 minutes longer in some emergency departments and lengthier waiting times for emergency care have been linked to worse health outcomes and increased risk of patients dying. Critics said our findings "lifted the lid on medical misogyny" and "couldn't be brushed under the carpet". Women's pain is often not taken as seriously as men's, and we wait longer for pain medication as a result. Catherine Murphy, Engender The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) said the figures were "disappointing" and it was "working to increase awareness of this issue". Scottish Government and NHS health boards insist emergency departments prioritise patients by clinical need, not gender, despite the figures. Ninety-five per cent of patients should be seen and treated in A&E within four hours, but NHS health boards have been struggling to maintain this official target in the post-pandemic recovery. Only 55 per cent of 95,000 A&E patients in Scotland were seen on time in December 2022, a record low. The gender gap in A&E waiting times has quadrupled since 2021. Women waited an average 2.5 minutes longer than men before the pandemic - 2013-2019 - and ten minutes longer in the period from January 2021 to April 2023. This is despite women being more likely to be admitted to hospital after receiving urgent care. The ten-year average A&E hospitalisation rate is 33 per cent for women and 30 per cent for men. Women waited up to 44 minutes longer Gender waiting gaps widened in several emergency departments that failed to reach their waiting rate targets. At Borders General Hospital, in Melrose, female patients waited 44 minutes longer to be seen in August 2022. 65 per cent of men and 57 per cent of women were seen and treated within the target four hours. The department attends to 2,500 patients every month. At University Hospital Crosshouse, in Kilmarnock, women were left waiting 31 minutes longer than men in November 2022. Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, Forth Valley Royal Hospital in Larbert and University Hospital Ayr attended to women almost 30 minutes later than men in August 2022, October 2022 and March 2023, respectively. The latest available data, for April 2023, shows that women in one of the biggest A&E departments in Scotland, the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, waited five hours and 30 minutes on average. Men waited twenty minutes less. At Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, men's average four-and-a-half-hour wait was stretched by an extra 27 minutes for women. In some emergency departments, the gender waiting gap is less pronounced. At the largest urgent care centre in Scotland, the Royal Infirmary Edinburgh, women waited seven minutes longer than men in April 2023. The gap at the Ninewells Hospital A&E in Dundee was just over two minutes. Average waiting gap, all Scottish emergency departments Average waiting gap, by emergency department NHS crisis exacerbates health inequalities Sarah Graham, freelance health journalist and author of Rebel Bodies, a book on medical misogyny in the UK, said there was a "complex of interlinked issues that puts women at a disadvantage" in the A&E. Cultural beliefs see women as prone to anxiety and more emotional than men, while conditions that affect primarily women - such as ovarian cysts and endometriosis - are understudied. The medical school curriculum often uses limited representations of patients. "For heart attacks, the example in the book is almost exclusively of...
The main sponsor of the Edinburgh book festival - which will feature an event with Greta Thunberg - has billions invested in firms that profit from fossil fuels, The Ferret has found. The asset manager, Baillie Gifford, is the lead sponsor of this year's Edinburgh International Book Festival, which runs from 12 to 28 August. Based on figures released in its annual climate report, The Ferret calculated that Baillie Gifford - which has its headquarters in Edinburgh - had up to £5bn invested in companies which make money from the oil, coal or gas sectors at the end of 2022. The burning of such fossil fuels is the leading cause of the climate crisis. Thunberg is set to appear at the festival to discuss her book about climate change. In January she accused investors in fossil fuels of being at "the very core" of the climate emergency and of throwing "people under the bus for their own gain". Climate campaigners told The Ferret it was time for cultural events to "step up the scrutiny" of their sponsors and to make sure they are not "bankrolling Big Oil and those fueling the climate crisis". One argued the book festival should "put the views of many of its speakers into action" and cut ties with Baillie Gifford. Baillie Gifford declined to comment, while the book festival has not responded to our enquiries about its sponsorship. We need to step up scrutiny of sponsors and make sure those that are branding cultural events aren't also the ones bankrolling Big Oil and those fuelling the climate crisis Chris Garrard, Culture Unstained According to its climate report, Baillie Gifford's investment portfolios produced 'total emissions' last year which were equivalent to nearly 51m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) entering the atmosphere. 'Total emissions' are a metric used by financial companies to measure their climate footprint and include the pollution caused by their ownership stakes in other firms. On 31 December 2022, two per cent of Baillie Gifford's total investments were in companies which make at least five per cent of their money from the oil or gas industries, while 0.3 per cent were in firms which profit from the mining and sale of coal. Baillie Gifford's total investments were worth £223bn at the end of 2022. Based on this number, The Ferret calculated that Baillie Gifford had approximately £4.5bn invested in companies involved with oil and gas, and around £670m in companies involved in the sale and mining of coal at that time. The climate report notes that, by 2025, all Baillie Gifford clients will have the option to invest in a portfolio which is aligned with the world reaching net zero climate emissions by 2050. But currently, only 20 per cent of the company's assets are managed in this way. Meanwhile, 43 per cent of the firms that Baillie Gifford is invested in have climate targets which it considers to be "lagging". This is despite the fact the Paris Agreement - which aimed to limit global temperature rises to no more than 1.5 degrees - was signed nearly eight years ago. Thunberg's appearance at the Edinburgh Playhouse on 13 August will be part of a series of events at the book festival called Climate Positive. It will feature writers who "offer an energetic call to action and ideas about how humanity can, and must, step back from the brink" of climate breakdown. The festival says it is committed to reducing its "environmental impact, increasing our sustainability and creating a forum for discussion to bring environmental concerns and the climate change debate to a wider public". Chris Garrard, a co-director of the campaign group Culture Unstained, praised the Edinburgh festivals for leading "the shift away from fossil fuel sponsorship" in the past. "But with wildfires, droughts and temperature records tumbling, we need to step up scrutiny of sponsors and make sure those that are branding cultural events aren't also the ones bankrolling Big Oil and those fuelling the climate crisis," Garrard warned. He added that if big ...
Delivery of nuclear reactors to power a new fleet of Trident submarines on the Clyde has been branded as "unachievable" for the second year running by a UK Government watchdog. The Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) has given a £3.7 billion reactor-building project run by Rolls Royce for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) a "red" rating for 2022-23. The project was also assessed as red in 2021-22, as reported by The Ferret. According to the IPA, red means that "successful delivery of the project appears to be unachievable". This is because of "major issues" that do not appear to be "manageable or resolvable". The 2022-23 rating for another scheme crucial to renewing the Trident nuclear weapons system - a £1.9bn construction project at the Faslane and Coulport nuclear bases near Helensburgh - has been kept secret. In 2021-22 it was assessed as red. The planned date for the final delivery to the Clyde of the new Dreadnought-class submarines, armed with Trident nuclear warheads, has also been classified as confidential by the MoD "for the purpose of safeguarding national security". The Scottish National Party (SNP) accused the UK Government of desperately trying to hide how "outrageously unaffordable" the Trident programme had become. The Scottish Greens described the programme as "a grotesque money pit". Campaigners criticised the MoD for "rewarding failure" by throwing money at nuclear projects, and for concealing the truth about the problems and delays. They warned of "everyday harms" from the risks of radiation leaks, as well as "catastrophic accidents". Rolls-Royce accepted that the reactor programme was "challenging" but stressed it was working hard to ensure no further delays. The MoD argued that IPA assessments were not "comprehensive" and said it was improving project management. Trident nuclear projects branded as unachievable The IPA's latest annual report for 2022-23 assessed the feasibility of 52 military projects costing a total of £255.4bn. Eleven were related to the UK's nuclear weapons programme and together cost more than £57bn, though the overall costs for three of them were kept secret. The manufacture of nuclear reactors at a Rolls-Royce factory in Derby was the only project to be publicly rated as red. The reactors are to drive four new Trident-armed Dreadnought submarines due to start replacing existing Vanguard submarines at Faslane "in the early 2030s". The IPA warned that there were "significant and ongoing challenges associated with achieving the required core delivery date for Dreadnought". The date was important, it said, for keeping at least one nuclear-armed submarine on patrol all the time, a policy known as "continuous at sea deterrence". Eight other MoD nuclear projects were assessed as "amber" which meant they had "significant issues" requiring management attention. They included the overall £34bn Dreadnought delivery programme, the building of nuclear-powered Astute submarines at Barrow and the dismantling of defunct nuclear submarines at Rosyth in Fife. Another previously mysterious project called Aurora was rated as amber. It is to make the plutonium components for new nuclear bombs at Aldermaston in Berkshire and is reckoned to cost between £2bn and £2.5bn. The planned completion date for Aurora has been kept secret, along with the end dates for four other nuclear projects, including the Dreadnought and Astute submarine programmes. The dates were withheld under a freedom of information law exemption meant to protect national security. 2022-23 assessments for two other nuclear projects have also been classified as confidential so as not to prejudice international relations and the defence of the UK. One, Teutates, is a collaboration on nuclear weapon safety with France and the other is called "Clyde Infrastructure". The Clyde project is to build a series of new facilities at Faslane and Coulport to support nuclear submarine operations. It was rated as red by the IPA in 2021-22, and am...
A group representing coastal communities has criticised the Scottish Government's new fish farming strategy for lacking environmental targets or stronger decision making powers for local residents. The Scottish Government's new plan to support the fish farming sector - the Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture - promises to protect the environment, promote innovation and ensure local communities see lasting benefits. The Coastal Communities Network (CCN), which is made up of 24 local groups across Scotland, welcomed the environmental principles outlined in the government's new strategy. But it criticised an absence of clear targets and interim deadlines to measure if the sector is improving sustainability. Scottish Government under fire for overruling council decisions to reject new fish farms The group also wants communities to have the power to reject unwanted new fish farms via "a mechanism that promotes true democratic decision making". The government said "environmental protection and enhanced community benefits" were "key outcomes" of its plan, and were already being progressed. Fish farming's environmental impact CNN argued the strategy fails to address the industry's environmental impact five years after a Scottish Parliament committee expressed concern. In a 2018 report, the parliament's cross-party environment committee found a "lack of progress" in tackling the environmental risks of salmon farming first outlined in 2002, despite a plan to double the economic contribution of the aquaculture industry by 2030. There were "significant gaps in knowledge, data, monitoring and research around the adverse risk the sector poses" to the environment, the committee added. CNN has asked the government for more detail about the current environmental impact of the fish farming industry, and for precise definitions of "sustainable" practices. "The industry has lost its social licence in many coastal communities up and down Scotland's west coast, which want open pen fish farms to be phased out and our coastal waters revived," claimed John Aitchison, CCN's aquaculture spokesperson. "At present, planning refusals for fish farms are usually overturned on appeal by Scottish Government reporters who have no knowledge of aquaculture, and communities have no means of challenging this apart from very expensive court proceedings. "We need a mechanism that promotes true democratic decision making." The Ferret previously revealed that between March 2017 and 2023, the government approved four of seven fish farming developments originally rejected by local councils. Pesticide safety limit watered down after industry lobbying A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "Improved environmental protection and enhanced community benefits are two key outcomes that are enshrined within our Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture and progress is already being made on meeting these outcomes. "This work includes an upcoming trial of a new process for managing fish farm applications focussed on coordination and improved engagement at the pre-application stage as well as placing a renewed emphasis on innovation and regulation within the sector to minimise the impact of the sector on Scotland's marine environment." Header image by Tapani Hellman from Pixabay.
Psilocybin - the active ingredient in so-called magic mushrooms - offers "a paradigm shift in mental health treatment" for traumatised veterans, according to experts. Jo Neill, professor of psychopharmacology at the University of Manchester's pharmacy school said the psychedelic substance could revolutionise psychiatry. She claimed the drug had shown long-term effectiveness in treating depression, anxiety, addiction disorders, and other conditions but its outdated classification created barriers to research and clinical trials. She said: "We have been using the same drugs since the 1950s. It is heart-breaking how little we have achieved in psychiatry. "Psychedelics are what we should have been looking at for all this time. The shamans have known about their healing properties for such a long time. "I met a combat veteran and their story encouraged me to give up the lab and focus on enabling research with psychedelics." The Ferret spoke to one veteran who had become isolated, anxious and withdrawn to the point of having suicidal thoughts, but who claimed that two courses of psilocybin changed his perception and allowed him to heal. Professor Neill was aware of his case. She added: "This adds to growing clinical evidence that psychedelics offer a long-lasting side-effect free medication. "They are not addictive and can in fact be used in the treatment of addiction disorders - a trial with LSD had a 40 percent success rate in treating alcoholics. "Our laws make it very difficult to research psychedelics and that really must be changed. We know this medicine is safe and it works." Psilocybin seems to reset the brain and increase neuroplasticity - the brain's ability to rewire itself and form new connections. Psilocybin is safe when delivered alongside psychotherapy, does not cause long-term dependence, and patients who require a sustained course of treatment do not develop tolerance, according to research. Work by the University of Manchester revealed that current drug laws in the UK present a significant barrier to research. Psilocybin is still categorised as a Schedule 1 drug alongside substances such as crack cocaine and heroin. Magic mushrooms could 'revolutionise' treatment for traumatised veterans Scientists working with Schedule 1 drugs reported that obtaining the required Home Office licenses was costly and time-consuming, often resulting in delays to research. It can take up to four months to simply arrange a compliance visit while some research groups have reported waiting for upwards of 12 months for an inspection to receive a licence. Rescheduling would bring the UK in line with other nations such as Australia which earlier this year allowed psilocybin and MDMA to be prescribed for treatment-resistance mental illnesses, experts claim. But some researchers have warned of the need to proceed with caution given the potential for financial conflicts of interests, while others have claimed more data is needed. In some Canadian states a range of mechanisms exist to provide access to psychedelic medicines. In the United States, possession of psychedelic substances has been decriminalised in several states including Colorado, Oregon and California with others in the process of passing legislation. The United States Food and Drug Administration has fast tracked psychedelic medicines for treatment. Photo credit: iStock/HenrikNorway
Scotland's wildlife agency killed 57 barnacle geese to study the impact of avian flu because they wrongly feared it was illegal to test live animals, The Ferret can reveal. NatureScot shot 27 of the protected animals at Dumfries and Galloway's Solway Firth and 30 on the island of Islay in March, to discover how the virus - and the birds' resistance to it - was progressing. Communications obtained by The Ferret under freedom of information show that the wildlife agency wanted to capture, test, tag and release the geese, and later recapture them to monitor their health. Caught on film: geese being shot and injured on Islay But staff were unclear whether it was legal to take blood samples from live animals without a licence from the UK Government's Home Office. Concerned that the birds would have migrated north before a licence could be obtained, NatureScot shot and sampled the birds. However, while taking blood samples from live birds is subject to close regulation, it is not illegal. A Labour MSP said it was "heartbreaking" that the geese "survived bird flu against the odds only to be killed by NatureScot", when live testing could have been done legally. One of the culled birds included a 19-year-old goose who made the 4,000-mile round trip to the Solway each year with its mate and offspring. The bird was thought to be important to the wider population due to its strong genes. Animal welfare charities said they understood the need for NatureScot to act quickly but criticised the "conflicting" accounts of the rules which led to the bids being killed. NatureScot argued that live birds could not have been sampled without the relevant licences and permissions, but stressed that these were now in place. The culls had not impacted the overall goose populations, it added. Each winter, all the barnacle geese in Svalbard - a Norwegian archipelago - and thousands from Greenland travel to the Solway and Islay respectively to take advantage of the relatively warmer climates. Mass killing of geese on Islay must cease, say scientists But the two bird populations were the hardest hit by Scotland's avian flu outbreak. The virus reached the Solway in October 2021 and killed an estimated 13,200 geese - around one third of the migrating population. Last winter, Islay's goose population was the most impacted, with at least 5,000 birds killed. NatureScot's internal communications On 20 and 21 December 2022, NatureScot employees discussed the need to sample dead birds from both goose populations to test the impact of the virus. Samples were also needed from seemingly healthy birds, which could be caught and sampled "ideally by cannon-netting" - a process in which birds are trapped in a net. On 9 January, NatureScot contacted a cannon-netter to capture, sample, ring and release "as many birds as possible". A briefing paper circulated later that month said that despite relatively fewer losses on Islay, the death rate increased in 2022/23, risking an "extreme mortality event" the following winter. The reverse was true on the Solway, where numbers were growing despite high mortality rates during winter 2021/22. NatureScot wanted to know whether the Solway virus strain had become less pathogenic, and whether either goose population had developed an immunity. An internal briefing from 23 January said cannon-netting was "ethically preferable", especially as it may be "unachievable" to kill and sample enough birds to collect sufficient data on the outbreak. However, there was "no possibility" of getting a Home Office licence or training staff to test live birds ahead of their migration. The Scottish Government had been asked whether its vets could perform the tests in this "emergency" situation. While NatureScot might find antibodies to the virus in the birds it killed, this risked a "PR problem with organisations and individuals opposed to shooting". By 3 February, a vet from the UK Government's Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) had allegedly agreed...
A growing army of struggling combat veterans have used magic mushrooms to overcome post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), The Ferret can reveal. Former soldiers - who were left desperate by the failure of current treatments - have turned to psilocybin to deal with the psychological effects of their trauma. Now, veterans, academics, doctors and politicians are among the voices calling for the UK Government to reclassify this form of psychedelic. Psilocybin - a naturally occurring substance whose effects lasts for a number of hours - is still categorised as a Schedule 1 drug alongside substances such as crack cocaine and heroin. But one former lance corporal, who served in the Parachute Regiment in Afghanistan, told The Ferret the drug transformed his life after he started to struggle with his mental health when he left the armed forces. He said: "My service in the military remains one of my proudest achievements. I deployed to Afghanistan early in my career at the age of nineteen. "I remember my time in country as both exhilarating and terrifying. Upon my return to the UK, I was a very different person to the one who had left. "This was immediately obvious to my family however it was not at the time obvious to me. "My experiences had highlighted the need for situational awareness and constant vigilance. "I became more withdrawn and more focused on my military career. Crowded places gave me a sense of unease and I would often become angry over trivial issues." The nightmares started first and within a month of my discharge. They were vivid and brought back emotions I had long since forgotten. Former soldier Some five years after he returned from Afghanistan, he left the army and signed up to an access to higher education course in college. He said: "The nightmares started first and within a month of my discharge. They were vivid and brought back emotions I had long since forgotten. "Sometimes situations I remembered were replayed, other times they were more abstract but no less disturbing. The uneasiness I felt in crowded spaces became more of a gripping fear and eventually complete avoidance. "I withdrew even more socially and since all my close friends were still serving, the support network I had relied upon my whole adult life ceased to exist. "Eventually I chose to avoid sleeping as much as possible, I tried to 'reg it out' [grit your teeth and keep going] as we used to say in my unit. "The anxiety became a source of embarrassment and I was often ashamed of my fear. I did not want people to know how scared I had been in Afghanistan and I did not want them to know how scared I still felt. "The shame built and my behaviour became more erratic. I felt at the time that I had failed myself and all those around me by being unable to adjust to life outside the military." Veterans' PTSD His girlfriend eventually convinced him to seek help from his GP and he was eventually diagnosed with PTSD. He was offered antidepressants and waited months for a referral to a mental health team. When he finally saw the team they also offered to prescribe antidepressants and explained that cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) might help. But the lance corporal said he did not want to take the medication. "I refused the antidepressants as the idea of being reliant on a drug did not sit well with me. I decided CBT was the best choice and was then placed on a waiting list with an estimate of three months." By now his attendance at college had reduced to 50 per cent, he longer wanted to leave the house and work became "extremely challenging". "I had started to consider suicide and these thoughts scared me but at the same time would not cease," he added. It was then that he started researching psilocybin having heard that it could help with the symptoms of PTSD while working in America and began researching the substance. I believe psilocybin has massive medicinal potential and that its prohibition means many veterans who struggle with PTSD are being ...
The Scottish Government's environment watchdog has slashed its legal enforcement actions almost threefold over the last seven years, prompting accusations that it has turned a "blind eye" to pollution. Official figures obtained by The Ferret reveal that the number of prosecutions, statutory notices, warning letters and other penalties initiated or issued by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) for pollution breaches has plummeted by over 100 a year since 2019. One former Sepa chief executive described the figures as "very worrying" and accused the agency of "a failure of leadership and strategy". Another suggested that Sepa was failing to make environmental offenders pay. Campaigners regarded the figures as "alarming" and warned that companies were "getting away" with breaking environmental rules. "The statistics suggest that Sepa has gone into semi-retirement," said one. Sepa stressed that it worked hard to prevent environmental breaches before they occurred. A "significant" proportion of enforcement effort was designed to "disrupt illegal activities in the first place," it said. Sepa may stop naming and shaming rule breaking polluters Sepa has a wide range of legal powers it can use against companies that contaminate the air, water or ground, or otherwise breach environmental regulations. These include referrals to the procurator fiscal for prosecution, issuing statutory notices requiring action, final warning letters and fines. Until 2019 Sepa published comprehensive statistics detailing all its enforcement activities. The Ferret submitted a request under freedom of information law for updated figures for 2020, 2021 and 2022. A table released by Sepa in response revealed that the number of all enforcement actions has fallen sharply in the last three years. They averaged 76 a year from 2020 to 2022, compared to 215 a year between 2016 and 2019. Just two incidents were referred to the procurator fiscal in 2022, one in 2021 and three were referred in 2020. This contrasted with eight in 2019, 12 in 2016-17 and 36 in 2014-15. The number of statutory notices issued by Sepa has also fallen from 120 in 2016-17 to 23 in 2022, with a similar drop in the number of final warning letters. Newly acquired powers to impose fines and civil penalties fell from 41 in 2019 to 18 in 2022. The only measure that Sepa has stepped up using are "enforcement undertakings" - improvement promises from companies regarded as a soft option by campaigners. They rose from one in 2018 to six in 2022. Enforcement actions by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency Edit Year Referrals to procurator fiscal Statutory notices Final warning letters Fines, civil penalties and enforcement undertakings Totals 2010-11 37 93 143 0 273 2011-12 37 124 160 0 321 2012-13 33 93 93 0 219 2013-14 27 93 137 0 257 2014-15 36 116 141 0 293 2015-16 21 76 111 0 208 2016-17 12 120 113 0 245 2018 1 65 111 23 200 2019 8 56 92 43 199 2020 3 53 23 11 90 2021 1 31 17 4 53 2022 2 23 37 24 86 Source: Scottish Environment Protection Agency Professor Campbell Gemmell, an environmental consultant who was Sepa's chief executive between 2003 and 2012, said the figures looked "really worrying". The dramatic fall was not because companies were causing less pollution, he argued. "The drop in procurator fiscal referrals and in fine levels and numbers is especially concerning and suggests a real weakness in basic performance and an active choice by management," he told The Ferret. "It suggests that the regulator has chosen to do this, to not to use the tools at its disposal, and that it is failing to act in the 'firm but fair' way intended by its mission and powers to police environmental breaches." Gemmell added: "It's hard not to see this as a failure of leadership and strategy - turning a blind eye to polluters and pollution - and I would be surprised if staff were happy about it. The regulator has teeth for a reason." When Professor James Curran retired as Sepa's chief executi...
The Scottish Government's plan for achieving net zero includes targets to reduce total emissions each year, as well as longer term goals to slash emissions across different sectors. Emissions data in Scotland is published annually and compared against the interim targets Scotland has set for cutting climate pollution each year. For our series, Scotland and the Climate Crisis, Ferret Fact Service examined the government's performance against its own targets. Greenhouse gas emissions Scotland's overall target in 2021 was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51.1 per cent from levels in 1990, the benchmark year. This was the yearly target the country needed to reach in order to be on track to achieve its long term objectives of a 75 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030, and a 100 per cent reduction - net zero - by 2045. The latest statistics show levels have fallen to 49.9 per cent in 2021, meaning the Scottish Government missed its yearly target by 1.2 per cent Emissions were up 2.4 per cent from the previous year, with 41.6 million tonnes carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2e) compared to 40.6 MtCO2e in 2020. The 2020 statistics were affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw significant reductions in transport-related emissions as lockdowns took effect across Scotland, limiting the amount of travel. Every missed target for overall emissions makes meeting the target the following year more difficult, as further cuts in emissions must take place. This is because climate pollution accumulates in the atmosphere. In other words, if Scotland achieves net zero by 2045, but misses all of its yearly targets in the lead up to that date, it will still have contributed more to the climate crisis than planned despite the overall target being met. Between 2018 and 2021, Scottish emissions were a combined 4.6 million tonnes higher than the targets for those years. The Scottish Government has committed to producing a plan to catch up on emissions. Scotland does not have statutory targets for each sector, but has published so-called yearly "emissions envelopes" which show the reductions required across different areas, if the overall net zero goal is to be achieved. These are contained in Scotland's Climate Change Plan update. Overall emissions target: Missed Agriculture The sector emitted 7.8 MtCO2e in 2021, which is over its envelope of 6.8. The sector increased its emissions by 100,000 tonnes of CO2e between 2020 and 2021. The sector has also made limited progress towards reducing the use of harmful nitrogen fertilisers. Excessive nitrogen in the atmosphere exacerbates climate change and depletes the ozone layer. Overall emissions target: Missed Buildings Emissions from buildings increased from 8.5 MtCO2e to 9.0 between 2020 and 2021, a 6.1 per cent increase. Its emissions envelope for 2021 was 7.6. The Climate Change Plan update set a target of 1.5 million homes using low emissions heating by 2030. The latest figures for 2019 show 312,000 homes using these systems. Heat consumption from fossil fuels in commercial buildings is planned to reduce to 5,000 Gigawatt hours or less by 2030. In 2020, it sat at 11,170 GWh, having increased since 2016. Overall emissions target: Missed Electricity Electricity generation produced 1.6 MtCO2e in 2021, which matched its sector envelope of 1.6 set out in the climate change plan update. It reduced by 100,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in the past year. It should be noted that emissions from the North sea oil and gas sector are not included within these statistics as they are considered to be UK-wide emissions rather than linked to Scotland. Elsewhere, Scotland's energy system is succeeding on its target on carbon intensity, producing under 50g of CO2 emissions produced per kilowatt hour of electricity consumed. This reduction in carbon intensity is mainly down to the closure of coal fired power stations in 2013 and 2016, and reduced reliance on gas. Scotland's renewable energy consumption target is 50 p...
The future of the North Sea oil and gas industry has been central to the debate about how Scotland should respond to the climate crisis. Calls to restrict exploration of new oil and gas fields in the North Sea have been made by the Scottish Greens and Scottish Labour, while the Scottish Government has said there should be a presumption against new exploration for oil and gas. Critics have suggested that stopping new oil and gas exploration will actually increase emissions. One such critic is former minister Fergus Ewing, who spoke in the Scottish Parliament in April about the proposed drilling of the Rosebank oil and gas field near Shetland. Scotland and the UK will continue to need and rely on gas for decades to come. In many cases, gas is imported from the US, but its gas is produced with more than four times the carbon emissions of Rosebank. sacrificing the development of our own gas resource. would make climate change worse, not better. Fergus Ewing MSP Ferret Fact Service looked at these claims and found them Mostly False. What are the carbon emissions from Scottish oil and gas? Greenhouse gas emissions from producing oil and gas in the North Sea in 2021 stood at 14.3 million tonnes of CO2e of carbon dioxide equivalent (MtCO2), which is a reduction of overall reduction of 21.5 per cent since 2018. The UK's North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA), which licences and regulates North Sea energy, put the decrease down to the disruption caused by Covid-19, together with industry decarbonising efforts and an overall drop in production for delayed maintenance work. But emissions from production are only one part of the climate impacts from drilling oil and gas in the North Sea. The NSTA's figures do not include the emissions caused by burning the oil and gas produced from the North Sea for energy. These are not considered as part of the UK's emissions unless they are emitted in the country. Around 90 per cent of global carbon emissions come from burning fossil fuels. How much oil and gas is Scotland producing? Scotland's oil and gas production has reduced significantly over the last 20 years. In 2001, the equivalent of 170.7 million tonnes of oil and gas (mtoe) was produced, while the latest published statistics for 2021 show that 65.1 mtoe came from Scotland's North Sea sector. However, production in Scotland was higher in 2021 than in 2014 after investment in the development of new and existing fields. Scotland's energy minister, Michael Matheson, told MSPs in January 2023 that North Sea oil and gas production will "effectively end" in the next 20 years. Will Scotland need to rely on oil and gas for decades? Scotland is still very reliant on oil and gas for energy. In 2020, oil and gas made up 77.6 per cent of all Scottish energy consumption. Scotland's electricity supply has been decarbonised to a greater extent. In the year up to December 2022, the equivalent of 82.3 per cent of Scotland's electricity consumption came from renewable and low carbon sources. In 2021, 24 per cent of Scotland's total energy consumption equivalent came from renewables, decreasing from 26.4 per cent in 2020. The 2021 figure is 13.2 percentage points higher than 2012. Scotland's climate plan wants 50 per cent of Scotland's energy consumption to be provided by renewables by 2030. It is fair to say that based on current climate targets, Scotland will still need fossil fuels in the future. However the amount of oil and gas in Scotland's energy mix will reduce year-on-year as it progresses towards its target of achieving net zero by 2045. Production in the North sea oil basin is expected to have dropped dramatically by 2050 regardless of government policies. This is because reserves of oil and gas off the UK coast will have largely been used up by then. Is foreign oil and gas produced with higher carbon emissions than Scotland? It is true that oil and gas produced in different areas of the world can have different levels of production emissions. Impor...
Scotland's snow-covered peaks have formed an iconic part of our tourism industry, but are threatened by the impacts of the climate crisis. As part of our fact-checking series, Scotland and the Climate Crisis, we have looked at how snow cover has changed over the past 50 years. Is snow cover reducing in Scotland? 1971-1980 1981-1990 1991-2000 2001-2010 2011-2020 There has been a reduction in the number of snow days across the last five decades, although annual variability is still significant. Our visualisation, using data from the Met Office shows that snow covers the ground for the longest at the summits of the Cairngorm mountains. In 2013, the mountain range had snow cover for 149 days, the highest value in the past 50 years. However since then, snow cover has been below average. In 2020, there were just 43 days of snow, the lowest level in half a century. Looking at the whole of Scotland, the snowiest year in the past 50 years was 2010, with 65 days of snow cover on average. The least snowy was 2020, with just seven days of snow. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the UK's most severe spells of wintry weather occurred in January 1963 and February 1947. What do the experts say? Dr Mike Rivington, senior scientist at the James Hutton Institute who has studied snow cover in the Cairngorms National Park, told The Ferret that climate projections suggest that snow cover is likely to reduce in Scotland. He said: "That is not to say that there will not be snow, sometimes even heavy snowfall events, in the future. What appears more likely is that there will be fewer days of snow, and when it does fall, it may not remain for as long as in the past." The impacts this will have on the country go beyond conditions for skiers and sledgers, he explained. "Snow is an important factor influencing our upland ecology. Reduced snow exposes plants and soils to frosts and erosion by heavy rain. "It changes the albedo effect [dark surfaces absorb more heat energy] which can result in increased stream temperature, impacting aquatic biodiversity. Snow also helps to regulate water flows, so can reduce flooding risk". The data also shows that the downward trend in snow cover has not stopped significant variations year-on-year, as well as major snowfall and cold weather events, such as the Beast from the East, which brought much of Scotland to a standstill in 2018. Dr Alan Kennedy-Asser, climate scientist at the University of Bristol, said: "Major disruptive snowfall events can and will still occur in the future when weather conditions are right, such as the famous Beast from the East in 2018, caused by sudden stratospheric warming events. "It is currently unclear how climate change will affect sudden stratospheric warming events in terms of frequency or intensity. However, average cold winter days are on the decline across the British Isles." Glossary: Scotland and the Climate Crisis The Met Office concurred that the "number and severity" of major snow events has declined since the 1960s, but noted there were significant snowy periods in 2021, 2018, 2013, 2010 and 2009. A spokesperson said: "As our climate warms (Scotland's winters have warmed by 0.7 C comparing 1991-2020 to 1961-1990) - we will tend to see a decline in snow. But severe events are still possible, and also what happens in the mountainous regions is particularly complex." Scotland and the Climate Crisis is The Ferret's first fact-checking series. We asked our members and readers about climate misinformation they had encountered, and which aspects of the climate crisis they wanted to know more about. This series was developed from those suggestions. Support our journalism and fact-checking by becoming a member for £5 a month or a giving a donation at theferret.scot Photo credit: iStock/ellenamani
As part of our Scotland and the Climate Crisis series, Ferret Fact Service looked at what targets are in place. Greenhouse gases Scotland's overall climate target is a plan to reach net zero emissions by 2045. Net zero is when there is a balance between the amount of greenhouse gas emissions and the amount removed from the atmosphere. In order to achieve this, the Scottish Government has put in place interim targets of a 75 per cent reduction by 2030, and a 90 per cent reduction by 2040. These targets are relative to levels of greenhouse gas emissions in Scotland in 1990. There are also yearly targets which set out planned reductions in emissions until Scotland reaches net zero. Scotland's climate change plan sets its net zero target five years ahead of the UK, after a recommendation from the Climate Change Committee. The overall target includes emissions from aviation and shipping, and does not allow for carbon credits, where a country can pay for emissions to be reduced elsewhere which count towards its targets. Electricity The Scottish Government has committed to meeting the equivalent of 50 per cent of our energy needs in heat, transport and electricity consumption from renewable energy by 2030, with a "near-complete decarbonisation" of energy by 2050. In order to meet these targets, Scotland hopes to grow offshore wind power capacity to between 8 and 11 Gigawatts (GW) by 2030. An increase in hydrogen production to five GW of hydrogen by 2030 and 25 GW by 2045 is also planned. Scotland's energy strategy also says there will be reductions in oil and gas production. However, control over licensing of North Sea oil and gas is reserved to the UK. North Sea oil is considered to be "unallocated" and as such is not included in Scotland's annual emissions. Waste Emissions in Scotland's waste management sector were 1.5 million tonnes in 2021. The Scottish climate plan aims to reduce these emissions to 1.2 megatonnes by 2025, and 0.8 megatonnes by 2030. The plan is also targeting a one third reduction in food waste between 2013 and 2025. Ministers have also pledged to stop all biodegradable municipal waste going to landfill by 2025 and reduce the percentage of overall waste sent to landfill to five per cent by 2025, with 70 per cent of waste recycled. The Scottish Government has already banned a number of single-use plastics such as cutlery, plates and stirrers, and most plastic straws. Industry Industry makes up a large part of Scotland's overall greenhouse gas contributions, accounting for nearly 30 per cent of total emissions. Scottish industrial emissions have fallen significantly since 1990, but to stay in line with Scottish emissions targets, the sector must decrease emissions by 43 per cent from 2018 to 2032. Recent Scottish Government-commissioned research found that by 2045, industrial emissions could reduce by 80 per cent without affecting output. A significant amount of focus has been put on the role of carbon capture and storage (CCS) in Scotland's climate plan, which states that it is "essential to reach net zero emissions" and "key to industrial decarbonisation". CCS enables carbon produced from industrial processes to be stored rather than emitted into the atmosphere. Housing Currently, heat in buildings accounts for 20 per cent of Scotland's greenhouse gas emissions, and the climate plan targets a 68 per cent fall in emissions for homes and non-domestic buildings between 2020 and 2030. The Scottish Government says 50 per cent of homes will need to convert to a low carbon heating system by 2030 to meet statutory emissions targets, while at least 22 per cent of heat in buildings will need to be directly supplied from renewables. In order to meet these targets, almost all of the 170,000 homes that currently use high emissions oil, LPG, and solid fuels, as well as at least a million homes using mains gas will need to be converted to zero emissions heating. Fifty-thousand non-domestic properties will also need to be co...
Scotland is aiming to reach net zero climate emissions by 2045 in an effort to end its contribution to global heating. The Scottish Government and its supporters have repeatedly lauded the target as 'ambitious' and argued Scotland is a "world leader in tackling climate change". One recurring claim over the last couple of years is that Scotland is now "halfway to net zero". It was repeated by the SNP's official account on Twitter in April 2023. Scotland is "halfway to net zero". SNP on Twitter As part of its series on the climate crisis, Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it to be True. Evidence The claim that Scotland is halfway to net zero has been made by the SNP and prominent Scottish Government figures in the last couple of years. Most recently, the claim was made on Twitter by the official profile of the Scottish National Party (SNP) on 12 April 2023. The tweet included a video of the party's Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, and lauded Scotland as a "renewable energy powerhouse". What is net zero and how will it be achieved? A country reaches net zero when the amount of climate pollution it puts into the atmosphere is the same as the amount it removes. In theory, once the target is reached a country will no longer be a contributor to the climate crisis. Scotland's net zero plan requires deep cuts to emissions across all sectors of the economy, alongside the scaling up of new technologies which capture existing or new pollution and store it underground. The country will also need to plant more trees and restore its peatlands. Forests and peatlands are so-called 'carbon sinks' which means they absorb carbon dioxide and lock it up so it does not enter the atmosphere to cause global heating. How are Scotland's climate emissions reported? The Scottish Government publishes annual reports on Scotland's climate emissions. There is a two-year delay in its reporting, so the most recent available data - published in June 2023 - is from 2021. These reports include two figures about the size of Scotland's climate impact. One is called 'source emissions' and the other is 'emissions for reporting against targets'. Both of these figures are compared to a baseline to measure how much Scotland has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions. It is important to note that neither of these figures include the amount of climate pollution produced by the North Sea oil and gas industry. These emissions are not allocated to any individual country within the UK. So have Scotland's emissions halved? According to the data on Scotland's emissions released in June 2023, Scotland produced the equivalent of 41.6m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) in 2021. This was a 49.2 per cent reduction from 1990, the benchmark year. At the time that the SNP's Twitter account made the claim about being halfway to net zero, the most up-to-date figures would have been from 2020. That year, Scotland emitted the equivalent of 40m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). This was 51 per cent less than in 1990. There have also been year-on-year reductions in most years since 1990. Fewer emissions were produced in 2020 than 2021 because of the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. How did we get here? Although all sectors measured in the Scottish climate change plan have seen some level of reduction in their GHG emissions since 1990, by far the largest fall has come in emissions from the supply of energy. Energy supply in Scotland produced nearly 17 million tonnes less climate pollution in 2021 than it did in 1990. That is a 77 per cent decrease. Two factors have caused this drop - a reduction in emissions from power stations partly as a result of the closure of coal plants, and the scaling up of renewable energy capacity. While emissions have nearly halved since 1990, not all of this progress was achieved under the SNP, which first formed a government at Holyrood in 2007. About a third of the progress towards the net zero target so far was made before the SNP gained power in...
The jargon around climate change can be confusing and alienating. As part of The Ferret's climate fact checking series we asked our readers to suggest climate terminology they wanted explained. Adaptation Solutions and changes that will be made to help the world adapt to the impacts of a heating climate. These impacts will include sea level rise, drought, flooding, and extreme weather. Examples of potential adaptations are early weather warning systems, the building of flood defences and the development of drought resistant crops. Albedo effect An object's albedo is its ability to reflect sunlight. Light coloured surfaces reflect more sunlight than dark coloured surfaces. Very white surfaces, such as fresh snow, reflect more sunlight back into space. This is important in the context of climate change, because ice sheets are melting, meaning that Earth's land is absorbing more sunlight. This in turn leads to further global warming. Biodiversity loss Biodiversity refers to the variety of animals, plants and other organisms which exist on Earth. Maintaining biodiversity is vital to human life because it creates the environmental conditions that allow us to survive. Biodiversity loss refers to the decline or disappearance in the diversity of living things on the planet. The world is currently in a biodiversity crisis. Wildlife populations, for example, decreased by an average of 69 per cent between 1970 and 2018. There are a number of causes of biodiversity loss, including the growing use of land for food production, overfishing and overhunting, along with the climate crisis. Biofuels A biofuel is any fuel which is made out of living things such as plants, algae or animal waste. It is considered a renewable form of energy, but is not without controversy. It has been used as a means to help reduce emissions from the transport sector, which makes up 24 per cent of all direct carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from fuel. Studies have called into question whether biofuels are truly carbon neutral, due to the emissions associated with growing and manufacturing, and the CO2 emitted when it is burned for fuel. Carbon capture and storage Carbon capture and storage, also known as CCS, aims to reduce carbon emissions by capturing carbon from industrial processes which would usually be released into the atmosphere. Captured carbon is stored in a safe location, often deep underground. While many governments and companies have put CCS at the centre of their climate plans, there is disagreement over the technology including its effectiveness and whether it will be ready in time to counteract many of the effects of climate change. Carbon credits A carbon credit is a token which represents the removal of greenhouse gas emissions. They can be bought by organisations or individuals to offset emissions that can't currently be avoided. Each carbon credit is meant to be equivalent to one tonne of greenhouse gas emissions permanently removed from the atmosphere. Companies buy these credits to offset emissions they cannot avoid in their own processes. Off-setting strategies can include things like forest restoration. Critics of off-setting have suggested that many offsetting projects do not sufficiently mitigate the source emissions, and it has been described as a "dangerous distraction" as they enable businesses to continue releasing greenhouse gases while appearing to be supporting climate solutions, rather than tackling their own emissions. Carbon footprint A carbon footprint is the amount of carbon released into the atmosphere as a result of a person's actions and activities. The term is also used to describe the carbon emissions of larger entities such as buildings, organisations, industries or countries. It is meant to show the emissions that are associated with consumption. It includes direct emissions, such as the carbon emitted during transport or in producing food and clothing, as well as indirect emissions like the carbon released providing el...
Climate change is often spoken of as a future threat to humanity. But Earth's climate has already been warmed significantly by human activity and is currently heating faster than at any point in recorded history. This global warming is having major effects. Experts say it is causing more severe storms, increased drought, species loss, and sea level rises across the world. So how has it impacted Scotland so far? As part of our series, Scotland and the Climate Crisis, Ferret Fact Service looks at the key ways the climate emergency is already changing Scotland and how it will continue to do so in the future. How much have Scottish temperatures increased? Average temperatures in Scotland rose by 0.5C in just thirty years between 1990 and 2020. All ten of the hottest years on record in the country have occurred since 1997. The mean annual temperature in Scotland in 2022 was 8.49C, the highest of any year since 1884. The previous record of 8.43C was also within the last decade, in 2014. Even if global emissions decrease in line with the Paris Agreement - which aims to limit worldwide temperature rises to 1.5 degrees - average Scottish temperatures are expected to continue increasing across all seasons. This is because greenhouse gas emissions will keep entering the atmosphere and heating the climate as the world moves to a cleaner future. The extent of future temperature increases will depend on the speed with which the world reduces climate pollution. Glossary: Scotland and the Climate Crisis How is climate change affecting rainfall? The past few decades have seen an increase in rainfall across Scotland, with more of this coming from heavier rainfall. Winters were nine per cent wetter between 2010 and 2019 than they were between 1961 and 1990. With winters getting warmer, there is projected to be less snowfall in future, but this could still vary widely by year and extreme snowfall events are still likely. Summers are expected to become drier as well as hotter in future. The risk of droughts - particularly in the east of Scotland - is likely to increase in coming years. Are we going to see more extreme weather? Many factors contribute to extreme weather events - some natural and some linked to global warming. Climate change is expected to usher in more heavy rainfall events in both winter and summer. The west of the country is likely to experience more of these than the east. Extreme rainfall in the north west of Scotland, for example, could be ten times more frequent by 2080 than it was in the 1980s. The number of heatwave days - defined as days where temperatures do not fall below 15 degrees and maximum temperatures exceed 28 degrees across a large area- is also set to grow. Although Scotland has been battered by high-profile storms in recent years, there is currently no strong evidence that climate change is affecting storminess in the UK. What about sea level rise? Sea level rise is caused by two processes linked to climate change; the melting of polar ice caps as global temperatures increase which adds water to the oceans, and by sea water warming up, which causes it to expand. Sea level rises across the UK are not uniform, but rates in different locations ranged from 3 millimetres per year to 5.2 millimetres per year between 1991 and 2020. Overall the whole of Scotland is now experiencing sea level rise although this is happening at different rates because parts of the land are also rising as part of a rebound from the last Ice Age, when the weight of ice sheets pushed it down. Even in a scenario where global climate pollution falls quickly, sea levels around Edinburgh are expected to be around 12 centimetres higher by 2050. These rises are set to cause more coastal flooding and erosion, with impacts for the communities, habitats and infrastructure located near Scotland's lengthy coastline. Is wildlife being impacted? Many of Scotland's species are used to very specific habitats that could be disrupted by climate change. S...
One of the most enduring claims about climate change looks at global warming cycles. A widely repeated suggestion by climate sceptics online is that climate change observed in recent decades is part of a natural cycle of weather that is not linked to human causes. Climate change is happening.. But it is a natural cycle that has nothing to do with human activity. Social media claims As part of our series, Scotland and the Climate Crisis, Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence Climate cycles have been a focus for global warming sceptics for many years. The claim that warming we are witnessing is part of a natural cycle of weather, rather than a result of human-caused climate change, has been repeated in various forms by politicians, social media influencers and climate sceptic groups. Glossary: Scotland and the Climate Crisis How does the climate change naturally? There have been several large changes in the earth's climate throughout history. These have been linked to a number of natural factors including changes in the sun, changes in the planet's orbit and differences in carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. As the sun is the earth's source of energy, variations in solar activity have an effect on the global climate. Energy from the sun passes through space until it hits our atmosphere, where some of it is intercepted and reflected back, and some is absorbed. However, this is not what drives temperature change on earth. There are variations in the energy output of the sun over time, but this has a very small impact on global temperatures. Notably, the rise in average global temperatures over the last 50 years has not coincided with an increase in energy received from the sun. Changes in the planet's orbit can also impact the climate. Serbian scientist Milutin Milankovitch suggested that changes in earth's position relative to the sun could explain some of the long-term climate differences. This is because of slight differences to the amount of the sun's energy that is absorbed. These orbit changes are thought to be part of the reason that earth has shifted between glacial periods, where ice covers much of the northern hemisphere, and interglacial times where ice has been restricted to the poles. Known as Milankovitch cycles, these occur between 23,000 and 110,000 years apart. They do not account for the rapid warming in the last century, and scientists observed that these cycles have not changed the amount of solar energy absorbed by earth over this period. In fact, scientists believe Earth's current positions within the Milankovitch cycles predict our planet should be cooling, not warming. Volcano activity is regularly cited as a cause of climate change, due to the CO2 released into the atmosphere by eruptions. The CO2 released during eruptions is, in fact, much smaller than the amount of carbon humans release into the atmosphere every year. According to NASA, human activity emits the same amount of CO2 as the eruption of Mount St Helens every two and a half hours. Scientists believe that major eruptions can actually cause short periods of cooling in temperature. Particles and other gases are thrown into the atmosphere, and effectively shield earth from some of the sun's rays for a short time. Crucial to the earth's climate and temperature is El Niño and La Niña, which describe unpredictable cycles of warming and cooling of water in the Pacific ocean. They are part of a larger phenomenon called El Niño-southern oscillation (ENSO), which can affect global temperatures, but does not explain the consistent warming that we are experiencing in the 20th and 21st centuries. How have global temperatures changed over time? The Earth's temperature has altered significantly through its history, with periods of warming and cooling having massive impacts on flora and fauna. The last one million years has seen a number of ice ages, with glacial and interglacial periods taking about 100,000 years to cycle. The curr...
Human rights groups, unions and environmentalists have urged Scottish ministers to reject a UK Government bill which bans public bodies from boycotting foreign countries. The Economic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) Bill bans councils, universities and other bodies from enacting economic boycotts on countries not sanctioned by the Westminster government, singling out Israel as particularly worthy of protection. Tory ministers argue that UK foreign policy should be a matter for the UK Government only, and that the bill protects Jewish communities against campaigns it believes are fuelling antisemitism. These include the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement, which campaigns for organisations to cut economic ties with Israel in protest over its treatment of Palestinians. However, critics of the bill argue it protects the Israeli government from a legitimate international movement concerned over human rights, and would limit campaigns against abuses in other parts of the world - such as the persecution of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang, China. The Scottish Government has still to decide whether to grant legal consent to the bill. It can issue a veto - in the form of a legislative procedure known as a 'consent mechanism' under the Sewel Convention - over anything that gives UK ministers powers in devolved areas. MSPs then vote on the recommendation from Scottish ministers to refuse legal consent. The Scottish Government has placed a strong emphasis on using procurement policy to advance equality and human rights and to tackle climate change. We are concerned that policies like these could fall foul of this bill. Naomi McAuliffe, Amnesty International Scotland director The UK Government announced the bill in the last Queen's speech and introduced it to the House of Commons in June. Earlier this month the bill received initial backing after several hours of debate in the House of Commons. MPs voted by 268 to 70 votes in favour of the legislation. It has been sponsored by Michael Gove MP, the communities secretary, who has long been a critic of the BDS movement. The bill specifically names only one country, Israel, so the debate has largely focused on boycotts of Israel and illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The BDS movement calls for broad-based economic and cultural boycotts of Israel and Israeli settlements - similar to those applied to South Africa in the apartheid era. Such boycotts are backed by Palestinians who see them as applying pressure on Israel to end its military occupation. The Israeli government, on the other hand, sees the entire BDS movement as unjustly singling out Israel and describes it as antisemitic. In Scotland there have been campaigns urging councils, pensions funds and universities to cut economic ties with illegal West Bank settlements, as covered by The Ferret. In 2021, for example, we reported that Lothian Pension Fund no longer held shares in an Israeli bank which financed illegal West Bank settlements, prompting pro-Palestinian divestment campaigners to claim to have won a "landmark victory". Critics of the bill include Naomi McAuliffe, Amnesty International Scotland director, who pointed out that while international relations are reserved to Westminster, their implementation in devolved areas, including procurement, is a devolved matter. She said the legislation would "cut across" the Scottish Government's policy of discouraging public bodies from sourcing goods from Israel's illegal settlements. It could also mean a Scottish public body taking the decision to stop procuring from distribution companies whose products are linked to deforestation of the Amazon, may be challenged in the High Court. This would be on the grounds that the decision was influenced by "political or moral disapproval of foreign state conduct," McAuliffe said. She added: "The Scottish Government has placed a strong emphasis on using procurement policy to advance equality and ...
The Scottish Government last week called on the UK to allow it to decriminalise drug possession. In a reform paper, drugs and alcohol policy minister, Elena Whitham, asked the UK Government to either devolve powers over drugs to the Scottish Parliament or alter its drug laws to allow for decriminalisation of personal use. This was quickly rejected by Downing Street, with a spokesperson for prime minister Rishi Sunak saying he was not planning to change the UK Government's "tough stance" on drugs. Ferret Fact Service took a look at the approach and what different drug policies have been put in place across the world. What does the Scottish Government want? In the report published on 7 July, the Scottish Government set out a potential new drugs policy, either through reform of the UK's laws or devolution of powers to the Scottish Parliament. The paper says that current UK Government drug policy "inhibits a public health approach" to drug use and that the Scottish Government's ambition to change its approach is "limited by the UK's legal framework within which it must currently operate". The new approach would see a review of drug classification, to see whether it is in line with "scientific consensus of their harm, rather than cultural norms or political discourse". Supervised drug consumption facilities are a long-held ambition of Scottish ministers, and the policy paper calls for a statutory framework to allow these centres to operate legally in Scotland. The report also calls for a drug checking network, which was piloted in the UK previously. The first Home Office licensed drug checking service opened in Bristol in 2022. Whitham's report seeks clarification in the law to provide legal drug paraphernalia legally. Central to the policy paper, and the focus of media scrutiny, is the call for decriminalisation of drugs for personal use. The report states that much of Scotland's drug use is hidden, and "illegality contributes to the stigma and discrimination people face". It goes on to say that punishing people with addictions to illegal drugs "isolates them, resulting in further significant harms for both them and their communities". FFS explains: Scottish drug deaths and how they compare with UK and Europe What is decriminalisation? Decriminalisation is different to legalisation of drugs. In places where decriminalisation is in place criminal charges don't apply, usually for personal use or cultivation. However the drug is technically still illegal and it is an offence to possess or supply it. Often decriminalisation means that police either do not enforce possession or consumption laws under a certain threshold, or those who are caught in possession of drugs are not subject to criminal convictions. Alternatives may include small fines or confiscation, or referrals to treatment for addiction. Legalisation means the drug is no longer illegal to sell or consume, and is sold through licenced shops. This also means the supply is taxed and the production is required to follow legal regulations set by the state or local government. Where else has decriminalisation and legalisation been put in place? Portugal Portugal began the decriminalisation of possession for all drugs for personal use in 2001. If a person is caught with an amount which police deem to be for personal use (usually up to ten days' worth), it can be confiscated and you could be fined. But the country's dissuasion commissions - the panels responsible for implementing decriminalisation in Portugal - will likely suspend any punishment. The panels are more likely to offer drug safety information and give voluntary treatment referrals for those who may have addiction issues. The country has widespread harm-reduction programmes, providing clean needles and other equipment for drug use along with access to safer injecting spaces, and has increased investment in drug treatment. Netherlands Soft drug possession in the Netherlands has been de facto decriminalised for person...
Ahead of Spain's general election next week and the prospect of a far right party entering a coalition government, The Ferret looks back at our own coverage of the far right in Scotland. Since our inception in 2015, The Ferret has produced more than 50 reports documenting the activities of the far right in Scotland, and exposing the reality behind the benign image misleadingly portrayed by various white nationalist groups. Our investigations have exposed links between white nationalist groups, neo-Nazis and mainstream political parties. In 2017, for example, we revealed that a former member of UKIP had become a recruiter for Scottish Dawn, a neo-Nazi group actively recruiting young people across Scotland. Our undercover investigation revealed Scottish Dawn contained members of a banned terror group called National Action, operating under a new guise. The Home Office proscribed Scottish Dawn as a terrorist cell following our report. Far right Scottish Dawn banned by UK Government under terror laws Announcing the ban, the then-home secretary, Amber Rudd, said: "National Action is a vile racist, homophobic and anti-semitic group which glorifies violence and stirs up hatred while promoting their poisonous ideology and I will not allow them to masquerade under different names." We also revealed that far right groups were active on university campuses and that members of a white nationalist group called Patriotic Alternative Scotland possessed weapons and said people should kill "for the greater good". More recently, we revealed neo-Nazis attended protests in Erskine, Renfrewshire, against asylum seekers. Erskine protest attended by far right activists linked to banned neo-Nazi group The Ferret has also focused on the far right internationally and we travelled to Greece to cover the landmark trial of the neo-Nazi political party, Golden Dawn, whose members were convicted of operating a criminal organisation that masqueraded as a political party. Elsewhere in Europe, the far right is rising - in Austria, France, Germany, Italy and Sweden - and also in Spain, where more than 60 per cent of Spaniards are reportedly worried about the prospect of a coalition government that includes the far right Vox party. Spaniards will vote on 23 July. In the meantime, keep an eye on all Ferret channels in the next few days as we revisit some of the stories, reports and podcasts we have produced over the past eight years around far right extremism. And if you'd like to help us do more, become a member or make a one-off donation today. Do you have any tips or suggestions for what we should look at next? Get in touch at: contact@theferret.scot
A former assistant to Margaret Thatcher has been running an alleged astroturf campaign lobbying governments to prevent a ban on the use of electric shock collars on dogs. Ian Gregory runs a public relations firm called AZ Advice which created Facebook pages encouraging people to sign a letter urging politicians to resist calls for a ban on the use of electric shock collars - controversial training devices which deliver shocks to a dog’s neck. Gregory - a former producer at BBC News who worked for Margaret Thatcher - has lobbied on behalf of the electronic dog collar industry previously, and for both fracking and grouse shooting interests. Electric shock collars, aka e-collars, have already been banned in Wales and they will be prohibited in England from 1 February 2024. Combined, AZ Advice’s two Facebook pages spent £5,583 targeting users interested in sheep and farming, and encouraging them to sign the letter. Neither Gregory nor AZ Advice disclosed details about who funded them to create and manage the pages. There is nothing illegal about this and there is no suggestion of malpractice. However, opaque political campaigns such as these have been criticised and the term “astroturf” refers to an activist group or movement that misleadingly appears authentically grassroots in origin. In reality, they have been created by public relations organisations or other politically motivated actors to disguise the identity, funding and intentions of those behind them. The Ferret revealed last year that a public relations firm in London was behind an astroturf campaign targeting Scottish Government proposals to regulate the vaping industry. Electric shock collars Electric shock collars are controversial and the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission said in April they should be banned in Scotland. But advocates for e-collars argue they are a “reliable and non-restrictive way” to control dogs and stop them attacking sheep. Gregory is described as “an expert in counter-campaigning and crisis media relations” and has been linked to at least one other alleged astroturf campaign targeting the RSPB. On 11th April 2023, AZ Advice created a Facebook page called Stop Dog Attacks on Scotland’s Sheep. A month later, a second page called Stop Dog Attacks on English Sheep went live. The Stop Dog Attacks on Scotland’s Sheep letter opens with a reference to a graphic tweet from Jim Fairlie MSP, showing 16 lambs killed by a dog on a friend’s farm in April 2023. In Scotland, livestock worrying and attacks are covered under a law which came into force in November 2021. Under this legislation, dog owners can be fined up to £40,000 or jailed for up to 12 months if their dog attacks or worries livestock. The Stop Dog Attacks Scotland letter argues this fine “is not enough”. Current legislation: Scotland, England and Wales Politicians in Scotland have been debating e-collars and in March this year, a letter drafted by Conservative MSP Maurice Golden, and signed by a cross-party group of Holyrood politicians, was delivered to the SNP Government’s rural affairs minister, Mairi Gougeon. The letter stated: “Electric shock collars continue to be used as even though a ban was referred to, there were no supporting regulations, only guidance and as a result, even though the Scottish SPCA received 47 reports to its animal helpline regarding electric shock collars being used on dogs from 2019 to 2021, there was nothing that could be done to bring forward a prosecution. “We now believe the time is right for the government to commit to its animal welfare commitment to ban electric shock dog collars by way of Regulations, rather than ineffective guidance.” On 11th April 2023, a report regarding the use of electric shock collars in Scotland was published by the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission. The commission concluded “that the use of e-collars for the training of animals in Scotland should be prohibited in Scotland.” In England, the outlawing of electronic shock collars ...
An Edinburgh financial giant’s investments in 20 firms indirectly caused nearly five million tonnes of climate pollution in 2022 - significantly more than the amount produced annually at Grangemouth, Scotland’s dirtiest industrial site. Asset manager, Abrdn - known as Standard Life Aberdeen until 2021 - has stakes in some of the world’s biggest polluters including the oil multinationals Shell and BP, German coal firm, RWE, and global mining companies, Glencore and Rio Tinto. Abrdn’s investments in the 20 highest polluting companies in its portfolio resulted in the equivalent of 4.8 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) entering the atmosphere in 2022. By comparison, the array of petrochemical facilities at Grangemouth - which together create more climate pollution than any other industrial site in Scotland - produce the equivalent of 2.7 million tonnes of CO2 annually. Campaigners said the revelations were “shocking” and argued that Scotland “cannot claim to be a leader on climate action whilst this kind of damage is bankrolled from our own institutions”. One activist said that the company’s clients “should start considering whether Abrdn really has their best interests in mind”. Abrdn claimed it is “committed to driving the change” required to meet climate targets and currently manages “£37bn in sustainable assets”. A spokesperson added the company could “mitigate exposure to coal and fossil fuels” if requested by specific clients. Scotland cannot claim to be a leader on climate action whilst this kind of damage is bankrolled from our own institutions. Ric Lander, Friends of the Earth Scotland The findings come from a Ferret analysis of Abrdn’s own sustainability report, which includes a list of its top 20 ‘financed emitters’. This shows the amount of greenhouse gas emissions its funding of these companies facilitated in 2022. Abrdn has not publicly disclosed its total ‘financed emissions’ across all of its investments, although this figure is likely to be much higher than 4.8 million tonnes. Abrdn’s dirtiest investments in a single company in 2022 were in UltraTech Cement, a Mumbai-based cement maker. Its holdings in UltraTech caused about 660,000 tonnes of climate pollution to enter the atmosphere last year. For context, Abrdn’s funding of UltraTech caused only slightly fewer emissions than ExxonMobil’s ethylene plant at Mossmorran in Fife, which produces 680,000 tonnes annually, according to the most recent data from Scotland’s environmental regulator. Investments in Shell, RWE, and BP were the second, third and fourth most polluting in Abdrn’s portfolio respectively. Shell and BP came under fire in recent months after weakening previous climate commitments after posting huge profits on the back of the energy crisis. In June, Shell announced it was dropping a pledge to cut oil production by between one and two per cent each year until 2030. The company told The Ferret its commitment to climate targets “remains as strong as it ever was” and it had already met the oil reduction target by selling oil assets in 2021. Earlier this year, BP watered down a commitment to reduce its climate impact by 40 per cent by the end of the 2020s. Senior figures at the Church of England cited the reversals by Shell and BP as a key driver for its decision last month to drop its investments in oil and gas companies. RWE made global headlines in January after activists were forcibly removed from the German village of Lutzerath by police so it could be demolished to make room for the expansion of one of the company’s mines. Greta Thunberg was among the protesters detained by police. In 2021, RWE was Europe’s biggest polluting company. But the says it is a “leading player in renewables”, has a “clear goal to be climate neutral by 2040” and will stop generating power from coal by 2030. Abrdn’s stakes in Glencore and Rio Tinto were collectively responsible for nearly 370,000 tonnes of climate pollution last year. Glencore is the world’s largest ...
Images and videos of the unrest in France have dominated international news in recent weeks. But many of the claims shared on social media about the protest have been false and deliberately misleading. Ali and Paul spoke to Sam Doak, fact checker at Logically, about how and why this disinformation is being spread by far-right activists in the UK. Elsewhere on the For Fact’s Sake podcast, Ali fact checks Mhairi Black MP, who has announced she will stand down, and we look into whether Orkney really wants to join Norway. Show notes: Logically’s fact checking on the French unrest is here. Our Mhairi Black fact check is here. More information on Orkney exploring a new home here. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
Plans to launch rockets into space from the north of Shetland are facing allegations they could increase climate pollution by disrupting thousands of flights a year across the North Atlantic. Air traffic controllers in Iceland have warned that reserving airspace for up to 50 launches a year from the SaxaVord spaceport, being built on the island of Unst, would force commercial airlines to reroute transatlantic flights. Longer journeys result in more carbon emissions from aircraft. There are also fears that the Icelandic air traffic control company, Isavia, could lose fees from airlines, and face financial hardship. This is said by one insider to be an issue of “the utmost severity” for the company. Campaigners are “extremely concerned” about the UK’s bid to join a new space race, warning that it was for “warfighting”. SaxaVord had been “hallmarked by haste”, they said. The SaxaVord spaceport is under construction at Lamba Ness on Unst, near the most northerly point of the UK. It has applied for a licence to launch 30 rockets a year, and told the House of Commons science committee in May, it would apply to increase that to “40 or 50” a year in the future. Spy satellites destined for Scottish spaceports SaxaVord’s chief executive, Frank Strang, told MPs he was hoping to get a licence from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) in August. The first low-level launch is planned for October, followed by a rocket launching satellites into space early next year. If these go ahead, they could be the UK’s first successful commercial rocket launches, following the failure of Virgin Orbit’s attempted launch from a plane in Cornwall in January. Richard Branson’s company has since shut down. According to Strang, SaxaVord had spent £28m since it was given planning permission in March 2022. In May 2023, he said the company had secured a £139m “debt facility from the markets” and had 80 employees. But a recent public consultation by the CAA into the “airspace reservation” required for SaxaVord’s rocket launches has prompted alarm from Iceland’s air traffic operators. A submission to the consultation from an unnamed “aviation stakeholder” suggested the launches could force as many as 76 flights a day to be rerouted north or south of the Reykjavik air traffic control area. This would mean a “reduction in revenues” for Isavia, the company which runs air traffic control over Iceland, the submission said. There would also be “an increase in flight time and fuel burn and greenhouse gas emissions for those airlines needing to operate on a longer and less optimum route,” it warned. The impacts on workload and safety for air traffic controllers would be “considerable”, the submission argued. The financial implications could also be serious, particularly in the wake of the “tremendous financial losses” caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The industry could not afford further financial setbacks, the submission added, and recommended restricting SaxaVord launches to nighttime. “This matter is of great concern to us and viewed with the utmost severity,” it said. The Icelandic Transport Authority, which regulates aviation, told The Ferret that it “seconds Isavia's reservations”. According to the company, over a quarter of all air traffic crossing the North Atlantic passed through Icelandic airspace. Space launches ‘not for the benefit of humanity’ The campaign group, Drone Wars UK, argued that the extra fuel that would be burnt by rerouting “potentially thousands of flights” away from Iceland was significant. Launching commercial and military rockets into space could cause an “untold amount of harm to the environment”, it warned in a blog published today. “We’re extremely concerned about the environmental and international security implications of the rush by the UK Government to join a new space race, a key element of which is the development of the SaxaVord spaceport,” said Tim Parker from Drone Wars. “A growing number of space activities are now simply foc...
Undercover operations by so-called spycops to infiltrate Scottish anti-nuclear groups were not justified, an independent inquiry has concluded. Retired judge Sir John Mitting has been leading the undercover policing inquiry, established in 2014 to examine the operations of police spies over more than four decades after revelations about their misconduct. Undercover officers, aka spycops, infiltrated campaign groups using dead children’s identities. Some had sexual relations with women they were spying on and at least three officers fathered children with campaigners. In a critical report – which covers the first 14 years of the secret operations, between 1968 and 1982 – Mitting said police officers gathered a “remarkable” amount of information on activists who posed no threat to public order. During that period spycops, as reported by The Ferret, infiltrated the Scottish Campaign to Resist the Atomic Menace (SCRAM), Friends of the Earth, and the Torness Alliance, during protests against the building of a nuclear power station at Torness in East Lothian. I’m pleased to see that the inquiry has agreed that undercover police officers were not justified in gathering such a ‘remarkable’ quantity of information on activists engaged in their democratic right to protest about government policy. Former anti-nuclear campaigner Pete Roche, who worked at Friends of the Earth (Edinburgh) and SCRAM in the 1970s and 1980s. SCRAM was formed in the early 1970s and brought together activists who campaigned against plans by the then South of Scotland Electricity Board (SSEB) to build a nuclear power station at Torness, on the East Lothian coast, south of Dunbar. SCRAM lobbied against the project and helped organise mass protests in 1978 and 1979. The 1978 protest gave birth to the Torness Alliance, a nationwide network of activists dedicated to trying to prevent the building of a nuclear station. The inquiry heard that between 1968 and at least 2010, 139 undercover officers were sent on deployments – usually lasting four years – and spied on more than 1,000 mainly left-wing and progressive groups. Mitting concluded that an undercover unit called the Special Demonstration Squad (SDS), operated with the approval of the highest levels of government, and funding from the Home Office. Its reports were routinely passed to MI5 – the security service. The intrusive methods of the SDS – which spied on SCRAM and other Scottish campaign groups – were not justified, Mitting said. “The principal, stated purpose of the SDS was to assist uniformed police to control public order in London. Long-term deployments into left-wing and anarchist groups did make a real contribution to achieving this end, even though this was or could have been achieved to a significant extent by other, less intrusive means,” he concluded. Revealed: spycops infiltrated Scottish anti-nuclear groups “The question is whether or not the end justifies the means set out above. I have come to the firm conclusion that, for a unit of a police force, it did not; and that had the use of these means been publicly known at the time, the SDS would have been brought to a rapid end.” The Ferret revealed in 2021 that Special Branch documents released to the inquiry disclosed that anti-nuclear activists at Torness were being watched. One included a letter from David Powis, acting assistant commissioner for crime for the Metropolitan Police, to the Home Office on 23 March 1981. It said: “As predicted, 1980 saw considerable activity by the anti-nuclear movement around the siting of power stations, the transportation of waste and cruise missile bases in the United Kingdom. SDS information proved of considerable value in this area, particularly in the prevention of serious disorder and damage to property in East Lothian.” Released along with the letter was the Special Demonstration Squad’s annual report for 1980. It listed organisations which it said had been “penetrated by SDS officers directly or to a ...
Scotland’s newly-appointed freedom of information (FoI) commissioner has run into criticism because he previously accused the media of FoI “abuse” to produce “crud” about the police, and suggested reforming the law. Campaigners expressed concern and disappointment over social media posts in 2020 by David Hamilton, the former chair of the Scottish Police Federation, who is to become Scottish Information Commissioner in October. He has also been given some gentle advice on his new role by a former information commissioner. Hamilton was nominated by a cross-party committee of five MSPs and endorsed by the Scottish Parliament on 28 June 2023. He will be formally appointed for six years by King Charles III on a starting salary of £77,260 a year. He retired as a police inspector in March 2023 after nearly 27 years with the police in Dundee and Glasgow. He was vice chair of the Scottish Police Federation, which represents police officers, from 2017 to 2020, and then chair until 2023. In his new job as information commissioner Hamilton will be responsible for promoting and enforcing the public’s right to access information held by 10,000 public bodies in Scotland – including his former employer, Police Scotland. When authorities breach FoI law, the commissioner has powers to formally intervene. Between 2017 and 2019, the current commissioner, Daren Fitzhenry, intervened with Police Scotland because of multiple failures to properly answer FoI requests. In 2017 Fitzhenry launched a major intervention to remedy flaws in the Scottish Government’s FoI performance. In May 2022 he said there were still “widespread failures” in managing records and other problems, and he is currently monitoring compliance with an agreed action plan. The commissioner also investigates and adjudicates in the public interest on appeals against authorities who have kept information secret. In 2021-22 there were 626 appeals under FoI law in Scotland, 55 of which were about Police Scotland. Nearly three-quarters of all appeals were from members of the public. On 3 January 2020 Hamilton posted a tweet about a story in the Dundee Evening Telegraph reporting that a police car had hit 136 mph on the A90. It was based on a Police Scotland reply to a request under FoI law. .@Evening_Tele getting a roasting for this Festive Seasons "Crud of the Year" story. We simply cant afford to spend precious resources on researching this guff. Im a great believer in transparency but is it time to review FOI legislation in light of commercial media abuse? David Hamilton (@DvdHmltn) January 3, 2020 The Telegraph was getting a “roasting” for its “crud of the year” story, he said. “We simply can’t afford to spend precious resources on researching this guff. I’m a great believer in transparency but is it time to review FoI legislation in light of commercial media abuse?” Hamilton added: “Maybe every FoI response to the worst offenders should be distributed to all media outlets and social media channels as a general media release?” In response to critics on Twitter he argued: “Misuse of the legislation by some is not in the spirit of its intent. With rights come responsibilities. Self regulation would of course be a preferable route.” He suggested that a police car legally driving at 136 mph on a dual carriageway in response to an emergency call was not a story. “Why must stretched @policescotland expend resource researching nonsense for a commercial newspaper column?” he asked. He then tweeted a suggestion that those who publish information from FoI requests should be “legally required to publish the actual costs of producing that data and let their readers/viewers/listeners decide whether that is a good use of their hard earned taxes”. Hamilton stressed it was about trying to find “balance”, adding: “FoI when used proportionately is a key element of public accountability.” In 2012 he criticised another media story about police bonuses as “lazy FoI journalism”. ‘Significant conc...
A Highland sporting estate owned by the billionaire family of Kate Middleton’s sister has been urged by politicians and a ramblers charity to stop trying to deter public access at a famous loch. Loch Affric has been a backdrop to Hollywood movies such as Victoria & Abdul, Detective Pikachu, and Valhalla Rising and has long attracted walkers to its banks. But the 10,000 acre estate, owned by Pippa Middleton Matthews’ family, has put up signs saying there is “no access” across the bridge at the loch’s eastern end, preventing the public’s use of a two-mile walking circuit. Pippa Middleton’s family owns Highland estate via offshore tax shelters The “repressive” signs have prompted local politicians to brand Glen Affric Estate’s actions as “ungenerous and imperious”, and Highland Council has been asked to resolve the access dispute. Ramblers Scotland claimed that while the signs do not breach Scotland’s land access laws, the estate’s “mean spirited” decision means visitors must walk the entire 11-mile circuit, or turn back. Walkers have urged the landowner to stop impeding public use of the bridge, or provide an alternative route. Glen Affric Estate – which offers luxury holiday accommodation – previously claimed the bridge led walkers too close to its houses, and breached privacy. Revealed: Just 44 King’s coronation street parties held in Scotland Its view was backed by Highland Council, which defended the blocked route as “accurate and lawful”, and said access rights did not apply to the track on the north side of the bridge. As part of The Ferret’s recent Scotland’s Secret Owners investigation, we discovered that David Matthews, Pippa Middleton Matthews’ father-in-law, owned the estate via a series of companies registered in offshore tax havens. Matthews reportedly became the Laird of Glen Affric when he bought the estate for £7m in 2008. His son James – who married Middleton, the sister of the Princess of Wales, in 2017 – will inherit both the estate and title. There is no suggestion Matthews or companies associated with him have broken tax laws, but tax campaigners warn that entities registered in tax havens contribute to global tax loss and poor financial transparency. Walkers frustrated by ‘no access’ signs The Ferret’s probe into the estate’s ownership prompted a Ramblers Scotland campaigner to highlight the estate’s use of “no access” signs on Twitter. This estate has also blocked people from doing a 3km circular walk past the estate buildings to a bridge across Loch Affric. Now the only option is a 18km circuit of the entire loch, not possible for many. Might not be breaking the law but a bit mean spirited. Helen Todd (@HelenRambler) June 13, 2023 In response, other users shared their own experiences walking at Loch Affric. One user, Stana Cepkova, said she and others were walking by the lochside in October before encountering a “no access” sign. Her group turned back after three miles “as we couldn’t commit walking the whole [11 miles]” she added. The bridge leads to an area which is home to Glen Affric lodge and other high-end accommodation. The estate does not publicly advertise its prices for guests, but media reports have claimed rental costs span from £11,880 to £25,000. The land reform expert and former MSP, Andy Wightman, said “it used to be no bother crossing the bridge”, long before new land access legislation was introduced. The conversion of Affric Lodge and associated buildings “to an exclusive resort type business has led to blocking off this route”, he claimed. Others called on the estate to provide an alternative path. Cameron McNeish, the renowned Scottish hiker and mountaineer, argued that “it would have been a simple task to create a managed path through this part of the estate, well away from the houses, to enable people to enjoy the shorter walk”. The balance between public access rights and landowners’ rights to privacy and security was brought into the spotlight in 2006 when millionaire Stagecoac...
SNP MP Mhairi Black appeared on BBC Question Time last Thursday. During the debate, Black suggested that Scotland lacked borrowing powers to make policy decisions that improve the lives of those who live here. The Scottish Parliament has no borrowing powers whatsoever. Mhairi Black MP Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence Mhairi Black, the SNP’s MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South, was appearing on the BBC’s flagship debate programme. During a debate about the nationalisation of UK water supplies, Black suggested that an independent Scotland would be able to regulate its nationalised water supply properly. She then claimed that Scotland currently had “no borrowing powers whatsoever”. The Scottish Government’s powers are limited by devolution, with many aspects of the economy reserved to Westminster. This means that the Scottish Government has limitations in what it can do within its budget. Under the fiscal framework, Scotland’s borrowing powers are limited. However, they do have some ability to borrow within the fiscal rules. The Scottish Government is able to borrow for both resource and capital spending, but does not have the same powers as the UK Government in these areas. Resource spending is day-to-day spending on delivering public services like the NHS or education. Scotland is only able to borrow money to account for errors in forecasting or cash management. This can be up to £600m if there is a specific Scotland-based economic shock. This means the Scottish Government cannot borrow money to spend on services on a discretionary basis. Scotland has more flexibility to borrow money for capital spending, which covers tangible assets such as construction of roads, hospitals and infrastructure. The limit for borrowing is £450m per year, with a cap of £3bn in total capital debt. This is a small amount compared to the overall annual budget of the Scottish Government, which in 2023-24 will run to nearly £59.7bn, and to the borrowing of the UK Government, which in 2022-23 was £139.2bn. Ferret Fact Service verdict: False Mhairi Black’s claim that Scotland has “no borrowing powers whatsoever” is incorrect. While Scotland’s ability to borrow is significantly limited by the devolution settlement it is able to borrow to cover shortfalls in resource spending and for capital projects. Main image: David Woolfall Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
Lothian Pension Fund has a hidden stake in a firm which runs coal power plants and controls part of a major pipeline transporting Russian gas to Europe. Nearly £17m was invested by Lothian Pension Fund (LPF) into another fund – managed by Australian financial giant Macquarie – which bought part of Czech firm, EP Infrastructure (EPIF). EPIF in turn owns nearly half of Eustream, which operates gas pipelines in Slovakia, running from the country’s border with Ukraine in the east, to Austria in the west. Eustream is part of the central corridor which moves Russian gas into Europe and the majority of its revenues come from payments from its main shipping partner, Russia’s state-owned energy company, Gazprom. Last year Edinburgh councillors passed a motion calling on LPF– which manages pensions for council workers like teachers and carers in the capital and the Lothians – to end its investment in fossil fuels. But the new revelations have prompted concerns that the true extent of its contribution to the climate crisis could be bigger than first thought. The EPIF investment was only discovered after analysis by journalists and data scientists from the non-profit Anti-Corruption Data Collective, and is not listed in any public information about LPF’s holdings. One MSP said the findings underline “the need for Edinburgh and other councils to scrutinise and examine all their investments”. They added that if the city’s “divestment pledge and commitments to support our Ukrainian allies are to mean anything” then its stake in the investment fund should be sold. The main shareholder in EPIF is the Czech billionaire, Daniel Křetínský, who also owns stakes in West Ham football club, the Royal Mail and French newspaper, Le Monde. A Czech campaigner told The Ferret that any investment into Kretinky’s business “empire” could cause “a lot of problems in the decarbonisation of Europe”. A spokesperson for EPIF said Eustream plays a “critical role” in providing security of gas supply by “connecting EU countries and Ukraine in all directions”. They said that while EPIF’s coal plants were currently “highly efficient”, the company has “clear plans” to move away from coal in future and reach net-zero climate emissions by 2050. LPF and Macquarie declined to comment. Edinburgh was one of seven UK councils that invested pension funds in a private equity fund managed by Macquarie, called Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund V (MEIF V). The other councils were all in England. In total, £103m worth of UK council pensions were invested in the Macquarie fund before it closed in 2016. Funds like MEIF V invest money raised from other investors – such as public pension funds – in exchange for fees and shares of profits. Once an investor, such as LPF, puts money into one of these funds, it no longer has control over how that money is used. The investor receives a portion of the profits generated by the fund. Infrastructure companies are a popular investment for these funds because they are low-risk and offer long-term returns on investment. The purchase of 31 per cent of EPIF was MEIF V’s first deal in 2016. EPIF owns 49 per cent of Eustream, which mainly ships Russian gas to customers in Austria and Italy. Investors in pipelines which transport Russian gas have been criticised since the country’s invasion of Ukraine for allegedly “indirectly funding Putin’s aggression”. A Canadian campaign group said last year that while pension funds treat infrastructure investments like Eustream as “low-risk cash machines” they have “real-world implications for business models that help prop up authoritarian regimes and lock in the use of fossil fuels”. This underlines the need for Edinburgh and other councils to scrutinise and examine all of their investments to ensure that they are not directly or indirectly supporting or profiting from fossil fuels. Ross Greer MSP, Scottish Greens EPIF is part of Daniel Kretinsky’s wider EPH Group, which also includes the firm, EP Power ...
Just 44 street parties were held in Scotland to celebrate King Charles’ coronation, compared to more than 3,000 in England, prompting claims that Scotland has “fallen out of love” with the monarchy. Republican politicians and campaigners claimed the small number of street parties north of the border was evidence that the monarchy is “archaic, antiquated and increasingly irrelevant” in Scotland. But the Scottish Conservatives argued that the monarchy was “still deeply loved and widely respected in Scotland.” The debate comes ahead of the King’s visit to Edinburgh next week. Pippa Middleton’s family owns Highland estate via offshore tax shelters Data obtained by The Ferret from Scotland’s 32 local authorities via freedom of information shows that not a single request to hold a street event in May was made in 18 council areas. The 44 Scottish events compare to 3,087 road closures reportedly approved by councils in England for coronation street parties. Where were Scotland’s street parties? Edit Local Authority Closed Road City of Edinburgh Council Allan Park Crescent City of Edinburgh Council Hamilton Drive West City of Edinburgh Council Ulster Gardens City of Edinburgh Council Upper Ormidale Terrace City of Edinburgh Council Murrayfield Drive City of Edinburgh Council Campbell Avenue City of Edinburgh Council Denham Green Place City of Edinburgh Council Ravelston House Grove City of Edinburgh Council Blinkbonny Avenue City of Edinburgh Council Corstorphine Park Gardens City of Edinburgh Council Buckstone Road Dumfries and Galloway Council B6357 between Canonbie Public Hall and Cross Keys Hotel (Lantern Parade) Dumfries and Galloway Council Maplebank Loaning, Dumfries Dumfries and Galloway Council Church Crescent, Dunscore Dumfries and Galloway Council Dunreggan Brae, High Street, Chapel Street (Parade of Crowns) Dumfries and Galloway Council Balliol Court, Auchencairn Dumfries and Galloway Council Shore Street, Drummore Moray Council High Street, Buckie Moray Council Reidhaven Street, Elgin Moray Council The Square/Balvenie Street/Station Road, Dufftown Moray Council Link road between Commercial Street/Jubilee Terrace, Findochty Perth and Kinross Council The Nurseries, St Madoes Perth and Kinross Council Nursery Terrace, Perth Perth and Kinross Council South St John’s Place, Perth Perth and Kinross Council B827 Dalginross, Comrie Scottish Borders Council D3-4 Blainslie Scottish Borders Council Eyemouth Road, Burnmouth – at the Village Hall Scottish Borders Council Market Square, Duns – Car Parking area at Mercat Cross Scottish Borders Council Victoria Street, Galashiels – from Gala Park to Lintburn Street Aberdeenshire Council Market Place Area, Inverurie Aberdeenshire Council Forest Road, Kintore Aberdeenshire Council Braehead Crescent, Stonehaven Fife Council The Cross, Auchtermuchty Fife Council Balgonie Place, Markinch Highland Council A836, Castletown Highland Council Castle Street, Thurso Midlothian Council Lugton Brae, Dalkeith Midlothian Council Blackhall Terrace, Penicuik Aberdeen City Council Baillieswells Terrace, Cults Dundee City Council Hawick Drive East Renfrewshire Council Mid Road, Eaglesham Glasgow City Council Nottingham Avenue South Ayrshire Council Carrick Park, Ayr West Lothian Council Millbank Square, Whitburn Edit Local Authority Closed Road City of Edinburgh Council Allan Park Crescent City of Edinburgh Council Hamilton Drive West City of Edinburgh Council Ulster Gardens City of Edinburgh Council Upper Ormidale Terrace City of Edinburgh Council Murrayfield Drive City of Edinburgh Council Campbell Avenue City of Edinburgh Council Denham Green Place City of Edinburgh Council Ravelston House Grove City of Edinburgh Council Blinkbonny Avenue City of Edinburgh Council Corstorphine Park Gardens City of Edinburgh Council Buckstone Road Dumfries and Galloway Council B6357 between Canonbie Public Hall and Cross Keys Hotel (Lantern Parade) Dumfries and Galloway Council Maplebank Loaning, Dumfries Dumfries and G...
Students aged between five and 12 years old from deprived areas are more likely to be excluded from school than children from more affluent areas, The Ferret has found. We cross-referenced Scottish Government data on exclusions with statistics from Pupil Equity Funding (PEF) – a fund set up to help tackle inequalities – and found schools with higher numbers of exclusions generally get more PEF funding. Official Scottish guidelines recommend exclusion from school should only take place as a last resort because this can have a detrimental effect and worsen behaviour. Data published by the Scottish Government in 2017 showed that only 5.7 per cent of students excluded at some point went on to attain level six qualifications or higher. By contrast, 57.7 per cent of students with no exclusions went on to finish secondary school. Nick Hobbs, acting children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, said he backed a recent UN report which called for a prohibition of exclusions at UK primary schools. The Scottish Government said it recognises the “significant impact” that exclusion can have on children and that schools should strive to prevent this, where possible. If children are not in school they are not learning – and whilst exclusions serve a purpose – they are not the only way to tackle challenging issues. Glasgow City Council Figures on school exclusions, analysed by The Ferret, are published every two years by ministers, with the most recent data covering 2018-19 and 2020-21. Shortlees Primary School, in East Ayrshire, was top of the list in 2018-19 with 60 exclusions. In 2020-21 – a year when schools remained closed due to the pandemic – Shortlees excluded 18 students, the second highest number in Scotland. For data protection reasons, it is not possible to access data on the excluded students’ socioeconomic background. However, The Ferret analysed other data to determine whether exclusions were affecting particular groups of students. One of these sources was Pupil Equity Funding. Typically, schools that receive more PEF funding tend to serve underprivileged populations. Official PEF figures show Shortlees Primary was top of that list, with over £300,000 funding in 2021-22. Of the top 25 schools with core funding under PEF, only 10 excluded fewer than five students. Schools that have excluded fewer than five students are not included in the statistics. While the 2020-21 school year was significantly affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, there were still 654 exclusions registered in Scottish primary schools. In 2018-19 there were 2207 exclusions. The 10 schools that excluded the most students in both of these years combined are: Shortlees Primary School (East Ayrshire) 78 Pathhead Primary School (Fife) 43 Lawfield Primary School (Midlothian) 40 Hawthornden Primary School (Midlothian) 33 Granton Primary School (City of Edinburgh) 32 Hillhead Primary School (East Ayrshire) 32 James Hamilton Primary (East Ayrshire) 30 Cornhill Primary School (Aberdeen City) 29 Fernielea School (Aberdeen City) 29 Obsdale Primary (Highland) 29 The PEF programme depends on voluntary applications by schools, so it may not provide an accurate representation of relative deprivation of school communities across Scotland. However, three of these schools are in the top 25 most funded schools under the programme, and six were awarded over £100,000 in 2021-22. The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) also makes it possible to identify where communities experience disadvantage, such as access to healthcare and employment The SIMD shows that seven of the ten schools which excluded the most students are in the 30 per cent most deprived areas of the country. Obsdale Primary in Alness is the only one of these schools in an area that is among the least deprived 50 per cent of Scotland. Only three of the top 25 schools with the most exclusions are in the top half of the SIMD. This means the vast majority of schools that exclude more students are in depriv...
Immigration minister Robert Jenrick was questioned in the House of Commons on Tuesday about the illegal migration bill by SNP MP Alison Thewliss. In his response to criticism about the cost of the UK Government’s plan to send migrants to Rwanda, Newark MP Jenrick claimed that the SNP government in Scotland was failing in its duty to house refugees. I am delighted that the honourable Lady celebrated Refugee Week. I do not know if any refugees came to it, because the SNP does not house refugees in Scotland. Robert Jenrick MP Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence The debate between Thewliss and Jenrick came after an impact assessment on the UK Government’s illegal migration bill was released. This estimated the cost of sending some asylum seekers to Rwanda at £169,000 per person, which led to criticism from opposition parties. Glasgow Central MP Alison Thewliss criticised the policy as “cruel Tory ideology”, to which Jenrick claimed that “the SNP does not house refugees in Scotland”. This is not an accurate statement. There are various ways in which people can gain refugee status in the UK and Scotland. The most common way is when a person applies for asylum after they are already in the country, after travelling to the UK through regular routes, or irregular routes, such as small boat crossings in the English Channel. Statistics on the number of people seeking asylum are regularly published by the UK Government, and data is also broken down by UK nations and local authority areas. Statistics published in May 2023 show that a total of 5,210 people were being supported in Scotland at the end of 2022 while going through the asylum system. The vast majority of these were in Glasgow, which is Scotland’s asylum dispersal area. It had 70 people seeking asylum per 10,000 population, the highest in the UK. Across Scotland, eight people were in the asylum system per 10,000 head of population. The majority of those seeking asylum in the UK are in England, with about 100,000 people in the asylum system there. The Home Office has previously said councils in Scotland “need to step up and play their part” in housing people seeking asylum. Scotland also takes in refugees from the UK Government’s official resettlement schemes. The latest statistics show 127 people were resettled in Scotland between the first quarter of 2022 and the first quarter of 2023. A significant number of refugees from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have also been resettled in Scotland. The latest figures from the UK Government found more than 20,000 people had arrived in the UK after being sponsored by individuals in Scotland and the Scottish Government. The asylum system is reserved to the UK Government, which means the Scottish Government has limited powers to affect wider policy around those who come to the UK seeking asylum who come to the UK. In response to an evidence request from Ferret Fact Service, A Home Office spokesperson said it had “been clear that the use of hotels to house asylum seekers is unacceptable and we are committed to making every effort to reduce hotel use and limit the burden on the taxpayer.” Ferret Fact Service verdict: False Robert Jenrick’s claim that Scotland does not house refugees is not correct. Recent statistics show thousands of refugees have been homed in Scotland or are being supported while going through the asylum system. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo credit: Stuart Graham, CC0 1.0
A far right extremist with links to Patriotic Alternative Scotland has been jailed for four years and eight months. Kristofer Kearney, 39, from Liverpool, is believed to be the first member of Patriotic Alternative to be convicted of terrorist offences. Known online as Charlie Big Potatoes, he shared posts encouraging violence against Jews and Muslims and claimed Adolf Hitler “showed people the way”. The Ferret previously revealed Kearney had links to PA Scotland and hosted a podcast for the group. After Kearney pleaded guilty in March to two offences of disseminating terrorist publications, a former leader with PA Scotland expressed support for him and urged members of the far right group to write to him in prison. Man linked to far right Patriotic Alternative Scotland admits terror charges Kearney was sentenced at the Old Bailey last week. The court heard that Kearney was said to be a member of Patriotic Alternative, an extreme right wing group. He is believed to have previously been affiliated with National Action, before it was proscribed as a terror group. In January 2021 and then in March 2021, Kearney posted a large collection of white supremacist texts and recordings to around 1,700 people who had subscribed to his Telegram channel. He went by the username “CharlieBigPotatoes” and was living in Alicante in Spain at the time. The material included recordings by neo-Nazis, white supremacist texts, and “manifestos” written by the perpetrators of extreme right wing terror attacks. Kearney admitted to two counts of disseminating a terrorist publication (under Section 2 of the Terrorism Act 2000) at the Old Bailey on 1 March 2023. Judge Richard Marks KC told Kearney: “In this country, we have lived for many years in a multicultural society which most people regard as being enriching. Right-thinking members of any society regard tolerance, kindness, understanding and inclusivity to everyone regardless of their background as being of absolutely fundamental importance. “Much of the material that you posted entirely negates those values and is extreme, vile, inflammatory, divisive and deeply offensive.” Kearney brazenly posted abhorrent extremist material online, advertising it to hundreds of people who followed his account. Commander Dominic Murphy, who leads the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command. UK counter-terrorism officers worked with Spanish police to arrest Kearney near his home in Alicante in March 2022. Commander Dominic Murphy, who leads the Met’s Counter Terrorism Command, said: “Kearney brazenly posted abhorrent extremist material online, advertising it to hundreds of people who followed his account. He may have thought that, being in Spain, he could act with impunity. However, he was wrong our officers travelled to Spain to arrest Kearney, and had him extradited so he could face these charges. “As part of our investigation, we worked with the Spanish Police and their assistance was invaluable.”
Two major whisky companies have been reprimanded by the Scottish Government’s environmental watchdog after leaks which breached legal limits, polluted rivers with oil and “sewage fungus” and killed wildlife. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) forced William Grant & Sons and Chivas Brothers to take action to prevent more spillages from their Glenfiddich and Glen Keith distilleries on Speyside. The companies also made payments totalling £36,100 to Sepa and local conservation groups. Campaigners argued that pollution could “devastate” rivers and endanger public health. They were concerned that polluters were getting off “too lightly” and called on Sepa to “show it has teeth”. Sepa has published a list of “enforcement undertakings” it accepted from companies in 2022 following pollution incidents. These are promises made by those who have broken environmental rules in order to try and avoid fines and other penalties. Two of the five undertakings were from the £6 billion whisky industry, which trades on its environmental image. The Ferret has previously reported on climate pollution and environmental breaches by whisky companies. Revealed: 400 sites in Scotland broke environmental rules William Grant told Sepa that fermented liquid leaked from its famous Glenfiddich distillery in Dufftown in January 2022. The leak caused “sewage fungus” to spread across the River Fiddich for 1.3 kilometres, the company said. An assessment at the time by Sepa “indicated an impact upon the river invertebrates.” Freshwater invertebrates include insects, worms, shrimps, snails and other small animals vital for ecological health. According to Grant’s undertaking, the leak had been caused by the failure of cooling equipment when pressure was increased to aid cleaning. The failure was blamed on “operator error” and staff had “since been retrained on how to operate the system correctly.” Whisky production ceased while the problem was fixed, resulting in a loss of £6,000 and an increase of £35,000 in energy costs. The company also promised to make a donation of £12,000 to the Spey Foundation for research into river wildlife and a “voluntary contribution” of £2,500 towards Sepa’s costs. Chivas gave Sepa a similar legal undertaking in 2022 after its Glen Keith distillery in Banffshire spilled 300 litres of oil along four kilometres of the River Isla in 2018. An assessment by Sepa assessment suggested a “limited” impact on invertebrates, the company said. According to the undertaking, a storage tank overflowed while being loaded from an “unexpected” evening tanker delivery. The tank’s capacity was “incorrectly deemed to be sufficient” and an embankment meant to prevent leakage into the river failed. Chivas reduced the working level of the storage tank, repaired the embankment and said it would check embankments at other locations. It also promised to donate £12,000 for environmental improvements by Devon, Bogie and Isla Rivers Trust, and to pay £9,600 towards Sepa’s costs. The three other enforcement undertakings accepted by Sepa in 2022 included one from an unnamed farm which leaked slurry into the Allan Water, near Dunblane, in August 2021 and killed fish. Repair work on a sewage pipe also caused pollution of the River Ayr in June 2021. In September 2021 the Dryfe Water, near Lockerbie, suffered “discolouration” from engineering work. Whisky polluters ‘let off too lightly’ The environmental campaign group, WildFish, was concerned about the pollution of rivers. “Not only does this pollution pose potential risk to human health, it can also devastate river ecosystems and fish, such as wild Atlantic salmon,” said Scotland director, Rachel Mulrenan. “Sepa must take urgent action to prevent all types of pollution in our freshwater and marine environments. Sepa must start to show it has teeth through increased deterrents, such as meaningful fines, and enforcement.” Dr Richard Dixon, a veteran environmental campaigner who was a member of Sepa’s boar...
The UK parliament backed a report that found Boris Johnson deliberately misled MPs over parties which took place at Downing Street during lockdown. MPs voted to support the findings of the report, 354 to seven, which was produced by a cross-party committee looking into Boris Johnson’s statements about the so-called ‘partygate scandal’. During the debate before the vote on Monday, various politicians spoke about the former prime minister’s conduct. Labour MP Karl Turner made a claim about who was funding Johnson’s legal costs during the inquiry. An ordinary member of the public who earns more than £12,570 does not get legal aid, and often they are facing very difficult legal proceedings. Boris Johnson has earned some £6 million since he left this place, and he has just done a deal with one newspaper for £1 million a year to write a column. People do not understand how it is possible, especially in the circumstances of a cost of living crisis, for the taxpayer to be paying his legal bill. Karl Turner MP Ferret Fact Service looked into these claims. “People do not understand how it is possible, especially in the circumstances of a cost of living crisis, for the taxpayer to be paying his [Johnson’s] legal bill.” The House of Commons privileges committee launched an investigation into whether Boris Johnson had misled parliament over allegations around the so-called ‘Partygate’ scandal. The scandal developed after numerous photos and allegations were made of parties and gatherings that the-then prime minister attended at Number 10 while restrictions on gatherings were in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. Johnson was accused of intentionally misleading parliament in statements he made to parliament denying events took place and about the nature of the parties in question. On 15 June, the committee found that he misled the House intentionally. Johnson, who had been given advanced sight of the report, resigned as an MP on 9 June. Karl Turner’s claim that Boris Johnson had his legal fees paid during the committee’s investigation is accurate. Johnson was called to appear before the committee and give various bits of evidence, including a limited number of WhatsApp messages, and written submissions. Johnson was represented by a legal team led by Lord Pannick KC, and his legal bill has been reported as £245,000, which will be covered by the UK Government. Ferret Fact Service verdict: True Boris Johnson’s legal fees are being paid by the UK Government, and has been reported as £245,000. “An ordinary member of the public who earns more than £12,570 does not get legal aid, and often they are facing very difficult legal proceedings” Turner contrasted this with the situation regarding legal aid in the UK, claiming that a “member of the public who earns more than £12,570 does not get legal aid”. Legal aid rules differ across the UK, and depending on whether it is a criminal or civil case. There are a number of different factors which determine whether someone is eligible for legal aid, including receipt of benefits, gross income and disposable income. For civil cases gross monthly earnings should be less than £2,657, with disposable income of no higher than £733 per month. People can also be excluded from legal aid if they have savings or assets worth over £8,000. This earnings threshold is higher than £12,570. However, those earning below the threshold are subject to a complex means testing procedure that takes account of various expenses and allowances. This test determines whether someone qualifies for full legal aid coverage, whether they have to pay a contribution, or are excluded from legal aid completely. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Mostly False Karl Turner’s claim that ordinary people can’t get legal aid if they earn more than £12,570 is not correct in many cases. There is a complex test for those receiving legal aid, which takes into account many factors but the earnings threshold is higher than the figure he cited. “Boris Johnson...
More than 300 racing greyhounds died last year in the UK and 4,354 injuries to dogs were recorded, according to new data. The official figures came from the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) and reveal that between 2018 and 2022, a total of 22,284 injuries were recorded and 2,718 greyhounds died, from a variety of causes. The GBGB said 306 greyhounds were put to sleep or died naturally in 2022, compared to 932 in 2018, representing a reduction of 67 per cent. The GBGB says it takes animal welfare issues seriously and is committed to reducing deaths and injuries. But critics called the figures “appalling” and a coalition of animal welfare organisations is urging the Scottish Government to phase out Scotland’s dog racing industry. The Ferret last year revealed that 15 greyhounds died and 197 injuries to animals were recorded at Shawfield Stadium, Glasgow, between 2017 and 2020. We also reported that greyhounds trained or racing in Scotland tested positive for banned drugs such as cocaine and amphetamine dozens of times. [The new data] demonstrates our ongoing commitment to safeguarding the health and wellbeing of our racing greyhounds. Mark Bird, Greyhound Board of Great Britain In March this year, the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission recommended that no new greyhound tracks should be permitted in Scotland due to animal welfare concerns. No racing has taken place at Shawfield Stadium following the pandemic. But dog racing will continue at the last remaining Scottish track in Thornton, Fife, despite calls for a ban, prompting a coalition of groups to launch a fresh campaign this month to end greyhound racing in Scotland. The Unbound the Greyhound coalition includes OneKind, Say No To Greyhound Racing in Scotland, Scotland Against Greyhound Exploitation, the League Against Cruel Sports, Hope Rescue, and the Edinburgh Dog and Cat Home. Commenting on the GBGB’s latest figures, a spokesperson for Unbound the Greyhound claimed the “appalling high number of dog deaths and injuries” further proves that “the industry is incapable of self-regulation”. They added: “Despite committing to reduce track injuries five years ago, GBGB has failed to meet this commitment. In all years, except 2020 when tracks were temporarily shut due to the Covid-19 pandemic, since that commitment was made the injury rate has been higher than in 2018. “Each of these dogs is, or sadly was, an individual, with their own characteristics and personalities. Greyhound racing poses an inherent risk to animal welfare.” No animals should have to suffer this way, and no dog is expendable simply for the pleasure of watching spectators. Mark Ruskell, Scottish Greens Scottish Greens MSP Mark Ruskell, who has been campaigning for a phase out of greyhound racing, described the number of greyhounds dying at racetracks as “shocking”. He added: “What is worse, the growing number of those being injured despite there being fewer races is extremely worrying, and proves this activity is just not safe. “These injuries are exactly the cause of suffering, lower quality of life, and animals being left homeless because they can no longer be exploited for gambling. No animals should have to suffer this way, and no dog is expendable simply for the pleasure of watching spectators. It is barbaric, outdated, and should be phased out.” Mark Bird, chief executive of GBGB, said the new data “demonstrates the significant improvements we have achieved in welfare” over the past few years. “It shows that the approach licensed racing is taking is the right one and demonstrates our ongoing commitment to safeguarding the health and wellbeing of our racinggreyhounds,” he added. “Over the past year, we have begun the roll-out of our ambitious welfare strategy and it is fantastic that a number of initiatives are already underway and delivering benefits – particularly around our enhanced veterinary resources. I would like to thank everyone across the sport who has supportedour strategy and has pla...
In a leafy Nairobi suburb, the roaring traffic and human bustle of the city’s highways has receded into the distance. All that breaks the soft silence is the insistent ringing of the phone inside an office decorated with posters promoting sexual and reproductive rights. One poster explores consent: “is she shy, or too afraid to say stop?” Another exhorts the reader to “be true to you”, while one simply states “joy”. Picking up that phone are the team behind Aunty Jane, a hotline which provides support for anyone with questions about their sexual and reproductive health, including how to access safe and legal abortion care. “The hotline gets calls from teenage girls asking about menstruation, older women asking about the menopause, but the majority of calls are about accessing abortion,” explains Adhiambo, programme coordinator with an organisation that supports Aunty Jane. “The youngest caller we had was 11, the oldest was around 50. About half of our callers are in Nairobi, including in the informal settlements, while the other half are around the country, in more rural areas”. Abortion is recognised as a constitutional right in Kenya. But legal recognition does not translate to easy access. According to Kenya’s constitution, abortion is not permitted unless a health professional believes there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law. The legal status of abortion means that providing advice to women and girls on how to access safe and legal terminations is a tricky road to negotiate. But initiatives such as Aunty Jane have implemented feminist-led solutions to ensure women and girls get the information and care they need. “One thing we acknowledge is that information provision and access is not limited under the law,” explains Adhiambo. “We are aware of the fact that access to information, including emergency healthcare and reproductive healthcare is a provision of our law. That forms the basis of the information we provide at the hotline, because of course, we don’t want to be in conflict with what the law provides for”. To make sure women and girls know that Aunty Jane is on the end of the phone, the organisation adopts multiple strategies to raise awareness – from social media campaigns to sending community outreach workers into informal settlements to talk directly to women. “We use posters, stickers, Facebook and conversations,” says Adhiambo. Aunty Jane information can even be found in period pad packaging. A typical call for a woman with an unwanted pregnancy is likely to cover the circumstances of the pregnancy. From there, Aunty Jane will assess what the caller understands about the legal provisions for abortion, and, if appropriate, make a referral to a medical professional who can provide care. “The hotline has trained counsellors, not medical providers,” confirms an Aunty Jane hotline coordinator who preferred to remain anonymous. Crucial to the solution that Aunty Jane offers, says senior programmes manager, Warindi, “is assessing and providing information so that women can make the right decision for themselves”. “It’s about a woman’s choice, and our counsellors are trained to support that,” she adds. The need for the feminist solutions offered by Aunty Jane could not be more urgent in Kenya, where nearly seven women a day die due to unsafe abortion. In Nakuru, a small rural city that sits on a lake where flamingos and buffalo flock, a young student describes women in her university drinking disinfectant to induce miscarriage. Aunty Jane hears stories of women inserting objects into their vagina to end an unwanted pregnancy. Kenya has one of the highest rates of early pregnancy in the world. Teenage pregnancy is associated with girls being forced to drop out of school, where they become more vulnerable to gender-based violence, poverty and exploitation. The youngest caller we had was 11, the oldest was around 50. Adhiambo, Aun...
The killing of a seal at an Orkney fish farm was not a “proportional and justifiable response” and may have breached the law, according to a report seen by The Ferret. The seal was shot in the face last October at Wyre Marine Farm, Scapa Flow, which is run by Scottish Sea Farms (SSF), a company which farms salmon. Killing a seal with a gun to protect farmed salmon in Scotland has been illegal since February 2021, after the Scottish Government stopped granting licences to people to shoot them. But there are some exemptions under the law which allow seals to be killed humanely in order to “alleviate suffering”. SSF told The Ferret it had no choice but to “humanely euthanise” the seal after it became trapped in a pen. Animal welfare campaigners said more could have been done to save the seal and it was “scandalous that salmon farmers are still killing seals”. They have called for an investigation. Seals were previously shot by licensed farmers to prevent them breaking into salmon pens and eating the fish, but killing them proved controversial. Ministers stopped granting licences for the shooting of seals due to fears the US would stop importing Scottish salmon. America is banning imports from countries that allow seals to be killed to protect fisheries. Scotland’s salmon exports to the US are worth nearly £200m each year. The fish farming industry insists it takes animal welfare seriously and has been investing in non-lethal deterrents for seals “for years”. The Orkney seal killing was revealed in a reply by the Scottish Government to a freedom of information (FOI) request by the anti-fish farm campaigner, Don Staniford. The government response revealed that a seal was shot and killed by a licensed marksman on 14 October 2022. This was a healthy seal whose fate was decided by the repeated failed human attempts to release it. Freddy Bowen-Bate, Animal Concern The documents show that on 17 October, 2022, SSF advised the Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme (SMASS) that a seal had been shot. SSF wrote: “In accordance with Section 108 of the Marine Scotland Act 2010, I hereby notify that at approximately 15:45 hours on 14 October 2022, a qualified holder of a firearms licence euthanized a seal at Wyre Marine Farm, Orkney. This action was undertaken in the presence of an independent qualified veterinarian and an action taken to alleviate the suffering of the grey seal.” A post mortem was subsequently conducted on the seal at Glasgow University by SMASS. Its report revealed a bullet entered the seal under its right eye. SMASS noted that from a welfare aspect, the animal was killed with a single shot and “died almost instantaneously”. However, based on a review of the evidence and discussions with St Andrews University’s Sea Mammal Research Unit, and the “marine mammal community” – SMASS concluded it was “difficult to support the conclusion that this animal was suffering to the extent that euthanasia was a proportional and justifiable response”. The author of SMASS’s report wrote: “My opinion, therefore, is that the actions followed by Scottish Sea Farms do not fall under the exemptions listed under section 108 of the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. It appears that there were several opportunities missed to engage the wider marine mammal community in the management of this event.” The seal appeared to be in “excellent body condition” with no underlying disease, SMASS said, and there was evidence of recent feeding. It added: “There was no evidence the animal had been suffering whilst in the seal pen. It appeared to be feeding well and showed no evidence of stress or disease.” The seal had entered the pen on 8 October, and euthanasia was made six days later. SMASS said it did not appear that SSF attempted to seek advice during this time from rescue groups or those experienced in seal behaviour. “It was not explained why a temporary haul out solution could not be securely fixed in the pen in such a way as it avoided damage to the pen inf...
A former Mark Fortune tenant who is due to have her deposit returned to her after winning a housing tribunal has urged others to follow suit. Edinburgh Holiday and Party Lets (EHPL) was ordered to refund Adéla Koubová after a housing tribunal ruled her former Fortune-owned flat in Edinburgh was not a holiday let, and she is subject to the same rights as a tenant. In 2021, an investigation by The Ferret revealed that more than 40 former tenants of Fortune claimed they had not had their deposits returned when staying at properties run by his companies. This includes EHPL, of which Fortune is a former director. More than 40 former Mark Fortune tenants demand action from authorities Speaking anonymously to The Ferret in 2021, Koubová said she moved into a room in an EHPL flat at Edinburgh’s Bruntsfield Place in 2020 after answering a Gumtree advert. The room was cheap in comparison to others in the capital and she was “desperate” for accommodation. But Fortune’s company did not return her £275 deposit when she left. This was despite numerous text messages and emails, shared with The Ferret, which showed Koubová’s requests for her deposit to be returned were ignored. Victory against Mark Fortune-linked firm More than three years later, Koubová is finally due to receive her money back – a victory she attributes to support from the tenants’ union Living Rent and the Mark Fortune Investigation campaign group, which is made up of former tenants. “I would have never succeeded by myself,” she said. “I hope this will encourage other tenants to take action and not let Mark Fortune treat them like this anymore.” Koubová and other tenants were granted accommodation with bogus contracts under the guise of holiday lets, despite them being allowed to stay long term. Holiday lets are not subject to the same fire safety and repair standards as typical lets, with fewer safeguards in place, such as requiring landlords to put their deposit in a tenancy deposit scheme. Fortune began to offer holiday lets after being taken off the council’s landlord’s register in 2013. Living Rent has repeatedly called on authorities to stop Fortune from operating. The landlord has previously argued that his properties are operated by limited companies, rather than him personally. But BBC Scotland reported that the latest tribunal ruling said Fortune gave submissions on behalf of EHPL and “seemed to refer to himself as the landlord accidentally” on more than one occasion. Fortune’s “position was often contradictory and therefore could not be treated as reliable”, the tribunal found. In 2021, former tenants amassed hundreds of images of squalid conditions at Fortune’s flats. In May 2023, Fortune’s EHPL was ordered to make one of its flats “fit for human habitation” by carrying out extensive repairs. Header image credit: Dazigster (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Churches – including the Church of Scotland – urged the Scottish Government to make all religious bodies exempt from revealing the owners of thousands of properties before a new transparency law was brought forward. The churches lobbied both Nicola Sturgeon, then-first minister, and Màiri McAllan, then-land reform minister, in attempts to avoid having to comply with the new land register due to the “administrative burden”. The government estimated that the Church of Scotland, which had 6,000 properties, would be the largest Scottish landowner to be affected by the register of persons holding a controlled interest in land (RCI). However the government rejected the calls for an exemption and said it would “undermine” the register’s effectiveness. It highlighted that organisations had nearly six years to prepare. Transparency and secular campaigners accused the Kirk of attempting to “erode the very basis” of new transparency legislation. They argued transparency is effective only when “applied without exemption”. Why does who owns Scottish land and property really matter? McAllan had directly asked the churches whether their internal structures “were up to the standards of modern expectations of transparency”, according to meeting minutes we obtained under freedom of information, alongside other documents. The Kirk said it had objected to new rules that would mean churches had to provide details of three individuals to register. The government rejected its alternative proposals – to appoint individuals who would respond to queries about Kirk property – without giving a reason, it claimed. The RCI aims to improve land ownership transparency by making information about those who have a controlling interest in land publicly available. The government said it had no plans for “further exemptions or legislative change”, and encouraged landowners to register on the system early. Failing to register by 1 April 2024 – a date brought forward by a year to give landowners more preparation time – will be a criminal offence. Church lobbying efforts On Holyrood lobbying register logs, the churches said they would suggest legislative amendments to avoid a “disproportionate bureaucratic impact”, but did not disclose they would seek exemption. But a briefing document given to Sturgeon ahead of a June 2022 meeting with the Kirk’s moderator, Iain Greenshields – obtained by The Ferret under freedom of information legislation – said churches were “seeking an exemption to the RCI for religious bodies and charities”. The government, the document added, had “been clear from the outset that an exemption would undermine the efficacy of the register”. In August, a government briefing for McAllan said that during an equalities impact assessment of how the RCI could affect religious groups and others, the Kirk did not submit evidence. The Kirk told The Ferret it was “absolutely untrue” arguing it had “extensive correspondence and at least two meetings with civil servants”. Before McAllan was due to meet with Kirk representatives, a member of the government said in an email they were “actually quite worried about sending the minister into a meeting with them.given how little scope for a resolution there seems to be”. Minutes from the meeting said the Kirk and other churches claimed they already regularly answered queries about their property holdings, despite no legal obligation to do so. Other faith groups advised that, despite concerns, they supported the transparency measures and did not seek an exemption, the minutes claimed. Only Christian groups had lobbied on RCI, which the government said could be owed to their bigger property portfolios or different landholding structures. Religious bodies should be subject to the same levels of transparency and accountability as any other landowners. National Secular Society McAllan told a Scottish Parliament committee in February that she had “intense engagement. principally with religious stakeholders”, but beli...
A “loophole” in new legislation means more than half of the offshore entities which own hundreds of Scottish properties including estates, forests and castles are allowed to remain secret. The Register of Overseas Entities, managed by Companies House, requires overseas companies that own UK land or property to declare the people who have a controlling interest in them. However, the beneficial owners of over 3,000 Scottish properties bought before 8 December 2014 – including those owned offshore – do not need to comply with the law. This compares to a cut-off date of 1 January 1999 in England and Wales – a nearly 16-year longer timespan than in Scotland. A land reform expert said the loophole “was never necessary”. Transparency campaigners stressed that the law means land north of the border will “hold more secrets”, and called on Westminster – which set the law – to extend it. The UK Government said the Scottish date was chosen as offshore buyers of Scottish property were not required to reveal where their company was incorporated pre-December 2014, so extending it would be “ineffective.” The Ferret found that 3,016 Scottish properties were owned by 1,578 offshore entities at the end of 2021. However, 842 companies – 54 per cent of the total – did not need to disclose their beneficial owners because they bought their property before December 2014. Highland estate in public access legal battle owned in tax haven Some 262 disclosed voluntarily, with the beneficial owners of the 580 companies that did not need to comply with the law staying secret. A further 286 companies who were required to reveal their beneficial owners had not yet done so. We calculated that if the Scottish cut-off date was the same as it is south of the border, 2,927 – 97 per cent – of all 3,016 properties would need to reveal their beneficial owners. Land reform campaigner and former MSP, Andy Wightman, previously warned the loophole would mean swathes of offshore owners would avoid the register, including those registered in tax havens. Properties such entities own included Pitmain Estate near Kingussie, Glenogle Estate in Angus, Tarbert Estate on Jura, Glenbuchat Estate in Aberdeenshire, Glenavon Estate in Moray, Strathfillan Forest in Stirlingshire, Taymouth Castle in Perthshire, and the Roxburghe Hotel on Edinburgh’s Charlotte Square. Wightman claimed Registers of Scotland (RoS) has records of every offshore owner of land and property in Scotland, and argued the regulations could have required all beneficial overseas owners to register. RoS said some entities revealed their legal jurisdiction before they were required to pre-2014, and this information is included on the register. “It is for Scottish ministers to provide a detailed explanation as to why they agreed to the regulations being drafted in this way and the cut-off date being December 2014,” Wightman told The Ferret. The Scottish Government said the date was determined by Westminster and confirmed it was chosen to align with the date when the 2012 land registration act came into force. “The UK Government decided on this approach in order to provide certainty for parties involved due to incomplete data prior to this date,” added a spokesperson. Juliet Swann, senior policy officer at Transparency International UK said: “This loophole means Scotland’s land holds more secrets” with more landowners south of the border having to reveal their beneficial owners due to the longer cutoff date. “Westminster should expand the scope of the law to cover all offshore companies holding real estate across the UK,” she added. ‘Hollow’ Government rules let tax haven Highland estates get Covid grants The UK Government said it had worked with the Scottish Government and RoS to develop and implement the register. “The government agrees the register should be as comprehensive as possible, but we also want to avoid creating legal uncertainty for people buying properties,” said a spokesperson for the department for ...
Student accommodation buildings in Scottish cities collectively worth over £300m are directly owned by firms registered in offshore tax havens, an analysis by The Ferret has found. The 27 properties – in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Dundee, Glasgow and Stirling – are all ultimately owned by global firms and investors through holding companies set up offshore. Among others, the ultimate owners of the student blocks include a partnership involving the Singapore sovereign wealth fund, and Blackstone, a US investment company whose boss has links to Donald Trump. Our findings have prompted concerns about the growing role of private firms registered in tax havens providing student accommodation. The National Union of Students (NUS) Scotland said students were at the “mercy of predatory profiteering” and claimed 12 per cent have experienced homelessness due to “exponential increases in rent”. One Scottish Greens MSP claimed some accommodation providers were “only too happy to treat students as cash cows and make them pay rip-off rates”. The owners of the properties told The Ferret they comply with UK tax rules. The tax haven companies were identified by a Ferret analysis of a new register, which has forced property owning companies based overseas to disclose their true owners for the first time. The actual value and number of student halls owned by companies linked to tax havens may be higher than shown by our analysis, but it is not always possible to identify them in data from Registers of Scotland. Properties owned by tax haven firms include nine accommodations in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen managed by Student Roost, a UK firm which has 21,000 student beds. They also include Buchanan View halls, which is close to Glasgow Caledonian University, and the University of Strathclyde. Students there pay £235 a week for a one bedroom apartment. Buchanan View – valued at £38.9m – is purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA). The Scottish Government describes PBSA as “accommodation specifically designed, built or adapted for the purpose of housing students”, which may be located on – or off – campus, and owned or managed by a university, private or third sector provider, or some combination. According to title deeds purchased from Registers of Scotland, the nine Student Roost properties are all directly owned by holding companies registered in Luxembourg. Student Roost was bought by a partnership involving the Singapore sovereign wealth fund and Greystar Real Estate Partners last year. Greystar pointed out it has no links to Donald Trump, but declined to comment. Luxembourg has long been considered a tax haven and a 2021 investigation by Le Monde revealed it hosts "55,000 offshore companies managing assets worth at least €6 trillion". However, Luxembourg rejects the moniker. A Luxembourg subsidiary of IQ Student Accommodation (IQSA) owns Parker House in Dundee, for students at Abertay University, and Elliot House in Edinburgh. IQ is ultimately owned by the US investment company, Blackstone Group – the world's largest commercial landlord. IQ, and by extension Blackstone, owns a number of other student residences in Glasgow and Edinburgh through subsidiary companies registered in the UK. However, the holding company which owns many of these subsidiaries – IQSA Holdco Ltd – is incorporated in the tax haven of Jersey. iQ owns and operates five properties in Scotland, providing accommodation for less than 1 per cent of students in Scottish Higher Education, many of whom are international. Blackstone has, in recent years, acquired hundreds of thousands of homes in the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America, often through subsidiaries, making it one of the largest and most powerful global players in the housing investment sector. It is headed by CEO Stephen Schwarzman, a major donor of the US Republican party and former chair of the Trump Administration’s Strategic and Policy Forum. The New York headquarters of Blackstone Group are located in a skyscr...
Nicola Sturgeon’s arrest on Sunday led to a media storm, as Scotland’s most high-profile politician was taken into custody by police. Images posted on social media claimed to show a picture of the former first minister in the back of a police car, with comments suggesting this had been taken after Sturgeon’s arrest. Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence Nicola Sturgeon was arrested by Police Scotland on 11 June, as part of the investigation into the SNP’s finances called Operation Branchform. She is the third figure in the party to be arrested as part of the probe, after her husband Peter Murrell and former treasurer Colin Beattie. The home outside Glasgow shared by Murrell and Sturgeon was also searched in April, as well as the SNP’s headquarters. Hours after she was taken into custody on Sunday morning, a picture began to circulate showing the Glasgow Southside MSP apparently photographed inside a police car. The image was shared thousands of times across Twitter and other platforms. However, it has been digitally altered. The original image was taken in April 2017 by photographer John Linton, and has appeared regularly in media since then. It shows Sturgeon leaving the first minister’s residence at Bute House in Edinburgh while she was first minister. Other images from the same series show her getting into the car. There are other telltale signs in the doctored image, including rain on the window on which the image of Sturgeon has been superimposed. In a statement, a spokeswoman for Sturgeon said the MSP had been arrested and questioned “by arrangement with Police Scotland”. Ferret Fact Service verdict: False The widely-shared image of Nicola Sturgeon allegedly in the back seat of a police car after being arrested has been digitally altered. The original image of the former first minister was taken in 2017 in a ministerial car. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo credit: Andrew Cowan/Scottish Parliament
The millionaire family of Kate Middleton’s sister owns the 10,000-acre Glen Affric estate in the Highlands via a series of companies registered in offshore tax havens, The Ferret can reveal. David Matthews, Pippa Middleton Matthews’ father-in-law and former racing driver, reportedly became the Laird of Glen Affric when he bought the estate for £7m in 2008. There is no suggestion Matthews or companies associated with him have broken tax laws, but tax campaigners warn that entities registered in tax havens contribute to global tax loss and poor financial transparency. His son James, also a former racing driver and hedge fund manager, married Middleton, the sister of the Princess of Wales, in 2017, and will inherit his father’s estate and title. The estate is owned by Beaufort Entreprise SA – a company registered in the tax haven of the Seychelles. SNP MP Tommy Sheppard deemed it “an absolute scandal that so much Scottish land and property ownership can be traced to opaque offshore tax havens”. He added: “The pressing need for further land reform to ensure that land-based power is transferred to the communities that live and work sustainably on our land has never been more urgent.” It is an absolute scandal that so much Scottish land and property ownership can be traced to opaque offshore tax havens. Tommy Sheppard, SNP MP Beaufort was required to reveal its beneficial owners in light of the introduction of the Register of Overseas Entities (ROE), which aims to provide greater land ownership transparency. A wealth management firm, Equiom (Isle Of Man) Limited, was named as the beneficiary. However, Matthews’ ownership of the estate, which also acts as a luxury hotel, has been widely reported. Media reports have claimed it costs anywhere between £11,880 to £25,000 for a party to stay at the lodge, and take part in deer stalking, partridge shooting, and a range of other outdoor activities. The estate’s website advertises accommodation, but does not publicly state the fee. Beaufort owns a property called the North Steading at Athnamulloch in Glen Affric separately, according to the ROE. However, the property entry lists Beaufort Entreprise SA as being registered in Monaco – a tax haven for the super rich. David Matthews has reportedly been a Monaco resident. Equiom also owns a retail unit on Glasgow’s Ingram Street, the Corseyard Tower – better known as the Coo Palace – at Borge, near Kirkcudbright in Galloway, and land at Tigh Mor in the Trossachs national park. The Ferret attempted to contact James and David Matthews via Glen Affric estate and their Eden Group Group company, but did not receive a response. Main image credit: Credit: Mike Pennington/Brian Bollen Scotland’s secret owners is a Ferret investigation exclusively produced in partnership with The Herald. The Ferret is a media-coop, which works with its members to produce investigations in the public interest. Sign up to our newsletter to find out more or become a member at theferret.scot/subscribe
A billionaire Wall Street investor and Tory donor is the beneficial owner of a Borders sporting estate which had its licence to kill birds revoked by Scotland’s wildlife protection agency. Louis Moore Bacon is the named beneficiary of the 9,000 acre Raeshaw Estate, near Stow, which is owned by a holding company based in the tax haven of Jersey. The estate was required to name Bacon in light of the introduction of a new UK Register of Overseas Entities which aims to boost transparency around land and property ownership. There is no suggestion Bacon or Raeshaw has broken tax laws, but campaigners warn that entities registered in Jersey contribute to global tax loss and poor financial transparency. In 2016, we reported that Raeshaw’s shooting licence was revoked after evidence was found that birds of prey had been persecuted. No individual was charged, prosecuted or convicted for any wildlife offences. The estate launched a legal challenge against a decision by Scotland’s wildlife agency to revoke its general licence, but lost. Between 2005 and 2019, Bacon’s MECM, Ltd gave £693,000 to the Conservative Party – including £250,000 just ahead of the 2015 general election – while his Moore Europe Capital Management gave £68,000. There should be no billionaires, tax havens should not exist, and we need to fundamentally transform our economy to redistribute wealth and power, and make it work for the people. Richard Leonard MSP Labour MSP Richard Leonard said the involvement of “a billionaire, a Tory donor” and a tax haven was “a perfect encapsulation of how rigged and destructive our economic system is”. He added: “There should be no billionaires, tax havens should not exist, and we need to fundamentally transform our economy to redistribute wealth and power, and make it work for the people.” In his native US, Bacon fundraised for 2012 Republican presidential candidate, Mitt Romney, and gave around £800,000 to failed 2016 presidential candidate Jeb Bush, who lost out to Donald Trump. Bacon was deemed a Wall Street “legend” by Forbes, which estimated his net worth to be nearly £1.3bn in May. He reportedly earned his wealth by trading commodities and currencies, later founding hedge fund, Moore Capital, in 1989, which closed and refunded investors in 2019, citing years of “disappointing results”. In 1992, Bacon founded the Moore Charitable Foundation, “to preserve and protect natural resources for future generations”. In 1993, he bought Robins Island in New York State to preserve the undeveloped land as a bird reserve. He also donated £300,000 via a charity to help to create the Atlantic’s biggest marine reserve in the waters around Ascension Island. A Conservative Party spokesperson said the party “only accepts donations from permissible sources, namely individuals registered on the UK’s electoral roll or UK registered companies. Donations are properly and transparently declared to the Electoral Commission, openly published by them, and comply fully with the law.” Police visits to the estate Raeshaw was visited by the estate three times over a period of seven years. In 2009, police attended after several dead buzzards and poisoned baits were found in the area, the Guardian reported. During a raid, a poisoned red kite and several alleged baits were found. Three injured hunting dogs were also seized by the SSPCA, on suspicion of involvement with badger baiting. In 2014, during another police visit to the estate, officers reportedly found the remains of a buzzard – thought to have been poisoned – traps, a cage containing a live pigeon, other dead birds, and a crow trap. Loophole in bid to punish landowners for killing birds of prey An estate spokesperson confirmed that police had visited the premises in 2009 and in 2014, but said “no one was arrested, charged, prosecuted or convicted of any of the wildlife offences,” adding: “In relation to the visit from the SSPCA in 2009, the individuals were acquitted and proved to be innocent after d...
Major financial backers of the Conservative Party – including personal donors to Boris Johnson – own lucrative properties across Scotland through secretive companies registered in tax havens. Their ownership of Scottish property has been revealed by an exclusive Ferret analysis of a new British register introduced after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It has forced many companies based in tax havens, and which own UK property, to reveal their true, “beneficial”, owners for the first time. We are revealing our findings over the next three days as part of a major new series – Scotland’s Secret Owners. Scottish properties owned by six Tory donors – who have together given the party millions of pounds – include shooting estates, the site of a major wind farm, office blocks and a city centre car park. In total their properties are worth over £53m. They are all owned through previously anonymous companies registered in offshore ‘secrecy jurisdictions’ like Jersey and the British Virgin Islands. Owning properties through companies based in tax havens is legal and there are legitimate reasons for holding assets through them. But critics also say offshore companies lack transparency and claimed the Tory donors could “wield undue influence over politicians and policy designed to clamp down on” tax havens. One Labour MSP said The Ferret’s findings showed the “urgent need for a new tax on the wealth, property and assets of the richest”. All the individuals named in this story have been asked to comment. Those who chose to do so insisted that they had acted legally throughout. The Tory donor who owns the most valuable Scottish property through a tax haven firm is Simon Arora, the former boss of retail chain, B&M. He gave the UK party £50,000 in March 2020. Arora is one of the named owners of a holding company registered in Jersey which owns ten retail properties including a number of B&M stores. His properties have a combined value of over £38m. Monaco-based Scottish entrepreneur and life peer, Lord Irvine Laidlaw, owns Dundee’s Telephone House – an office building valued at nearly £6m – through a firm registered on the Isle of Man. Laidlaw, who made his wealth in the corporate events industry, donated over £3.1m to the Conservatives between 2001 and 2007. This included giving £25,000 to Boris Johnson while he was running to be London mayor. English financier, Guy Hands, owns land in Dumfries and Galloway through a company set up in the Channel Island of Guernsey. It is the site of the approved eight-turbine Cornharrow wind farm. Hands has funded the Tories in the past, and the party’s former leader, William Hague, was best man at his wedding. However in recent years he has been critical of the party’s handling of Brexit – which he claimed was about the people at the top paying “a lot less tax” – as well as its policy on onshore wind farms. So-called Wall Street investing ‘legend’ Louis Bacon is the named beneficiary of a Jersey company which owns the Dewar Estate, south east of Edinburgh, as well as Raeshaw Estate, near Galashiels. Bacon was a financial backer of the Tories between 2010 and 2016 and also fundraised for US presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Jeb Bush. The Tories have actively promoted the interests of the super rich, while inflicting more than a decade of austerity on hard pressed families. Mercedes Villalba MSP, Scottish Labour Billionaire real estate and technology mogul, Simon Reuben, is one of the owners of a firm set up in the British Virgin Islands which owns the St Enoch Centre car park. It is valued at nearly £8m. A company which Reuben and his brother David control – Investors in Private Capital Ltd – has handed cash donations to the Tories worth over £1.2m since 2008. The firm also gave Boris Johnson a year’s worth of access to office space in London worth over £85,000, the day after Liz Truss took over from him as Prime Minister. A representative of the Reuben Brothers told The Ferret that the donations wer...
A total of 63 beavers were killed under licence in Scotland last year, down from 87 the previous year. A new report by NatureScot has also revealed 45 animals were trapped and moved to licenced projects, compared with 33 in 2021. Of these, 15 beavers were released to the wild. The Scottish Government welcomed the figures and said beaver numbers are increasing at a “healthy rate” but “more work” is required. The National Farmers Union (NFU) Scotland claimed farmers and crofters will be “alarmed” at figures projecting an expansion in the beaver population to 10,000 by the end of the decade. It called for people to be compensated by beaver damage to land. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th century. After prolonged arguments, as reported by The Ferret, the Scottish Government gave beavers legal protection in May 2019. We’re pleased to report a significant increase in trapping last year. As this work continues, we expect to see a further shift away from lethal control Donald Fraser, NatureScot’s head of wildlife management. Since then in order to kill them, land managers have had to obtain a licence from NatureScot. There was angry criticism in 2021 when The Ferret reported 115 beavers had been shot in Tayside alone. Wildlife campaigners condemned the killings then as “ecologically incoherent and environmentally irresponsible”. It also notes the past 12 months saw publication of Scotland’s Beaver Strategy, which brought together more than 50 organisations and individuals with an interest in beaver restoration and management. The Scottish Beaver Advisory Group has now been established to take the strategy forward. Donald Fraser, NatureScot’s head of wildlife management, said: “We’re pleased to report a significant increase in trapping last year, with NatureScot staff working hard with land managers, the Beaver Trust and the Five Sisters Zoo to enable this wherever possible. As this work continues, we expect to see a further shift away from lethal control.” He added: “The release of beavers at a new site at Loch Lomond earlier this year marked a significant milestone in the restoration of the species, with two other proposals for the River Spey and Glen Affric/ Beauly areas currently being explored.” Lorna Slater MSP, Scotland’s biodiversity minister, said: “It is welcome news to see the increase in the proportion of beavers being translocated and that numbers in Scotland are increasing. It is vital that we continue to protect and value these iconic animals.” Plan for eating beavers abandoned after Ferret queries NFU Scotland president Martin Kennedy said the union would continue to work with all parties going forward to ensure that damage to productive farmland is prevented. “Beavers in the wrong areas are proven to cause significant and costly agricultural damage so where mitigation and trapping measures fail, dam removal and lethal control must remain an option to prevent serious agricultural damage before it occurs,” he added. Beavers in the wrong areas are proven to cause significant and costly agricultural damage so where mitigation and trapping measures fail, dam removal and lethal control must remain an option to prevent serious agricultural damage before it occurs. Martin Kennedy, president of national Farmers Union Scotland. Kennedy also argued that, given the rapid expansion in beaver numbers, the Scottish Government must ensure that a “fully funded standalone mitigation scheme” can be accessed by all who wish to prevent beaver damage on their land. There should be a “fully funded compensation scheme” for those who have been adversely affected, Kennedy continued. Photo credit: iStock and Cavan Images.
A green charity has accused ministers of failing to regulate the use of a potentially dangerous sewage fertiliser seven years after a Scottish Government report called for action. Sewage sludge – which has a vile odour – is a by-product of sewage and wastewater treatment often used as fertiliser on fields due to its nutrient-rich content. But it needs to be processed to remove potentially toxic contaminants like heavy metals, pharmaceuticals, microplastics, viruses, pathogens, and ‘forever chemicals’ which do not break down in the environment. Such contaminants can build up in farmland and crops and flow into waterways. In the US, sewage sludge has contaminated drinking water and caused human illness. High levels of ‘forever chemicals’ have been found in the blood of farmers utilising it. According to research, UK land has among Europe’s highest concentrations of microplastics due to sewage sludge. The spreading of sewage sludge is banned in some countries including the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the US state of Maine. The communities who have to put up with the smell, health and environmental problems relating to sludge are clearly not a priority for the Scottish Government. Ben Christman, in-house solicitor for ERCS Measures to better regulate it in Scotland were outlined in a 2016 government report, which called for stronger laws around the spreading and storage of sewage sludge. But the Environmental Rights Centre for Scotland (ERCS) said the 2016 report was “gathering dust” and urged ministers to act on it. The green charity also called for a public consultation, which has also been delayed for years, to be carried out. The government has repeatedly promised to launch a public consultation on sewage sludge for nearly two years, but this has yet to transpire. Another environmental charity, Fidra, warned of Scotland’s “outdated regulations and monitoring” that don’t include contaminants like microplastics and forever chemicals, adding that spreading sewage sludge “in its current contaminated form” should be avoided. A government-commissioned, updated health risk assessment of sewage sludge conducted in 2018 was not published until 2020, amidst pressure from MSPs and campaigners. The government said efforts to tackle sewage sludge were in progress following delays caused by Covid-19 and Brexit, but stressed that the 2018 assessment found no new evidence of significant risks from spreading. Sewage sludge reports Scientists and local communities, who have long complained about its stench and potential health risks, have raised concerns about sewage sludge. In 2012, Aberdeen scientists told the British Science Festival that man-made chemicals found in sewage sludge could be as significant as climate change due their effects on ecosystems and human health. Their studies into sheep grazed on pastures treated with sewage sludge found the chemicals had impacted the health and fertility of the animals and their offspring. Dairy farmers using a liquid fertiliser containing a chemical cocktail akin to sewage sludge have reported similar issues in their cattle including high abortion rates and decreasing milk yields. One farmer lost an entire herd. The government’s 2016 Sludge Review acknowledged “a need for greater consistency, and greater confidence in the way sewage sludge is handled and used”. Among the recommendations were that the voluntary code of practice for sewage sludge use be updated and incorporated into Scots law, with a ‘fit and proper person’ test introduced for all operators. Mairi McAllan and her predecessors have failed to understand or chosen to ignore, the extent of the health implications to both the Scottish public and the animal population. Doreen Goldie and Jo Hirst, formerly of Avonbridge and Standburn Community Council The report also recommended that the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) should be given powers to police operators, including being able to force the removal of sewage sludge s...
Forty primary schools in mostly rural areas of Scotland have been closed or mothballed by councils in recent years due to dwindling pupil numbers, prompting depopulation concerns. The figures obtained by The Ferret under Freedom of Information (FOI) show that 20 schools were mothballed and 20 were shut for good between April 2018 and February this year, with 15 more at risk. Most closures were in rural areas, which can be more vulnerable to depopulation and ageing demographics. Young and working age people are needed to fill all the necessary roles, and sustain these communities. Our findings come days after rural depopulation was discussed in the Scottish Parliament, when the Scottish Government was challenged on what it is doing to tackle the issue. Rural MSPs said The Ferret’s “alarming” figures were “clear indicators of communities or villages in crisis”. Some accused the Scottish Government of enacting public spending cuts, which they argued, have a “disproportionate impact” on rural and remote communities. Island Depopulation: Can a small island like North Ronaldsay turn the tides? The Scottish Government said its own figures showed that 12 rural schools had closed, 21 had been mothballed and seven rural schools had opened since 2018, while others may have merged. A strategy to tackle depopulation was published in 2021, and a new plan aimed at tackling depopulation would be published in the Autumn, it added. Official stats project the number of children in Scotland to fall by more than a fifth, and the number of over 65s to rise by nearly a third by 2045. Rural and island communities are typically worst affected by depopulation in Scotland, despite a reverse in this trend fuelled by an urban to rural migration amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. According to data provided by individual local authorities, over the last five years, 11 schools have been mothballed or permanently shut in the Highland Council area, eight in Argyll, six in Aberdeenshire, and three each in Dumfries and Galloway and Perthshire. One or more schools were also closed or mothballed in Stirlingshire, the Western Isles, Angus, Falkirk, Shetland, Moray, and Fife. Low pupil numbers have put 15 more schools at risk of closure. Blackness school near Falkirk – as well as two schools the council did not name – and Tundergarth school in Dumfriesshire may be mothballed. Aberdeen City Council plans to close some of the 11 schools in the Bridge of Don and Northfield areas. Aberdeen is the only Scottish city where a local authority is considering such a move. Islanders fight to stop primary school closure on Luing In March, The Ferret reported that parents on the Inner Hebridean island of Luing were fighting the closure of their mothballed local primary school. Locals branded the school the “heart of the community”, and warned that permanent closure could push away young families and fuel depopulation. Children currently have to travel to Easdale primary on neighbouring Seil island, or Kilninver on the mainland – a trip consisting of two buses and a short ferry crossing each way. On 8 June, Argyll and Bute Council’s community services committee voted to start a consultation to shut the school for good from 31 May 2024. Councils have different policies when it comes to making decisions about closing or mothballing schools. For example, Aberdeenshire Council will consider mothballing a primary school when numbers drop to eight or fewer pupils. Dumfries and Galloway monitors schools with 50 per cent or fewer pupils enrolled than each school’s capacity allows. In 2017, the council’s list of schools on this list reached 26. Edit Local Authority Name Status Aberdeen City Council Danestone At Risk Aberdeen City Council Forehill At Risk Aberdeen City Council Glashieburn At Risk Aberdeen City Council Greenbrae At Risk Aberdeen City Council Middleton Park At Risk Aberdeen City Council Bramble Brae At Risk Aberdeen City Council Heathryburn At Risk Aberdeen City Council Manor ...
China has closed its secret police stations in Britain including one allegedly linked to a Glasgow restaurant. The Loon Fung, on Sauchiehall Street, was one of 54 alleged clandestine bases across five continents, according to a human rights group called Safeguard Defenders. The NGO claimed secret police stations were set up by a Chinese state body to monitor dissidents and to influence foreign politicians. The Ferret subsequently revealed that a man linked to Loon Fung met senior UK politicians including Boris Johnson, while he was prime minister. We also revealed that organisations linked to Loon Fung repeatedly invited Nicola Sturgeon to the premises while she was first minister and met with Jeremy Corbyn while he was leader of the Labour Party. Our revelations prompted both the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China and Scottish Liberal Democrats to call for an inquiry into how Chinese state operatives may have attempted to influence political leaders. Revealed: Man linked to Glasgow Chinese ‘secret police station’ wined and dined politicians The Chinese Embassy has now shut all of its secret police stations after being told by the UK Government that running them in British cities — including Glasgow — is “unacceptable”. Security minister Tom Tugendhat this week set out the findings of an investigation into allegations of unofficial Chinese overseas police stations operating in the UK, which stood accused of seeking to intimidate dissidents. In a written statement to parliament on Tuesday, Tugendhat said the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office told the Chinese Embassy that any functions related to such “police service stations” are unacceptable and that they “must not operate in any form”. The Chinese Embassy subsequently responded that all such stations have closed permanently, Tugendhat revealed, adding that any further allegations will be “swiftly investigated in line with UK law”. He explained that UK police visited each of the locations identified by Safeguard Defenders, and carefully looked into the allegations to consider whether any laws have been broken and whether any further action should be taken. Man linked to alleged Chinese secret police met with Boris Johnson “I can confirm that they have not, to date, identified any evidence of illegal activity on behalf of the Chinese state across these sites. We assess that police and public scrutiny have had a suppressive impact on any administrative functions these sites may have had,” Tugendhat said. “However, these ‘police service stations’ were established without our permission and their presence, regardless of whatever low level administrative activity they were performing, will have worried and intimidated those who have left China and sought safety and freedom here in the UK. This is unacceptable.” In recent months Police Scotland also visited Loon Fung but said no crimes or offences had been identified. MPs previously called for the stations to be shut down and the people operating them to be kicked out of the country. In April, US federal agents arrested two New York residents for allegedly operating a Chinese “secret police station” in the Chinatown district of Manhattan. China said it firmly opposed what it called US “slanders and smears”. Featured image credit: iStock and Bohdana Pasichniuk
Highland Council has launched an investigation into allegations that a primary school playground was sprayed with a toxic pesticide in breach of council policy. Parents at Ullapool primary school say that weedkiller was used without permission in outdoor play areas in April. They suspect it was glyphosate, which has been linked to cancer and blamed for harming wildlife. Highland Council agreed a “partial ban” on glyphosate in 2019, which included children’s play areas. The school also has a “no weedkiller” policy, and last year requested that none be sprayed on its premises. According to Ailsa McLellan, who has two sons at Ullapool primary school, someone walked into the playground without consent in the week beginning 17 April, and “liberally” sprayed weedkiller around play equipment and fruit trees, leaving patches of dead brown grass. “I was horrified to see what looked like glyphosate use in the area that the kids play every school day given the potentially serious impacts to human health and the environment from exposure to this chemical,” she told The Ferret. “It is hard to understand how this happened without consent or knowledge of school staff. The response from Highland Council has been terrible. They have not taken concerns seriously.” Pesticide ‘probably carginogenic’ Glyphosate has faced bans in over 40 countries around the world. In 2015 it was classified as “probably carcinogenic to humans” by scientists at the United Nations’ World Health Organisation. Researchers have also concluded the pesticide could harm wildlife, and leave natural ecosystems more vulnerable to pollution and climate change. But some regulators and farmers have insisted the chemical is safe if used properly. The Ferret reported in July 2022 that glyphosate was still being used by all Scotland’s 32 local authorities, despite demands for immediate bans from trade unions and environmental groups. Weed killer linked to cancer still used by every Scots council The Pesticide Action Network UK (PAN UK), said it was “concerning” that Ullapool school’s no-weedkiller policy seemed to have been ignored. “Pesticides should have no place in schools,” said the campaign group’s policy officer, Nick Mole. “The risk of exposing children to their potentially harmful effects runs counter to providing a safe, healthy environment for young minds to learn and play. PAN UK urges Highland Council to get to the bottom of this and find out whether pesticide spraying was undertaken on their behalf.” Highland Council told The Ferret it had banned the use of glyphosate at children’s play areas, along with other sports and recreation facilities. “We are aware of concerns raised over use of glyphosate in the grounds of Ullapool school,” said a council spokesperson. “The council is investigating this matter and therefore we are unable to provide further information until this is complete.” When asked when the investigation might be completed, the council was not able to give “any indication of timescale at this point.” Cover image shows play area at Ullapool primary school after it was sprayed with weedkiller. Photo thanks to Janice Piggot Patterson.
Scottish drug users must be given better access to treatment to prevent drug related deaths according to a new study, which also claims consumption rooms and safer supply initiatives are needed to save lives. Published in the Lancet, the research, led by Glasgow Caledonian University, found death rates for those not in drug treatment – including opioid replacements like methadone and buprenorphine –were three and a half times higher than for those who were. But the study, which involved about 50,000 people, also found that death rates in those in treatment have increased over the last decade. The researchers claim this suggests offering medication is not enough on its own. They said additional harm reduction measures were “necessary” including supervised drug consumption spaces. Safer supply initiatives, such as prescribing benzodiazepines to those taking street valium, should also be offered according to study authors, who said issues such as poverty and inequality must also be addressed. Drug consumption room given backing Last year, then drug policy minister Angela Constance MSP, confirmed the Scottish government was working with police, health authorities and the Crown Office “to examine how a safer drug consumption facility could operate within the existing legal framework”. But the Home Office, which controls drug laws, remained opposed to proposals. Some campaigners – while backing harm reduction measures – said more focus should be on ensuring people had access to better drug treatment and workers with experience of recovery, who could “offer people hope”. Concerns have been raised that guidelines which should ensure people struggling with addiction get access to the treatment of their choice – from prescriptions to counselling and rehab – known as Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) standards, are not being enforced. Charity Favor UK, along with other campaigners, have worked with the Scottish Conservatives on the Right to Addiction Recovery Bill, which would give people a legal right to treatment. In 2021 – when 1,330 people died from drug related deaths in Scotland – the Scottish Government declared the situation “a public health emergency”. Though additional funding of £250m was released in response, some claim not enough has been done to improve people’s life chances. Between January and December 2022, 1,092 suspected drug deaths were recorded but official data will not be released until next month. The Caledonian University study notes drug-related death rates among people who were dependent on opioids in Scotland more than trebled between 2011 and 2020. Death rates increased across all age groups, disproving claims that deaths were due to drug users getting older. Drug related death rates were almost three and a half times higher among those who were not in treatment. Dr Andrew McCauley, Glasgow Caledonian University Dr Andrew McAuley, of Glasgow Caledonian University’s school of health and life sciences’ research centre for health (ReaCH) and principal researcher, said the study “confirmed” the protective effect of opioid replacement treatments. “Drug related death rates were almost three and a half times higher among those who were not in treatment,” he said. “However, unlike in many other countries, we found that drug related death risk for people on opioid agonist therapy (OAT) also increased over time, highlighting that on its own it is not enough to address Scotland’s epidemic. “Other interventions, such as take-home naloxone, drug consumption rooms and drug checking services, are necessary,” he added. “Addressing the socioeconomic inequalities which are driving drug dependence should also be prioritised.” Kirsten Horsburgh, chief executive of the Scottish Drugs Forum, said Scotland’s Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) standards should be “fully implemented at pace to ensure that people can access good quality treatment immediately” with treatment offered for those using cocaine and benzodiazepines, no...
Coffee giant Costa wanted to help write Scottish Government guidelines on the future of drive-through restaurants, sparking concerns about lobbyists’ efforts to weaken new planning rules. Scotland’s new national planning framework, called NPF4, includes tough restrictions on the building of new drive-throughs, which will only go ahead in areas where they are explicitly backed by local councils. The new rules are aimed at reducing climate emissions from car use and tackling climate change. Freedom of information (FoI) responses received by The Ferret have shown that Costa was unhappy with the new rules, warning the government they would “significantly limit” the building of drive-throughs. The coffee chain – which owns numerous drive-through shops in Scotland – added there was “potential for indecision” on new and ongoing applications as councils adapt to the national framework, which could take around five years. Costa offered to help the government write a “working draft” of guidance to steer planning decisions on drive-throughs over the transitional five-year period. The government refused the company’s offer, but expressed “regret” that it was unable to share a copy of the guidance “for further drafting changes” because it was about to be published. Environmental campaigners said it was “outrageous that Costa thought they might be allowed to help draft the rules that will apply to them in future”. The Scottish Government said “stakeholders do not draft” any of its guidance “but their input is welcome” and it engages “appropriately with them”. It is outrageous that Costa thought that they might be allowed to help draft the rules that will apply to them in future. Richard Dixon, former director of Friends of the Earth Scotland Some green activists commended the government for pushing back against lobbying. However, one Scottish Labour MSP said the fact the government expressed “regret” at its inability to take up Costa’s offer “begs the question of whether this interference is commonplace when drafting and determining public policy”. Costa claimed it made the offer so that the guidance “fairly reflected the environmental, economic and social contribution made by drive-through developments”. The company told The Ferret it was “strongly supportive” of efforts to “improve environmental outcomes” across Scotland. The NPF4 planning framework was adopted by ministers in February. It will influence all planning decisions across the country. One of its key aims is to help Scotland achieve its goal of reaching net-zero climate emissions by 2045. Transport is currently the country’s biggest source of emissions and there are fears that allowing more drive-throughs will encourage car use and make it more difficult to achieve climate targets. Scotland’s climate plan includes a commitment to reducing car travel by 20 per cent by 2030. Yet NPF4’s stricter rules on drive-throughs come at a time when the sector is growing massively. There are now more than 2,200 drive-throughs in the UK as a whole, and the number increased by 41 per cent in just five years between 2015 and 2020. This growth is partly a result of more shops – including Costa – entering the drive-through market to compensate for reduced footfall in city centres. In Scotland, applications for two new McDonalds drive-throughs – in Ellon in the north east and Larkhall in South Lanarkshire – were lodged last month alone. That response begs the question of whether this interference is commonplace when drafting and determining public policy. Paul Sweeney MSP, Scottish Labour The spike in drive-throughs has faced mounting criticism, particularly in Glasgow, which has nearly 50 of them – more than Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen combined. Opposition centres on the climate impacts of car use – which drive-throughs are seen to encourage – as well as the fact that engine idling at them can cause harmful air pollution which damages human health. Retailers have also been criticised for op...
The white nationalist group, Homeland, deemed Britain’s “most dangerous” UK far right organisation by anti-fascists, has applied to become a political party. The group has made an application to the Electoral Commission under the name Homeland Party, which is currently under review. The commission said it could not comment on ongoing applications but would “assess whether the party’s constitution and membership policy would breach equalities law”. An anti-hate charity said Homeland’s registration bid was an attempt to create a “veneer of legitimacy”. We reported how Kenny Smith, a former British National Party (BNP) Scottish organiser and election candidate – who lives in Skye – led a breakaway faction to form Homeland after the fracturing of PA. New far right group formed after Patriotic Alternative splits The revelations were detailed in a report by the anti-fascist group, Red Flare, which branded Homeland as the “most dangerous group on the British far right”. The Ferret understands the split was owed to a fallout between Smith and PA’s leader Mark Collett, also a former BNP figurehead. Smith and allies were apparently frustrated by PA’s repeated failure to gain registration as a political party, as well as a focus on online, rather than real-life activism. Homeland and PA’s split This is the second split within a month at PA, according to anti-fascist magazine, Searchlight, after one member, who styles himself on Adolf Hitler, broke away to form a military style splinter group, the National Support Detachment. Far right Highland Division whose members posed with weapons targets Elgin Earlier in May, we reported that the man is billed as a keynote speaker in a rally in Elgin on 17 June by the extremist Highland Division – yet another PA splinter group. Last year The Ferret gained access to a private chat group which included Smith and a man who shared a picture of a weapons collection, which included a knife emblazoned with a Nazi swastika. Smith used the chat group to recruit the man – who later left to form Highland Division – to PA Scotland. Smith left PA Scotland in April and is now chairman of Homeland. A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “Extremist far right organisations such as Homeland sometimes try to give themselves a veneer of legitimacy by registering as political parties, but the British electorate consistently sees through them. We will continue to monitor the activities of these fringe groups and expose their true nature.” The Electoral Commission said all applications to register a political party were “subject to detailed assessment”and had to comply with electoral law, “as well as legal obligations under equality laws”. “Voters can also comment on a particular name, description or emblem as part of our assessment process,” a spokesperson added. “Views can be submitted on this page of our website. We will publish the details of decisions taken each month.” Homeland did not respond to requests to comment.
NatureScot has been criticised for signing off £120,000 of taxpayers’ money to a Highland estate for peatland restoration, while also providing subsidies allowing for the burning of heather on overlapping land.The Ferret’s analysis of government grants — using data obtained through freedom of information requests — found that Tulchan Estate, in the Highlands, received Scottish Government funds that would have allowed them to both burn and restore areas of the estate. Tulchan Estate is owned by a billionaire and owned by a company registered in a tax haven.Our findings have prompted criticism of NatureScot — Scotland’s natural heritage body which oversees the grants — for signing off applications for muirburn subsidies, a controversial and potentially environmentally damaging practice on grouse moors, in close proximity to peatland.However Tulchan Estate said it fully complied with all regulatory requirements and confirmed that while the two subsidies included some of the same land area, it did not undertake muirburn and peatland restoration in the same places. The estate insisted it had not seen any “financial benefit” from its peatland restoration work.There is no suggestion of wrong-doing by the estate.Burning heather, known as muirburn, and restoring peatland are rarely compatible. Burning on peatlands can cause damage to the species that call them home and release large quantities of carbon dioxide, the main cause of the climate crisis, into the atmosphere.Reports from the Cairngorms National Park Authority (CNPA) suggest there has been historic burning on one of the sites that was later restored.Freedom of information requests made by The Ferret revealed eight estates were given both subsidies for muirburn and public funding for peatland restoration. Tulchan Estate was the only one where these activities were allowed in overlapping areas of land.The green campaign group REVIVE said it was “shocking” that NatureScot sanctioned muirburn subsidies at all given the environmental damage the practice can cause. The fact that there “appears to be some cross-over with areas of peatland” was “even more problematic”, they claimed.In reply, NatureScot said it “strongly encourages” all parties to follow the Muirburn Code, which stipulates that peatland should not be burned.Tulchan Estate is owned by a Russian-born vodka tycoon, Yuri Shefler, a UK citizen and long-standing critic of the Putin regime.The estate received £120,000 to restore peatland and £13,500 for muirburn.According to a tendering document for the peatland restoration work – dated from December 2021 – a reporter for the CNPA found evidence of “recent and older muirburn” before the start of one peatland restoration project at Tulchan. However, the CNPA found no signs that burning had taken place on peat that was already restored.Peatlands contain large amounts of carbon which are released into the atmosphere when they degrade. Degradation is often caused by adapting peatlands to agricultural use – by draining, peat excavation and frequent burning.Peatlands cover 20 per cent of Scotland, and 80 per cent of that area is currently degraded, making restoration key to helping Scotland achieve its ‘net zero’ target by 2045. Degraded peatlands are the fifth biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in Scotland.Prescribed burning, or muirburn, is controlled burning on moorland to remove the top layer of vegetation and promote new growth. As heather provides shelter and nutrition for grouse, muirburn is common on sporting estates where the birds are hunted.Tulchan Estate is owned by SF Scottish Properties Limited, registered in Guernsey and ultimately owned by Tulchan Trust, also registered in Guernsey.Shefler — a UK citizen — reportedly bought Tulchan Sporting Estates, the company that owns Tulchan Estate, for £25m in 2017.A freedom of information request found that in 2016 the estate designated over 17 km2 where burning heather was “required” in an a...
A ‘world-first’ trial of hydrogen heating systems in Fife is yet to sign up its targeted number of local households despite offering residents a £1,000 ‘bribe’ to take part.SGN – which manages Scotland’s gas networks – is aiming to sign up 300 households in Levenmouth to take part in the H100 project. H100 is set to trial the use of hydrogen as a greener alternative to natural gas to heat homes in the area.One of the project’s main aims is to prove “customer acceptance, interest and appetite for hydrogen heat” ahead of a UK government decision on whether to invest in the technology in 2026.But SGN has told The Ferret that since registration opened in November last year, “over 250 households” have signed up for the trial. The company is still short of its 300 household target despite offering residents £1,000, free hydrogen appliances and promising them that their heating bills will remain the same as with gas.Before the money was first offered to residents in August, the project had signed up just 50 homes, according to SGN. A company spokesperson told The Ferret that H100 had received “overwhelming support” in the project area, adding that sign ups had ramped up since it started “direct recruitment” in October.Politicians and campaigners who are sceptical about the use of hydrogen for home heating are unconvinced.They argued that the current failure to meet the target showed Fife residents “share their scepticism” even when SGN is “bribing” them.One claimed that the project was “looking like a failed side-note in history” and that all concerned should be “cutting their losses” and “investing their money in insulation and heat pumps”.Home heating currently accounts for 14 per cent of the UK’s carbon emissions, so finding a cleaner alternative to natural gas is an essential part of the transition to net zero.Hydrogen is one touted solution because it does not produce any carbon emissions – the main cause of the climate crisis – when it is burned.Using hydrogen – rather than other green technologies such as heat pumps – is the preferred decarbonisation pathway for the UK gas industry.The sector believes using hydrogen would be a “low cost and low disruption” way to make home heating greener because much of the current gas network infrastructure, supply chains and workforce would remain intact.Hydrogen heating remains a controversial idea, however. Critics argue that it is expensive and an inefficient use of both renewable energy and hydrogen resources, while there are concerns about indoor air pollution.Environmentalists have also pointed out that while H100 will use ‘green’ hydrogen produced using renewable energy, most UK hydrogen still comes from fossil fuels so does create significant climate emissions.The H100 project is looking like a failed side-note in history even before the first hydrogen flows.Richard DixonHomes which sign up to participate in H100 will have hydrogen – produced by a nearby offshore wind farm – piped into them using a newly built network.They will receive free hydrogen boilers, cookers and fires which will also be maintained at no cost for the duration of the trial.The UK energy regulator, Ofgem, is the biggest single H100 investor, having provided £18m through its annual energy network innovation competition. The Scottish Government has also provided £6.2m in funding.Households were due to start receiving hydrogen during 2023, with the project expected to run through to the end of March 2027.But due to delays SGN now says it is “confident” of delivering hydrogen to the homes in the second half of 2024.Meanwhile, a demonstration facility which was a key part of plans to engage with the community will not begin construction until January next year, nearly a year after it was supposed to be opened to the public.H100 is one of a number of gas industry initiatives aimed at providing evidence that hydrogen is a viable replacement for gas ahead of a UK Government decision on whether ...
The family of Sheku Bayoh have spoken out about their “anger” and “dismay” over the behaviour of Gordon Jackson, one of Scotland’s most senior lawyers, who they believe was the legal representative apparently watching a football match during the inquiry into Bayoh’s death.The inquiry chair, Lord Bracadale, opened the day’s session by dressing down legal representatives for “inappropriate” and “disrespectful” behaviour. The inquiry is investigating the circumstances of Bayoh’s death while being restrained by six police officers in Kirkcaldy in May 2015.Bracadale did not name any individual lawyers in his remarks.But in a statement the family identified Jackson and said they were “dismayed” by his behaviour. The senior lawyer is representing police officers PC Kayleigh Goode, Ashley Tomlinson and Alan Paton.The family claimed this was not the first time he had behaved inappropriately. The Ferret has contacted Jackson for a response.The senior Kings Counsel formerly represented former first minster Alex Salmond against charges of sexual assault including rape in 2020.He was referred to the Faculty of Advocates committee after he was recorded naming the former First Minister’s accusers on an Edinburgh to Glasgow train during the trial.Bayoh inquiry told behaviour ‘wholly unacceptable’On Wednesday, he was seen leaving the inquiry room after audio from his mobile phone indicated he was watching a football game.Inquiry chair Lord Bracknell also warned legal representatives about “wholly unacceptable” facial expressions – which The Ferret understands included eye rolling – when some evidence was being heard.His response was prompted by a submission raised by Claire Mitchell KC – the lawyer for Bayoh’s family – at the close of Wednesday’s session.Referring to the incident Mitchell asked the chair to ensure that phones were used “for communication only”.She said: “The chair can make their own inquiries but it sounded like [the] football. This sort of interruption is clearly not what we or indeed the family wished for.”Lord Bracadale, who considered the submission overnight, commenced the session on 1 December with remarks about a series of concerns that had been raised to him about the behaviour of legal representatives.He said that while yesterday’s incident had been a “particularly egregious” example of “inappropriate” behaviour it was “not the first time” that issues had been raised.“I have no difficulty with mobile phones being used silently,” he added. “But inappropriate use within the hearing room is distracting and disrespectful”.Other concerns raised included legal representatives “engaging in lengthy conversations during the evidence,” he added. “This can be distracting in the hearing room.”He added: “Third, I have received legal representations to the effect that certain legal representatives have on occasion reacted to some of the evidence by adopting inappropriate facial expressions,” he said. “If that has been happening it would, on any view, be very disrespectful and wholly unacceptable”.Lord Bracknell concluded by reminding all legal representatives that the evidence hearings were being broadcast and “watched around the world” making it “as surprising as it is disappointing” that the behaviour had taken place.We were left so angry and found this behaviour not only to be disrespectful to us as a family, our lawyers, the Chair and assessors but smacked of contempt for this inquiry.Kadi JohnsonKadi Johnson, Sheku Bayoh’s sister, said: “We are in a public inquiry to hear evidence of how and hopefully why my brother Sheku died. Yesterday afternoon Gordon Jackson KC, a lawyer for three of the officers, PCs Smith, Good and Tomlinson, had the audacity to sit and watch football during the evidence of an expert witness Joanne Caffrey.“We were left so angry and found this behaviour not only to be disrespectful to us as a family, our lawyers, the Chair and assessors but smacked of contempt for this inquiry. N...
The Scottish Government has launched an investigation after a bullet shell was found during an inspection of a fish farm off North Uist. A report by the Scottish Government said that its fish health inspectorate (FHI) found a “loose bullet casing” on one of the walkways between the cages at Mowi’s Groatay fish farm on 26 July 2022. Inspectors also noted “multiple sightings of seals near the cages” while they were at Groatay, and added the site was “experiencing seal predation”. A Scottish Government spokesperson confirmed an investigation — led by Marine Scotland — is underway following the inspection at the site. Mowi has strongly denied any wrongdoing and said it is not aware of the ongoing investigation. The company’s communications director, Ian Roberts, said: “Our farmers understand and fully comply with the laws that govern our business, and all firearms had been removed from the farm sites when the Scottish Government implemented the ban [on shooting seals] in January last year. “The bullet casing found on one of our farm sites in July was severely degraded and appeared to be several years old.” Critics of the salmon farming industry called for a “robust” probe into the matter and for the Scottish Government to take appropriate action if there is any evidence that seals have been illegally shot at Groatay. Seals have previously been shot by licensed farmers to prevent them breaking into salmon pens and eating the fish. But killing a seal with a gun to protect farmed salmon in Scotland has been illegal since February 2021 after the government stopped granting licences to people to shoot them. Ministers stopped granting licences for the shooting of seals due to fears that the US would stop importing Scottish salmon. America is banning imports from countries that allow seals to be killed to protect fisheries. The bullet casing found on one of our farm sites in July was severely degraded and appeared to be several years old. Ian Roberts, Mowi Scotland’s salmon exports to the US are worth nearly £200m each year. The Ferret reported in April 2021 that a £10,000 reward was put up for information on the illegal shooting of seals after Scottish Salmon Watch matched a £5,000 reward offered by the charity Animal Concern. The fish farming industry has previously said that it takes animal welfare seriously and has been investing in non-lethal deterrents for seals “for years”. The FHI report for Groatay states that nylon nets were in use at the site and that the farm had plans to put more in place. Nets are used to protect fish from seals without the need for culling. However, Don Staniford, who is the director of $camon $cotland, formerly known as Scottish Salmon Watch, said that the investigation might “jeopardise” the Scottish salmon industry’s exports to the US. “The killing of seals is not only illegal but it’s ethically and morally wrong,” he added. Animal Concern said the discovery of the shell was “deeply concerning” and called for a “robust” investigation by Marine Scotland. A spokesperson said: “We will await with interest Marine Scotland’s findings and will be calling on the Scottish Government to take the appropriate action those conclusions suggest.” A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “An investigation is currently underway following an inspection at Groatay Fish Farm. As this is a live investigation, no further comment can be made at this time”. Cover image thanks to Thomas Bonometti
Buckfast is one of Scotland’s most iconic and controversial drinks. The highly caffeinated tonic wine sells in significant quantities in Scotland, and has achieved a level of recognition as a cultural signifier of the country. However, the legacy of Buckfast has not always been positive, and it has been regularly mentioned as a factor in criminal cases. Recently, a post on Reddit shared 62,000 times and a widely-shared article on Lad Bible reported that the drink has been linked to a high proportion of crimes committed in Scotland. [aesop_quote type=”block” background=”#282828″ text=”#ffffff” align=”center” size=”1.5″ quote=”Buckfast Linked To Over 40 Percent Of Arrests In Scotland” cite=”Lad Bible article” parallax=”off” direction=”left” revealfx=”inplace”] Ferret Fact Service looked into this claim and found it to be False. Evidence Buckfast is a fortified wine which is licensed by the Buckfast Abbey in Devon, where it was originally made by Benedictine monks. It has gained popularity in Scotland, particularly in the Glasgow region. The claim in the Reddit post that Buckfast is less than 0.5 per cent of Scotland’s alcohol sales is cited in a number of media reports on the drink. TIL Buckfast, a caffeinated tonic wine, accounts for less than half a percent of Scotland’s total alcohol sales but is a factor in over 40 percent of arrests. from todayilearned In 2010, The Economist attributed the figure to Jim Wilson of J Chandler & Co, distributor for Buckfast. He said: “You have to look at this in its entirety. We are a small part of a £7bn industry. We are less than 0.5 per cent of the total alcohol market.” First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also made reference to the figure in 2010 when she was health secretary, saying: “Obsessing about Buckfast, which accounts for 0.5% of alcohol sold in Scotland, ignores the elephant in the room, which is the excessive consumption of cheap alcohol that’s fuelling health and social problems and costing Scotland billions every year.” More up to date figures are harder to come by, but according to the trade magazine The Grocer sales in 2017 are up 7.9 per cent and the product made £26.9m over last year. The main statistic in the recent claims is that Buckfast is a factor in more than 40 per cent of arrests in Scotland. This figure is credited to a 2015 Scottish Prisons Service report, but the prisoner survey from that year makes no specific reference to Buckfast. Two in five (40 per cent) reported being under the influence of alcohol when they committed their offence. For young offenders, the rate was over 60 per cent. Media reports have mentioned the specific figure of 43 per cent of crimes linked to Buckfast. This appears to originate from a Scottish Centre for Crime and Justice Research report published in 2009 which surveyed 172 offenders in 2007. It dealt with alcohol and violence specifically of young male offenders, and found the overall percentage who admitted to drinking at the time of their offence was 69.8. Among those who admitted to drinking before their offence, 43.4 per cent drank Buckfast. This equates to around 28 per cent of all those who were surveyed. The study also showed that while the drink was popular in the West of Scotland, it barely featured in young offenders responses in other parts of the country. It states that: “Buckfast tonic wine was most commonly the favourite drink of young offenders from Lanarkshire, and was distinctly less popular in large parts of the east of Scotland.” The drink was mentioned in 5,638 crime reports in Strathclyde from 2006 to 2009, according to data revealed in a freedom of information request. This represents less than one per cent of all crime reports in the period. Ferret Fact Service verdict: False Buckfast has been mentioned in a number of criminal incidents in Scotland, but the statistics do not show it is a factor in 40 per cent of crimes. The survey where that figure originates relates to young male offenders, and less than 30 per...
This week’s episode is a special one, focusing on our series in conjunction with The Herald called Who Owns Urban Scotland. Ali and Paul are back, and we’re joined by Ferret co-editor Karin Goodwin, who explains the difficulties in tracing the owners of major properties and land in Scotland’s cities and towns. Secrecy domains, tax havens, complex company structures and remote ownership are all covered, and Karin shows us how it can be almost impossible to work out who is ultimately behind your local high street, shopping centre or vacant land. Show notes: Read all our stories on Who Owns Urban Scotland here. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. Cover image thanks to Jui-Chi Chan/iStock Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
Barriers such as red tape, incomplete data and difficulties tracking down absentee landlords must be urgently tackled to help more urban communities access the right to buy land and buildings. Campaigners told The Ferret that the benefits of community ownership of city land and buildings could be “huge”. But they said the process can take many years, involve “jumping through multiple hoops” and cost thousands in legal fees. Community right to buy legislation was first introduced in Scotland in 2003 to support land reform and help local communities to gain ownership and manage the land they live on. In 2015 the Community Empowerment Act gave urban communities the same rights afforded to those in rural areas. But some campaigners told The Ferret it had not yet been delivered in practice. They called for a more straightforward and transparent process and said it should be less expensive and legally challenging. According to official Scottish Government figures from December 2021, just five per cent of community buyouts were in urban areas. Since the 2016 legislation passed, 711 community buyouts of plots of land or buildings were recorded across Scotland – just 17 transfers were in an urban area. However when The Ferret requested details of all urban community buyouts, it found a number of omissions, including that of Glasgow’s Kinning Park Complex, which was backed by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. Others left off the Scotland-wide annual statistics include Beatroute Arts, which completed the community asset transfer process in April 2021 after more than five years. Govanhill Baths, which confirmed its community ownership a month earlier after a high profile campaign lasting 20 years, was also missing. Critics raised concerns that using statistics which were “full of gaps” meant policy being made “without a clear idea of whether it is needed”. The Scottish Government said it gathered statistics from “several sources” but as some of these relied on self-reporting by organisations involved in asset transfers, the official data was expected to be “an under-estimate”. Community land ownership has been transformative in hundreds of communities across Scotland, but the potential in urban areas hasn’t been delivered yet Carey Doyle, Community Land Scotland Craig Dalzell, head of policy and research at Common Weal, said: “This isn’t the first time I’ve been made aware of important gaps in public data but that doesn’t lessen the seriousness of it.” He claimed the community ownership transfers system was “complex and burdensome” even for smaller transfers in urban areas. “There are also known concerns about resources and funding for upkeep,” he added. Jenny Reeve, director of Beatroute Arts – the first organisation to seek community transfer of a Glasgow City Council owned building – said the legislation offered “massive benefits”. “We know that we can keep providing for the needs of our community and we don’t have to worry about anyone rolling down the shutters and telling us that’s not possible,” she said. “But we really feel for everyone who is fighting to get through this process.” She called for a more straightforward system to help other community groups own their land and buildings. “As good as the council legal team may be at commercial matters, it would help enormously if they had better understanding of, and sympathy for, charity and community empowerment law,” she added. “That would make this process easier for everyone.” Angus Hardie, director of Scottish Community Alliance, said that to communities trying to buy in cities, the process could feel “like running up a downward escalator” and claimed city councils could be particularly resistant to hand over power to community groups. The issue should be given greater attention in cities, he added, where, due to land values, there was “much more of a problem in respect of the concentration of land ‘wealth’”. Due to the costs of urban land, involving community controlled housin...
Once considered one of Scotland’s best shopping streets, Sauchiehall Street is now the most struggling. Dr Allison Orr and Dr James White from the University of Glasgow join The Ferret to talk about how we can regenerate our high streets. It’s Friday lunchtime on Glasgow’s Sauchiehall Street and the accordion-playing busker seems upbeat despite the rain. People stride past umbrellas up or heads bowed against the weather. But, notes Dr Allison Orr, senior lecturer in retail at Glasgow University, not many have shopping bags. This was once considered one of Scotland’s best shopping streets. Now these pedestrianised city blocks are home to a forest of ‘To Let’ signs, closing down sales and boarded up shop fronts. Yesterday we revealed it now has the highest city centre vacancy rate in Scotland, with 36 per cent of its properties lying empty. The Ferret has been investigating Who Owns Urban Scotland, looking at high street, leisure and venue ownership, urban infrastructure and city-wide vacancy rates. The series has examined how Scotland’s city centres are at crisis point, fuelled by the rise of online retail and turbo charged by pandemic aftershocks and the rocketing cost of living. In response local and national governments have produced a flurry of strategies and masterplans. The Ferret joined Orr, and her Glasgow University colleague Dr James White, professor in planning and urban design, who have been working together over the last three years – along with academics from Sheffield University – to look at how we repair and regenerate our high streets. We need to be less restrictive about what can happen in disused spaces. Dr James White, University of Glasgow 1. Incentives for investment Since the collapse of BHS in 2016, research has shown that a fifth of the former stores – which often occupied large, prime sites – were still vacant five years later. Scottish examples included Aberdeen’s Union Street store, where in late 2021 the council stepped in, purchasing the building along with the former 1970s Aberdeen Market shopping centre. The redevelopment masterplan for shops, galleries, restaurants and bars, is expected to cost £75m, including £20m from the UK Government. In Sauchiehall Street, the former art deco BHS building is still vacant, dilapidated and owned – as our investigation yesterday revealed – in a tax haven. White describes vacant buildings like these as “blackholes, sucking energy out of the rest of the street. There’s an emotional impact.” To get them filled, he says, we have to think flexibly, incentivising leisure uses where there’s no demand for retail – from cinemas to bowling – with hotels, restaurants and bars an important part of the mix. “We need to be less restrictive about what can happen in disused spaces,” he says. He and Orr agree knowledge of ownership is key. Their Repair research team recommended the city councils keep property owners databases to monitor empty properties and record “creeping changes” undermining city centre vitality. Orr claims we should consider town centre investment zones where key areas are identified and support – conditional on regeneration – is available for businesses to work together on plans that both benefit them and the local community. 2. Find new uses for property above shops It’s not just about ground level, Orr notes. We stop outside a now rundown but beautiful 1930s building, its second and third floors empty, though the shop front below is in use. She explains: “At one time you would have had whole units let out as one. But retailers no longer want that so these are sitting there empty.” Councils, she says, lose out because they can’t claim business rates, and The Ferret found vacancy rates included empty flats above shops in cities across the country. In global centres like London or New York these could be swanky architects offices or creative industry hubs, says White. Here, the finance required for refurbishment makes that unlikely. “So this is partly a...
Sauchiehall Street is Scotland’s most struggling high street with 36 per cent of its shops, offices and domestic properties now lying vacant, according to analysis by The Ferret. The once popular shopping street has been beset by challenges in recent years including a fire which broke out above Victoria’s nightclub in March 2018, followed by a second fire at Glasgow School of Art just months later. But similar problems are facing city high streets across Scotland. The Ferret found once prominent shopping thoroughfares — including Murray Place and King Street in Stirling and Dundee’s Reform Street and Murraygate — had vacancy rates of 18 and 19 per cent, which are above the UK average of 14 per cent. The collapse of flagship department stores such as Debenhams, Frasers and BHS, compounded by the brutal impact of the pandemic on retail, has been blamed. But many shops have lain empty for years. The high street vacancy rates were calculated after The Ferret analysed data from Scottish Assessors Association (SAA) business rate data from October 2022. On Sauchiehall Street, the former BHS store – a large three-storey, art-deco building where pigeons now roost – has been vacant since the chain went into administration in 2016. In 2021 PGIM Real Estate UK Ground Lease Fund, registered in Jersey which is a tax haven, submitted a planning application for food and retail use. But by May 22, it had reportedly been taken on by Future Investments registered in the British Virgin Isles. Neither company responded to requests for comment. Other shops to have gone under include Greaves Sports, which closed in 2017 and Glasgow institution, Watt Brothers, in 2019. Last week Glasgow City Council announced plans to revitalise the so-called Golden Z zone – which takes in Sauchiehall Street and Buchanan Street. Buchanan Galleries will be redeveloped and it is hoped former retail space will be used as flats, student accommodation and hotels. It has also commissioned research into repurposing city centre buildings. But some said it would be “extremely challenging” to find adequate investment to fully revitalise the rundown street, particularly as financial institutions had previously had “their fingers burned” by investing in retail. Edinburgh’s vacancy rates were far lower, according to the figures. But concerns have been raised in recent years about the quality of shops on Princes Street, with even Poundland closing last January. The Ferret counted 15 retail units on Princes Street that were either vacant, or had been put up to let. Former tenants included EE, Samsung, TopShop and Black Sheep Coffee, with many large units boarded up and covered in graffiti. The former Jenners store, owned by the Danish fashion retail billionaire Anders Povlsen – the richest person in Scotland – is being refurbished as an upmarket hotel and is not expected to open before 2025. Vacancy rates in several shopping centres were also high. Dundee’s Wellgate shopping centre had a vacancy rate of 41 per cent. Last week Dundee City Council said it would consider demolishing the shopping centre, owned by Belgate Estates. Edinburgh’s Ocean Terminal, had a vacancy rate of 27 per cent, while St Enoch shopping centre’s was 23 per cent. Land banking Paul Sweeney, Labour MSP for Glasgow, claimed the empty units drastically reduced footfall, and dwindling revenues were increasingly “impossible to ignore”. “Our high streets and city centres should be the lifeblood of our local economies,” he said. “Currently, too many high streets are littered with empty units that could easily be utilised, but the rent and rates make it completely unaffordable for local businesses to enter the market. “With the overseas owners of the properties themselves more interested in the profit margin from land banking their asset than whether the unit is being utilised, there is no incentive for them to rent the units at less than the going rate.” Too often property owners seem content to leave shops empty...
Local authorities own over 1,100 vacant properties in Scotland’s cities while real estate investors, tax haven firms and others are responsible for more than 500 high street vacancies, The Ferret can reveal. According to figures from the Scottish Assessors Association (SAA), nearly one in five vacant properties in Glasgow are owned by the council, which has almost a third of its owned properties lying empty. This was triple the proportion of that in Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee, where at least one in 10 council properties were unoccupied. As part of our Who Owns Urban Scotland series, which investigates the firms behind major parts of Scotland’s towns and cities, The Ferret looked at the owners of vacant properties in Scotland’s four largest cities. Vacant properties – owned by a range of proprietors – were particularly prevalent on Glasgow’s Sauchiehall Street, where more than a third were vacant, and on Aberdeen’s Union Street, where one in six lay empty. The Scottish Conservatives said these “alarming figures must act as a wake-up call” to the Scottish Government. They urged the government to “provide pandemic-level assistance” by reinstating business rates relief and freezing the rate used to calculate commercial property values. The Scottish Government said it had offered the lowest business rates in the UK for over 95 per cent of non-domestic properties, alongside a forecasted £801m rates relief package and other economic recovery and town centre initiatives. The SAA, which sets business rates, relies heavily on self-reporting of changes in ownership, which means the occupancy status of some properties may have changed. Some councils and organisations claimed the data was skewed because not all of the vacant properties were available for lease. Residential properties do not feature on the SAA’s database. Our analysis of the official figures show that councils owned 1,117 vacant business property units, including shops, offices and plots of land. SAA data also showed that of the 3,575 city high street properties listed across Scotland’s eight cities, 535 (15 per cent) were vacant. Glasgow In Scotland’s largest city, 30 per cent of the council’s 2,639 properties were vacant. Glasgow City Council and its various arms owned 18 per cent of all vacant city properties. These included 300 plots of land, 165 offices, 127 shops and 65 workshops. City Property Glasgow is a council subsidiary set up to “manage and dispose” surplus properties. Some 28 per cent of its properties were vacant. Its 356 vacancies – mostly shops, offices and workshops – accounted for eight per cent of all city vacancies. A spokesperson for City Property Glasgow (Investments) LLP said that the main reasons for vacancies were “the effects of the Coronavirus pandemic coupled with the current economic climate” and a reduced demand for retail. “CPGI is in the process of considering potential options for the repurposing of longer term void properties in our portfolio,” they added. Swathes of vacant properties were also held by real estate firms – some of which are based in tax havens like Luxembourg, Jersey, Guernsey, Monaco and the US state of Delaware. The 117 vacant offices, workshops, storage spaces and other properties owned by Glasgow’s Spectrum Properties made up more than a third of its entire city property portfolio. More than a quarter of Glasgow properties – mostly offices – held by the Guernsey-owned Dunaskin and Carrick Properties were unoccupied. They had 102 and 75 vacancies respectively. In June, the Evening Times reported that Carrick-owned empty Queen Street properties had led to vegetation growing out of the building’s degraded exterior. Dunaskin said that its vacancies consisted of unoccupied individual units within multi-occupancy buildings and that many had since been let. “Current occupancy/vacant levels simply represent a normal level of turnover of tenants, not vacant properties,” a spokesperson said. Edinburgh Some 10 per cent of t...
One of the firms building broadband services across Scotland’s towns and cities is backed by a state-owned Emirati company which invested in an Israeli firm behind controversial spyware called Pegasus. CityFibre — which is rolling out a fibre optic network infrastructure across the UK — has received £800m from Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala), an Abu Dhabi fund owned by the state. In April, the Financial Times reported that Mubadala Capital, part of Mubadala, had invested in NSO Group — an Israeli tech firm known globally for making hacking software called Pegasus. Pegasus can be installed remotely without a surveillance target ever having to open a document or website link. Once a phone has been infected with Pegasus, it can read messages and emails, listen to calls, record passwords, and even track visited locations. NSO Group says that Pegasus is sold only to government agencies to target criminals and terrorists. However the spyware is alleged to have been deployed by foreign governments against dissidents, journalists, diplomats and members of the clergy. In April this year it was reported that the office of then UK prime minister, Boris Johnson, had been targeted by a suspected spyware attack using Pegasus. In November 2021, the US Government blacklisted NSO Group saying it had acted “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the US”. CityFibre describes itself as the “UK’s largest independent, wholesale only, fibre operator”. Its ultimate parent company is called Connect InfrastructureTopco Limited (CITL), which appointed Khaled Alqubaisi as a director in June this year. Alqubaisi, from Abu Dhabi, is chief executive officer of infrastructure investments at Mubadala, which has been a shareholder in CITL since August 2021, according to Companies House. CityFibre is currently engaged in a £4bn investment programme to roll out fibre infrastructure to up to eight million UK homes by 2025. Ross Greer MSP, of the Scottish Greens, said: “Despite the billions it spends on PR and whitewashing its abuses, the Emirate regime is a brutal and authoritarian dictatorship, and I would be concerned about it having any aspect of influence or control over our vital infrastructure.” He added: “NSO’s spyware has been implicated in the targeting of human rights defenders and even linked to the killing of Jamal Khashoggi (a Saudi Arabian dissident journalist murdered in Turkey) Pegasus is a particularly sinister piece of surveillance technology that has been used by despots and human rights abusers all over the world.” Naomi McAuliffe, programme director for Amnesty Scotland, said: “Last year Amnesty revealed that NSO group profit from widespread human rights violations through the distribution and use of its Pegasus spyware which has been used for unlawful targeted surveillance of activists and journalists. “While the company claimed its spyware is only used for legitimate criminal and terror investigations, it’s clear its technology facilitates systemic abuse. NSO group paint a picture of legitimacy, while profiting from widespread human rights violations.” NSO group paint a picture of legitimacy, while profiting from widespread human rights violations. Naomi McAuliffe, Amnesty Scotland The Scottish Government has committed to providing superfast broadband access — speeds of at least 30 Mbps — to every home and business in Scotland through a project called Reaching 100 per cent (R100). Commercial operators include CityFibre and the firm has been working in Glasgow and Edinburgh this year. The Glasgow city region rollout spans seven of the local authority areas from Renfrewshire in the west to North and South Lanarkshire in the east and Glasgow City, East Renfrewshire and East and West Dunbartonshire Councils in between. In total, more than 2600km of fibre optic infrastructure is being laid in the project – equivalent to the distance from Glasgow to Moscow. The project forms part of CityFibre’s £4bn Gigabit Ci...
Vital parts of Scotland’s infrastructure are linked to tax haven firms, China, multinationals accused of greenwashing, foreign pension funds and an Australian bank dubbed the ‘Vampire Kangaroo’. The Ferret examined companies behind some of the major facilities and services the nation depends upon to operate a modern economy as part of our investigation, Who Owns Urban Scotland. We looked at airports, sea ports, power suppliers, the strategically important Grangemouth oil refinery, and Scotland’s digital infrastructure. Our research found that Scotland’s three largest airports and some major sea ports are linked to offshore entities, and that a firm building Scotland’s digital infrastructure is ultimately owned by a private equity fund. We also found that a Chinese state-owned firm partly controlling Grangemouth oil refinery with Britain’s richest man was accused of violating trade laws earlier this year. Our findings prompted concerns over who owns key national assets and the potential for money to flow from Scotland to firms in secretive locations for tax reasons. However companies stressed that they abide by regulations, provide substantial employment in Scotland and pay tax in the UK as required by law. The Scottish Government said it welcomes private investment for infrastructure and pointed out that legislation around corporate tax avoidance is reserved to the UK Government. Airports Edinburgh Airport is run by a private company called Edinburgh Airport Ltd, a subsidiary of a UK entity called Green Bidco Ltd, whose parent firm, Green Luxco, is registered in Luxembourg. Green Luxco’s parent firm is Green Guernsey Holdings, L.P., based in Guernsey. The ultimate controlling party of the airport is a consortium of investment funds led by Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), a private equity firm headquartered in New York City. GIP’s funds are managed by Global Infrastructure Management LLP which is linked to corporate entities registered in Delaware, a US state deemed a tax haven by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and Harvard Law School Forum. The group running Edinburgh Airport also comprises Future Fund, which is Australia’s sovereign wealth fund, and Australian Retirement Trust, the largest pension fund in Queensland, Australia. A spokesman for Edinburgh Airport told The Ferret: “Edinburgh Airport Limited is the operator of Edinburgh Airport, is incorporated in Scotland and pays full corporation tax on profits and other employment taxes and business rates. As regards [to] transparency, our approach to tax is published on our website, and we are confident that the airport makes a substantial social and economic contribution to Scotland and the UK.” Glasgow Airport and Aberdeen Airport are owned by AGS Airports Ltd, a joint venture between Spanish multinational, Ferrovial, and Australian financial group, Macquarie, which controls half of the business through a firm called AGS Ventures Airports Limited, registered in the tax haven of Jersey. Macquarie, based in Sydney, has been dubbed the ‘Vampire Kangaroo’ for its tough pursuit of profit – a moniker it rejects. It has a swathe of UK assets and claims to have plowed more than £50bn into UK infrastructure projects in recent years. Its projects include the M6 toll road, Southern Water and National Grid’s transmission system. A spokesperson for Macquarie Group told The Ferret: “AGS Ventures Airports Limited is a UK tax resident and pays tax on its income like all other UK companies. We are proud of the contribution we have made to Aberdeen and Glasgow’s international gateways since our investment in 2014, including the additional support provided to help navigate the challenges posed by the pandemic.” The Scottish Government owns Prestwick Airport which it bought for £1 in 2013 to protect jobs after its last owner failed to find a buyer amid mounting losses. Grangemouth refinery Grangemouth – one of six oil refineries in Great Britain – supplies two...
More Scots cultural venues could be at risk of takeovers by multinational firms and private developers — including those with links to tax havens — as the “economic turmoil” in the UK takes its toll, politicians and campaigners have warned. The Scottish arts scene is facing a turbulent financial situation in the aftermath of Covid-19 lockdowns and the midst of the ongoing cost of living and energy crises. A combination of slow ticket sales since venues have reopened, cuts in funding over a number of years, and rising energy costs have reportedly created a “perfect storm” for the sector. Some venues have already collapsed as a result of these financial pressures, while others have been temporarily shuttered to the public to save cash. Analysis by The Ferret, as part of our Who Owns Urban Scotland series, found that the majority of cultural assets in Scotland’s cities remain in the hands of local councils and charities. But others — including recognisable venues like the Edinburgh Playhouse, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, and Glasgow’s King’s Theatre — are owned by global companies with links to offshore tax havens. With the spectre of venue closures hanging over the creative industries, experts told The Ferret that the trend of arts, theatre and music hubs being taken over by major investment firms — including some based offshore — “is likely to deepen over the next year or two of economic turmoil”. Economic downturns such as the one currently being experienced in the UK “very often give rise to consolidation as large players sweep up the liquidated assets at low prices”, one argued. The financial crisis in the arts industry has led to a series of doom-laden predictions about its prospects over the winter. Creative Scotland — the Scottish Government body responsible for culture and the creative industries — claimed that up to a quarter of the 121 organisations it funds could be “insolvent in the next few months”. Its chief executive argued that the current crisis is particularly bad for groups who have to spend a large percentage of their earnings on building costs, like energy and rent. We cannot be in a situation where the purchasers are based in tax havens, leaving our economy susceptible to the whims of private enterprise. Paul Sweeney, Scottish Labour The Edinburgh Filmhouse has already been forced to close suddenly in October — with over 100 staff laid off — after the charity that ran it went into administration. The Edinburgh International Film Festival and Aberdeen’s Belmont Filmhouse also shut their doors as a result of the Centre for the Moving Image going out of business. A petition is urging the Scottish Government and Edinburgh City Council to step in to save the Filmhouse. But there is also likely to be keen interest from private developers. The administrators have said they expect a “high level of demand” for the venue which they describe as an “outstanding development opportunity within Edinburgh’s financial and cultural quarter”. Savills, the company tasked with selling the Filmhouse building, noted it is “suitable for a range of uses subject to achieving the relevant consents”. The Modern Two art gallery in Edinburgh, part of the National Galleries of Scotland, is also closed to the public until the end of the year due to financial difficulties. The UK’s biggest cinema chain, Cineworld, filed for bankruptcy in the US in September prompting concerns about the future of its Scottish sites. Cineworld owns theatres including Edinburgh’s Cameo and Europe’s tallest cinema on Renfield Street in Glasgow. Glasgow’s Pavilion Theatre went up for sale in September, with Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) currently considered the “frontrunner” to buy the venue. Creative Scotland claimed that up to a quarter of the 121 organisations it funds could be “insolvent in the next few months”. ATG is the same firm, with links to Luxembourg and the Cayman Islands, which currently operates the Edinburgh Playhouse and Glasgow’s Kings and Thea...
Global firms linked to tax havens own or operate Scottish theatres, music venues, pubs and bars, analysis by The Ferret has found. Cultural icons including the Edinburgh Playhouse, Glasgow’s King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut, TRNSMT music festival, and pub chains with hundreds of sites across Scotland’s cities are ultimately owned or operated by companies with links offshore. The findings are part of a special series by The Ferret called Who Owns Urban Scotland which investigates the firms behind major parts of Scotland’s towns and cities. Campaigners said the findings showed that much of the prosperity produced by Scotland’s “rich and diverse” cultural sector risks being “hoovered up” by multinational investors based in tax havens. The “homogenising effects” of ownership by “remote and disinterested” investors could also threaten the “variety, experimentation and autonomy” which helps Scottish cultural life to thrive, one expert warned. Meanwhile, pubs and bars across the country are owned by companies based in the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg. These include all of Scotland’s Belhaven bars alongside numerous other community pubs. Many of these local cultural hubs, which are “vital to their customers and communities”, could be converted to housing or shops as tax havens and other overseas investors look to maximise their returns, according to the Campaign for Real Ale. Tax havens are territories which allow businesses and other wealthy individuals to avoid tax and let companies keep much of their financial information secret. The UK treasury is estimated to lose billions of pounds in revenue to them each year. There is no evidence or suggestion that any of the companies are breaking the law and they claim that they pay all relevant tax in the UK. Tax haven links The O2 Academy venues in Edinburgh and Glasgow are ultimately controlled by the American events company, Live Nation, through various holding companies including one — Live Nation International Holdings B.V — registered in the Netherlands. Ranked as the world’s fourth worst tax haven, the Netherlands has been described as the “undisputed European champion in facilitating corporate tax avoidance” by Oxfam. Live Nation, the world’s biggest live events company, is incorporated in the small US state of Delaware, which is itself considered an internal US tax shelter. The company also has a controlling stake in DF Concerts, the firm which organises and promotes the TRNSMT music festival and owns Glasgow gig venue King Tut’s, famous for helping to launch the career of Britpop band, Oasis. The homogenising effects of these remote and disinterested ownership structures are therefore especially concerning when it comes to culture. Chris Hayes, think tank Common Wealth The Edinburgh Playhouse, and Glasgow’s King’s and Theatre Royal, are all part of the Ambassador Theatre Group (ATG) whose properties also include a number of venues in London’s West End. ATG’s ultimate parent company is a firm in Luxembourg, which is itself controlled by two holding companies in the Caymans belonging to the US private equity giant, Providence Equity Partners. The Cayman Islands are ranked as the second worst tax haven in the world by the Tax Justice Network, while Luxembourg is considered the sixth worst. Three of Scotland’s biggest pub chains also have links to the Caymans. Stonegate Group — the UK’s biggest pub group with nearly 4500 sites — is listed as an overseas company at Companies House and was incorporated in Grand Cayman. Its ultimate parent, Stonegate Pub Company TopCo, is registered in Luxembourg, while its overall controlling party is a London-based private equity firm called TDR Capital. Stonegate owns over fifty pubs in Scotland including venues in all of the country’s biggest towns and cities. It runs a number of brands which are popular in the rest of the UK and have sites in Scotland such as Slug and Lettuce cocktail bars, Popworld nightclubs, and the Australian-themed Walkabout bar chai...
More than three out of four of Scotland’s largest city shopping centres are owned in, or linked to tax havens. The Ferret’s exclusive research has prompted calls for greater transparency about the interests of owners and their commitment to Scottish cities. Our research looked at 23 major shopping centres in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee, Aberdeen, Inverness, Perth, Stirling and Dunfermline, excluding retail parks. We found 18 involved ownership structures that made some use of companies registered to tax havens. The revelation comes at a time of crisis for many shopping centres, which are struggling to cope with the post-Covid-19 reality of the retail market. From 2016 to 2021, 83 per cent of department stores including BHS and Debenhams – on which centres traditionally depended on as a “retail anchor” – went under, leaving many scrabbling to fill voids. As part of our Who Owns Urban Scotland series we also found about a third of shopping centres in Scotland’s cities have announced, or are considering, plans for significant redevelopment. Those will see some repositioned as “urban quarters” featuring new city streets, office and residential developments, and public space. Critics called for legislation to end the use of tax haven ownership. Some also warned of shopping centre owners having “unstainable levels of influence” over the make-up of Scotland’s urban centres. Registering a business operating in the UK in a tax haven is not illegal and no wrongdoing is suggested. However critics of the arrangement, such as the Tax Justice Network, have argued it can deprive governments of tax revenues, increases inequalities and undermines smaller and domestic businesses. It is often difficult to discover the real owners – and influence – behind faceless investment funds held fully, or in part, in secretive tax havens. About a third of shopping centres in Scotland’s cities have announced, or are considering, plans for significant redevelopment. A number of shopping centres in Edinburgh are registered offshore, including the Gyle shopping centre in the south west of Edinburgh, which is registered to the Gyle Shopping Centre Unit Trust in the tax haven of Jersey. The Ferret has not been able to establish its ultimate owner. Last year there were reports that a redevelopment of the centre, which opened in 1993, was planned, taking it from a traditional retail centre with a car park, to a “new high street” or local town centre, featuring shop fronts, offices and about 1,000 homes. A spokesperson for the Gyle said that no large scale development proposals were currently on the table. Ocean Terminal was built on the former industrial docklands of Edinburgh’s north side between Newhaven and Leith. It opened in 2001. It is registered to Ocean Terminal Limited through a chain of other companies including Ambassador Real Estate Investments Ltd. That firm is run by Scottish businessman David Gaffney, the co-founder and investor of Ambassador Group, whose involvement was first announced in 2020. The shopping centre is jointly owned by Intermediate Capital Group plc. Last August the majority of its shares were transferred from its subsidiary company registered in the tax haven of Luxembourg – to Are Tallents Ltd, which is owned by the Glasgow-based Ambassador Group. This September plans were approved for the redevelopment of the struggling centre, which had seen major retailers including Marks & Spencer withdraw. It will now be part-demolished and remodelled to include ground-floor shop fronts, bars and restaurants, a cinema and other leisure facilities, co-working and housing. The St James Quarter to the east of Princes Street is majority-owned by Dutch pension investment company APG, a subsidiary of Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP – the largest pension fund in the Netherlands. The remaining 25 per cent share is held by global real estate investment trust (RIET) Nuveen. The joint ownership is organised through a series of investment vehicles, which in...
Only a third of properties on Scotland’s busiest shopping streets are owned by companies registered in the country, The Ferret can reveal, with tax haven firms, property investors, pension firms and overseas companies owning swathes of our city centres. Our exclusive analysis reveals that as of July, just nine per cent of properties on Edinburgh’s Princes Street and 11 per cent on Glasgow’s Buchanan Street were owned by companies registered in Scotland. Across all city centres, just 33 per cent of the properties were owned by Scottish companies – some via tax haven subsidiary firms. Experts called The Ferret’s findings “depressing” and urged tougher legislation to ensure ownership of Scotland’s city centres was fully transparent. There is no suggestion that property owners with links to offshore entities are breaking tax laws. But the Tax Justice Network claimed that less tax will be paid in this country as a result and the offshore businesses are making money from the custom of the very people who suffer from sophisticated tax avoidance practices. Ordinary tax-paying local businesses would be “first to go bust,” the group added. The findings are part of The Ferret’s Who Owns Urban Scotland series, which investigates the firms behind major parts of Scotland’s towns and cities. We need the owners of our high streets to be engaged in their reform. Willie Rennie MSP, Scottish Liberal Democrats We looked at the ultimate owners of all 3,444 shops, offices, car parking facilities and other commercial properties in the main shopping districts of Scotland’s eight cities listed by the Scottish Assessors Association (SAA). Nationwide, 28 per cent of high street properties were owned by companies registered in the rest of the UK – usually London – 27 per cent were owned abroad, while 12 per cent were owned by individuals or unknown entities. Of all 3,444 properties, one in four were owned by companies via offshore tax havens like Luxembourg, Jersey, Guernsey, Switzerland, the Isle of Man and the US state of Delaware. At least 16 per cent were owned by pension funds – including that of a tobacco firm – or firms which provide pensions and insurance. Nearly half of Edinburgh’s Princes Street properties were owned by a London property investor via its insurance subsidiary. About 40 per cent of Sauchiehall and Buchanan Street in Glasgow were owned via tax haven firms, as was 35 per cent of Aberdeen’s Union Street. Streets with fewer flagship stores had more mixed ownership. In Dundee’s main shopping streets, 56 per cent were owned by Scottish companies. This was also the case with 61 per cent of properties on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile and Lawnmarket, and 55 per cent on Inverness High Street. Little public information was available about many of the companies that own our high streets, including what they do and the people behind them. As of July, just nine per cent of properties on Edinburgh’s Princes Street and 11 per cent on Glasgow’s Buchanan Street were owned by companies registered in Scotland. Tax avoidance and transparency campaigners have warned that ultimate company owners in some “secrecy jurisdictions” can avoid property taxes. For example, rather than a traditional property transaction taking place, the ownership of a company could change hands through the selling of shares – with stamp duty avoided altogether. Residential properties do not feature on the SAA’s database. The association relies heavily on self-reporting of changes in ownership, which means some businesses may recently have changed hands. High street pensions, property and tax havens High street properties are often prime investment vehicles for property, pension, insurance and tax haven firms. Almost half of Princes Street properties were owned by Prudential – an insurance firm and subsidiary of the London-based property investor, M&G. Almost half of Princes Street properties were owned by Prudential – an insurance firm and subsidiary of the London-based property i...
Just five of 45 private clinics offering pregnancy scans in Scotland are registered with the national regulatory body, prompting fears unqualified people are wrongly advising pregnant women, an investigation by The Ferret has found. One woman scanned at an unregulated baby scanning clinic was advised she had lost her pregnancy, only to be told later by an NHS clinic that it was progressing normally. Other women said staff performing scans seemed unsure how to use the equipment or interpret scanned images. A loophole in regulation means only those private clinics run by healthcare professionals, a categorisation that does not include sonographers, are required to register with and be inspected by Healthcare Improvement Scotland. The remaining clinics are likely to be run solely by sonographers or, in some cases, those without full training or qualifications. The British Pregnancy Advice Service said The Ferret’s findings were concerning and more needed to be done to regulate these services. Monica Lennon MSP said the loophole should be closed in the interests of health and safety standards. The Ferret found that at least 45 private clinics offering baby scanning were operating in Scotland. The true total is likely to be higher; some clinics exist solely to offer baby scans while other private medical facilities offer these as one of a number of available services. Healthcare Improvement Scotland confirmed that just five clinics providing pregnancy scans had registered. Private ultrasound clinics market themselves in a variety of ways, with some offering a recreational experience where expectant parents can purchase souvenirs such as teddy bears with their baby’s heartbeat, framed scans, or ‘gender reveal’ products. Others suggest they offer ‘reassurance’ scans for those with concerns, gender confirmation scans or early scans. Some clinics are independent, while others operate as part of a franchise. A number of women spoke to The Ferret about their experiences with private scanning clinics in Scotland. Some gave positive reviews, but others commented on the transactional nature of the service, with payment often expected upfront, and a lack of empathy when informing women of abnormalities or concerns. Some said they had been unable to escalate their complaints due to clinics being unregistered. This loophole must be closed in the interests of safety and healthcare standards Monica Lennon MSP Jennifer McCracken, 23, a nurse from Motherwell, booked a scan at Baby Stepps clinic, North Lanarkshire, in December last year, when her pregnancy was still too early to entitle her to a standard NHS scan. The clinic is now registered with HIS but was not at the time of Jennifer’s appointment. She was told at the appointment her pregnancy had ended and there was no fetus visible on the scan. But when she followed up with her local NHS Early Pregnancy Clinic, a second scan found the pregnancy was progressing normally. McCracken now has a healthy four-month-old son. “The sonographer [at the private clinic] told us there was no baby and that it had most likely been reabsorbed. We were advised to phone our NHS Early Pregnancy Clinic but that we should attend with ‘no hope’,” said McCracken, who had been excited to attend the scan with her partner. “She told us, ‘you can get a second opinion, but there’s nothing there’.” McCracken’s private appointment took place on a Saturday and she was unable to access an NHS appointment until late on Tuesday. “I had to phone off work because I was expecting to have a miscarriage,” McCracken, a nurse, told The Ferret. “I spent the weekend in inconsolable floods of tears; every time I went to the toilet I was checking for blood. “But I wasn’t in any pain and I still felt sick from being pregnant – I was really confused and upset. I kept thinking, ‘if there’s a higher power, why are they letting me still feel pregnant?’ It was the worst weekend of my whole entire life.” When she did eventually attend the Ear...
Sponsorship of a climate change summit in Glasgow by energy firms and a bank has been branded as “greenwashing“ by climate change campaigners. The sponsors of the event — called the Climate Emergency Summit — included SSE Renewables, Drax Group and Lloyds Bank Group. However, environmental groups argued these companies are “at the heart of the problem” and conference organisers must “get wise to this greenwashing” – a tactic used by organisations to make themselves look more climate friendly to the public. The two-day networking event at the Glasgow Science Centre last week, was organised by media firm Holyrood Communications and attended by delegates tackling climate change in voluntary, public and private sectors from across Scotland. SSE, a subsidiary of SSE plc, was described in the event programme as “a leading developer and operator of renewable energy”. However, a 2022 investigation by The Ferret found that SSE’s Peterhead Gas Power Station was Scotland’s single biggest polluter in 2018, 2019 and 2020. Drax Group’s publicity centred on its recently purchased Cruachan pumped storage hydroelectric facility in the highlands and emphasised its commitment to “making the UK a global leader in climate saving technologies.” There was no mention of Drax’s north Yorkshire biofuel power station which converted from coal to burning wood in the mid-to-late 2000s. According to its latest annual report the energy plant emitted 13.42m tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in 2021 making it the largest single source of CO2 emissions in the UK. “These companies are at the heart of the problem” Mary Church, Friends of the Earth Scotland Lloyds Bank Group, sponsor of the ‘Decarbonising Scotland’s Housing ‘discussion panel, lent £1bn to the commercial oil and gas industry in 2021. Although the Perth-based bank recently announced it will not be investing in new oil and gas fields, it confirmed it will continue to finance existing fossil fuel projects. According to the Bank.Green website, Lloyds Bank is still one of the 60 biggest funders of fossil fuels in the world. Mary Church, head of campaigns for Friends of the Earth Scotland, argued that Drax and SSE have no place at an event aiming to address the climate emergency. She commented: “These companies are at the heart of the problem, peddling fantasy techno-fixes in pursuit of profit, and seeking to delay the actions that we know are necessary to tackle the climate crisis.” Church also attacked SSE’s plans to build a new gas power station at Peterhead and described claims by Drax and SSE that carbon capture technology would provide a solution to enable the burning of fossil fuels to continue as “unproven at scale, unreliable and hugely costly” with “no place in our energy system”. “Putting faith in false solutions like this will only lock us into energy systems that further drive climate breakdown” she continued. “Conference organisers, attendees, speakers must get wise to this greenwashing and the fact that big corporations deliberately use sponsorship to distract from the dirty side of how they make their money,” she told The Ferret. Sally Clark from Biofuelwatch, an environmental organisation based in the UK and the US, said she was “shocked” the Glasgow event was sponsored by the “world’s biggest tree burner”. She said: “Drax is using a climate emergency event to greenwash its forest destruction, harm to wildlife and pollution of communities around the world.” “We need to get them [the fossil fuel industry] into the discussion around consumption and doing more and doing things faster. And supporting collaboration” Iain Gulland, Zero Waste Scotland Lloyds defended its sponsorship of a housing panel session, however, and highlighted its “housebuilding sustainability finance framework”, which the bank hopes will expand the availability and affordability of quality and sustainable housing, and its mortgage support for householders wanting to make homes more energy efficient. Lloy...
Impoverished Peruvians who fed and sheltered academic researchers during fieldwork were not paid for months by Edinburgh University due to a new finance system blamed for widespread problems, a union has claimed. Thousands of people have complained over the failure of People and Money (P&M), a financial system at the university which left staff with no pay for weeks and suppliers’ bills unpaid, among a raft of other issues. Edinburgh University apologised after The Ferret revealed the scale of the problems last week, and said it is working urgently to ensure the situation will not happen again. It has now emerged that “very poor indigenous community villagers” in Peru have not been paid, and NGOs helping Syrian refugees had to chase unpaid bills. Researchers in Tanzania were also left without payment for work. According to the University and College Union (UCU) — which is pursuing a collective grievance on behalf of its members — the “P&M fiasco” has disproportionately impacted people in poorer countries who provide “essential support” to Edinburgh researchers. Strongly condemning the “disproportionate harm inflicted on the global south”, the UCU has accused university management of “negligence and abrogation of responsibility”. NGOs helping Syrian refugees shouldn’t have to chase unpaid bills. Jonny Dennis, UCU representative at Edinburgh University. The union cited a litany of problems blamed on P&M which has been collated by the university senate, the supreme academic body at Edinburgh University, and sent to management. It runs to 71 pages and includes comments by staff and students impacted by P&M. Problems listed include those affecting global south projects. One anonymised PhD student said the implementation of the system has had a “massive negative effect” on research projects and pushed students into “real hardship”. The student added: “I’ve been unable to pay partners, including very poor indigenous community villagers in Peru who provided food to my field team over the summer, and others. “I have used up a lot of the goodwill I have built up with partners over the years due to this late/non payment issue. Myself and a number of my PhD students have also been waiting months for expenses, which has put some of my PhD students into real hardship.” Hundreds urge action over finance crisis at Edinburgh University Another PhD student wrote that a Syrian-run NGO in Turkey had to stop working because “they face imminent financial collapse” due to several delayed payments. “This is an important and trusted partner for collaborative research and community engagement – now they seriously reconsider whether they would like to work with us in the future,” the researcher said. Another student reported that partners in Tanzania have been left “out of pocket” which had damaged the goodwill built- up to establish the research partnership. Jonny Dennis, a PhD researcher at the University of Edinburgh, and UCU representative, told The Ferret that the “P&M fiasco keeps growing” and that comments on the senate letter demonstrate the “harm inflicted on the university community”. Dennis added: “People in lower and middle income countries provide essential support to researchers from Edinburgh. Their help ranges from feeding and sheltering researchers on fieldwork to collecting data for research studies. NGOs helping Syrian refugees shouldn’t have to chase unpaid bills.” PhD students — the lowest-paid researchers at the university — have been “particularly badly affected” by the new system, UCU also said, with many paid stipends late or incorrectly. The union said some had no access to their own grant money for months, meaning they could not buy essential research materials. This has resulted in research being held back, demoralisation of PhD students, and financial insecurity. UCU Edinburgh is now pursuing a collective grievance, due to an alleged “lack of action” from management, claiming it could “potentially be the largest breach of...
The leader of the far right group Patriotic Alternative Scotland appeared in court yesterday after pleading guilty to firearms charges. Kenny Smith — a former British National Party member who heads Patriotic Alternative Scotland (PA) — appeared at Portree Sheriff Court, Skye, after pleading guilty in May to charges under the Firearms Act 1968. He was admonished. The 50-year-old had been charged with possessing excess ammunition after being issued with a firearms certificate last April, by Chief Constable Sir Iain Livingstone, who heads Police Scotland. The first charge stated that on 26 August 2021, Smith possessed 320 rounds of 0.22 ammunition at his home in Broadford, Skye, contrary to the Firearms Act 1968. His certificate only allowed for 300 rounds. The second charge said that on the same date he possessed 111 rounds of 0.243 ammunition at his home, contrary to the Firearms Act 1968, when he was only allowed to possess 100 rounds. Smith had pled guilty to the charges at Portree Sheriff Court on 31 May 2022 and sentence was deferred until yesterday. An official at Portree Sheriff Court told The Ferret that Police Scotland confirmed to the court that Smith had been of good behaviour since his last appearance, and he was admonished by Sheriff Robert Frazer. An admonishment is a warning to a person convicted of an offence not to commit another crime, but no punishment is given alongside this warning. However, the offence is recorded as a conviction on state records. Smith has no previous convictions, the court official said.
The world’s richest countries — including the UK — are spending 30 times more on their armed forces than financial support for nations on the frontline of the climate crisis, according to new analysis. The 24 wealthiest nations spent at least £6 trillion on their militaries between 2013 and 2020, while providing just over £200bn worth of climate finance for the countries most vulnerable to global heating, according to a new report by Transnational Institute (TNI). The think tank also claimed that global military spending has been “supercharged” by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This has in turn caused a major increase in greenhouse gas emissions because armed forces remain wedded to fossil fuels. The world’s response to the war has seen climate goals “quickly thrown out of the window”, with countries diverting money away from climate finance and towards military spending, the report claimed. One author told The Ferret that military budgets are “deepening the climate crisis by increasing greenhouse gases and diverting money from climate action”. He warned that there would be “no safe country on a burning planet”. The UK’s Ministry of Defence (MoD) has been asked to comment. Combined, global militaries are estimated to produce 5.5 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gases. If they were a country, this would make them the fourth biggest climate polluter in the world, ahead of Russia, Germany and the UK. The world’s richest nations are arming themselves to the teeth but not willing to defend us the far greater threat of the climate crisis. Nick Buxton, Transnational Institute Seven countries who have produced the most greenhouse gas emissions historically — and which are considered to be most responsible for the climate crisis — are also among the states with the biggest military budgets. They include the UK, Russia, China, and the United States, which spends by far the most on its armed forces. Military carbon footprints are driven by the equipment and vehicles they use in exercises, patrols and to fight wars, which are dependent on fossil fuels. The world’s armed forces combined consume more oil — a key contributor to the climate crisis — than major countries including Belgium and South Africa. This means that any increase in military spending is accompanied by an increase in the amount of climate emissions produced. The European Commission expects that its members will increase their military budgets by at least £167bn in the coming years, while the US has approved a record £710bn military budget for 2023. Meanwhile, in June, the UK announced that it would be using ‘underspends’ from its climate finance budget to help fund a £1bn military aid package for Ukraine in a move that angered climate activists. They argued that the Ukrainian and climate crises should not be made to “compete” for funding, and that the pot of money for overseas aid should instead be increased. Climate finance is money used to help vulnerable countries adapt to and mitigate climate change, as well as to compensate for loss and damage they experience as a result of the increase in global temperatures. A key part of the 2015 Paris Agreement was a commitment by the world’s richest countries to spend £85bn each year on climate finance. But research has shown that they have consistently fallen short of this target. Discussions around climate finance have been central to the UN’s ongoing COP27 climate summit which is currently being held in Sharm-El-Sheik in Egypt. According to TNI, the North African country is an example of a climate-vulnerable country which has been supported more with arms deals than climate finance. It received 5.7 per cent of global arms imports between 2017 and 2021. The decision to choose Egypt as the host of the summit had already been criticised due to the country’s repression of climate and pro-democracy activists, as well as its “disappointing” green targets. Nick Buxton, a co-author of the report and researcher at TNI, said that th...
The number of trans people in Scotland crowdfunding to cover medical costs has increased by 65 per cent since last year due to excessive NHS waiting times. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
The Conservative Party and its MPs have registered more than £1.7m in donations from climate sceptics and fossil fuel interests since the 2019 general election, an investigation by The Ferret can reveal. Our analysis of donations registered with the Electoral Commission from December 2019 found that £1,753,161 has been donated, including thousands of pounds given to prime minister Rishi Sunak, the former prime minister, Liz Truss, and Scottish Tory leader, Douglas Ross. Our findings prompted green campaigners to voice concern over the apparent close links between the Conservative Party, the oil and gas sector, and climate sceptics. Friends of the Earth Scotland said it was “pretty telling that the oil and gas industry’s political support has to be bought rather than won on merit”, while the Scottish Greens claimed the “anti-climate lobby” was trying to buy influence at Westminster with “dirty money”. The Tories declined to comment but one donor said his support for the party in Scotland has no connection with his business interests, adding he was a firm believer in a net zero carbon future. There is no evidence the donations influenced UK Government policy. All were legally given and declared to the Electoral Commission, and there is no suggestion of any wrong-doing. Donations According to the Electoral Commission, Sir Michael Hintze has given £136,250 to the Tory Party. An Australian hedge fund manager who donated money to the Brexit campaign, he also funded a climate sceptic think tank called the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF). GWPF is based at 55 Tufton Street, London, the home of other free-marketeer think tanks. Its website states: “We are deeply concerned about the impact of climate change policies: that they may be doing more harm than good, both to the world’s poorest people and the environment.” Another GWPF backer, Neil Record, gave £5,000 to Steve Baker MP in January this year. In 2017, Record donated £2,000 to Scottish Conservative MP John Lamont’s local party in Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk. Alasdair Locke, chair of Motor Fuel Group, which owns more than 900 petrol stations in the UK, gave £180,000 to the Tories which included £20,000 to Douglas Ross, the Tory leader in Scotland. Locke told The Ferret: “Far from being a climate sceptic, I am a firm believer in the need to achieve a net zero carbon future as soon as possible, and I believe that if we adopt the right policies and technologies we can achieve this in the UK well before 2050 especially if we accept the use of nuclear energy.” He added: “My support for the Conservative Party in Scotland has no connection with my business interests and I have never sought to influence or shape policy as I think that it is quite inappropriate for there to be any connection between donations and policy. “However I think that the Conservative Party is committed to changing our economy to a non-fossil fuel future and I am fully supportive of this policy and would certainly reconsider my support should that change. “I believe that the Conservative policies are the best suited to achieving that aim in a way that enables us not to cause severe difficulties and distress for ordinary citizens.” There’s no place for fossil fuels in a climate safe future, but those who profit from the industry are not going down without a fight. Mary Church, Friends of the Earth Scotland Amjad Bseisu, chief executive of North Sea oil firm EnQuest, donated £62,500 to the party on a personal basis. Balmoral Group Holdings — a conglomerate that offers oil and gas technology and services — donated £210,000. Balmoral group declined to comment. Cable infrastructure firm Tratos, — which produces cables for the global oil and gas industry — donated £96,150. The Tories also received £19,9000 from Richard Upshall, the founder of OES Asset Integrity Management, whose global head office is in the UAE, and £25,000 from Centrax Industries, a gas turbine company. Energy firm, Bayford and Company...
UK Government plans threatening nuclear and radiation safety laws in a “Brexit bonfire” have provoked resistance from regulators and trade unionists, opposition from Scottish ministers and alarm from campaigners. The Cabinet Office has published a list of more than 2,400 European Union (EU) laws which are under review as part of the government’s bid to scrap them. They include ten key regulations designed to protect the public and workers from nuclear accidents and radiation leaks. The UK Office for Nuclear Regulation, which oversees safety at civil and military nuclear sites, told The Ferret it was trying “to preserve the legislative framework” to meet the “highest international standards”. The trade union, Prospect, which represents scientists and engineers in the nuclear industry, accused UK ministers of “trying to weaken or dismantle a regulatory framework that has served the UK well over many decades.” The Scottish Government attacked Westminster for “rolling back 47 years of protections in a rush to impose a deregulated race to the bottom”. Campaigners are worried by the dangers of “watering down” nuclear safety law, and demanding tougher legal protections. We are in discussions with the government to preserve the legislative framework. Spokesperson, Office for Nuclear Regulation A bill to remove “retained EU law” was introduced to the UK parliament by the former business minister, Jacob Rees-Mogg, in September 2022. It contains a “sunset” clause requiring all remaining EU law to be repealed or assimilated by the end of 2023, though this can be extended to 2026. Amongst the laws under threat is the 2019 Radiation (Emergency Preparedness and Public Information) Regulations which compel councils and companies to draw up emergency plans to deal with nuclear accidents. According to UK Government guidance in 2015, the regulations are “key” to ensuring that the public is “properly protected”. Three sets of regulations aimed at protecting workers and the public from the hazards of radiation are also up for review. One “lays down basic safety standards for protection against the dangers arising from exposure to ionising radiation”, the government said. Other laws on the UK Government list cover “maximum permitted levels” of radioactivity in food after a nuclear emergency; imports of radioactively contaminated food following the Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011 and the Chernobyl disaster in 1986; and the safety of decommissioning nuclear plants. ‘Tearing up’ nuclear regulations The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), which regulates the Faslane nuclear base and six other sites in Scotland, is understood to be taking the threat to nuclear safety laws “very seriously”. An ONR spokesperson told The Ferret: “We are in discussions with the government to preserve the legislative framework that allows us to hold the nuclear sector to account consistent with the highest international standards.” According to the veteran nuclear critic, Pete Roche, this meant that ONR was resisting the UK Government’s plans. “Reading between the lines it looks as though the ONR is planning to fight any proposals to make drastic changes to nuclear regulation,” he said. “In recent meetings I have been involved in, ONR representatives have stressed the need to uphold the highest international standards. I can only hope I am not being overly optimistic and that they stick to their guns.” The nuclear trade union, Prospect, argued that the existing regulatory framework worked well at protecting workers and communities. This was vital as old nuclear plants were being decommissioned and new ones built. “Perhaps the government should focus on ensuring that existing regulators are properly resourced to do this important work rather than trying to weaken or dismantle a regulatory framework that has served the UK well over many decades,” said senior deputy general secretary, Sue Ferns. “Tearing up existing regulations for the sake of purportedly ‘taking back co...
Official investigations have been launched into an oil spill at a major Ministry of Defence (MoD) fuel depot on Loch Striven in the Firth of Clyde. Three UK Government agencies are examining an incident on 31 October when at least 1,500 litres of fuel was discharged into the loch from a tanker moored at the MoD jetty. Environmentalists have warned of possible impacts on seabirds and other wildlife, while politicians have described the spill as “really worrying” and “devastating”. The Royal Navy said that the spill had been contained and cleaned up. According to the navy, there was a “loss of containment incident” on board the Cumbrian Fisher oil tanker while it was berthed at the MoD depot. The depot is used to refuel Nato warships and classified as a “major accident hazard” because of the large volume of fuel stored there. “It is estimated that approximately 1,501 litres of fuel was discharged into the water and approximately 48,906 litres of fuel on board the vessel was reclaimed to slops tanks,” a Royal Navy spokesperson told the Dunoon Observer print edition. “Containment and clean-up of the spill has been completed and the loch will continue to be monitored by various parties.” The navy said that the tanker had been assisted by the Oil and Pipelines Agency, which runs the Loch Striven, and other depots, for the MoD. Other environmental and maritime authorities were notified. Now the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), the MoD’s Defence Accident Investigation Branch and the Royal Navy’s King’s Harbour Master Clyde, are all investigating how the spill occurred. The MCA told The Ferret that it had been made aware of the “fuel spill incident” on 31 October. “The MCA’s Regulatory Compliance and Investigation Team is assisting the Defence Accident Investigation Branch and the King’s Harbour Master Clyde with an investigation into what happened,” said an MCA spokesperson. Oil ‘toxic to wildlife’ The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds in Scotland pointed out that fuel oil was very toxic. “Impacts on local birds that use the sea lochs is quite possible, although so far we haven’t had any reports of adverse effects,” said a society spokesperson. “Our main concern is that the oil could be ingested, but it could also cause breakdown of feather insulation, and fish and invertebrates could also be killed by direct contact. Seabird populations are still coping with the devastating impacts of avian influenza and this spill will add more local pressure on their ability to get through the winter unscathed.” Jenni Minto, the SNP MSP for Argyll and Bute, urged the navy to take “all necessary actions” to minimise the long term impact on the loch. “It was really worrying to hear about this major oil spill on Loch Striven,” she said. “The communities around the loch will be understandably concerned, as I am, about the impact on their beautiful part of the world. The Green MSP for the Highlands and Islands, Ariane Burgess, described Loch Striven as a beautiful area. “Spills like this are terrible for marine wildlife and devastating for local nature,” she said. “Now that the spill has been contained and cleared, the focus must be on ensuring there are no longer term consequences for local nature and marine life in the months ahead.” Burgess said the MoD had important questions to answer about what it could do to ensure it didn’t happen again. “There must be full transparency in the investigation and a clear impact assessment of what damage it has caused and what the MoD is doing to rectify it,” she added. The Royal Navy stressed that it took its environmental responsibilities seriously. The incident was being investigated by “a third party”, a spokesperson told The Ferret. The navy said the spill had occurred during “cargo operations”. Fuelling operations had immediately stopped and emergency plans were deployed. “There was no impact on the capability of Loch Striven Oil Fuel Depot,” it added. “Local fish farms are monitoring the fish a...
Immigration has been dominating news headlines in the UK, due to rising numbers of migrants arriving in Kent and reports of overcrowding and disease at a facility where asylum seekers are held. The home secretary Suella Braverman has been under fire over conditions at Manston migrant processing centre, with claims that a “backlog” of asylum cases has left thousands of people detained for long periods. Ferret Fact Service looked at the current situation with migration to the UK, and considered the evidence for what’s causing the situation at processing centres. What is the current situation? The recent controversy developed after conditions at Manston migrant processing centre were revealed in late October. The centre opened in early 2022 to assist in processing those who arrived after crossing the English Channel in small boats. Migrants are only meant to stay at the centre for 24 hours until they have undergone some safety checks and then moved into the asylum system. The site’s capacity was meant to be 1,600 people. Reports of overcrowding first emerged in July. On 24 October, the independent chief inspector of borders and immigration, David Neal, told MPs there were 2,800 migrants at the centre. On 31 October, Conservative MP Roger Gale said there were more than 4,000 at the site. Numbers began to fall last week as people were moved out of the centre, and on 7 November, immigration minister Robert Jenrick told MPs that the number had been reduced to below 1,600. Home secretary Suella Braverman has been criticised for her approach to the crisis, and was accused of failing to put in place measures to ease the overcrowding, which she denied. Have small boat crossings increased? Data on the number of people crossing the English channel in small boats is recorded daily, weekly, monthly and yearly, by the ministry of defence (MoD) and home office. The daily and weekly statistics are less robust than the annual data, but give a picture of the numbers of people crossing the channel. From January 2022 up until the end of October 2022 about 40,000 people had crossed the channel in small boats. This is the highest number recorded. In 2021 the total was 28,526 people, and in 2020 there were 8,000. About 94 per cent of those who arrive on small boats claim asylum in the UK. There has been a reduction in irregular migration being detected through other methods, such as those travelling in lorries or shipping containers through ports. Those discovered to have entered the UK through a port reduced from 1,052 in 2018 to 147 in the first half of 2022. Is this illegal immigration? So-called ‘illegal’ immigration is actually quite ill-defined, and most government bodies and charities use the term irregular migration to describe those who come to the UK or stay in the UK without official prior permission. There are four often-cited ways in which someone could be an irregular migrant. Coming to the UK through a recognised route then breaching the conditions of entry or stay, such as by overstaying a visa or doing work that is not permitted. Entering the UK via a non-recognised route or by using false documents Staying in the UK after all routes of asylum have been rejected and appeals exhausted Being born in the UK to an irregular migrant. There is no such thing as an illegal asylum seeker, however. Under international law, refugees can apply for asylum in any country which is signed up to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, which includes the UK. They do not have to travel to the UK via recognised official routes to do so. It is possible for certain people seeking asylum to apply from outside the UK, through various schemes such as refugee resettlement programmes, family reunion visas, and some specific immigration routes for certain countries, such as the Ukraine visa sponsorship scheme and the Afghan citizens resettlement scheme. However the majority of asylum applications come from people who can...
It’s 11am and before he starts his long restaurant shift, Ioan has a couple of hours to play with his three-year-old son, among whose main loves are his toy cars and Spider-Man. Since his youngest son, Ianis, was just a couple of months old he’s suffered from asthma that has, on occasion, seen him hospitalised. Ioan knew what was wrong immediately. “It happened to me too when I was a child,” he explains. But he and his wife struggled to get medical professionals to take them seriously in Scotland – resorting to returning to their home country of Romania and paying for a private doctor, whose diagnosis was finally accepted back in Glasgow. Meanwhile they did what they could to keep the symptoms at bay. “One important thing was to make sure the house was not damp because that makes things much worse,” Ioan says. The 22-year-old father – who had previously lived in a flat with a prepayment meter – didn’t understand that because he was not providing his energy company with readings, his bills were under-estimated. Earlier this year it emerged the family owed £2,200 – an impossible sum to pay on their household income. Friends put him in touch with South Seeds – a community organisation in Glasgow’s Southside neighbourhood of Govanhill – which provides an energy advice service. Advisor Agnes Berner sourced grants to cut the debt in half and helped him set up an affordable payment plan. “It was such a big relief,” he says. Rising energy bills have been the story of 2022. The monthly increases in both gas and electricity prices in April 2022 alone were by far the largest ever recorded since 1988. Meanwhile the profits of many energy companies are eye-watering. Last month Shell announced profits of over £8bn from July to September and last week BP announced profits of £7bn for the same period. Estimates on how stark the impact will be vary, but some claim they will push up to two-thirds of UK households into fuel poverty by January 2023. That’s despite the help of the UK Government’s Energy Price Guarantee – which means unit prices will be capped until April 2023 – and an additional £400 from the energy bills support scheme. What’s less widely reported, is the devastating impact that cold homes will have on the health of communities up and down Scotland. According to a report by the University College London’s Institute of Health Equity increasing fuel poverty is going to turbo-charge health inequalities. That means people who can’t afford gas and electricity are statistically more likely to suffer from health conditions – or even die younger – than those who can. Living in a cold home – more likely to be damp and mouldy – can cause and worsen respiratory conditions, cardiovascular diseases, poor mental health, dementia, hypothermia and problems with childhood development, they explain. Govanhill’s South Seeds can’t offer the structural changes they say are so urgently needed. But what it can offer – including providing empowering energy advice, sourcing financial support and advocating for people when things go wrong – is help keeping people warm. or getting them back on supply. We’re now seeing people whose fuel bills are higher than their benefits. Poppy Ives, South Seeds energy advisor Though there are Scotland-wide phone based advice services, this type of face-to-face, high street shop front service is unusual. But it’s getting results. From September 2021 – September 2022 their clients have benefited to the tune of £118,441 in emergency vouchers, supplier refunds, good will payments and hardship funding with a further £16,050 provided in the form of warm home discounts. They’ve held 2,056 appointments in the time period. And it’s getting busier. Recently they’ve helped people who’ve been forced to use the local swimming pool showers because they have no hot water at home, and seen people using candles for lighting at night. The situation is stark. “We’re now seeing people whose fuel bills are higher than their benefits,” say...
Are you confused about what’s been happening at the Manston migrant centre, and what the situation is with people crossing the channel in small boats? On this week’s podcast, episode 42, Ali and Paul discuss the truth behind the media and political coverage of the asylum backlog situation. Find out how many people are coming to the UK, and how we compare to other nations in accepting asylum claims. Listen to episode 42 of The FFS Show podcast here. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. Cover image thanks to Hibrida13 Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
A critical report has alleged a series of failings by national park chiefs in protecting the unique geological heritage in their care. The report claims that the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park Authority (LLTNPA) has mishandled the management of a stunning collection of ice-age features around Callander, one of the main gateways to the park. The scientists behind the report are urging LLTNPA to do more to protect the park’s “geodiversity.” In reply the park authority said it has backed measures to provide a comprehensive overview of the area’s geodiversity. The new paper — to be published by the respected journal Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association — talks of a “gap in understanding” about landforms by the LLTNPA, “opportunities missed” to further geological understanding, and a failure to carry out a geodiversity audit recommended 14 years ago. A geodiversity audit would catalogue the presence and condition of geological features. The landscape features around Callander were formed when glaciers advanced at the end of the last ice age 12,000 years ago. Huge ridges of gravel known as moraines were pushed up by the advancing glacier in the Teith Valley. Remarkable raised riverbeds known as eskers – formed by streams flowing underneath the ice – are still clearly visible in the area, along with other features. LLTNPA is the planning authority within the park, and can limit development in areas it deems to be of scientific or environmental importance. But the report’s authors, Dr Eileen Tisdall of Stirling University, and Dr Angus Miller, vice-chair of the Scottish Geology Trust charity, highlight a series of issues they claim shows the authority is failing to ensure geological sites are properly acknowledged and protected. With demand for building materials raised by the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and Queensferry Crossing over the Forth, the Auchenlaich moraine near Callander was being dug out for gravel between 2011 and 2017, under permissions pre-dating the park. Opportunities have been missed for longer-term co-operation and planning between all groups to progress geoconservation within the national park. Dr Eileen Tisdall of Stirling University, and Dr Angus Miller, vice-chair of the Scottish Geology Trust However the park authority failed to organise logging of data from the site as material was extracted, the report says. Such data could hold important clues about the nature and timing of climate change, as the glacial re-advance which created the moraines resulted from a sudden cooling of the North Atlantic, something climate scientists believe could happen in future as the Greenland ice sheet melts more rapidly into the sea. Chalets were allowed to be built on land Tisdall and Miller say forms part of a rare moraine feature, despite their advice when the developers applied for planning permission. The way this application was handled, the report claims, demonstrates “the gap in understanding landform and landscape”, with the planning authority satisfied the landform was not being impacted while geoscientists thought differently. The report notes that scientists have made repeated objections to planning applications, and volunteered their expertise to LLTNPA to help protect geological features, to work towards the vision of Scotland’s Geodiversity Charter. The park has signed the charter, which has also been backed by government agency NatureScot and Scottish Government ministers. The charter says that those with an interest in geological features should work together to designate and conserve them. But the report claims there is a gap between LLTNPA’s commitment to the charter and what it has achieved, due to “failure to recognise the wider benefits of geoconservation” and the authority’s lack of an in-house geology expert. The paper adds: “Progress in the last decade .. has been limited. Poor communication between [the park authority], academics and local groups has led to short-term, reactionary r...
A letter signed by more than 1,800 people has today been sent to Edinburgh University management to express “urgent and profound concern” over a financial system which left staff with no pay for weeks, suppliers’ bills unpaid and students at risk of homelessness. Dozens of academics employed by the university are among signatories to the letter — a draft of which was seen by The Ferret — which claims that the university leadership has “abandoned them at a time of crisis”. The letter, written by elected senate members, says that the failure of a payroll, human resources and finance system — called People and Money (P&M) — is causing “direct hardship” to students and staff and “significant long-term damage” to the university. The senate is the university’s supreme academic body. Edinburgh University said it was “acutely aware” of the impact P&M is having on some staff and students, and apologised for the “disruption”. The Ferret understands that problems with P&M started two years ago but issues increased over the summer when the university moved to the new centralised system. There are still delays to payments, causing problems for staff, students and suppliers. It has been claimed that some firms have stopped providing services to the university over unpaid bills. The senate’s letter — addressed to the university’s principal, rector, and vice-principal of research — says: “We are alarmed not just by the financial and scholarly impacts, but also the human costs of the problematic implementation of P&M. These date back to well before the crisis of the last few months and have adversely affected academic and professional services staff and student mental and physical wellbeing.” Concerns raised in the letter include delays to wages and stipends being paid, expenses not reimbursed, and issues with supplies and services which have impacted teaching. We are alarmed not just by the financial and scholarly impacts, but also the human costs of the problematic implementation of People and Money. Letter from Edinburgh University senate members The letter says: “Schools are unable to maintain the basic stocks of materials that are necessary to the routine function of research and teaching on campus, from office paper to IT equipment to laboratory chemicals to library materials; they have been unable to hire vehicles, ship essential research equipment, or use other necessary services.” The problems have also led to a “loss of experienced staff” which has exacerbated staffing issues, according to the letter. The signatories have called on senior management to support staff and “take responsibility for the disruption and hardship caused to date”. They have also called for a “credible plan to address complaints” and “financial compensation” for people who may have suffered financially due to delayed compensation or reimbursement. A university source who asked not to be named said: “The problems are horrific. Students who have unpaid stipends are at risk of becoming homeless.” The source said people had not received supplies of chemicals, paper, software, or computing equipment and that individual staff are “owed thousands of pounds” in work expenses. “We owe hundreds of thousands of pounds to small businesses throughout Edinburgh, putting livelihoods at risk during a cost of living crisis,” they added. Another university source told The Ferret they had personally spoken with students and staff who have had salary and stipend payments delayed, reduced, or missing. The source added that the letter was written collectively and signed by at least 75 elected academic members of the senate. They added: “The letter was opened to co-signatures and comments from the university community (verified by requiring a university login) on Thursday, and received approximately 1850 validated co-signatures before delivery. “These signatures continue to come in. Over 600 comments endorsed and added further specific examples to support the claims in the letter...
The Ferret and Greater Govanhill magazine have teamed up to examine responses to health inequalities as part of a new collaborative project – Mind the Health Gap. Over the coming months, we will be investigating the health gap and reporting on potential solutions to the issue. To launch the project, Ferret Fact Service looked at some of the indicators of health inequality, to explore how this hits some areas harder than others. Life Expectancy 80.8 Average life expectancy for women in Scotland 76.6 Average life expectancy for men in Scotland After consistently increasing over the last four decades overall life expectancy stalled in Scotland in 2013-15. This took place at the same time as other causes of death were increasing, particularly drug and dementia deaths. National Records of Scotland measures life expectancy across two-year periods. Between 2017-19 and 2019-21, women’s life expectancy fell by 19 weeks, while men’s fell by 33 weeks. Much of this decrease was due to deaths due to Covid-19. Postcode related differences in life expectancy is one of the starkest indicators of health inequalities in Scotland. Women in the most deprived areas of Scotland have a life expectancy 10.5 years fewer than those in the least deprived areas. For men, the gap is 13.7 years. Scotland’s life expectancy is the lowest in the UK. Healthy Life Expectancy 61.8 Estimated healthy life expectancy for women in Scotland 60.9 Estimated healthy life expectancy for men in Scotland This is different to overall life expectancy, and estimates the number of years people live in ‘very good’ or ‘good’ general health. This is based on how people perceive their own health in an annual survey. Healthy life expectancy in Scotland has reduced in Scotland since 2015-17. The difference between the least and most deprived areas in Scotland shows an even wider gap than for overall life expectancy. Those living in the least deprived areas can expect to live in good health for around 24 years longer than those in the most deprived. Avoidable Mortality 64,093 Deaths registered in Scotland in 2020 17,153 Deaths which were considered to be avoidable Avoidable mortality is a measure of deaths which were preventable or treatable through effective available healthcare. The rate of deaths had been relatively similar in years prior to the 2020, but increased during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Avoidable mortality is a measure of deaths which were preventable or treatable through effective available healthcare. The rate of deaths had been relatively similar in years prior to the 2020, but increased during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Those in Scotland’s most deprived areas are 3.9 times more likely to die from an avoidable death than those in the least deprived areas. The leading causes of avoidable deaths were cancers, circulatory system diseases and alcohol and drug related issues, as well as Covid-19. Deaths of those aged 15-44 119 Deaths per 100,000 in 2020 96.8 Deaths per 100,000 in 2014 Deaths of those between 15 and 44 are also measured by National Records of Scotland. It tells us how many people in Scotland are dying in the period of their life when they should be relatively healthy. The mortality rate of people in Scotland in this age range decreased between 2002 and 2014, but increased again afterwards. In 2020, people were nine times more likely to die between the ages of 15 and 44 in Scotland’s most deprived areas compared to its least deprived areas. Cancer incidence rate under 75 136.5 Cancers of the trachea, bronchus and lung per 100,000 in most deprived areas 27.8 Cancers of the trachea, bronchus and lung per 100,000 in least deprived areas Cancer rates for those under 75 have been broadly increasing in Scotland in the past two decades, from 417.5 people – per 100,000 in 1999 to 447.1 people in 2019. Overall, cancers are more common in the most deprived areas of Scotland, but this is not the case for every type of cancer. Mental wellbeing o...
Nearly 90,000 chickens have been culled in Scotland to prevent the spread of the UK’s worst ever bird flu outbreak, The Ferret can reveal. Scottish Government data – obtained via freedom of information law – shows that 89,113 hens were culled between 22 January and 14 October, along with hundreds of ducks, cockatiel, turkeys, geese, guinea fowl and owls. Fresh bird flu cases have emerged in recent days. The National Farming Union of Scotland (NFUS) called on the Scottish Government to “start listening to the industry” and follow the UK Government in ruling that all poultry and captive birds be kept indoors to help stop the spread from 7 November. The Scottish Government said it was “keeping the situation under constant review, however the current evidence does not yet justify imposing a housing order in Scotland.” [table id=229 /] The bulk of recorded culls so far involved 89,113 hens at a Farmlay Eggs breeding unit at Auchtygills, near Strichen, Aberdeenshire. The birds were slaughtered on 19 March after bird flu was discovered at the site. Other culls involved smaller numbers of hens, ducks, turkeys, geese, guinea fowl and owls in various locations in Aberdeenshire, North Ayrshire, Orkney, Shetland and the Outer Hebrides. Birds were also culled near Huntly, Aberdeenshire on 29 October and near Kirkwall, Orkney on 30 October. The Scottish Government said these cull numbers were not yet available. The NFUS stressed that poultry farmers “have had to live with the heightened threat of avian influenza at this time of year for several years now”, which it linked to wild and migratory birds. “As poultry producers, the health and welfare of our birds is our number one priority, and introducing housing measures alongside the existing additional biosecurity requirements can hugely help minimise the spread of this devastating disease,” said NFUS poultry working group chair, Robert Thompson. “We remain in active discussions with Scottish Government and the Chief Veterinary Officer for Scotland and while we await their decision on any changes to current biosecurity requirements, I urge every poultry keeper, whether you have one hen in the back garden or a large poultry business, to take biosecurity measures seriously and take steps to protect your birds from this devastating disease.” Scottish Government ‘ignores’ pleas to improve chicken welfare Wild birds impacted by bird flu RSPB Scotland said the outbreak was “unprecedented in its impacts on wild birds”. At least 61 UK species have been found to have been infected to date with the latest bird flu strain, which originated in poultry in East Asia in the 1990, said Paul Walton, head of species and habitats. Since last winter, the current strain has since killed around 16,000 barnacle geese on the Dumfriesshire coast – one third of the global population – and four per cent of the world’s great skuas on Foula, Shetland. Swathes of seabirds, particularly gannets – which Walton said Scotland “is globally important for” – have also died due to bird flu. “We won’t have a clear picture of the impact on seabirds until they return next year, and assessments are complete, but impacts could be catastrophic,” he added. A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “While maintaining high levels of biosecurity among domestic poultry flocks helps protect against disease, addressing the disease among wild birds poses significant challenges. “Avian influenza is a disease that affects the wild bird population globally. The Scottish Government is taking the situation very seriously and is working hard with partner organisations to progress measures to respond to the reports of increased mortality among wild bird populations. “Updated advice for local authorities, landowners, wildlife rescue centres and members of the public regarding reporting, collection and safe disposal of wild bird carcasses has been published.” Image credit: RawPixel. CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
China and Russia are expected to block plans for protecting the seas around the Antarctic from over-fishing, sources have told The Ferret. The two countries are likely to veto proposals from scientists that would curb fishing for krill — a small shrimp-like crustacean at the bottom of the food chain on which Antarctic wildlife such as penguins and whales depend. A summit involving 37 countries is currently discussing the future of the marine environment around the South Pole. The Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) is meeting in Hobart, Australia from 24 October to 4 November. Insiders say that China and Russia will maintain their opposition to the establishment of marine protected areas designed to safeguard the diversity of underwater life and counter the impacts of climate change in the Southern Ocean. Both countries are said to be keen to fish for more krill (Euphausia superba), which is increasingly being used to feed farmed fish in Scotland and around the world. CCAMLR is an organ of the Antarctic Treaty, an international convention signed in 1959 to protect the continent. It is responsible for looking after marine resources in the Southern Ocean, and is composed of 27 member countries and 10 acceding states. Scientists involved with CCAMLR are not expecting China and Russia to start backing marine protection. The two countries are “biased against protected areas,” says Marino Vacchi, a senior researcher at the National Research Council of Italy and a member of CCAMLR’s scientific committee. “From a scientific point of view, we are in a situation of best available science that supports the proposals to establish new marine protected areas,” he argues. Vacchi highlights scientific studies that support three proposals for new marine protected areas. They are designed to protect the ecosystems in the Weddell Sea, in East Antarctica and in the Antarctic Peninsula from the effects of rising temperatures, acidification and industrial fishing. Protected areas in the Southern Ocean The Southern Ocean surrounds Antarctica and accounts for about 10 per cent of all the oceans on the planet. It is unique for its biodiversity, including fish, whales, mammals, seabirds and invertebrates. Its microorganisms also play a fundamental role in the planet’s ability to capture and store carbon from the atmosphere. In recent decades, however, the Southern Ocean has also been a hotspot for climate change. “A lot is happening in Antarctica”, says César Cárdenas, a researcher at the Chilean Antarctic Institute and another member of CCAMLR’s scientific committee. “There is a lot going on in terms of changes, in terms of water temperatures, air temperatures. We have seen an increase in the last 15, 16 years, changes in the ice coverage, increases in rain, so there’s a lot of physical changes that are affecting the marine ecosystem.” Best available science supports the proposals to establish new marine protected areas. Marino Vacchi, National Research Council of Italy CCAMLR member countries have been working on the creation of a network of marine protected areas since the early 2000s. The first was established in 2009 on the southern shelf of the South Orkney Islands. In 2016 the Ross Sea became the world’s biggest marine protected area, covering two million square kilometers. But then the political balance changed and three other proposals for protected areas floundered. The European Union (EU) promoted the Weddell Sea and the east coast of Antarctica, while Chile and Argentina proposed the area surrounding the Antarctic Peninsula. According to the environmental umbrella group, the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition, the protection of these three large areas would safeguard nearly four million square kilometers of Antarctica’s ocean. “That is roughly the size of the EU and represents one per cent of the global ocean. Together this would secure the largest act of ocean protection in history,” the coa...
The Scottish Government’s green watchdog has launched an investigation into sharp rises in toxic pollution from two wood production plants in Stirlingshire and Ayrshire. The latest data released by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has revealed leaps in emissions of arsenic, mercury, formaldehyde, dioxins and other toxins from the Cowie wood panel manufacturer near Stirling and the Barony chipboard factory in Auchinleck. Emissions of climate-wrecking carbon dioxide from five industrial sites also rose between 2020 and 2021, despite emissions from other major climate polluters falling. By far the biggest carbon emitter in 2021 was the petrochemical giant, Ineos, whose five facilities at Grangemouth produced more than a quarter of all the emissions from Scottish industry. Other major emitters were the energy firm, SSE, the oil multinational, ExxonMobil, and the Dunbar cement maker, Tarmac. Environmentalists warned of the “frightening impacts” of toxins on public health, food and childhood development. They condemned the “shameful roll call of Scotland’s biggest polluters”. Companies pointed out that pollution fluctuated from year to year as demand changed, particularly in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. They stressed that they took their environmental responsibilities seriously. Sepa has published the Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory for 2021 including over 80 air pollutants from more than 800 sites across Scotland. According to Sepa, overall emissions of greenhouse gases decreased by five per cent since 2020. But carbon dioxide pollution from the wood processing industry rose by 21 per cent between 2020 and 2021. Sepa attributed this to “process changes during the pandemic” and big increases in emissions from two sites. There was a 30 per cent increase to 265,000 tonnes from the Cowie plant and a 69 per cent increase to 193,000 tonnes from an expansion at a sister plant at Morayhill in Inverness. Both plants were bought from previous owner, Norbord, by the Canadian company, West Fraser, in 2021. At the same time the Cowie plant’s emissions of other toxic pollutants which can threaten health and wildlife also increased significantly. Releases of dioxins, which can cause cancer and damage the immune system, tripled to 150,000 micrograms, the highest of any site in Scotland in 2021. The site’s emissions of formaldehyde, which can also cause cancer, doubled to 147,000 tonnes in 2021, again the highest figure in Scotland. In addition there was a 39 per cent increase in arsenic emissions, and a 16 per cent rise in mercury emissions. This is a shameful roll call of Scotland’s biggest polluters who are seemingly happy to treat our shared environment as a dumping ground in their pursuit of profit. Mary Church, Friends of the Earth Scotland The Ferret reported in 2018 that under Norbord, the Cowie mill had been rated as “poor” for pollution by Sepa in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017. The site was also issued with a “final warning letter” following dust pollution incidents in 2018. Another chipboard plant run by the Austrian firm, Egger, at Barony, Auchinleck, in East Ayrshire also recorded high and rising toxic pollution. In 2021 it was responsible for Scotland’s highest emissions of lead (787 kilograms) — a poison which can cause brain damage. The plant’s emissions of dioxins, arsenic, mercury and formaldehyde also recorded rises. It released 34 kilograms of another toxic metal, antimony — more than any other site in Scotland. Sepa told The Ferret that “quality control checks” of its pollution data had identified “an increase in emissions of heavy metals and other chemicals to air” from the Cowie and Barony plants. “This is currently being investigated by Sepa,” said a spokesperson for the agency. Sepa requires companies to comply with pollution rules by testing for contamination, monitoring and reporting emissions. Year to year variations were “expected” due to sampling frequency and process changes, Sepa said...
Environmental campaigners have raised concerns that millions of pounds from the Scottish Government’s Just Transition Fund have been awarded to an oil tycoon, controversial projects and a private sector group backed by the fossil fuel industry. Taxpayer funded grants from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) include £5m awarded to an organisation chaired by oil tycoon Sir Ian Wood, and £2m to the Net Zero Technology Centre, which is backed by oil firms including Shell and BP. Another £14m was given to a “contentious project which will destroy a vital community park”, said Friends of the Earth Scotland, which argues that the JTF should directly benefit workers and communities and not just the private sector. The Scottish Government said the £500m fund — a decade-long initiative — is designed to help communities across the north east and Moray, and support projects which contribute towards the region’s transition to net zero. The government said it had “engaged extensively” with workers, trade unions, communities, businesses and local authorities in the region. At the recent SNP Conference in Aberdeen, Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon announced £50m worth of awards for 22 JTF projects. Over £14m will go to the Energy Transition Zone (ETZ), which has been opposed by local residents in Torry, Aberdeen, where St Fittick’s Community Park will be destroyed to make way for the project. Campaigners argue that alternative sites should be considered. The Scottish Government can’t throw money at oil tycoons to ride over the wishes of local people and badge it a Just Transition. Ryan Morrison, Just Transition campaigner The ETZ is a plan to build sites for the development, production, assembly, storage and distribution of energy infrastructure, in the hope that this will encourage ‘green’ companies to come to the area. The ETZ’s backers include Opportunity North East (ONE) – a “private development sector catalyst” group chaired by Sir Ian Wood, which was awarded £5m by the JTF. The ETZ has been given £53m in public funding from the UK and Scottish Governments and £5.7m from ONE. Those voicing opposition to ETZ include Ishbel Shand, a member of the Friends of St Fitticks Park campaign. She referred to the first minister’s speech at the SNP conference, when Sturgeon condemned the UK Government over “massive hand-outs for the wealthiest at the expense of everyone else”. Shand told The Ferret: “Yet the same Scottish Government has just handed almost £20m from the Just Transition Fund to an oil billionaire’s pet projects, on top of the over £50m it already received from Scottish ministers and the UK Government. All of this public money to industrialise a lovely wee park – the last accessible place for one of the most deprived areas in the city – in pursuit of fantasy job figures and a dream to make Aberdeen the ‘net zero capital of the world’.” Shand added: “Local doctors have deplored the plan to trash the park, the local community has rejected it and the media has been scathing. One can only suppose that the government, having backed a white elephant, are determined to feed it bales of public money in the hope that it will all work out in the end, when the predictable result is much more likely to be large amounts of elephant excrement”. Another project funded by the JTF is the Net Zero Technology Centre (the Centre) which will receive £2.1m for research and development of — what Friends of the Earth Scotland (FoES) described as — “controversial nature-based solutions and inefficient green hydrogen”. The Centre, formerly known as the Oil and Gas Technology Centre, was established to support the oil and gas industry and lists major oil companies as partners on its website. They include the oil giants Chevron, BP, and Shell. FoES argues that green hydrogen is an “expensive and inefficient use” of renewable energy. A sum of £100,000 will go to the NESS Energy Project to research the feasibility of carbon capture and storage retrofit at inc...
Child victims of trafficking in Scotland have described the UK’s immigration system as “distressing” and said being left in “limbo” is worse than their experiences of exploitation. The children – some of whom suffered modern slavery – come from countries such as Afghanistan, Albania, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Sudan, Vietnam and Sierra Leone. They have urged the Home Office to urgently improve the system. In a new report they highlighted the lengthy asylum decision-making process and claimed UK Government procedures undermine young people’s rights and place them at risk of further exploitation. The Home Office said it is committed to caring for children and tackling modern slavery. It emerged recently that the number of applicants awaiting decisions on asylum applications had risen 300 per cent in four years, despite Home Office promises to speed up the process. The children were interviewed at a series of workshops across the UK for a report called Creating Stable Futures: Human Trafficking, Participation and Outcomes for Children. The study follows the Home Office’s recent reclassification of modern slavery as an “illegal immigration and asylum issue” – despite the fact that child trafficking and exploitation are recognised as a form of child abuse. Children and young people have rights – rights to be heard, participate and be able to develop their lives and contribute to society Professor Patricia Hynes The authors of the new report said the UK Government has a legal duty to care for every child who requires protection, “regardless of who they are, where they came from or how they arrived in the UK”. Altogether, 31 young people participated in workshops this year at three locations in England and Scotland. They talked about the negative impact of lengthy immigration procedures, contrasting with the Home Secretary’s recent claims that modern slavery laws in the UK are “being abused by people gaming the system”. Highlighting the “multiple and persistent barriers” to accessing documentation, the youths talked about the challenges involved in securing decisions relating to their immigration status and of being left worrying about an uncertain future. “This period of limbo was described by some young people as worse than their trafficking experiences, particularly given the uncertainty they faced daily with a significant impact to their mental health and links to feeling unsafe,” the report said. Young victims of trafficking and exploitation are telling us in the strongest possible terms how critical it is for them to feel safe in order to recover from their abuse and begin to build stable futures Patricia Durr, CEO of ECPAT UK One young trafficking victim cited in the report said: “The most difficult part is after you’ve had your interview, waiting for the decision, imagine you have plans to go to uni, you can’t because you’ll be just like, ‘Will I get this? Will I get that? What will be the decision? Yes or no?.’ And this takes more time and you don’t know what to do, you’re just like waiting every day.” Another young person quoted said that during an interview with the Home Office they had to answer 130 questions despite having previously provided all the information to officials with their lawyer. The interviews have framed the development of a new “positive outcomes framework” which, the report’s authors said, can be used by practitioners and policymakers when supporting young victims of trafficking. The report calls on the UK Government to ensure that child victims are always afforded their rights to protection and care, and on the Home Office specifically to “ensure the immigration and asylum system does not re-traumatise children”. The research was funded by Modern Slavery PEC and led by the Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University, with the Institute of Applied Social Research at the University of Bedfordshire, and in partnership with ECPAT UK. This period of limbo was described...
Industrial emissions of ammonia – a pollutant which damages ecosystems and threatens human health – increased by more than ten per cent in Scotland last year, new data has revealed. Over 11 thousand tonnes of ammonia were released into Scotland’s air and water in 2021 – one thousand tonnes more than in 2020. This is part of a longer term trend which has seen reported ammonia emissions from industry increase by over 50 per cent since 2017. When ammonia is released into the air as a gas it can mix with industrial and car fumes to create a form of air pollution linked to respiratory problems, heart disease, and mental decline. One health expert told The Ferret that “every effort must be made to control” ammonia emissions for the “sake of our health, our children’s health, and the health of our elderly”. It has been estimated that thousands of deaths could be avoided in the UK each year if ammonia emissions from farms – the biggest producer of the pollution – were halved. Green groups also warned that ammonia was causing “significant harm to Scotland’s most important natural habitats” and added this was leading to the loss of some important species. Ammonia and other excess nitrogen in the air is causing significant harm to Scotland’s most important natural habitats, from wildflower grasslands to temperate rainforest Jenny Hawley, Plantlife, The figures come from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (Sepa) annual inventory of industrial pollution. The 925 tonnes of ammonia emitted to the air last year was the highest amount since 2012, while the 10,300 tonnes released into water was a 53 per cent increase on levels reported five years ago. Sepa pointed out that the majority of the growth in ammonia emissions came from an increase in the amount deposited into water, particularly from wastewater treatment plants at Seafield in Edinburgh and Nigg in the Highlands. Scottish Water said the increases in reported ammonia discharges at Seafield and Nigg were caused by “an improvement in monitoring from 2019-20”. Sepa blamed the rise in ammonia emissions to air on “production changes” in the agricultural sector. Health concerns Livestock farms were responsible for the vast majority of emissions to air in 2021. Ammonia is produced on farms through its use as a fertiliser and from animal waste. Ammonia pollution from farms can drift into urban areas and combine with other toxic pollutants to create a small particulate matter – known as PM2.5 – which is considered one of the most deadly air pollutants. Jill Belch, a professor of medicine at the University of Dundee said that PM2.5s made from ammonia are “really bad” because they are “so small they pass into the bloodstream where they spread to every organ in the body”. “Ammonia gas is cleared very quickly from the atmosphere, however the danger lies in its combination with emissions from fossil fuel powered vehicles on nearby roads,” Belch told The Ferret. “PM2.5s have been linked to many serious diseases from poor childhood cognition and poor lung growth to heart attacks, strokes and dementia. “Every effort must be made to control these emissions for the sake of our health, our children’s health and the health of our elderly.” Environmental damage Ammonia pollution is also believed to be harming more than 60 per cent of the UK’s land area. It negatively affects biodiversity by causing nitrogen accumulation. Common and fast-growing species tend to be better adapted to nitrogen rich environments and out-compete smaller, rarer and more sensitive species. The ammonia released to water was mostly reported by sewage and wastewater treatment plants like Seafield and Nigg. These two sites reported the biggest increases in their discharges of ammonia last year. But although these facilities report the pollution, its real source is households and industrial sites. Sepa documents cite breweries, food processing plants, and farms as sources of the ammonia pollution that ends up at wastewater ...
The latest paper on the Scottish Government’s plan for independence has been released with the first minister setting out part of the economic plan. In a press conference announcing the new white paper, Nicola Sturgeon faced questions from the media about the Scottish Government’s finances and the economic case for independence. Responding to a query about public sector pay, Sturgeon argued that Scotland’s budget limited the amount of assistance the Scottish Government could give. “We [the Scottish Government] have, effectively, a fixed budget”. Nicola Sturgeon Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Half True. Evidence The Scottish Government budget is made up of a few different parts. It’s published each year, detailing changes in the funding for departments, as well as any changes to tax bands or benefits. The budget document also sets out new taxes, benefits and public services. However, Scotland can only set its budget in line with the powers which are devolved to the Scottish Parliament. There are specific powers reserved to the UK parliament at Westminster, such as defence, immigration, currency, many social security payments, and most economic policy. This means that the Scottish Government has limitations in what it can do within its budget. How is the Scottish Government budget funded? The largest slice of funding that makes up the Scottish budget comes from the block grant. The block grant is a sum of money that is given to the Scottish Government by the UK Government, and mostly made up of taxes collected throughout the UK. There are two main parts to the block grant: the baseline grant, which is equivalent to the grant the previous year, and the Barnett consequential. The Barnett consequential is the amount of money that comes to devolved nations as a result of changes to spending in England. This change is added up and Scotland is given a share of it based on its population size. The Barnett formula also takes into account the powers Scotland has over each public service. This is to make sure that changes to spending in England lead to the same spending per person in Scotland. If a service is 100 per cent devolved, then the amount of money that comes to Scotland should be the same, per person, as in England, but if some of the service is covered directly by the UK Government then the amount can be less, to account for spending that the UK Government is responsible for. This is called the ‘comparability’ factor. This part of the budget is effectively fixed by the spending of the UK Government in England. The Scottish Government cannot alter the block grant, however it can spend the money in whatever way it chooses to prioritise certain issues. What about taxes? The second largest part of the budget is from taxes. Scotland receives funding from fully devolved, partially devolved and assigned taxes. Fully devolved taxes include council tax, non-domestic rates, and land and buildings transaction tax (LBTT). Scotland also has partial powers over income tax. Revenues raised from income tax in Scotland go to the Scottish Government, and Scotland can set its own rates of income tax each year. However, the UK Government retains power over some aspects of income tax, such as setting the personal allowance (the amount of money you can earn without it being taxed). Scotland has the ability to set and collect new taxes, and has been devolved power over further UK taxes, such as the air departure tax (ADT), which is planned to replace air passenger duty (APD) For taxes which are devolved a calculation is done to adjust the block grant. This deducts money from the block grant to account for the reduction in revenues for the UK Government from the tax, by calculating the amount that would have been raised had the tax not been devolved. This means that changes to tax made by the Scottish Government are realised in the Scottish budget. These block grant adjustments are also made for devolved parts of social securi...
Intensive farms are polluting Scotland with increasing amounts of ammonia gas that contributes to millions of deaths worldwide, according to figures from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). The latest available data, collated by The Bureau of Investigative Journalism and passed to The Ferret, showed a spike in ammonia emissions from large scale pig and poultry farms between 2015 and 2017. Ammonia poses a risk both to the environment and human health, particularly when it combines with vehicle and industrial pollution to form tiny airborne particles. Farming sites releasing the largest amount of ammonia pollution were owned by the poultry manufacturer Hook 2 Sisters. Two of its operations, in Broxburn and Alloa, were the first and second most polluting sites in Scotland respectively. Another of its sites, at Balado Airport in Kinross took fifth place. Egg producer Glenrath Farms was the second most prominent ammonia polluter. Its sites in West Linton and Peebles took third and fourth place, while another of its West Linton sites took sixth place. An Aberdeenshire egg production site by Aberdeen & Northern Eggs – widely known as Farmlay – and a Fife poultry operation run by Noble Foods Limited also featured highly. Others included intensive pig farming sites near Montrose and Stonehaven, operated by John I Forbes and DW Argo respectively. The increase in ammonia pollution was slammed by the Scottish Greens, who said it can also “cause misery for people living in rural areas”. The National Farmers Union Scotland claimed that ammonia emissions were “significantly below the benchmark 1990 levels”, despite a recent increase. The Scottish Government promised that its Cleaner Air for Scotland strategy would be “revised and updated by 2020”, with “an increased focus on agricultural emissions”. Air pollution kills Agriculture is responsible for almost 90 per cent of ammonia emissions, according to UK government statistics. Ammonia gas, which comes largely from animal faeces and fertilisers, is prevalent on industrial farms due to the large quantities of livestock waste generated. Sepa describes ammonia as a “colourless, pungent-smelling, caustic (corrosive) gas”. In high concentrations, it can cause “irritation of the eyes, nose and throat as well as burning the skin where there is direct contact”, it says. Agricultural ammonia has also been found to have a huge impact on air pollution in cities, which can drift from distant farms in rural areas. The gas combines with industrial and vehicle pollution, forming tiny particles that damage the lungs and enter the bloodstream. This can lead to heart or pulmonary disease, respiratory problems such as aggravation of asthma, and lung cancer. In 2014, particulate air pollution caused an estimated 600 early deaths in England and Wales, according to an article in Environment International journal. A 2015 study in the Nature journal estimated that air particles cause at least 3.3 million annual deaths globally. Experts and campaigners have criticised councils and ministers for failing to do enough to cut air pollution, which is blamed for 2,500 premature deaths every year in Scotland. Named: the city streets badly polluted by traffic fumes Professor Mark Sutton is an Edinburgh-based environmental physicist for the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology. He has focussed on the environmental impact of ammonia for almost 30 years. He said that “ammonia reacts in the atmosphere to make particulate matter, which, along with gaseous ammonia, comes down as nitrogen rain – a form of acid rain”. He pointed out that estimates suggested that “agriculture is the single highest contribution to Edinburgh’s particulate matter levels”. Ammonia itself can also damage vegetation and is very toxic to aquatic organisms, according to Sepa. While acting as a good fertiliser for some plant species, ammonia can damage others, thereby harming wildlife. Sutton added: “Many of the natural habitats in Scotland hav...
On Korle-Gonno beach in Accra, Ghana’s bustling capital, reams of tangled clothing are burrowed into the sand. “They go as deep as six feet,” says a local fisherman. These mounds of material are the clothes the west has shrugged off and discarded – second-hand textiles supposedly sent to countries like Ghana and Nigeria for resale from Europe and the US. But the quality is so poor, it is alleged, most clothing ends up incinerated or dumped here on this beach, in an unofficial landfill. This has forced some sellers into debt, as well as raised concerns from campaigners and city administrators about the polluting effect on the local environment, as well as the health risk posed to those in and around these markets. There’s no control over used clothing coming through Ghana’s ports, according to Solomon Noi, director of waste management for Accra city assembly. He argues that managing discarded used clothing has become a “huge burden” for the authorities, a pressing issue that “nobody is talking about”. But here in the UK, it’s something that needs to be on the radar, campaigners argue. The UK is the second biggest exporter of used textiles worldwide According to the most recent figures from Comtrade, which is self-reported by national governments, the UK is exporting over $390m of second hand-textiles abroad a year. That makes the UK the second biggest exporter of used textiles worldwide. This total includes a combined 845,000 tonnes to Nigeria and Ghana, where market sellers often complain that the clothing is not fit for resale, leaving them with no choice but to dispose of it in the open air or dump it in landfills. Charity shops are the UK’s main collector of second hand clothing. According to the Textile Recycling Association, the UK has one of the highest collection rates of used clothing in the world, per head of the population, with over 600,000 tonnes of unwanted clothing collected annually. UK private companies specialising in second-hand clothes also source garments, mainly from household waste, recycling centre charity shops, and clothes banks, before exporting the goods via shipments abroad. And African countries are one of their largest markets. The clothing bales will generally be separated and graded A-D, with Grade A being the highest quality. Most clothes banks are leased to private companies, sometimes for a fee or tied to the tonnage of clothes collected. Zero Waste Scotland estimates that while textiles make up just four per cent of waste by weight from Scottish households, they account for 32 per cent of their carbon impact. This doesn’t take into account the potential carbon multiplying effects when clothing is falsely labelled reusable then sold on to textile merchants, to later be incinerated abroad. While encouraging households to reuse or recycle clothing is seen as a key pillar of the “circular economy”, and is the subject of various initiatives at both the local and national level, reports suggest that a worrying proportion of what is being donated is unwearable. As a result, textile exporters are potentially circumventing rules governing waste disposal. According to Madeleine Cobbing, a researcher at Greenpeace, which released its own report on second-hand clothes exports last year, most clothes are not designed for recycling. Most clothes, she says, are “blends of synthetic and natural fibres which are difficult to recycle, while the huge volumes of fashion being bought and thrown away prevent any meaningful attempt at circularity.” Ghana Ghana is the world’s biggest importer of second hand textiles, with imports tripling over the last decade from $65m in 2010 to over $180m in 2020. The UK alone shipped over $70m worth of used textiles to Ghana in 2020, accounting for close to 40 per cent of the country’s imports — and was the UK’s biggest export product to Ghana. Kantamanto in Accra’s business district is regarded as the largest second-hand clothing market in West Africa. Spanning about four ac...
Have you ever searched for your health symptoms on Google and freaked yourself out? That’s the topic of today’s FFS Show podcast interview. Ali spoke to health researcher Taleen Ashekian from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada, about the increasing use of Dr. Google and a phenomenon called ‘cyberchondria’. Ali and Paul also look at a claim about what Liz Truss will be entitled to after leaving her six-week stint as prime minister. Listen to episode 41 of The FFS Show podcast here. Show notes: The article on Taleen’s research is here. Our fact check on Liz Truss’ post-power allowance is here. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. Cover photo thanks to Andrew Neel Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
A row has erupted between a private company and the Scottish Government over controversial devices called seal scarers which have been used by fish farms. The dispute arose after Marine Scotland reported that The Scottish Salmon Company had received an enforcement notice and acoustic deterrent devices (ADDs) were removed from one of its farms. ADDs, aka seal scarers, are used to deter seals from attacking fish farms by emitting a sound in the water they find unpleasant. The farmed salmon industry claims these deterrents are critical for protecting fish stocks because seals kill around 500,000 caged salmon each year. Critics of ADDs describe them as “sonic torture”, however. They claim they cause hearing damage and stress in dolphins, porpoises and whales – and therefore breach legislation to protect cetaceans. There are alternatives for the salmon industry to use to protect fish farms from seals, critics argue, including the use of stronger nets. Following recent controversy over the use of seal scarers, Marine Scotland has been carrying out inspections at Scottish fish farms to ensure that their use adheres to its aquaculture code of practice. Section 2.2 of the code requires fish farmers to consult with Marine Scotland if they plan to deploy an ADD, and to obtain any relevant consents or to demonstrate that they will not harm marine mammals. The code of practice must be complied with by anyone wishing to deploy an ADD even where a site is not stocked with fish Government spokesperson On the 18th October, 2022, Marine Scotland issued a report for the first six months of this year, following inspections at fish farms by marine protection vessels. Seventeen out of the 78 inspections found that ADDs had been fitted. The report said that SSC’s Taranaish farm, at Loch Roag, had been issued with an enforcement letter after an inspection in April, and that ADDs had been “reportedly removed”. However SSC told The Ferret that an ADD was not in use and the firm accused Marine Scotland of publishing a “factually incorrect” report and misrepresenting the situation. A spokesperson for SSC said: “The unit was demonstrably not in use, and therefore Marine Scotland’s publication of the 18 October is factually incorrect. Marine Scotland was aware that all previously installed ADD systems were turned off and were being removed under a planned programme agreed with the supplier. All systems have since been removed under this planned programme. The SSC spokesperson also claimed that the Marine Scotland report “lacks the necessary detail to accurately contextualise the issuing of the enforcement notice and therefore misrepresents the situation”. They added: “We are disappointed that they have pursued this matter despite our appeal, in which we confirmed the site was fallow, and gave evidence that the system was not transmitting in the period before, during and after the inspection. The spokesperson said SSC was “further disappointed” that Marine Scotland published the notice without accompaniment of the inspector’s report and its letter of appeal which “provides context and evidence”. In reply, a spokesperson for the Scottish Government said SSC’s claim that Marine Scotland’s report was inaccurate was “simply untrue”. They added: “On the 24 April 2022 officers made an unannounced inspection at one of the Scottish Salmon Company’s sites and found a deployed ADD device which had not been declared to the Marine Scotland directorate as required by the code of practice. An enforcement notice was issued, as demanded by legislation and all ADDs were removed. “Industry was previously informed that details of these inspections would be made public and this occurred on 18 October 2022.” The government spokesperson said all aquaculture sites were informed in writing, and through meetings with their industry association, that where a fish farm plans to deploy ADDs, they must “consult the Marine Scotland Directorate” and obtain any relevant consents. Compa...
A multinational which extracts peat from a site in Dumfries and Galloway has been doing so “in breach of.planning permission,” local authority documents unearthed by The Ferret have alleged. ICL, an international fertiliser company, mines peat for the manufacture of compost at several sites in Scotland. The practice has been criticised by conservation groups because it leads to increased emissions of carbon dioxide, the main gas responsible for global warming. One of the sites where ICL extracts peat is Nutberry Moss, in Dumfries and Galloway. A report produced last year by council officials alleged that the firm had failed to follow planning conditions which required it to provide information on how much peat was being extracted from the site, and how it would be restored after operations are due to finish in two years’ time. Environmentalists have questioned why ICL is apparently being allowed to continue to extract peat despite having breached planning permission, and have called for Dumfries and Galloway Council to take immediate enforcement action. When contacted by The Ferret last week, the council said in a statement that “the planning enforcement team still have a case open on the matter”, but did not provide any further details. Earlier this year, we submitted a freedom of information request to the council asking for any further information held regarding the alleged breach, and details of any action being taken in response. However, the council refused to release information on the grounds that “disclosure would, or would be likely to, prejudice substantially the course of justice, the ability of a person to receive a fair trial or the ability of any public authority to conduct an inquiry of a criminal or disciplinary nature.” They added that “disclosing the information would be extremely prejudicial to the council’s ability to take any enforcement proceedings if required.” The Ferret contacted ICL for comment, but did not receive a response. Peat extraction for horticulture carries a massive environmental cost, and contributes to climate change and biodiversity loss Alistair Whyte, head of Plantlife Scotland The UK’s independent Climate Change Committee has called for the extraction and sale of peat to end before 2023. However, neither the Scottish nor the UK Governments have set a date at which extraction will be required to end, and companies operating at several sites in Scotland have permission to continue for years beyond 2023. ICL, which sells peat-based compost in the UK under the name Everris, has existing planning permission to mine at Nutberry Moss until November 2024. It recently sought to further extend the period during which it would be allowed to continue operations, but this was refused by Dumfries and Galloway Council last year on the grounds that it “would result in the release of further carbon emissions into the atmosphere and fail to limit the impacts of climate change.” According to the council, ICL has not appealed the decision. Documents prepared by council officials to inform this decision also noted that “extraction operations are currently being undertaken in breach of the extant planning permission.” The planning conditions reportedly breached include requirements to provide information on the rate of extraction of peat at the site; details of how the site will be restored after extraction; and details of a financial guarantee to “ensure financial viability for the post-extraction restoration and aftercare of the site.” Restoration of sites which have been mined for peat is seen as important by conservationists as it can help to preserve what is left of the carbon stored in the bog. Failing to act sends out the message to environmentally damaging businesses that they can safely ignore important limits to their licences. Laura Moodie, South of Scotland candidate for the Scottish Greens According to the council officials’ report, ICL had also failed to meet planning conditions which req...
Scottish local authorities have recorded more than 10,000 data breaches over the last five years, The Ferret can reveal. Incidents included the unauthorised access of data by staff, stolen data, procedural failures, theft of hardware, personal data put on websites, and the disclosure of personal information to third parties. Police Scotland has been informed of data breaches at least 12 times and at least 47 people faced internal disciplinary sanctions. Freedom of information requests sent to Scotland’s 32 local authorities also found that thousands of staff across Scotland have yet to complete data protection training. While the vast majority of the 10,194 data breaches were for relatively minor issues such as emails being sent to the wrong recipient, concerns have been raised over measures in place to protect sensitive pieces of personal information. The Scottish Conservatives said it was “quite staggering” that so many breaches could have occurred in just a few years and that The Ferret’s findings will “deeply alarm” the public. The Scottish Lib-Dems described the breaches as a “serial problem”. Councils said the rising number of breaches is due to an increased awareness of the need to report data breaches internally. Local authorities are expected to collect, store, use, share and dispose of personal information, or data about individuals, in line with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (DPA). The Information Commissioner’s Office — an independent authority set up to uphold information rights in the public interest — has wide powers and can serve enforcement notices on data controllers and fine them heavily. Breaching the DPA can also, in certain circumstances, be a criminal offence. These figures must serve as an urgent wake-up call for ministers Miles Briggs MSP, Scottish Conservatives We asked councils to provide details of data breaches since 2017. Glasgow City Council (GCC) recorded 1,718 incidents — the highest in Scotland — but said none involved any “significant loss of data”. Eight employees faced disciplinary action with one staff member sacked. GCC said: “We would point out that the council has very well established and internally-publicised data breach reporting processes, and previous exercises have indicated that we report a significantly higher number of data breaches than other public sector bodies.” The City of Edinburgh Council recorded 1,103 breaches and said the majority were “breaches of confidentiality”. They included the loss or theft of hardware, the disclosure of personal data to a third party, personal data on a public website, the misuse of data, and passwords being accessed or shared. The council said it was “not aware of disciplinary action being taken against staff” and refused to say how many of its 18,000 staff had not completed GDPR training, stating it would be too costly to find out. People have the right to expect that all organisations handling personal data should do so safely and securely ICO spokesperson South Lanarkshire Council had 224 incidents with the ICO notified on four occasions. Police Scotland were informed of 12 breaches, the council said. Incidents included a laptop stolen from an employee’s car, a work phone stolen, bank details disclosed in error, and sensitive information being discussed in a public setting. Dumfries and Galloway Council had 231 breaches including “sensitive information” being disclosed 47 times. One case involved “no parental permission sought to discuss child”. Last year Scottish Borders Council apologised after a data breach. The council had been in the process of alerting 1,300 residents they were eligible for a payment due to their receipt of free school meals, but it sent three emails with all recipient email addresses visible to multiple individuals. In 2012 the ICO fined Midlothian Council £140,000 for disclosing sensitive personal data about children and their carers to the wrong people on five separate oc...
Liz Truss resigned on 20 October after just six weeks in charge, making her the shortest serving prime minister in UK political history. After a dramatic 24 hours at Westminster, Truss announced she was stepping aside as Conservative Party leader and prime minister after just 44 days in the job. A new leader will be chosen in a short contest scheduled to last seven days. Truss’ resignation led to a number of claims online about the short length of time she was in office, including one about the amount of money she would be due after leaving the prime ministerial role. [Liz Truss] will get £115,000 annual allowance for the rest of her life. Social media posts Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it True. Evidence Pay and pensions for MPs at Westminster are set by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA). The standard pay for an MP is currently £84,144, not including expenses. Those who take on roles in government – such as ministers, those who chair select committees, or the speaker of the House of Commons – get extra payments on top of their base salaries. The prime minister gets paid £75,440 for the role, on top of their standard MP salary. There is a pension scheme for MPs, but it does not kick in until somebody is no longer representing their constituency, either through resigning, choosing not to stand for re-election or losing their seat. However, former prime ministers are entitled to a special payment scheme called the public duty costs allowance (PDCA). This was set up in 1991 after Margaret Thatcher left office, to “assist former Prime Ministers still active in public life”. The current allowance is set at £115,000 per year. It is intended to be used to cover expenses for any office or secretarial costs which are required for a former prime minister’s “special position in public life”. It was originally set to be equal to the amount of money that MPs can get for office expenses, but is now lower than that amount. In a written answer to a question by MP Rupa Huq in 2021, then-parliamentary secretary Julia Lopez gave examples of what could be considered PDCA expenses. She said: “These costs can include diary support, Met police protection on public visits, correspondence, staffing at public visits, support to charitable work, social media platforms and managing and maintaining [an] ex-prime minister’s office (staff, payroll, admin).” The guidance on the PDCA says the fund is not to “support private or parliamentary duties”, and that any expenses must be accounted for with supporting documents. All living former prime ministers have claimed expenses from the PDCA, as well as former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg, who was allowed to claim due to his position in the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition government. Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, David Cameron and John Major each claimed more than £110,000 in PDCA allowances in 2019-20. When Liz Truss leaves office she will be eligible to claim the allowance up to the current maximum of £115,000. According to PDCA guidance, this would be adjusted if she accepted “any public appointment”. Former prime ministers who are serving as leader of the opposition are not allowed to draw expenses from the PDCA. There is no specified rule on how long one must serve as prime minister before being eligible for the allowance, with public guidance stating all former prime ministers are eligible. Ferret Fact Service verdict: True Liz Truss will be eligible for a special allowance set up for former prime ministers called the public duty costs allowance, which is currently set at £115,000 per year. There is no minimum length of time that a prime minister must serve to be allowed to draw from the fund, and it is available indefinitely. The allowance is for expenses accrued as part of their “special position in public life”, and guidance states it can be reduced if a person takes on other paid public roles. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a s...
Fishing companies are hoping to “double” their catches of krill — tiny animals that sustain the Antarctic Ocean — to feed the fish farming industry. An international investigation for The Ferret has also discovered that current levels of krill fishing are worrying scientists and environmentalists. They fear impacts on penguins, seals, whales and seabirds. Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba) are small shrimps, just a few centimetres long. They are a fundamental part of the Antarctic environment, providing food for many other marine animals. But krill are increasingly being fished by multinational companies to supply food for farmed fish in Scotland and around the world. A rich source of protein, they are also marketed as pet food and as human health supplements. We travelled to Uruguay and the southern tip of Chile close to the Antarctic to talk to the companies that are fishing krill and the scientists who are studying them. We filmed a giant warehouse piled high with large bags of krill to be sold to fish farming companies and pet food manufacturers. Krill fishing companies are convinced that their businesses will grow. The Association of Responsible Krill Harvesting Companies (ARK), which brings together eight Norwegian, Chinese, Chilean and South Korean firms, is hoping to be allowed to catch more krill. ARK’s executive officer, Javier Arata, told us that he expected the krill quota to increase from the current 620,000 tonnes a year. He argued that it could go much higher without harming populations of predators such as penguins and whales. “I’d venture that maybe the quota will just double that we have, in the good years, but there will also be years with lower catches,” he said. Arata suggested that an improved monitoring system would identify years when krill were abundant and areas where they could be more intensively fished. Better monitoring could also limit catches when stocks were low. The Antarctic krill fishery is managed by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR), which involves 37 countries. It is part of the international Antarctic Treaty System, formed in 1961 to protect the continent. CCAMLR set the 620,000-tonne “trigger” limit on krill fishing in 1991, about one per cent of the estimated total of 62m tonnes of krill. So far the limit has never been reached, although catches have been increasing in the last two decades, reaching a record high of 451,000 tons in 2020. There are currently 12 large krill fishing vessels operating in Antarctica, belonging to seven companies from five countries. Norway and China are by far the biggest producers, followed by Chile, South Korea and Ukraine. Marketing krill to fish farmers In July 2022 we visited Montevideo, Uruguay, to see the main logistics centre of Aker Biomarine, which manages about 65 per cent of the world’s Antarctic krill production. It is part of the Norwegian Aker group headed by the billionaire, Kjell Inge Røkke. Loads of meal produced with krill arrive at Aker’s warehouse after being processed on board vessels trawling the seas around Antarctica. From the warehouse, shipments are exported every day all over the world. “We have three fishing vessels operating in Antarctica and we have one vessel that is in charge of the transport — the Antarctic Provider. It comes to Montevideo port roughly every 45-60 days,” said Gian Franco Guerrieri, sales manager for Aker Biomarine. Most of the bags stacked in hundreds of piles in the warehouse are destined to feed farmed fish, while some will be used for pet food. In Houston, Texas, Aker also adds krill to Omega 3 pills supposed to improve human health. “Eighty per cent of our catch and production on board goes to aquaculture and pet food, but most of it is aquaculture,” said Aker’s aquaculture specialist, Ragnhild Dragøy. “We sell all over the world and we sell everything we produce. We have markets in Norway, in Chile, in Asia, in Australia, in the US.” In recent years i...
Salmon farming companies in Scotland have been accused of exploiting “loopholes” to hide infestations of lice that cause suffering and harm wild fish. A new report by the campaign group, WildFish, alleges that fish farms use the prospect of harvesting caged salmon to avoid reporting high lice levels. It also says that they “inappropriately” prolong harvesting to deal with disease outbreaks. The report attacks food certification bodies such as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) for “turning a blind eye” to salmon welfare abuses and environmental damage. To coincide with the report, Wildfish is launching a campaign called “Off the table” to persuade chefs and restaurants across the UK to remove farmed salmon from their menus because of the problems it causes. In response, the Scottish salmon industry attacked Wildfish, saying it had “little understanding of our business”. The RSPCA insisted it would “never turn a blind eye to salmon welfare”. WildFish, which until June was known as Salmon and Trout Conservation, analysed official data on lice, disease and harvesting. Salmon companies make regular reports to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and the Scottish Government’s Fish Health Inspectorate, which are published. “The industry is using reporting loopholes to obscure the true picture of an environmentally harmful intensive livestock production model that suffers from huge numbers of parasitic sea lice,” the report concluded. “The industry gives the illusion that it is in control of the complex, and often concurrent, parasites and diseases that plague the intensively farmed fish.” As a result, according to WildFish, farmed salmon are not protected from pain, as animal welfare law requires. Wild young salmon and sea trout are also put at risk of fatal infections, it said. WildFish named individual salmon farms which it said had failed to report lice levels for prolonged periods by claiming they were about to slaughter the fish for market. Since March 2021 salmon farms have been legally obliged to report weekly counts of sea lice to the Scottish Government. But under the rules they can cease reporting lice levels during a “withdrawal period prior to harvest”. According to WildFish, Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms failed to provide lice counts for 25 weeks at an Orkney farm and for eight weeks at a Shetland farm in 2021-22. The campaign group also said that salmon farms extended harvesting during disease outbreaks. It pointed out that rapid harvesting can prevent suffering and curb environmental impacts. But it accused some farms of “inappropriately” harvesting diseased salmon over many weeks, allowing high proportions to die from infections. According to WildFish, Sutherland-based Loch Duart spent five months harvesting salmon at two of its farms in 2021. The group also criticised food certification agencies such as the RSPCA and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council for ignoring the problems. They were “routinely turning a blind eye to serious welfare abuses and potential negative environmental impacts,” its report said. This requires an urgent response from the industry. Ariana Burgess, Green MSP The report was written by Dr Matt Palmer, a veterinary surgeon and Wildfish’s farmed salmon campaign manager. “The Scottish salmon farming industry is exploiting loopholes to avoid mandatory reporting of weekly lice counts,” he told The Ferret. “By under-reporting the true sea lice burden on Scottish farms, combined with the practice of prolonged harvesting on farms suffering with disease, this industry is risking the health and welfare of both wild and farmed fish alike.” The report painted a “shocking” picture of what was happening on Scottish salmon farms, Palmer said. “One in four fish are dying prematurely, and sea lice parasites are proliferating in huge numbers.” WildFish’s deputy director in Scotland, Rachel Mulrenan, added: “Our findings show why our new campaign is calling on chefs...
“Quiet please”, reads the screen. “Court is in session.” Livingston’s busy summary court sits obediently silent while today’s sheriff reads the reports one more time and looks up at the 20-year-old woman sitting opposite him. Jen, as we’re calling her, is here because when she encountered the man she accused of raping her she “saw red”, lashed out, and ended up with a charge for assault. It is a charge that, on paper, could lead to a prison sentence. But as her lawyer, Iain Smith of Keegan Smith Defence Solicitors, tells the court, she has never been in trouble with the law before and is “extremely vulnerable” having been subject to a “large number of traumatic incidents in childhood”. He asks that sentence be deferred – a request for the decision to be delayed to prove that she will not reoffend. The hope is the charge will then be “discharged”, meaning it can only be considered as a previous conviction if she is convicted of another crime in the future. The procedural summary court is where crimes considered too minor to be dealt by a jury are dealt with. There are no witnesses called, neither the victim or the accused can speak. So when Smith finishes his submission, Jen’s future will be in the sheriff’s hands. A sentence of up to 12 months or a fine of up to £10,000 can be handed down here. And 49 per cent of those given a sentence of 12 months or less will be reconvicted within the year, according to the most recent figures. And – it is argued by lawyers, academics, psychologists and others – many here have long-standing indicators of childhood trauma. The Ferret previously covered the link between criminal justice and trauma in our From the Margins series, which also looked at addiction and mental health. In March an Edinburgh University study added weight to an increasing body of evidence to support the connection, finding people who have suffered extreme difficulties in childhood are more likely to commit crimes in adulthood. Now, while it’s still considered controversial in some spheres, Scotland’s judiciary and policymakers are increasingly exploring what that means for how the state deals with offending. Helping lead the charge are lawyers such as Smith and other professionals, who formed campaigning group Trauma Aware Law, to promote the idea that joining the dots between adverse childhood experiences and bad behaviour is not soft on crime. Instead, they argue, it’s a way to prevent offending in the first place. Smith understands the difficulty some have in making that leap. “I didn’t see it for the first 25 years of my career,” he admits. Then, late in 2017, he attended a screening of Resilience: The Biology of Stress and The Science of Hope – a documentary by Hollywood actor Robert Redford’s son, James – which explores how stressful experiences in childhood can affect brain development, leading to health and social problems in adulthood. “And that was the lightbulb moment,” says Smith. “It describes about 80-90 per cent of my clients.” Now he sees the dramas played out in court differently. Once you learn that the things that help people desist from offending are a home, a strong relationship, family ties, then you see that our job is to help people find that David McKie, former sheriff at Alloa Sheriff Court In the courtroom where Jen’s case is being heard the sheriff has already dealt with six cases out of a total roll of 44. All but one so far have drug addiction issues. Three have explicit mental health concerns. Smith claims many of his clients have disclosed childhood sexual abuse. In this court, there’s a grieving man who smashed up the windows of his mother’s house and threatened police when they attended. He’s “no stranger to the court”, notes the sheriff as he sentences him with a community payback order which, he hopes, will help address his drug use. In another court, a woman appears at a review hearing in connection with a fire raising charge. She tried to set her own flat on fire when she no long...
Concerns have been raised about how Perth and Kinross council will pay for its climate change plan after it used half of its available funds to cover overspending on a new road. SNP-led Perth and Kinross Council (PKC) approved an extra £32.5m of funding for the Cross Tay Link Road (CTLR) at a meeting of its finance committee on 7 September. This brought the total budget for the project to over £150m. The extra money for the road – which will include a bridge over the River Tay connected to the north of Scone by 6km of new carriageway – comes from £70m of “uncommitted capacity” in PKC’s capital spending budget. Although there were no “specific commitments” on what this capacity would be used for, the council budget documents recognised that the extra funding would likely be needed to pay for its climate change strategy as well as other important projects. This has prompted one Labour councillor to question what “magical solutions to climate change” PKC will be able to deliver with “half of the money”. The climate plan includes schemes to make the city more resilient to flooding, which is likely to become more frequent as the climate crisis deepens. Perth has already been one of the worst affected areas in Scotland by flooding. A flash flood hit the city the day after extra spending on the road was approved. Critics of the CTLR claimed it will “increase traffic and carbon emissions, cut through communities and destroy wildlife areas”. “It should not be happening at all, let alone taking away funding from the climate change strategy,” one local MSP said. To spend nearly half the funding on a new road which will demonstrably contribute to climate change makes me wonder what magical solutions to climate change the administration at PKC have in mind that will be deliverable with half of the money. Alasdair Bailey, Labour councillor PKC hopes that the new road will ease issues with congestion in Perth city centre which have caused it to become one of the worst areas for air pollution in Scotland. The council has blamed “inflationary pressures that are pushing up the cost of materials” for the increase in spending on the road. It added that many of the actions in the climate change plan are “already incorporated within the budgets for our services” and that the council is exploring how to “effectively re-prioritise resources” to ensure the policies in the strategy are delivered. Transport is Scotland’s biggest source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the main cause of the climate crisis. Cars produce nearly 40 per cent of this transport pollution. In its updated climate change plan, published in 2020, the Scottish Government committed to reducing car travel by 20 per cent by 2030. This is part of a wider pathway to reach net zero GHG emissions across Scotland’s economy by 2045. But according to traffic modelling carried out in 2019, the number of vehicle journeys taken in the overall Perth area is expected to increase by 2038 if the CTLR goes ahead. More cars on the road will make it more difficult for Scotland, and Perth, to meet its climate targets. Two days after PKC councillors voted 12 to 4 in favour of the extra spending on the CTLR, the Accounts Commission – which audits Scotland’s local authorities – told Scottish councils to put climate change “at the heart” of their decisions. Construction on the CTLR has started with forestry cleared and earthworks prepared along the route. PKC has already sunk £23.5m into the project including buying the land on which the road will be built. The Scottish Government is also providing £40m worth of funding for the CTLR. Planning permission was granted in 2020 despite a host of objections. It is time to scrap the link road plans and start investing in public transport, active travel infrastructure and measures that will reduce traffic rather than boosting it. Mark Ruskell, Scottish Greens MSP As part of the consultation on the CTLR, the director of public health at NHS Tayside, Drew Walke...
The Home Office used location data from an international student’s mobile phone to detain him for allegedly breaking his visa conditions, after it was seized without consent, The Ferret can reveal. The “harrowing case” saw Midhul Balan – originally from India and who arrived in the UK on a student visa last December – mistakenly targeted in an immigration raid last month. Legal experts say the case may have breached privacy laws. He and his wife were then detained for almost a month after the Home Office alleged that the man had been working more than the 20 hours allowed by the conditions of his visa. Balan’s lawyer said he had in fact worked two extra hours for free at a care home, looking after elderly and vulnerable people. Privacy and migrant campaigners said they feared the “chilling” example highlighted how migrants were “not afforded the same rights and protections against Home Office abuses” of data laws. ‘Orwellian’ Home Office techniques In recent years the Home Office has been accused of looking at increasingly Orwellian methods of surveillance, including policies on “data extraction”. In August this year it emerged it was considering plans to use smartwatches and facial recognition technology to track the whereabouts of people “subject to immigration control”. Balan, who paid more than £12,000 in fees to study for a masters at Sheffield Hallam University, insists he has done nothing wrong and is looking to appeal the decision. He and his wife were sleeping in the bedroom of the shared house where they were living in Stoke-on-Trent when immigration officers – who were carrying out an enforcement raid – forced their way in at 6am. Though the couple were not suspected of having broken any immigration laws and their names were not those sought by enforcement officers, Bahan says they forced him to hand over his phone, passport and ID card. They demanded his passcode and work address. After accessing the geolocation – or GPS – function on his phone they claimed he had been at the care home where he worked for more than his visa permitted. Balan has provided The Ferret with payslips to back his claims that he was only paid for 20 hours, and says he stayed on an extra two hours unpaid. He had recently moved to the address and shared paperwork with The Ferret which suggests the raid was targeted at previous residents. The student, who is studying for an MSC in logistics and interpreting at Sheffield Hallam University,” told The Ferret: “They very forcefully took our phones and were asking us lots of questions. “We were frightened and upset. They said they had checked my phone and said I had done extra hours. I told them I have not but they were not listening to me.” The couple were taken to a police station for 24 hours and ended up in Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre in South Lanarkshire where – despite receiving letters of support from both Balan’s employer and university – they received removal directions back to India. “Emotionally when we were there we were not good,” he added. “There were no other women at Dungavel and my wife did not get good support. But there was a nice officer who helped me to get in touch with a lawyer.” The lawyer applied for bail and the couple were released. “But now my visa has been cancelled and I cannot work,” said Balan. “We are surviving only with the help of friends. “We can’t believe this is how this country has treated us. Before this I worked for five years in Dubai and never had these problems. We can’t believe this is how this country has treated us. I have not done anything wrong and now they are telling me they will send me away? Midhul Balan, international student “But I wanted to come here to study. I paid £12,660 in fees so I could do that. I had to borrow money, leave my parents who are ageing. I have not done anything wrong and now they are telling me they will send me away?” Kyle Dalziel, a lawyer with Latta Law, first realised that the Home Office had extracted data...
The SNP’s annual conference featured exhibits from an oil giant and an energy firm accused of being “the world’s biggest tree burner”. Campaigners said that the involvement of the two firms at the conference — BP and Drax — was “a deliberate attempt” to “gain access and influence with political decision makers”. They called on SNP members to “see straight through the greenwash” presented by the firms at the event. BP is the world’s sixth biggest oil company and has reaped massive profits this year on the back of soaring energy prices across the world. Although it has invested more in renewables over recent years, the majority of its profits still come from the fossil fuel sector. BP is also planning to drill new oil and gas in the North Sea and its climate plan was branded “grossly insufficient” earlier in 2022. Meanwhile, Drax has come under fire over recent weeks following a report that its bioenergy plant in Yorkshire is allegedly powered by wood pellets produced by felling trees from important natural forests in Canada. Drax has denied the allegations and said the forests are harvested for high value timber used in the construction industry, not for the production of biomass. It said that the biomass used at its Yorkshire site is sustainable. The company was also forced to make multi-million dollar settlements to US regulators after claims it had breached limits on dangerous air pollution at wood pellet factories close to low-income, majority-black communities in the US Deep South. Drax also hosted events at the Conservative and Labour party conferences. The attendance of major polluters at the SNP conference is a deliberate attempt by these companies to gain access and influence with political decision makers. Freya Aitchison, Friends of the Earth Scotland The SNP conference was hosted in Aberdeen between 8-10 October. The party said that it provided assistance in arranging exhibitions and meetings at the conference, but that this “does not necessarily imply support” for groups hosting them. A pro-vaping conference event co-sponsored by a tobacco firm and featuring right wing think tank was cancelled at the last minute, reportedly after the anti-smoking charity, Ash Scotland, complained to Peter Murrell, the party’s chief executive. BP said it is reducing its production of oil and gas by 40 per cent by 2030 as well as investing in offshore wind and hydrogen capacity to support the energy transition. Drax argued that it has supported over one thousand jobs in Scotland and owns a portfolio of renewable energy assets in the country. The Scottish Greens – who have a cooperation agreement with the SNP at Holyrood – called on all political parties to “get behind the transition to net zero”. They added that there would be “no place” for firms to spread an “anti-climate message” at the Greens annual conference in Dundee. Drax and BP were joined as exhibitors at the conference by the Scottish Cluster, an initiative formed to scale up carbon capture and storage (CCS) and other low carbon technologies in Scotland. Supporters of CCS believe that it will play an important role in Scotland’s transition to net-zero by offsetting emissions from high-polluting sectors. But CCS has also been branded a “false solution” to the climate crisis by green groups, who claim it is being promoted by fossil fuel companies to prolong oil and gas extraction. Scottish Cluster partners include Shell, ExxonMobil and Ineos. As well as these exhibits, there were also a number of fringe events at the conference which involved climate change and Scottish energy policy. The Scottish energy secretary, Michael Matheson, was part of the panel for an event on energy security alongside a representative of Offshore Energies UK, the trade body that represents the North Sea oil and gas industry. SSE – which operates the Peterhead power station, Scotland’s dirtiest site – hosted a similar event on energy security. The panel included a representative from Storegga, o...
Aberdeen University has rejected a “working definition” of antisemitism as recommended by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance for governments and organisations around the world to adopt. After a two-year consultation, the university has adopted the Jerusalem Declaration of Antisemitism (JDA) instead of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) guidance. The move has been welcomed by a human rights group and a professor at Aberdeen University who argued that parts of the IHRA guidance “define antisemitism as any critique of the state of Israel”. He claimed this would have posed a “real threat” to his teaching. However the Campaign Against Antisemitism has accused Aberdeen University of taking a “scandalous position” by not adopting the IHRA definition. The Scottish Council of Jewish Communities pointed out that the IHRA definition states “criticism of Israel similar to that leveled against any other country cannot be regarded as antisemitic”. Supporters of the IHRA definition say it is key in fighting hatred of Jews around the world. Critics of the IHRA definition argue that it stifles free speech relating to criticism of actions and policies by the Israeli government. The university’s Race Definitions Task and Finish Group (the Group) had proposed in May 2021 that the IHRA definition should be adopted, according to an internal university document seen by The Ferret. However at a meeting of the university’s senate in September 2021, concerns were raised that the IHRA guidance “impinged too heavily on academic freedom and the work of academics”. Definitions like this have no place in a university. They stifle creativity and debate Professor David Anderson, Aberdeen University The principal concerns were it was “too vague” and “narrow in scope” and “does not serve to tackle discrimination against Jewish people”. It was also perceived as posing a “threat to academic freedom”. The Group said: “It was noted that 100 UK universities had adopted the definition, however it was also noted that there had been recent high-profile cases which had resulted in academics losing their jobs, leading the group to discuss whether the definition had become ‘weaponised’ in the sector.” As a result of those concerns, the IHRA recommendation was withdrawn and it was proposed the JDA should be adopted instead. The Group noted that the JDA — which was published on 25 March 2021 — was “developed largely as a response to the IHRA definition and to counteract what some saw as the failings of the IHRA definition, namely that it is said to hamper free speech and focus on the Israeli/Palestine political issues”. The JDA provided “a fairer and clearer definition and set of guidelines” than those presented in the IHRA definition, the Group stated. The IHRA’s working definition of antisemitism — which is non legally binding — states: “Antisemitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of antisemitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.” The IHRA says that manifestations of antisemitism include “the targeting of the state of Israel, conceived as a Jewish collectivity”. The JDA says that evidence-based criticism of Israel as a state is not antisemitic. “This includes its institutions and founding principles. It also includes its policies and practices, domestic and abroad, such as the conduct of Israel in the West Bank and Gaza, the role Israel plays in the region, or any other way in which, as a state, it influences events in the world,” the JDA says. Welcoming the decision, the Aberdeen Branch of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign said: “By rejecting the IHRA definition in favour of the JDA, they have sent a clear message of political impartiality and opposed the undermining of academic freedom to expose human rights abuses. “We urge all the in...
The performance of the NHS in Scotland is always a talking point for opposition politicians, and Labour leader Anas Sarwar has regularly attacked the Scottish Government’s record. One criticism he levelled at the Scottish Government and First Minister is the number of people on NHS waiting lists in Scotland. During his speech at the Labour Party conference he repeated a claim that more than 700,000 people in Scotland are currently waiting for treatment. [There are] more than 700,000 Scots on an NHS waiting list – that is 1 in 7 waiting for appointments and treatment. Anas Sarwar Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Half True. Evidence Waiting lists in Scotland’s NHS are collated and published by Public Health Scotland on a quarterly basis. The data is split between diagnostics and in or out-patient treatment, with waiting time targets and standards set by the Scottish Government. For diagnostic waiting times, data on eight key tests is gathered: lower endoscopy, colonoscopy, cystoscopy, CT Scan, MRI Scan, barium studies, and non-obstetric ultrasound. The latest figures up to the end of June 2022 show that 157,289 people were waiting to be seen for one of these eight key tests, an increase of 1.2 per cent on the previous quarter and 77.9 per cent higher than pre-pandemic levels. The data also shows 451,020 patients were waiting to be seen as a new out-patient. This is 7.1 per cent higher than the previous quarter and 46.4 per cent higher than the average before the Covid-19 pandemic. New in-patient or day cases are part of a different target so are counted separately. Up to the end of June 2022, 139,584 were waiting to be admitted for treatment. Combining these three waiting time figures comes to 747,893. However, Public Health Scotland told FFS it advises against combining these waiting list numbers, as it is possible the same patient can appear on more than one list as part of their overall treatment. It is accurate to say that Scots are waiting for more than 700,000 appointments, but we cannot say for sure how many different people there are. How long are patients waiting for tests and treatment? The NHS in Scotland has various targets for how long a person should wait before receiving diagnosis or treatment. The Scottish Government’s waiting time standard for being seen for one of the key diagnostic tests is no more than six weeks. According to the latest statistics, 52.5 per cent of people were waiting longer than that time. More than 50 per cent (50.9) of new out-patients had been waiting 12 weeks or less for treatment, while the figures for in-patients and day cases showed 68.5 per cent of them had been waiting longer than the legal standard of 12 weeks. It is clear that Covid-19 has had an impact on waiting list size and waiting times, with every measure performing significantly worse since before the pandemic. In its latest report on waiting times statistics, Public Health Scotland stated: “Covid-19 is still affecting provision and availability of services with subsequent waves of infection resulting in reduced capacity, for example due to increased staff absence and higher demand from emergency departments and inpatient wards. “During these periods there is often a requirement to prioritise and treat only those patients with the most urgent clinical needs.” Sarwar went on to state that one in seven Scots were on an NHS waiting list in Scotland. According to National Records of Scotland’s latest estimate, there were 5,479,900 people in Scotland in June 2021, and Scots were waiting for a total of 747,893 NHS appointments for diagnostics, in-patient, out-patient and day cases. This would equate to about one in seven people in Scotland, but we can’t be sure how many people are double counted in the statistics. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Half True It is accurate to say that Scots are waiting for more than 700,000 appointments in the NHS, but we can’t be sure how many different people that includes, as...
Influential think tanks which do not reveal their donors and blamed as the “driving force” behind the UK’s current “economic disaster” hosted more than 40 events at the Conservative party conference, analysis by The Ferret has found. Some of the think tanks have been accused of promoting climate change denial, tax havens, and the privatisation of the NHS and BBC, as well as disseminating tobacco and oil industry “propaganda” in schools. Critics believe the groups are too intertwined with the Tories, and have pushed the party further to the right on various issues including the environment, the economy, and Brexit. Opposition politicians called the think tanks “shadowy extremists” who are “now at the heart of government and the driving forces behind the economic disaster” in the UK. A Labour MSP told The Ferret that the findings show the Conservatives are in “the pocket of big business, dodgy ‘think tanks’ and shady lobbying organisations”. The Tories did not reply to a request for comment. Just one think tank – the Institute of Economic Affairs – responded. It said concerns about its funding were “baseless conspiracy” and that it exists to “educate the public about free markets and the institutions of a free society”. Topics discussed at the 44 conference side events – organised by the Institute of Economic Affairs, TaxPayers’ Alliance, Policy Exchange, the Centre for Policy Studies, and the Adam Smith Institute – included the future of the Tory party, and the UK’s economic, tax and climate policies. Many of these events were invite only, and included drinks receptions. The groups have been referred to as “dark money” think tanks because they refuse to reveal who is funding them. However, some have reportedly received funding from the fossil fuel, gambling, sugar and tobacco industries, alongside American trusts with links to Donald Trump’s presidency. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing and think tanks have argued that their donors have the right to privacy. All of the think tanks have close ties to some of the most prominent figures in the Tory party. The events The Centre for Policy Studies (CPS) and its online newspaper, CapX, hosted 21 events and featured in a further two. Among the CPS conference fringe events were two invite-only “breakfast roundtables” discussing the UK’s net zero targets. CPS has previously published pieces which have questioned the scientific consensus on climate change. Other CPS events included a discussion on how the City of London could “seize the opportunities of Brexit”, a conversation with energy minister, Jacob Rees Mogg, and a debate with Tory politicians on how Margaret Thatcher would deal with the current issues in the UK. Tory party conference really is a who’s who of all the most questionable and reactionary groups. Ross Greer MSP The Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) held 12 fringe events and its staff featured on a further two. The IEA has previously been accused of promoting climate change denial, tax havens, the privatisation of the NHS and BBC, and of disseminating tobacco and oil industry “propaganda” in schools. While it refuses to reveal its funders, previous investigations found it has received annual donations from BP, the sugar and tobacco lobbies, and US libertarian organisations. Mark Littlewood, the IEA’s director general, was filmed undercover in 2018. He offered potential US donors access to government ministers and civil servants, and boasted that his organisation was “in the Brexit influencing game”. The IEA’s events included an invite-only private drinks reception and sessions entitled “Energy Crisis: Can the UK afford net zero?”, “What is the future of the Conservative Party?” and “How to build a more pro-enterprise economy”. The longest public appearance of the chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, at the conference – including that of his keynote speech – was an IEA event. Kwarteng co-authored a paper on the “new fiscal rules needed to control government spending” ...
A proposal to investigate eating beavers as a way of limiting their numbers was dropped from Scotland’s new wild beaver strategy following inquiries from The Ferret. Planned action to examine “the potential consumptive use of beaver” was cut from a major report co-ordinated by the Scottish Government’s wildlife agency, NatureScot. The proposal was included in a July draft of the report, seen by The Ferret. But after we asked NatureScot about it, it was omitted from Scotland’s Beaver Strategy 2022-2045 when it was published in September. The suggestion that beavers could be used for human consumption has been condemned as “perverse” and “sickening” by campaigners. They have demanded an end to the shooting of beavers — and suggested introducing predators such as wolves. NatureScot said that this one “minor option” had been dropped because it was “a very low priority and unlikely to happen in Scotland.” It stressed that the content of the final report had been decided by “key stakeholders”. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th century. Some time before 2006 they were illegally or accidentally released in Tayside, and have since spread widely along waterways. There are now reckoned to be more than a thousand of them, welcomed by conservationists but worrying some farmers and landowners. Over the last three years 289 have been shot under licences issued by NatureScot. After the Greens joined the Scottish Government in August 2021, NatureScot brought together more than 50 wildlife, farming and other groups to draw up a long term strategy for beavers. The resulting 76-page report in September set out a series of measures to “actively expand” beaver populations to new areas “following the Scottish Government’s change in policy to encourage wider beaver restoration”. But one proposal originally put forward was quietly dropped. A draft of the report widely circulated in July included an action on page 32 to “scope the potential consumptive use of beaver if and when population reaches optimum densities.” But this proposal had disappeared completely from the final version of the report when it came to be published in September. In the meantime, The Ferret had asked NatureScot whether eating beavers might be controversial. These sensitive, highly intelligent animals should, like all wildlife, be left in peace. Elisa Allen, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Vegetarian and animal welfare groups have reacted angrily. “If there was a risk of beaver populations getting out of control, then some thought should be given to the introduction of apex predators, akin to the introduction of wolves in Yellowstone Park,” said the chief executive of the Vegetarian Society, Richard McIlwain. “Rather that than hunting them for human consumption, which would seem perverse, given this was the primary cause for their extinction back in the 16th century.” People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals argued that no-one needed to eat, wear or otherwise use beavers. “These sensitive, highly intelligent animals — known as nature’s engineers because their well-built dams and lodges can stand for decades — should, like all wildlife, be left in peace,” said the group’s vice president, Elisa Allen. John Robins, campaigns consultant to Scottish charity Animal Concern, attacked NatureScot for authorising the killing of wildlife. “If they do encourage people to munch on beaver burgers it will not be the first time they have tried to disguise culling as harvesting,” he told The Ferret. “It sickens me that culling is being planned before the widespread reintroduction of beavers even gets started. They should halt this project until they bring in strong laws to stop the persecution of beavers.” The Ferret reported in December 2020 that NatureScot had been accused by the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty Animals of telling farmers that beavers were “good to eat and could be used for taxidermy”. Beavers are eaten in Russia, Norway...
A far right activist linked to a banned neo-Nazi terror group gave a speech at a secretive event last weekend in Stirling organised by the white nationalist group, Patriotic Alternative Scotland. Sam Melia is a leading figure with Patriotic Alternative (PA) who is alleged to have had links to National Action, a terror group banned by the UK Government in 2017. Melia – from Yorkshire – was among a group of 58 people who attended PA Scotland’s event at Stirling Highland Hotel. The anti-racism group Hope not hate has described PA as Britain’s fascist threat and it revealed that Melia had marched with National Action at a rally in 2016. Others attending the Stirling event included Simon Crane, from West Lothian, who hosted a podcast condemned by anti-racism campaigners after it featured convicted far right criminals and extremists. The Ferret revealed that supporters of PA, which emerged in early 2021, posted racist and anti-semitic comments and disturbing images in a private group on messaging app Telegram. We also revealed that PA Scotland had compiled a list of around 60 organisations and individuals in Scotland who oppose racism and fascism. Last year two women formerly involved with PA told The Ferret they had suffered suicidal thoughts after abuse and threats by PA supporters. While the group is worrying due to its targeting of young people for radicalisation, there is little hope of their disturbing ideology being taken up by the wider public, who overwhelmingly reject their fascist worldview. Gregory Davies, Hope not hate researcher Concerns have now been raised about the PA event in Stirling. Gregory Davies, a researcher with Hope not Hate, said PA is an “extreme and dangerous group”. He added: “As well as those drawn from the banned Nazi terror group National Action, other leaders were formerly active in the BNP (British National Party) and English Defence League. “While the group is worrying due to its targeting of young people for radicalisation, there is little hope of their disturbing ideology being taken up by the wider public, who overwhelmingly reject their fascist worldview.” A spokesperson for the Scottish Greens said that any links to National Action are “very concerning” and must be fully investigated. “Patriotic Alternative may be a fringe movement, but we can never be complacent when it comes to the far right,” a spokesperson added. “It is a bigoted and reactionary organisation that spreads misinformation and bile wherever it goes. Its values are the antithesis of the fairer, greener and better Scotland that we want to see.” Unite Against Fascism (UAF) Scotland said it was “very disturbing” that the far right can organise a conference in Scotland. “It shows the level of sophistication and privacy that they have using social media. We cannot allow these white supremacists to get even a toe hold in this country,” a UAF spokesperson added. “With the election in the last month of new far right governments in Italy and Sweden we cannot be complacent in Scotland. The seeds for far right ideas are bubbling under the surface with scapegoating of immigrants on the rise and unfounded conspiracy theories circulating the internet.” With the election in the last month of new far right governments in Italy and Sweden we cannot be complacent in Scotland. A spokesman for Unite Against Fascism Scotland PA’s Kenny Smith – a former member of the British National Party and self-described “racial nationalist” – said: “It is clear from looking at the delegates that PA is exactly the opposite of how they portray us. Anti-Whites lie and label us extremists, but we only accept within our ranks those who engage in positive community politics. They fear us because we only fight by legal means for our people.” A spokesperson for Stirling Highland Hotel said: “We were unaware of the nature of the event or the organisation which made this booking, as they provided an acronym at the time of booking. “Had we known, we would not have acc...
The ‘mini budget’ announced at the end of September has had significant consequences for the country and the prime minister. A plan to end the 45 per cent top rate of tax was reversed after just ten days, amid turmoil in financial markets and criticism from across the political spectrum. Liz Truss and chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng were also criticised after it emerged the independent Office For Budget Responsibility were not asked to provide forecasts to accompany the mini budget, called the Growth Plan. In an interview for the Laura Kuenssberg on Sunday programme on 2 October, the prime minister echoed statements made by the treasury minister, Andrew Griffith, that there wasn’t time for the OBR to produce forecasts for the statement. “It does take a while” to produce OBR forecasts, and “we simply didn’t have time to go through that process”. Prime minister Liz Truss Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Mostly False. Evidence The chancellor, Kwasi Kwarteng, unveiled the Growth Plan on 23 September 2022. It contained a number of changes to taxes in England and Wales including cutting the basic rate of income tax from 20 to 19 per cent and removing the top rate of tax, which had been set at 45 per cent. This led to controversy, and considerable negative effects on stocks, bonds and the market price of the pound. After ten days of pressure, including criticism from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and an intervention in the bond market from The Bank of England it was announced that the top tax rate would be reinstated. As opposition to the policy developed, the economic justification of the policy was questioned by politicians and commentators. A number of politicians and policy groups complained that independent economic forecasts were not released alongside the Growth Plan, which was described as a mini-budget. The OBR is committed to releasing at least two forecasts in each financial year. The chancellor decides the dates when these will be released, with one accompanying the Budget. Instead the government announced that an OBR forecast will be published on 23 November, when the chancellor plans to outline a medium-term fiscal plan. However, Kwarteng later said this would be brought forward to October. Financial forecasts and scrutiny of government policy costs are produced for the government by the independent fiscal watchdog the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which was set up in 2010 to “provide independent and authoritative analysis of the UK’s public finances”. The prime minister and treasury minister suggested in media appearances that there wasn’t time for the OBR to provide forecasts to be published with the Growth Plan. In her interview with Laura Kuenssberg, Truss said that developing OBR forecasts was an “iterative process” in which “the policies are fed in, the forecast is then made and it develops over time” and that the government “simply didn’t have time to go through that process”. This is accurate, the OBR usually requires about ten weeks notice for a budget or spring statement. The full methodology and development process is available on the OBR website. However, this process can be sped up in exceptional circumstances. In a 29 September response to SNP MPs Ian Blackford and Alison Thewliss, the chair of the OBR, Richard Hughes, said that the OBR had produced a fiscal forecast for the new chancellor when he took office. He then stated that the OBR had offered to produce an update to that forecast to “reflect the economic and fiscal impact of any policies the Government announced in time for it to be published alongside the ‘fiscal event’ planned for later in the month”. This ‘fiscal event’ was the Growth Plan. Hughes’ letter also stated that the OBR was “not commissioned to produce an updated forecast alongside the Chancellor’s Growth Plan on 23 September” but “would have been in a position to do so to a standard that satisfied the legal requirements of the Charter for Budget Resp...
A group of British insurance brokers have been accused of “working in service of the oil industry” by introducing clients to a controversial insurer which is committed to covering new fossil fuel projects despite the climate crisis. The firms — Alesco Risk Management, AON, and Willis Towers Watson (WTW) —- are all headquartered in London and used by the Bermudian insurance company, Everen Limited, to “identify and present new prospective members”. On Sunday, The Ferret revealed that Everen is providing insurance coverage to the companies behind two of the biggest and potentially most polluting new oil fields in the North Sea. Without this coverage, the new projects — the 325 million barrel Rosebank and 170 million barrel Cambo — will not be able to go ahead. Climate campaigners said that by working alongside Everen — which has a membership made up of 64 global energy companies including many in the oil and gas industry — the brokers are “putting profits before a liveable planet”. They added that without the brokers — middle men who help to find insurance for new oil and gas projects —and their “crucial connections” it would be more difficult for oil companies to access the insurance they need to go ahead with “major new climate threats like Rosebank and Cambo”. None of the three UK-based brokers have responded to a request for comment from The Ferret. But they have each publicly acknowledged the scale of the challenge that the climate crisis poses to the insurance industry and wider society. Insurance brokers have increasingly become the focus of ire from climate activists over recent years as their role in the expansion of fossil fuels has come to light. In May 2022, it was revealed that the world’s biggest broker — New York-based Marsh Mclennan — has been trying to find insurance coverage for the east African crude oil pipeline (EACOP). The company is facing an internal revolt over the project, with over 100 employees signing a letter urging the firm not to broker insurance for EACOP because it would have “disastrous consequences” for the climate. Due to open in 2025, EACOP is set to span both Uganda and Tanzania. It will shift 230,000 barrels of oil per day and generate nearly as many carbon emissions each year as Scotland. Marsh has also recently ended its commercial relationship with the owners of the Adani thermal coal mine in Australia following pressure from activists. The mine has been branded a “climate bomb” which could significantly increase Australia’s contribution to global heating. Marsh is also part of Everen’s broker network, along with Lockton, the American company which has also been linked to the Adani mine. Based in Bermuda, Everen is a ‘mutual insurer’ which was set up by oil companies to insure their own operations. Its members are all shareholders in Everen as well as holding insurance policies with the company. Everen’s board of directors is made up of staff from these members, including some from global oil majors like Chevron, ConocoPhillips and TotalEnergies. As well as having close ties to the fossil fuel industry, Everen is committed to underwriting energy projects which the traditional, commercial insurance market is increasingly distancing itself from as it comes under pressure to tackle the climate crisis. This includes new oil and gas fields, which Everen has said it will continue to provide coverage to, despite studies showing that no new fossil fuel production can go ahead if global warming is to be limited to safe levels. Everen’s membership has grown in recent years as the wider insurance market has become harder to access for energy companies still looking to extract fossil fuels. Companies that broker insurance for fossil fuel projects are complicit in climate breakdown. Maya Mailer, Mothers Rise Up According to the company’s website, the “majority” of new Everen members are “introduced” to the company through its network of brokers when “membership is to the advantage of the prospect...
SNP MP Mhairi Black’s speeches in the UK Parliament regularly go viral online, and her most recent to do so was a condemnation of the record of the Conservative government at Westminster. The speech actually took place in March 2022, when Boris Johnson was still in charge, but was reposted on social media on 19 September. She attacked the UK Government over the economy, inequality and social security, among other issues. Ferret Fact Service looked at eight claims in Black’s speech. “We have the slowest growth in the G7” Various claims have been made in recent years about the UK’s economic growth when compared to other countries in the G7, which comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK and the United States. Boris Johnson, for example, repeatedly claimed in early 2022 that the UK had the fastest growing economy in the G7, but Black said during her May 2022 speech that the UK had the slowest growth in the G7. Black may have been referring to growth predictions for 2023 made by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in April 2022. The IMF’s World Economic Outlook report projected UK growth in 2023 to be just 1.2 per cent. This was later revised downward in July 2022 to just 0.5 per cent. This is the lowest growth prediction among the G7 countries. In May 2022, when Black made this speech, the UK’s real GDP had grown 0.6 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels. This was the same as Japan, higher than Germany and lower than the other G7 members. Comparing the first quarter of 2022 with the same period in 2021, the UK’s GDP growth was higher than any of the other G7 nations. There are different ways to measure growth in GDP, and depending on your time period the UK’s growth can seem more or less favourable compared to other G7 nations, but it does not appear that the UK had the lowest growth. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Half True “We have got greater regional inequality than almost any other developed nation.” Usually regional inequality refers to the difference between the richest and poorest areas of a country. Comparing levels of regional inequality in one country with those in another can be very difficult. A widely-shared report from The Economist in 2017 compared the richest and poorest regions of various developed countries, based on GDP, and found that the UK had a significantly wider gap than a number of similar countries, including Sweden, Germany, Spain, Japan, France and Italy. This used OECD data on small regions, known as TL3s. But this has been questioned by UK fact-checker FullFact as it can mean that areas where a lot of people work, but don’t live, such as the City of London, can skew inequality figures. There are also issues with comparing larger areas (TL2s), as the number of people living in an area in the UK is not necessarily the same as an area in another country, which can also affect the figures. The size of area used for comparison purposes also has an effect on how unequal the UK seems compared to other countries. The most recent OECD comparable data is from 2018. When looking at TL3s, it shows the UK has some of the worst disparity between its richest and poorest regions, compared to the 29 other countries studied. But when larger comparison areas are used (TL2s), the UK’s level of regional inequality is comparable to a number of similar countries, such as France, Italy and Belgium. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Half True “Food banks do the job of government in provision for families. Families that are more often than not in work.” The data on the characteristics and employment status of people using foodbanks is patchy. A report by the Trussell Trust in 2019 found about 14 per cent of those using food banks were either in work themselves or lived with someone who was in work. The overwhelming majority of users, the research found, were not in work and were referred to the food bank after an issue with benefits payments. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Unsupported The Conservatives “banned sch...
The UK Government lifted its ban on fracking in England on 22 September. The announcement was followed by a heated debate at Westminster, with MPs raising concerns about the safety of fracking, as well as its impact on the environment. During the Westminster debate, the energy minister, Jacob Rees Mogg, claimed it had been “widely reported that some of the opposition to fracking has been funded” by the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Labour’s shadow energy minister, Ed Miliband, said that Rees Mogg’s comments were “an absolutely outrageous slur”. But is there any evidence that Russia made payments to campaigners against fracking? Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it to be Unsupported. Evidence Fracking is the process of blasting underground shale rocks with water, sand, and chemicals until they release trapped natural gas. It has faced widespread opposition from environmentalists and local activists across the UK because it has been known to cause earthquakes, while the gas it produces contributes to the climate crisis. Ferret Fact Service asked the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) — which Rees Mogg heads up — to provide evidence for the claim but did not receive a response. The alleged link between the Kremlin and anti-fracking groups has been reported in various newspapers including The Sun, Daily Mail, The Telegraph and the Daily Express. Articles appeared in all four outlets in early March 2022 suggesting that Moscow had funded anti-fracking activists in order to keep European countries dependent on Russian natural gas. Over-reliance on Russian gas to meet domestic energy demand has been a strategic weakness in Europe’s response to the invasion of Ukraine. However, evidence for the claim that Russia gave money to the anti-fracking campaign is flimsy. The Sun, Mail and Express articles point to a 2014 statement by then Nato Secretary General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, as proof that Russia worked with campaigners against fracking. Rasmussen told the Chatham House think tank he had “met allies” who reported that the Russians had “engaged actively with so-called non-governmental organisations – environmental organisations working against shale gas – to maintain European dependence on imported Russian gas”. Rasmussen — who made clear that he supported the use of fracking to increase European energy security — did not provide further evidence for the claim and noted that it was his “interpretation”, while Nato’s press office said in 2014 that the remarks were his personal views. At the time environmental groups branded Rasmussen’s statement as “preposterous”. Greenpeace went as far as to question “what they’re smoking over at Nato HQ”. While the Daily Express and Daily Mail pieces only evidence is Rasmussen’s comments, the article in The Sun provides three other sources which supposedly prove that Russia was making ‘covert payments’ to the European environmental movement. The first is a report from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), which claimed that “Russian-supported consultancies in Europe may be helping some environmental groups oppose hydraulic fracturing”. The report provides no proof to support this claim. There is also no mention of payments between the Kremlin and green activists while a disclaimer at the end of the paper points out the views expressed within it are “solely those of the author” rather than the CSIS. The second source is a 2015 article in the US conservative magazine, National Review, which claimed Russia had “ramped up covert payments to environmental groups in the West”. The article provides no evidence to back up this statement. The final source used in The Sun article is a 2016 report by the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies in Belgium. This is the official think tank for the European People’s Party, the centre-right bloc in the European Parliament. In 2016, it produced a report on organisations operating in the Euro...
People with both mental health and drug and alcohol problems are being “abandoned by a broken system” meant to help them, according to a report by the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland. The “damning report” involved interviews with hundreds of people including GPs struggling to cope, police officers, people directly affected and their families. The Commission found that policies and guidance in place to support people struggling with the often linked issues of addiction and poor mental health, were not being implemented. Less than a quarter of NHS professionals surveyed – 23 per cent – thought adequate care and treatment was being provided. Ninety per cent of the 89 GPs who responded to the Mental Welfare Commission had experienced difficulties in referring patients to both mental health services and addiction services, including when the patient presented in crisis. GPs also reported that referrals were declined from community mental health services due to the person’s drug or alcohol use, with no further assessment or signposting offered. Mental welfare commission findings The research backed the findings of The Ferret’s From the Margins project, published earlier this year, which exposed how people who use drugs and alcohol are being denied proper support to deal with their mental health problems. The project reports included early findings from the Commission’s research. People who spoke to the Commission said they wanted to see change and families supporting them said addiction and mental health services were “complex and outdated”. One said: “We feel totally abandoned by a broken system which refuses to help those most in need. The only way out seems through suicide.” The Commission estimates that alcohol or drug misuse was a factor in between 48 and 56 per cent of all suicides between 2008 and 2018 in Scotland. No information is available about the link to Scotland’s drug and alcohol deaths but research and personal testimonies of support organisations and advocates suggests a strong connection. In 2021, 1,330 people died of drug overdoses and 1,245 died alcohol related deaths in Scotland. Police officers interviewed for the Commission’s research said there was little or no support for people struggling with addiction and mental health issues, which meant they and ambulance crews were the “constant fall back”. Yet they also claimed “neither are the appropriate services to offer meaningful assistance beyond an assessment at A&E.” When The Ferret visited Dundee’s Steeple Church drop-in in January police had to be called when a man attending the drop-in had a mental health crisis and no outreach services were available. GPs claimed that if the patient had any substance abuse “then mainstream psychiatry services will automatically reject any referrals and tell us to refer to the addiction services, even when the main problem at that time is the mental illness”. Their experiences echoed those found by our From the Margins team – which included citizen journalists with lived experience of this issue. They heard from people who had been on waiting lists for months, or even years in some cases, for psychological support. Some were told that they could not access mental health services until they “stabilised” their substance or alcohol use. You use because you’re feeling low. You’re feeling low because you’re using. It’s very much a merry-go-round. Cara Other women had children taken into care – and in some cases later adopted – due to the impact of addiction and mental health issues on their parenting. At the Steeple Church recovery group in Dundee, Cara – who we identified only by her first name to protect her children – told us: “I think that if my mental health was diagnosed at the time, that I could’ve maybe not used drugs, not have went down the road of addiction.” She claimed that mental health and addiction went “hand-in-hand” adding: “You use because you’re feeling low. You’re feeling low because you’re using. I...
Ali is joined by Ferret journalist Jamie Mann for episode 39 of the FFS Show. This week we look at flat earth theory. Ali interviews marketing expert Dr Carlos Diaz Ruiz from Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki. He explains how promoters of the flat earth conspiracy use marketing techniques to spread the theory, and how such techniques are present in other grand conspiracies such as QAnon. Listen to episode 39 of The FFS Show podcast here. Show notes: An article explaining Carlos Diaz Ruiz’s work on flat earth marketing is here. Our fact check on God Save The King is here. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. Image: noLimit46 / iStock Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
The number of people who have had their benefits sanctioned in Scotland has doubled over the last three years, an investigation by The Ferret has found. Despite the growing cost of living crisis, exclusive analysis of Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) data from April 2019 to May 2022 showed that benefits sanctions have risen rapidly since pandemic restrictions were lifted. Rates of sanctions – where benefits are reduced by up to half if people claiming benefits are judged not to have met DWP rules – had risen to pre-pandemic rates by May 2022 in Scotland, the figures revealed. But the greater numbers claiming benefits meant the number of people who had faced sanctions by the UK Government increased from 3,218 people in May 2019 to 7,525 in May 2022. They included people already in work, and women with children. Campaigners and Scottish politicians said it was now time for the “unspeakably cruel” and “draconian” policy to end. We do what we can but we just can’t keep up with the demand. We are a sticking plaster. Eileen Low, volunteer at St Gregory’s Food Bank in Glasgow The DWP said it had already reduced the maximum amount that can be deducted from universal credit twice in recent years. Sanctions were only given to those who had failed to meet pre-agreed conditions, they claimed, with hardship payments available. However, last week the UK Government also announced that rules on universal credit will be tightened further. It said an estimated 120,000 more people on universal credit will be asked to take steps to seek more work, or face having their benefits reduced. Those working part-time and claiming benefits may have to prove they are taking steps in increase income. Benefit sanctions were first introduced by the UK Government under 2012 welfare reforms, and fell dramatically – to almost zero in some Scottish local authority areas – during the pandemic. But despite skyrocketing costs of food and fuel, sanctions in Scotland had returned to almost the same rate as they were pre-pandemic by May 2022, with 1.8 per cent of all Scottish claimants sanctioned in May 2019 and 1.7 per cent sanctioned three years later. The rate increased most dramatically for those claiming universal credit on the condition that they were seeking work. One in 12 men (8.3 per cent) claiming benefits while looking for work were sanctioned in May 2022 – twice the rate for May 2019. The rate for women was 3.3 per cent, again double that of the pre-pandemic rate. Sanctions are often given due to a perceived “breach” of conditions agreed with a job coach. Job seekers are expected to spend 35 hours a week looking for work, complete work diaries and evidence job applications. Sometimes people are told they cannot take up training courses, or take up volunteering opportunities, if they are judged not to count towards the 35 hours. Research also shows fear of sanctions and stress related to conditionality has a detrimental impact on mental health. Charity Crisis has found that sanctions increase homelessness, making it harder to look for work. Our analysis of the data also found a postcode lottery in how sanctions are applied. Sanction rates – the rate of which benefits are reduced or stopped – have varied from 0.1 to 2.7 per cent of all benefit claimants over the last three years, depending on which Jobcentre claimants attend. For example, Paisley Jobcentre saw about 9,000 benefit claimants last year and sanctioned just 24 of them. However Falkirk Jobcentre, which saw 7,500 claimants sanctioned 115 – nearly five times as many. Edinburgh Waverley Market saw about 7,000 claimants and sanctioned 164 of them – nearly seven times as many. We also found variations in local authorities. In Dundee, for example, the sanction rate for May 2022 was 2.2 per cent for that month while in Inverclyde it was only 0.7 per cent. Glasgow-based research has found Jobcentre staff don’t all believe sanctions help move claimants towards work. Those staff would seek alternati...
A lobby group with close ties to the Tory party has urged Westminster to overrule the Scottish Government and allow the exploitation of underground gas at two “dirty and dangerous” sites north of the border. The proposal was made by the pressure group, Net Zero Watch, in a press release after the UK Government broke a manifesto pledge and lifted its moratorium on fracking in England on 22 September despite a leaked report showing it still posed an earthquake risk. Net Zero Watch is a campaign launched and managed by the Global Warming Policy Foundation (GWPF) which is considered to be the UK’s most prominent climate science denial group. The GWPF has links to senior Tory MPs who have led a backlash against the UK’s climate targets. The group called for “national security measures” to be used by Westminster to ‘override’ Scottish Government bans on gas production at one site at Airth, near Falkirk, and another under the Firth of Forth. Plans by developers to extract gas at both Airth and under the Forth were dropped in the face of strong opposition from green campaigners and local residents throughout the 2010s. Fracking – a controversial extraction technique which involves fracturing rocks to release natural gas – was not expected to be carried out at either of the sites. But environmental groups have warned that the Airth and Forth projects would still be “incredibly harmful” to the climate and bring “serious local health and environmental risks”. They told The Ferret that any attempt by the UK Government to “force” the projects on communities “would be a disgrace”. The Scottish Government confirmed that it remains opposed to the development of unconventional oil and gas projects in Scotland. It pointed out that powers over onshore oil and gas licensing are devolved and added that it does not intend to issue any licences. Meanwhile, the Scottish Greens said that the lobby group’s proposals showed a “fundamental misunderstanding of how devolution works” and a “contempt for democracy”. The UK Government is yet to respond to a request for comment by The Ferret. “Wherever these dirty and dangerous industries are proposed, they will be resisted once again.” Freya Aitchison, Friends of the Earth Scotland The GWPF was co-founded by the former Conservative chancellor, Nigel Lawson, who remains a trustee alongside the leading Brexiteer and Tory MP for Wycombe, Steve Baker. Baker is also the founder of Westminster’s Net Zero Scrutiny Group (NZSG), which is made up of backbench Conservative MPs and opposed to many of the UK’s net zero policies. The NZSG’s chair, Craig Mackinlay, has also employed the GWPF’s head of policy as a parliamentary aide. Based at 55 Tufton Street alongside a number of other opaque right-wing think tanks, the GWPF does not disclose its donors. However, it has reportedly received considerable funding from a foundation with millions of dollars worth of investments in oil, gas and coal companies. Net Zero Watch has repeatedly claimed that the cost of living crisis is a result of net zero policies and has been vocal in its support for fracking. Its press release also argued that new coal mines and coal-fired power plants should be developed in the UK. The term unconventional gas refers to any method of obtaining natural gas that requires new, or advanced methods, including fracking. The Scottish Government has had a policy of ‘no support’ for all unconventional oil and gas production since 2019. The fossil fuel giant, Ineos, dropped plans to extract gas from underground coal seams at Airth in 2020, following the announcement of Holyrood’s position. The gas at Airth was expected to be produced using a method known as coalbed methane extraction. This involves pumping large quantities of water into the coal seams until they release the trapped gas. Environmentalists are opposed to coalbed methane extraction partly because it produces gas which will exacerbate the climate crisis when burned, but also because the wate...
Scotland’s biggest private landowner has been attacked as “manipulative” and “undemocratic” after The Ferret revealed that his company secretly lobbied the Scottish Government to stymie plans for a spaceport in Sutherland. A letter released under freedom of information law shows that Wildland Limited — which runs three large estates across Scotland for Danish billionaire, Anders Holch Povlsen — warned the former rural economy minister, Fergus Ewing, that its planned investments could be endangered by the spaceport. Some campaigners are angered by the lobbying, while others are disappointed. Land reformers criticise the political influence wielded by large landowners. But Wildland says it took an “opportunity to raise long-standing and well-known concerns”. It fears the port, which would be used to launch satellites into space, could damage an “important, environmentally vulnerable landscape”. It’s vital that any vision for the future sustainability of the Highlands is determined by the communities that live there rather than by monopoly landowners with deep pockets and political influence. Community Land Scotland Povlsen, who made his money from the clothes retailer, Bestseller, and has a 25 per cent stake in online retailer, Asos, was listed in May as Scotland’s richest man. He is reportedly worth £6 billion. He has actively opposed the Sutherland Space Hub proposed by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) for the A’ Mhoine peninsula on the north coast of Sutherland, near to one of his estates. He has taken Highland Council to court in a bid to overturn planning permission for the development. He has also invested £1.5 million in a competing space port planned for Unst, the most northerly of the Shetland Islands. Povlsen’s opposition to the Sutherland plan has upset those in the local community who welcome its economic benefits, but his stance has been quietly supported by environmentalists worried about wildlife. The Ferret reported in September 2020 that the arms industry was planning to use the site to launch military spy satellites. Spy satellites destined for Scottish spaceports Now we have obtained a copy of a letter sent by Wildland’s chief executive, Tim Kirkwood, to Ewing on 30 January 2020. It followed a visit from the minister and a meeting to talk about planting woodlands to help combat climate change. “At the meeting we touched upon HIE’s involvement as developer of the proposed Sutherland Space Hub,” wrote Kirkwood. “It would be very unfortunate if the dilemma ultimately boils down to a choice that Wildland has to make about continuing with its ambitions for its north coast estate or not.” He reiterated a point he’d made at an earlier meeting with HIE’s chief executive, Charlotte Wright: “It seems to me that a launch facility in Shetland and the Wildland developments in Tongue present a win/win.” Kirkwood also referred to planned meetings he was having about Wildland’s investments in North Coast 500, the road trip around the top of the Scottish mainland, and Inverness Castle. He also “undertook to consider development proposals for Cairngorm Mountain”. The letter prompted the local action group, Space Port United Residents, to accuse Povlsen and his company of being “manipulators” making threats. “Wildland will be threatening to pull out its investment,” said the group’s founder, Scott Coghill. “That’s how he and Wildland behave. They are like cowboys in the wild west, except it’s money they use to get their way. There’s an uneasy feeling in this area just now about the way he has gone about things. It feels undemocratic.” The Melness Crofters’ Estate, on whose land the spaceport would be built, are looking forward to the 40 new jobs that it will bring. “I am very disappointed that any individual or organisation should try to stop such an important development for North Sutherland,” said the estate’s chair, Dorothy Pritchard. “Melness Crofters’ Estate remains resolute and positive. Our seven directors are un...
Scotland needs a radical shift in the way that power and influence are distributed to help address democratic deficits and rebuild trust in the political process, The Ferret has heard. Politicians and campaigners reacting to our week-long investigation – Who Runs Scotland – claimed it has revealed deep flaws in our transparency legislation and a heavy reliance on big businesses based outwith Scotland, including those with links to tax havens. Our series of reports also suggested a “closed shop” of connections in both public and private decision-making and an imbalance of power tipped in favour of those with money, land, connections and high professional status. Businesses said they were investing in communities and creating jobs while the Scottish Government insisted it was already committed to transparency and closing the inequality gap. It said it was committed to concluding a review of local government “within this parliament”, and was looking to “combine an empowered local government with a transformation in community-led decision-making”. “There is a clear appetite for changing how power and resources are shared,” said a spokesperson. Lobbying loophole: How big business influences Scottish ministers without scrutiny But responding to our findings, commentators suggested solutions to what they view as a democratic deficit, including increased transparency initiatives, wider use of citizens assemblies, more diverse voices in positions of power and creative input that challenges the status quo. Power is “concentrated in the hands of too few people”, said Willie Sullivan, director of the Electoral Reform Society Scotland. “The question is really whether Scottish society is democratic enough.” At the very least, I think every senior appointment to a significant public body in Scotland should be subjected to parliamentary scrutiny before the person takes their post, as is already the case in Westminster. Ian Fraser, author and journalist As part of the investigation we looked at the power of the energy lobby and its access to Scottish Government ministers, and we also found that 90 per cent of Scotland Office meetings were with industry or business. Other revelations included the special access that multinational arms dealers with operations in Scotland had to Westminster’s corridors of power. Sullivan said: “It’s ok to talk to big business of course. But most people aren’t in big business and yet they rely on the economy for their livelihoods. So we need to make sure that a bigger range of voices are being heard.” He applauded the use of citizens assemblies by the Scottish Government and said more were needed. In January Scotland’s first Citizens Assembly – group of people selected at random to learn about and deliberate on issues – published 60 recommendations. The assembly was made up of 100 members of the public. The recommendations include pushing for the abolition of zero hours contracts, exploring whether a standard four-day working week should be introduced and establishing an anti-poverty task force in every council area. Windfall: one third of Scotland’s biggest wind farms linked to tax havens “The development of things like citizens assemblies not only allows government to hear those experiences but it also helps to build trust,” Sullian said. “And really the biggest challenge to our democracy at the moment is the lack of trust.” According to the Ipsos MORI Veracity Index 2020, only 15 per cent of the public trust politicians to tell the truth, while the figure for government ministers was just 16 per cent. Sullivan called for the transparency loopholes in the lobbying register – which mean only face-to-face lobbying has to be registered – to be closed, echoing criticism this week by both Scottish Labour and the Scottish Conservatives in the wake of our report. We all have the democratic right to lobby. That’s important. But the fact that we hear more from those with resources to pay people to do it for them raise...
So who runs Scotland? That’s been the central question of The Ferret and The Herald’s week-long investigation. Along the way we’ve examined the corridors of power and looked at who gets the most access to ministers – and who doesn’t. We’ve pored through the lobbying register, ministerial diaries, First Minister-hosted dinner and event lists, advisory panel minutes, and examined what happened to the recommendations made. We’ve studied the ownership of our media, natural resources and iconic Scottish produce such as whisky, and exposed how arms firms wield unaccountable power at Westminster. We also looked at what happens to profits and links to tax havens, finding that multinationals and individuals mostly benefit while the Scottish people often don’t. But it’s not just about political power and big business. The decision-making systems we rely on have also been our focus, including the power dynamics within public boards and services. We learned that power is an ever-shifting, nebulous force. So, the individuals listed below are not the people running Scotland, but a selection of some of the most influential today – a top ten who caught our eye plus a round-up of other interesting people. Of course, in a democracy our elected politicians front the show – but what power and influence lies beneath? Some names on our list you will not have seen on any ballot paper but nonetheless these people have more influence than most in our society. Some may be familiar – it’s notable that some stayed within the establishment when political power transferred from Scottish Labour to the SNP. Others will be newer faces. The Ferret’s criteria was to look at a combination of wealth or salary, land and property, access to political power, professional influence, connections.and then to bear in mind any x factors we found along the way. You’ll notice they are white, and mostly male. Our findings suggest the old power bases are holding firm. Anders Povlsen The Danish fashion mogul and Scotland’s richest man is reportedly worth £6bn, up £1.27bn on 2020. Thought to be Scotland’s biggest landowner, since buying the Glenfeshie Cairngorm estate in 2006, Povlsen, 48, has reportedly amassed 220,000 acres across 12 estates. His ambitious 200-year plans will influence the course of Scotland’s rewilding future, and could drastically alter northern Scotland. But, as The Ferret revealed, they may be scrapped if the Sutherland space port goes ahead. Povlsen has previously tried to exert influence in a failed attempt to block wind farms. His company, Wildlands, had pledged to regenerate native woodland, peatlands, wetlands, rivers, and endangered animal populations, promising to invest £50m by 2022. The project would reduce deer and sheep numbers and, controversially, hopes lynx, bear and wolves ”may be able to return”. Wildlands says it has planted four million new trees and regenerated thousands of acres of natural woodland, promising to tackle climate change and depopulation. Sir Ian Wood A giant in the worlds of energy, oil and fishing, billionaire Wood is worth £1.82bn, and his family are Scotland’s fourth richest according to the Sunday Times Rich List. Wood retired from energy company the Wood Group in 2012 but remains chairman and chief executive of JW Holdings which, along with its subsidiaries, owns one per cent of the UK’s fishing quotas. He also now chairs Opportunity North East (ONE), which aims to drive economic diversification in north east Scotland. Geoff Aberdein, Alex Salmond’s former chief of staff, served on the ONE board until December 2020 and is now consulting for the group, and providing counsel for Message Matters, one of Scotland’s biggest lobbying consultancies. In 2013, Wood undertook a review for the UK Government on oil and gas recovery and this year he joined its ‘Build Back Better’ council. He has warned against Scottish independence and supports Brexit. The Wood Foundation supports youth projects in Scotland and Africa and has...
Women board members appointed to Scotland’s public bodies get paid half a million pounds less than their male counterparts, despite a drive for gender equality, The Ferret can reveal. Published pay arrangements for board members across 93 different public bodies, where appointments are largely overseen by the Scottish Government, show there are now virtually equal numbers of men and women serving on them. But an analysis of their pay shows that female board members take home an average daily rate of £208 per day compared with men, who typically earn £224 per day. We know that Scotland can – and must – do better. Maggie Chapman, Scottish Greens equalities spokesperson Over a year this means women serving on public bodies earn thousands of pounds less than their male counterparts. Critics have warned that it’s not enough for public bodies to be “getting women round the table”. They need to “enable women board members to access the roles that pay more, and have more power”. Board members across the 93 public bodies collectively earn more than £8.8m each year. Women are paid around £4.1m of the total – meaning the men on these boards take home half a million pounds more between them. The difference is largely because there are far fewer women serving in the more lucrative senior roles such as chairperson or commissioner. These roles typically command higher fees. There are 34 women serving in senior roles, compared with 60 men. Among the top 20 highest earners on public boards, seven are women. !function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var t=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var a in e.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r In 2015, Nicola Sturgeon pledged to work for gender parity on Scottish public bodies. Since then analysis based on freedom of information requests by The Ferret found that at least 10 organisations have lost their female chairperson and replaced them with a man. The figures show there has been a net gain of just 14 women in senior board roles in the last six years. The data covers the majority of current regulated public boards but not all of them because of organisational changes and inconsistent responses to requests under freedom of information legislation. Some public bodies have also gone backwards on gender equality since 2015. Scotland adds 80 women board members since Sturgeon equality pledge New College Lanarkshire has reduced the proportion of women on it’s board since 2015, lost a woman from the chair role and seen its overall gender pay gap go up since 2018. Despite this, women make up 52 per cent of its board. Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL), the public firm that owns many of Scotland’s lifeline ferries, has lost women since 2015 and now has just 25 per cent on its board. The firm has never had a women chair and has also seen its gender pay gap – the difference in typical amount paid to employees at all levels – widen since 2018. Elsewhere, NHS Highland has seen the proportion of women on its board decline in the last three years, whilst its overall gender pay gap has risen too. Anna Ritchie Allan, executive director of Close the Gap, said: “Assumptions about women’s capabilities and interests means they’re less likely to be in higher-paid roles. It’s not just about getting women round the table, public bodies need to enable women board members to access the roles that pay more, and have more power. “Diverse boards make better decisions,” she added, “so public bodies that fail to appoint women are unlikely to be making the best decisions.” Alys Mumford of Engender said legislation on public boards had not solved the problem of men dominating board rooms. She said: “While it’s encouraging to see that legislation around gender balance on public boards has resulted in more boards with greater representation of women, these findings show that this doesn’t solve the problem of white male dominance. However, we do re...
Influential bankers, retired senior civil servants, well-connected industry insiders, powerful chief executives and former politicians – meet Scotland’s quango class. Some roles are unpaid, and many work extra hours in their devotion to public service. But analysis by The Ferret of 775 Scottish Government public board positions has also found a web of influential connections binding many serving in the public sector. Some had been appointed to multiple roles on boards, moving across appointments in different sectors for more than a decade. Pay varies hugely with some roles – especially prestigious ones in arts and cultural sectors – being unremunerated. At the other end of the scale Willie Watt, the chair of Scotland’s National Investment Bank, pockets £1,125 per day along with other Bank board members who are on a daily rate of £850. The Ferret looked at all regulated public boards and found the highest earner was Dame Susan Rice – the first woman to lead a clearing bank, Lloyds TSB Scotland, and later became chair of the same bank, a role from which she retired last year. She earns a total £130,512 for her roles, which includes chairing the Scottish Fiscal Commission, receiving £36,270 for 78 days work a year. She also chairs the board of Scottish Water 2.5 days a week, earning an additional £94,242. This is a role Scottish Water said required “the experience and skills found in large, complex and vitally important business organisations”. While Rice currently holds only two positions on public boards she has a string of high profile board roles under her belt. A senior independent director of J. Sainsbury’s plc, and a non-executive with the North American Income Trust, Big Society Capital, the Banking Standards Board, she has previously been on the boards of SSE plc and the Bank of England. Others are lower paid but currently combine multiple public roles. Paul Edie has served as the chair of the Care Inspectorate since 2013 and he is also a member of the Scottish Social Services Council. He is a non-executive director of Healthcare Improvement Scotland and joined his fourth concurrent public board – the Scottish Police Authority – in April 2021. He is paid a total of £56,000. Prior to this, Edie had an extensive career in politics serving as a Scottish Liberal Democrat councillor for 23 years on Edinburgh City Council where he was the party’s group leader. He also chaired the Edinburgh Community Safety Partnership for five years and was a non-executive director at NHS Lothian. The only other person filling four roles on public boards is Ann Allen, the CEO of the Chartered Institute of Civil Engineering Surveyors (CICES). While she is not remunerated for work as a board member of the National Museums of Scotland (NMS), she receives £9,600 as chair of the Architecture Design Scotland Board, and £7,800 working two days per month as a board member of the influential board of Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), – the SNP’s alternative to PFI. She also sits on the Water Industry Commission for Scotland board, which brings in £13,780 . A Chartered Surveyor with over 35 years’ experience, Allen has worked for organisations such as John Lewis, HBOS and the UK Government. Scottish Futures Trust and National Museums of Scotland boards are chaired by chartered accountant and former executive director of Scottish Power, Ian Russell. Both boards attract well-connected chairs. Angus Grossart, merchant banker and chair of communications and political strategy consultancy firm, Charlotte Street partners, served as chair of the National Museums of Scotland board until 2012. He and his wife, the contemporary painter Lady Gay Grossart, are listed as benefactors of the NMS transformation in 2011. Grossart was involved in the Scottish Futures Trust at its inception. He was appointed as the first board chair by the then-finance secretary John Swinney and remained in post until replaced by Russell in 2012. Announcing Grossart’s post in 2008 Swinney ...
Five private companies who employ around three quarters of the workforce in Scotland’s arms industry had thousands of closed door meetings with the UK Government between 2011 and 2020. As part of The Ferret’s Who Runs Scotland investigation we looked at 70 firms operating in Scotland’s defence industry and examined data about them obtained by the Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT). The special access at Westminster given to BAE Systems, Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Thales, amounted to 2217 meetings with the UK Government including 40 when representatives from the Prime Minister’s office were present, lasting a collective 58 hours. In 2018 alone the five companies collectively had contracts with the Ministry of Defence worth £2.42bn. We also found that 87 people who worked for one of these five firms had also worked for the UK Government, making them so-called ‘revolving door’ employees. BAE Systems, Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Thales are among the largest arms firms in the world. They are the biggest players in Scotland’s arms industry and together employ at least 7,227 – or 72 per cent – of the estimated 10,000 people employed by the sector. Defence is worth £1.9bn to the economy, according to ADS Group, a body representing the industry. But critics have questioned the secret power and influence they wield at Westminster, and the revolving door between the industry and Whitehall, amid concerns that UK arms sales fuel global conflicts for profit . CAAT said these private firms have a “huge voice in the corridors of power, with little in the way of transparency or accountability”. As long as arms dealers are cavorting with ministers and sitting on decision making bodies then we will continue to see policies that put arms sales ahead of human rights Andrew Smith, Campaign Against Arms Trade BAE Systems, headquartered in the UK, is the world’s seventh largest arms company and employs 3,000 people in Scotland. The firm supports Saudi Arabia on the ground in Yemen’s war and has sold weaponry worth £17.6bn to them. It had 1,283 private meetings with the UK Government while 28 staff also worked for the government. It’s MoD contracts in 2018 were worth £1.3bn. US company Raytheon had 106 meetings lasting 125 hours, and 14 staff were “revolving door” employees. The meetings included seven with the Prime Minister’s office lasting 11 hours. In 2018 Raytheon had £270m of MoD contracts. Its Paveway IV guided bombs, aka smart bombs, are manufactured in Harlow and Glenrothes. They have been sold to Saudi Arabia and used in airstrikes on Yemen that hit civilian targets, as reported by The Ferret. Raytheon employs around 700 people in Glenrothes and has taught science courses in Fife schools. Italian company Leonardo employs around 2,000 people at Crewe Toll, Edinburgh. The firm had 14 “revolving door” employees and 283 meetings lasting 247 hours. These included nine with the Prime Minister’s office lasting 12 hours. In 2018 the firm had £440m of contracts. French firm Thales employs 700 people. It had 260 meetings lasting 284 hours and 18 staff were revolvers. Meetings included seven when representatives from the Prime Minister’s office attended. The firm had £241m of MoD contracts in 2018. US firm Lockheed Martin is the world’s largest defence company. Thirteen employees worked for the government and it had 285 meetings lasting 275 hours. These included seven lasting 11 hours when Downing Street officials attended. It had £172m of MoD contracts in 2018. Defence is a reserved matter for the UK Government but arms firms also lobby at Holyrood. According to the Scottish Parliament’s lobbying register Thales had 10 meetings since 2018. It met with former Labour leaders Richard Leonard and Johann Lamont, former Tory leaders Jackson Carlaw and Ruth Davidson, and SNP business minister, Jamie Hepburn. Rather than enabling that, the UK should be supporting efforts to have those nations investigated for the war crimes they ha...
Ten of Scotland’s major newspapers are owned by just three men: Rupert Murdoch, Lord Rothermere and Frederick Barclay. They are all billionaires who, personally or through their businesses, have used the law to avoid paying tax. Analysis by The Ferret reveals that all but one of Scotland’s national newspapers, The Sunday Post, are owned in other countries. As many as 25 titles are run by firms in London, eight of which belong to parent companies in the US and Asia. Media campaigners, who believe Scotland’s media is “dominated by a small group of corporations with a narrow range of views”, called for reform. Reach PLC publishes the most Scottish nationals – Daily Record, Sunday Mail, Daily Star of Scotland, Scottish Daily Express and Scottish Sunday Express, as well as The Mirror. The London-based firm is chaired by Nicholas Prettejohn, who was a member of the now-closed BBC Trust and chief executive of insurance giants Prudential and Lloyd’s of London. He also chairs Scottish Widows and is non-executive director of Lloyds Banking Group. Glasgow-born Jim Mullen, Reach’s chief executive, held senior roles at gambling firms. He is also non-executive director of Racecourse Media Group and former director of digital strategy and product management at News UK. The London-based News UK publishes the Scottish Sun, Scottish Sun on Sunday, and the Scotland editions of The Times and Sunday Times. Chief executive Rebekah Brooks was an editor of The Sun, and the publisher’s now-defunct tabloid, News of World, which ceased publication following a phone hacking scandal. Billionaire Rupert Murdoch, the Australian-born US media magnate, is founder and executive chairman of News UK’s parent company, News Corp, based in New York City. His company paid zero UK corporation tax during the 1990s. Fellow billionaire press baron, Lord Rothermere, is chairman of the London-based Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), which owns the Scottish Daily Mail, Scottish Mail on Sunday and the Scottish editions the Metro and the i, via its DMG Media subsidiary. We’re calling on policymakers, platforms and philanthropists to help build a more diverse, plural and sustainable news ecosystem Spokesperson for Public Interest News Foundation According to Private Eye, Rothermere inherited DMGT through a Bermuda-registered company run from Jersey – both known tax havens – and used his non-domiciled status to reduce his tax liability. Figures show News Corp, DMG and Reach accounted for more than two-thirds of UK newspaper revenue in 2020, taking 26.5, 24 and 21 per cent respectively. JPI Media publishes The Scotsman, Scotland on Sunday as well as around 20 Scottish locals including Edinburgh Evening News. The publisher and its parent company, National World Plc are both London based. National World is owned by Northern Irish media mogul, David Montgomery. He once edited News of The World, was chief executive of Reach’s predecessor, Mirror Group, chief executive of News UK, and director of Sky’s predecessor, Satellite Television. The Herald, Herald on Sunday, The National and the Sunday National, plus more than 20 Scottish locals including the Glasgow Times, are published by the London-based Newsquest Media Group. Chief executive, Henry Faure Walker, was previously digital director at JPI Media’s predecessor. Newsquest’s parent company, Gannett, is headquartered in the US state of Virginia. The Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph Scotland editions are owned by the London-based Telegraph Media Group. It is a subsidiary of the London-based Press Acquisitions Limited, which in-turn is owned by May Corporation Limited, according to company accounts. The Jersey-registered parent firm is ultimately owned by billionaire Frederick Barclay. He has mostly lived between two tax havens – his island in the Channel Islands and Monaco – using offshore trusts to control his businesses, according to the Financial Times. Dundee-headquartered DC Thomson publishes the national title, The Sunday ...
The number of companies registered in tax havens investing in Scotland over the last decade has increased by nearly 60 per cent. Analysis of Scottish Government data by The Ferret found that in 2020 there were 135 firms registered in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and British Virgin Islands operating, compared to 80 in 2010. Their collective turnover last year amounted to just over £4bn. Tax havens allow businesses and super-rich individuals to lawfully avoid tax on their money by storing it in offshore accounts. Often they do not share transparent financial information nor require businesses or individuals to operate out of the country to gain tax benefits. In 2010 there were 25 firms registered in Bermuda investing in Scotland, 25 in the British Virgin Islands and 30 from the Cayman islands. By 2020, these figures had increased to 35, 40 and 60 respectively. Campaign group Tax Justice Network, sees tax avoidance as morally wrong and says the British Virgin Islands is ranked as the “greatest enabler of corporate tax abuse”, with the Cayman Islands in second place and Bermuda third. Amazon warehouse now owned in tax haven after £6.3m tax payer subsidy Alex Cobham, chief executive of the Tax Justice Network, said the threat of tax avoidance has “grown significantly” but there are “simple steps” the Scottish Parliament could take to reduce the risks. He said all businesses operating in Scotland – regardless of ownership – should be required to meet the same tax and financial transparency standards. Cobham added: “This should include publishing full accounts and the identities of the (human) owners. Multinational companies that are already required to provide country by country reporting to HMRC should be required to make this data public also, as the likes of Vodafone and Shell already do voluntarily. “Businesses like Scotmid Coop and SSE have been accredited with the Fair Tax Mark, and this provides effective criteria should policymakers wish to improve standards nationally.” Whilst the use of companies based in Britain’s Overseas Territories is not illegal, our research has shown that due to the anonymity they offer, they have been a tool of choice for those seeking to hide business arrangements. Ben Cowdock, of Transparency International Ben Cowdock, of Transparency International, said: “Whilst the use of companies based in Britain’s Overseas Territories is not illegal, our research has shown that due to the anonymity they offer, they have been a tool of choice for those seeking to hide business arrangements. He added: “Previously, research by Transparency International UK has found 1,201 companies from six of the UK’s 14 Overseas Territories featured in 237 corruption cases amounting to hundreds of billions of pounds worth of funds allegedly diverted by rigged procurement, bribery, embezzlement and the unlawful acquisition of state assets. “The British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands and Bermuda have now committed to publishing the names of company owners. These measures should be introduced as soon as possible to deter the criminal use of firms registered in these jurisdictions and give the public confidence that illicit funds are not being invested into the UK.” We believe that businesses have an ethical obligation to deal openly with their tax affairs and not to engage in artificial arrangements simply to reduce their tax liabilities. Scottish Government A Scottish Government spokesperson said that because corporation tax is reserved to Westminster, its ministers have no power to act in this area. The spokesperson added: “We believe that businesses have an ethical obligation to deal openly with their tax affairs and not to engage in artificial arrangements simply to reduce their tax liabilities. “These principles sit at the core of our Scottish approach to taxation – we believe in fair taxation that supports economic growth and protects Scotland’s position as an attractive proposition for home-grown and overseas investors....
Big business including oil and renewable energy, farming, fishing, finance and whisky dominated Scotland Office ministers’ meetings last year, analysis by The Ferret has found. We looked at all external meetings logged in 2020 by Alister Jack, Secretary of State for Scotland, UK Government ministers for Scotland David Duguid and Iain Stewart, as well as Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross, who was deputy Secretary of State until he resigned in May that year. Analysis showed that almost 90 per cent (168 of 188) of these meetings were with industry bodies and business groups. Scottish Office ministers only met with two charities last year, according to their diaries – The Trussell Trust and the Marine Conservation Society UK. Other meetings included eight meetings with the National Farmers Union of Scotland (NFUS). Although agriculture is a devolved policy area, parts of the UK Agriculture Bill introduced in January 2020 apply to Scottish farmers, such as policy around food security. !function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var t=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var a in e.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r Ministers also had six meetings with the Scotch Whisky Association, with Douglas Ross attending a reception hosted by the organisation last January. Fishing featured prominently in the ministers’ diary in the year the UK left the European Union, especially for David Duguid, MP for Banff and Buchan. Regaining control over UK waters was a key aim of the Leave campaign in 2016. Scotland office’s fishing interests Ministers met with the Scottish Seafood Association five times, with the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation four times, twice with the Communities Inshore Fisheries Alliance and once with the Scottish Creel Fishermen’s Federation. Five wealthy Scotttish businesses own over half of Scotland’s fishing rights, according to research by Greenpeace UK. The group of so-called “codfathers” – the campaigning organisation identified – included billionaire businessman Ian Wood. Wood also met with Alister Jack, Secretary of State for Scotland and MP for Dumfries and Galloway, where he owns 1,200 acres of land including a dairy farm. Opportunity North East, a flagship private sector-led consortium chaired by Sir Wood met with ministers a further six times. The not-for-profit group says its aim is to support “economic diversification and renewal” as north east Scotland moves away from its reliance on oil. We’re facing the joint challenges of recovery from Covid-19 and a transition to net zero and all of Scotland has a contribution to make. This misses many opportunities to benefit from the expertise of civil society. Dave Moxham, STUC Several meetings with renewable energy companies, including Red Rock Power, also feature in the diaries. Salmon farming is also represented with five meetings with the Scottish Salmon Producers Scotland. Iain Stewart, MP for Milton Keynes South, also held a meeting with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) Scotland and Douglas Ross met with the Church of Scotland. Only two meetings were logged with arts organisations – Capitol Theatres and the Film House – both in Edinburgh. The Scotland Office meetings are subject to UK lobbying rules, under which only consultant lobbyists have to register. Our ministers regularly meet with a wide range of stakeholders from many sectors. This, of course, does include businesses as they will play an important part in Scotland building back better from the pandemic. Scotland Office spokesperson Dave Moxham, deputy secretary of the STUC, which had four meetings with Scotland Office ministers, said: “It’s a very disappointing balance that suggests the Scotland Office is not taking a holistic view of how either Scottish society or the economy really works. “We’re facing the joint challenges of recovery from Covid-19 and a transition to net zero and all of Scotland has a contributi...
Nearly a third of Scotland’s biggest wind farms have owners with links to offshore tax havens in the Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, Guernsey and Jersey. An investigation by The Ferret has also revealed that 39 of the largest 50 wind farms are ultimately owned outwith Scotland in England, Spain, France, Germany, Norway, China and elsewhere. Campaigners allege that the wind industry’s tax havens have deprived public services of “many millions” of pounds, while boosting private profits. Scotland’s renewable energy wealth is being “looted” by international tax avoiders, and profits “siphoned overseas”, they say. According to experts, wind farm ownership is “opaque” and “secretive”. The “bright green image” promoted by the renewable energy industry is “more a murky shade of grey”, says one. The Scottish Government criticises companies that exploit “artificial arrangements simply to reduce their tax liabilities”. But it points out that corporation tax is controlled by Westminster. Some wind farm owners defend the use of tax havens as “standard across the industry” to ensure that “investors are not in a disadvantageous tax position”. Others stress that their offshore companies have “no connection” to their wind farms, and that the beneficiaries include UK pension funds. Companies also point out they pay taxes that are due “in the markets in which they operate”. There is no evidence that any of the companies are breaking the law. Wind is now the largest generator of electricity in Scotland, with a massive nine gigawatts of power installed over the last 20 years. On windy days, it can provide all the electricity the country needs. It is seen by many as the industry that is ousting North Sea oil as the economy’s dominant energy supplier. Because wind turbines do not emit carbon, they are also regarded as vital in the battle to cut climate pollution. But concerns have been growing about who is benefitting from the wind power boom, with some fearing that “big wind” could emulate “big oil” in avoiding taxes, exporting profits and short-changing communities. In November 2020 The Ferret reported that one leading wind farm company, Ventient Energy, was under fire for avoiding tax. It was registered in Luxembourg in Europe and owned in the Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory in the western Caribbean Sea. Revealed: Scottish wind farms owned in tax havens Now we have analysed the ownership of all of Scotland’s 50 biggest wind farms. We drew on the database of energy projects maintained by the industry body, RenewableUK, as well as records held by the UK Government’s Companies House and company reports. We discovered that the use of offshore tax havens is widespread. At least 16 of the 50 farms have owners with verifiable links to the Cayman Islands and Luxembourg, as well as to the islands of Guernsey and Jersey in the English Channel. These are all places highlighted by campaign group, the Tax Justice Network, as helping multinationals to hide and avoid tax. They are listed amongst the world’s worst 20 jurisdictions for financial secrecy and tax avoidance. The Cayman Islands are ranked worst in the network’s financial secrecy index and second worst in its tax haven index. Luxembourg is sixth worst in both the tax haven and secrecy indexes. Jersey is the eighth worst tax haven and 16th worst on financial secrecy. Guernsey is the 11th worst for financial secrecy and the 17th worst tax haven. Many of the wind farms have multiple owners, involving up to four different companies. Sometimes the links to tax havens are direct and clear, but in other instances they are indirect. We have identified eight owners or part-owners linked to tax havens, in addition to Ventient Energy. They are multinational asset and investment management firms, often with complex webs of different companies in different countries. The investment company, Equitix, which owns 17.5 per cent of the huge Beatrice wind farm in the Moray Firth, is registered in the Cayman ...
Questions have been raised over the power and influence of energy companies following analysis by The Ferret revealing how key sectors dominate Scottish lobbying. The Ferret categorised 711 organisations that lobbied Scottish Government ministers and advisors since the register was introduced in 2018 to increase transparency. Only regulated lobbying – which means face-to-face and zoom calls – has to be registered. While entries on the lobbying register dropped dramatically in 2020 due to Covid-19 restrictions, the energy sector was second only to industry in the number of times it lobbied ministers last year. With world leaders meeting at UN climate conference COP26 in Glasgow later this year, and the Scottish Government committed to a “just transition” away from fossil fuels, environmental campaign organisations like Greenpeace said the figures showed oil and gas companies were leaning on the government and “betraying people and planet” in the process. A wide range of companies, including oil and gas and renewable companies, carried out regulated lobbying 42 times last year, compared with 59 for industry. Both sectors had other regular phone meetings with ministers, which are not reflected in the register. !function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var t=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var a in e.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r Energy organisations – including those chasing multi-million pound renewable contracts and Scottish Government support – had a total of 249 entries in register, which started in March 2018,199 of which were by companies. A further 27 were with industry bodies. Environmental charities were also well represented. Since March 2018 they lobbied ministers 155 times with 38 entries for 2020. They lobbied ministers on a wide range of issues, from land conservation to emissions. The environmental impact of Brexit, restoring peatlands, climate targets and reducing carbon emissions, were the subject of meetings from environmental lobbying charities such as WWF and Friends of the Earth. Meanwhile the biggest energy lobbyists such as Scottish Power, Shell and BP spoke to ministers only about energy projects. !function(){“use strict”;window.addEventListener(“message”,(function(e){if(void 0!==e.data[“datawrapper-height”]){var t=document.querySelectorAll(“iframe”);for(var a in e.data[“datawrapper-height”])for(var r=0;r In one meeting with energy minister Paul Wheelhouse last February, energy giant Shell covered “the important role of gas in the energy transition”. The global oil and gas company also raised “the importance of balanced messaging in the lead up” to COP26 as well as “the need to highlight the role of the oil and gas industry as a key player in making the energy transition work”. It also raised “the need for revenue support for offshore floating wind and carbon capture and storage”. Oil firms under fire for lobbying on COP26 climate summit In another meeting last year, oil and gas giant BP discussed “energy transition more generally and the importance of oil and gas in the future” with the minister, as well as BP’s “carbon capture and storage interests”. The company also used a meeting to highlight its increasing share of hydrogen markets and its support of new woodland. Lobbying meetings were also held with trade body Oil and Gas UK. In one meeting with energy minister Paul Wheelhouse the organisation provided a briefing on “carbon capture storage, hydrogen exports, missions reductions and jobs”. Environmentalists have raised concerns about both carbon capture and hydrogen, which they claim are not the most effective solutions to the climate crisis. With Glasgow hosting the COP26 summit this year, the Scottish government should have no truck with big business lobbyists from sectors that have played a key role in driving the climate crisis Liz Murray, Global Justice Now Liz Murray, head of Scottish campaigns and pol...
Hundreds of meetings between Scottish ministers and multinationals, wealthy individuals and other influential organisations were left off the lobbying register in 2020 due to loopholes in legislation, The Ferret can reveal. Analysis of Scottish Government ministers’ engagements in 2020 shows that meetings, potentially of key public interest, were not in the register, including those between ministers and companies awarded multi-million pound UK and Scottish contracts to supply the NHS in the run-up to Covid-19. As these meetings took place by phone they did not fall under regulated lobbying rules, an exemption which means they don’t need to appear on the lobbying register. Others in this category included meetings between ministers and the billionaire steel tycoon behind GFG Alliance, Sanjeev Gupta. Research also showed Scottish Ministers had telephone meetings regularly with Scotland’s richest men – including billionaires Sir Ian Wood and Sir Tom Hunter – about a wide range of topics from business to Covid-19 and renewables, and in the case of Hunter, social renewal, education and transport. Under the Lobbying (Scotland) Act 2016, which came into force in 2018, all face-to-face lobbying is regulated. This means all such meetings with elected politicians and civil servants must be registered. Details must be given about the subject and purpose of the meeting, what was discussed, the name of the person lobbying and the organisation. Face-to-face meetings anywhere count – at work, a conference, social events, zoom calls (with cameras on) or even outwith Scotland. Fines of up to £1,000 can be imposed. However lobbying via phone calls, emails and other communications such as WhatsApp are not included. Meetings do not need to be entered on the register if they were instigated by a minister – even where lobbying might take place – and meetings on constituency business are also exempt. The existence of these meetings is revealed in the diaries of ministers’ engagements which are published monthly. However these often contain only a couple of words to describe the subject and may not include the name of the individual, or of the company. Lobbying organisations told The Ferret they were increasingly asked to meet ministers in telephone meetings, which meant even when they instigated the meeting it did not count as regulated lobbying. The Scottish Alliance for Lobbying Transparency (SALT) said the loopholes made “a mockery” of Scotland’s transparency ambitions. It meant the public was denied critical information about public interest meetings, the contents of which could not be interrogated, it added. Meetings found by The Ferret on ministers’ engagements, but not on the lobbying register, include those between ministers and high profile potential investors about BiFab, the company which had two steel fabrication yards in Fife and the Isle of Lewis. The firm collapsed last year after failing to secure any new contracts. Ministers’ engagement documents also showed phone meetings between Fergus Ewing, former Cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy, and billionaire steel magnate Sanjeev Gupta, chairman and finance director of troubled metals manufacturer, Liberty Steel. These were not in the register, and so no detail about their content was provided. Our research also found that engagements with big business, including energy companies and renewables chasing Scotland’s booming renewables sector, dominated the diaries of several ministers. No wrongdoing by any of the companies highlighted was found in The Ferret’s research. However, thousands of meetings were logged where lobbying could have taken place. Research found over 150 meetings in February 2020 with external, unelected individuals. In both June and November 2020 ministers had about 200 meetings with potential for lobbying but where it was not possible to tell what was discussed. NHS supply A series of calls between then Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation Ivan McKee a...
Last week the Scottish Government announced a package of measures to help renters during the cost of living crisis. It claims the support will “reduce the hardship” faced by tenants and “create breathing space for those in difficulty”. The most high-profile policies are a freeze on landlords raising rents and a ban on them evicting tenants until at least the end of March 2023. But who will the changes affect and why are renters being hit so hard by the cost of living crisis? Ferret Fact Service explains the policies announced by the government, who is impacted by the freeze, why many renters are badly affected by rising prices, and how tenants and landlords have reacted to the news. What are the measures? The Scottish Government laid out the extra support it was going to provide to tenants in its 2022-23 programme for government (PFG) which was published on 6 September 2022. It said this was being provided to “help people through” the UK’s cost of living crisis. The headline policy is emergency legislation to freeze rents for both private and social renters and ban evictions until “at least” the end of March 2023. The rent freeze was effectively introduced from 6 September while the Scottish Government said that emergency legislation outlining details of the eviction ban would be published in coming weeks. The PFG also includes a pledge to launch a campaign to ensure that tenants are aware of their rights, including their ability to challenge future rent increases once the freeze ends. How many renters are there in Scotland? The Scottish rental sector accounts for 38 per cent of households in the country. The social rental sector — where people rent from their council or a housing association — makes up 24 per cent of households. A further 14 per cent of households are rented from a private landlord. Both social and private tenants will have their rents frozen. Why are renters badly hit by the cost of living crisis? Rents have grown significantly for both social and private tenants in recent years. On average across Scotland, renting a two-bedroom property privately cost 25 per cent more in 2021 than it did in 2010. In the Lothians and Greater Glasgow, the increase is even steeper, with two-bed rents increasing by over 40 per cent in that period. Average private rents also increased by 3.7 per cent between July 2021 and July 2022. This is the biggest annual leap since the Office for National Statistics started publishing the data in 2012. Analysis by The Ferret in March 2022 found that low earners in private rental accommodation faced paying more than half of their salary on rent, while middle earners paid more than a third. According to the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, a third of Scotland’s private renters were already living in poverty in March this year before the price cap on energy was first increased in April. While the average social rental property is considerably cheaper than a private one, tenants in the sector also saw their rents increase by 24 per cent between 2013-14 and 2020-21. Rising rents have left many tenants vulnerable to other price increases such as those caused by the current energy crisis. Over 35 per cent of social and private renters were already in fuel poverty in 2019, compared with just over ten per cent of people with a mortgage. What has the reaction been by tenants and landlords? The tenants union, Living Rent, described the freeze as a “massive win” which will support renters during “these hugely stressful times”. But it noted that rents are “already too high” so the freeze would need to remain in place until rent controls are introduced to “push rents down”. The Scottish Government’s cooperation agreement with the Scottish Greens commits to implementing an “effective national system of rent controls” before the end of the current parliament. Living Rent also wants more clarity on whether people already issued with a rent increase, which has not yet come into effect, will still need to pay m...
A plan intended to aid the spread of beavers across the whole of Scotland has been published, with more than a quarter of a million acres marked as potential habitat. The 23-year strategy, produced by Scottish Government agency, NatureScot, maps out the places in Scotland where the animals could potentially live. It includes wooded banks and wetlands on thousands of rivers and burns. NatureScot hopes the strategy will bring to an end the bitter conflict between farmers and conservationists over the animals. For the past 20 years farmers in Tayside have been angered by the presence of the animals as a result of their illegal release in the area. Many conservationists, on the other hand, have been delighted at the resurgence of what was a native animal until driven to extinction 400 years ago. Beavers were officially made a protected species in Scotland in 2019. Beavers shot under licence But farmers have shot more than 300 beavers under licence in the past three years where their dams have caused flooding. This has angered conservation charities, who have campaigned for the animals to be moved to other Scottish sites instead. Last year Green biodiversity minister Lorna Slater announced that beaver “translocation” – the re-releasing of beavers to other locations – would now be allowed. The drafting of the new strategy has been led by the Swiss-based International Union for Conservation of Nature, and will guide NatureScot’s work in managing the spread over the next 23 years. Among measures proposed are a possible incentive scheme for farmers who live with the animals on their land. Finding private funding for beaver conservation work is also suggested. Monitoring of beaver impacts on other species such as lichens and salmon is also included in the strategy as well as encouraging bigger “riparian zones” – areas where the land meets rivers and burns. It also accepts the continued shooting of problem beavers under licence as a last resort for farmers. The National Farmers Union Scotland, landowners’ group Scottish Land and Estates and the forestry industry will have seats on a new Scottish Beaver Advisory group (SBAG). Environmental umbrella groups Scottish Environment Link, the Scottish Rewilding Alliance, and the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland will also be members. The strategy is probably one of the most ambitious and forward-looking approaches to conserving and managing a species that has ever been carried out. Francesca Osowska, NatureScot It is hoped relocation projects could start as early as this year. Rewilding charity Trees for Life and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds are both consulting on schemes, in Glen Affric and the Loch Lomond area. Francesca Osowska, chief executive of NatureScot, said: “The strategy is probably one of the most ambitious and forward-looking approaches to conserving and managing a species that has ever been carried out. “We hope the publication of this beaver strategy will give a further impetus for landowners to look at the possibility of translocation and we’ll see a new phase of activity, but it’s really difficult to put a timescale on it.” Osowska hopes cull levels will be cut, and said the rules on shooting licences have been tightened up. Every licence-holder has been contacted in the past few months to discuss live trapping and other alternatives such as fencing and the use of “beaver deceivers” – pipes in beaver dams to cut the water level. She said she was “very enthusiastic” about the spread of beavers, adding: “The ecological benefits they bring are absolutely tremendous. Beaver can help mitigate climate change. That is absolutely what I’m determined to see.” To be judged a success, the strategy will have to reduce the unacceptably high number of beavers killed each year in parts of Tayside. James Nairne, Scottish Wild Beaver Group James Nairne, of the conservationist Scottish Wild Beaver Group, said: “If the new strategy accelerates getting [beavers’] environmenta...
The Scottish Government’s wildlife agency told farmers that beavers were “good to eat and could be used for taxidermy”, according to an animal welfare charity. NatureScot has been accused by the Scottish Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SSPCA) of encouraging a “culture of breach of regulation” which could promote the illegal killing of beavers in Tayside. The accusation was denied by NatureScot, which used to be called Scottish Natural Heritage. It insisted that the licensed shooting of beavers was “safe, humane and not in breach of regulations.” Campaigners, however, lambasted NatureScot’s remarks on eating and stuffing beavers as “completely unacceptable”. The agency’s job was “to defend protected species, not advertise them for dinner”, said one. On 8 December the Highland wildlife charity, Trees for Life, launched a £40,000 crowdfunding appeal to take NatureScot to court for allowing too many beavers to be killed. The charity alleged the government agency was breaking the law by failing to ensure that shooting was “a genuine last resort”. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th century. They were illegally or accidentally released in Tayside before 2006, and have spread widely along waterways. In 2018 there were an estimated 430 beavers in 100 locations in the Tay and Forth river catchments. Though the animals were welcomed by many, they were blamed for flooding and crop damage by some farmers and landowners. After prolonged arguments reported by The Ferret, the Scottish Government gave beavers legal protection on 1 May 2019. Since then in order to kill them, land managers have had to obtain a licence from NatureScot. In 2019 licences were issued permitting the killing of 87 beavers in Tayside, a fifth of the known population. NatureScot has declined to say how many have so far been killed in 2020. To help farmers learn how to shoot beavers, NatureScot held a series of training workshops around Tayside in May 2019. In September 2020 The Ferret reported that a leaked copy of the agency’s presentation included a photograph of two young girls holding a dead beaver and smiling. Wildlife agency under fire for ‘sickening’ beaver images Now NatureScot has released a complaint it received from SSPCA about one of the workshops. It was supplied to The Ferret after we requested an internal review under freedom of information law. An unnamed SSPCA chief inspector attended a NatureScot beaver workshop for farmers at Murthly Village hall in Perthshire on 2 May 2019. The charity subsequently wrote a four-page letter to NatureScot, expressing concerns about its attitude and language. “It is accepted that in part attempts were being made to build rapport and cultivate trust, however some comments suggested a culture of breach of regulation and it appeared this was known and acceptable,” SSPCA said. “Stating that beavers were good to eat and could be used for taxidermy could promote killing for reasons other than serious damage.” SSPCA also complained about NatureScot’s advice that beavers could be shot while they were in water. “There is an increased risk of injury due to the shot or bullet being redirected by water or by movement of the beaver itself,” the charity wrote. “There is also an increase in the risk of a shot being attempted when the beaver is partially or wholly submerged or indeed another animal such as an otter being targeted.” SSPCA warned that advice on killing whole family groups of beavers presented “serious welfare concerns” which could leave young beavers, known as kits “becoming abandoned and suffering due to removal of parents and natal lodge.” SSPCA concluded: “Given the complexity and very short time beavers have been present in Scotland, allowing people to conduct lethal control and destroy burrows and lodges without expert advice could result in compromised welfare of the beavers.” The Scottish Wild Beaver Group, which campaigns to protect the Tayside beavers, described lethal...
The Queen’s funeral took place at Westminster Abbey on Monday, and led to much scrutiny on aspects of the service. One claim, made by a number of people on Twitter, suggested that God Save the King had been sung including lyrics with anti-Scottish sentiment. Scotland treated with contempt today at Lizzie Windsor’s funeral. All 6 verses of their national anthem [were] sung – apparently Scots are people to be crushed. Social media posts Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it False. Evidence The service for the Queen’s state funeral contained a number of psalms, hymns and tributes, as well as songs and other musical performances. It ended with a rendition of God Save the King, in tribute to the new monarch, King Charles III. Two verses of the song’s lyrics were sung at the funeral and just the first verse was sung at the committal ceremony. These are usually considered to be the verses which make up the national anthem of the UK, but there are no official rules on which versions should be sung. Often only the first verse is sung, such as at sporting events. These two verses contain the lyrics: God save our gracious King! Long live our noble King!God save the King!Send him victorious,Happy and glorious,Long to reign over us,God save the King. Thy choicest gifts in storeOn him be pleased to pour,Long may he reign.May he defend our laws,And ever give us cause,To sing with heart and voice,God save the King. The song first appeared in print, in a slightly altered version, in 1745 in Gentleman’s Magazine. The claim references “all six verses” of the national anthem. A number of other verses have been included in the song at various times, but have fallen out of common use. Controversy has arisen in the past over lyrics added to the song around the Jacobite uprising in Scotland which contain anti-Scottish sentiments. A verse of the song contains the lyrics: Lord grant that Marshal Wade, May by thy mighty aid,Victory bring.May he sedition hush,And like a torrent rush,Rebellious Scots to crush.God save the Queen! This refers to Field-Marshal George Wade, who was put in charge of the army sent to stop Jacobite leader Charles Edward Stuart (also known as Bonnie Prince Charlie) and his forces advancing into England, known as the Jacobite uprising of 1745. This version of the song was created after the song was written, and has not been widely sung in the last century. It is not known who wrote God Save the King originally, nor who added the offending lyrics. It was not sung at the Queen’s funeral. It is possible the incorrect claim comes from an attached article in My London Live website, which purports to quote every verse of the national anthem, including the anti-Scots verse. Ferret Fact Service verdict: False The offending lyrics referring to “rebellious Scots” were not sung at the Queen’s funeral, which included the two verses broadly considered to make up the national anthem. There are a number of other versions with more verses which were also not included. The additional verse containing anti-Scottish sentiments was added after the song’s creation, and fell out of regular use more than 100 years ago. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo credit: iStock/fazon1.
A prominent member of the House of Lords is in dispute with his Galloway tenants after water supplies to their homes repeatedly failed Scottish Water quality standards. Richard Hubert Gordon Gilbey, the 12th Baron Vaux of Harrowden, is a hereditary peer who chairs the Lords’ finance committee and rents out homes at Rusko Estate, near Gatehouse of Fleet. Two of his tenants have complained about water contamination. Gilbey told The Ferret the complaints stem from one tenant and his friend. He stressed he was “working hard to resolve” the issues and had always provided bottled water. But tenants’ union Living Rent called for stronger regulation to ensure action is taken when properties do not meet official standards. More than 40 former Mark Fortune tenants demand action from authorities The vast majority of Scottish homes are connected to a public water supply, managed by Scottish Water. But Rusko Estate tenants are among about three per cent of Scotland’s population that receive drinking water from private supplies, which are more prone to risk. A 2020 study from the James Hutton Institute found Scottish private supplies to be at risk of running dry due to climate change. Private supplies in the country are regulated by local authorities and overseen by the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland (DWQR), which has associated some with “outbreaks of disease”. Tests taken between February 2020 and January 2022 show that water supplies at some of Gilbey’s rental properties were contaminated with harmful bacteria like E. coli. Heavy metals – which can lead to serious health issues – exceeded legal limits by as much as 32 times. Gilbey said that all his water treatment systems have been upgraded in the last year. “We are taking the problems extremely seriously,” he added. Other housing issues have also been found at his Rusko estate. A 2020 inspection by Dumfries and Galloway Council found that the home Gilbey let to a tenant breached housing regulations on multiple accounts. It failed six of nine repair standards, had wood rot, mouldy walls, a shower without hot water, and a sealed chimney risking “carbon monoxide build-up”. Gilbey said any potential safety issues “were remedied immediately” while others would be resolved by renovating the property as part of a plan approved by landlord registration. He said he gave his tenant notice to quit in February 2020 in order to renovate his home – before any contamination issues emerged. The work “cannot reasonably or safely be done with a tenant living in the house,” he argued. However the tenant is fighting the notice at a housing tribunal. Gilbey – who said he acquired the estate in 2016 – claimed the state of the properties pre-dated his ownership, adding there was a “substantial” ongoing modernisation programme, with over £500,000 spent on refurbishing properties. Water tests showed contamination Scottish Water, which is not responsible for private supplies, found that the water supplying the tenant’s cottage was contaminated, following a test in February 2020. The test results were shared with the local health board and the council’s environmental health department after it became clear the water supply was private. The council said there was “an ongoing issue between an individual tenant and their landlord”, but declined to comment further. Firm mining for gold slammed for lack of transparency on environmental impact Scottish Water’s tests showed that water at the cottage had iron levels 32 times the legal limit. Lead levels were eight times higher, aluminium levels were four times higher, and copper levels slightly exceeded the limit. Lead exposure can cause high blood pressure, abdominal, joint and muscle pain, fatigue and memory loss. High copper levels can cause stomach issues. Gilbey argued that only tests based on samples provided by environmental health should be treated as “official”. But he said he still took the test “extremely seriously” and “remedial action was ...
MPs have accepted £828,211 in the form of all-expenses-paid trips funded by states in a Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen’s war since 2015, The Ferret can reveal. Our analysis of the MPs’ register of interests at Westminster found that 96 MPs have had trips paid for by Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Kuwait and Egypt over the last eight years. Politicians have also accepted gifts including an expensive watch, a £500 food hamper, tickets for a Burns Supper, and a day out at the Royal Windsor Horse Show. All these trips and gifts were registered by MPs in line with rules at Westminster. But critics said it was “absolutely shameful” they had accepted donations from states with poor human rights records in a coalition alleged to have committed war crimes in Yemen. They accused the Saudi-led coalition of trying to buy influence at Westminster and said the UK government had “failed to show even the slightest restraint” in the transfer of weapons for use in the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, despite “overwhelming evidence of violations of international law”. Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT) also accused prime minister Liz Truss of having an “appalling track record on UK arms exports“ and said her appointment was a “worrying turning point for the war”. The Cabinet Office declined to comment. But the UK Government has repeatedly said it operates one of the most “comprehensive export control regimes in the world and that takes its export responsibilities seriously and rigorously assesses all export licences in accordance with strict licensing criteria”. The Ferret’s investigation found that the Saudi Arabian government has been the biggest spender on British politicians spending at least £319,406 to facilitate visits to the kingdom since 2015. 42 MPs had taken up an invitation to visit. We also found that the government of Bahrain has paid out £197,985 to host MPs, while the UAE spent £187,251, Egypt, £66,695, and Kuwait, £56,872. Those who have been guests of Saudi Arabia include former prime minister Boris Johnson, whose trip cost £14,000 in 2018. Former foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, who is now a lord, was given a £1,950 watch after unveiling a statue, and former prime minister, Theresa May, was paid £115,000 for a 2020 speech she gave in the UAE. Several members of the current cabinet have accepted trips including the chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Nadhim Zahawi, the foreign secretary, James Cleverly, and chancellor of the exchequer, Kwasi Kwarteng. Cleverly visited Saudi Arabia in 2017 on a “parliamentary fact finding trip” as a guest of its government, which paid £3,187 to host him. No amount of expensive watches or holidays can hide the brutality of the Saudi-led bombing campaign, which has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world and seen schools, hospitals and even funerals targeted. Ross Greer, Scottish Greens MSP Kwarteng has made eight trips, costing a total of £25,450 since 2015. He visited Bahrain five times, Egypt twice, and Saudi Arabia once, on a fact finding trip. Zahawi enjoyed trips to both UAE and Bahrain in 2017. His trip to Bahrain was to attend the IISS Manama Dialogue – a forum for government ministers to discuss the Middle East’s “most pressing foreign-policy, defence and security challenges”. In 2019, Saudi Arabia’s ministry of foreign affairs paid £7562 to host Tory MP, Tobias Ellwood, who went on a “fact finding visit” after an oil firm was targeted in an attack. Ellwood’s trips to Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and UAE between 2019 and 2021 cost £21,568 in total. Some of the trips were in conjunction with a private company called the Conservative Middle East Council (CMEC & MENA Ltd ) which organises delegations of MPs to visit the region. Former Tory MP, Charlotte Leslie, is managing director of CMEC. Her seven trips to the five countries between 2015 and 2017 – mostly fact-finding and to “strengthen relations” – cost a total of £29,316. In 2017 she accepted a fo...
New Prime Minister Liz Truss has rejected calls for a fresh windfall tax on profits made by energy firms. Questioned by Labour leader Keir Starmer at her first prime minister’s questions (PMQs) at Westminster on 7 September 2022, Truss, said: “I am against a windfall tax. I believe it is the wrong thing to be putting companies off investing in the UK”. Shortly after PMQs finished the Labour MP for Coventry South, Zarah Sultana, posted a widely-shared tweet about the new PM’s connections to the oil and gas industry. It was shared more than 18,000 times. “When Liz Truss rejects a windfall tax on the £170,000,000,000 profits oil and gas giants are expected to make, it’s worth remembering: She’s a former Shell employee whose party has taken more than £1,500,000 in donations from the oil and gas industry since the last election.” Zarah Sultana MP Claim: “£170,000,000 profits the oil and gas industries are expected to make”. Ferret Fact Service contacted Sultana and asked her to provide evidence for her claim that oil and gas firms are expected to make profits of £170bn. In reply, her office cited a report on 30 August 2022 by Bloomberg, which ran the headline: “UK sees up to £170bn excess profits for energy firms.” The article was based on “Treasury estimates” from one anonymous source who allegedly leaked the information. It referred to “gas producers and electricity generators” and claimed that £170bn in profits may be generated over the next two years. Bloomberg also reported that the Treasury said it did not recognise the figures. It’s important to note that Bloomberg’s article cited “energy firms” — which include nuclear and renewables — and not just the “oil and gas industry” as per Sultana’s tweet. On 1 September 2022 Metro also reported that “energy firms were ‘on track to make £170,000,000,000 profits’ while you struggle.” The article cited a “leaked Treasury analysis” but also included a comment from the Treasury, saying: “we don’t recognise the figures”. Prices have soared amid fears over supplies of energy caused in part by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In August, the world’s five biggest oil companies reported profits of nearly £50bn for the quarter April to June this year. The world’s 28 largest oil and gas companies made a combined £159.83bn in profits in 2021, and Shell made £7.91bn in profit from January to March, almost three times what it made in the same period last year, according to an analysis by Climate Power. In May, an energy intelligence group from Norway called Rystad Energy estimated that oil and gas firms’ profits globally would break records in 2022 and reach £727bn. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Half True Claim: “[The Conservative] party has taken more than £1,500,000 in donations from the oil and gas industry since the last election” In response to our evidence request, Sultana’s office cited a report by the Mirror to support her claim. The article was published on 12 November 2021 and based on “an analysis of Electoral Commission records” going back to 2019. It claimed that the party has taken almost £1.5m in donations from the energy industry under Boris Johnson. The report said that donors included Alexander Temerko, the Ukrainian owner of Aquind who is also a UK citizen. The Mirror claimed: “Donors to the Tories include Alexander Temerko, the owner of Aquind. The energy boss and his company handed various MPs, including former cabinet ministers Liam Fox and Jeremy Hunt, and the current chief secretary to the treasury Simon Clarke, and the party, more than £350,000.” FFS checked with the Electoral Commission and the total registered for the period is £426,465. The Mirror also said that Ian Taylor, the former chief executive of Vitol, had handed the party some £115,000 since 2019. Vitol is a major trader and supplier of North Sea crude oil. This figure is correct but Taylor has not donated since the last election, which was on 12 December 2019, so his donation was prior to the vote. Other donati...
After his elevation to the throne, the financial status of King Charles III has been under scrutiny this week. As reigning monarch, he is in line to inherit assets and wealth worth an estimated £17bn. A post on social media claimed he would not pay any inheritance tax on this amount, due to a law protecting royal wealth. It was shared 16,000 times on Twitter. Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it True. Evidence The wealth of the royal family is fairly complex. The different roles in the monarchy, come with significant assets attached, and some members of the royal family also have large personal wealth. King Charles already had a fortune estimated to be worth about £380m when he was still a prince. When King Charles III was a prince, he was entitled to the assets of the Duchy of Cornwall, which has now passed to his eldest son, Prince William. This is worth more than £1bn. The Duchy of Lancaster, which has existed for 700 years and owns more than 18,000 hectares of land in England and Wales, is owned by the reigning monarch. The assets from this will come to the new King. These assets are worth more than £650m. Then there is the Crown Estate, which is the largest asset that the monarch has. The Crown Estate owns significant land and property, including large parts of London including Regent’s Street and St James’. It is worth £15.6bn, according to its latest financial reports. The assets of the Crown Estate are owned by the monarchy, but income from the estate is given to the UK Government as part of a deal made in 1760. A proportion of this money is returned to the monarch, known as the sovereign grant. What are the rules around inheritance tax for non-Royals? For the general public in the UK, inheritance tax is paid on the property, money and possessions of a person who has died. This is usually paid at 40 per cent of any estate valued over £325,000. This amount can be reduced though if some of the estate is left to charity. The current form of inheritance tax was passed into law in 1986, but the concept has existed in UK law for hundreds of years. Will King Charles III pay inheritance tax? No, not on the wealth passed down from the Queen after her death. An arrangement with the UK Government in 1993 means the reigning king or queen is exempt from paying tax on assets passed onto to their successor. This was justified at the time of the agreement by then-prime minister, John Major, who said there was “ a unique circumstance in a hereditary monarchy, and it is right therefore that there should be specific exemptions for assets passing from one sovereign to his or her successor”. This rule only applies to assets which are passed onto the next monarch, and not to gifts or bequests given to others. The memorandum of understanding on royal taxation sets out the government reasoning behind this move, stating: “The monarchy as an institution needs sufficient private resources to enable it to continue to perform its traditional role in national life, and to have a degree of financial independence from the Government of the day.” Ferret Fact Service verdict: True It is correct that the Queen’s assets will not be subject to inheritance tax as they are passed to the new King Charles III. This is because of a 1993 arrangement which was put in place by John Major’s Conservative government to avoid the wealth of the royal family being “salami sliced away” through taxation. The standard rate for non-royals is 40 per cent of any estate value above £325,000. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to community.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo credit: Thomas Hawk, CC BY-NC 2.0.
Survivors of gender-based violence in Scotland are being forced to choose between paying their bills and accessing justice due to a legal aid crisis, experts have warned. They told The Ferret that a lack of investment in the system has led to solicitors leaving legal aid work, and that survivors are now struggling to access justice. Campaigners also warned that provision can vary based on geography, and that fees are often not high enough for time spent on complex cases involving domestic abuse, sexual violence and exploitation. In reply the Scottish Legal Aid Board — which is responsible for managing and administering legal aid — said it took access issues very seriously. Survivors of gender-based violence can seek justice in both criminal and civil courts depending on their circumstances. Civil courts deal with cases including divorce from an abusive partner and custody arrangements to stop a perpetrator having access to children. They also issue protective orders to prevent an abuser from contacting a victim. In civil cases, people are required to pay their own legal costs. The bill can run to tens of thousands of pounds, with complainants sometimes obligated to pay the legal costs of the accused in the case of an unsuccessful action. While legal aid should be available to anyone who cannot afford their own legal costs, experts said survivors face a number of barriers in accessing financial support. Dr Marsha Scott, CEO of Scottish Women’s Aid, said the current crisis means there is “in reality a ‘no access to justice’ dead end” for many vulnerable women and children. She said her organisation had heard stories about survivors of domestic abuse “forced to represent themselves in court” and that Women’s Aid workers had sometimes made 50 calls to law firms and still not found a solicitor who could help. Scott had also heard of women having solicitors drop their cases or being turned away “because the only legal aid solicitor in town is already representing her abuser.” Survivors might forego seeking justice to access housing or pay their bills. If they can afford civil litigation, they face the prospect of a lengthy, re-traumatising process that is not guaranteed to end with an outcome they deserve. Kay Mathieson, of the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre. Katy Mathieson, coordinator of the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre, which provides free legal advice to women affected by violence, claimed these issues stemmed from a lack of investment in civil justice. “Survivors might forego seeking justice to access housing or pay their bills,” she said. “If they can afford civil litigation, they face the prospect of a lengthy, re-traumatising process that is not guaranteed to end with an outcome they deserve. Without legal aid, accessing justice may not be an option for survivors of gender-based violence.” Alongside financial barriers, survivors have reported a number of other challenges in accessing legal aid. “The issues are compounded by the availability of legal aid by speciality and region,” Mathieson said. “Different solicitors have different specialties: for example, a survivor wanting support through child contact issues and in seeking damages for an experience of sexual violence by an ex-partner might require two different solicitors. “Finding multiple solicitors who both provide legal aid and are a suitable travel distance creates more challenges for survivors with caring responsibilities, access needs or who live in rural areas. These issues are far-reaching and disproportionately impact minority groups.” Mathieson said some survivors in contact with the SWRC had reported calling up to 100 solicitor firms and still being unable to find representation. She also pointed out it can be difficult for survivors to find a legal aid solicitor with expertise in the complex areas of domestic abuse and gender-based violence. “In many instances, the current level of legal aid funding in these complex cases does not allow sufficient incom...
Since the death of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday, 8 September there has been controversy about the policing of protests at state events around the country. A number of arrests have been made in connection to these protests. Ferret Fact Service looked at the right to protest and how that is impacted by the events surrounding the death of the Queen. Protests and arrests Since 8 September there have been three arrests. A 22-year-old woman holding a sign reading “abolish monarchy” and “fuck imperialism” was arrested on Sunday, 11 September at St. Giles’ Cathedral in Edinburgh, ahead of the accession proclamation of King Charles III in the city. Police Scotland confirmed she had been charged with breach of the peace and her case is due to be heard at Edinburgh Sheriff Court. On the same day in Oxford 45-year-old Symon Hill was arrested by Thames Valley Police at the proclamation event for King Charles III held in Oxford. He shouted: “Who elected him?” and said he was approached by police who handcuffed him and took him to a police van. He was later “de-arrested” without charge according to Thames Valley Police. Its statement added that he was “engaging with us voluntarily as we investigate a public order offence”. On Monday, 12 September Police Scotland arrested a 22-year-old man and charged him with breach of the peace after an incident in Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. He allegedly shouted insults at Prince Andrew as the royal walked past with the Queen’s funeral cortege. The incident was captured on video and circulated widely on social media. Also on Monday videos circulated of a woman being led away by police while holding up a sign that said: “Not my king”. Barrister Paul Powlesland, 36, from Barking claimed he asked police what would happen if he wrote anti-monarchy statements on a blank piece of paper he was holding near Downing Street and said he was told he risked arrest. Pictures also circulated on social media of people outside St Giles in Edinburgh on Tuesday, 13 September, holding up a blank banner and blank pieces of paper. What are the rules around protests in Scotland? In Scotland peaceful protests, which include both static and moving gatherings, either in public and private, are protected under the European Convention on Human Rights. Article 10 of the convention covers the right to freedom of expression and Article 11 the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association. According to a recent guide by Amnesty Scotland and legal firm Just Right Scotland, public authorities in Scotland such as the Scottish Government, local councils and Police Scotland must not unlawfully restrict assemblies. Legally they must protect the right to freedom of assembly. This may include ensuring access to first aid services and medical attention for protestors. The right to freedom of assembly includes the person planning or organising a protest and social media can be used to encourage people to assemble. The primary duty of police attending is to facilitate peaceful protest, and to de-escalate conflict, with force used as a last resort. Amnesty Scotland has claimed that it is “incredibly important that at all times – even those of national mourning – that the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful protest are upheld”. What legal restrictions on protests are in place? Civil disobedience can be used as a legitimate and legal form of protest in Scotland. However at protests where people become violent, incite hatred or stir up violence, legal restrictions can be imposed in Scotland and the rest of the UK. Police or other authorities must only put in place restrictions in very specific situations. They can do so with the aim of protecting national security or public safety. They can also act to prevent disorder and to protect the rights and freedoms of other people. In such cases the right to protest must be weighed up against the reason to impose restrictions. If, for example, protesters block traffic this could be seen to be...
The Scottish Government’s wildlife agency licensed the killing of 115 beavers in Tayside in 2020, sparking angry criticisms from campaigners. NatureScot has released a long-awaited report on the management of wild beavers, which farmers blame for flooding and crop damage. The number killed over 12 months in 2020 compares to the 87 killed over eight months in 2019. Wildlife campaigners condemned the killing as “ecologically incoherent and environmentally irresponsible”. They accused NatureScot of trying to “hide” a “waste of life”. NatureScot has also published its latest survey of beavers which showed that the population had more than doubled in three years to over 1,000. Beavers have spread out from Tayside to Glen Isla in the north and Crianlarich to the west. Beavers were hunted to extinction in Scotland in the 16th century. They were illegally or accidentally released in Tayside before 2006. After prolonged arguments reported by The Ferret, the Scottish Government gave beavers legal protection in May 2019. Since then in order to kill them, land managers have had to obtain a licence from NatureScot. Pressure mounts on ministers as 87 beavers confirmed killed in Tayside Between May and December 2019 licences were issued permitting the killing of 87 beavers in Tayside. Now NatureScot has said that 35 licences were used by farmers and landowners in 2020 to shoot 115 beavers. Most — 80 — were killed along the banks of the River Isla in Angus and Perthshire. Others were shot on the River Earn and on the Tay. Licences also allowed the removal of 56 beaver dams in 2020. A further 31 beavers were trapped and moved to England. NatureScot’s survey concluded that beavers were “in a rapid expansion phase” with their territories more than doubling to 251. This was “great news for nature”, according to the agency’s director of sustainable growth, Robbie Kernahan. “Beavers play a vital role in creating and restoring wetlands where other species can thrive, reducing downstream flooding and improving water quality,” he said. This is such a waste of life and opportunity when nature is in crisis. Alan McDonnell, Trees for Life The wildlife group, Trees for Life, described NatureScot’s announcements as “chilling”. It accused the government agency of not knowing the status of beavers when it began to issue licences to kill them. “This led to the needless deaths of a fifth of Scotland’s known beaver population in 2019 alone. Shockingly, we now know a further 115 beavers were shot in 2020,” said the group’s conservation manager, Alan McDonnell. “NatureScot has sat on this grim tally since December, refusing to confirm it until today’s bid to hide the figures behind a welcome turn of events for the overall beaver population. This is such a waste of life and opportunity when nature is in crisis.” Trees for Life argued that beavers should be relocated around Scotland rather than being shot. In June 2021 it took NatureScot to court for allegedly allowing too many beavers to be killed. The group argued that the killing was not a “genuine last resort” as beavers could be moved instead. The allegation was contested by NatureScot, which insisted its approach was “robust and lawful” and that licences were only issued “if there is no other solution”. The court’s verdict is awaited. Wildlife agency: beavers ‘good’ for eating and stuffing The Scottish Wild Beaver Group pointed out that Scotland’s beaver population was still one of the smallest in Europe. “It’s both ecologically incoherent and environmentally irresponsible that Scottish ministers have permitted the killing of 115 beavers,” said the group’s James Nairne. “Instead of renewing lethal control licenses at the behest of a tiny group of subsidised land owners, the government should be funding the translocation of this critically important species to suitable areas throughout Scotland.” The Scottish animal campaigns charity, OneKind, was “very disappointed” at the increased number of beavers being...
Anti-abortion Christian lobbyists have met with MSPs from all the major political parties at Holyrood over 100 times since the start of 2021, prompting concerns from women’s rights groups. An investigation by The Ferret can reveal that politicians lobbied include 10 Conservative MSPs including party leader, Douglas Ross, the Liberal Democrat leader, Alex Cole-Hamilton, and five SNP MSPs including finance secretary, Kate Forbes. In 27 meetings during the period, these MSPs were lobbied specifically on the topic of abortion, according to descriptions entered on the Scottish Parliament’s Lobbying Register. The recent ruling in the US to overturn Roe vs Wade and an uptick in anti-abortion protests here in Scotland has re-ignited debate around abortion provision. At Holyrood, abortion rights have been high on the agenda as early medical abortion at home was trialled during the pandemic and made permanent in May this year. A bill proposed by Scottish Green MSP Gillian Mackay to implement “buffer zones” to stop anti-abortion protests taking place outside hospitals and clinics was officially backed by the Scottish Government this week. According to the Scottish Parliament’s Lobbying Register, the organisations involved in anti-abortion lobbying were Christian Action Research and Education (CARE for Scotland) which had 14 meetings, Bishops Conference of Scotland which had 10 meetings, the Free Church of Scotland with two meetings, and Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) which had one meeting. A further 81 meetings on other topics occurred between MSPs and these organisations – as well as other well-known anti-abortion campaigners Evangelical Alliance and Christian Institute – since 2021. These meetings included discussions on assisted dying, commercial sexual exploitation, conversion therapy, gender recognition reform, hate crime, and religious freedom. Feminist organisation Engender said the frequency of meetings between parliamentarians and anti-abortion lobbyists was “worrying”, while Abortion Rights Scotland raised concerns about transparency. Most groups did not reply to our request for comment. But the Free Church of Scotland said it raised concerns with MSPs over the issue of home abortion because it believed the “process was open to abuse/coercion”. Anti-abortion SNP MSP John Mason has argued that pro-choice campaigners like Back Off Scotland – which has led calls for the introduction of buffer zones – have greater influence with the government than those who oppose abortion. Back off Scotland had no entries in the lobbying register. The Holyrood anti-abortion lobby Groups who oppose abortion include Care, which says on its website, it aims “to work for a society where abortion is unthinkable” and “advocate for greater protection for [preborn babies] in legislation”. It also works on issues such as gambling, upholding “family values” and assisted suicide. Evangelical Alliance states on its website that it is “advocating for the value of human life in the corridors of power” and “for the Christian family structure”. CARE, Evangelical Alliance and Life co-founded the Both Lives Matter campaign which seeks “to reframe the abortion debate in Northern Ireland and beyond”. SPUC, the self-described “oldest pro-life campaigning and educational organisation in the world”, sought to legally challenge the Scottish Government’s decision to allow the second abortion pill to be taken at home in 2017. But it was thrown out by the court and an appeal was rejected. Christian Institute has led campaigns in Scotland against the “smacking ban” and Hate Crime Bill, and its latest annual review claims that permitting abortion pills to be taken at home “normalise[s] the killing of the unborn” and outlines plans to take legal action against the proposed conversion therapy ban. Free Church of Scotland follows a strict reading of the bible which opposes same-sex marriage and abortion. Of the 27 meetings opposing abortion recorded in ...
The energy crisis has affected countries across Europe, and comparisons are being made between the responses of different nations to the increase in bills. One image contrasting the reliance of the UK, France and Germany on Russian gas to the countries’ respective energy bills has been shared across social media. The post had more than 22,000 interactions on Facebook alone, and was shared widely across other platforms. Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it Half True. Evidence Wholesale energy prices have increased across Europe. This is a result of volatility in gas markets caused by a number of factors, which have driven up energy bills. The most recent increase in wholesale prices has been linked to the Russian attack on Ukraine. This resulted in energy supply issues as countries reduced or ended their gas imports from Putin’s regime, which is a major supplier of gas to Europe. In late August, Russia announced that the Nord Stream 1 gas pipeline to Germany would be closed for three days for maintenance, further destabilising gas prices. In the UK, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) regulates domestic energy markets and bills. The price cap for energy bills was set at £3,549 per year for dual fuel by October 2022, with estimates suggesting the cap could rise to more than £6,000 by next year. However, new Prime Minister Liz Truss has now capped bills for households at £2,500 until 2024. How much gas comes from Russia? The viral graphic claims that Germany got 55 per cent of its gas from Russia, while France got 17 per cent and the UK got just four per cent. Figures from the UK Government show 3.7 per cent of the UK’s gas supply in 2021 did come from Russia, as well as 17.5 per cent of diesel, and 34.4 per cent of coal. For Germany, 55 per cent of imports are from Russia while figures from data intelligence firm ICIS, reported by Reuters, showed in December 2021, 32 per cent of Germany’s overall gas supply was from Russia. In France, 17 per cent of gas supply was from Russia in 2020. Figures for 2021, showed 15 per cent was coming from Russia. It should be noted that energy prices for different countries are not directly linked to reliance on Russian gas. The Russian invasion of Ukraine, together with a number of pre-existing issues, has pushed up wholesale prices across Europe. Countries which import a lot of energy, such as the UK, are particularly exposed to these price rises and the changes in the wholesale market. Prices are also affected by the different ways in which countries structure and regulate their gas markets. This has been seen in the array of mitigation measures put in place to combat higher bills across Europe. How have energy bills changed? The image claims that in 2022 energy prices have risen in Germany by 23 per cent, in France by four per cent, and in the UK by 215 per cent. The information on energy price increases in the graphic appears to come from news website Novara Media. In a post on Instagram, Novara compared energy bill increases from 2021 to 2022, stating that the UK had increased energy bills by 215 per cent. The price cap covering the start of 2022, which was brought in during October 2021 was £1,277. The price cap due to come in from October 2022 would have been £3,549. This is a 178 per cent increase. After the UK Government’s announcement of a £2,500 cap on prices, the increase will be 96 per cent. In France, prices are regulated to increase no more than four per cent. Germany’s energy bills have increased significantly. Gas prices for average households increased by more than 100 per cent between December 2021 and August 2022, according to German energy price comparison site Verivox. For electricity bills, the price increased by 51 per cent in the last year up to August 2022, Verivox reports. The German government has also announced a package of assistance with energy bills, including a windfall tax on energy companies, one-off payments for citizens, and p...
Scots would need to halve the amount of meat and dairy they eat and make other big lifestyle changes if Scotland is to reach its climate target without significant help from unproven technologies that absorb pollution. The findings come from a trio of new ‘energy scenarios’ commissioned by the Scottish Government which show possible pathways for the energy system to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2045. The scenarios will inform the government’s upcoming energy strategy which will outline the future of the sector in Scotland. One of the scenarios relies on a huge roll-out of new wind power and controversial carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. The second requires major changes to people’s lifestyles, while the third is a mixture of the two. Both the technological and mixed scenarios require significant growth in electricity production in the coming decades – mostly from onshore and offshore wind farms – with CCS and direct air capture (DAC) absorbing and storing the remaining emissions that the country produces. Meanwhile, the lifestyle change scenario has minimal reliance on technological innovation but requires a decrease in Scots’ demand for energy. This would mean big shifts in habits, including vegan and vegetarian diets becoming mainstream, people driving far less, and taking fewer international flights. Even under the mixed scenario – which still relies on a sizable amount of CCS and DAC – there would need to be behavioural changes, including a 35 per cent reduction in the amount of meat and dairy Scots eat by 2050. Some environmental activists warned that the Scottish Government should not “over-rely” on emerging technologies like CCS which have a history of underperforming in reducing emissions to avoid making difficult decisions to change people’s consumption habits. They claimed that the scenarios show “we could do little and hope that technical fixes might save us” or proactively encourage lifestyle changes and nature restoration projects which will “reduce emissions consistently and over the long term”. Other campaigners argued that none of the pathways to net zero would be successful “on their own” and were instead rehashed versions of the approaches that “have brought us to the present crisis”. The Scottish Government described CCS as a vital part of the energy transition and said that the scenarios were among a “suite of tools” which are “shaping discussions” around the energy strategy. It is due out this autumn and will provide details on how the Scottish energy system will look in the future. The scenarios were produced by researchers at ClimateXChange which provides independent advice to the Scottish Government on the climate crisis. These scenarios show that we could do little and hope that uncertain technical fixes might save us, or we can get on and make the changes in our daily lives that we know really will reduce emissions consistently and over the long term. Dr Richard Dixon All three pathways expect renewable energy to be the “workhorse” of the Scottish power sector. Onshore and offshore wind capacity would have to grow most under the technological scenario, but also increase significantly under the mixed pathway. Hydrogen is expected to play a role in industrial processes and transport as well as to back-up renewable electricity generation. It is also expected to become important in heating peoples homes, as part of a “hybrid hydrogen-heat pump system”. There is no place for new nuclear plants in any of the pathways, while fossil fuel-powered energy generation is also ruled out unless it is equipped with CCS to absorb the emissions it produces. Each scenario includes a role for the proposed CCS-enabled Peterhead gas-fired power station, which activists fear will “lock in” the continued use of expensive natural gas for decades to come. Techno-fixes, lifestyle changes, or both? The Scottish Government will publish its energy strategy this autumn. It will provide a long-term vision for Sc...
Oil and gas companies collectively spent an estimated £654m last year on campaigns promoting their “green” credentials while continuing to lobby governments to support fossil fuels, claims a new report. An analysis by climate think tank InfluenceMap found that 60 per cent of public messages from BP, Shell, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies contained green claims, while just 23 per cent promoted oil and gas. These companies are forecast to spend just 12 per cent on average of their capital expenditure budgets on low-carbon investments this year, the study added. InfluenceMap has accused the oil firms of “spending huge amounts of time and money talking up their green credentials” while their business investments and lobbying activities “tell a very different story”. Friends of the Earth Scotland claimed the companies were guilty of “cynical marketing and spin” and “scandalous greenwashing”. In reply the oil companies said they were investing billions of pounds in lower-carbon energy and simply advising customers through advertising or social media about green solutions that would enable people to reduce emissions. InfluenceMap analysed 3,421 items of public communication from the five major oil companies during 2021, including company social media accounts, press releases and speeches. The study found that 60 per cent of public messages contained at least one green claim, such as reducing emissions or promoting fossil gas as part of a clean energy solution. This report exposes the scandalous greenwashing of the fossil fuel industry for what it is. Oil majors such as BP and Shell are trying to pull the wool over our eyes by spending millions on ‘green’ messaging while continuing at full speed ahead with their climate-wrecking investments in oil and gas extraction. Freya Aitchison, Friends of the Earth Scotland The report also claimed each firm is part of a “dense network of industry groups that are actively engaged in blocking or watering down climate policy”. All companies, except for TotalEnergies, are members of the American Petroleum Institute, which InfluenceMap describes as “one of the most strategically oppositional industry groups globally on climate policy” due to its aim of influencing public policy in support of the oil and natural gas industry. The same four companies are also members of the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association and the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. TotalEnergies is a member of FuelsEurope and International Oil and Gas Producers. InfluenceMap found evidence of each company – with the exception of TotalEnergies – engaging policy makers directly to advocate for policies encouraging the development of new oil and gas projects in 2021-22. Faye Holder, InfluenceMap programme manager, said: “These companies talk about cutting emissions and transitioning the energy mix, but at the same time continue to invest heavily in new fossil fuels. While this PR strategy might convince some people, it doesn’t change the fact that these companies are out-of-step with science-based pathways to net zero.” Freya Aitchison, Friends of the Earth Scotland’s oil and gas campaigner, argued that oil majors are “trying to pull the wool over our eyes by spending millions on ‘green’ messaging while continuing at full speed ahead with their climate-wrecking investments” in oil and gas extraction. She added: “With just a tiny fraction of their enormous profits being spent on low carbon activities this year, it’s outrageous that any of the oil majors investigated in this report should be able to claim that they are part of any energy transition. New oil and gas fields “Climate scientists and energy experts are crystal clear that we cannot have any new oil and gas extraction if we are to have any chance of staying within agreed climate limits. “The climate can’t afford the licensing of new oil and gas fields, yet the fossil fuel industry is working hard behind the scenes to lobby governments t...
More than half of Scotland’s most popular beaches have been contaminated with sewage in breach of safety limits this summer, according to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). Since May this year, 49 of the 87 designated bathing waters around the country have recorded levels of faecal bacteria that could endanger the health of swimmers, surfers and paddlers. Heavy rain has caused public sewers to flood and washed animal faeces off the land, resulting in concentrations of bacteria in the water that can cause stomach, ear, nose and throat infections. The worst contamination — reaching more than 50 times the limits — was found in June at Eyemouth in Scottish Borders and at Lower Largo in Fife. High levels of bacteria were also detected at Ettrick Bay on the Isle of Bute; West Sands at St Andrews; Seafield at Kirkcaldy and Harbour Beach at Kinghorn in Fife; Broad Sands and West Beach, near North Berwick; and Belhaven Beach in Dunbar. Six bathing waters recorded very low levels of pollution. Campaigners expressed concern about the pollution and urged increased investment to upgrade Victorian sewers. They called for monitoring of sewage overflows to be increased. Sepa said it was working with partners to reduce “short-term pollution” after rain. “Bathing is not advised during or 1-2 days after heavy rainfall,” it warned. “This is due to the risk to bathers’ health from water pollution.” Scottish Water accepted that there were sewage spills after storms, which presented a “challenge” because of climate change. Its sewage facilities had performed “as intended”, it said. Sewage pollution 50 times the limit In the four months to the end of August, Sepa has sampled 87 bathing waters between five and 17 times. It checked whether concentrations of two harmful faecal bacteria, E Coli and intestinal enterococci, exceeded European safety limits. Samples at 49 sites around Scotland’s shores recorded one or more breaches, which Sepa said posed a risk to health. At 39 of them Sepa mentioned risks from sewer overflows, with pollution from farms also widespread. On 1 June concentrations of intestinal enterococci in the water at Eyemouth were at least 50 times the limit, while levels of E Coli were more than 20 times the limit. Sepa blamed heavy rain, with 35mm falling over the two days before the sample was taken. Eyemouth also suffered very high contamination on 16 August and again on 29 August, when Sepa said there was a “blockage in a sewer”. The agency attributed “poor water quality” at the site to faeces from people and grazing animals, and highlighted overflowing sewers as a risk. On 16 June levels of bacterial pollution in the newly designated bathing water at Lower Largo were similarly high. “Our testing indicated a human source was highly significant,” Sepa told The Ferret. Scottish Water is investigating local sewers and what might need to be done to reduce pollution. “We expect this to help drive improvements in future,” said Sepa. On 24 August faecal contamination at Seafield in Kirkcaldy was more than 20 times the safety limit for E Coli. According to Sepa, the “principal risks” came from overflowing sewers. On the same day levels of E Coli at West Sands in St Andrews were similarly high, where the risks were from both sewer overflows and farms. Pollution at Ettrick Bay 9-10 times safety limits on 2 August was due to “agricultural run-off” after heavy rainfall, Sepa suggested. On 16 August concentrations of intestinal enterococci at Broad Sands near North Berwick were 18 times the limit. Clean beaches Sepa’s monitoring also showed that six bathing waters recorded very low levels of pollution. At Elie Harbour and Earlsferry in Fife improvement works have been carried out at sewage pumping stations. At Kingsbarns in Fife during the summer sewage effluent is disinfected using ultraviolet light to improve water quality. At Montrose in Angus Sepa said the sewage works were “designed to ensure high water quality”. Other bath...
The UN climate envoy, Mark Carney, is a senior leader at an investment firm which owns a key piece of infrastructure set to be used at a controversial new oil field in the North Sea. Carney — who was governor of the Bank of England between 2013 and 2020 — is the UN’s special envoy on climate action and finance. He joined Canadian investor Brookfield in 2020 as vice-chair and head of transition investing, where he leads “the firm’s environmental, social, and governance investing strategy”. But a Ferret investigation has found that Brookfield — through a subsidiary called Altera Infrastructure — owns the floating vessel which will process oil from the proposed Rosebank oil and gas field off the coast of Shetland. Rosebank is the biggest field currently at the planning stage in the North Sea. Although it is yet to receive approval from UK regulators, it is expected to yield twice as much oil in its first phase as the much-maligned Cambo field, which faced huge opposition from environmental activists in 2021. “He fails to acknowledge his responsibility for prolonging that system precisely by overseeing ownership of companies developing new oil fields at a time when science, economics, common sense – and Carney himself – say that we need to move swiftly to renewable energy.” Beau O’Sullivan, of the campaign group Bank on our Future Campaigners said The Ferret’s findings “make a mockery” of Carney’s role as a UN climate figurehead. They also questioned how global climate leadership can be trusted to be “unbiased and sufficiently ambitious” when key leaders have such close links to the fossil fuel industry. Both Carney and the Brookfield have previously defended the firm’s investments in polluting infrastructure. They pointed out that Brookfield has invested billions in renewable energy and claimed that their own “experience” of transitioning away from carbon-intensive sectors would make them “better owners” of assets in the fossil fuel industry. Carney’s role at Brookfield was initially questioned last year after it emerged that the firm had major investments in five other fossil fuel infrastructure projects. These included projects in the oil sands and coal sectors, which are particularly damaging to the climate. It was announced earlier this year that Carney is set to take over as the chair of a new asset management arm of Brookfield by the end of 2022. Alongside his positions at Brookfield and the UN, Carney was Boris Johnson’s finance adviser at last year’s COP26 climate change summit in November 2021. He now also co-chairs the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero, which emerged from COP26 and aims at “bringing together the financial sector to accelerate the transition to a net-zero economy”. Brookfield Asset Management is listed as the controlling party of Altera Infrastructure on Companies House. Altera is headquartered in Aberdeen and provides infrastructure –- particularly ships — for offshore oil and gas producers. It owns assets in regions including the North Sea, Brazil and Canada. “Mark Carney is getting his hands even dirtier through Brookfield’s involvement in the massive Rosebank oil field, in addition to their existing role in coal and tar sands projects, making an absolute mockery of his role as a UN appointed envoy on climate action.” Ryan Morrison, a just transition campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland The company signed an agreement for its Knarr Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) vessel to be used at Rosebank with the project’s operator, Equinor, in February 2022. FPSOs are a crucial piece of infrastructure for new oil and gas projects. They are boat-shaped vessels which are a moveable alternative to a traditional offshore platform and are used to process and store oil until it can be transferred to a tanker and transported to shore for further refinement. The Knarr FPSO can produce 63,000 barrels of oil per day and has the ability to store a further 800,000 barrels. Equinor — which i...
The Scottish Government has given more than £5m of taxpayers’ money to a Chinese Confucius teaching project in Scottish schools, despite human rights concerns and fears it may risk national security. The grants were given to Confucius Institute for Scotland’s Schools (CISS) which is based at Strathclyde University and has 22 learning hubs in schools to promote Chinese languages and culture. A freedom of information request has revealed that since the 2015-16 financial year the Scottish Government has given the CISS eight grants totalling £5,333,388. The Scottish Government said language skills and cultural awareness are essential for young people in Scotland. But concerns have been raised over China’s potential influence in Scotland’s education sector, and Confucius institutes have been criticised because they are funded by the Chinese state, which has been accused of spying and crimes against humanity. Critics claim that Conficius learning hubs are used as “soft power” by China in an attempt to wield influence within the UK, and to spy on Chinese students studying abroad to ensure they do not speak out against their government. There are also growing concerns over China’s human rights record, brought into sharp focus on 1 September 2022 after the UN accused the Chinese state of abuses that may amount to “crimes against humanity”. While the study of the Chinese language and Chinese culture is fully worth supporting, there is no need for this to be carried out in collaboration with an authoritarian government. John Jones, spokesperson for Free Tibet Based at Strathclyde University, CISS says it is an “award winning Confucius Institute working with schools across Scotland to engage pupils with Chinese language learning and culture.” There are Conficius classroom hubs in primary and secondary schools across Scotland and scholarships are given for pupils to study in China for nine months. Edinburgh, Glasgow, Heriot-Watt, and Aberdeen universities also host Confucius institutes, but they do not receive grants from the Scottish Government. John Jones, of the human rights group Free Tibet, called on the Scottish Government to stop funding CISS and claimed it was an “instrument of soft power by a government that is carrying out widespread abuses against Tibetans, Uyghurs, Hongkongers and Chinese citizens”. Expressing concern about the presence of Confucius Institutes in Scottish schools and universities, Jones added: “While the study of the Chinese language and Chinese culture is fully worth supporting, there is no need for this to be carried out in collaboration with an authoritarian government. “As the world wakes up to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) human rights abuses against Tibetans, Hongkongers and Uyghurs, it is no surprise that the global trend is one of governments and universities cutting ties with such institutes. It is our recommendation that the Scottish Government follows suit.” Diplomat turned whistleblower claims China controls students at Scots universities Tory MSP Oliver Mundell – shadow cabinet secretary for education and skills – also voiced concern and said: “While building cross-cultural links is important, taxpayers will rightly raise an eyebrow at the amount of money being provided by the SNP Government to these controversial institutions, heavily linked to the Chinese Government. Given the large sums involved, full transparency and accountability from ministers is essential.” Others to have previously questioned the presence of Confucius Institutes on campuses include human rights lawyer Aamer Anwar and Anne Henderson, the former rectors of Glasgow and Edinburgh universities. Tory leadership candidate Rishi Sunak, an avid critic of China, has vowed to shut down the 30 Confucius Institutes in the UK due to fears over Chinese influence. In 2019 The Ferret reported that the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission (CPHRC) had called for a review of partnerships between UK institutions and Confucius in...
The gender pay gap at the Scottish National Investment Bank has increased by almost a quarter in the 20 months since it was established, according to a new report. Described by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as the UK’s first mission-led development bank, the Bank was launched in November 2020 with £2bn of capital from the Scottish Government. It was designed to provide long-term investment for Scottish businesses and projects that generate environmental, social and financial benefits to the nation. However experts claimed that its growing gender pay gap showed the Bank was “failing to live up to expectations”. The Bank said its pay gap was illustrative of a wider challenge in financial services and investment. Revealed: the companies in Scotland where the gender pay gap is growing The Bank’s recently-published 2022 Equality Strategy reported a mean pay gap of 21.9 per cent and a median pay gap of 28 per cent. This is an increase of almost 24 percentage points and 11 percentage points respectively, since the Bank’s 2021 Annual Report, which noted a mean pay gap then of two per cent in favour of women, and a median pay gap of 17 per cent in favour of men. The gender pay gap refers to the percentage difference between men and women’s average hourly pay. Scotland’s gender pay gap is around 10 per cent for full-time employees. The Bank’s three missions, set by the Scottish Government, are: achieving a Just Transition to net zero by 2045; extending equality of opportunity through improving places by 2040; and harnessing innovation to enable our people to flourish by 2040. Anna Ritchie Allan, executive director of Close The Gap, a policy and advocacy organisation for women’s participation in the labour market, said the Bank’s pay gap was “stark” and pointed to wider issues in its approach to gender equality. “The legislation that created the Bank has gender equality at its heart, with a range of progressive provisions specifically designed to advance equality for women. So it’s really concerning that we’re seeing ‘business as usual’, with the Bank reporting a stark gender pay gap, and a lack of clarity on how this will be addressed,” she said. Ritchie Allan said the Bank had produced a “generic equality strategy in place of the gender equality strategy” it was legally required to publish, and that the focus on women had been diluted as a consequence. The equality strategy does not fully set out the causes of the pay gap or engage with pay inequality, she added. “The Bank is intended to be a model for doing things differently, but so far it’s failing to live up to expectations and is very far from being a progressive force on women’s economic equality,” Ritchie Allan said. The legislation that created the Bank has gender equality at its heart, with a range of progressive provisions specifically designed to advance equality for women. So it’s really concerning that we’re seeing ‘business as usual’, with the Bank reporting a stark gender pay gap, and a lack of clarity on how this will be addressed. Anna Ritchie Allan, executive director of Close The Gap The Bank’s pay gap appears to have been affected by an increase in staffing. In 2021, it employed 33 people including Eilidh McTaggart as chief executive officer. McTaggart left the role in January this year, but was replaced by a female interim CEO. There are now 61 people employed by the Bank. The Bank has been marred by controversy since its launch, with questions raised over McTaggart’s sudden resignation and accusations that it invested £50m in a forestry fund with links to tax havens. Of the increased pay gap, a spokesperson for the Bank said it was “committed to addressing equality, diversity and inclusion through our investment activity, supply chain and as an employer.” “The Bank has good gender balance overall, with a gender-balanced board, and females representing 49.2 per cent of our total workforce and 66.6 per cent of our Executive Team,” they continued. However, the Ba...
Nearly three million pheasant and partridge chicks have been imported into Scotland from overseas battery farms to be shot at sporting estates in recent years, The Ferret can reveal. Imported gamebirds and hatching eggs are sourced from European factory farms with cramped battery cage conditions, before being sent on long journeys to UK sporting estates to be shot by paying clients. The conditions many birds endure have prompted animal welfare campaigners to claim the sporting industry is supporting “appalling levels of industrial farming” and “excessive cruelty”. They also claimed that releasing non-native species like pheasants and partridges en masse damages Scotland’s ecology. Revealed: the intensive farms polluting Scotland with ammonia But shooting advocates argue that gamebird shooting is a longstanding tradition important to Scotland’s rural economy, which can have ecological benefits if managed correctly. One shooting group said the industry was moving away from a reliance on imported chicks and would rear more gamebirds in Scotland. The Ferret used freedom of information law to obtain import data from the European Commission’s animal tracing systems, via the UK Government’s Animal and Plant Health Agency. It showed that 2,775,009 birds were brought to Scotland over the last five years. Some 1,994,949 hatching eggs and 780,060 day-old pheasant and partridge chicks were imported between January 2018 and April 2022. Nearly all came from France. French battery farms which export gamebirds to the UK were condemned in April after the Hunt Saboteurs Association (HSA) revealed the cramped conditions that thousands of birds are kept in. A 2016 BBC investigation also found that tens of thousands of birds were held in cramped cages and that some had been cannibalised or pecked to death by other birds. Ferry firms boycotted bird shipments following lobbying by animal welfare groups, leaving Eurotunnel trains as the last company transporting chicks from France to the UK. One group said chicks from some farms were transported for ten hours before even reaching the Eurotunnel. Revealed: the suffering faced by Scotland’s farm animals during live transport There have been reports of shot birds being left to rot, and carcasses being dumped across Scotland, including in Angus, the Borders and Perthshire. According to one study, six in 10 pheasants released for shooting in the UK are not shot due to premature death from disease, starvation, being eaten by predators, or leaving estates. There are also concerns over the impact of farmed birds on the Scottish environment. One study found that managing gamebirds’ breeding and feeding habitats, controlling predators, and releasing farmed birds could have a significant impact on biodiversity. Another found that gamebird carcasses can boost the number of predators which can threaten native species, but added that management for game shooting tended to increase the numbers or diversity of plants and some animals. Critics of gamebird imports include Green MSP Mark Ruskell who called it “unsustainable and cruel”, adding that he had “serious concerns about the scale and the numbers of birds being imported” and the conditions the birds are kept in. Ruskell said: “There is a growing case for stronger regulations of imports and the licensing of gamebirds.” The League Against Cruel Sports (LACS) Scotland claimed imported chicks were “released into the wild, with no idea how to fend for themselves, before being shot for entertainment”, a practice it deemed “abhorrent.” Robbie Marsland, LACS Scotland’s director, said: “Most of these birds will be simply discarded like bits of rubbish once paying guns have had their fun. The shooting industry would have us believe gamebirds live a wholesome, organic life before being shot and passed into the food chain, but this PR gloss is nothing but absolute nonsense.” Goat trophy hunting continues years after Scottish Government review vow Television presenter Chr...
Two projects vital for renewing the Trident nuclear weapons system on the Clyde have been damned as “unachievable” by a UK Government watchdog. The building of new facilities at the Faslane and Coulport nuclear bases in Argyll, as well as the manufacturing of new submarine reactors, both had “major issues” which didn’t seem to be “resolvable”, according to the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA). The IPA has given the two projects its lowest rating of “red” for 2021-22, the worst in four years. The problems were attributed to “shortage of suitably experienced personnel”, “supply chain issues” and delays. Campaigners have attacked the UK nuclear weapons programme as a “shambles”, warning that it has repeatedly failed to deliver. Replacing Trident was “murderous”, “reckless” and “insanely expensive”, they said. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) insisted there had been “significant improvements” at Faslane and Coulport in recent months, resulting in the project no longer being rated as red. Production risks for submarine reactors were being “mitigated”, it said. The latest IPA annual report for 2021-22 assessed 235 of the UK Government’s major infrastructure projects, 52 of which are run by the MoD. Nine of the MoD’s projects were rated as red, including new facilities at Faslane and Coulport and new submarine reactors. According to the IPA, red meant that “successful delivery of the project appears to be unachievable”. This was because there were “major issues with project definition, schedule, budget, quality and/or benefits delivery, which at this stage do not appear to be manageable or resolvable.” One of the nuclear projects rated as red was called “Clyde Infrastructure”. It involved “managing the design, delivery and transition into operational use of new build and updated infrastructure facilities in Her Majesty’s Naval Base Clyde (Faslane and Coulport).” The project’s annual rating has fallen from green in 2018-19, to amber in 2019-20 and 2020-21, to red in 2021-22. Green meant there were “no major outstanding issues”, and amber that there were “significant issues”. IPA blamed the problems at the Clyde bases on “significant external factors” which challenged delivery. These included “market shortage of suitably experienced personnel and supply chain issues”. IPA accepted, however, that the project was “well-led and managed locally”. Despite the challenges “the programme continues to deliver to plan,” it said. ‘Significant challenges’ on nuclear submarines The second MoD nuclear project rated as red was called “Core Production Capability”. That was meant to deliver “safe nuclear reactor cores to meet the Royal Navy’s submarine programme, now and for the long term”. But according to the IPA, it was facing “significant and ongoing challenges” in delivering reactors for Dreadnought submarines. These are new boats planned to carry Trident nuclear warheads, and due to be based on the Clyde. The project’s red rating in 2021-22 was the worst since 2017-18, when it was also red. In all the three intervening years it was assessed as amber. Four other major MoD nuclear projects were rated as amber for 2021-22. They were seven new Astute attack submarines to be based at Faslane; the four planned Dreadnought boats; efforts to dismantle 27 defunct radioactive submarines; and work at the Devonport naval dockyard on the south coast of England. The ratings for another three Trident upgrade projects run by the Atomic Weapons Establishment in England and France have been kept secret. Projects Pegasus, Mensa and Teutates were all deemed exempt from disclosure because of “national security”. The Scottish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament was “appalled” by the IPA’s findings. They “confirm the completely unrealistic and inflated efforts by the UK Government to maintain and upgrade their murderous nuclear weapons system,” said the campaign’s vice chair, Janet Fenton. She added: “Questions raised with the MoD are left unanswered and recrui...
The NHS has admitted to failings that “may have caused or contributed” to the death of a 32-year-old who was in its care for the treatment of his alcoholism. Adam Parry, who was “handsome, charming and fiercely bright”, according to his family, died in May 2021 after struggling to manage his alcohol addiction for many years. His father, Fred, spoke to The Ferret a year ago to highlight the need for better alcohol treatment options. Now, following a review by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, which identified missed opportunities for interventions, Parry is calling for urgent reform. The review, which is still in draft form, was shared with The Ferret by the family. It found that though Adam fitted the “critical” category in the months leading up to his death – which would have led to specialist monitoring for his alcoholism – he was put in the “green” category, with minimal monitoring required. “It’s not good enough to keep blaming staffing or Covid. We need proper accountability.” Fred Parry As a result Adam – who was hospitalised four times between January 2021 and his death on 5 May that year – was not considered a priority case. Due to staff shortages he was not allocated a care manager and appointments were by phone only. Other issues highlighted include poor record keeping, including of the decision not to change his medication just months before his death and “confusion” about whether his family had Adam’s permission to be kept informed of his care. His father said this meant they were not listened to when they said their son was not coping and needed more support. Despite highlighting the need for lessons to be learned, the review also claims Adam’s treatment and care was “satisfactory, with perhaps an overly-optimistic assessment of risk”. But campaigners say the Parry family’s case is far from unique. They claim alcohol and drugs services are “broken” and insist that without a new approach, too many more will die. Figures, released earlier this month by the National Records of Scotland, show that alcohol deaths rose by five per cent to 1,245 in 2021 compared to the previous year. It is an increase of 20 per cent on the 2020 figures. Last year’s figures did not include Adam’s death, because it was recorded as a sudden death due to epilepsy, although his medical records show that his seizures were triggered by alcohol withdrawal. The seizure that killed him was the sixth Adam had suffered that year. His father said the real figure of people dying due to harm caused by alcohol is likely to be far higher than is officially acknowledged. Adam first started struggling with addiction to alcohol when he was a student at St Andrew’s University. He was hospitalised with an alcoholic seizure in 2012, aged 21. Dissatisfied by the service offered by the Community Addiction Team (CAT) in Glasgow, his parents paid thousands of pounds for private rehab at Castle Craig, where Fred – a recovered alcoholic – had also attended for treatment several decades ago. It is currently not funded by Glasgow authorities. But following a four-year period of stability, Adam’s drinking became problematic again. His father claimed he never received the support he needed. After his son’s death he requested that NHS Greater Glasgow carry out a Serious Adverse Event Review (SAER) – an internal investigation which aims to “identify lessons learned” and “prevent similar incidents occurring in the future”. The review, sent in draft form to Fred in June, revealed that when the Alcohol and Drug Recovery Service (ADRS) nurse dealing with Adam’s case left her post in early March 2021, she allocated his case as a “green” or low risk. He was judged as less vulnerable due to his “supportive family”, and Adam’s claim during telephone consultations that he was abstinent from alcohol. It meant he was “not identified as a priority for reallocation” and did not have a case manager when he died though the report found hospitalisations should have seen him “flagged up a...
Pollution warnings were put in place at more than 40 beaches across England and Wales last week as untreated sewage was released into the sea. This led to renewed criticism of MPs for voting down an amendment aimed to stop sewage overflows dumping into waterways and seas. The issue was contrasted by many people with the situation in Scotland, where drinking water and sewerage is publicly owned. A number of posts on social media claimed that sewage pollution was only in England, with Scottish water not suffering similar issues. Ferret Fact Service looked into these claims and found them False. Evidence The water system in England and Wales has been privatised since 1989. This means that water and sewage is dealt with by a number of different regional limited companies, who are regulated by government body, Ofwat. However, Welsh water services are now run by a single not-for-profit company. Scotland’s system is different, with services provided by Scottish Water, a publicly-owned company that is answerable to Scottish ministers. It was set up in 2002 after the Water Industry (Scotland) Act combined the previous regional authorities into a national statutory corporation, as Scotland’s water was not privatised in 1989. What was the situation in England and Wales? The sewage overflows at beaches in England and Wales were caused by heavy rain which overwhelmed the sewage system. There are thousands of combined sewage overflows across the UK, which are intended as an emergency protection when the sewage system is being overrun. When rain is heavy, it can overwhelm the sewerage system, and without combined sewage overflows sewage could become backed up and flood people’s homes, streets and public spaces. Instead, combined sewage overflows are used, which operate effectively as valves to divert waste water and untreated sewage and stop it from blocking the system. These overflows took place into rivers and seas 375,000 times in England last year. Does it happen in Scotland? Sewage overflows are considered a necessary part of the sewage system at present, and regularly take place in Scotland as well. However, sewage overflows are not monitored as comprehensively in Scotland as in England, according to an expert briefing revealed by The Ferret in 2021. In the briefing, David Lister, the Scottish Government’s water environment policy manager, said ten per cent of combined sewage overflows are monitored in Scotland, while 80 per cent are monitored in England. The briefing admitted that Scotland was “way behind England” in monitoring sewage overflows. A freedom of information request by The Ferret found 12,238 overflows recorded by Scottish Water in 2020. But the lack of monitoring means that current figures for sewage overflows in Scotland are likely to be significantly understated. Beaches in Scotland have been rated ‘poor’ by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) after sewage discharges on a number of occasions. The Ferret reported that as many as 30 were polluted in breach of sewage safety limits in 2020, with sewer overflows at least partly to blame. Is Scotland’s water cleaner than England? Comparisons between Scotland and England’s water have been made online after a chart was posted by the Financial Times comparing water cleanliness in the two countries. The Financial Times chart was originally published in 2019, using information from the European Environment Agency. It measures water by area, finding only six per cent of Scotland’s water is failing to achieve good ecological status. This is better than all the areas of England and Wales. However, it is based on reporting from member countries in 2015. The latest draft Scottish reports from 2021 show improvement in overall water quality. According to the most recent comparable statistics, Scotland’s water bodies are in better ecological condition than England’s. Drinking water quality is broadly similar in Scotland and England. What did MPs vote for? The Environment ...
A charity that helps torture survivors has accused Glasgow City Council of failing to provide young asylum seekers and refugees with free bus passes and depriving them of a “vital lifeline” during the cost-of-living crisis. Freedom from Torture (FfT) – an organisation that offers psychological support to people who survived tortured – said it was “outrageous” that the council with the highest number of asylum seekers in Scotland has “failed to implement a policy” introduced more than seven months ago. FfT’s concerns over the free bus pass scheme have been backed by two other charities, with one claiming the system discriminates against asylum seekers, “sending them on a fruitless merry go round”. In reply, Glasgow City Council said that almost 50,000 young people in Glasgow have received their free travel pass to date and that it has tried to address access problems facing some people. Gary Christie, head of policy, communications and communities at Scottish Refugee Council. “We very much hope issues will be fully ironed out shortly so that everybody in Scotland under 22, no matter their immigration status, is practically able to access free travel.” The bus pass scheme is a Scottish Government initiative which issues a National Entitlement Card (NEC). It began on 31 January 2022, allowing five to 21 year olds to travel for free in Scotland. The scheme suffered problems at the outset, however, and was branded a “shambles” when Transport Scotland delayed its marketing campaign and asked only those making essential journeys to apply for a card, while claiming the pandemic was causing problems. In March it was reported that dozens of parents had complained on social media about the bus pass application being complicated. Concerns have now been raised that a complex online application process is causing delays and exacerbating financial hardships for vulnerable families, with some young asylum seekers and refugees not yet able to obtain the free bus passes months after the scheme started. FfT – a UK-wide charity whose only Scottish centre is in Glasgow – said that some of its clients have been affected by the delays including a 14-year-old Kurdish boy, Rasool, who waited nearly eight months to get a pass. His parents – Soran and Nestihan – who have been granted refugee status in the UK, are supported by the charity. Soran – who is unable to work due to injuries he received after being tortured by the Iranian regime – told The Ferret: “Rasool had to apply five times in total and couldn’t understand why all his friends could get free bus travel and he couldn’t. The cost of bus travel is expensive – £2.20 a day for Rasool and £5 a day for adults. Our total income is just £663 a month, so we have limited finances.” According to Fiona Crombie, clinical services manager at FfT, the application process is difficult to navigate for non-English speakers, and a requirement for residents to apply online presents a further barrier to those who cannot afford WiFi in their homes, leading them to rely on mobiles or public libraries. She added: “The paltry £40.85 a week that asylum seekers are forced to live on is insufficient at the best of times, but when faced with the worst cost-of-living crisis in a generation, it is near impossible. With spiralling inflation and energy costs, it is crucial that the council resolves these issues so that new Scots can get one with rebuilding their lives in our communities.” Concerns have also been raised by Robina Qureshi, of the charity Positive Action in Housing. She said that “many people have been left beleaguered by the tortuous process”. Quereshi added: “Unfortunately if you are a young asylum seeker, applying for free bus travel for under 22s is a fruitless process that means navigating multiple websites and making offline approaches to the council, rather than a straightforward online application. And neither produces any results. If you don’t have a driving license or passport you are supposed to ...
Strathclyde University has been accused of failing to make progress on commitments — made more than two years ago — to research and acknowledge the institution’s historical ties to slavery. Critics claim it is falling behind at a time when some other Scottish universities and institutions are moving ahead with plans to interrogate their own past links with the slave trade. In September 2018, the University of Glasgow released the Slavery, Abolition and the University of Glasgow report, written by Professor Simon Newman and Dr Stephen Mullen. Its findings led to the university making a commitment to invest £1m a year for 20 years in order to fund the Beniba Centre for Scottish Caribbean Slavery Studies. It was launched in October 2020, and named after Beniba, an enslaved African woman. Meanwhile, this April, Glasgow City Council released an audit of its historical ties to slavery. It found forty Lord Provosts between 1636 and 1834 had ties to Atlantic slavery, and that funding for the City Chambers in the 1880s was partially derived from banks with previous ties to the slavery economy. They have since promised a public consultation to address the issue. In October 2020 Strathclyde University claimed it was “already in the initial stages of assessing our archives to explore any potential links that may exist between slavery and the university’s early beginnings”. A spokesperson said that while it did not know what the outcome would be it would be asking its Race Equality Working Group to examine the findings “in due course.” However last month a spokesperson for the working group confirmed to The Ferret that it had “not heard anything yet from the University on the assessment of archives with respect to this issue”. Professor Tom Devine, who in October 2020 was critical of the “silence” of Strathclyde University on the issue in an interview with the student newspaper, Strathclyde Telegraph, said it was important the institution was not “left behind in this search for origins and new knowledge on a highly controversial topic of great current interest”. Despite the lack of comprehensive research on the full extent of the connection between slavery and the University of Strathclyde, significant groundwork has been laid by Glasgow University academics, Dr Mullen and Prof Newman. Councillor Graham Campbell, who also chairs Flag Up Jamaica Scotland “Reparative justice is needed to make amends. That starts with Scotland acknowledging our central role in slavery”. In Strathclyde’s Royal College Building there is a statue of James Watt, a mechanical engineering pioneer whose improvements to the steam engine were instrumental in bringing about the Industrial Revolution. He also acted as an agent for his father’s mercantile company, and was directly involved in the keeping and selling of at least one enslaved person. Though awarded by Glasgow University, the Archibald Denny Prize for Naval Architecture, Ocean and Marine engineering students, is also open to those studying at Strathclyde University. According to Newman and Mullen’s study, Denny was a beneficiary of slavery, having inherited his father’s company, William Denny and Brothers. Newman and Mullen cite research by Eric Graham that Denny’s was “one of the most prolific” constructors of blockade-runners, ships designed to slip past the Union blockade in order to supply the pro-slavery Confederate forces during the American Civil War, at a time when the British were officially maintaining neutrality. They benefited from the war effort to keep slavery alive in the American South through the 1860s, several decades after it had been abolished in Britain and the British colonies. Strathclyde University’s first subscription list from 1796, requested by The Ferret from its archives, shows that Richard Dennistoun was one of its fifty initial subscribers. Dennistoun had interests in Glasgow West India merchant houses, and in 1836 was one of five awardees for a £2,559 claim on a Trinidad p...
The number of childminders practising across Scotland has fallen by over a third, leaving thousands of families struggling to find flexible childcare. Exclusive analysis of Care Inspectorate open data by The Ferret found the total number of childminders in Scotland had fallen from 6752 in 2012 to just 4829 in 2021. The number of Scotland-wide registrations last year was just 147, compared with 710 in 2012. The figure has been declining year-on-year. The decline is particularly stark in rural areas with the number of childminders falling by almost half in Angus and Clackmannanshire. But even in Scotland’s largest cities the number is decreasing, according to the new data, which shows that the number has fallen by almost a quarter in Edinburgh and Glasgow. The Scottish Childminding Association said the figures were “extraordinary” and “worrying” and called for more support for the profession. Childminders in decline Professional childminders care for children from birth to 12 in their own homes. They are registered by the Care Inspectorate, a process which takes three to six months and includes training. Advocates of childminding claim it provides a home-from-home experience where children can learn and play in mixed age groups. They say it allows families greater flexibility in terms of start and pick-up times. Many childminders continued to operate throughout the pandemic. However despite many childminders reporting a strong demand for their services, fewer and fewer are signing up and more are leaving the profession – put off, it is claimed, by the worsening insecurity, low pay and excessive, unpaid paperwork. Shortages in some areas are so severe the Scottish Childminding Association has launched a pilot project in ten rural areas, hoping to attract people to the profession. The professional body claimed that many childminders had been forced out because of the way local authorities prioritised their own nurseries, offering free places to those rather than offering parents choice about where to use their allocated 1,140 hours of annual paid for childcare. The Scottish Government commitment to early learning and childcare (ELC) expansion introduced in August 2021, equates to 30 hours per week during term-time. The statutory change saw hours increase from a guaranteed 600 annually. But according to childminders many parents are not being offered hours with a childminder, though the policy should allow for this, but instead told they can use the free hours at a local authority nursery. The recruitment drive needed to up the staffing of council nurseries has also attracted childminders, as well as staff from private nurseries and even social care, it has been claimed. Others are leaving because they can no longer afford to do the “mop up” by relying on childcare hours after nursery. However Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) said families were able to access a funded place at any childcare provider who meet the requried standards and was “willing to enter into a contract” with the council. Graeme McAlister, Scottish Childminding Association Uniquely you can have children from birth to 12 who are playing and learning together. Parents who use childminders also view them as a form of non-judgemental support for the whole family. Scottish Childminding Association chief executive, Graeme McAlister, said: “Since 2014 we’ve seen an extraordinary and worrying decline in our workforce. “It was a momentous achievement to realise 1,140 [hours of free childcare] but in order to achieve that it required a national recruitment drive for nurseries. It accidentally had a destabilising effect. “While some local authorities have been supportive of childminders, others are approaching this policy with a provider mentality. We know that in some areas parents are not being offered childminding as part of their ELC hours with local authorities pointing to their own provision instead. “It means childminders are often not getting enou...
As part of the The Ferret’s series on Scotland’s Carbon Credits, we revealed the developers behind the carbon market green rush – and the companies and organisations buying carbon credits. We’ve now mapped all of Scotland’s carbon capture sites and explored the top 20, which span from Galloway to Caithness. The Ferret looked at the 790 Scottish projects voluntarily listed on the peatland and woodland carbon codes, and have mapped each one below. The projects – which make up 63,453 hectares – could allow developers to state that nearly 14m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) have been absorbed over the next century. Carbon capture schemes generate carbon credits, which can be used by companies and organisations – or sold to others – to compensate for the emissions they release. You can switch between the top 20 largest carbon capture sites and a complete listing of all sites by clicking the boxes in the top left corner of the map. Each circle represents a carbon capture site. Click any circle for more information about the site, such as its name, developer, size and type of project. See the map in your browser Scotland’s carbon credit sites Ferret members can access the full data set on all 790 carbon credit projects from our data download page. Download “Scotland's Carbon Credit Projects” scottish_carbon_credit_projects_theferret_data_Final.csv – Downloaded 0 times – You can read about the developers behind the largest sites – and the global firms snapping up Scotland’s carbon credits – as part of our wider investigation. Revealed: The developers behind Scotland’s carbon credit ‘green rush’ Revealed: The big firms snapping up Scottish carbon credits Photo credit: Ken Brown, CC-BY-SA 2.0
Weapons manufacturers, the oil giant Shell, and financial institutions which poured billions of pounds into fossil fuels are among firms buying Scottish carbon credits, prompting critics to claim the country is experiencing an era of “rampant carbon capitalism”. Land reform experts have told The Ferret that demand for space to produce the credits and sell them to major firms looking for a quick way to reduce their emissions is contributing to soaring rural land prices across the country. This is preventing local communities from seeing the economic benefits of work to restore nature in their area, they claimed. The credits – which theoretically ‘offset’ climate pollution created by other parts of the firms’ UK businesses – were produced by Scottish tree planting and peatland restoration projects aimed at absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Carbon credits are viewed as one of the key corporate solutions to the climate crisis. Supporters claim that because they put a value on carbon reductions, the credits lure private money to nature restoration projects. They also argue that they help companies compensate for emissions which they are currently unable or unwilling to reduce or get rid of. Scotland is attractive to developers of the credits because of its large rural land area, lightly regulated land market, and lucrative government subsidies for woodland and peatland projects. But green groups have branded them a “false solution” to the climate crisis. They claimed that instead of being used to offset “hard-to-tackle” pollution, they are being bought by firms who want to “dodge the need to transform their carbon intensive practices”. One campaigner argued that very few Scots would agree that “Scottish trees should be helping arms companies keep on pumping out climate pollution”. The Scottish Government – which has encouraged the use of Scottish land for the creation of carbon credits – said it was “fully committed to tackling the adverse effects of scale and concentration of land ownership”. It added that private investment is “critical” to “enabling the scale and pace of action required” to tackle climate change and restore nature. The Ferret’s report is the second in a two-part special into Scottish carbon credits. Yesterday we revealed that BP and the country’s richest man are among the firms buying up rural land to cash in on the ongoing ‘green rush’. The buyers The findings come from exclusive analysis by The Ferret which looked at all the buyers of credits from carbon capture projects in Scotland listed on the public registries of the Peatland (PC) and Woodland (WC) Codes. The PC and WC are the two carbon credits schemes currently operating in Scotland. Nearly 560,000 credits produced by Scottish projects have been sold to date. Each credit permits a firm to emit one tonne of CO2 because the equivalent amount has supposedly already been absorbed by a Scottish woodland or peatland project. Richard Dixon It seems unlikely that many people would think Scottish trees should be helping arms companies keep on pumping out climate pollution. By far the biggest buyer is an American firm called FleetCor, which sells fuel cards to the haulage industry. It has bought nearly 390,000 credits from Scottish woodland projects – more than half of those sold so far – for a scheme for UK customers called EcoPoint which allows them to offset some of their emissions. The firm markets the offset scheme as an affordable alternative to decarbonising for its clients. According to its website, “upgrading your fleet to zero emissions is expensive” whereas EcoPoint is an “affordable way to mitigate your businesses’ environmental footprint and appeal to more customers”. Banks, insurance companies and major investors have also bought nearly 30,000 credits to offset the climate impact of their UK operations. Among them are Barclays – which has invested over £100bn in oil and gas firms since the Paris Agreement was signed in 2015 – and...
For University students and their families, graduation day is always special. But for Robbie and his parents it was a day they were told would never come. Diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) when he was six, over the years Robbie was told he would not cope with mainstream primary, or secondary, and should not even think about applying to university, due to his additional support needs. Now 22-years-old he has proved the naysayers wrong and exceeded all academic expectations. After fighting for 17 years to get the support he needed to stay in mainstream education and sit exams – Robbie has been awarded a 2/1 in Philosophy from Glasgow University. Autism is a neurological and developmental disability which can affect how people communicate and interact with the world. It is estimated one in 100 people are on the autism spectrum – the severity of which can vary dramatically. Yet like many children and young people, Robbie found his ASD was misunderstood and unsupported at school leading to behaviour that saw him restrained, placed in seclusion, and repeatedly excluded. The traumatic behaviour management techniques still affect those with additional support needs (ASN) disproportionately – 70 percent of those excluded from Scottish schools in 2020/21 had ASN. In 2018, a report by the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland found restraint was happening inappropriately in schools, and too often to disabled children. The treatment left Robbie feeling like an outsider and had a devastating impact on both his education and mental well-being. But his mother – Debbie Best – was determined that her academically able son should have the same opportunities as his peers, despite his disability. Though Robbie has achieved his academic ambitions, he has been left feeling “numb” by the struggles to get here. To his mother, it’s a bittersweet victory. “He would not have had the same choices should I not have fought for them,” she says. “There is a sense that we should just be grateful but it feels sad that Robbie can’t feel pride or joy. He deserved the same as his peers.” He and his family are speaking out because they want to stop other young people suffering the same experience. They are calling for educational reform and better awareness to help every young person with a disability to meet their “limitless potential”. Robbie “In every institution I was in I was always told the next stage would be too much – nursery, primary school, high school. You start to believe in a way” That reform, they claim, must include closer partnership working with families to make sure school is accessible for children whose disabilities mean they learn differently. “We need a more flexible approach,” said Best. “That could include virtual or hybrid schooling for school refusers, more adaptable timetabling to reduce demands placed on those who are easily overwhelmed, or reduced hours or quiet spaces for pupils who need more time out.” Despite changes, including Scotland’s incorporation of the UN’s Convention on the Rights of the Child last year, which should offer children with ASN protection, the pandemic has made the situation worse than ever campaigners claim. And though they acknowledge the lack of resourcing and large classes make things far from easy, they are calling for local authorities to meet their statutory obligations to put in place “reasonable adjustments” to support the learning of all children. Best was first alerted to her son’s additional needs when he was at nursery, with staff resorting to restraining her five-year-old in a high chair because they could not cope. Like many children and young people with autism he frequently became overwhelmed and overstimulated by situations outwith his control in the classroom. “That’s when the fight or flight response kicks in,” explained Best. Teachers tried to physically prevent Robbie leaving the room when he felt he needed to e...
An oil giant, Scotland’s richest man, an earl, and private equity and property firms are among those developing carbon offsetting projects that critics say are pushing up land prices and allowing companies to “greenwash” their image, The Ferret can reveal. With its swathes of rural land, Scotland has attracted a green rush of land investors amidst a surging carbon market. Some 63,453 hectares of land currently earmarked for forestry and peatland restoration make up an area larger than Scotland’s three biggest cities combined. The projects could allow developers to state that nearly 14m tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) have been absorbed over the next century. Scotland’s green rush has sparked a debate about how the carbon credit market boom will impact the environment and land democracy – and about whether local communities will benefit. MSPs accused some wealthy individuals and institutions of “greenwashing” and “contributing to an unjust land market”. Scottish land values reportedly rose by 61 per cent in 2021 alone due to demand from forestry investors. Scotland’s landowner body said carbon capture schemes were a part of a wider effort from landowners to tackle climate change. A sustainability professor agreed that carbon credits can incentivise landowners to plant trees and restore peatland, but warned that communities and others could be shut out of the process. But land campaigner Andy Wightman called for carbon trading to be banned. He argued that only the wealthy would benefit and emissions offset by companies would not “contribute to Scotland’s net-zero ambitions nor to help cool the planet”. Offsetting schemes generate carbon credits, which can be used by companies and organisations – or sold to others – to compensate for the emissions they release. Government officials worried that tree deal with Shell was “greenwashing” The Ferret’s exclusive analysis is the first in a two-part special report into carbon credits. Tomorrow we will reveal the firms which, having poured billions of pounds into fossil fuels, are now among those buying up Scottish carbon credits. Nearly 560,000 credits produced by Scottish projects have been sold to date, with each credit theoretically cancelling out one tonne of CO2 released into the atmosphere. Scotland’s largest carbon credit developers The Ferret looked at the developers of all the Scottish projects voluntarily listed on the peatland and woodland carbon codes. Just a small fraction of the credits produced – and thereby the amount of carbon the projects will absorb – have so far been validated by a third party. The largest developer of Scotlands’ carbon capture projects is the Edinburgh-based Scottish Woodlands, which is developing 9,075ha for forestry and 252ha for peatland restoration. Scottish Woodlands is “an employee-owned company that grew out of a woodland owners’ cooperative” and has a £100m annual turnover, according to its website. A carbon capture project management firm, Durham-based Forest Carbon, manages 6,027ha of woodland and 1,620ha of peatland. The company's co-owners previously ran forestry and peatland organisations. Wildland, which is ultimately owned by the Danish firm Heartland A/S, holds 6,569ha of forestry sites and 229ha of peatland. The man behind both companies, Anders Povlsen, is thought to be Scotland’s largest landowner and richest man. With around 89,000 hectares across Highland 12 estates, he has an ambitious 200-year plan to rewild northern Scotland. The Danish fashion mogul is worth £6.5bn – up £500m from 2021 – according to The Sunday Times Rich List. BP targeting Scots with ‘greenwashing’ Facebook adverts The BP Exploration Operating Company, a BP subsidiary, is developing 4,802ha of woodland and four of the top 20 largest Scottish carbon capture sites. While the oil giant would be able to claim more than 1.2m t CO2e in offset emissions, BP told The Ferret it “does not plan to rely on offsetting to meet our 2030 net zero aims.” “We have been invo...
Landholders have allegedly blocked or deterred public access to Scotland’s paths more than 1,000 times in recent years according to data logged by local authorities. Issues included security guards deterring access to a peninsula, £800 worth of council signs being stolen and replaced with “Private Land” signs, a fence barring access to a Corbett summit, and a sea passage between two islands being blocked. Obstructions and other issues were reported at nearly 100 estates across the country. In one case, girl guides were reportedly denied access to an estate and kayakers were wrongly told to pay to access an estate’s loch. Highland estate in public access legal battle owned in tax haven There were also complaints about the MOD shutting routes, housing developers closing, obstructing, or damaging paths during construction, and of planning conditions being breached when replacement routes were not built. Scotland’s land reform act sets out a right of responsible, non-motorised access to land and inland water, with a few exceptions, such as residential gardens. The Ferret used freedom of information law to obtain a list of the 1,978 access issues recorded by 21 local authorities and two national park authorities between April 2017 and February 2022. The entire list is available to our members. Download “Access Issues Log 2017-2022” Access-Issues-Log-1.xlsx – Downloaded 3 times – 382 KB Eleven councils, including large rural ones like Aberdeenshire and Highland – the latter of which makes up a third of Scotland’s land – did not provide any data, meaning the true figure is likely to be much higher. The problems were reported to local and park authorities by the public, landowners and others, or logged by local authority staff. Walking and access groups argued the figures reflected councils’ “years of chronic underfunding” of access officer roles, which uphold access rights. More than half of the reported issues related to paths being reportedly obstructed by landowners, occupiers and others, including electric, barbed wire and other fences, locked gates, no entry signs and the public being told to leave. Ramblers Scotland said it was “truly shocking” to see “the deluge” of reported obstructions nearly 20 years after the Scottish land reform act introduced rights of responsible public access. Landowners must be ”urgently reminded” of their responsibilities, the group argued. Scottish Land & Estates, which represents landowners, said the issues were mostly minor, “easily resolved”, did not breach access regulations and involved “all types of landowner”. Access issues at estates represented “less than five per cent of the total”, they highlighted, with the majority apparently occurring on local authority controlled land. [table id=226 /] Other access issues Some 275 issues related to access inquiries, where the public or landholder asked local authorities which access rights applied to certain areas, including whether they could be revoked. In 196 cases local authority access logs stated or implied that a path had not been maintained, usually by the local authority or landholder responsible. In some cases the public alleged that paths had become dangerous or impassable. Dumfries and Galloway Council received regular complaints about paths being obstructed by overgrown vegetation across the region, but due to budget constraints, decided to not cut back overhanging plants and trees. These included paths in and around Annan, Beattock, Castle Douglas, Criffel, Dumfries, Gretna, Isle of Whithorn, Kippford, Kirkcudbright, Lockerbie and Rockcliffe. “As maintenance is not a statutory function, funding for this type of work is often very difficult to find and often other council functions, which are statutory duties, will take priority,” a spokesperson told The Ferret. Funding shortages have “a knock on effect to the quality of the core paths, with some becoming inaccessible during the summer months when the vegetation can restrict access,” t...
Energy bills are predicted to rise again as the cost of living crisis continues to affect people across the UK. The increase has been blamed on a number of factors, and campaigners have asked for government action to halt spiralling gas and electricity bills. But how did we get here? How are the prices we pay for energy decided? And what can governments do to help? FFS explains the current situation. How much have bills increased? The average energy bill for a typical household could reach £5,038 per year in 2023, according to estimates from energy analysts, Auxilione. The price cap, which is set by Ofgem, rose by nearly £700 in April 2022, from £1,277 to £1,971. The next price cap adjustment is expected to be announced at the end of August. Estimating average household bills can be difficult due to varying levels of energy consumption and different types of energy tariffs. What has caused the increase? Wholesale energy prices have increased significantly around the world since the middle of 2021. This has a number of causes. As the world emerged from Covid-19 lockdown, demand for gas went up. But the amount of gas available could not keep up, leading to skyrocketing prices in European and Asian gas markets. The International Energy Agency (IEA) pointed to a series of disruptions in supply, as well as lower than usual gas storage in Europe. Colder than average weather last winter also led to increased demand in some areas of Europe. Then in 2022, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused more difficulties in energy supply as countries reduced or ended their gas imports from Putin’s regime. While the UK does not directly import a lot of its gas from Russia, the country remains one of the world’s biggest gas suppliers, and so the impact of the conflict is felt through global gas markets as demand increases in other countries the UK imports from. Because the UK needs to import gas from elsewhere, it is more exposed to changes in overall gas prices. Who does the increase in bills affect most? Those on lower incomes are disproportionately affected by the price cap increase. According to the Office for National Statistics, for the poorest 10 per cent of households, 54 per cent of their average weekly spend is on “essentials such as housing (including electricity and gas), food and transport”. The richest 10 per cent spend just 42 per cent. The poorest spend seven per cent of their disposable income on gas and electricity, while the richest only spend two per cent. How are prices set in the UK? Energy suppliers buy from the wholesale market, where prices can be extremely volatile. In order to guard against these rapid fluctuations, most energy companies ‘hedge’ their purchases, which means they buy energy for future use, sometimes years in advance. This means that they are less affected by the unpredictable fluctuations in market price. In the UK, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) is the government regulator for energy markets and bills. It analyses the energy markets and looks at the costs energy suppliers have, which then makes up the energy price cap. The price cap is intended to protect consumers from these volatile markets, by creating a maximum price that people can be charged for their gas and electricity use. It limits the amount that energy companies can charge for their default tariff. This doesn’t mean there is a maximum bill that someone could be charged, as that depends on individual energy consumption. This cap was reviewed every six months, but Ofgem has announced it will now be updated four times a year. In practice this could mean prices increasing more rapidly as supply issues continue. The price cap also sets a maximum supplier profit margin (before interest and taxation) of 1.9 per cent. However this does not mean that suppliers will actually earn 1.9 per cent in profit in practice, because the price cap profit margin is based on Ofgem’s estimates. What do our bills pay for? The largest cost in a typi...
Grouse shooting will be banned on sporting estates where birds are prey are being illegally killed, the Scottish Government has announced. Grouse shooting will be banned on sporting estates where birds of prey are being illegally killed, the Scottish Government has announced. The rural affairs minister, Mairi Gougeon, said a licensing scheme for grouse shooting will be introduced in the next parliament after the election in May 2021. If landowners are guilty of wildlife crime, their licences will be removed, she warned. The minister also promised controls on heather burning and new guidance on feeding grouse medicated grit. She said that the unregulated culling of thousands of mountain hares on grouse moors would end after February 2021. The government moves have been welcomed by environmental groups as “entirely proportionate”. But the Scottish Greens are concerned that the shooting industry will be allowed to draft the licensing rules. Landowners said that licensing was a “seriously damaging blow to fragile rural communities”. Gamekeepers were furious, saying that they had “effectively had targets painted on their backs”. Landowners and environmentalists have been at war over over the persecution of birds of prey on grouse moors for decades. Some sporting estates have been accused of killing raptors to prevent them eating grouse so there’s more to be shot. Gougeon told MSPs that wildlife crime was “abhorrent”. A series of increasing tough attempts to crack down on the shooting and poisoning of eagles, harriers, kites and hawks had not prevented continued killing on grouse moors, she said. Relying on the shooting industry to regulate itself would not on its own be “enough to end the illegal killing of raptors,” she argued. “Further intervention is now required.” She rejected a compromise recommendation from advisers that licensing should only be introduced after five years if raptor persecution persisted. “I believe the government needs to act sooner,” she said. “A licence will be required to operate a driven grouse moor business, and if there is strong evidence of unlawful activity or serious breaches of codes of practice by that business, then their licence could be withdrawn.” Gougeon said that work would start now to introduce a licensing scheme during the next parliament. “I recognise this is a serious sanction and we would therefore take steps to ensure that no credence is given to any vexatious or malicious claims of malpractice,” she added. The aim was not to end all grouse shooting, she stressed. “Those businesses which comply with the law should have no problems at all with licensing.” Gougeon also warned that heather burning to help grouse, known as muirburn, had the “potential to have a serious negative impact on wildlife”. There would be a statutory ban on burning on peatland, and burning elsewhere will only be permitted under a licence from the wildlife agency, NatureScot, she said. Medicated grit is used to suppress worms in grouse. It will be subject to a new code of practice to be drawn up by NatureScot, the minister said. In addition Gougeon promised greater legal protection legal for mountain hares, which are shot by gamekeepers to prevent them spreading disease to grouse. New arrangements will come into effect at the end of February 2021 at the end of the open season for killing mountain hares. The government announcements come on the eve of the Scottish National Party’s (SNP) online annual conference from 28-30 November. The National newspaper reported on 11 November that the party leadership was facing a “grassroots rebellion” after a widely-backed motion to ban grouse shooting was left off the agenda. The government was responding to the 2019 review of grouse moor management chaired by professor Alan Werritty from the University of Dundee. It recommended that shooting should be licensed after five years if the illegal persecution of birds of prey persisted. The Ferret reported that a tougher proposal...
The UK Government and arms firms based in Scotland have been condemned for arms sales to Israel after 16 children were killed in air strikes on Gaza. The latest Israeli offensive – codenamed Breaking Dawn – killed 47 Palestinians and injured more than 300 people. Israel said it carried out “preemptive” raids on Gaza after arresting a senior member of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) group in the occupied West Bank. Human rights campaigners in Scotland made fresh calls for the UK Government to stop selling arms to Israel. Since the Conservative government was elected in May 2015 the UK has licenced over £442m worth of arms to Israeli forces, said Campaign Against Arms Trade (CAAT). The UK Government claimed that it operates “one of the most robust and transparent” export control regimes in the world. The Israeli military said it makes every effort to avoid civilian casualties. Scottish Greens MSP Ross Greer “Despite its long catalogue of atrocities, the Israeli government has always been able to count on the political, economic and military support of complicit governments like the one in Westminster” Almost 40 Palestinian children have been killed so far this year in the occupied territories. In many incidents, according to the UN, Israeli forces appeared to use lethal force in a manner that violates international human rights law. The latest incident was the sixth round of fighting between Gaza’s militant groups and Israel since Hamas took over the strip in 2007. Israel said nearly 1,100 Palestinian projectiles were fired but there were no Israelis killed. A ceasefire between Israel and PIJ held last week following almost three days of fighting that began on 6 August. Five arms firms with a presence in Scotland have been criticised because they applied for export licences to sell arms to Israel, said CAAT. The companies are Leonardo, Lockheed Martin, Thales, Raytheon, and BAE Systems. Leonardo makes components for Apache attack helicopters and delivered 30 Aermacchi M346 aircraft to the Israeli Air Force in 2016. US firm Raytheon – based in Fife – makes systems for Paveway smart bombs, which have been used in Gaza by the Israeli military. Another US firm – Lockheed Martin – has supplied Israel with over 100 F-16I combat aircraft, as well as a rocket system. Lockheed is also prime contractor for the F-35 combat aircraft, which Israel is buying to replace F-16s. Lockheed Martin employs 2,000 people at 20 sites in the UK, including Glasgow. BAE Systems is a partner with US arms firm Lockheed Martin on the F35 combat aircraft, which Israel uses. Thales – whose Glasgow factory was targeted by pro-Palestinian protestors in July – produces military drones. It was targeted due to its collaboration with Israeli weapons company Elbit Systems on the Watchkeeper Drone project. Israel said that during Operation Breaking Dawn it hit 170 PIJ targets during the operation, killing several high-ranking PIJ members and destroying tunnels and weapon storage sites. Gerry Coutts, chair of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign We welcome the ceasefire that has been called, but we know that it is only a matter of time before the next bombardment; the next news report of children and other civilians brutally killed. CAAT called for a suspension of arms sales, and a “full review” into whether UK weapons were used. CAAT’s Katie Fallon added: “UK made arms have been used against Palestinians before, but that has done nothing to halt the flow of weapons. These arms sales do not just provide military support, they also send a clear sign of political support for the occupation and blockade, and the violence that is being inflicted.” Scottish Greens MSP Ross Greer accused Israel of being an “apartheid state” and of “systematically brutalising and collectively punishing” the Palestinian people. “Despite its long catalogue of atrocities, the Israeli government has always been able to count on the political, economic and military support of complicit go...
Just four of Europe’s biggest insurance companies funded more climate pollution across the globe in 2021 than Scotland produces each year, analysis by The Ferret has found. Germany’s Allianz, France’s AXA and CNP Assurances, and Italy’s Generali caused the equivalent of at least 40.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) to enter the Earth’s atmosphere last year. The pollution caused by the firms — which is created by their investments in other industries and contributes to the climate crisis — was also comparable to that produced annually within the borders of other medium-sized European countries including Portugal and Switzerland. The firms are among the five biggest players in the continent’s insurance industry. The other company which ranks among the top five European insurers — the UK’s Aviva — does not report the exact emissions from its investments. But these will also be significant. The insurers have all reduced the emissions produced by their investments since they were first reported in 2019, a step which they have called “key in the race for net zero”. They also claim that they are allocating large amounts of funding to green technologies, including renewable energy. Insurance companies are viewed as having a unique role in the climate crisis, because they fund and underwrite risks for the industries that cause global warming, while also covering people against its impacts. Green campaigners claimed it was time for them to “choose which side they are on” and “support citizens to protect themselves against the impacts of the climate crisis, rather than putting fuel on the fire with dirty investments”. Meanwhile, a former head of insurance at a major French investment bank said The Ferret’s findings showed insurers should be using their “vast investment power” to drive “more radical change in both society and the energy industry”. The Ferret’s findings come from the insurer’s annual sustainability reports which they have each published through the first half of 2022. The emissions come from investments in company stocks and shares, corporate and government bonds, and property. Allianz is Europe’s biggest insurer and also had the largest reported carbon footprint of any of the continent’s insurance firms in 2021. Klaus Ruhrig, climate and energy coordinator at Climate Action Network Europe Europe’s insurance industry needs to choose which side they are on. It is high time for them to fully divest from fossil activities and support citizens to protect themselves against the impacts of the climate crisis Its investments caused the equivalent of 18.7 million tonnes of CO2 to enter the atmosphere last year. This was a yearly reduction of 3.5 million tonnes from 2020. Over seventy per cent of this pollution came from its funding of companies in just three sectors — electricity supply, transport, and mining. Generali also reported emissions from investments of over 10 million tonnes, with these decreasing by just over 11 per cent between 2020 and 2021. Axa — which produced just under seven million tonnes of CO2 in 2021 — reduced its annual investment emissions by 2.6 million tonnes in 2021. CNP’s funding of four million tonnes of emissions was also a reduction from the previous year. The combined 40.2 million tonnes of investment emissions reported by the four insurers was slightly higher than Scotland’s territorial emissions in 2020 — the most recently available data — when the equivalent of exactly 40 million tonnes of CO2 was produced. The firms have pointed out that Scotland’s emissions only include what is produced within its borders, and not those from its overseas activities or oil and gas, but the comparison still reveals the scale of the task the four companies face in reaching their climate targets. True climate impact still emerging The Ferret’s analysis is a snapshot of the major contribution that Europe’s insurance industry makes to the climate crisis, but its actual emissions are expected to be even large...
Leading supermarkets and salmon farming companies have been accused of “plundering” the Antarctic for krill and depriving whales, seals and penguins of food. An investigation by the campaign group, Changing Markets, said that Asda, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s and Tesco sold farmed salmon fed on krill. Two multinationals that own salmon farms in Scotland – Bakkafrost and Lerøy Seafood – were also alleged to use krill as fish feed. Krill are tiny crustaceans vital to the global environment, providing sustenance for marine animals and helping to slow climate change by storing carbon. But they are being fished in increasing numbers in the Antarctic to feed farmed salmon and to provide dietary supplements. The industry argues that krill fishing is sustainable, only taking a small proportion of an abundant species. But campaigners disagree, saying that krill are being impacted by climate change and fishing them should be banned. A new report from Changing Markets, is entitled “Krill, baby, krill: The corporations profiting from plundering Antarctica”. It claimed to provide details for the first time of the global supply chains for krill. The report concluded that farmed salmon fed by krill are routinely sold by 16 leading supermarkets in four European countries. In the UK it named Asda, Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury’s and Tesco as being linked to krill feed. It said that no supermarkets had adopted policies excluding the use of krill in the feed used to produce their own branded salmon products. The report also highlighted that krill oil dietary supplements were sold by most of the world’s 50 largest retailers. The report identified five major European salmon farming companies which it said used krill in fish feed. One was the Faroese giant, Bakkafrost, which owns The Scottish Salmon Company, with 53 marine and freshwater sites on the west coast of Scotland and the Outer Hebrides. Another was the Norwegian company, Lerøy Seafood. It owns 50 per cent of Scottish Sea Farms, which has 63 marine salmon farms in Scotland. “By continuing to sell krill-fed farmed salmon and pricey krill oil supplements leading supermarkets are complicit in depleting the main source of food for whales, seals and penguins, animals that are already under extreme pressure from global heating,” said Sophie Nodzenski, senior campaigner with Changing Markets. “Krill fishing is an inherently destructive and unprofitable industry with a remarkable display of smoke and mirrors to hide the real environmental impact of its operations. We urge supermarkets to stop selling krill-based products.” Nodzenski warned that plans to double the production of farmed salmon in Scotland would increase the demand for krill from the Antarctic. “Fish farms must phase out the use of wild-caught fish, including krill,” she urged. The Changing Markets report said that two firms with salmon farms in Scotland — Mowi and Cooke Aquaculture — did not use krill. It claimed that Mowi was “not convinced of the cost-versus-benefit of using krill as a feed material.” According to the report, most krill is sourced from the Norwegian company, Aker BioMarine, which catches two thirds of the krill taken from the Antarctic. The report accused the company of “greenwashing” by downplaying the damaging impacts of krill fishing. “The industry has also been pushing the narrative that the current catch limit is precautionary because it is only one per cent of the krill biomass,” it said. “But this fails to reflect its impact on the vulnerable Antarctic ecosystem, particularly in the face of accelerating climate change.” There was an “illusion of sustainability” created by industry-funded research and enabled by the Marine Stewardship Council, the report argued. The council has certified krill-based products as sustainable, despite repeated objections by campaigners. The report said that the Antarctic was becoming “unstable” because of climate change. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Ch...
Marine conservationists are claiming a “landmark victory” after Environmental Standards Scotland (ESS) published a report on the use of acoustic deterrent devices (ADDs), also known as seal scarers, in salmon farming. Critics opposed to ADDs said that ESS’s intervention on the issue has effectively led to a “de facto ban” on their use in Scotland. ESS was established as an “independent” environmental regulator following Brexit. ADDs are used to deter seals from attacking fish farms by emitting a sound in the water they find unpleasant. The farmed salmon industry claims these deterrents are critical for protecting fish stocks because seals kill around 500,000 caged salmon each year. Critics of ADDs described them as “sonic torture”, however, and claimed they cause hearing damage and stress in dolphins, porpoises and whales – and therefore breached legislation to protect cetaceans. They said there are alternatives for the salmon industry to use to protect fish farms from seals, including the use of stronger nets. Opponents of seal scarers have now welcomed the report by ESS and claimed its intervention in the issue effectively “signals the end of ADD use” by salmon farms in Scotland. ESS is charged with scrutinising both compliance with – and the effectiveness of – environmental law in Scotland, now that the EU and the European Environment Agency are no longer monitoring standards and the application of the law in the UK. The report by ESS said it received allegations that fish farm operators had been using ADDs without a licence, and that concerns had been raised over “the sufficiency of Marine Scotland’s investigation and enforcement actions” to stop such practices. David Ainsley, member of the Coastal Communities Network “This is a great result. Harbour porpoises and dolphins will enjoy greater protection as a result. Any salmon farmers who try to use ADDs must now expect enforcement action against them. This followed a report by The Ferret last June, which revealed the Scottish Government had launched an investigation after receiving complaints from environmental conservationists over the use of “seal scarers” by a company which has fish farms in Argyll and Bute. Fish farms must obtain a European Protected Species (EPS) licence to operate an ADD unless they can demonstrate the equipment does not disturb porpoises. According to ESS, Marine Scotland “appears to have entered into a new phase of enforcement work and is moving beyond relying on the aquaculture industry to self-regulate”. The report said: “Marine Scotland have recently completed an ADD compliance plan and initiated inspections of fish farms in early 2022. In November 2021, a Scottish Government Aquaculture code of practice (published in September 2021) became subject to the enforcement powers provided in the Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Act 2007.“ It continued: “This tightened the requirements on fish farm operators to apply for an EPS licence or prove a licence is not required, if they intend to use an ADD.” The Coastal Communities Network (CNN) – which comprises of 22 community-based groups across Scotland – said it was “delighted” with the report from ESS, and pointed out it followed a referral made to the body in November 2021 by Guy Linley-Adams, a solicitor acting on its behalf. The campaign group said Marine Scotland has introduced more inspections and claimed that while Scottish fish farms can still apply for an ADD licence, none are in use at time of writing due to tougher enforcement following ESS’s intervention. David Ainsley, from Sealife Adventures and CCN member, said: “This is a great result. Harbour porpoises and dolphins will enjoy greater protection as a result. Any salmon farmers who try to use ADDs must now expect enforcement action against them. CCN members will be watching – and indeed listening – for any lawbreaking and we encourage the general public, and any fish-farm employees, to report any use of ADDs at once.” Linley-Adams s...
The chief executive officer of Mears Group – which runs local authority and UK Government contacts including one with the Home Office to provide asylum accommodation in Scotland – was paid £838,000 last year. According to its latest accounts, posted on Companies House, chief executive David Miles increased his total earning from £600,000k in 2020 – when the company posted a loss – to £838,000 including bonuses in 2021. Mears reported profits of over £25m last year.Mears Group also provides home care and is currently advertising carer positions paid at just £9.50 per hour, which is the minimum wage for anyone 23 or over. Critics said that awarding public contracts to a company where the CEO earned almost 50 times more than the lowest paid workers was “intolerable” and called for its government and local authority contracts to be “ripped up”. But Mears Group insisted that its executive pay was “on the lower end of the scale” when compared to similar public companies, which it said was “a conscious decision”. The company said its rates for workers were “competitive”. Mears’ asylum contracts In 2019 Mears was awarded its largest ever government contract to provide accommodation and support for asylum seekers in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Yorkshire/North-East. It was worth £1.15billion. Since then the firm has been consistently criticised by refugees campaigners, who allege it is overseeing “a slum housing system”. The claim has been refuted by Mears who insist the housing it provides meets the Home Office’s contractual requirements.In response to the hike in the CEO earnings, Robina Qureshi, chief executive of Positive Action in Housing, said: “At a time when the Bank of England is calling for a curb on pay rises due to inflation, this really beggars belief.” In February the the governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey – who earned over half a million in 2020 – came under fire from unions for suggesting workers should not ask for big pay rises to help control inflation. Robina Qureshi, Positive Action in Housing There is such a stark contrast between the extent of the financial rewards on offer and the fact that this is a company that is overseeing a parallel slum housing system. Qureshi added: “At the same time I am no longer shocked by the way we see multi-nationals lining their pockets, even while we are in the midst of a cost of living crisis. “There is such a stark contrast between the extent of the financial rewards on offer and the fact that this is a company that is overseeing a parallel slum housing system. Mears is trying to normalise this but it should never be considered normal.” Scottish Labour MSP, Paul Sweeney said that a board sanactioned pay rise of over £200,000 “while presiding over an organisation that provides slum-like accommodation to asylum seekers tells you everything you need to know about the priorities and moral compass of this organisation”. “It’s scandalous that they are allowed to get away with it and the government and local authorities involved should be ripping up the contracts rather than continuing to funnel public money into their bank accounts,” he added. “Asylum seekers are among the most destitute and vulnerable people in society. “We cannot have a situation in this country where during a cost-of-living crisis, organisations like Mears Group are offering poverty wages and providing inadequate services while being propped up by public money. It’s intolerable and it needs to end.” The rapidly escalating cost-of-living crisis has put a renewed focus on public sector high pay. Although Mears is a private company, much of its work revolved around providing public services, which have been outsourced by UK authorities. Paul Sweeney, MSP We cannot have a situation in this country where during a cost-of-living crisis, organisations like Mears Group are offering poverty wages and providing inadequate services while being propped up by public money. Last month The Ferret reported that a d...
Anti-nuclear campaigners have accused organisations supporting plans for a nuclear fusion plant in North Ayrshire of having promoted the project with “half truths” and warned it would be “dangerous” for the environment. A consortium, which includes Glasgow University and North Ayrshire Council, is backing a prototype fusion energy plant at Ardeer, capable of providing what they claim would be an environmentally-friendly source of electricity. The plant would create an estimated 3,500 jobs during construction and 1,000 jobs when the site begins operating, according to the project’s backers. However, Ayrshire CND argued that fusion is a nuclear technology with radioactive risks since it requires tritium – a radioactive isotope of hydrogen – during the process. The group also claimed the plant would “create a considerable carbon footprint”. Environmental groups are calling for the Ardeer peninsula to be given special status to protect its diverse wildlife. Dr Ian Fairlie, an independent consultant on radioactivity “The reality is that a fusion reactor, if ever operated, would produce many radioactive by-products that are far from harmless.” Fusion is being promoted as a source of clean energy by the UK Government. To produce energy from fusion, a combination of hydrogen gases – deuterium and tritium – are heated to very high temperatures. Advocates of fusion said this is the opposite of nuclear fission – the reaction used in nuclear power stations today – in which energy is released when a nucleus splits apart. Ardeer is one of five shortlisted sites under consideration as the location for the UK Government’s Spherical Tokamak for Energy Production (STEP) programme. The UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) will announce its preferred site later this year. Ardeer is the only Scottish location in the running for STEP. The other four sites are in Cumbria, East Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire, and Gloucestershire. The bid for the North Ayrshire site is being led by the Fusion Forward (Ardeer) consortium, which consists of the University of Glasgow, NPL Group, which owns the land, and North Ayrshire Council. However, Ayrshire CND has accused North Ayrshire Council of committing to supporting the £222m project without having a full council discussion. The campaign group’s Richard Leat also questioned what the public has been told. “We are told that this is not really a nuclear plant,” he claimed. “We are being sold this plant with half truths.” Leat pointed to a poll by the Ardrossan Herald which found the majority of 502 responses – 69 per cent – were against the plant. “Furthermore, outwith the general risks from nuclear energy, the site would require monitoring and tight security for many, many decades, which will restrict public access to the peninsula and beach,” Leat continued. “Building the reactor would itself create a considerable carbon footprint. It is of our opinion that the siting of this plant in Scotland will be in contravention of the no-nuclear energy policy of the Scottish Government.” Read more of The Ferret’s coverage of nuclear plants, here. His views were echoed by Dr Ian Fairlie, an independent consultant on radioactivity who was head of a UK Government committee on radiation risks from 2000 to 2004. He said: “It (fusion) is a dangerous process whereby radioactive hydrogen (tritium) is smashed into another form of hydrogen (deuterium) at massive temperatures and pressures inside a plasma to release much radiation and some heat. The same process occurs in our Sun. but the Sun is safely located 93 million miles away.” Dr Fairlie added: “The government’s mooted fusion reactor comes with promises of cheap and clean energy to move to a zero-carbon economy, with little radioactive waste and no plutonium by-products for nuclear weapons. But this government has a bad track record with its promises. how valid are these claims? “The reality is that a fusion reactor, if ever operated, would produce many radioactive by-products ...
Much of The Edinburgh Fringe programme remains inaccessible to disabled audiences, prompting criticism from campaigners and advocates as the 2022 festival gets underway. According to the Fringe’s own website search filters, a number of shows include no accessibility features at all. Additional analysis by The Ferret found that almost 40 per cent of venues were hosting no accessible shows. Almost two-thirds of all Fringe venues are currently inaccessible to wheelchair users. Campaigners have called the findings “unsurprisingly shocking” and said commitment, investment, and changes in attitude are needed to address the problem. A Fringe Society spokesperson said the festival had already taken steps to improve accessibility but recognised that there is still work to do in supporting disabled artists and audiences. The Fringe website allows visitors to filter shows by seven accessibility criteria: captioning; audio description; signed performance; relaxed performance; wheelchair access; audio enhancement system and wheelchair accessible toilets. Of 3,445 shows listed on the site on Wednesday 3rd August, 75 (two per cent) were listed as including captioning. Seventeen (0.5 per cent) included audio description and 64 (1.9 per cent) were listed as putting on a signed performance. 2,163 (63 per cent) shows were accessible to wheelchairs, meaning over a third of all shows were not. 622 of those shows listed as being wheelchair accessible did not have a wheelchair accessible toilet at the venue. There were no shows which met all seven accessibility criteria. As the search filters return results based on shows and not individual performances, a show will be identified as accessible even if it is only putting on one accessible performance. Many acts included in the results have only a single signed or captioned performance available. Fiona Robertson, equalities consultant and disability campaigner. Disabled people are unable to see so much of the Fringe. Especially now with the added risk of crowded venues where masks are not required, we have to fight for every basic concession. Moira Tasker, chief executive of Inclusion Scotland, said some access problems existed year-round in Edinburgh while others related to the pop-up nature of the Fringe and a tendency to use all available spaces. “A common complaint from Edinburgh festival-goers is how tricky it is to choose what to go to because of the sheer number of shows on offer,” she said. “However, the festival is still not that big for many disabled people due to an enduring lack of accessibility at performances.” “We need a mixture of commitment and investment in accessibility from the council to address long-standing access problems, as well as a shift in perceptions from festival organisers that consideration for deaf and disabled artists and audiences is overly complicated, or prohibitively expensive.” Some adaptations can be low-cost and still have a big impact – for example temporary ramps, good signage, and promotional materials in large print, said Tasker. Ben Wilson, a blind theatre-maker who has attended the Fringe as an audience member, said he had decided not to return to the festival until improvements were made. “As blind and visually impaired audiences we are not welcome at the Fringe. This is clear. The Fringe don’t want our custom,” Wilson told The Ferret. “I’ve been to the Fringe a handful of times and every time faced huge barriers and felt not welcome or accepted as a visually impaired audience member. I have now decided not to return until there is proof of serious change.” Equalities consultant and disability campaigner Fiona Robertson said worries about Covid had been a particular barrier for disabled people at this year’s festival and that responsibility for an accessible event should ultimately fall to the Fringe itself. “Disabled people are unable to see so much of the Fringe. Especially now with the added risk of crowded venues where masks are not required, we ...
The charity behind a popular Glasgow accessible cycling centre is being investigated by the Scottish charity regulator, The Ferret has learned, causing a Scottish Government grant to be suspended. Free Wheel North’s cycle track in Glasgow Green is now under threat of temporary closure, following an acrimonious dispute between its founder and staff, volunteers and former trustees. The Scottish Government confirmed that funding for the charity — which runs a cycle track with disability bikes at Glasgow Green — was stopped in February after the complaints were lodged with the charity regulator OSCR. OSCR confirmed it has opened an investigation but stressed this does not mean it has found wrongdoing by the charity. Free Wheel North was founded in 2008 by Norman Armstrong. It aims to promote better mental and physical health through community engagement and has a special focus on people with disabilities. Developing charity The charity set up the Glasgow Green cycle track in 2011, providing accessible bikes including disability trikes and go-carts. It is now used by both disabled groups as well as local and visiting children and families, who can rent bikes for up to 45 minutes at a time. Last year the cycle centre team was shortlisted for the Glasgow Times Community Champion Awards and won awards in 2016 and 17. In recent years it has opened a second centre at White House in Maryhill, which it has transformed with the help of volunteers into a “cycling and walking hub” with a bike shop and event space. An onsite cafe opened last month. In October last year the charity was awarded £150,000 by the Scottish Government to pilot a special project for servicing and maintaining adapted bikes as part of the government’s year long Rock Up & Ride scheme. However the funding was stopped following multiple complaints raised by staff and volunteers of the Glasgow Green base, along with former trustees, nine of whom contacted The Ferret. Staff and volunteers claim the dispute is caused by the ongoing failure of directors to address their concerns over the management of the cycling centre — including disagreements about opening times, safety measures and staff working conditions. ‘Terminal decline’ However Armstrong claims that the centre is now in “terminal decline”, and is being subsidised by other projects run by the charity. In messages seen by The Ferret he has claimed there is now not enough money to pay staff wages on an ongoing basis. Freelance payments have been suspended, which means led rides — local cycle trips led by an experienced cyclist — and lessons have been stopped. The track, he told The Ferret, may have to close “on a temporary basis” while he puts in place measures that could help it re-open in a “more sustainable way”. However staff claim that the centre is sustainable and still recovering post-Covid-19. In 2019 it brought in £40,000, with almost 41,000 visitors to the track. Numbers from January to July this year – shared with the Ferret by staff – show visitor numbers are still down by about a third. But the track has brought in £22,000 so far, excluding led rides and lessons. In June some staff and volunteers wrote to Armstrong asking him to consider selling the cycle track to them to run separately from Free Wheel North, which they claim would safeguard its future. But the offer was refused. Armstrong told The Ferret that staff had themselves exacerbated funding problems by raising the complaints, making it difficult to pull in funding. He added: “Luckily I have been building up meaty reserves for the charity, often by sacrificing my own salary. “But the cycling centre is running a deficit budget due to problems with the way it has been run by staff. I may have to close the cycling centre temporarily and relaunch it when it can be run more efficiently.” Everyone involved, he said, must be “fully behind” the aims and objectives of the charity in order for it to recover. Long standing volunteer Free Wheel North does ...
The future of pensions continues to be a heated issue within the Scottish independence debate. Ferret Fact Service has fact-checked claims before about Scotland’s responsibility over existing state pensions if it left the UK, but a widely-shared graphic about how Scotland could cover them after independence has led to more confusion and dispute. The image stated “your pension is safe” in an independent Scotland, and compared Scotland’s national insurance payments to the UK and its potential pensions bill. This, the image claimed, showed Scotland could “more than afford to pay state pensions” and independence would “just cut out the middleman”. Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it to be Mostly False. Evidence State pensions in the UK are available to those who pay national insurance on reaching retirement age. While the money used to pay for pensions is often referred to as a ‘pot’ or a ‘fund’, there is no reserved amount of money accumulated through a person’s life that then pays their state pension. State pensions in the UK are paid by contributions from people who are currently working, so effectively people who are in-work are paying for the state pensions of those who have retired. This means that the amount of money raised through national insurance can vary, and the UK Government can use money from other taxes to cover state pensions for those who have retired. The widely-shared graphic compares the amount that people living in Scotland pay in national insurance (NI) each year, to the amount of money the UK Government currently spends in Scotland on pensions. The figures it uses are accurate. According to the latest figures from 2020-21, Scotland’s NI contribution is £11.48bn, while an estimated £8.52bn is spent on paying for state pensions in Scotland. National insurance is not just for state pensions While estimates do suggest that Scotland pays more in NI contributions than it receives in state pension, national insurance is not only used to pay for the state pension. UK taxes are not strictly ‘hypothecated’, which means taxes are not, by and large, raised to pay for specific services. Instead tax revenues are effectively pooled and then allocated to different spending requirements. A large share of national insurance contributions are used to pay for the state pension, but the tax also helps to pay for a number of other things. A small proportion is used to cover other social security benefits, such as some unemployment benefits, and employment support benefits, as well as redundancy payments. The most significant proportion of NI contributions that isn’t used for pensions is funding for the NHS. In 2020-21, the NHS allocation was £26.4bn. This made up about 19 per cent of the total raised through NI contributions. Another smaller proportion is spent on administrative costs, as well as payments to Northern Ireland’s separate national insurance fund to ensure parity between the funds. It is not possible to know for certain how an independent Scotland would pay for a state pension or arrange its tax system, which makes comparisons difficult. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Mostly False It is misleading to say Scotland’s national insurance contributions mean an independent Scotland could “more than afford” to take on state pension payments. It’s not known what arrangements could be made to pay state pension after independence, but while Scotland’s NI contributions are larger than its potential pensions bill, this does not take into account the other things that are currently paid for through national insurance, such as funding for the NHS. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to ideas.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join...
The BBC has revealed that a growing number of Scottish households do not have a TV licence, following an intervention by the Information Commissioner on behalf of The Ferret. New figures show that the public broadcaster now estimates that nearly 13 per cent of households in Scotland are not paying the £159 per year licence fee. This has risen from 11 per cent in the 2016-17 financial year, with one expert claiming that the rise reflects cost of living pressures forcing people to stop payment. Non-payment in Scotland is estimated to be far higher than in other parts of the UK. The most recent estimates suggest that just seven per cent of households in England, six per cent in Wales and 10 per cent in Northern Ireland are evading the licence fee. One expert claimed this could be connected to a perception that BBC Scotland “doesn’t offer anything to ordinary working people”. The rise also coincides with a drop in enforcement in Scotland. The Ferret had previously reported figures showing that in 2020-21, the Procurator Fiscal issued 1,226 fines to people for non-payment of a TV licence. In 2016-17 the equivalent figure was 5,321. Commenting on the higher rate of licence evasion in Scotland, John Cook, Professor of media at Glasgow Caledonian University said: “Quite simply there is more poverty in Scotland, so more people may simply be unable to pay the licence fee. “But along with that, the SNP are often seen as the standard bearer for people in lower socio-economic classes and there may be a perception that BBC doesn’t offer anything to ordinary working people in Scotland.” But he also claimed Scots “watch a lot of television because of the weather”, particularly in the winter. He added: “Television has always been big, but what is clear with audience surveys is that for people investing in streaming services, they may be choosing to pay for Netflix or Amazon Prime over the BBC. Especially when money is tight and, historically at least, the BBC is perceived as having a bit of a southern metropolitan bias.” It is estimated that 95 per cent of households in the UK have at least one TV, and income from the licence fee is said to make up 75 per cent of the BBC’s income. It is against the law to watch live or streaming TV without a TV licence. The BBC is responsible for enforcement and when cases of non-payment are passed to the Procurator Fiscal the maximum fine for evading the licence is £1000. Responsibility for enforcement has been outsourced by the BBC to Capita, with the aim, according to a 2017 National Audit Office Report, of reducing evasion to less than four per cent across the UK. The same report said that in Scotland, some of the difference in licence fee evasion "may be explained by a different regulatory environment". It added "the BBC does not have the same power as elsewhere to decide, without reference to other authorities, whether to prosecute evaders it catches”. A TV licensing spokesperson for the BBC said: “The overwhelming majority of households are licensed, sales increased this year and 90 per cent of adults use the BBC each week. “The difference in evasion is largely due to the different legal systems in place for those who evade. Rather than cases going directly to a magistrates’ court, in Scotland, decisions on evasion cases are taken by a Procurator Fiscal who can issue a fine." What next for the TV Licence? Debs Grayson, campaign co-ordinator for the Media Reform Coalition’s BBC and Beyond campaign previously told The Ferret they believe that the licence fee should be replaced with a payment that varies depending on household income. “While we believe the BBC is good value for money overall, the cost is significant for those on low incomes, and this may also be a factor in different rates of payment," they added. “The Media Reform Coalition has long argued that the licence fee being a flat tax is unfair, and it should be replaced with a system which reflects people's ability to pay." A House of Lords C...
Animal welfare groups have called for an end to medical experiments on birds following an Edinburgh University presentation by a US scientist who feeds sparrows crude oil during research. Campaigners voiced concerns after a visit to Scotland’s capital this week by Louisiana State University (LSU) researcher, Dr Christine Lattin, who spoke at an international symposium attended by scientists from around the world. Dr Lattin’s experiments are viewed as important for understanding the effect of stress in birds when some species are in decline and at the brink of extinction due to human activities. She argues that examining stress in wild birds to understand what negatively affects them means actions can be taken to help wildlife. Edinburgh University argued that research involving animals plays a vital role in developing new treatments for serious diseases that affect people. Eve Massie, campaigns officer at OneKind “When considering animal experimentation, many people will automatically think of the upsetting images of animals being exploited to test medicines and chemicals. However, even behavioural experiments can cause suffering to the animals involved” According to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), however, Dr Lattin’s experiments amount to “torture” and have involved “feeding crude oil to birds and withholding food from sparrows for 15 hours” before testing the birds’ fear responses. The Edinburgh-based animal welfare charity, OneKind, said a “phase out of animal experimentation is crucial”. Animal rights activists protested at Edinburgh University last Tuesday when Dr Lattin gave a presentation at the International Symposium on Avian Endocrinology, which brings together scientists from around the world. The field of avian endocrinology is interested in the hormones of birds. As part of Dr Lattin’s research, oil is put in sparrow’s food to test whether very small amounts could act as an endocrine disrupting chemical. Endocrine disrupting chemicals block or interfere with normal hormone actions in the body that are necessary for health and survival. Dr Lattin – assistant professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at LSU – told The Ferret that understanding the physiology of stress is essential because it’s a “matter of life or death” for wild animals. “As humans, we have an extra responsibility to try to understand this question because we are constantly exposing wild animals to stressors that we are responsible for,” she added. “Animal research like mine plays an essential part in the development of human and veterinary medicine, and in wildlife conservation and protection. “Many species, like the American bald eagle, have been brought back from the brink of extinction. But we can only take actions to help wildlife if we first understand what is negatively affecting them, and how. This is the reason my research examining stress in wild birds is necessary.” Dr Lattin also said that for five years she has been “repeatedly harassed by extremists” from PETA, adding: “It is important to understand that PETA is opposed to all research that uses animals, including life-saving research that has led to cancer breakthroughs, countless medications and therapies, and most recently, the Covid-19 vaccine.” However, Kate Werner, senior campaigns manager at PETA, accused LSU of carrying out “despicably cruel experiments” on sparrows. Werner argued that sparrows belong in nature, not in a laboratory, and that LSU’s “past and present torment of countless animals represents a shameful waste of money and lives”. She added: “These social, intelligent birds are taken from their homes in nature and trapped in laboratory cages, where experimenters intentionally expose them to stimuli that could cause stress, such as flashing lights and ringing bells. The fact that these experiments are designed to see how distressed fragile animals become is a testament to their unethical nature.” Eve Massie, campaigns officer at OneKi...
Medicinal drugs have polluted Scotland’s waterways in breach of safety levels more than 2,300 times over seven years, according to data released by the Scottish Government’s environment watchdog. Ponds, streams, rivers and firths across the country have been contaminated with 26 drugs, including ibuprofen, oestrogen, antibiotics, painkillers, anti-depressants, anaesthetics and caffeine. In the worst cases, recorded concentrations were hundreds or thousands of times higher than those deemed safe. According to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), drug pollution can damage and kill wildlife by interfering with growth, behaviour and reproduction. It can also endanger human health by helping viruses, bacteria, fungi and parasites to develop resistance to drugs. Experts and environmentalists have warned of the “potentially serious” impacts of the pollution. Action is “urgently needed” to cut the contamination and reduce the risks, they said. The drugs find their way into sewers from people going to the toilet after taking them, or flushing them away unused. Sewage treatment “has not been designed to remove such pollutants,” Sepa said — so they end up being discharged into waterways. Drug pollution of water is a global problem, with a study in June 2022 reporting contamination “of concern” in 104 countries. It recommended immediate action to “bring concentrations down to an acceptable level”. Bacteria and other bugs developing a resistance to drugs and rendering them ineffective has also been reported as a “significant threat to humanity”. A study published in The Lancet in January 2022 concluded that it was a leading case of death worldwide, killing about 3,500 people every day. Drug pollution in breach of safety levels Comprehensive data on the presence of pharmaceuticals in water in Scotland has been compiled and published for the first time by Sepa, with the help of NHS Highland, Scottish Water and the University of the Highlands and Islands. Samples were taken from around 30 sewage plants and other sites between 2013 and 2019. The samples show concentrations of individual drugs in surface waters at specific locations, often downstream from sewage treatment plants. The database also highlights exceedances of the “predicted no-effect concentration” (PNEC) of each drug — the level above which they could cause harm. An analysis of the data by The Ferret has revealed that concentrations of the widely-used anti-inflammatory painkiller, ibuprofen, exceeded the PNEC 768 times between 2013 and 2019. Oestrogen, used for contraception and hormone therapy, breached the PNEC 612 times. Other drugs that frequently exceeded the PNEC were antibiotics such as erythromycin and clarithromycin, the anti-epilepsy drug, carbamazepine, and anti-depressants. In 18 samples the anaesthetic, lidocaine, was above the PNEC, and in five samples, the painkiller paracetamol. Many of the breaches were found near sewage works in Lothian, Lanarkshire, Tayside and Glasgow. Breaches were also detected in the River Almond in Lothian, the Clyde in Glasgow and the Don in Grampian, as well as in the Firth of Forth, Cromarty Firth and the Firth of Tay. The recorded concentrations of drugs in some samples were many times higher than the PNEC. Recorded levels of caffeine, used as a stimulant in some medicines, were more than 50,000 times the PNEC in the River Almond and near sewage works at Harthill in Lanarkshire and Seafield in Lothian during 2015. Levels of carbamazepine were more than 1,000 times the PNEC in water sampled downstream of the Archiestown sewage plant in Grampian in 2018. Concentrations of ibuprofen were 660 times higher than the PNEC downstream of the Largoward sewage plant in Fife in 2017. Action on drug pollution ‘urgently needed’ Publication of the data was welcomed by Fidra, an environmental charity based in North Berwick that specialises in water pollution. But it expressed disappointment that it failed to include information on man...
The UK Government is under pressure to explain why it deleted key pledges on women’s sexual and reproductive rights from a policy document produced by a human rights conference it chaired earlier this month. Pro-choice campaigners and other countries have expressed dismay at changes made to the text of the document after the event had finished. They argued that the move came at a time when abortion and other sexual and reproductive rights are under threat globally due to the recent rolling back of Roe vs Wade in the US. The story was picked up on the social media platform, TikTok. One user — whose video on the topic has been viewed over 1 million times and has nearly 200k likes — wrote that “quiet movements” like the changes to the document are how “attacks on reproductive rights” begin in the UK. Ferret Fact Service explains what the changes made to the document were, the UK Government’s reasons for making them, what the reaction has been, and whether they have impacted women’s access to abortion services in the UK or abroad. @sertraline50mgs ♬ original sound – Finley this is for all the idiots who said attacks on abortion could never happen in the uk. this is a reproductive rights and LGBTQ+ rights (both are linked) attack. this is terrifying. these quiet movements are how it starts. #fyp #abortion #proabortion #uk What were the changes? The alterations were made to a text produced by the international ministerial conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB). First held by the US in 2018, the conference on FoRB aims to bring together faith leaders, activists and government ministers from 36 member countries to “urge increased global action on freedom of religion or belief for everyone”. The conference on FoRB was hosted by the Foreign Office on behalf of the UK in London on July 5 and 6 and featured an opening speech by the foreign secretary, Liz Truss. The UK Government’s special envoy at the conference — who was heavily involved at the event — was the Tory MP, Fiona Bruce. She is also the co-chair of Westminster’s all-parliamentary group of “pro-life” MPs. National governments who were at the conference were encouraged to sign up to seven different statements on issues which overlap with religion and belief. One of these was a statement about “protecting and promoting freedom of religion or belief. in the context of gender equality, including for women and girls worldwide”. In the original statement on gender equality, signatories committed to repealing laws that “allow harmful practices, or restrict women’s and girl’s full and equal enjoyment of all human rights, including sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), [and] bodily autonomy”. Countries also pledged to “support and build the capacities of local religious and belief leaders to. ensure access to sexual and reproductive health and rights”. However, in the amended version — issued in the aftermath of the conference — all mention of SRHR and bodily autonomy are left out. You can compare the original statement and the updated one here. This has caused concern because providing women with access to safe and legal abortions is considered essential to ensuring that their SRHR are upheld, and is considered a human right. Why was the document altered? The Foreign Office told The Ferret that it altered the gender equality statement to “address a perceived ambiguity in the wording”. It added: “The UK remains committed to defending universal access to comprehensive Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR), and will continue working with other countries to protect gender equality in international agreements.” When asked, the department declined to say whether it discussed the changes to the document with other countries before they were made, what the “perceived ambiguity” was, or who considered the wording of the document to be unclear. The Foreign Office has since said that the changes were made to focus on “core issues and ensure consensus between sign...
A director of a care home firm in Scotland — which is owned in a tax haven and pays some of its staff just over minimum wage — was paid £2.27m in 2020. Barchester Healthcare — which is owned by Jersey-based Grove Limited — runs more than 200 care homes across the UK including 18 in Scotland. Some of its jobs for care workers are advertised at £9.90 an hour, just above minimum wage. The Scottish Greens said it was “appalling” that a firm owned in a tax haven paid some staff this amount. Barchester Healthcare claimed that its remuneration scheme for staff is the “best in the care sector”. The director’s pay was revealed by Trinava Consulting, which conducted research into profits made by care homes during the Covid-19 pandemic Vivek Kotecha, Trinava Consulting “Rising profits raise concerns over whether the additional government funding was spent on the front line as intended” It said that seven of the 10 biggest adult social care providers for whom data was available saw their underlying profit margins widen between 2019 and 2020, the first year of the pandemic. The study found that the highest paid director at Barchester Healthcare — which claimed hundreds of thousands of pounds in taxpayer-funded furlough money during the Covid-19 pandemic — was paid £2.27m in 2020, up from £2.02m in 2019 and £699,000 in 2015. In total the firm paid its seven directors £3.8m. Barchester’s accounts for 2020 show its total revenue increased by £5.8m and its operating profit increased by £1.7m to £42.7m. It received £12.6m in government grants during 2020 which included money from the UK Government’s Infection Control Fund and covid support payments from Scottish local authorities. Gillian Mackay, a Scottish Greens MSP, said: “For too long the care sector has been used by big companies to make a quick buck. I believe that as we build Scotland’s national care service, we should ensure that it is a person centred, rather than a profit driven service. It is simply appalling that an operator, based in a tax haven, will only pay some if its staff £9.90 while syphoning growing profits to directors.” Vivek Kotecha, of Trinava Consulting, which provides business and financial analysis, said the pandemic “didn’t stop the growing gap between director and staff pay” in care homes. “Rising profits raise concerns over whether the additional government funding was spent on the front line as intended,” he added. In reply, Barchester Healthcare pointed out it pays higher hourly rates than £9.90 for some roles, adding it is a “Scottish living wage employer” with a staff remuneration scheme which is the “best in the care sector with regular pay rises and loyalty bonuses”. A company spokesperson said that a £700 loyalty bonus is being paid to staff this month and that during the pandemic it paid three additional bonuses to front-line staff in order to thank them for their “tireless work”. “As part of our ongoing commitment to continually invest in the quality of care for residents and patients by recruiting and retaining the very best staff, we are adding to our sector-leading staff benefits and rewards with an additional £8.1m being invested in our pay and bonus structure in 2022,” the spokesperson added. Regarding the £2.27m paid to a Barchester director, as per accounts lodged by the firm with Companies House, the firm’s spokesperson said the figure includes “a non-recurring payment related to a long term incentive plan maturing after a four year period”. The spokesperson continued: “Far from cost-cutting, we are investing in our care homes. In the six years from 2015 to 2020 inclusive, we invested a total of some £56m in capital expenditure on property and improvements of our services, in order to ensure that residents are living and staff are working in the best possible conditions. Shareholders don’t take any dividends. All profit is reinvested into the business.” In 2021 it was reported by The Times that Barchester Healthcare claimed hundreds of thousand...
The National Records of Scotland (NRS) has published its latest statistics on drug deaths, which show 1,330 people died of drug misuse in 2021. This is a reduction of one percent on the 1,339 who died in 2020 and the second highest figure on record. It is the first time since 2013 that drug misuse deaths have not increased. That year there were three fewer deaths (0.5 percent) than in 2012. However overall drug-related deaths have been increasing since 1996 with the overall trend steeper in the last eight years. But what else do the figures tell us? Who is dying and why? How does that compare to rates across the UK? Does Scotland still have the highest drug rate in Europe? The Ferret Fact Service looked at the numbers in detail. The numbers in detail In 2021 1,330 people died of drug overdoses — officially recorded as drug misuse deaths — across Scotland. This is a reduction of one percent in the figures as a whole, which some organisations claimed is not a statistically significant decline. The number of women who died of drug-related deaths increased by eight percent from 366 to 397, a record number of deaths.Meanwhile the number of men who died in 2021 fell by from 973 to 933, a decrease of four per cent.Men are 2.4 times more likely to die but the gap between genders has been decreasing. In the early 2000s men were four times more likely to die. The number of women dying has increased by 150 percent since 2014. The City of Dundee still has the highest drug death rate of all local authority areas, with 45.2 deaths per 100,000 population when looking at the five year period from 2017-2021. It is closely followed by Glasgow City (44.4) and Inverclyde (35.7).When looking at health board areas, Greater Glasgow and Clyde has the highest rate and it has also seen the number of deaths increase most dramatically over the last two decades. It has risen from 8.9 per 100,000 population in the period 2000-2004 to 33.7 per 100,000 population in 2017-2021. Ayrshire and Arran (28.1) and Tayside (27.1) were the second and third health boards with the highest drug rates. The average age of drug misuse deaths has increased from 32 to 44 over the last 21 years and 65 per cent of all drug misuse deaths were of people aged between 35 and 54. More than half of all women and men were under 45 when they died in 2021. Poly drug use For the second year running the data showed 93 per cent of those who died had taken more than one controlled substance, known as “poly drug use”. The vast majority – 84 per cent – involved opiates or opioids (such as heroin, morphine and methadone) and 69 per cent involved benzodiazepines including diazepam and Etizolam, which is found in so-called street valium.There has been a five fold increase in deaths involving benzodiazepines since 2015. During this time the number has risen from 191 to being associated with 918 deaths in 2021. How is the Scottish death rate calculated? It has been widely claimed that because of the way drug related deaths are calculated in Scotland, comparisons between its drug death rate and that of other countries were not credible. The Ferret Fact Service has previously looked at some of these claims and found them false. The annual NRS bulletin now provides three figures. The first is the widely reported figure of 1,330 of drug misuse deaths — previously referred to as drug-related deaths. This covers drug poisoning deaths but only those where the substances involved are controlled in the UK. This means that deaths from drugs like aspirin or paracetamol are excluded. Deaths due to any other health conditions or accident are not counted either. The second figure of 1,444 includes drug poisoning deaths which were excluded from the official drug-related deaths count, the NRS clarified. It also gives a third statistic of 1,111. This is the number of deaths that it uses for comparing the drug death rate with other UK and European countries. This includes a slightly different list of substances ...
A record number of women died drug related deaths in 2021, according to new figures. The annual statistics, published by the National Records of Scotland, show that a total of 1,330 people died last year, a one per cent decrease on the total of 2020, which was a record high. However the number of women who died actually increased by eight per cent, with 397 women dying in 2021. This is the highest figure on record for women – the previous record was 393 in 2019. Meanwhile the deaths of men fell from 973 to 933, a decrease of four per cent.While men are still 2.4 times more likely to die of drug misuse than women, the disparity between the genders has been decreasing with drug deaths rising sharply for women in recent years. Campaigners reacted with sadness and anger to the statistics, which they said showed almost no change from last year.Annemarie Ward, chief executive of recovery charity Favor UK, said they were “Scotland’s shame” while the Scottish Drugs Forum said the tragic statistics represented “an on-going systemic failure” to either address poverty or offer the right support to vulnerable people. Scotland’s death rate remains the worst in Europe and five times the rate in England.In March The Ferret spoke to women in Dundee and Glasgow as part of its From the Margins series who said that they had struggled to get help and support with their drug use.Charities and academics have claimed stigma makes it harder for women to access drug treatment, with mothers less able to be honest about their drug use due to fears that they will be removed from their care. Of those women who died 21 were under the age of 25-years-old and the majority — 54 percent — were under 45. Scotland has not had a residential rehabilitation centre that accepts women and their children for several years. But last August funding was announced for a National Specialist Residential Family Service run by recovery charity Phoenix Futures, and based in Saltcoats, North Ayrshire.The facility will provide rehabilitation services for twenty families at any one time and will be based on an existing facility run by the organisation in Sheffield.This March funding was also announced for children’s charity Aberlour to run two Mother and Child recovery houses, including one in Dundee, which is due to open this year.In an interview, which was co-published by BBC’s Disclosure programme in March, minister for drug policy, Angela Constance, claimed the Scottish Government was aware of the link between the women who died of drug overdoses and the removal of their children.She said: “I know there are women and children that have been let down and it’s my job and the job of Scottish Ministers as a whole and local services to make amends by that.“I know that the disproportionate increase in women who are losing their lives to drugs, that there is a strong link between that and their grief in terms of losing their children.”The Pause project —– which offers support to women living with addiction support if they agree to use contraception to prevent further pregnancies has found 233 women in a small sample of those who had had at least one child removed had died between 2016 and 2020. 70 percent of them were under 40 years old. Scotland has not had a residential rehabilitation centre that accepts women and their children for several years. But last August funding was announced for a National Specialist Residential Family Service run by recovery charity Phoenix Futures, and based in Saltcoats, North Ayrshire.The facility will provide rehabilitation services for twenty families at any one time and will be based on an existing facility run by the organisation in Sheffield.This March funding was also announced for children’s charity Aberlour to run two Mother and Child recovery houses, including one in Dundee, which is due to open this year.In an interview, which was co-published by BBC’s Disclosure programme in March, minister for drug policy, Angela Constance, claimed the...
Every Scottish council is still spraying a weed killer linked to cancer and biodiversity loss, with new figures obtained by The Ferret showing that 40,000 litres of the herbicide are being used across the country each year. All of Scotland’s 32 local authorities have confirmed they use products which contain the chemical, glyphosate, to prevent the unwanted growth of weeds and grasses in public spaces. Glyphosate — which has been banned by numerous countries around the world — was classified as a probable cause of cancer by scientists at the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2015. It has also been shown to trigger the loss of biodiversity in different ecosystems, leaving them more vulnerable to pollution and climate change. But despite concerns about the risks associated with it, glyphosate is expected to receive automatic approval for use in the UK until 2026 because the country does not yet have a programme in place to review potentially harmful chemicals after Brexit. Both unions and environmental groups have called for an immediate ban on the weed killer to protect workers and the environment. They said it was “disappointing” to see that glyphosate is “still so widely used across Scottish towns and cities”. The local authorities said they are trying to minimise the use of glyphosate “as far as is practically possible”. They claimed all council employees using the chemical were properly trained and wore personal protective equipment. The findings come after The Ferret lodged freedom of information requests with each council asking for the most recent data they hold on the use of glyphosate. Across the 31 councils that responded, 40,250 litres of weed killers containing glyphosate were used. Nearly half of this came from just five councils — Glasgow, Fife, Edinburgh, Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen City — who spray a combined 18,428 litres each year. The Ferret reported on the almost universal use of glyphosate-based herbicides by Scots councils for the first time in January 2020. It was found that 29 Scottish councils had sprayed at least 170,000 litres of weed killer containing the chemical between 2015 and 2020. Only East Lothian Council — which asked for a fee for the information — did not provide data this year. East Lothian had already responded to a request from local activists about the use of glyphosate earlier this year. In this, the council noted that the most recent information it held was from 2019, when 725 litres of glyphosate-based weed killer was used. There have been a number of reports of East Lothian Council using glyphosate across the county in 2022 and the council has confirmed it still uses the chemical as a “spot treatment” to control weeds. Scottish Greens councillors claim it was sprayed earlier this year at a site of special scientific interest — North Berwick Law — in an area which is an important habitat for many water birds. One of the party’s spokesperson in the county, Mark James, claimed that council workers are spraying glyphosate in a “widespread and indiscriminate way”. [table id=225 /] Cancer links and environmental damage Glyphosate was first approved for use in 1974 and is widely used as a weedkiller in agriculture, people’s gardens, and public spaces. The most commonly known weed killer containing glyphosate is sold by the pharmaceutical multinational, Bayer, under the brand name RoundUp. The WHO’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) officially classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic” in humans in 2015. Several studies have shown that exposure to the chemical increases people’s risk of developing a cancer called non-hodgkin lymphoma. However the link between glyphosate and cancer has been disputed by some national health and environment agencies –– including those in the USA and the EU –– as well as the chemical industry. This has not stopped Bayer facing thousands of lawsuits from individuals in the US claiming that working with RoundUp over an extended period co...
The number of Scottish natural habitats and wild species in good condition has decreased since last year, according to the agency tasked with protecting Scotland’s natural heritage. New data by NatureScot reveals that 77.9 per cent of Scotland’s natural features on protected sites are “either in, or recovering towards, a favourable condition”, as of 31 March 2022. This represents a 0.4 per cent decrease since 2021, prompting fresh concerns about the twin crises of climate change and nature loss. RSPB Scotland argued that protected sites are “not working well enough for nature”. NatureScot and the Scottish Government said they are committed to tackling the “twin crises of climate change and nature loss”. Isobel Mercer, senior policy officer at RSPB Scotland We need a new approach and a reinvestment of action and funding to protect and restore these amazing sites. The annual update by NatureScot follows an investigation by The Ferret last October which revealed that more than 1,100 of Scotland’s wildlife species and natural habitats were in a “poor” condition, and dozens of the nation’s protected sites had been damaged by climate change. Species in decline include the Scottish wildcat, hedgehogs, capercaillie, black grouse, and a bird called the arctic skua, which is facing extinction in the UK by 2100. NatureScot monitors 1,880 protected sites across Scotland annually, which collectively host 5,590 natural features. By 31 March 2022, the condition of 5,301 had been assessed. The proportion of features in “favourable condition” increased by 6.5 per cent between 2005 and 2022. But since 2016, the number in favourable condition has decreased by 2.5 per cent when it peaked at 80.4 per cent. NatureScot said the conditions of habitats, species and earth sciences – which includes geological outcrops and landforms, fossil beds and caves – all declined from 2021, showing decreases of 0.7 per cent, 0.2 per cent and 0.5 per cent, respectively. The most common problems facing natural features on protected sites include invasive species such as Rhododendron or Japanese knotweed. Climate change is one of a number factors – along with farming and forestry operations – causing problems. The majority of protected areas affected by climate change, such as sites of special scientific interest (SSSI), are coastal or islands with seabird and wader bird populations. Isobel Mercer, senior policy officer at RSPB Scotland, argued that the new data shows protected sites are “not working well enough for nature”. She added: “We need a new approach and a reinvestment of action and funding to protect and restore these amazing sites. It is therefore good news that NatureScot recently launched a co-design process for deciding how to deliver the Scottish Government’s target of how to protect at least 30 per cent of Scotland’s land for nature by 2030. “The key is that this 30 per cent of land is not just protected, but also effectively managed for nature – it is not just the quantity of protected areas we have that matters, but the quality too.” Nick Halfhide, NatureScot’s director of nature and climate change. This isn’t something we can do on our own; we all need to play our part to protect Scotland’s nature and to champion the work of land-managers who are delivering for nature on these sites Nick Halfhide, NatureScot’s director of nature and climate change, said Scotland is facing a “nature emergency” and protected areas have a “vital role” to play in “strengthening Scotland’s ecological networks”. He added: “Protected areas are often small and isolated from other natural areas. So although it’s possible to improve some species and habitats with work on one site, we also have to look at the situation more widely. This isn’t something we can do on our own; we all need to play our part to protect Scotland’s nature and to champion the work of land-managers who are delivering for nature on these sites.” Biodiversity minister Lorna Slater MSP said the Scottis...
Over 3,000 people – including asylum seekers – have been held in police cells for up to 72 hours under immigration powers over the last five years, new figures reveal. The latest statistics, released under freedom of information legislation, show the majority of people held in police cells for “immigration purposes” are from countries such as Iraq, Iran and Syria – the most common countries refugees in Scotland arrive from. Others come from countries from where trafficking survivors are commonly detected, including Albania and Vietnam. People can be detained in police cells for “immigration purposes” – which is an administrative rather than criminal matter – when officers have a “reasonable cause” to believe they do not have permission to reside in the UK. Police must then contact the Home Office, which will issue a detention order. Those who come to police attention can include newly arrived asylum seekers, who are increasingly advised to seek help at a police station. But charities said the use of police cells was “totally inappropriate” and could be retraumatising for those who had experienced torture or violence and trafficking survivors. They also warned that figures could increase due to the tightening of immigation rules under the current Conservative government, which will see more claims for asylum judged to be “inadmissible” and more migrants, including refugees, left destitute. The Scottish Government must ask tough questions about Scotland’s defacto role in immigration detention, they said, and ensure greater transparency around Police Scotland’s role. The latest figures show a total of 3, 254 people have been held in Scottish police cells for “immigration purposes” from April 2017 to March 2022. In 2021-22, 738 people were detained in this way. They included 129 people from Iran and 105 from Sudan, both amongst the top countries of origin for both asylum seekers and for referral for trafficking protection in Scotland. Those held for immigration reasons include 77 Syrians, as well as those from countries where trafficking survivors are most commonly identified under the Scottish National Referral Mechanism (NRM), including Romania, Albania and Vietnam. Of last year’s total, 515 people were held for under 24 hours, 211 for between 24 and 48 hours and 11 for 48-72 hours. One person was held in Greenock police station for over 72 hours. Figures covered 20 police stations from Stranraer to Aberdeen, though the majority of people were held in Glasgow. Unlike in criminal cases, where people must normally be released or charged within 12-24 hours, there is no time limit for the use of immigration powers. But Police Scotland said it was “generally a short-term arrangement”. Numbers fell slightly during 2020-21, when lockdown restrictions due to the pandemic were widespread. Immigration detention Only 477 people were held for immigration purposes in that period, including 145 for 24-48 hours, five for 48-72 hours and one for over 72 hours. Countries of origin were similar to those most commonly held last year. In 2019-20 and and 2018-19, more than 700 people were held each year and in 2017-18 it was over 500. Graham O’Neill, policy manager at Scottish Refugee Council, said: “We’re really worried that people from countries which have high refugee recognition rates or high rates of human trafficking to the UK are being held in cells by Police Scotland. “Indeed, they account for the vast majority of those held in these cells under immigration legislation. That is simply not right.” He claimed most transparency was needed about both legislative and financial arrangements. Police Scotland has previously confirmed that it receives £250 per day from the Home Office for each person held in custody for immigration purposes. But it did not disclose the annual amount of funding. Graham O'Neill, Scottish Refugee Council A police cell is no place for somebody seeking refugee protection or who has survived trafficking to begin to rebu...
Senior staff at the UK Government’s oil industry regulator hold shares in fossil fuel firms worth nearly half a million pounds — prompting claims they are “getting richer” while millions face dangerous climate-related heatwaves and soaring energy prices. Three members of the board of the North Sea Transition Authority (NSTA) in 2021-22 had combined shares worth £428k in companies involved in the oil and gas industry. These investments have grown in value by over £120k since March 2021, according to the most recent data. Fossil fuel firms have seen massive profits in the last year, caused by a major hike in the price of oil and gas. The findings have provoked angry responses from green campaigners. One said it “beggars belief” that the people responsible for regulating the oil and gas industry are “raking in dividends” on shares while thousands more Britons are pushed into fuel poverty. They argued that it was “a clear conflict of interest” for regulators to have a “huge financial stake” in the sector they oversee. The NSTA — which was known as the Oil and Gas Authority until March 2022 — is responsible for licensing new oil and gas projects in the North Sea. The Ferret first revealed that members of its board had shares in oil companies in September 2021. The authority said its conflict of interest policy means board members need to declare any financial interests which “may, or may be perceived to, influence their duties” each year. They also have to state any conflicts of interests with agenda items at the beginning of each board meeting and sit out these items. The figures come from the regulator’s annual report which was published on 15 June. Tessa Khan, Uplift How can the British public trust that the regulator is unbiased when its members have such obvious ties to the oil and gas industry? The NSTA’s chair — former Tory energy minister, Tim Eggar — has shares worth £83,604 in MyCelx, an oil services company which he was a non-executive chair of between 2011 and 2021. These shares saw a £26,000 increase in value between March 2021 and March 2022. One of Eggar’s family members has shares worth £54,910 in oil giants Shell and BP. These are worth £17,790 more in 2022 than they were in 2021. Iain Lanaghan, a non-executive director, also had shares in Shell and BP which are valued at £11,365 in 2022 compared with £7,779 in 2021. Another non-executive director, Frances Morris-Jones — who has now left the NSTA — had the biggest haul of oil industry shares at the time of her departure. Morris-Jones’ investments in firms including BP and ConocoPhillips were worth £333,145 when she left the body at the end of September last year. This was an increase in value of nearly £100k over just six months between March and September 2021. The annual report notes that it does not consider the shares held by its board members to be “sufficiently significant to impair their independent judgement in board discussions”. It adds that the board does not consider that “any decision within the NSTA’s powers could materially impact the value of their shareholdings”. All of the share values are from the end of March 2022, except those for Frances Morris-Jones which are from the end of September 2021, when she left the regulator. [table id=224 /] The NSTA is a UK Government company with the British energy minister as its sole shareholder. It is legally responsible for both the regulation and promotion of the UK oil and gas industry. The authority is set to hold a new licensing round — in which areas of the North Sea are auctioned off for oil and gas exploration — this autumn. The last of these, held in September 2020, saw the NSTA award licences to 65 companies across 260 areas of the UK Continental Shelf. The body also decides which oil and gas fields can be developed. So far this year it has approved Shell’s plans to develop a controversial gas field called Jackdaw. Green groups were critical of this decision and argue that no new oil and gas proje...
As the Conservative leadership race gets closer to its conclusion, five rival candidates appeared in two televised debates before a series of voting rounds to whittle them down to the final two. The second of these leadership debates was hosted by ITV News on Sunday 17 June, when candidates answered questions on the economy and taxes, among other issues, and explained why they should be the next leader of the country. Ferret Fact Service fact-checked some of the claims made on the night. Rishi Sunak The Bank of England’s track record over 25 years of independence is that inflation has averaged two per cent. Former chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak defended the Bank of England’s record as he was grilled over inflation by the other candidates. The Bank of England, the UK’s central bank, aims to deliver stable inflation in line with government aims. It has been partially independent since 1997. Sunak’s claim that the BoE had kept average annual inflation to two per cent across the past 25 years is broadly accurate. The average from 1997 to 2022 is just under two per cent inflation. However the rate of inflation has increased significantly in 2022, with the most recent figures showing inflation of 7.9 per cent in May. Ferret Fact Service verdict: True Penny Mordaunt Polling says I’m the only one who can beat Keir Starmer. Penny Mordaunt portrayed herself as the only one capable of winning an election for the Conservatives. Many of those in the race have positioned themselves as the candidate most feared by Labour. During the debate, Mordaunt said that opinion polls had shown she was “the only one” who could defeat Labour leader Keir Starmer in a future election. Rishi Sunak had also previously pointed to polling in the campaign and suggested he had the best chance to beat Starmer. A poll by J.L Partners before the field narrowed did show Sunak with a small lead over Keir Starmer in a potential run-off, but it was well within the margin of error. Polling by Redfield and Wilton Strategy found Mordaunt to be the most popular among the then-six remaining candidates among the general public. There are, however, issues with polling on hypothetical situations. Numerous surveys have shown rather poor name recognition among the public for some of the candidates, aside from former chancellor, Rishi Sunak. This means many of those polled on which Tory candidate would be best placed to defeat Keir Starmer are expressing an opinion on someone they know little to nothing about. It can be safely assumed that the eventual winner of the leadership vote would not face this issue in a general election. This means it is very difficult for polling of this type to give an accurate picture of how well candidates would do in a general election. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Unsupported Liz Truss Rishi, you have raised taxes to the highest level in 70 years. The most fiery clashes in the leadership debate were between former ministers Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss. She repeatedly criticised Sunak’s record as chancellor, with a particular focus on his tax increases. One particular claim was that Sunak had raised taxes to “the highest level in 70 years”. This was a claim also made in Friday’s Channel 4 debate. Similar claims have been repeatedly reported by the media over the last year in response to the proposed increase in national insurance. The Taxpayers’ Alliance also released a report making the same claim in February 2021. The Institute for Fiscal Studies stated that “taxes will reach their highest sustained level in the UK”. These estimates are all based on slightly different methodology, and are primarily projections based on the future tax burden. It should be noted that since these claims were first published, the government announced cost of living tax decreases which could offset some of the tax burden. Primarily, a new policy increasing the threshold before someone has to pay national insurance, which will offset the impact of the 1.25 per...
A Syrian survivor of childhood torture and detention has become the second person in Scotland to fight Home Office plans to deport him to Rwanda. The 19-year-old Syrian, who we are calling Kassim to protect his identity, was a child when war broke out in his home country. He told The Ferret he was detained and tortured by the regime at just 13-years-old. He escaped to Libya last year and claims he was also detained there, beaten and forced to work without pay in the construction industry with other migrants. Finally he fled through Europe to the UK. But when he arrived in May he was not allowed to claim asylum, and was instead detained in Brook House immigration removal centre. He was among the first group of migrants that the UK Government planned to deport to Rwanda under its new immigration plan. The first flight was due to take off on 15 June, but cancelled at the 11th hour after a European Court of Human Rights ruling. Kassim “When I was a child I saw things that people wouldn’t ever see if they lived a lifetime. I still get flashbacks at night.” Latta Law solicitor, Kyle Dalziel, challenged plans to remove Kassim and he was finally bailed. The lawyer is now challenging the decision to find his asylum claim “inadmissible”. Dalziel is also representing another Syrian man – Abdulrahman – who travelled from Calais with Kassim and had also been detained in Brook House before being bailed to family in Glasgow last month. The Ferret and the Sunday Post last month reported on his fight to claim asylum through the Scottish courts. His lawyer described the Rwanda plan as “a policy of deliberate cruelty” and is calling for it to be scrapped. His call comes as the plans were this week due to be scrutinised by the Home Affairs Select Committee. Home Secretary Priti Patel refused to appear in front of the committee as requested, amid government instability. Expecting Safety Kassim said he fled Syria for Libya last June. “I was looking for a job but was kidnapped by militia and detained there for 45 days,” he said. “It happened twice – the second time for 43 days. Both times we ran away. One time we broke a window and the other we broke out of the room with other migrants and they shot at us as we ran. We were forced to do work in construction and we were beaten and tortured.” He managed to leave in April with Abulraham and finally the two Syrians then attempted to cross the Channel. This time they were rescued by the UK coastguard after their boat began filling with water. On arrival both were detained. “I was expecting I would be safer here in the UK,” Kassim said. “I didn’t know anything about Rwanda before I came to the UK. It was only in detention that I heard of the plan for the first time.” Detention was re-traumatising. Kassim says he was unwell while there and coughing-up blood for 15 days. He was told he had Covid, he says, but was only given paracetamol three times in total. Serco, which runs the detention centre, referred The Ferret to private healthcare firm Practice Plus Group. A spokesperson for the group said it was “committed to providing a high standard of healthcare, equivalent to that which could be expected in the wider community, and to the wellbeing of all patients”. However they declined to comment on Kassim’s case on confidentiality grounds. Due to a spelling mistake in his name, Kassim wasn’t brought to his own bail hearing. He was also held in detention for an additional five days due to the bureaucratic error. His lawyer described this as “evidence of a system in total chaos”. Sonya Sceats, chief executive at Freedom from Torture “This government’s callous decision to imprison him and threaten him with removal to Rwanda lays bare the inhumanity of its treatment of people fleeing torture and war.” Finally he was released and is now staying in Glasgow with a cousin. But Kassim is also suffering from long-term trauma. “I was eight when the war started,” he said. “We moved from place to place looking for safe...
Scotland’s leading independent schools were worth £12.3m more in 2021 than they were the previous year, despite the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. The Ferret examined the accounts of 37 independent schools and found that 26 had increased their net total assets when compared to the previous year, despite claims from a body representing these schools that Covid-19 had cost the independent school sector £40m. The net assets of five schools – Glasgow Academy, Edinburgh’s Fettes College and George Heriots School, Dollar Academy in Perthshire, and Robert Gordon’s College in Aberdeen, had all increased by more than £1m each. Net assets are the value of an organisation’s assets minus its liabilities. The Ferret’s research excluded schools that had not yet published accounts for 2021, and schools part of larger groups that do not provide separate accounts for their Scottish operations. Lindsay Paterson, professor of educational policy at the University of Edinburgh “My challenge to the private schools and to Scottish policy makers is this, use these newly stored resources which The Ferret has pointed out to build educational bridges between the private and public sectors.” The proportion of pupils receiving subsidised places at a fee paying school is a key measure used by the Scottish Charity Regulator to determine whether independent schools should retain their charitable status. The five schools named above provided subsidised places to an estimated 476 pupils in the same year, less than 10 per cent of their combined roll. The number of pupils receiving 100 per cent discounts on fees is far smaller. At Fettes school in Edinburgh, where the net asset value of the charity running it rose by £2.3m between 2020 and 2021, just 31 of its 791 pupils received bursaries to cover 100 per cent of the fees. A non-residential place at Fettes cost £32,760 per year.Glasgow Academy – which offers bursary places from P7 to S6 – gave out 133 subsidised places to families with a joint income of under £65k. It accounts for 15 per cent of the school roll of those year groups. Of those just 26 were full bursaries. This year a key tax-break for independent schools in Scotland was removed after a delay. MSPs were set to force private schools to start paying commercial rates from September 2020, as part of changes to property taxes brought in with the non-domestic rates (Scotland) Bill. However, the rule change was delayed until April 2022 as part of measures introduced by the Scottish Government to help the country manage Covid-19. Ross Greer MSP, Scottish Greens’ Education Spokesperson “These are not just schools, and they certainly are not charities. They are profitable businesses which have no need for charitable status and it is absolutely right that we removed one of the tax breaks which came with that status.” Independent schools in Scotland with charitable status will still benefit from other tax-breaks that state schools cannot access. For example, donations to charitable schools will still be eligible for Gift-Aid. This scheme allows charities to boost the value of most donations by 25 per cent, by claiming money back from the government. The operating surpluses and capital gains that independent schools may generate are also exempt from income tax, capital gains tax or corporation tax.Last summer several Scottish private schools – including Gordonstoun, George Heriots and Glasgow Academy – reported an increase in applications. They claimed this were driven by parental concern about the impact of lock-down restrictions, which saw schools close for months during the pandemic. The growing resources of Scottish private schools contrast with a long-term decline in spending per pupil in state schools. The Institute for Fiscal Studies estimated that taxpayer spending per pupil in Scotland remains higher than elsewhere in the UK, but still declined by seven per cent in real-terms between 2010 and 2015. The latest Scottish budget shows that broad swat...
The Scottish Government missed its annual target to restore Scotland’s peatland by a wide margin in 2021-22 for the fourth consecutive year. Around 8,000 hectares of degraded peat were restored by government schemes last year. This is just 40 per cent of the 20,000 hectares that the Scottish Government said it would restore in 2021-22 in its 2018 climate change plan. It is the fourth year in a row that targets on peatland restoration have been missed and the Scottish Government expects to still be considerably off track in 2022-23. One expert told The Ferret that the missed targets were the result of a lack of trained contractors and machinery, as well as the short seasonal window in which restoration activities can be carried out. The unwillingness of some landowners to let the work take place on their estates was another obstacle, they added. The Scottish Government said peatland restoration was a “critical” part of Scotland’s response to the climate crisis and biodiversity loss. It claimed “a number of actions” were being taken to “significantly increase” the rate of peatland restoration, including investing £250m in new projects by 2030. ‘Scotland’s rainforests’ The figures come from a Scottish Government monitoring report on its 2018 climate change plan. Restoring degraded peatlands is an important part of Scotland’s plan to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2045. When they are in good condition, peatlands act as a carbon store. This means that they absorb carbon dioxide from the air, which prevents it from contributing to global warming. They have been called “Scotland’s rainforest” because of the amount of carbon that they currently hold. Healthy peatlands are also an important habitat for rare species of insect and plants, and help to improve the quality of drinking water. But historical land use practices – including industrial cutting and overgrazing – have left around 80 per cent of Scotland’s peatlands in poor condition. Once they become damaged in this way, peatlands emit carbon rather than storing it. If all of the carbon stored in peatlands was released at the same time, the equivalent of 140 years of Scotland’s emissions would be produced. Restoration work aims to set damaged peatlands on the road to recovery using different techniques. These include covering dry areas with vegetation, re-wetting bogs which have dried out, and re-introducing special mosses which are key to the formation of peatlands. The Scottish Government set an annual target of restoring 20,000 hectares of degraded peatland every year from 2018. Despite this, just 17,000 hectares were restored in 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21 combined. An estimated 11,000 hectares are expected to be restored in 2022-23, meaning that the Scottish Government will still be behind its targets next year. Dr Calum MacLeod, policy director at Community Land Scotland “Soaring land values associated with Scotland’s unregulated land market, largely driven by natural capital investment opportunities like peatland restoration, threaten communities’ ability to participate in that market.” Professor of plant and soil science at the University of Aberdeen, Pete Smith, argued that although it was “great” that the Scottish Government is “ambitious” in its plans to restore peatlands, it is “failing to meet its targets”. “I understand that this is due to three main factors – not enough trained contractors and machinery to do the work, the very short window to complete the restoration work between the end of the snow season and the start of bird breeding season, and too few landowners coming forward to offer their degraded peatland for restoration,” Smith said. “The short window for restoration cannot easily be overcome, but there could be more training and “green job” creation, while there also needs to be more awareness and better support for landowners offering land for restoration.” Peat and private sector cash Among the solutions touted by the Scottish Government to sc...
Staff at a West Lothian hospital have been assaulted and inexperienced nurses have been left struggling to run wards amidst a staffing crisis, it has been claimed. The problems are at St John’s Hospital, Livingston. One source told The Ferret that the current situation was “10 times worse” than it was during the Covid-19 pandemic. Unions said there are similar issues across Scottish hospitals, pointing out the NHS is currently under immense pressure due to 6000 nurse vacancies. The issues at St John’s Hospital are due to senior ward staff leaving and positions not being filled, according to the source who asked not to be named. Unison Spokesperson There are over 6000 nurse vacancies across Scotland. Staff regularly have to run wards with staff below minimum standard. Staff worry they make mistakes, and these problems have been building for years – they have been made worse by Covid but they are not the cause. They said: “There are supposed to be five staff nurses on a ward, but this has fallen to two. In the past if staffing levels fell to three nurses, staff would be sent from other areas to cover. But currently other wards don’t have any extra staff to send. Four members of staff have been assaulted. “It’s 10 times worse than Covid. One student nurse is looking after 15 patients. It is so, so dangerous. During Covid the hospital stopped out-patient appointments to help staffing on wards. “Three nurses on a ward was unheard of but now it’s just two, and often both are less than two years qualified. Management needs to do something urgently, as they did during Covid.” NHS Lothian said maintaining patient safety and staff wellbeing continues to be its top priority. Unison – which has around 500,000 members within the NHS – said there are major problems across NHS Scotland. “Our members continually tell us about these problems. The NHS has a staffing crisis,” a spokesperson for the union said. “There are over 6000 nurse vacancies across Scotland. Staff regularly have to run wards with staff below minimum standard. Staff worry they make mistakes, and these problems have been building for years – they have been made worse by Covid but they are not the cause.” Alison Macdonald, executive nurse director at NHS Lothian, told The Ferret that services are “under considerable and sustained pressure” across the NHS generally, and that demand is high due to patients often presenting “more complex and serious cases”. The situation has been exacerbated by high levels of staff absence due to Covid and ongoing recruitment challenges. She said: “We have a range of measures in place to help manage capacity across our sites and to ensure safe staffing levels, this includes twice daily site safety huddles, thrice daily Lothian wide conference calls and specific meetings focused solely on staffing.” Macdonald said staffing is “closely monitored” to assist with daily workforce planning, and where necessary, “action is taken which can include redeploying staff, and requesting additional staff” through bank, agency or mutual aid arrangements. She added that in “times of extremis we cannot expect our staff to deliver care in a business-as-usual approach” and guiding principles have been set out to support staff to “prioritise aspects of care that are critical to our patients”. Macdonald continued: “These principles include advice and support on staff well-being and links with professional regulation. We encourage staff feedback and actively promote check-in and check-out of shifts. We have put limits on the number of meetings our senior nursing teams attend, to ensure they are visible and can help support our ward staff.” Macdonald urged staff to raise any concerns they have with line managers, but if they feel unable to do so they should contact their trade union, the HR department, or a confidential service called Speak Up, she added. Nurses have highlighted issues elsewhere The concerns over staffing at St John’s Hospital follow similar issues a...
Boris Johnson has resigned as Conservative leader and will step down as prime minister when a new leader is found – but what happens now? Speaking on the steps of Downing Street when announcing his resignation, Johnson thanked the British people for their support and said he will continue with the job until the autumn while a leadership contest takes place in the coming months. Johnson also said that the process of choosing a new leader “should begin now and the timetable will be announced next week”. How will the leadership contest work? The process begins with the Tory Party’s 1922 Committee inviting nominations from all Conservative MPs who wish to take over and setting a deadline for applications. Each candidate must win support from 20 Tory MPs if they want to get on the initial shortlist. Once the nominations close, MPs will hold a series of votes until only two candidates are left. Secret ballots will be held and after every round of MP voting. The candidate who secures the least support among MPs is eliminated until just two remain. The final two candidates are voted on by party members – there are around 200,000 – after a longer process involving a series of hustings events. The person who gets the most votes wins overall and becomes the new prime minister. In 2019, when Boris Johnson replaced Theresa May, the entire leadership process took about six weeks. Will Johnson remain in power until the leadership contest ends? Downing Street has said Boris Johnson will remain prime minister until the leadership contest ends, but critics say he should step down immediately and let someone else be an interim PM. They included George Freeman, who resigned as science minister this week. Johnson is negotiating the exact date of his departure with Sir Graham Brady, the chairman of the 1922 Committee of backbenchers, that sets the rules for how the parliamentary Conservative party operates. Could he go any sooner? Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says if Johnson is not removed at once, he will call a vote of no confidence. Under a motion of no confidence, all MPs would get to vote. One more MP voting in favour than voting against would be required for it to pass. If the government loses, it has 14 days to try to win back the confidence of MPs in another vote. During this time opposition parties can attempt to form an alternative government. There are three possible scenarios following a successful no-confidence motion: MPs agree on a new prime minister and government, and this government leads without any need for a general election MPs do not agree on a new prime minister and government, and a general election must be called within seven weeks of the confidence vote Existing government wins the second confidence vote and stays in place Does Johnson still have powers as a prime minister? Yes. Until he officially gives up the office of prime minister, he still has the same powers, in theory. But he now lacks the authority to introduce any radical new policies. He will still represent the UK abroad and can make public appointments or changes to his team of ministers. Will there be a general election? When a prime minister resigns, there is not automatically a general election. There is no obligation on the next Tory leader to call an election and it seems unlikely they would want to do so straight away, given recent polling which has consistently put Labour in the lead. Photo credit for the featured image: Chatham House via CC by 2.0. (Creative Commons)
New data which appears to show Scottish Water’s carbon emissions increased in 2021-22 is proof the body faces “major challenges” in meeting its climate targets, an industry expert has told The Ferret. Peter Peacock — a former Labour minister and chair of the Customer Forum for Water in Scotland — blamed the apparent rise in Scottish Water’s emissions on the body’s growing investment in high-polluting projects to upgrade water and sewage systems. He said this spending programme — which has been pushed by the body’s economic regulator, the Water Industry Commission for Scotland — is “intergenerationally unfair” because it would result in more emissions being pumped into the atmosphere while “leaving our children to deal with consequences”. But Scottish Water said it “strongly refutes” the suggestion that its performance on emissions reductions is in doubt. The organisation argued it has halved the pollution from its direct business operations since 2006-07. The body pointed out that it is the first water company in the UK to report the carbon footprint of its infrastructure investments. Scottish Water claimed that bringing these emissions into its climate reporting “does not mean emissions are growing” and instead would help its supply chain partners “reduce carbon in the work they do”. Ariane Burgess, Scottish Greens MSP The climate crisis is the biggest threat we face. All of us have a role to play in cutting our carbon emissions, and that applies to all public bodies, including Scottish Water. Peacock’s comments came after Scottish Water revealed in June for the first time the climate impacts of the work it does with supply chain partners to replace or refurbish treatment works, water mains, sewers and networks. These investments — as well as Scottish Water’s own business operations — produced the equivalent of up to 472,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) in 2021-22, The Ferret has calculated. Scottish Water did not report emissions from investments in 2020-21, meaning a direct comparison between the two years is not possible. However, given that an extra £176m was spent on infrastructure upgrades in 2021-22 it is likely that combined emissions from operations and investments grew last year. The figures were taken from Scottish Water’s latest annual report, published in June. It has set a target of reaching net-zero emissions by 2040, five years ahead of the rest of the country’s economy. Scottish Water’s own operations produced the equivalent of 233,00 tonnes of CO2 last year, a reduction of 16,000 tonnes from 2020-21. This fall was caused by a decrease in emissions from electricity usage, which is largely a result of a growth in clean energy production. This reduction seems to have been offset by the apparent increase in emissions from investments. The report does not give an exact figure for these emissions, but notes that the equivalent of between 200 and 300 tonnes of CO2 are produced for every million pounds Scottish Water spends. This means that — given there was an extra £176m spent in 2021-22 — between 35,200 and 52,800 more tonnes of CO2 are estimated to have been produced from investments last year compared with 2020-21. The body will continue to spend large sums of money over the next five years. A total of £4.5bn is slated to be spent on replacing older water and sewage assets between 2021 and 2027. Although they currently produce a lot of climate pollution, these investments have their own environmental benefits. For example, The Ferret reported last year that leaks from Scottish Water’s sewage systems were “unacceptably high” with 10,892 reported in 2021. Investment in new and refurbished infrastructure is one of the ways that Scottish Water has said it will improve this situation. If you’d like to read more of The Ferret’s coverage of pollution and Environmental issues, click here. According to Peter Peacock, however, these infrastructure upgrades need to be balanced with the urgent need to tackle climate c...
A Scottish council which boasted of its high data protection standards had more than 200 data breaches in two years and hundreds of staff had not completed compulsory data protection training, The Ferret can reveal. In a response to a freedom of information request, Aberdeenshire Council revealed there were 243 data protection failures between January 2020 and March 2022. There has been a significant increase in data breaches at the council in recent years, from just eight in 2015-16 and 2016-17, increasing to 28 in 2017-18, and 67 the following year. Since then, there have been more than 100 data breaches annually. One victim whose data was accessed by council staff told The Ferret: “These figures are really concerning. There needs to be a major overhaul of this council by external bodies, and new councillors need to ask serious questions about what is going on.” “Training has clearly not worked nor is it a deterrent. Those breaking clear IT policies need to be removed from public jobs”. ICO Spokesperson Public authorities have access to a great deal of personal data, so they must ensure they too have the appropriate measures and training in place to ensure people’s information is handled responsibly and securely. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) said that people have the right to expect organisations to comply with data protection law when handling their personal information. Aberdeenshire Council said the majority of breaches “are minor and accidental” and that every incident is “taken very seriously”. Data protection training is compulsory within all services, the council added. The council’s data protection statement promises personal data security, stating it is “committed to making sure your personal information is safe and protected from . inappropriate access, misuse or theft.” The statement goes on to say the council makes “sure our staff are well trained, informed and security aware to minimise privacy risks from human error and threats from unauthorised access to your data”. A November 2021 Data Protection report by Aberdeenshire’s data protection officer said that 66 per cent of breaches in the previous year had been down to “lack of due care when using email accounts”. The report also revealed that 2327 staff had not completed mandatory data protection training including 1936 with the council’s Education and Children’s Services department. Aberdeenshire Council confirmed it is a condition of employment that staff observe data protection laws. A council spokesperson said: “Any data breach is taken very seriously, and data protection training is compulsory within all services. While the majority of breaches are minor and accidental, the principles of safe practice remain the same and staff are regularly reminded of the importance of managing data safely and securely”. In response to the figures on data protection training, the spokesperson said: “The majority of staff within Education and Children’s Services have completed data protection training. Training is only recorded once per person and, due to the relatively high number of people with more than one job within the service, the number of non-completions is artificially high. Nonetheless, we continue to work with teams to ensure that anybody who has not completed training does so as soon as possible”. A spokesperson for the ICO said: “Public authorities have access to a great deal of personal data, so they must ensure they too have the appropriate measures and training in place to ensure people’s information is handled responsibly and securely. “Not all data breaches need to be reported to the ICO. We do however expect public authorities to have robust data breach recording and reporting mechanisms in place as investigations into breaches are important compliance measures and allow public authorities to gauge the severity of a personal data breach and take appropriate action.” Jude McCorry, CEO of the Scottish Business Resilience Centre, said up-...
Scottish ministers refused to join with their Welsh and English counterparts in supporting proposals for a ban on the sale of peat-based compost across the three nations, we can reveal. Internal emails obtained by The Ferret under freedom of information law show the Scottish Government discussed potentially cooperating on plans to ban compost last year, but later decided against participating. Our findings have prompted fresh concerns that the Scottish Government is not acting quickly enough to protect the country’s peatlands, which play a vital role in combating climate change. Conservation charity Plantlife claimed that time is “rapidly running out” to meet a recommendation of the independent Climate Change Committee that the extraction and sale of peat should be banned by 2023. Jenny Hawley, policy manager for Plantlife Despite the commitments in both party manifestos and the programme for government, there is no sign of ministers keeping their promise. Plantlife also warned that new planning proposals from the Scottish Government “leave huge loopholes” which would allow “Scotland’s precious peat bogs to continue [to] be destroyed.” However, the Scottish Government told The Ferret that it remained “committed to a ban” and would be launching a consultation “in the coming months.” Peat plays an important role in fighting climate change because it stores large amounts of carbon. Scotland’s peatlands are estimated to hold the equivalent of 140 years’ worth of the country’s total annual greenhouse gas emissions, according to NatureScot, the Scottish Government’s nature agency. But when peatlands are damaged – by burning, draining or extraction – they release large amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, which contribute to the heating of the planet. The SNP’s 2021 manifesto included a commitment to “ban the sale of peat-related gardening products”, but no proposals have yet been brought forward. In December 2021, the UK and Welsh governments launched a consultation on plans to end the retail sale of peat-based products. The proposals did not extend to Scotland, but the consultation document noted that “the Scottish Government is committed to taking forward work to develop and consult on a ban on the sale of peat related gardening products.” In August and September 2021, Scottish Government officials and the UK’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) were discussing “Scotland’s potential involvement” in the plans. In November 2021, however, Scottish Government officials told Defra that “Scottish ministers are not minded to join such a consultation.” Jenny Hawley, policy manager for Plantlife, accused the Scottish Government of having “no plan of their own” and of passing up the chance to help enact a UK-wide ban. “There can be no further delay to the long-awaited ban on the sale of horticultural peat,” she added. “Despite the commitments in both party manifestos and the programme for government, there is no sign of ministers keeping their promise.” Find more of our stories on Peat extraction and the Environment, by clicking here. Peat continues to be extracted from several sites in Scotland and several companies involved have recently sought permission to continue mining for years – or even decades – into the future, despite environmental concerns. The issue of peat extraction was addressed in the Scottish Government’s proposed new National Planning Policy, which closed to consultation earlier this year. The policy states that “development proposals for new commercial peat extraction, including extensions to existing sites, should not be supported”. However, it also says extraction can go ahead if certain conditions are met. These conditions include to allow new peat extraction if it is “supporting an industry of national importance to Scotland and there is no reasonable substitute,” and if the area and time of extraction are “the minimum necessary.” Plantlife’s Hawley warned that this “would...
Scientists found microplastics on the surface of 80 per cent of the waters they tested off the Scottish coast in 2021 and 2022, The Ferret can reveal. Microplastics are tiny plastic litter measuring less than five millimetres. They either come from large pieces of plastic which have broken down over time, or from pellets used in industry and cosmetic products. The highest concentration at the sites tested in the last two years was found off the north west coast of Skye, where surface water was estimated to contain 28,566 microplastics per square kilometre. The single biggest source of microplastic litter in 2021 and 2022 came from flakes of plastic-based paint. Studies suggest microplastics are “highly detrimental” to the health of the wildlife that they come into contact with in the ocean. They can also transfer dangerous contamination up the food chain, with potentially serious consequences for human health. Environmental campaigners described the quantities of microplastics in Scottish waters as “truly alarming” due to the “devastating” impact the litter has on “marine life, human health and climate change”. ‘Global challenge’ The Scottish Government argued that “marine litter is a global challenge” and pointed out that it had taken actions to ban some single-use plastics. It added that it is supporting efforts to “improve scientists’ understanding of the microplastic pollution problem”. The data was released to The Ferret under freedom of information law. It is an update on figures published by Marine Scotland last year which showed the results of microplastic sampling in Scottish surface waters between 2014 and 2020. Of the 81 Scottish locations tested in 2021 and 2022, 64 contained microplastics. On average the areas which contained microplastics had an estimated 5,000 items in them per square kilometre. The figures provide a breakdown of the types of microplastic litter which were found. These include polystyrene, fragments and fibres from larger waste which has degraded, nurdles — small pellets which are the building blocks of all plastic production — and the paint flakes. Some marine regions which showed high concentrations of microplastics between 2014 and 2020, were not surveyed in 2021 or 2022. This includes the two areas where the highest concentrations of microplastics have been found so far, Clyde and the Solway Firth. A site in the Solway Firth south of Kirkcudbright — where there were an estimated 91,128 items per square kilometre in 2016 — had the highest concentration of microplastics found in Scottish waters. High levels of microplastics have also previously been found in areas of the Firth of Forth and at Loch Long, near Helensburgh. Map of microplastic concentrations found in Scotland’s seas 2014-2022: Each of Scotland’s 16 marine regions have now been tested since 2014, with microplastics found in areas of all of them. Marine Scotland has attributed the high concentrations of microplastics in the Forth and Tay and Clyde regions to the fact that they are offshore of Scotland’s most densely populated and highly industrialised areas. The Solway Firth is close to some major industry in England and this has been blamed for the high levels of microplastics off the south west coast. While the Marine Scotland survey looked specifically at surface waters, there is also evidence that microplastics are present in large numbers throughout Scotland’s seas. According to researchers, microplastics are becoming “ubiquitous” in environments across the globe. They have been found in oceans, lakes, waterways, soil, air, food, and even the human bloodstream. In March 2022, it was shown for the first time that microplastics from European rivers had made their way to the Arctic, with potentially damaging implications for the polar ecosystem. The exact impacts of the widespread distribution of microplastic pollution is not currently known. But numerous studies have shown that microplastics have a significant impact on marin...
Boris Johnson has agreed to resign as prime minister after a cascade of resignations from his government. The pressure on Johnson became too much after details of allegations against Chris Pincher MP were revealed. The prime minister initially denied he was aware of claims against the MP when Pincher was made deputy chief whip, but it later emerged this was not correct. During Johnson’s time in office he regularly made false statements and promoted misleading claims. Ferret Fact Service takes a look at some of his falsehoods. “The economy, under this Conservative Government, has grown by 73 per cent” The prime minister made this claim in January 2020. Measuring the economy is a complex task, but the most commonly cited metric for growth is gross domestic product (GDP), the total value of all the goods and services produced in a country. The Conservatives have been in power at Westminster since 2010. Between then and 2019, the last year before Johnson made the statement, GDP had increased by about 20 per cent. To reach 73 per cent growth in 2019 we would have to measure from 1993. “There will be no border down the Irish Sea – over my dead body”. In August 2020 Johnson made the above claim when speaking about Brexit during a visit to Northern Ireland – reiterating his promise that there would be no trade barrier and that businesses would enjoy unfettered access to markets in Scotland, England and Wales. However as part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement the Northern Ireland Protocol was signed by Johnson and it came into force at the start of 2021. The protocol is now part of international law and means that instead of goods being checked at the Irish border, inspections take place at Northern Ireland’s ports. This has been a source of tension within Northern Ireland as Unionist parties support being part of the UK, and argue that placing an effective border across the Irish Sea undermines Northern Ireland’s place within the UK. The protocol remains a source of tension between the UK and EU. In June the European Commission described a UK bill to scrap post-Brexit checks and controls in Northern Ireland as “illegal”. The UK wants to rewrite the protocol and delete core elements, but the EU is against the move, saying it would break international law. The situation is unresolved at time of writing. There are “more people in work than before the pandemic”. This was one of Johnson’s most enduring false claims. He made the claim at least nine times in parliament, and was written to by both the director general of the Office for Statistics Regulation and the chair of the UK Statistics Authority urging him to correct the record, which he did not. Ferret Fact Service checked this claim in April 2022, finding that the rate of employment from December 2019 to February 2020 was 76.6 per cent, while it was at 75.7 per cent between January and March 2022. In April 2022 there were an estimated 29.5 million people in employment, meaning 504,000 less people employed compared to pre-pandemic levels. “We have been cutting crime by 14 per cent” In January 2022 Johnson prompted criticism after making the above claim in the House of Commons while responding to Sue Gray’s report. Critics pointed out that the Office of National Statistics (ONS) said the previous week there had been “a 14 per cent increase in total crime”. In the year to September, compared with the year to September 2019, the ONS survey showed a 14 per cent increase in total crime. The figures were only down by 14 per cent if surging fraud and computer misuse are excluded from the total. The UK Statistics Authority ruled the figures were presented in a misleading way. “We have taken more vulnerable people fleeing theatres of conflict since 2015 than any other country in Europe.” This claim has been made repeatedly by Boris Johnson and other government ministers. He is referring to people coming to the UK through resettlement schemes. This is only one specific way that refugees can ...
Conservationists have welcomed plans by the Scottish Government’s woodland agency to bring beavers to three new sites on its vast estate before the end of this year. Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) has drawn up a list of ten possible sites in the 2,500 square miles it manages and beaver experts will narrow them down to three. The ten sites are across the Highland and central areas, with one in Glen Affric, west of Inverness, where charity Trees for Life is planning a major rewilding scheme. The decision reflects a U-turn by the government, which until last year refused to allow translocation of problem beavers to new sites within Scotland. But separately there are fears the new government strategy for managing the spread of the animals – due to be published in the next few weeks – will not allow translocations quickly enough to save significant numbers from being shot by landowners. Neighbouring landowners to the proposed new sites will be consulted, with objections likely to include fear of flooding caused by beaver dams. Other groups including salmon fishing interests and even lichen scientists could also object. James Nairne, Scottish Wild Beaver Group The practice of killing 80 plus beavers every year in Tayside, when they could be translocated to areas where their ecosystem benefits are needed, has never made any sense. Kenny Kortland, wildlife ecologist for FLS, said: “The FLS team will consider the local neighbour issues and we’ll obviously start off going for the ones where there are fewest possible problems.” Beavers can only be trapped for translocation when kits – born from April to June – are no longer dependent on their mothers, usually about two months old. Kortland added: “We’re looking to be able to take them at the end of this year’s kit dependency period, so [it should happen] this year, this autumn.” The period young beavers (kits) are mother dependent ends from mid to the end of August. Escaped beavers first appeared in the River Tay catchment 20 years ago, after the animals were absent from Scotland for 400 years. They are now a protected species because their dams boost biodiversity and buffer against floods, and they number more than 1,000. In areas where dams cause problems, 289 have so far been shot since they became protected in 2019. Others have been translocated, mainly to English sites. Conservationists hope the new strategy will greatly reduce numbers shot by providing more translocation opportunities and limiting lethal control. In May NatureScot reported that 87 beavers were killed under licence in 2021. The strategy will be released by the Scottish Government wildlife agency NatureScot later in July after lengthy consultation with stakeholders including conservationists, farmers and scientists. It is expected to include plans to commit long-term government funding for beaver projects, and look for funding from elsewhere. Another commitment will be to have transparency around the licensing of translocations, and scientific measurement of the expected environmental benefits from beavers. Lichen experts are understood to have expressed concerns that habitats with some of the rarest plants in Scotland’s rain forest could come under attack from the tree-eating rodents. Angling interests in the Spey Valley fear recent efforts to boost salmon numbers could be undermined by the appearance of beavers in the Cairngorms National Park. Beavers are likely to be reintroduced in the park next year. Roger Knight, director of the Spey Fishery Board, believes that while salmon and beavers co-existed until 400 years ago, salmon are now so badly impacted by environmental change that beavers could cause them problems. “The introduction of another species that is going to potentially impede salmon recovery is not, we believe, the way to go,” he said. More on Beavers, conservation and the Environment here. Environmentalist Tom Bowser carried out Scotland’s first translocation of beavers onto private land, at Arga...
Sam and Ali are back with a special podcast about our latest ‘Are Councils Working?’ series in conjunction with The Herald. We take a look at how the series came together, and what hurdles our writers have to overcome when looking into local government. Freedom of Information woes and inconsistent data release are discussed with Ferret journalists Jamie Mann and Paul Dobson. Listen here. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. You can subscribe to The FFS Show on your favourite podcast platform. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to ideas.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Image credit: iStock/Fourleaflover
A walking charity and Highland Council have entered a court battle to stop a wealthy landowner from closing a “historic and important path” that locals claim has existed for generations. Ramblers Scotland is joining the council in fighting to keep a path open in Donald Houston’s estate on the Ardnamurchan peninsula. The charity estimates its legal costs could be up to £82,000 and has launched a crowdfunding campaign to cover the fees. Ramblers called the legal action “a last resort”. An online court hearing is scheduled for 2 February 2022. The Ferret revealed in May that the former leader of Highland Council and fellow residents had accused Houston and his estate of breaching the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 and the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. A report compiled by locals said 17 locked gates were counted on paths between Glenborrodale to Acharacle on estate land in January 2020 and had not improved in the following months. They claimed locked gates on paths long-featured on local maps, Google Maps and walking guides, and breached council planning and commercial forestry grant conditions, setting ”a dangerous precedent” for Scottish land rights. Highland estate owner breaching public access rights, say locals A 2019 email passed to The Ferret showed that Houston threatened the council’s then-access officer with legal action unless he stated that right of way on the route did not exist. Years later, the access row has been brought to the courtroom. A sheriff court last week gave Ramblers permission to join the council in opposing a bid by Houston’s logging firm, Woodland Renewables. Houston aims to use section 28 of the land reform act to remove access rights from part of his estate. As well as opposing Houston’s bid, the council aims to prove that a path that crosses the disputed area of the estate is a right of way, Ramblers Scotland said. “If we don’t fight to save the route, it’ll be a significant blow to our hard-won access rights and walkers will be banned from parts of this beautiful trail forever,” said Ramblers director, Brendan Paddy. Ian Blackford, local MP The days of wealthy landowners behaving in this high-handed manner should be resigned to the past, where they belong. “I hope that lovers of the outdoors will consider donating to support our work – and deliver a resounding message that people in Scotland believe our access rights are worth fighting for.” Local resident Dr David Kime told The Ferret in May that Houston reported him and his wife for aggravated trespass in 2019 after walking the path, which they said they had enjoyed without issue for over 40 years. The retired couple passed through a yard on the route containing biomass woodchip sheds, which the estate built in recent years to heat its properties. Following police interviews and a report sent to the procurator fiscal, the Kimes faced no legal action. But Ramblers deemed the case “unprecedented and worrying”. Moray estate ‘illegally’ blocking land access, says MSP Houston has previously cited health and safety concerns as a reason for the need to restrict access. The landowner reportedly bought the 30,000 acre Ardnamurchan Estate, which makes up much of the peninsula, in 1996. He also owns the Adelphi Distillery, built with the help of a £1.7m Scottish Government grant and was reportedly the second largest donor to the pro-union Better Together campaign. Following The Ferret’s article, local MP Ian Blackford called on Houston to “think again” about his access restrictions. “The days of wealthy landowners behaving in this high-handed manner should be resigned to the past, where they belong,” he told the Oban Times in July. Ardnamurchan Estates and Highland Council did not respond to requests for comment. We updated this article on 6 July 2022 to clarify that Ramblers Scotland and Highland Council were opposing Donald Houston’s court bid to close the path, rather than initiating the court case themselves. Photo Credit: Ramblers Scotland
The closure of one of Edinburgh’s most famous footpaths is to be reviewed following pressure from access and conservation groups. Historic Environment Scotland (HES) is planning to draw up a new management plan for Arthur’s Seat and the Radical Road that runs around it in Holyrood Park. The historic road has been closed to the public for nearly four years because of the risk of rock falls. Campaign groups met with senior HES officials in June to raise “serious concerns” about the ban on access to Radical Road. They wanted the road to be re-opened as soon as possible, and urged a new management plan for the park “as a matter of urgency”. The Ferret revealed in April that an internal HES “options appraisal” favoured the permanent closure of Radical Road as the cheapest and safest course of action. Re-opening the road was said to pose a “high to very high” risk to visitors because of the dangers of rocks falling from Salisbury Crags above. Other options included wrapping the crags completely or partially in wire mesh, building a tunnel, or engineering a new road sticking out from the cliff. But they were all estimated to cost at least £2.5m each. The prospect of permanent closure alarmed walkers and climbers. They warned it would create “a terrible precedent” and put public health and tourism at risk. On 11 May 2022 four groups concerned with outdoor access and conservation wrote to HES chief executive, Alex Paterson, about the prolonged closure of Radical Road. They were Ramblers Scotland, Mountaineering Scotland, ScotWays and the Cockburn Association. They said the road was one of Edinburgh’s “premier and historic rights of way” and an “important recreational resource”. HES’s approach to access and public safety in Holyrood Park had been “inconsistent”, they argued. “The necessary legal processes for closing a right of way have not been followed, denying the public an opportunity to make their views known.” They called for “a whole park strategic management plan to be prepared as a matter of urgency”, adding that “the process must be open to public consultation and scrutiny.” Brendan Paddy, Ramblers Scotland The sooner this iconic right of way can be reopened for residents and visitors the better. The groups then met with senior HES officials on 23 June to press their case. They were told that HES would publish a draft management plan for Holyrood Park for public consultation in the autumn. Emails about Radical Road released to The Ferret under freedom of information law disclosed that HES had been “considering a proposal to develop a strategic plan” for Holyrood Park in May. “All of us want to see public access happening,” wrote one HES official, whose name had been redacted. HES told The Ferret that the plan was now going ahead. “We can confirm our intention to develop a strategic plan for Holyrood Park,” said a spokesperson. “Consultation with a range of stakeholders, users and interest groups will form a key part of that process. The plan will consider all aspects of the park.” The campaign groups all welcomed HES’s new approach, hoping that it would lead to the re-opening of Edinburgh’s Radical Road. “The sooner this iconic right of way can be reopened for residents and visitors the better,” said the director of Ramblers Scotland, Brendan Paddy. Scotways, which promotes public access rights, was “disappointed” that HES had failed to follow the legal processes for temporarily closing a right of way. “Pragmatically we anticipate this to be the beginning of more effective communication with stakeholders about public use of Holyrood Park,” said senior access officer, Eleisha Fahy. The Edinburgh conservation group, the Cockburn Association, pointed out that Radical Road was just one issue of many that needed to be considered. “We welcome the position, mutually agreed by all, to reopen the route in a safe and proportionate manner in an as soon as practical timescale,” said the association’s James Garry.
After the tragic loss of life in the English channel, the issue of immigration to the UK has been back in the spotlight. Ferret Fact Service looked at some of the most common claims made about channel crossings, immigration and asylum in recent weeks. Are channel crossings illegal? There is no single legal definition of illegal immigration in UK law, but according to the Oxford University Migration Observatory, there are four commonly agreed ways someone can become an ‘irregular’ migrant. The first is to enter the UK through regular routes but breach the conditions of entry, such as by overstaying on a visa, working when not allowed, or getting a criminal conviction while in the country. The second is to enter the UK outside of regular routes, such as by forging documents or lying about why you are coming to the UK. The third is staying in the country after your asylum application and all appeals have been rejected. The fourth is to be the child of an irregular migrant. FFS Explains: How do people claim asylum in the UK? Boat crossings of the channel could fit within the second definition, but this does not take into account that many people crossing are seeking asylum. Many of those who arrive in the UK by crossing the channel in a boat are seeking asylum after travelling from a country, or area, where they feel they are not safe. According to the UN Refugee Convention, to which the UK is signed up, people seeking asylum cannot be penalised for using illegal routes to enter the country. Are people crossing the channel migrants or refugees? Different words to describe those who come to the UK to live are often used interchangeably. In coverage surrounding the recent deaths in the channel, people crossing the English channel were often described as migrants, refugees, asylum seekers, or illegal migrants. Anyone who comes to the UK to live is technically a migrant, as this just means someone “who moves away from his or her place of usual residence”. The term refugee is defined by the 1951 UN convention as someone who cannot go back to their country of origin, “owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion”. An ‘asylum seeker’ is a refugee who has applied to stay in the country they have arrived in, but not yet had their asylum case decided. Official data is not regularly released on how many people who cross the channel subsequently claim political asylum. However, the director general of UK Visas and Immigration, which is part of the Home Office, said in 2020 that of the 5,000 people who had made it to the UK that year, 98 per cent had claimed asylum. This was backed up by oral evidence given by Dan O’Mahoney, who is clandestine Channel threat commander at the Home Office. He told MPs that “the vast majority- very close to all – of small boats arrivals claim asylum when they arrive in the UK”. Data uncovered by the British Refugee Council revealed that between 1 January 2020 and 31 May 2021, the most common countries of origin for those crossing the channel were Iran, Iraq, Sudan, Syria and Vietnam. Different Home Office statistics covering 1 January 2018 to 30 June 2020 showed Iran, Iraq, Syria, Yemen and Sudan as the most common nationalities. How many people come to the UK by channel crossings? This figure is not regularly published by the Home Office, so it can be difficult to accurately analyse trends in how many people are using boat crossings to enter the UK. In a policy plan on immigration, the UK Government stated that in the whole of 2020 about 8,500 people crossed the English Channel in small boats. Data from the BBC and Press Association puts the figure for 2021 at more than 25,000 people. Does the UK take in more refugees than everyone else? Former Home Secretary Sajid Javid suggested that the UK had resettled more people than any other country in Europe in an interview with Sky News. He said: “Since 2015, I...
The latest episode of The FFS Show looks at a claim about long Covid, and we delve into some of the misinformation about the festive season. What exactly is long Covid and how many people are suffering from it in Scotland? In this episode we discuss the exact definition on it and whether we can trust the numbers of cases in Scotland. In the last episode of 2021, we give you some teasers on what to expect in the coming weeks, and Ali tests whether Sam has learned anything in his time co-hosting the podcast with a special holiday quiz. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £3 per month. Listen to episode 22 below and subscribe to The FFS Show on your favourite podcast platform. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, working to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to ideas.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo Credit: iStock/Sinenkiy
The Scottish Government’s forestry agency has admitted that red squirrel nests may be “lost” when it cuts down trees, and promised to improve its “processes and procedures”. The admission from Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) came in response to allegations that felling operations in a woodland west of Bonar Bridge, in Sutherland, had killed up to 20 red squirrels and breached wildlife protection law. Campaigners said it was “a scandal that a highly protected species is so persecuted”. They accused FLS of paying “lip-service” to nature conservation and of having a “cavalier” attitude to wildlife. But FLS said it always complied with rules on protecting wildlife, and suggested that red squirrels were “highly adept” at moving house. It insisted that it had conducted surveys to check for red squirrel nests but had not found any. Wildlife campaigner and local resident, Andrew Graham-Stewart, complained to FLS about tree-felling in Balblair Wood, just north of the Kyle of Sutherland. The wood is home to one of Scotland’s most northerly populations of red squirrels. He estimated that forestry operations in December 2021 and January 2022 reduced the number of red squirrels in the area by 70 per cent, killing “close to” 20 of them. Graham-Stewart accused FLS of failing to check whether the trees it was cutting down contained red squirrel nests, known as dreys. That was a condition of the licence under which FLS was permitted to carry out felling operations, he said. Forestry and Land Scotland criticised for allowing fox hunts into public forests He asked FLS under freedom of information law to provide copies of the red squirrel surveys it said it had carried out in Balblair Wood. But the government agency was not able to supply them. Graham-Stewart argued that it was “simply not credible” for FLS to say that it had not retained copies of its red squirrel surveys. “The only plausible explanation is that no such surveys were undertaken and accordingly FLS has been caught red-handed failing to adhere to the conditions set out in their blanket licence,” he claimed. “The failure of FLS to carry out appropriate surveys and thus identify the location of dreys means that inevitably red squirrels will have been killed unnecessarily by systematic felling.” FLS has been granted a licence by the Scottish Government’s wildlife agency, NatureScot, to disturb red squirrels as long as trees are checked for dreys. “FLS pays mere lip-service to its conservation obligations for protected species and uses the licence from NatureScot as a fig leaf to justify the destruction of squirrel dreys,” alleged Graham-Stewart. He also accused FLS of destroying the den of a pine marten in Balblair Wood. “FLS’s cavalier attitude is exemplified by the fact that, despite my alerting FLS to the location of a pine marten den, this information was apparently ignored and the area in question was subsequently flattened,” he said. FLS told The Ferret that “no pine marten den was recorded”. Graham-Stewart also complained to NatureScot and the police. “NatureScot has much to answer for,” he added. “It surely amounts to a dereliction of duty for the agency to issue blanket licences to FLS sanctioning the destruction of squirrel dreys and then do nothing to monitor or ensure compliance with the licence conditions.” Graham-Stewart was backed by Charles Dutton, an independent woodland manager who is a director of the campaign group, European Squirrel Initiative. Dutton estimated that between five and 10 per cent of the red squirrel population in Scotland was killed every year by commercial tree felling. “It is a scandal that a highly protected species is so persecuted,” he told The Ferret. “Economic timber harvesting interests are put ahead of wildlife planning, and it is this lack of joined up planning that is the real problem.” The Scottish Wildlife Trust pointed out that red squirrels were a threatened species. “It’s vitally important that anyone who is carrying out forestry...
A trade union representing foster carers in Glasgow will this week submit a collective complaint to the city council, accusing the body of failing to keep promises voted for in its last budget. The Foster Care Workers Branch of the International Workers of Great Britain (IWGB) union said most of its members have not received the 10 per cent increase to child allowances announced in February’s budget, and that the council’s request that Glasgow’s Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) officially recognise the union has been blocked by unelected officials. The letter, seen by The Ferret, claims foster carers are “locked out of every space in which decisions are made” and accuses the HSCP of “taking money away from some of the most vulnerable young people in Glasgow.” “The actions of a small number of officials.have prohibited the carrying out of the council’s wishes,” the IWGB wrote. It had called for both trade union recognition and an increase to child allowance in the run-up to February’s budget. Foster carers receive two payments – a fee and an allowance per child – but in Glasgow the former has not increased in 13 years and the latter in nine years. Adjusted for inflation, say the IWGB, this amounts to a 23 per cent cut to the child’s allowance and a 30 per cent pay cut. An amendment passed in the budget stated: “Council also values the contribution of Glasgow’s foster and kinship carers and asks the HSCP to increase their allowances by 10 per cent from April 2022, to restore annual inflation-based increases going forwards; and to recognise foster carers’ legal right to trade union representation. Council also asks the HSCP to consider the matter before the end of the current financial year.” But IWGB said only carers with children under 10 have received an increase. For most, this was under 10 per cent and therefore not in line with inflation. The request for trade union recognition was rejected outright at a meeting of the Health and Social Care Partnership in March, without any negotiation or discussion, said the union. The formal complaint, addressed to council chief executive Annemarie O’Donnell, demands that the council immediately enter into union recognition negotiations; immediately increase the child’s allowance by 10 per cent; and commit to annual inflation-based increases. In an accompanying letter, the union writes: “Glasgow’s foster carers currently have no collective representation within the council. We are locked out of every space in which decisions are made about our futures. We are asking for a voice – through our democratic right to trade union recognition – and we are being denied this.” “The council has also failed to introduce the promised 10 per cent increase in child allowances for all foster and kinship carers,” it continues. “Rather than get even a partial restoration of the 24 per cent real terms cut to child’s allowances, the HSCP has effectively enforced a real-terms pay cut of 11.1 per cent for many of Glasgow’s Foster Carers.” Critics call for reform of Scotland’s local authorities A council spokeswoman said: “While discussions remain ongoing between Scottish Government and COSLA around a national decision on fostering fees and allowances, Glasgow’s Integration Joint Board agreed in March to an increase to the kinship and foster carer allowances for the 40 per cent of cases in Glasgow where they are currently paid below the proposed national allowance level. “This agreement was honoured and as a result payment to kinship and foster carers with children aged between 0-10 years has been made. Kinship and foster carers with children aged 0-4 years have had payments increase from £137.18 to £146 per week, and kinship and foster carers with children aged 5-10 years have had payments increase from £156.30 per week to £170 per week. This was released for payment on 17 May 2022 for foster carers and 17 June 2022 for kinship carers and was backdated to 28 March 2022.” Photo credit: iStock/Tomas...
A proposed gas plant at Peterhead is on “rotten foundations” and could “seriously jeopardise” Scotland’s climate targets, the Scottish Government has been warned. Environmental campaigners have urged ministers to reject a “greenwash hogwash” planning application from energy and oil companies to build a large new gas-fired power station on the Aberdeenshire coast. The companies said that the plant would cut its climate pollution by capturing and storing its carbon emissions. But campaigners argued the technology to do this was “unproven” and had a “long history of repeated failure”. Critics also feared that the new plant would operate alongside, rather than replace, the existing gas station at Peterhead — and that emissions from the site could double. The old plant is already Scotland’s biggest single carbon polluter. The energy companies insisted that the new gas plant would “ultimately replace” the existing plant, which was “absolutely vital”. They said “the reality” was that the new plant would not go ahead without carbon capture and storage. The ‘rogues’ gallery’: Scotland’s top 20 climate polluters The Scottish energy company, SSE, and the Norwegian oil firm, Equinor, have submitted an application to construct a “low carbon” gas turbine at Peterhead to generate up to 910 megawatts of electricity. Given the project’s size, it requires approval from Scottish ministers to go ahead. In their application, the companies assumed that at least 90 per cent of the carbon dioxide emissions from the new plant would be captured and stored. But they said that would still result in emissions of 225,000 tonnes every year and 5.6 million tonnes over the plant’s 25-year lifetime. According to SSE’s own climate impact assessment, that would mean that the new plant would be responsible for over two per cent of Scotland’s total emissions in 2036. If carbon pollution is cut as planned, the plant would end up being responsible for 16.5 per cent – a sixth – of the country’s emissions by 2044. SSE and Equinor hope that the new gas plant could be up and running by 2027. But the carbon capture project to which it was supposed to connect, known as Acorn, was refused initial UK Government funding in October 2021. Instead Westminster put the project on a “reserve” list after two projects in England and Wales. UK ministers have promised to fund more projects to capture carbon “by 2030”. Carbon capture is designed to trap the pollution produced when fossil fuels are burned for energy to stop it causing global warming. The carbon is meant to be stored in a safe location, such as under the North Sea. It has been heralded by industry as an important technological answer to the climate crisis. It is also central to Scottish Government plans to cut climate pollution. However, critics described it as a “false solution” and pointed out that only a few planned projects have actually come to fruition in the last ten years. They argued that the technology distracted from the urgent need for society to move away from fossil fuels. FFS explains: carbon capture and storage The new gas plant would be built on a site next to the existing gas plant to the south of Peterhead, near Boddam. The Ferret revealed in April 2022 that the existing plant had been Scotland’s biggest single climate polluter in 2018, 2019 and 2020, emitting 1.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2020. SSE and Equinor said they planned to reduce the capacity of the existing station from 1,180 megawatts to around 300 megawatts. But the old station would “remain available to operate” at the same time as the new station, if needed. The environmental group, Friends of the Earth Scotland (FoES), has lodged a formal objection to the new plant. It described the developers’ timescale for the introduction of carbon capture as “highly optimistic”, saying that there had been a “clear historic failure” to deliver the technology. The group also questioned the proportion of carbon that would actually be captur...
Scottish councils have awarded contracts worth more than £1bn to private companies since 2015, The Ferret can reveal. The firms profiting from public sector work include controversial outsourcing giants Atos, Capita PLC, Mears Group, and Mitie whose contracts collectively amount to at least £51,685,276. Contracts awarded to foreign multinationals totalled £988,594,347. Critics said Scottish local authorities are “lining the pockets of shareholders in big business” and claimed that the outsourcing of public sector contracts has been a “failed experiment”. But councils said they procure goods and services in accordance with legislation and pointed out they are legally required to “deliver best value” for the taxpayer. The outsourcing companies said they provide good value for the taxpayer and deliver services to the “highest standards”. The Ferret looked at hundreds of contracts awarded by Scots local authorities dating back to 2015. Future ‘bleak’ as council data reveals neighbourhood cutbacks We found that Capita’s contracts amount to at least £17.4m. An international outsourcing company headquartered in London, the firm’s contracts have ranged from collecting the BBC licence fee to operating a jobseeker’s allowance telephone line. But Capita came under fire for a NHS England contract after 43,220 women did not receive cervical screening reminder letters, and the Ministry of Defence stripped Capita of a key contract running its military estate. In Scotland, Capita’s contracts include providing IT services for North Lanarkshire and Fife councils, among others, as well as maintaining a library management system for East Renfrewshire Council. Cat Hobbs, director of We Own It Outsourcing means we waste money on shareholder profits and the cost of managing contracts; 78 per cent of councils say that insourcing gives them more flexibility, two thirds say it saves them money, and over half say it improves the quality of service. A subsidiary of Capita called Stirling Park LLP has provided sheriff officer and debt collection services for several councils including East Lothian, Glasgow City Council, and Clackmannanshire. Mears Group PLC – an outsourcing company working in housing management and home care – has won Scottish council contracts worth at least £18.7m. It has been contracted to provide services for numerous councils including Aberdeenshire and West Lothian. The Ferret has previously reported concerns over accommodation Mears has provided for asylum seekers in Glasgow. Mears was awarded a £1.15bn Home Office contract to provide asylum seeker housing in Scotland, Northern Ireland, and England. Mitie Landscapes, a subsidiary of outsource giant Mitie Group PLC, was contracted by North Lanarkshire and East Renfrewshire councils for gardening work. Mitie is a major Home Office contractor with public sector contracts totalling £2.55bn. In March the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) launched an investigation into whether Mitie broke competition law with “suspected anti-competitive conduct” in relation to bids for immigration centres. In February its chief executive apologised to the UK Government after a series of racist WhatsApp messages shared between Mitie staff emerged. Atos – one of France’s largest tech groups – has been contracted by Glasgow City Council. The firm was responsible for conducting fit for work assessments on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions, but was criticised for slashing the benefit payments of stage four cancer patients, terminally ill parents and wheelchair users. More Flexibility, Money and Quality of Service Critics of contracts being awarded to these outsourcing giants include Cat Hobbs, director of We Own It, an organisation that opposes public services being run for profit. She told The Ferret: "It's absolutely shocking to see such huge sums paid out to private companies with terrible track records. Council outsourcing has been a 40 year failed experiment. Outsourcing means we wa...
Women who served as councillors across Scotland have faced threats of violence, racist abuse, and sexual harassment during their time in office, as new figures reveal that one in three female councillors stepped down at the 2022 election. Facing abuse online and offline, lacking support to juggle family and working responsibilities – combined with low wages – are said to be disincentivising women from participating in local politics and, as statistics show, running again once their term is up. A freedom of information request to Scottish local authorities by The Ferret has revealed that nearly half of all councillors elected in Scotland stepped down ahead of the May 2022 local elections, equivalent to 46 per cent. Proportionally, more women councillors left the role behind than men, even though they made up just 29 per cent of Scottish councillors. Based on the responses of 24 local authorities, at least 101 of 355 women elected to Scottish councils stepped down from their roles ahead of the May 2022 race, totalling 28 per cent of candidates. Meanwhile at least 191 out of 871 male councillors stepped down from their position this year, equivalent to 22 per cent. ‘An ordeal’ Pippa Hadley made history as the first Greens councillor in Badenoch & Strathspey on Highlands Council. “Energised” by the Scottish independence referendum, the part-time Co-op shop assistant and counselling student decided to throw her hat in the ring in the 2017 local elections. Hadley won the seat, which took her by surprise. Alongside her studies and job, she was a single parent, and hadn’t been able to campaign as extensively as the other candidates. Now, on the other side of her five-year term and reckoning with the reality of the role, Hadley described her experience serving Highlands council as “an ordeal that I’m still processing.” Like a myriad of women councillors across Scotland, Hadley felt limited and targeted in her role because of her gender. Hadley claimed she was routinely mocked by colleagues for missing council meetings to attend classes, with a last-minute change to those meetings after she was elected putting her at a disadvantage. Last October, she was subjected to a vicious verbal attack by a man who branded her “a cow who should be shot against a wall”. The incident, which took place a week before the murder of Conservative MP David Amess, shook Hadley to the core. The man was sentenced to 12 months in prison. But Hadley said the abuse and jibes were not limited to this attack – but something she experienced at the hands of her own colleagues. “People do not behave properly at all. There’s no protection,” she said. “I felt like a fish out of water. There was a lot of talk of misogyny, and I didn’t know who to trust. “One male councillor presented my motion in his name, one asked if I’d accused him of bullying after I disclosed confidentially to another colleague how his behaviour had made me feel. In this election, someone drew a penis ejaculating onto my face on the ballot paper. I’ve often been left in tears.” Hadley’s time in local government chimes with the accounts of other councillors who spoke to The Ferret about the challenges facing women and representatives from minority backgrounds, who claimed they are being shut out because the role is not evolving with the times. Kirsteen Sullivan You’re working from nine o’clock to three o’clock, and then you’re back out again in the evening. Now, can you imagine doing that if you’re a single parent? I have found it very challenging, keeping all those plates spinning. Added to this, there are just six female council leaders of local authorities in Scotland. Four of these lead outright, and another two co-lead with a male counterpart in both Moray and Inverclyde. Overall, statistics point towards small gains being made. The percentage of women councillors rose from 29 per cent in 2017 to 35 per cent in 2022, according to figures released by a researcher from the University of Strath...
Councillors are working without basic legal protections such as the right to paid maternity and family leave – even though the Scottish Government promised to resolve the issue years ago. Those elected to local government are not guaranteed paid leave if they fall pregnant, their partner falls pregnant, or if they adopt a child under current legislation. While other council employees are allowed paid leave, under a loophole in the law, councillors miss out. They are not considered to be employees as they are appointed to their role by the public. In some cases, it meant councillors had no choice but to leave their roles when they are expecting a child because they cannot afford to continue in their job. Jessie Duncan, Engender Some councils have adopted Cosla’s voluntary guidance on family leave, however this is not compulsory and provision is inconsistent. This is just not compatible with a desire to see more women in councils. The Ministerial and other Maternity Allowances Bill allows MPs and MSPs to take paid maternity leave while remaining in government. Employees who are pregnant are entitled to 52 weeks of maternity leave (26 weeks of ordinary leave and 26 weeks of additional leave). Salaried members of the opposition can also take six months’ paid maternity leave under the law. Aberdeenshire councillor Gwyneth Petrie hit the headlines in 2020 when a meeting to decide the length of her maternity leave was scheduled for after the birth of her son, James. She felt forced to walk away from her job. The Scottish Government, which is responsible for the law which sets how much councillors are paid and rights to employment protections like maternity leave, said it was “absolutely determined to resolve the issue” following Petrie’s case. But since that date, no legislation has been tabled to ensure that more expectant parents are affected. Later on that year, the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla) developed voluntary guidance for councils on how to provide family leave protections for councillors. Two years on, it is still up to an individual council to decide if they will introduce leave for expectant mothers, fathers and adoptive parents. In 2020, Lynsey Hamilton became the first councillor in South Lanarkshire to be given maternity leave. Hamilton, who represents Clydesdale West, said she “couldn’t believe” maternity pay “just wasn’t a thing” until she took on the role. “I am the first female councillor in my council to have a child in 25 years because there just hasn’t been any female who has served the council at the age they would have children,” she told The Ferret. “It is just crazy to think as it just wasn’t a thing before I came along.” Hamilton’s maternity pay package varied significantly compared with other workplaces. “When I say maternity leave, I got six months leave, not eight, and I still had to attend some meetings in that time,” she added. “I would have had to cast my vote if there was a close vote on council matters, and I don’t get a proxy vote in South Lanarkshire, so I had to turn up. “The standing orders (written rules which regulate a council’s proceedings) don’t allow for close votes. “On top of council meetings during the day, nights and at weekends, the job just doesn’t fit around family life and childcare.” Former President of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, councillor Alison Evison, said the lack of protection is “a huge barrier” for representatives. “Adopting family leave indicates to councillors that it’s okay to have family responsibilities,” she said. “These responsibilities also bring councillors into contact with their local communities as well, which is beneficial for everyone.” Jessie Duncan, who works to improve the number of women represented in politics for feminist advocacy charity Engender, said maternity pay “should be expected as standard in a modern workplace”. “Some councils have adopted Cosla’s voluntary guidance on family leave, however this is not ...
Decentralisation of power from Holyrood, full devolution of local taxes and directly elected mayors are among the proposals made by campaigners and politicians pushing for reforms to local government in Scotland. Other plans to improve local democracy include giving councils powers to raise funds, long-term funding deals, local ownership of services, and quarterly public meetings between Scotland’s first minister and council leaders. Critics of the status quo commented following a series of reports this week by The Herald and investigative website The Ferret, which highlighted major problems across local authority areas in Scotland. They include drastic cuts to leisure services, street cleaning, and libraries, mismanagement of Common Good funds, and vast sums of money being paid to outsourcing firms and in interest to the UK Treasury by councils. We also revealed that female councillors have faced threats of violence and sexual harassment, and that one in three stepped down at the recent council election. Future ‘bleak’ as council data reveals neighbourhood cutbacks The Scottish Government – accused of centralising power in recent years – said in response to critics that it wants to devolve power to “more local levels” while pointing it launched a Local Governance Review with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to “ensure communities have greater control and influence” over decisions that affect them. Scotland’s local government system has not changed in decades. Much of the power, funding and control is still firmly with central government, and critics calling for radical reform include Willie Sullivan, director of Electoral Reform Society Scotland (ERS Scotland). He said: “The Ferret and Herald’s important investigations have uncovered a host of worrying issues with the way our local democracy works. These issues are symptomatic of a wider problem with our local councils: those making key decisions are often too far removed from the communities they serve. This is why we need a radical refit of local democracy so that ordinary people have much more input into the decisions that affect them. Dr Craig Dalzell, head of policy and research at the think tank Common Weal The core problem with local democracy in Scotland is that we don’t have one. Scotland deserves the kind of municipal-level government that almost all of our peer nations in Europe consider to be ‘normal’.” “Democracy should not be a once in a four or five-year event. Instead people should have sustained and meaningful input into the big decisions that affect their communities. There are a number of ways this can be achieved, such as by regular citizens assemblies selected by sortition, where residents do paid stints debating and feeding into council plans. James Mitchell, professor of public policy at the University of Edinburgh, is currently writing a book on local democracy. He claimed the SNP has taken centralisation to “far greater levels than witnessed in the Thatcher years” – describing this as a “damning indictment” of the SNP’s record. Mitchell told The Ferret: “There is more expertise in local government and our communities than exists in the Scottish central government but much of Scottish Government operates from a top-down, uniformist starting point rather than work in partnership”. Arguing that cuts imposed on local government exceed what the Scottish Government itself has experienced, Mitchell said councils have been “left in an invidious, approaching impossible, position” while “forced to make cuts and unpalatable choices”. He continued: “The Scottish Government is in this respect very British and far from being European or Scandinavian as ministers often pretend. Local government needs to be empowered fiscally and with the removal of many central controls that have served us so very badly.” His views on decentralising power were echoed by Alison Payne, research director at Reform Scotland. She said that too often the constitutional deba...
New figures have laid bare staffing reductions in neighbourhood services in the last five years leading to cuts in parks, leisure centres and libraries. From overgrown green space to rusted swings, boarded-up community centres and swimming pools forced to close in peak hours, an investigation by The Ferret found that council-run services in some Scottish communities are being eroded to crisis point. Campaigners blame a decade of austerity policies combined with Covid-19, Brexit and the cost of living crisis for putting greater pressure on council budgets, with neighbourhood services often most vulnerable to cuts. Some councils are now warning that the Scottish Government settlement to local government in May, which will leave some major local authorities facing a shortfall of millions, means the future for these services looks “bleak”.Reduced staff levels were particularly clear for leisure centre staff. More than two thirds of councils or leisure trusts – 15 out of 21 local authorities who provided data – had cut the number of leisure services staff over five years. Six had increased staff numbers. Community member in Fife It feels like a catch-22. If you run the facilities down people are less likely to use them. And if there are less people using them they are more likely to be closed. Across Scotland, the staffing of leisure services reduced by 20 per cent. Fife, which cut leisure centre staff numbers by 13 per cent, has reduced opening hours for at least one swimming pool. Glasgow lost almost 100 leisure services staff in the five year period. Closures include that of Yoker sports centre in November 2021. Stepford Sports Park in the city’s Easterhouse was taken over by community organisation Fare last May, when it did not reopen following the pandemic. Renfrewshire council has cut casual staff by 36 per cent. Most councils only provided figures for council employees. But one source said the numbers of casual staff such as lifeguards and fitness instructors in some other local authority areas had been “decimated” post-pandemic.Budgets were cut too. According to Scotland-wide Improvement Service data from April 2010-March 2021 there was a 25 per cent reduction in spending on leisure services by councils but an increase of 14 per cent in the number of people attending them. The Ferret also asked councils about staff working in Scotland’s parks. More than half of local authorities – 16 out of 27 who provided figures – revealed that the number had fallen over five years. Across Scotland there was a reduction in staffing of 17 per cent. Meanwhile council spending on parks and open spaces reduced in real terms by 41 per cent – from around £32 per person per year to £19. The reduction in the last year alone is 11 per cent in the last year alone.Libraries also took a hit in many areas. Out of 19 local authorities who responded to a freedom of information request by The Ferret the majority – 12 councils – have reduced staff numbers in the last five years. East Ayrshire Council cut library staff by more than 40 per cent – down from 61 to 35. Since 2009-10 a total of 83 public libraries have closed in Scotland, according to a Scottish Government response to a parliamentary question submitted by MSP Miles Briggs in March 2022. Rachel Green, director of the Ripple project If we have better local governance local people would be able to have a say in what they needed in their area. Four local authorities – including Glasgow City Council and Orkney – increased library staffing levels over the five year period. Three, such as City of Edinburgh Council, kept staffing levels static.But overall there has been a reduction in council spending on libraries of 29 per cent over ten years even though the number of people visiting libraries grew by 42 per cent. The Fraser of Allander Institute claimed local government budgets would decline by seven per cent in real terms between 2022-23 and 2026-27. However the Scottish Government said it had pr...
Glasgow City Council has spent almost £10m on agency workers to empty bins and deal with recycling in the last five years, we can reveal. The “eye watering” spend has escalated in the past two years with the council racking up a £5.6m bill for refuse agency workers from April 2020 to March 2022.Critics said it “beggared belief” the council had paid out so much to agency workers rather than invest in additional council staff while simultaneously allowing the city’s “waste crisis” to continue unchecked.Over the last year there has been growing anger about the state of Glasgow’s streets, with opposition politicians and business owners alike calling for action. Ahead of COP26 last November, it was claimed that Scotland’s biggest city was “filthy” and “a midden” – though council leader Susan Aitken at first denied and then downplayed the issues.A national audit published last September found Edinburgh’s streets were officially dirtier. Sean Baillie, GMB Scotland organiser It beggars belief they are lining the pockets of private contractors with millions of pounds of public money while the city’s waste crisis keeps growing. However a freedom of information request submitted by The Ferret also revealed that staff numbers had fallen from 648 in 2018-19 to 615 in 2020-21, with the number of agency staff – and associated costs – rising in the same period.In response to criticism of the spend Glasgow City Council said Covid-19 had affected its workforce and led to additional spending. It is now recruiting “deep clean teams” to help address issues including overflowing bins, fly tipping and graffiti.But GMB Scotland organiser Sean Baillie said the costs revealed by The Ferret raised “difficult questions” for Glasgow City Council to answer.“It beggars belief they are lining the pockets of private contractors with millions of pounds of public money while the city’s waste crisis keeps growing,” he added.“It would be far better if these monies were redistributed properly by investing in more full-time staff and better resources to help make our communities cleaner and greener.”He called on management to work with the union to secure employment for agency workers, which he said would have “a positive impact both on the workforce and the communities we serve”.Barry McAreavey, who has worked in waste and recycling for 26 years in the city, agreed the council should invest in staffing. “For agency workers it’s a sticky situation,” he said. “It can be difficult to get rented accommodation never mind a mortgage when you’re not on a staff contract. “Many of them have been on zero hour contracts for years.”Last November refuse workers represented by the GMB threatened strike action during COP26 and were backed by climate activist Greta Thunberg. Council contracts with debt collectors worth up to £20m McAreavey claimed that following the threat of action agency workers were told they could apply for staff jobs as road sweepers, but claimed that many wanted to remain in waste and recycling, including driving bin lorries.While positive about the forthcoming “deep clean teams”, he claimed “short sighted” changes – including a lack of neighbourhood patrols, fewer bins in parks and larger bins on streets that needed emptied by a truck – had led to a situation where Glasgow’s streets were not kept clean.“I think Glasgow is experiencing the broken window effect,” he added. The theory is that visible signs of neglect quickly spiral. “It’s the same with littler. If the place is a mess people stop feeling like it’s their responsibility to keep it tidy.” Employed by Glasgow Labour MSP for Glasgow, Paul Sweeney, said that rather than hiring agency workers, the city should be hiring more staff and offering them a pay rise to cope with the rapidly rising cost of living.“This eye watering sum of public money paid out for agency staff is a slap in the face to every cleansing and refuse worker employed directly by Glasgow City Council,” he said. “The budget cuts ha...
Local authorities have been accused of issuing “escalating threats” to people behind on their council tax, after The Ferret found they have contracts worth up to £20m with debt collectors. Some charities now consider council tax to be the number one debt problem for people across the country, mainly because the penalties for not paying it are so high. In total, 24 of Scotland’s 32 councils had ongoing contracts with at least one debt collection firm. These contracts could end up costing councils £20,266,884. Charities argue that the “quicker and harsher consequences” for non-payment of council tax compared with other bills are causing “ongoing stress and anxiety” for clients. If a payment is missed a letter chasing payment for the outstanding amount is sent within seven days. If payment is not made then, a further letter is sent asking for the entire yearly council tax bill — normally at least £1,000 — within a week. If no payment is received within 14 days then the debt can be passed to one of the debt collection firms. If they have permission from a court, these firms can force entry to people’s homes, remove or detain members of a household, and evict people who are unable to pay. Monica Lennon, Scottish Labour MSP for Central Scotland For too many of my constituents, by the time they pay their housing costs and provide food, heat and electricity, there’s simply nothing left to cover council tax payments. Campaigners said the situation was leaving people living with fear and anxiety. They called on the Scottish Government to reform local taxation and develop debt write-off schemes to ease pressure on people in problem debt. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) argued that debt collectors are only used as “an absolute last resort”, while the Scottish Government said collection of the tax was a matter for councils. Council tax debt continues to rise across the country. Nearly £116m of council tax went uncollected across Scotland in 2021-22, the highest amount this century. The growing number of people falling behind on the tax has been partially blamed on a drop in income for many people during the Covid-19 pandemic. Payment breaks in the first year of the pandemic may have led to arrears building up and contributed to an “explosion” of council tax debt this year. This situation could get worse this year with most councils raising the tax by three per cent amid the cost of living crisis. According to Monica Lennon, Scottish Labour MSP for Central Scotland, this mounting debt has left “thousands of Scots living in fear of debt collectors banging on their doors”. “This is a national emergency that simply isn’t being given the political attention it deserves,” Lennon said. “For too many of my constituents, by the time they pay their housing costs and provide food, heat and electricity, there’s simply nothing left to cover council tax payments.” The figures on spending on debt collectors come from analysis of the live contracts registers published by each local authority. Half of Scots councils are ‘mismanaging’ community funds Glasgow City Council’s ‘framework agreement’ with three debt collection firms has a maximum value of £5m over a four-year period. If the full amount is spent, this would make it the most lucrative contract out of all the councils. Other councils with contracts which could run into the millions were Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and the Scottish Borders. The head of StepChange Scotland, Sharon Bell, told The Ferret that the way that council tax debt is chased is taking a toll on the mental health of people in arrears. “Council tax debt can be pursued by local authorities using a demanding approach, with escalating threats of enforcement action which can have a negative impact on a client’s mental health,” Bell said. “Our research suggests that when communicating with clients, local authorities only sometimes refer them to advice organisations, leaving people in financial difficulty unsure of wh...
Interest payments on historic loans taken out from the UK treasury have cost Scotland’s councils over £400m in the last year, analysis by The Ferret has found. The interest is being charged on loans initially worth just under £11bn which local authorities took out from the treasury through the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB). Borrowing from the PWLB is used to pay for major projects such as new schools, leisure centres, and roads. But unlike other funding that councils receive this money comes at a cost. Interest accumulated on the loans in the last financial year alone cost Scots local authorities £414m. This is the equivalent of 15 per cent of all the money they raised last year through the council tax. It is also roughly the same amount as is being spent to bring faster broadband to the Highlands and Islands, four times more than it will cost to build a brand new college campus in Fife, and 28 times the value of a new specialist education school in West Lothian. Interest paid on nearly £2bn worth of loans taken out before devolution have been particularly expensive for councils. These have high interest rates, with 62 of the pre-devolution loans being charged at over ten per cent. Trade unionists and campaigners said the interest rates paid by councils to the treasury were “starving local government of vital resources”. One researcher who works on council finance branded the loans “a hidden treasury profit centre” and the rates of interest being charged as a “stealth tax” on local government spending. The treasury told The Ferret that interest rates are designed to ensure it is not lending money at a loss and that councils borrow prudently. They added that pre-devolution loans were more expensive for all councils, not just Scottish ones. Our analysis used the average annual interest rate on each council’s loans to calculate the total amount of interest payable on their outstanding balance with the PWLB at the end of 2021-22. The £414m figure is the sum of each individual council’s interest payments. Edinburgh council had the highest bill, with interest payments costing £47m. East Renfrewshire had the lowest at just over £3.5m. Interest payments on Comhairle Nan Eileian Sar’s (Western Isles council) loans are by far the highest as a proportion of its council tax income. The £8.45m of interest it paid is the same as three quarters of the money it brought in through the tax. Other councils where interest payments make up a large proportion of council tax revenue are South Lanarkshire, West Lothian and Dundee. Payments in all three are equivalent to 25 pence in every pound of council tax raised. The £414m of interest due on loans outstanding at the end of 2021-22 is a slight increase on the £408m which councils paid to the PWLB in the 2020-21 financial year. The average interest rate paid by councils on PWLB loans in 2020-21 was just over four per cent. This is higher than average rates paid by English councils, which were just below 3.5 per cent. If Scots councils had paid the same rate of interest as English councils in 2020-21, then £53m would have been saved across the country. The £2bn worth of loans taken out before devolution contribute to the disparity in the interest rates paid by local governments in Scotland and England. In 2016, the trade union, Unite, calculated that Scots councils sent back a minimum of £3.3bn of interest to the treasury on pre-devolution debt in the 17 years which had then passed since the opening of the Scottish Parliament. At the time, Unite called for this debt to be written off to help councils facing financial constraints. Joel Benjamin, researcher on local government finance PWLB borrowing is a stealth tax on council infrastructure financing, whereby the chancellor dictates the rates councils pay. The interest rates for these loans were set when the UK Government had direct control over PWLB interest rates. In the years after devolution, the terms of lending were set by independent commis...
Scotland’s councils have been accused of spending funds that could have been used for staff pay and public services after paying millions of pounds to media and marketing firms. The Ferret obtained data via freedom of information requests detailing at least £2.3m of work outsourced to private firms between April 2017 to March 2022. While all councils have in-house media teams, they outsourced some activities like PR, social media, recruitment, promotion and council staff media training. Unison, the public services trade union which is balloting council staff for strike action to secure a pay rise, said council staff would be “angry” at The Ferret’s findings. “Every penny of council money should be focussed on improving delivery of vital services to communities and ensuring staff get fairly paid for delivering them,” argued Johanna Baxter, Unison Scotland’s head of government. London PR firm behind ‘grassroots’ pro-vape campaign called ‘Tell Nicola’ David Miller, the director of Spinwatch, said: “These significant sums spent by Scottish councils should worry all those who believe in accountable local government. “The PR industry is endemically bereft of good faith and chronically unable to tell the truth. Councils should invest in open and honest communication with voters not spin and deception.” Orkney Council paid out the most money for media services – £576,000 – £180,000 of which went to David Flanagan Media for PR and media management. It also paid £175,000 for social media, web management, film and photography from Start Point Media, and £162,000 for marketing activities from Dynam. The council did not respond to a request to comment. Edinburgh Council spent an estimated £313,785, but did not provide complete spending for 2021-22. Its biggest spend was £36-£48,000 per year for The Corner Shop PR Scotland and £32,400 per year for 3×1 PR to promote local venues and events. Councils recovering from Covid A council spokesperson said: “The majority of this spend was directed at promoting our cultural and commercial venues prior to Covid, providing the specialist services needed to boost ticket sales and generate significant income for the council.” Of the £267,761 spent by Stirling Council, £249,621 went to ING Media to provide PR and marketing support for the Scottish Cities Alliance and to attract property investors at MIPIM, an international property event. The council said the money came from the Scottish Cities Alliance, which includes Stirling and six other cities. “These funds [were] simply administered through Stirling Council,” a spokesperson added. The council had spent just £18,050 on media consultants, they argued. “This covered a range of projects, including dedicated support to develop and promote Stirling’s investment and economic potential.” Shetland Council paid £81,600 to Aspect to provide comms support for the ORION clean energy project. It also gave £67,109 to Message Matters to support the council’s “strategic messaging”, including for the fair ferry funding campaign and the Islands Growth Deal. The council did not respond to a request to comment. East Lothian Council’s biggest bill was £100,944 for Connect Communications to design and distribute nine editions of the council’s residents’ newspaper. “There are no plans for further editions with the council focusing on online platforms in line with budget commitments,” a spokesperson said. They added that media promotion was key to attract visitors and boost the local economy. David Miller, Spinwatch These significant sums spent by Scottish councils should worry all those who believe in accountable local government. Falkirk, Dundee and Glasgow councils each spent £140-145,000, while 13 others spent less than £100,000. The total amount spent on media by local authorities is likely higher as the level of detail provided differed between councils. Some provided only partial data, or none at all. Moray Council listed six media firms it had paid in recent year...
Half of Scotland’s councils have been accused of mismanaging common good funds created to benefit local communities after their value collectively plummeted by nearly £8m in four years. Common good funds are unique to Scotland and are collectively worth an estimated £860m. They are supposed to be managed separately from normal council resources and – according to a 1491 law still in force – used “for the common good of the town.” But the Scottish Community Alliance claimed some local authorities are mismanaging “a very significant” community asset. It said common good funds were “in desperate need of reform and renewal” and claimed they had “sat in the shadows of our public finances for long enough”. Common good assets include town halls, churches, statues, schools, hospitals, greenspaces, libraries, water bodies, golf courses, public toilets, museums, allotments, and art, such as paintings. They include notable sites like the Inverness Caledonian Thistle football ground, Edinburgh’s Calton Hill and Princes Street Gardens, Glasgow’s George Square, Glasgow Green and Kelvingrove Park, the Dumfries Midsteeple building, Dunfermline’s Carnegie Hall, and Inverclyde’s Gourock Pool. While some assets cost money to be maintained, others – such as car parks, farms or harbours – generate revenue and increase the value of common good funds. Councils ‘undervalue’ assets However The Ferret found common good assets were sometimes used by councils in ways that suggest they are being undervalued and used to subsidise other council services, or used to buy things of little community benefit – such as limited edition £170 bottles of whisky or portraits of council officials. One council has failed to publish a register of common good properties, seven years since it was made a requirement by law. Common good assets are derived from ancient burgh property such as land, buildings and investments, and held on behalf of local people by councils. The Ferret looked at how the net value of each council’s common good fund changed in recent years. We found that the value of 16 funds collectively fell by nearly £8m between 2017-18 and 2020-21, when the 2017 value is adjusted for inflation. Just 14 councils increased the value of their funds, by nearly £40m in total. Shetland and Western Isles councils are the only local authorities without common good funds. South Ayrshire’s fund fell by £2.6m – the biggest drop in value of any council. A spokesperson said the fall was due to “the revaluation of assets” which occurs every five years. The council did not respond to a freedom of information request that sought details of the assets held in the local common good fund and spending records. It was followed by West Dunbartonshire and Moray, which saw drops of more than £1m each. East Ayrshire and Perth and Kinross saw falls of £869,000 and £763,000 respectively. Detailed spending records from West Dunbartonshire council show that more than £1m had been spent from the fund over the last three years, including costs for fireworks displays, Christmas lights and funding for local Citizens Advice Bureau branches and museums. The council also took at least £25,000 each year from its common good fund for “central support” and “estates management” fees. A council spokesperson said that while no assets were purchased or sold between 2017-18 and 2020-21, its assets had been revalued – an action that councils are required to take every five years. Moray Council did not respond to a freedom of information request seeking detailed spending records for its common good fund. A spokesperson said while the council reinvests a proportion of funds annually, lower interest rates in recent years and transferring ownership of assets to community groups had impacted its growth. Common good funds falling value sparks call for reform East Ayrshire Council attributed its fund’s reduction to “the depreciation and revaluation” of assets. Lease information from the fund obtained by a fre...
An escalating number of deaths in the asylum system are being “brushed under the carpet” it has been claimed, as data obtained from the Home Office shows that ten asylum seekers have died in Scotland since May 2020. The figures were obtained by Liberty Investigates under freedom of information legislation, in combination with The Ferret’s own investigation. A Home Office database showed that in total 107 asylum seekers across the UK who were provided with Home Office accommodation have died since April 2016. Of those 82 – just over three quarters – have died since 2020. The data included 11 deaths in Scotland over five years, who were all under 60-years-old. The Ferret is aware of one more death in the time period. Here too, deaths have escalated sharply since 2020. Campaigners claim there has been a lack of accountability and that the deaths were not properly investigated meaning lessons that could save the lives of others have not been learned. Revealed: 16 asylum seekers died in six months They repeated calls for an urgent inquiry into deaths in the asylum system and claimed the figures further evidenced that the asylum system – with its growing reliance on the use of institutional accommodation – was “unsafe”. However the Home Office said the deaths occured “for a number of reasons, including natural causes and terminal illness” and that to speculate otherwise would be “misleading”. Anonymised deaths listed in the Home Office database include that of Mercy Baguma, a 34-year-old asylum seeker from Uganda. She was found dead at her flat in August 2020 with her 18-month-old son, reportedly malnourished, beside her. In total 17 of the deaths across the UK were recorded as self/harm suicide cases with 10 since the start of 2020. They included that of Adnan Walid Elbi, a 31-year-old Syrian man who died in May 2020 while accommodated in Glasgow’s McLays Guest House by the Home Office. Shortly after his death the Ferret reported on claims from friends at the hotel that he had repeatedly expressed suicidal thoughts in the lead-up to his death and was struggling to cope. A Home Office incident report, also released under freedom of information, reveals that Adnan had been “known” to the Home Office’s safeguarding team. The report details that he was hospitalised due to suicidal thoughts on 21 April 2020 at which point his solicitor disclosed there had been three attempts on his own life, including while held in Dungavel Immigration Detention Centre. Despite Elbi’s vulnerability he was placed back in the room at McLay’s where he was given mental health support and medication. He died two weeks later. The database also lists the death of Badreddin Abadlla Adam, who stabbed six people at the Park Inn, in Glasgow, last June before being shot dead by police, after his mental health unravelled. Sabir Zazai, chief executive of Scottish Refugee Council We need to see a robust system put into place which takes account of every loss of life in the asylum system and the circumstances around it, so that lessons can be learned to prevent future deaths. A Mears’ incident report, also released to Liberty Investigates, evidences previous reports made by residents that they had already raised the alarm about violent and threatening behaviour by the Sudanese asylum seeker. The staff member did not escalate the concern as required by the company’s own guidelines, which campaigners claim meant an opportunity to intervene was missed. Other deaths include that of Parveen Begum Ashraf, from Pakistan, who died of a suspected heart attack. She had been destitute for many years and was appealing a Home Office refusal of her asylum claim. In a tribute at the time Robina Qureshi, chief executive of Positive Action in Housing, said she had “suffered immensely because of the asylum policy in this country”. Harvey Winn Wittika, a 37-year-old man from Malawi who fell to his death from his balcony in August 2021, is not included in the database. But The Ferret u...
Dozens of firms registered at an Edinburgh address involve a man sanctioned by the United Nations who is linked to a gas tycoon blacklisted by the UK Government for aiding Russia’s occupation of Ukraine. The Ferret looked at 93 companies with addresses provided by MYCO works, a firm which provides business addresses for clients across the world. We found that 38 firms registered with MYCO name Matthew Bradley in their accounts, who was sanctioned by the UN after a fraud investigation into Scottish Limited Partnerships (SLPs). An SLP is a form of limited partnership registered under Scots law. They are used by thousands of legitimate UK businesses, but some have been used in money laundering scandals, prompting calls for reform. Revealed: the Edinburgh offices linked to secretive Scottish Limited Partnerships Bradley is linked to Serhiy Kurchenko, a Ukrainian billionaire dubbed the “Gas King” who fled to Russia after it was alleged he failed to pay tax. Kurchenko previously denied the allegations. Scots politicians are calling on the authorities to investigate Bradley while criticising the regulation of “opaque business arrangements” in the UK. The Ferret found Bradley was linked to 38 SLPs registered with MYCO. Four are owned by Bradley, and seven were incorporated by Belizean companies with his signature. The remaining 27 companies are indirectly linked to Bradley through associates. All of the firms were incorporated between 2008 and 2016. MYCO sold them its registered address services, providing them with a new “virtual” Scottish address between February and April this year. Bradley ran a Ukrainian holding firm called UMH Group after it was bought by Kurchenko, who became a billionaire after founding Gas Ukraine 2009. A holding company is a financial organisation that owns a controlling interest in other firms, which are called subsidiaries. Steve Goodrich, head of research and investigations at Transparency International UK The UK’s patchwork of anti-money laundering supervisors has failed to ensure businesses are fulfilling their roles as the first line of defence against dirty money. Kurchenko was sanctioned by the UK in 2020. The UK Government alleged he “facilitated the supply of oil from Russian companies to their Crimea-based subsidiaries in the first year of Russian occupied Crimea, enabling the Russian companies to bypass EU sanctions”. In April this year, the EU sanctioned Kurchenko for “benefitting from Russian decision-makers responsible for the illegal annexation of Crimea or the destabilisation of eastern Ukraine”. Links to sanctioned firms Bradley owned UMH Group and several media outlets through a Hong Kong Company called Bentley Overseas Limited. Kurchenko bought UMH Group in 2013 through his firm, VETEK, which released a statement confirming the purchase. In 2017, after Kurchenko fled the country, Ukrainian prosecutors moved to seize UMH Group’s assets as part of the “criminal group organised by Serhiy Kurchenko”. After VETEK announced the purchase of the media group, Bradley was still officially named as the ultimate beneficial owner in company structure documents. In 2019, a Kyiv court placed a number of Kurchenko’s companies under the control of the Asset Recovery and Management Agency, including Bentley Overseas Limited. In 2015, a company called Bentley Overseas Services L.P. was registered in the UK. In 2018 the UN Development Programme debarred some Scottish firms after uncovering fraud in its global aid programme, and discovering Bradley was the person of significant control of 20 SLPs. He was sanctioned by UNDP on grounds of fraud, collusion and obstruction and is still currently debarred. MYCO Works and The Edinburgh Office The Ferret reported last year that The Edinburgh Office, now called MYCO, had incorporated companies allegedly linked to tax avoidance. The Edinburgh Office lawfully used 101 Rose Street South Lane as the registered address for around 2,000 companies. The firm has since cha...
The Scottish Government has backed a proposal to set up a new independent agency aimed at stemming the collapse of public interest journalism — but hasn’t committed to any funding. The culture secretary, Angus Robertson, has given his “wholehearted support” to the establishment of a Scottish Public Interest Journalism Institute as recommended by a working group of journalists from across the industry. The government has promised to use its “convening powers” to organise an industry roundtable in the autumn “to consider how best to deliver the institute”. But ministers have not agreed to the £9m that the working group said was needed over three years. Robertson cautioned that direct funding of the institute could be criticised as a way of trying to influence journalists. “The separation between the news media and the state is fundamental to ensuring journalism can do its job and hold power, including the government, to account,” he said. The minister also rejected recommended changes to charity law and advertising to help news providers. Giving local communities powers to take over ailing publishers needed “further investigation”, he said. Journalists welcomed Robertson’s support for the new institute, saying that Scotland “desperately” needed a body to champion public interest news. But they urged the minister to look at ways of providing funding to help it set up. Scottish newspaper companies said it was “remarkable” that the Scottish Government’s only firm commitment was to hold another meeting. They were “surprised” that ministers couldn’t find the “minimal resources” needed to set up the new body. Scottish ministers urged to invest £9m to save journalism Robertson’s predecessor, Fiona Hyslop, set up an independent Scottish Public Interest Journalism Working Group in January 2021. It included representatives from traditional news publishers and small independent publishers, including The Ferret, as well as from the National Union of Journalists. The group published a report in November 2021, calling for “urgent intervention” to prevent publishers going out of business, journalists losing their jobs and audiences being swamped by “fake news”. It made eight specific recommendations, headed by the creation of a Scottish Public Interest Journalism Institute. Robertson has now published a 17-page statement responding to the working group’s report. “The Scottish Government wholeheartedly agrees that there is considerable merit in creating an infrastructure to sustain the sector in Scotland,” the statement said. “It recognises the value a Scottish Public Interest Journalism Institute could have in supporting the resilience and sustainability of the sector through functions such as research, grant making, providing training and support, and promoting media literacy.” The government stressed, though, that any such institute must be independent of government “to ensure the clear separation of press and state” and argued that its establishment should be led by industry experts. “The Scottish Government proposes to use its convening powers to bring together institutions and stakeholders at a cross-industry roundtable in Autumn 2022, to consider the best model for an institute, and to transition the current working group into a new steering group with a remit to consider how best to deliver the institute,” the statement added. “This remit would include exploring funding options and scoping appropriate leadership, outside of government, to establish and subsequently run the institute.” No mention is made of government funding. But Robertson has indicated to the working group that ministers could consider remunerating members of the steering group and providing administrative support. The government also suggested that it would help put pressure on the digital giants such as Google and Facebook to support the creation of a new institute. It will “facilitate engagement between industry and stakeholders with large digital companies to he...
A Glasgow hotel housing vulnerable homeless people is being run “like an open prison” while charging £1,400 a month for cramped and rundown rooms, it is alleged. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
The UK nuclear industry has stepped up its lobbying of MSPs in a bid to get the Scottish Parliament to reverse its opposition to the building of new nuclear power stations. An investigation by The Ferret has revealed that nuclear energy companies and their lobbyists have talked up the industry’s potential benefits to ministers, Tory, Labour and SNP MSPs at six meetings in 2021 and four so far in 2022. According to the Scottish Parliament’s lobbying register, there were no pro-nuclear lobbying meetings in 2020, three in 2019 and four in 2018. There is only one recorded lobbying meeting by an anti-nuclear group since 2018. Campaigners accused the nuclear industry of “getting desperate” and “flogging a dead horse” by launching a “propaganda offensive”. Scotland did not need to build any more nuclear stations, they said. The industry, however, defended its lobbying, arguing that ruling out new nuclear power was “bad science and bad judgement for Scotland”. It urged the Scottish Government to drop its “blanket opposition” to nuclear developments. In April Boris Johnston’s government at Westminster gave nuclear power a major boost by announcing plans to deliver as many as eight new reactors over the next eight years. But since 2005 successive Scottish governments have opposed building any north of the border. Revealed: spycops infiltrated Scottish anti-nuclear groups Now nuclear companies and their backers are putting Scottish politicians under growing pressure to change their minds. At two meetings in May and two in April 2022, they lobbied MSPs in Holyrood on the “opportunities” of nuclear power. On 24 May the UK Nuclear Industry Association arranged a full day of “engagement with the Scottish Parliament”. This included lunch and a series of pro-nuclear presentations at the upmarket Signet Library hosted by Edinburgh corporate energy lawyers, Castletown Law, as well as an evening reception in the parliament. For the lunchtime meeting Castletown produced a 16-page brochure entitled ‘The Importance of Nuclear Power to Scotland’. This was aimed at “trying to put right some of the misrepresentations on nuclear power generation”. One of its authors was Castletown’s principal, Simon Stuttaford, who used to work for the nuclear industry. His co-author and fellow principal was Andrew Renton, who has accused the media of being “indoctrinated” by anti-nuclear lobbying. “They stopped listening to some extent to the experts,” Renton said in a film made by Castletown. “What is being said publicly about nuclear power generation is largely misinformed comment.” Castletown Law is a member of the UK Nuclear Industry Association, which also invited MSPs to a “nuclear energy reception” at Holyrood at 6pm on 24 May. Politicians were offered meetings during the day with the association’s chief executive and former Labour energy spokesperson, Tom Greatrex, to “discuss nuclear energy matters in more depth”. The meetings on 24 May have not yet been recorded in Holyrood’s lobbying register. The nuclear association said it was “in the process” of declaring them. The register does record two lobbying meetings in April by Stonehaven Campaigns, a London-based communications consultancy working on behalf of the Sizewell C Consortium, an industry group backing a new nuclear power station at Sizewell in Suffolk. On 20 April Stonehaven’s James English met three Conservative MSPs at Holyrood — Liam Kerr, Brian Whittle and Sue Webber. On 27 April the company’s Angus Boobbyer talked to Conservative MSP, Oliver Mundell, via a video link. The purpose in both cases was said to be “to discuss the current state of play of Scotland’s nuclear industry and raise the opportunities on offer for the country following the release of the UK Government’s Energy Security Strategy.” The French nuclear company, EDF Energy, recorded four meetings in 2021 in the lobbying register. On 16 December three company officials talked via video to the Cabinet Secretary, Michael Matheson, on...
The UK Government’s plan to send asylum seekers to Rwanda was stalled this week after a last minute intervention by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The first flight planned as part of the Home Office’ controversial policy was cancelled on Tuesday evening, sparking a new debate about the ECHR’s authority in the UK. A number of commentators and pundits falsely suggested that the plan was stopped by a EU court. Ferret Fact Service explains what the ECHR is and how the Rwanda flights were stopped. What is the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)? The European Court of Human Rights, also known as Strasbourg after its location in the French city, is the international court of the Council of Europe. It was established in 1959 as a result of the previously agreed European Convention on Human Rights. The court oversees the implementation of the Convention in the member states. The Council of Europe has 46 members, including the UK. Russia was expelled this year over its invasion of Ukraine. The ECHR provides an opportunity for people, groups or states to challenge decisions by a member of the Council of Europe that they feel has breached human rights enshrined in the Convention. How did the ECHR intervene in the Rwanda deportations? The UK Government announced its policy to send asylum seekers who are deemed to have entered the UK “illegally” to Rwanda in April 2022. It said claims would be processed in Rwanda through its immigration system and those who are successful would then be able to settle there, while those who failed would be deported back to their country of origin. The legality of the plan was called into question as soon as it was announced, with the UN’s refugee agency reportedly twice warning the UK Government that the plan was unlawful. The first flight was due to depart on Tuesday but was blocked by an 11th-hour intervention by the ECHR, which put in place an “urgent interim measure” in the case of one Iraqi asylum seeker who was due to depart on the flight. The Court ruled his deportation should be delayed until “three weeks after the delivery of the final domestic decision in his ongoing judicial review proceedings”. This decision provided the legal basis for the remaining six asylum seekers due to be aboard the flight to have their deportation orders cancelled. What is the ECHR jurisdiction? The court exists to decide on complaints that member states of the Council of Europe are not abiding by the European Convention on Human Rights. The UK is a member of the Council so has to abide by the rules set in the Convention. It usually hears disputes where an individual or group feels they have not received justice within a member country, or has been unable to access the justice system. So the court often ends up deciding on matters of human rights which relate to particular government’s decisions or policy. Is the ECHR part of the EU? How is this affected by Brexit? During the coverage of the ECHR’s decision, it has regularly been described as an EU court. This is incorrect. The ECHR is separate from the European Union. The Council of Europe is often mistakenly claimed to be part of the EU, partly because they both use the flag of Europe. But it is a separate organisation which predates the EU and is meant to uphold human rights and democracy. It is not an economic union. Despite leaving the EU, the UK remains a member of the Council of Europe. All EU member states are also members of the Council. The ECHR should not be confused with the Court of Justice of the European Union, which is for interpreting and upholding EU law. Does the UK want to leave the ECHR? Boris Johnson hinted that the UK may consider withdrawing from the Convention on Human Rights after the court blocked an asylum seeker meant to be on the flight to Rwanda from being deported. This was later confirmed by the UK Government as a potential option. The UK Government previously announced plans for a ‘British bill of Rights’ to replace the 1...
Scotland’s Trades Union Congress (STUC) has issued a call for further Scottish Government intervention on the cost of living crisis as it co-hosts a nationwide summit on the issue. Speaking ahead of the summit, co-hosted by the charity, Poverty Alliance, STUC general secretary Roz Foyer told The Ferret that “the time for warm words and platitudes from the political class” was “long over,” claiming it was time to speak out. She accused the Scottish Government of making “a deliberate choice” not to provide further support. In reply the Scottish Government said it is investing almost £770m this year through a package of measures including “social security support not available anywhere else in the UK”. With concerns mounting about the impact of the cost of living crisis, the event, held on Friday 17 June, brings together unions with civic and community organisations across Scotland. “We have suffered through a decade of UK Government spending cuts,” Foyer said. “In the midst of a cost of living crisis, we cannot allow for tartan Tory austerity from the Scottish Government to cut over 30,000 of our public service pandemic workers. “Workers being tossed onto the scrapheap whilst inflation, energy and rent skyrockets is a deliberate choice from the Scottish Government. Neil Cowan, policy and campaigns manager at the Poverty Alliance. We’re hopeful that by bringing together trade unions and voluntary and community groups, we’ll be able to create a platform that puts compassion and justice at the very heart of public life. “They can choose an alternative. Invest in our public sector, defend our pandemic workers and deliver the cost of living support they all desperately need.” A spending review announced by Finance Secretary Kate Forbes last month included real-terms cuts to the education, culture, external affairs, justice and local government budgets. At the time, Forbes said it was necessary for the Scottish Government to “reshape and refocus the public sector post-Covid,” but said she had limited powers to tackle the cost of living crisis. Ahead of the spending review, Forbes wrote to the UK government demanding urgent action on the cost of living including emergency cash payments, an uplift to Universal Credit and an increase in the National Living Wage. “Although both the UK and Scottish Governments are faced with the same crisis in the cost of living, we do not have the same fiscal or regulatory powers to respond to these challenges,” she wrote. “We are doing as much as we can within our resources, but, without the powers to control these policy levers ourselves, the UK Government must do more.” Attendees at today’s summit are expected to back the STUC’s demands for public sector pay rises, universal free school meals and rent freezes to tackle the cost of living crisis, all of which are within the powers of the Scottish Government. A snap poll conducted by the STUC and Opinium on last month’s local council election polling day found that the cost of living was the top issue for 75 per cent of the Scottish electorate, ahead of the NHS, housing, Brexit and the constitution. Post Offices are closing and disabled people are paying the price This week, Dundee City Council became the first local authority in Scotland to declare a cost of living emergency. Neil Cowan, policy and campaigns manager at the Poverty Alliance, told the Ferret: “The only way that we can make lasting change when it comes to poverty is through co-operation and solidarity. “We’re hopeful that by bringing together trade unions and voluntary and community groups, we’ll be able to create a platform that puts compassion and justice at the very heart of public life,” he added. “When that happens, we can start to make real progress in rebuilding and renewing our social security safety net, making sure everyone has an adequate income, investing in the public services we all rely on, and building a better future for the generations to come.” The summit will be held...
Two women formerly involved Patriotic Alternative – a far right group whose most active chapter is in Scotland – have described how they suffered depression and suicidal thoughts after misogynistic abuse and threats by its supporters. The organisation is “really dangerous”, they said, backing up experts on facism who have also expressed fears over PA and pro-rape comments by men following far right groups on platforms such as Telegram. One woman told The Ferret she suffered nightmares and panic attacks and contemplated suicide after a threat of rape. The women spoke to The Ferret on condition of anonymity because they fear repercussions. Patriotic Alternative (PA) was described last month as “Britain’s fascist threat” by Hope Not Hate. The anti-racism group said PA’s most active chapter was in Scotland, where they are still actively recruiting. The UK-wide organisation has links to banned neo-Nazi terror group, National Action, it added Hope not hate’s report followed revelations by The Ferret this year that some PA supporters in Scotland were neo-Nazis and former members of the far right group, the Scottish Defence League. Exposed: Inside far right group Patriotic Alternative An undercover investigation found PA supporters posted racist and anti-Semitic comments and disturbing images in a private group on messaging app, Telegram. The private group of around 60 people contained individuals who have been members of, or expressed support for, neo-Nazi group Blood and Honour, the British National Party, New British Union and the British Union of Fascists. One person – who used the pseudonym “Iron Thunder” – posted images of himself holding what appeared to be an automatic weapon alongside swastika flags and photos of Adolf Hitler. Both women who spoke to The Ferret are no longer involved with PA. Woman A contacted us after five people were killed last August in Plymouth by Jake Davison – an adherent of incel culture which involves men blaming women for their sexual failings. She explained how she was drawn to far right politics after the 2017 terrorist attack in Manchester. Initially she followed the English Defence League (EDL) then became involved with PA, having got swept up in a “kind of Holy war” believing she had to “fight for Western civilization.” Woman A told The Ferret: “A lot of people are drawn to that. And a lot of women like me. They (PA) tailor it to make it sound a lot less dangerous than it is.’we’re nice, we don’t hate people’.and then you only realise how dangerous it is when you’re in it.” While following the EDL she suffered online abuse from men and a male supporter of PA started stalking her. She said: “This person was sending messages to my house, he was sending letters, he was calling.calling me all the time. He was sending me obscene threats and pictures, all this kind of stuff.” The Ferret has seen some of those messages including one threatening to rape Woman A. She said the “constant threat of danger” caused her to suffer anxiety and panic attacks on a daily basis. “I would jump at the patio lights coming on at night, and would regularly check and double-check the locks on doors and windows, fearing someone could break into my property at any point,” she said. “I would have nightmares about strange men coming into my bedroom window, and would become hyper vigilant when out walking or using my phone and laptop, as I had also had my private accounts hacked and had no way of knowing how my personal data was being used or what was being shared with others.” She also claimed there were disturbing online discussions among male PA supporters about other females, with “running themes of degradation and subjugation with women”. Professor Matthew Feldman, director of the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right These ‘involuntary celibate’ groups online are rich pickings for radical right recruiters, since they can provide a racist and conspiratorial explanation for the failure of relationships with women th...
Afran opens a drawer and pulls out creams and tablets, prescribed to deal with the bites covering his children’s backs and stomachs – and his wife’s legs – in an angry, red rash. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
Critics of a controversial project which works with vulnerable mothers in Dundee have called for programme rules – insisting women who want ongoing support from the programme prevent pregnancy by either taking contraception or abstaining from sex – to be dropped. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
A Syrian father of three, who fled for his life and was facing deportation by the Home Office to Rwanda, is now fighting for his right to claim asylum through the Scottish courts. The man – who we are calling Abdulrahman to protect him and his family – paid a people smuggler over £10,000 to get him out of Syria where he claims he had been detained and tortured and feared for his life. He had set out for the UK in hope of finding protection. But instead he found himself “staring death in the face” during a journey to the UK that included rescue from a sinking boat and ended at Brook House detention centre near Gatwick. There he was told he would be deported to Rwanda under the UK Government’s highly controversial new asylum rules. Not only did the threat of deportation leave him fearing for his own life, but also those of his wife and three young children who are still in Syria. He hopes to get refugee status and bring them to the UK through family reunion. But thanks to the help of his Glasgow-based brother-in-law – a Syrian refugee who fled six years ago – a Glasgow solicitor from Latta Law, and an interpreter who “went the extra mile”, he has had a reprieve. On Friday he was bailed from immigration detention and arrived in Glasgow where he is preparing to have his legal right for protection heard by the Scottish judiciary. “The things I have seen nobody should see,” Abdulrahman said. “When I arrived here I thought the terror was over but it was not. Now I want my voice to reach everyone so they can know what is happening to us.” The Home Office plan to remove those whose claims for asylum were judged to be “inadmissible” to Rwanda was announced by Home Secretary Priti Patel in April. She said it aimed to stop people crossing the Channel and “putting their lives in the hands of people smugglers”. Asylum applications have remained stable in recent years in the UK. But in the year ending March 2022 the number of applications increased to 55,146 – 56 percent more than in March 2020. Claims can now be judged inadmissible if people travel through another country to get to the UK. However, there are currently no recognised or legal safe routes between the UK and countries including Syria, Yemen and Sudan for those trying to escape. On Friday evening the High Court rejected a legal challenge by refugee charities Detention Action and Care4Calais, which aimed to prevent the first flight leaving to Rwanda on Tuesday. A further challenge – lodged by Asylum Aid – will be heard on Monday. Emails reveal Scottish ministers snubbed by Priti Patel over immigration raid The plan has met high profile opposition from campaigners and opposition politicians alike. Nicola Sturgeon said they were “despicable” and “shameful” and UNHCR has claimed the Rwandan plan was unlawful. The Daily Mail and the Times reported this week that Prince Charles thought the plan to fly asylum seekers 4,000 miles away was “appalling”. But Abdulrahman had no idea of what was to come when he fled on 16 March – a month before Patel’s announcement. He journeyed across Europe before being put on a small inflatable boat crossing the channel from France to England by a people smuggler he had paid – known as “an agent”. “I was under agent control,” he explains. “It was the agent who moved us from place to place. Four attempts were made to cross the channel at night, with the last made at 6am. When people saw the boat some said it was too small – it would not get us there. But it was too late then. “There was a baby, three kids and a total of about 40 people on the boat when it started to lose air and started to leak. The children were crying. I wasn’t sure that we would reach land. It was bad, very bad.” But when the boat started to deflate, a woman onboard phoned the coastguard, who took them to Dover. From there about 12 of the men were taken to detention. Abdulrahman was separated from his friend who was taken with others, including women and children, to a hotel. At the ...
Scotland’s two largest local government pension funds have nearly half a billion pounds invested in firms which are still doing business in Russia. Analysis by The Ferret has found that Lothian (LPF) and Strathclyde (SPF) pension funds have a combined £448m invested in companies which have continued to do business as usual in Russia since its invasion of Ukraine. Companies that are still operating in the country have been accused of “undermining” the sanctions placed on Vladimir Putin’s regime by international governments. These were designed to put economic pressure on Russia in the hope of ending the war. SPF said that it would be pressing the firms “for answers, and more importantly, action” on their activities in Russia, while LPF pointed out that the firms “do not solely operate in Russia” and make up “0.2 per cent of the fund’s assets”. But politicians said that the revelations were “worrying” and called on the two funds to “break these ties and divest immediately”. They claimed that by operating in the Russian market, companies were “supporting Putin’s war machine”. The last three months have seen a corporate exodus from Russia as part of the global response to the invasion. Nearly 1,000 companies have now pulled out of the country since February. Among them are major multinationals like McDonalds, Starbucks and Uber. Ross Greer, finance spokesperson for The Scottish Greens. Scotland’s public pension funds should be making investments that benefit the common good, certainly not supporting Putin’s war machine. According to Yale University, 245 global firms have made no changes to their operations in Russia, however. These include tech firms, financial giants, and construction companies. Our analysis examined LPF and SPF’s most recently published portfolios for holdings in any of these businesses. LPF and SPF invest the pensions of local government employees in Edinburgh and the Lothians, and Glasgow and its surrounding areas, respectively. LPF had investments worth £238m in 17 of the companies listed, while SPF held stakes in 13, valued at £210m. The majority of these investments are in firms hailing from either China, the US or Japan. LPF’s single biggest holding in one of the firms — valued at nearly £73m — is in the Chinese e-commerce company, Alibaba, viewed as China’s answer to Amazon. China is one of the few countries not to have condemned Russia’s invasion, and only a handful of Chinese companies have suspended business there. Meanwhile, SPF had £47m invested in Vinci, a French construction company which has been involved in major infrastructure projects in Russia including the building of a motorway between Moscow and St Petersburg. Scots pension fund refuses to divest from Russian bank A number of other Scottish investors have come under fire since Putin decided to attack Ukraine. The Ferret revealed in late February that the Scottish Parliament’s pension fund had holdings worth nearly £300,000 in Sberbank. Baillie Gifford — the investment firm which manages the Scottish Parliamentary Pension Scheme — subsequently divested the stakes following an outcry from MSPs. Edinburgh University also had shares worth over £1m in Sberbank, as well as £6.5m invested in a Dutch firm which has links to Putin. The university announced a review of its assets in the wake of pressure from students after the story broke. The Scottish Greens finance spokesperson, Ross Greer, said that it has “never been so important for public pension funds to adopt ethical investment policies”. “Scotland’s public pension funds should be making investments that benefit the common good, certainly not supporting Putin’s war machine,” Greer added. Scottish Labour’s external affairs spokesperson, Sarah Boyack, argued that to “stand firmly with Ukraine” the “influence of Russian finance in the UK” needs to be stamped out. Boyack said: “These worrying revelations call for an urgent response. These funds need to break ties and divest funds immediately.”...
The Queen’s Platinum jubilee, marking 70 years of her reign as the UK’s monarch, led to an increase in conversation about the future of the royal family. A picture of Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon, claiming to show her waving a Union Flag at a Jubilee event, was posted on social media, with a caption claiming Scottish nationalists were “up in arms about this picture of their beloved leader waving the Union Flag”. Ferret Fact Service looked into this and found it FFS (For Facts’ Sake). Evidence The image was posted by a Twitter user, and shared over 3,600 times, and appears to show the First Minister waving a small union flag on a stick. It is actually a very crude manipulation of another image, which shows Nicola Sturgeon’s attendance at the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. The original image, taken by Associated Press, shows the First Minister in the background as Royal Family members Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie arrive at the Platinum Jubilee concert. Multiple images of Sturgeon at the event were captured. She attended with her husband, SNP chief executive Peter Murrell. In the original picture she is sitting with both hands out of the picture, but in the altered image a union flag has been crudely photoshopped in, along with an arm to make it look as though she is holding it. Closer inspection shows this attempt to mislead is rather basic, with the arm purported to by Sturgeon’s actually extending in front of the chair she is sitting behind. This is one crude example of a misleading or manipulated image being used to make a political point. Nicola Sturgeon has regularly been the subject of these, with one manipulated image falsely claiming to show her watching the Alex Salmond inquiry at Bute House going viral in 2021. The image was actually her cabinet watching the UK Supreme Court verdict on the proroguing of parliament in 2019. How to avoid falling for misleading images: Do a common sense test. Does the image seem too good to be true or impossible? Do you trust the source? Check out the information on the website or social media account that shares it. If there is no source, try to work out where the image has come from. You can use image searches or search for the context to see if you can find it or similar images. Most reverse image search engines will show you times where the image has appeared on different sites, and show you visually similar images. You might be able to find the original and see if it has been altered. If something seems odd about the picture, check for telltale signs it might not be accurate. Look closely at the image to see if something or someone looks unnatural or awkwardly placed. This can be a sign of manipulation. Could it be a real picture in the wrong context? Sometimes a non-photoshopped image is connected incorrectly to an event. This happens often during rolling news events such as terror attacks or conflicts. Ferret Fact Service verdict: FFS This is a poorly photoshopped picture of Nicola Sturgeon at the Queen’s Platinum jubilee concert, into which someone has added a union flag. While the First Minister did attend the event, there is no evidence she was captured waving a flag. FFS! (For Facts’ Sake) – The claim is baseless, ridiculous and/or logically impossible! Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to ideas.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group.
As the Russian attack on Ukraine continues, Ali and Sam spoke to Eoghan MacGuire on this week’s podcast. Eoghan is the lead editor at open source investigation group, Bellingcat, which has been tracking and reporting on the conflict using publicly available tools and information. We spoke about how Bellingcat puts together its investigations, the important work of challenging official government narratives, and how openly available technology is a crucial tool in modern journalism. Show notes: Bellingcat’s work is available on their website here. BBC Africa Eye’s ground-breaking investigation, Anatomy of a Killing, is available on Twitter. Read Bellingcat’s investigation into the killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. The FFS Show is only possible thanks to your support. If you want to help us do more fact-checking work, become a member of The Ferret for just £5 per month. You can subscribe to The FFS Show on your favourite podcast platform. Ferret Fact Service (FFS) is a non-partisan fact checker, and a signatory to the International Fact-Checking Network fact-checkers’ code of principles. All the sources used in our checks are publicly available and the FFS fact-checking methodology can be viewed here. Want to suggest a fact check? Go to ideas.theferret.scot, email us at factcheck@theferret.scot or join our Facebook group. Photo Credit: iStock/wutwhanfoto
Half as many Scots women are cycling regularly compared with men according to new data, leading to claims that active travel policies “don’t work for women in Scotland”. The figures come from the most recent Walking and Cycling Index produced by the sustainable transport charity, Sustrans. It surveyed people across the UK on their travel habits in 2021, including from seven cities across Scotland. Analysis of the Scottish data by The Ferret found that just 13 per cent of women cycled at least once a week in 2021, compared with 29 per cent of men. In one Scottish city, just eight per cent of women cycled regularly. Campaigners blamed “aggressive drivers, unlit cycle routes, and gendered expectations around what we wear” for the low cycling rates among women. The “different needs and experiences of women” need to be considered in “how we plan our public space and travel infrastructure”, they added. Encouraging more people to cycle is seen as a “fundamental” part of creating a cleaner transport network which can help Scotland achieve its climate goals. It is also viewed as an important way of improving the nation’s physical and mental health. Alys Mumford, communications and engagement manager at Engender Measures like gender budget analysis are vital to make sure that we are considering the different needs and experiences of women in how we plan our public space and travel infrastructure. The Scottish Government has pledged “record levels of funding” for active travel schemes, including to increase the number of people using bikes instead of cars for local journeys. But as the Sustrans survey reveals, cycling is not currently perceived as safe or accessible to everyone, particularly women. Inverness had the highest levels of regular cycling by women in Scotland, with 20 per cent of women in the Highland city getting on a bike at least once a week. At the other end of the spectrum was Dundee, where only 8 per cent of women cycle regularly. Glasgow had the biggest discrepancy between the number of men and women cycling, with 31 per cent of men and 11 per cent of women regularly using a bike. [table id=221 /] The trend of men cycling more than women was also borne out in the rest of the UK. Across Britain as a whole, 23 per cent of men and 11 per cent of women cycle once a week. It is not repeated in other European countries, however. In Germany and Denmark women cycle as much as men, while in the Netherlands the gender split is the other way around, with women making up 55 per cent of all cycling trips. According to Alys Mumford, communications and engagement manager at the feminist campaign group, Engender, cycling infrastructure in Scotland is not currently “designed for the journeys women need to make”. “Active travel policies don’t work for women. Aggressive drivers, unlit cycle routes, and gendered expectations around what we wear all contribute to these figures,” Mumford told The Ferret. “Measures like gender budget analysis are vital to make sure that we are considering the different needs and experiences of women in how we plan our public space and travel infrastructure.” “We need bike lanes to be wide enough for bike trailers, segregated from traffic to allow children to cycle safely, and actually going to the places people need them to.” Sustrans Scotland’s head of strategic partnerships, Dr Lee Muir, argued that women in Scotland are discouraged from cycling because of “concerns about safety”. Muir said: “In Scotland, 39 per cent of women think cycling safety in their local area is good. Most women feel that if they had safer cycling infrastructure, then they would cycle more frequently and they would feel more confident cycling. “There is so much potential for more women to cycle — the Index findings show that 30 per cent of women in Scotland overall said that they ‘do not cycle but would like to’.” Transport Scotland £500m fund claim branded ‘absurd’ by campaigners Who is likely to cycle? The Sustrans survey also l...
The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission (SAWC) has backed the closure of an unlicensed greyhound racing track in Scotland. The move follows pressure from an animal welfare group and a series of reports by The Ferret highlighting deaths and injuries to greyhounds. SAWC is opposed to racing at Thornton Greyhound Stadium in Kirkcaldy, Fife, which is unlicensed. In a letter to the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee, SAWC said it does not support the continuation of unlicensed, also known as flapper, tracks in Scotland. Its letter stated: “If greyhound racing is to continue then this should only be under specific regulations to protect dog welfare and with the presence of a veterinarian at the track to inspect fitness to race, to ensure that dogs are not over-raced and welfare regulations have been met, and to administer prompt veterinary care should this be required.” Fifteen greyhounds die in three years at Shawfield Stadium The move was welcomed by campaign group Scotland Against Greyhound Exploitation (SAGE) which gave evidence to the committee in April about abuse, doping and neglect within the greyhound racing industry. SAGE said Thornton Greyhound Stadium did not have vets present in order to ensure the welfare of the dogs, and it claimed the track did not conduct drug testing. A statement on SAGE’s Facebook page said: “The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission backs the closure of Thornton Greyhound Stadium – the last remaining active greyhound racing track in the country – and an end to all unregulated greyhound racing in Scotland! “At our evidence session in front of the RAINE committee in April of this year, we described to MSPs the abject lack of welfare measures at unregulated tracks, stating that the dogs racing at Thornton Greyhound Stadium in Fife are among the most vulnerable dogs in the country.” The doping of greyhounds has been a problem at Scotland’s only licensed greyhound at Shawfield Stadium in Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, which has not reopened since the Covid-19 lockdowns. Greyhounds & Scottish Racing Tracks In 2019, The Ferret revealed that greyhounds had tested positive for banned drugs such as cocaine and amphetamine dozens of times. Steroids, beta blockers and prohormones – used by bodybuilders – were among other prohibited substances found in the bloodstreams of greyhounds at Shawfield since 2009. Mark Ruskell MSP, of the Scottish Greens Sending dogs at 40mph round a track where they can collide with each other is barbaric and all the data shows it comes at an unacceptable cost of death and injury Five of the 28 positive tests at Shawfield involved cocaine, which is potentially fatal for dogs and can lead to seizures, strokes and heart attacks. We also reported in 2020 that a greyhound trainer at Shawfield had been banned for breaching animal welfare rules after neglecting a dog so badly it had to be euthanised. Earlier this year The Ferret revealed that fifteen greyhounds died and 197 injuries to animals were recorded at Shawfield between 2017 and 2020, prompting calls for greyhound racing to be banned completely. Dozens of greyhounds racing in Scotland test positive for banned substances such as cocaine Mark Ruskell MSP, of the Scottish Greens, said greyhound racing “belongs in a by-gone age where animal cruelty masqueraded as entertainment”. Claiming its “days are now numbered” he added: “Just as we banned the use of wild animals in travelling circuses so the last remaining active greyhound track in Scotland should now close. “The weight of expert and scientific opinion must not be ignored by government. Sending dogs at 40mph round a track where they can collide with each other is barbaric and all the data shows it comes at an unacceptable cost of death and injury.” You can read more of our coverage on this issue here. Photo Credit: iStock/JenDeVos
A pro-vaping group and a public relations firm in London were behind an astroturf campaign targeting Scottish Government proposals to regulate the vaping industry, The Ferret can reveal. Astroturf refers to apparently ‘grassroots groups’ that are actually created and funded by corporations, public relation firms or groups with political interests. We Vape UK – which does not disclose its funding – used a “specialist political media agency” called MessageSpace to manage Facebook adverts encouraging people to oppose vaping regulation during a Scottish Government consultation. MessageSpace was founded by Guido Fawkes editor-in-chief Paul Staines, a political blogger who once described himself as “anarcho-libertarian, or Thatcherite on drugs”. In 2017 he wrote a blog entitled Smoking Is Good For Us which argued that blaming smokers for spiralling healthcare costs was a “moral fable”. We Vape UK is managed by Mark Oates, a fellow at the Adam Smith Institute (ASI) which was rated “Highly Opaque” by Transparify because it does not reveal its funders. Transparify is a group that examines the financial transparency of think tanks. The ASI is a free-market think tank which reportedly influences UK Government policy. Andy Rowell, senior research fellow at the University of Bath and a research partner in STOP, a global tobacco industry watchdog. We are increasingly seeing pro-vaping campaigns being run by people or organisations either associated with the tobacco industry or neo-liberal think tanks. Tobacco Tactics – a Bath University project which monitors the tobacco industry – points out that ASI has received funding from the tobacco industry. In 2013, ASI – disclosed it had received £13,000 from tobacco companies. In February the Scottish Government launched a public consultation into “additional controls to limit advertising and promotion of vaping products in Scotland” as part of a commitment made in the 2018 Tobacco-Control Action Plan. The consultation asked for the public to respond with their views on whether new regulations should be implemented to control how vape products are advertised. The alleged astroturf campaign was called “Tell Nicola”. It was launched by We Vape UK, with a Facebook page created in February this year. It began running ads on 10 March 2022. The advertiser disclaimer identified MessageSpace as the organisation responsible for the ads. Although no direct evidence of tobacco industry funding of the campaign has been uncovered – and there is nothing unlawful about these activities – critics have raised concerns that pro-vaping campaigns are being run by organisations either associated with the tobacco industry or neo-liberal think-tanks, some of which have accepted money from the tobacco industry. The adverts run by MessageSpace used the same campaign graphics as those used by the We Vape UK “Tell Nicola” campaign. The Tell Nicola ads primarily targeted those aged between 25-45. The We Vape UK Facebook page was created on 9 February 2021. It has three individuals responsible for running the site, two based in the UK and one based in the US. Created as a “Community” Page, We Vape UK has 9,762 followers on Facebook, at time of writing. We Vape Project Ltd was incorporated on 4 August 2020 with the sole director being ASI fellow, Mark Oates. The nature of the business is recorded as “activities of political organisations”. The accounts for We Vape UK have been registered with Companies House but do not disclose any details of income. They state the net assets are £1. The We Vape UK Twitter account states that “We Vape is an independent campaign organisation for vapers by vapers”. Despite asking for donations, its social media accounts and website do not disclose its sources of funding, nor is Oates’s fellowship of the ASI clearly stated. The We Vape UK website – a link to which is made on the company Twitter profile – was recently deleted but is live again. Andy Rowell, a senior research fellow at the Unive...
Climate activists have urged banks to sever financial ties with Shell if it goes ahead with plans to develop a controversial new gas field in the North Sea. The UK Government provided “final regulatory approval” for the oil giant’s Jackdaw project on Wednesday in a move which has been met with anger by environmentalists. They argue that the new field is incompatible with efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees – the goal set by the 2015 Paris Agreement which is viewed as paramount if the world is to maintain a liveable climate for all. Four campaign groups — 350.org, BankTrack, Uplift and Bank on our Future — have today sent a letter to the 25 biggest financiers of Shell calling on them to “terminate their financial relationship” with the oil giant if it continues with its plans for Jackdaw. A spokesperson for Shell said that the project has “the potential to produce 6.5 per cent of UK gas at a time when UK energy security is critically required” due to high prices and the war in Ukraine. But campaign groups argued that Jackdaw is “completely incompatible with global climate goals”. They claimed it “won’t do anything to reduce household energy bills now” and that “the short term profits of fossil fuel companies” were being placed above people and planet. Among the firms sent the letter by the campaigners were Shell’s five biggest financial backers – BNP Paribas, Morgan Stanley, Barclays, Santander and HSBC. In total, Shell has received over £34bn of funding from the world’s biggest banks since 2016, the year after the Paris Agreement was signed. Oil industry climate plans are “grossly insufficient”, study finds The letter also calls on the financial giants to engage with Shell and urge them to stop the project, and to rule out direct financing of the field. All five of the banks have committed to making their businesses produce net-zero climate emissions by 2050. They are also members of the Net Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA), a UN scheme aimed at getting banks to align their investment and lending portfolios with efforts to reach net-zero. In May 2021, the International Energy Agency (IEA) argued that “no new oil and gas fields are required” if the world is to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees against pre-industrial levels. Meanwhile, a report earlier this month argued that Shell’s climate plans were “grossly insufficient” to meet the 1.5 degree target because the company continues to approve new fossil fuel extraction projects. If warming exceeds 1.5 degrees it is expected to “exacerbate hunger, conflict and drought worldwide”. Scientists believe that average global temperatures could surpass this threshold by 2033 without “extremely rapid cuts to greenhouse gas emissions”. Jackdaw is one of the biggest remaining gas fields in the North Sea and has the potential to produce the gas equivalent of between 120 and 250 million barrels of oil. It is viewed as a particularly polluting field due to its high carbon dioxide content and plans to “clean” the gas using a process which would vent pollution directly into the atmosphere. Shell’s initial application to develop the field was rejected by UK regulators last year on environmental grounds. Beyond Cambo: 1bn tonnes of pollution in UK oil and gas pipeline Protests were held across the UK yesterday following the decision to give Jackdaw the green light. In Edinburgh, activists threw red paint over UK Government offices and held up banners claiming that the government had “blood on its hands”. Tommy Vickerstaff, a campaigner at 350.org, argued that the UK Government should be investing in housing insulation or energy efficiency measures” but was instead approving a project that will produce “more emissions than some countries”. Vickerstaff said: “Approving Jackdaw won’t do anything to reduce household energy bills now. “This is once again a misguided and dangerous decision that places the short term profits of fossil fuel companies like Shell over the needs of people and th...
The UK Government wants to bring back imperial weights and measures to the UK, with reports suggesting the Prime Minister wants to announce a consultation on the move to coincide with the Queen’s Jubilee. Ministers are keen for the UK to reintegrate things like pounds and ounces into British life, and the plan has been framed by some commentators and politicians as a move away from metric regulations imposed by the European Union. The Bruges Group, an organisation that campaigns against the EU, suggested on Twitter that such weights and measures should never have been “outlawed at the behest of foreign bureaucrats”. Ferret Fact Service looked into this claim and found it Mostly False. The Bruges Group Imperial measurements have been part of Britain’s social fabric for generations. Their use never should have been outlawed at the behest of foreign bureaucrats. Evidence Currently, the UK uses a mix of imperial and metric units. Most product weights are now in metric, with UK law allowing only returnable milk bottles and beer or cider to be sold by the pint. Otherwise, businesses must include metric measurements — such as grams, kilograms, millilitres or litres — when selling packaged or loose goods. The UK Government first announced an assessment of rules surrounding imperial measures in September 2021, stating in a policy document on ‘Brexit opportunities’ that it would “review the EU ban on markings and sales in imperial units and legislate in due course”. But what was the EU’s role in the UK’s adoption of metric measures? The EU uses the International System of Units (SI), which is the modern form of the metric system. Using SI units is mandatory in the EU. This has been in place since before the UK joined the precursor to the EU, the European Economic Community (EEC), Adopting metric units for things such as weights and measures was one of the requirements to join the EEC, but the UK was able to negotiate temporary exemptions to the rules which meant it could still use some imperial measures. This exemption initially lasted until 1989, but was then extended to 1995. Units which were exempt included miles, yards, and pints. The law was brought into UK law through the Units of Measurement Regulations in 1994. This made it a requirement for goods to be sold using SI units (such as kilograms, metres etc) but left certain imperial measures in place, such as beer served in pints and road signs in miles. FFS explains: What powers do councils have? This law then extended to loose goods in 2000, such as vegetables and meat sold by greengrocers and butchers. This caused controversy, with some business owners refusing to sell their products in metric units. The EU abandoned plans to enforce the use of metric only units in the UK in 2007, ruling that British goods could continue to use imperial units. European Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry said: “There is not now and never will be any requirement to drop imperial measurements.” This means that shops can sell items with imperial units if they wish, as long as the metric weights are also prominent on the packages. Beer, cider and milk can also be sold in pints, while miles continue to be used on roadsigns. It is not accurate to say the move towards metric units was entirely a result of laws imposed by the EU. The UK, like many countries across the world, began the process of moving towards metric measures well before the European Union came into existence. The Weights and Measures Act in 1864 introduced metric units in the UK, but did not make them compulsory. The UK Metrication Board was set up in 1969, to oversee the switch to metric units across British industries, and much of British industry was using some form of metric units before the EU directives came into force. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Mostly False Imperial units were never “outlawed” in the UK. There were attempts made by the European Union to make the UK adopt the metric system for weights and measures, but...
Five local newspapers in Scotland have refused to publish an advert backed by 26 environmental and community groups criticising the salmon farming industry. Campaigners have accused the newspapers of “blatant censorship” and of forming an “unholy alliance” with multinational salmon companies. The papers often ignored the “environmental havoc” caused by salmon farming, they claimed. The newspapers’ publisher said it had a right to decline any advert but did not explain its reasons. The salmon farming industry described the advert as “garbage” and praised papers for not publishing it. The advert questioned the sustainability of salmon farming and urged consumers not to buy farmed fish. It posed six questions about pollution, pesticides, diseases, the impact on wild salmon, the sources of fish feed and the use of lice-eating fish. The industry was responsible for the “severe degradation” of parts of Scotland’s coastal environment, the advert said. “Where in the world has sustainable salmon farming actually been achieved?” it asked. Andrew Graham-Stewart, Salmon and Trout Conservation Scotland All too often west highland and island papers turn a blind eye to the environmental havoc caused by salmon farming. The advert was rejected by Wyvex Media, a company based in Oban that publishes five west coast papers: Oban Times, Lochaber Times, Campbeltown Courier, Argyllshire Advertiser and Arran Banner. According to campaigners, full page adverts were booked for “close to £2,000” to run in the five papers at the end of May. But they were withdrawn at the last minute following a decision understood to have been taken at “director level”. Wyvex also publishes the trade magazine Fish Farmer “for all the latest industry news, markets and jobs in aquaculture”. The magazine’s editorial advisory board includes leading figures from the salmon farming industry. The advert was run by the Stornoway Gazette on 26 May and the Daily Record on 28 May. The West Highland Free Press asked for the text to be changed to remove a reference to the Scottish Government minister, Mairi Gougeon, but this was rejected by campaigners. Among the 26 organisations backing the advert were community groups from the west of Scotland, Scottish Creel Fishermen’s Association, Compassion in World Farming, Open Seas, Sea Shepherd and the outdoor clothing retailer, Patagonia. The advert was co-ordinated by Andrew Graham-Stewart, the director of the wild fish group, Salmon and Trout Conservation Scotland. “All too often west highland and island papers turn a blind eye to the environmental havoc caused by salmon farming,” he said. “They bend over backwards to give space to the industry and its relentless propaganda. There appears to be an unholy alliance.” Graham-Stewart alleged that industry critics were regularly denied a platform. “Now even our paid-for advertising is being rejected,” he told The Ferret. “This amounts to flagrant and partisan censorship, particularly as some of these regional papers have a virtual monopoly.” Howard Wood, who co-founded the Community of Arran Seabed Trust, the Sustainable Inshore Fisheries Trust and the Coastal Communities Network, stressed the importance of holding ministers to account. “If Scotland is to have any chance of reversing wild salmon and sea trout declines and halting the pollution of our marine ecosystems, then it is vital that informed debate and information dissemination by community organisations is not threatened by blatant censorship by owners of local papers,” he said. “Such practice is extremely worrying, something more akin to Putin’s Russia or China.” Andrew Holder and Maggie Brotherston from the Friends of Loch Creran warned that free speech in the west of Scotland was “dead in the water” like so many farmed fish. “We are shocked and outraged at the decision of Wvvex Media to censor images and opinions highlighting Scotland’s dirty fish farming industry,” they said. Fish farm pesticide ‘risk’ for swimmers, says indus...
Nuclear safety incidents on the Clyde with the “potential” to cause radiation leaks contaminating people and the environment have nearly doubled in the last three years, The Ferret can reveal. The number of more serious “nuclear site events” recorded by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) at the Faslane and Coulport bases, near Helensburgh, has risen from seven in 2019 to 13 in 2021. In total the MoD has logged 460 safety incidents of all kinds at the two UK nuclear bases in 2019, 2020 and 2021. It has declined to give details of any, but previously said they may include “near-misses, equipment failures, human error or procedural failings”. Campaigners described the rise in more serious incidents as “particularly troubling”, and accused the MoD of having “let safety standards slip”. They warned there could have been a “near-miss catastrophe” and demanded more openness. The MoD, however, stressed that it took safety incidents “very seriously” and had “robust safety measures” in place. None of the recorded incidents had caused any harm to people or the environment, it claimed. Revealed: 505 nuclear safety incidents at Faslane The MoD released the latest figures on nuclear incidents at Faslane and Coulport in response to a parliamentary question at Westminster. Faslane on the Gareloch is the UK Government’s base for nuclear-armed Trident submarines and other nuclear-powered submarines, and Coulport nearby on Loch Long is where the nuclear warheads are stored. The figures show that there were three incidents in 2021 officially rated as “category B” and 10 rated as “category C”. That compared to one C incident in 2020 and one B and six C incidents in 2019. According to the MoD, category B means there was “actual or high potential” for a release of radioactivity which could have caused “unplanned individual exposure to radiation”. Site safety rules could have been breached or “significantly” prejudiced. Incidents categorised as C have “moderate potential” for radioactive releases which could have caused “unplanned individual exposure to radiation”. There could also have been a “failure of line of defence or protection”. There were a further 50 incidents in 2019, 26 in 2020 and 41 in 2021 that were rated as “category D”. That means there was a “low potential for release”, but an “adverse trend” that could affect safe operation. Another 101 incidents in 2019, 122 in 2020 and 99 in 2021 were classified by the MoD as “below scale”. This means they were “of safety interest or concern, including human error, equipment or process failures that cause near misses, abnormal occurrences.” [table id=220 /] The MoD did not respond to The Ferret’s request to give details of the more serious incidents in 2021. In 2018 the MoD said recorded events “may be near-misses, equipment failures, human error or procedural failings”. Earlier incidents at Faslane and Coulport disclosed under freedom of information law have included radiation leaks, coolant water losses, dropping a reactor control rod, unplanned reactor shutdowns and communication breakdowns. The parliamentary question that uncovered the safety incident figures was asked by the Scottish National Party MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, Deidre Brock. There had been “a lengthy record of safety failures at Faslane and Coulport,” she told The Ferret. “The increase in severity of recent incidents make these latest figures particularly troubling. Overall, the number of more serious category B and C events has nearly doubled from seven in 2019 to 13 in 2021.” Brock accused the MoD of continuing “to let safety standards slip”, and attacked UK ministers for pressing ahead with Trident renewal. “Disclosures such as this should not depend on a single MP submitting parliamentary questions to defence ministers,” she argued. “Reports from the MoD’s Defence Nuclear Safety Regulator detailing these incidents should be made available to the public so some sort of transparency is restored and people can weigh up fo...
Scotland’s six offshore wind farms have paid just £150,000 to nearby communities in the last 12 months. Holyrood energy minister, Michael Matheson, revealed the figure in response to a written question by Scottish Labour MSP, Monica Lennon, who told The Ferret she was “astonished” by the “measly” sum. The Scottish Government encourages wind farm developers to make an annual payment to local areas impacted by the building of a new project. This is paid directly by the wind farm’s owner to the community which hosts the turbines and is used to support local projects. The payments — known as community benefit funds — are often viewed as a form of compensation for the visual impacts on environments that wind farms have, as well as the disruption experienced by nearby residents throughout the construction and operation of the farm. They are also considered to be a way of ensuring that part of the wealth produced by Scotland’s energy resources is locally owned and used to benefit local people. Scotland’s offshore wind farms — which are valued at £889m — are responsible for only 0.7 per cent of community benefit payments, despite making up nearly ten per cent of wind energy capacity. Campaigners argued that the figures added to the “overwhelming evidence” that Scotland’s offshore wind has been “exploited not for national benefit, and certainly not for the benefit of coastal communities, but for the benefit of corporations”. But the renewable sector told The Ferret that focusing on community benefit payments would be “doing a disservice to an industry which is about to transform the fortunes of Scotland’s coastal communities forever” through investment in supply chains. Initiatives supported by community benefit funds include refurbishments of community halls, befriending programmes, bursaries for further education, and energy efficiency schemes. In March 2022, as part of our ‘Priced Out’ series on the cost of living crisis, The Ferret revealed that onshore wind farm owners were paying “loose change” to local communities, even though they are due to produce electricity worth over £3bn this year. Payments from onshore wind still dwarf those made by the offshore industry, however. One offshore wind farm could be paying as little as £55 to communities per installed megawatt each year. Wind farms producing £3bn of energy to pay ‘loose change’ to Scots while fuel bills soar The Scottish Government recommends that companies building onshore wind farms pay £5000 per installed megawatt to the local community annually. It has not set a recommended yearly rate for offshore projects. This is despite Highland Council asking it to consider one as far back as 2016. Although community benefit payments are voluntary, they have become a well-established part of renewable energy projects. The Crown Estate — which manages the seabed that wind farms are built on — describes them as “essential” if operators are to be considered “a good neighbour” to coastal towns. They are also separate from money paid to Crown Estate Scotland to lease parts of the sea bed, and from other supply chain benefits — such as employment — which accompany the wind farm. Scottish Labour MSP, Monica Lennon, argued that the size of the payments showed the owners of Scotland’s wind farms need to “realign their moral compass and give communities what they deserve”. Monica Lennon MSP, Scottish Labour This is pocket change from an industry estimated to be worth nearly £1bn a year. Lennon said: “I’m astonished to learn that a measly £150,000 has been paid in community benefits from offshore wind farms over the last year. “This is pocket change from an industry estimated to be worth nearly £1bn a year. It is appalling that big energy firms are raking in eye-watering profits while many people choose between heating and eating.” According to Robin McAlpine, head of strategic development at the think tank Common Weal, the Scottish Government’s “whole strategy” on offshore wind has so far ...
Low earners in Scotland face paying more than half of their salary on rent, while middle earners could be paying more than a third, analysis of nearly 4,500 rental listings by The Ferret has found. Our research revealed a ‘postcode lottery’ for low earners, who could spend less than a quarter or more than half their wages on the cheapest local rents, depending on where they live. Middle earners could spend a fifth of their salary on rent in some areas, or nearly triple that in others. Median-priced flats in Edinburgh – the biggest and most unaffordable rental market – could consume 58 per cent of a local middle earner’s wage, or 97 per cent of a low earner’s wage. Campaigners and politicians said our investigation illustrates how unaffordable renting has become in Scotland’s “increasingly broken housing market”. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation stressed that a third of Scotland’s private renters – around 250,000 people – already live in poverty. Property experts confirmed that dwindling rental stock is increasing competition and pushing up rent prices as landlords sell up amidst record house prices. Nationwide Building Society data shared with The Ferret also shows that homes sold to first time buyers in Scotland last June cost, on average, 3.7 times the average national earnings. Since then, house prices have surged further. Developers, letting agents and landlords are making “insane” profits, argued the tenant’s union, Living Rent. The most recent accounts from house builders active in Scotland showed collective pre-tax profits of more than £3bn. The Scottish Government said it had made a “clear commitment” to introducing rent caps in the current parliamentary term as part of its new deal for tenants consultation. But Scottish Labour warned of rents “spiralling out of control” with “record breaking increases”. Both Labour and Living Rent urged the government to introduce rent controls immediately. Mark Griffin MSP, Labour’s housing spokesperson The SNP must move forward with plans for rent controls as a matter of urgency, and alongside a real plan to fix Scotland’s increasingly broken housing market. To get a picture of the rental market, The Ferret analysed 4,467 Scottish rental property listings advertised on 16 January via property search engine, Nestoria. In this snapshot, the average monthly rent was £775, with two-bed properties the most common option. Renters could typically pay £600 for a one-bed, £750 for a two-bed, £950 for a three-bed and £1,400 for a four-bed. Comparing local earning statistics from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) against local rents showed that letting is most unaffordable in Edinburgh. For example, the capital’s median – or middle – earners could spend 58 per cent of their salary on the median rent, or 31 per cent on the cheapest. In Glasgow, median earners could lose 38 per cent of their earnings on median rents, or 24 per cent on the cheapest. Middle earners in East Lothian, Stirling and East Dunbartonshire could spend 36 per cent of their wages on the median rent, or 23-29 per cent on the cheapest. Comparatively, median earners in East Ayrshire or Renfrewshire could spend just 20 per cent of their salary on the median rent, or 15-16 per cent on the cheapest. Rents most unaffordable to the lowest paid For Scotland’s lowest earners, even the cheapest local lets in some areas could consume the bulk of their salaries. Edinburgh’s lowest paid could lose 52 per cent of their earnings on renting one of the capital's cheapest properties. Renting a median-priced flat could consume 97 per cent. In East Lothian, low earners could spend 46 per cent of their wages on the cheapest rents, or 57 per cent on the median. The cheapest to median rent prices for low earners in Midlothian could take up 44-50 per cent of their wages, and 42-66 per cent in East Dunbartonshire. Rufus Boverie, Living Rent Up and down the country, we hear of tenants struggling and being driven into poverty by sky-high rents. ...
As the cost of living crisis continues to bite a recent survey showed that 90 per cent of the public were concerned about rising prices. The crisis was debated on the BBC’s Debate Night programme, with Anas Sarwar criticising the Scottish Government for not doing enough to help people in this country. “Water charges are going up – a decision by the Scottish Government; rail fares are going up – a decision by the Scottish Government. We chose to take that money that came from the UK treasury and replicate the Rishi Sunak model of giving people £3.75 a week to help them with their bills.” Ferret Fact Service looked at these claims. Water and Rail Decisions Claim: “Water charges are going up – a decision by the Scottish Government. Rail fares are going up – a decision by the Scottish Government.” Water supply is provided by Scottish Water, a publicly-owned company. It is regulated by the Water Industry Commission for Scotland (WICS), and is answerable to Scottish Government ministers. Water bills in Scotland are set yearly. In February 2022, Scottish Water announced water and waste water services charges would rise by 4.2 per cent in 2022-23. Increases in charges are set within maximum limits set by WICS. Between 2021 and 2027 this is set at no more than two per cent higher than the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) which measures inflation. Fact check: UK Government claim about employment levels is false Scottish Water said this increase would “mean an average bill increase of 31p per week”. Those who receive discounts on council tax can also receive reductions in the cost of their water. The bills for both council tax and household water charges are collected at the same time. Water supply is devolved to the Scottish Parliament, meaning the Scottish Government is ultimately in charge of decisions on Scotland’s water. The Scottish Government also has the power to mitigate increases in cost of living, as it has done with the £150 cost of living award, which reduced council tax bills. Scotrail returned to full public ownership in April 2022, ending 25 years of privatisation. Price rises are set by the Scottish Government. The latest price rise was announced by transport minister Graeme Dey in December 2021. Peak and off-peak regulated fares were increased by 3.8 per cent, in line with inflation in July 2021’s retail price index (RPI). This is the highest increase since 2012. Ferret Fact Service verdict: True Sarwar is right to say that both rail fares and water charges are increasing, although both remain within levels of inflation. Both rail fares and water charges are devolved to the Scottish Government. Replicating the Model Claim: “[The Scottish Government] chose to take that money that came from the UK treasury and replicate the Rishi Sunak model of giving people £3.75 a week to help them with their bills.” In this claim, Anas Sarwar is referring to the UK’s council tax rebate of £150, which was announced in February 2022 and came into effect in April. This was part of a wider rebate, but the council tax refund applied to households in England in council tax bands A to D. A similar scheme was announced by the Scottish Government, which also gave households in council tax bands A to D, or those who were eligible for council tax reductions, a £150 discount on council tax bills. This scheme, called the Cost of Living Award, did not directly take into account people’s earnings, and was a flat one-off rebate on council tax bills. Sarwar’s claim the Scottish Government had given people “£3.75 a week” is calculated by dividing the £150 payment by 40 weeks, to approximate the 10 months that council tax bills are paid in each year. The first part of the claim refers to the Scottish Government taking “money that came from the UK Treasury” to pay for the cost of living award. However, there was some controversy about whether the UK’s £150 payment would result in extra funding for the Scottish Government through the Barnett formula. Claim S...
Climate pledges by eight of Europe and America’s biggest oil and gas companies are “grossly insufficient” to limit global warming to a safe level, new research has found. The study — conducted by campaign group Oil Change International (OCI) and 35 international partners — found that despite a raft of new promises in the last two years, none of the firms met “the bare minimum” level of action needed to achieve targets set by the 2015 Paris Agreement. Instead, the oil and gas giants are involved in over 200 new fossil fuel projects between 2022 and 2025. These could produce the same amount of climate emissions as 77 coal-fired power plants would throughout their lifetimes. OCI argued that this was proof that the firms’ climate pledges were designed to disinform and distract, not seriously confront the climate crisis”. The UK oil and gas industry told The Ferret that it has “put itself at the centre of a homegrown energy transition” and will be investing “billions” in low-carbon technologies over the next ten years. The report – called the ‘Big Oil Reality Check’ – measured BP, Chevron, Eni, Equinor, ExxonMobil, Repsol, Shell, and Total against 10 criteria needed to limit warming to no more than 1.5 degrees, the target set by governments in Paris. Two insurance companies rule out covering new North Sea fields The criteria included analysing the firms’ level of ambition to “keep fossil fuels in the ground”. They were also graded on how their commitments would impact on the rights of workers and indigenous communities. All eight of the companies’ plans were considered “grossly insufficient” overall, with Chevron and Exxon considered “grossly insufficient” on all criteria. It is considered imperative that global temperature rises are limited to 1.5 degrees if the planet is to avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. A host of international scientists last month produced a report for the United Nations showing that emissions from fossil fuels — and oil and gas in particular — need to decline immediately if the 1.5 degree target is to be achieved. Meanwhile, British researchers found that wealthy countries need to end oil and gas production completely by 2034 for the world to have just a 50 per cent chance of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees. Despite this, global oil demand has rebounded to pre-pandemic levels in the last two years. Oil and gas giants are also posting record profits after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine caused a spike in the prices of oil and gas. David Tong, Oil Change International Investors and governments must step up, and help us all break free from the unstable boom-bust cycle of the fossil fuel economy. David Tong, lead author of the report and a campaign manager at OCI, said this was evidence that the “companies that have done most to cause the climate crisis cannot be trusted to meaningfully confront it”. Tong said: “Big oil and gas companies’ climate pledges and plans appear to be designed to disinform and distract, not to seriously confront the climate crisis. “They will not manage their own decline. Investors and governments must step up, and help us all break free from the unstable boom-bust cycle of the fossil fuel economy.” Mike Tholen, sustainability director at Offshore Energies UK which represents the UK offshore oil and gas sector and the eight companies named in the OCI report, said that the industry is “committed to change”. Tholen said: “The sector has placed itself at the centre of a homegrown energy transition through the North Sea Transition Deal – a blueprint for helping the UK reach its climate and energy security goals. “Through the deal, our members have pledged to reach net zero by 2050 (2045 in Scotland), to halve its emissions over the next decade and to invest billions in low carbon solutions like CO2 capture, electrification, and hydrogen to help the country wean off oil and gas. “They are doing all this while continuing to produce the oil and gas we still need, albeit in declin...
Migrant workers on Scottish fishing boats claim to have suffered physical and racial abuse, with some claiming they were forced to work 20 hour shifts while earning just £3.51 an hour. A new report cites interviews with people from India, Sri Lanka, Ghana, Indonesia, and the Philippines, who have worked on UK fishing vessels. Some of the interviewees claimed they were exploited and earned as little as £400 per month. More than a third – 35 per cent – of the workers, aka fishers, claimed they were subjected to physical violence on a regular basis. One in five said they did not have a signed copy of their contract. Researchers at the University of Nottingham Rights Lab said their report – called Letting Exploitation off the hook – revealed evidence of “illegal practices” within the fishing industry as well as poor working conditions that have “seemingly been normalised”. Scottish fishing organisations said they “deplore and condemn bad practice” and people being badly treated, regardless of their nationality or immigration status. They also said the report is “not representative of the situation across the UK”. Chris Williams at the International Transport Workers’ Federation “.the transit visa system which is being used to bring migrant workers into the UK but actually acts to put them at risk of labour exploitation and abuse.” The report cites 18 Scottish ports that migrant fishers interviewed for the survey had contact with. They included Lerwick, Oban, Peterhead, Scalloway, Troon, Ullapool and Scrabster. Some interviewees related stories of extreme violence to researchers, with one man describing being beaten while the skipper’s son yelled racial slurs. Two people reported graphic and extreme sexually violent acts. Concerns about the treatment of migrant fishers in and around Peterhead and Fraserburgh, Scotland, were raised previously. A 2008 report from the International Transport Workers’ Federation highlighted alleged crimes against migrant workers, including exploitation, poor pay, abuse, intimidation and the use of violence The University of Nottingham’s report makes similar claims. It also says transit visa loopholes are being used to exploit migrant fishers on fishing vessels. The UK relies on fishers from non-EU countries but people from these countries have no automatic legal entitlement to work in the UK. Fishing boat owners apply for transit visas on the basis that their vessel operates “wholly or mainly” outside UK territorial waters, defined as more than 12 nautical miles from shore. Asylum seeking children missed months of school while in overcrowded B&Bs Migrant fishers using those visas are required to work a “majority” of their time beyond territorial waters, and have no legal authority to “enter” the UK when returning to port. As a result, the report says, they are forced to live onboard the vessels for up to a year, despite accommodation on fishing boats usually being unsuitable for long-term stays. There were 124 people interviewed for the study including crew from vessels registered in Scotland. The Treatment of Migrant Workers Dr Jess Sparks, author of the report who is based at the University Of Nottingham Rights Lab said: “Exploitative practices are widespread and endemic on vessels. Long hours for poor wages are endemic. It is well known that you can pay migrants less.” The Seafarers’ Charity’s chief executive officer Catherine Spencer said she was “shocked and saddened” at the treatment of migrant fishing crew revealed in the research. Calling on the fishing industry to act swiftly to “stamp out the abhorrent treatment” of workers, she added: “I am sure that many people, including owners of fishing businesses and other stakeholders, will share our concerns about the treatment of migrant workers in the UK fishing industry. We stand ready to play our role in supporting improvements.” Julie Carlton, head of seafarer safety and health at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said: “We will continu...
A leading figure of a Scots far-right group used a private chat group to recruit neo-Nazis who posed with weapons, shared a bomb-making manual, quoted a mass murderer, and said members should kill “for the greater good”, The Ferret can reveal. Kenny Smith, Patriotic Alternative (PA) Scotland’s organiser, told users in a Telegram group called Scottish Identity that all “true” National Socialists – or Nazis – should join PA. We were invited into the group by one of its users after posing as a neo-Nazi on a far-right chat forum. Among the content shared by some in the group were guides to making improvised landmines and “automatic and concealable firearms”, a violent combat guide, and military tactics for white supremacists. Smith promised to contact one of the chat group’s members, who we can identify as Hadden Adam, of Elgin, Moray. Adam told one user who accused him of “endorsing terrorism” that “violence is the only solution”. Another member who said he was “active” in PA is Stirling-based Shaun McAlonan – also known as Shaun Caldwell – who we exposed in 2021. McAlonan said he was ready for “guerilla warfare” and claimed to have a Forth Valley “militia” consisting of “ex forces” men. Both Adam and McAlonan shared images of themselves posing with weapons and performing the Nazi salute whilst wearing military uniforms, as well as racist, anti-semitic and anti-LGBT+ content throughout 2020 and 2021. The Scottish Greens said: “This grotesque, fascistic content uncovered by The Ferret should be condemned by all decent people and is worthy of close examination by Police Scotland.” David Lawrence, a senior researcher at HOPE not hate said PA “is a hard-line fascist organisation” and claimed that “high-ranking members have had links to a now-banned Nazi terror group.” He added: “That PA members found a home in this violent and extreme chat group is therefore shocking, but not surprising. A militant style of politics has spread into the UK’s far-right fringes, a threat that must be taken seriously.” Terrorist content One chat user shared a quote from the white supremacist terrorist who murdered 51 people at a New Zealand mosque in 2019. “Violence is power and violence is the reality of history,” the quote included. Another user complained that such attacks made “gun laws stricter and life harder for our guys”. Adam replied: “The more underground the better. This isn’t a movement for cowards.” Adam also forwarded a post urging white supremacists to resist “anyone trying to deradicalise you”. “Anyone advising you to delay or avoid taking NECESSARY ACTION is a selfish coward,” it said. “The racewar is accelerating regardless of your position. accept reality, stand up and fight before it’s too late.” A spokesperson for the Scottish Greens This grotesque, fascistic content uncovered by The Ferret should be condemned by all decent people and is worthy of close examination by Police Scotland. Another user challenged Adam’s post. “Endorsing terrorism as if that’s going to save our people, don’t be daft,” they argued. “Violence is the only solution,” Adam replied. “It’s not my fault pussies like you are holding us back.” In a different conversation, McAlonan asked the group: “Do you believe we should kill people for the greater good?” Another user replied “yes”. Weapons collections and military tactics Adam shared a picture of his collection 13 knives – one of which featured the Nazi swastika – two axes and a knuckleduster. Another user posted an image of himself posing with a machete. McAlonan posted images of a large knife he said was “for skinning game”, a sword, a bow and a club for “when the riots come to Stirling and some commies [communists] are needing removed”. McAlonan said the bow, which was the “next best thing to a gun”, was “for just in case and for being out in the bush”. He shared an image of him holding his bow with the caption “oot hunting commies”. Another user, called Johnny Alba, said “we used to have some very powerful...
All eyes have been on the UK’s employment levels since Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic hit the economy in quick succession. Claiming they were rallying to protect the impact of Covid-19 lockdown measures on the job market, Westminster introduced policies such as the job retention scheme to curb staff cuts amid the health crisis. Now that Scotland and the rest of the UK has removed most of the lockdown measures as it moves into the next phase of dealing with the virus, cabinet ministers — including Boris Johnson himself — have claimed employment levels are not only stable, but that the number of people employed is now at a higher level than before the Covid-19 pandemic began. On Tuesday, the UK government’s secretary of state for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, told BBC Breakfast that employment figures weren’t just healthy, but the number of people employed now was “at an even higher rate than pre-covid. Speaking to the national broadcaster, he claimed: “It is good to see that we have now got employment at an even higher rate than pre-Covid.” May 17, 2022 Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis tells #BBCBreakfast the UK Government will 'take the action' they need to change the post-Brexit trading arrangements if they can't reach an agreement with the European Union. Ferret Fact Service looked into this claim, and found it to be false. The claim: Employment is at a higher rate than pre-Covid. According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) employment figures from December 2019-February 2020, before any Covid-19 cases were reported in the UK, the employment rate was estimated at 76.6 per cent, which was a record high. This totalled 33.07 million people in employment, according to the ONS. On the same day Lewis made the claim, the ONS published employment figures for the first three months of 2022. The UK’s employment rate was estimated at 75.7 per cent between January-March 2022, making the employment rate 0.9 per cent lower than the period ending February 2020. Early estimates for April 2022 said 29.5 million people were in employment, meaning 504,000 less people are employed now compared to pre-pandemic levels. In a statement on the findings, ONS’s director of economic statistics Darren Morgan said: “Total employment, while up on the quarter, remains below its pre-pandemic level. Since the start of the pandemic, around half a million more people have completely disengaged from the labour market.” The number of vacancies in Feb-April also rose to a new record of 1.2m, up 33,700 on the previous quarter and 499,300. The nuts and bolts While the claim may not stack up, the ONS said some records were broken during the latest report. There were fewer unemployed people during the first quarter of 2022 than there were job vacancies for the first time since records began. Unemployment is at its lowest rate since 1974, equivalent to 3.7 per cent. While all people in paid work, including those who are self-employed—remains 504,000 below pre-pandemic levels, there are 530,000 more payrolled employees than in February 2020. Even with this figure taken into account, employment levels are still 0.2 per cent lower than before the health crisis began. The impact The office of statistics regulation has written to the government regarding the claim made by Lewis and several members of the cabinet, including the Prime Minister himself. Ed Humpherson, the director general for regulation, wrote that it was “disappointing” that “some earlier statements” made by the government “continued to refer to payroll employment as if describing total employment, despite contact from our office and from others.” Ferret Fact Service verdict: False A comparison of current employment figures to the latest available statistics pre-pandemic show that there are 504,000 less people employed than there were in February 2020, just before the first case of coronavirus was recorded. The employment rate is currently 0.9 per cent lower than it was at the begi...
Kharkiv has been at the heart of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine since March. As Russian troops get pushed back east, The Ferret reports on what’s left behind. Everyone has an image in their head of those vast, monolithic Soviet housing estates. The spalny rayon, or sleeping district. Block after concrete panel block, as far as the eye can see. Saltivka is one of the biggest such districts. Sprawling over Kharkiv’s northern edge, it is home to more than half a million people. Imagine the scale of this, and now imagine standing in the middle of it, and seeing that every single block of flats around you is either burned, or bombed, or both. The blackened shells of 16-storey towers loom on either side. We walk through a nice new children’s playground, feeling the glass splinter and crunch under our feet. Smoke is still pouring from the windows of the block ahead of us. The intermittent thud of artillery is not that far away. It is horribly exposed here. Not only is Russia itself just 20 miles north, but the Russian army was until recently camped out on the outskirts, throwing everything at these northern districts. There are no people, no cars except the twisted wrecks outside every apartment block. Very few birds even, despite the greenery and the pleasant spring weather. A dead pigeon lies on a path. Soviet-era names carry a deep irony now. In Saltivka we pick our way through tree trunks and rubble, down ‘Friendship of the Peoples’ Street, a Stalinist euphemism popularised in the 1930s, still carrying significance for the older generation who largely believed in the ‘brotherly’ relationship between Russia and Ukraine. These two phrases I’ve now heard countless times in the last three months. Ukrainians spit them out, bitter and contemptuous – so much for that brotherly nation – as they gesture at their ruined homes. We do find people, eventually – an old couple resting on kitchen chairs outside their block, which is spattered with shrapnel, windows smashed. At the entrance to their basement, where they sleep, a small icon is fixed with a length of wire. There is no water or gas. They are cooking on a fire with bits of wood, here in the open air. The old woman shows me her cooking pot. It has a round hole, the size of a 50p coin, seared through the side. Shrapnel. She is, somehow, laughing bitterly at this. She calls me my sunshine and just shrugs when I ask why they haven’t left Saltivka. A black cat she’s picked up nuzzles her face adoringly. “I feed ten of them,” she says, as if that settles it. Kharkiv, a city built on trade, was famous for its markets, and Russia has now bombed many of them. Saltivka’s is no exception – just a long row of twisted metal frames. The road here is pitted with small craters. “Cluster bomb”, my colleague says, pointing. South of Saltivka, on the big arterial road, is a metro station, ‘Heroes of Labour’. This area has also been attacked from the air since day one, and underground, the station’s platform is lined with people. Galina, in her late fifties, shows me her spot near the staircase. Here she sits on a pile of blankets and teaches French online; this is her life now. Her ‘neighbour’ Anna, 70 years old, is sporting a tartan waistcoat. Her eyes sparkle when I say I’m from Scotland. “Just for you!” she chirps, doing a little twirl. In the underpass that runs under the huge boulevard intersection, loaves of bread and plastic tubs of soup have been placed on a trestle table. People stand around in the semi-darkness, smoking, silent and tense, waiting for the explosions overhead to stop. It’s been nearly three months of this and the exhaustion is etched on their faces. A giant crater A university, an appeals court, a fire station, and a nursery school were also on Russia’s list. Perhaps their aim really is that bad, as people here joke. Or perhaps of course the deliberate targeting of civilian infrastructure and residential buildings is a tactic of terror, just as it was in Syria, in G...
Councillors from four rival political parties have called on Scottish local government pension funds to end their investments in fossil fuel companies. Seventeen newly elected councillors from across Scotland signed a pledge calling for divestment in the lead up to the local government elections on 6 May. They included members from the SNP, the Greens, Labour and the Lib Dems. A further 13 newly elected councillor members in Edinburgh also backed a specific call for the Lothian Pension Fund (LPF) to drop its fossil fuel investments. These names are currently under embargo with Divest Lothian expected to report them later this week. Environmentalists want the funds to end their financing of fossil fuels because their use for heating, electricity and fuel is one of the main drivers of the climate crisis. Scottish local government pensions currently have £1.2bn invested in fossil fuel firms. Friends of the Earth Scotland told The Ferret that divestment from fossil fuels was a “powerful act of solidarity” with global communities facing the brunt of the climate crisis. It was “fantastic” that the call for divestment had resonated “across the political spectrum”, it added. The pledge signed by the new councillors was set up by the campaign group, UK Divest. It also garnered support from 363 candidates in England and 61 in Wales. Ric Lander, divestment campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland Divesting from fossil fuels is also a powerful act of solidarity. Communities across the world are threatened by extreme weather, rising sea and disease due to the climate crisis which is being driven by fossil fuels. In total, local government pensions in the UK have nearly £10bn worth of shares in companies which produce oil, natural gas and coal. According to UK Divest, these shares are “contradicting local, national and international commitments to tackle climate change”. All eleven Scottish local government pension funds still have fossil fuel firms in their investment portfolios. Across Scotland, these make up 2.5 per cent of the total investments made by the funds. Strathclyde Pension Fund (SPF) accounted for the largest share of Scottish local government pension fund’s stakes in fossil fuel companies. Scots pension fund refuses to divest from Russian bank Its investments – valued at £508m – made it the second biggest funder of the firms among all local government pension funds in Britain, behind only Greater Manchester. Scotland’s second-biggest local government pension fund – Lothian Pension Fund (LPF) –reportedly has £165m currently invested in the sector. Divestment has support from the two biggest parties on Edinburgh City Council, the SNP and Labour. Ric Lander, divestment campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said that the group would be working with the councillors to “end the money pipeline between councils and the fossil fuel industry”. Lander said: “It is fantastic to see the call for fossil fuel divestment resonate with councillors from across the political spectrum. "Divesting from fossil fuels is also a powerful act of solidarity. Communities across the world are threatened by extreme weather, rising sea and disease due to the climate crisis which is being driven by fossil fuels." The Role of Local Pension Funds A spokesperson for Strathclyde Pension Fund said: “SPF is one of the first large investors in the world to commit to developing a set of minimum standards for firms as part of its Climate Strategy – and to have agreed to include divestment as a tool where these standards are not met. “In the meantime, the fund’s investments in fossil fuels have been steadily reducing for a decade and are already dwarfed by its interests in renewable energy.” The spokesperson also pointed out that SPF is considerably larger than most pension funds, meaning its exposure to fossil fuels might actually be smaller in relative terms compared with other funds. A Lothian Pension Fund spokesperson said: “We welcome the focus bein...
Scottish ministers have been accused of breaking their promise to uphold European environmental rules by “legalising” the dumping of dead fish at sea. Campaigners say that new proposals for regulating the discarding of fish which have been accidentally caught are “wasteful”, “incredibly short-sighted” and will damage fish stocks. More fish could be thrown away, they warn. The Scottish Government says that its plans are aimed at “simplifying and improving” the rules to increase accountability and confidence. The fishing industry stresses the importance of minimising unwanted catches and ensuring all fish caught are accounted for. In the aftermath of Brexit, Scottish ministers promised to abide by the European Union’s environmental standards. The 2021-22 programme for government included a “commitment to align with EU standards and laws” and the Scottish Parliament passed a bill in 2020 to ensure “continuity” with EU law. In March the Scottish Government published a public consultation on future fish catching policy, asking for views by 7 June. It claimed it wanted “to adjust and simplify existing exemptions and discarding rules” to take account of different fishing practices. The consultation proposed changes to the EU rules obliging boats to land accidentally caught fish, known as bycatch. Fish brought ashore have to be included in the legal quotas that limit catches to try and prevent stocks from being depleted. The EU’s “landing obligation” was introduced in 2015 after controversy over boats dumping large amounts of unwanted dead fish at sea. According to the EU, between seven and 10 million tonnes of commercial fisheries catches were discarded every year around the globe. The Scottish Government is now planning to alter the landing obligation in different ways for different boats. “We are proposing deviation on certain technical aspects from EU rules on landing,” its consultation said, while maintaining EU “principles”. The plan will allow small, juvenile fish to be discarded as long as they are below certain sizes. An exemption will also be introduced allowing adult cod, haddock, whiting and other whitefish to be discarded if the cost of landing them is “disproportional”. Greens ‘sold out to the devil’ on fishing in pact with SNP But the campaign group, Open Seas, has attacked the government for backtracking on its commitment to uphold EU laws. The proposals “take a giant leap backwards by proposing to legalise discarding,” it said in a blog. Plans to legitimise throwing away juvenile fish, were “incredibly short sighted” and “would constitute an incredible waste of our public fish resource,” the group argued. “Juvenile fish are the future generations of adult fish. Killing them before they have had a chance to breed is like harvesting a field of wheat that is still in flower.” The proposed rule changes for adult fish would “hammer another nail into the fate of our collapsed inshore fish stocks,” Open Seas warned. The existing rules banning discarding were “needed to prevent overfishing and should be retained,” it said. Open Seas has launched a campaign asking people to object to the government’s plans. “It’s deeply concerning to see a supposedly green-leaning Scottish Government backsliding on European environmental laws,” the group’s head of policy, Phil Taylor, told The Ferret. “By pushing these proposals, the Scottish Government is now breaking its promise to keep pace with European standards — a move that will see it becoming increasingly out of step with the global sustainability agenda.” Phil Taylor, Open Seas It’s deeply concerning to see a supposedly green-leaning Scottish Government backsliding on European environmental laws. The Sustainable Inshore Fisheries Trust, which campaigns to control damaging fishing practices, agreed that discarding was a significant problem. But ministers’ proposals would “increase the number of circumstances when fishers are permitted to throw fish and non-fish species, dead, back ...
Nearly 600 unaccompanied children arrived in Scotland over three years, including 88 who had been trafficked, and at least 11 young people have gone missing from care, The Ferret can reveal. The missing include six children plus four young people aged 18 years old and one aged 20, according to the Scottish Refugee Council (SRC). The number of children going missing from local authority care across the UK has risen by 25 per cent. Charities claim the UK is in the grip of a “child protection crisis” and more needs to be done to safeguard vulnerable unaccompanied children. The UK Government said local authorities are “responsible for all looked-after children in their area” and have a statutory duty to protect children. The new figures obtained by The Ferret follow the UK Government’s Nationality and Borders Bill finally being passed as law at Westminster. Critics claim the new legislation – dubbed by some as the ‘anti-refugee bill’ – will increase the likelihood of trafficked children going missing. Trafficking is where children and young people are tricked, forced or persuaded to leave their homes and transported to be exploited, forced to work or sold. Children are trafficked for sexual exploitation, benefit fraud, forced marriage, forced labour and domestic slavery. Patricia Durr, chief executive of ECPAT UK Our report shows just how much more at risk trafficked and unaccompanied children are, and should prompt action from the government, local authorities, police and all safeguarding partners to ensure that these children are afforded more protection It was reported last week that child asylum seekers are fleeing London out of fear of being sent to Rwanda, as part of UK Government policy on immigration. The multi-million-pound deal between the UK and Rwanda, will see asylum seekers in the UK flown 4,000 miles away to have their asylum claims processed by the east African country.The Home Office said unaccompanied children will not be among those deported to Rwanda, but charities fear under-18s could still be caught up in plans. Refugee charities also warn that the Bill reduces protections at a time when Russia’s war in Ukraine has displaced at least 4.3 million children, who may be at risk from trafficking and exploitation. Minors from Vietnam and Afghanistan – among other nationalities – have been trafficked to Scotland in recent years. Last year five children feared to be trafficking victims were discovered in Scotland. Children and young people under the age of 18 who arrive in Scotland without parents or guardians are defined as Unaccompanied Children (UC). The Scottish Government says that each month “as many as five UCs arrive in Scotland, some of whom claim asylum, and in many cases may have been trafficked”. The charity ECPAT UK (Every Child Protected Against Trafficking UK) told The Ferret that 156 unaccompanied children arrived in Scotland in 2018, followed by 221 in 2019, and 209 in 2020. At least 88 children had been trafficked, the charity added. ECPAT obtained the information by submitting freedom of information requests to every local authority in the UK. It found that one in three trafficked children go missing from local authority care in England – a 25 per cent increase on 2018. Scottish local authorities were asked to provide figures on missing children but ECPAT told The Ferret that councils “weren’t able to give information”. Scottish Refugee Council – which runs the Scottish Guardianship Service to support unaccompanied and trafficked children – disclosed that 11 youngsters went missing from 2017 to 2020. Asylum seeking children missed months of school while in overcrowded B&Bs ECPAT’s latest report, in conjunction with Missing People, is called When Harm Remains. It is an update on trafficked and unaccompanied children going missing from care in the UK. The figures show the number of children in care suspected of being victims of trafficking or modern slavery rose by 22 per cent, from 960 in 2018 to...
The Scottish Conservatives have routinely criticised the Scottish Government’s approach to justice matters in recent years, with a particular focus on sentencing for violent crime. The party’s shadow justice secretary, Jamie Greene, is proposing a bill which aims to increase the rights of victims in Scotland. On Twitter he suggested that currently, those convicted of rape and domestic violence, can receive community payback sentences rather than prison time, and there were tens of thousands of hours of community payback hours uncompleted. CLAIM: “It’s bad enough that rapists and domestic abusers are being handed community sentences to begin with, but the fact that the equivalent of 76 years’ worth of unpaid work is outstanding is nothing but an insult to victims.” Ferret Fact Service looked into these claims. Claim: “Rapists. are being handed community sentences.” Convictions and sentencing data is collated by the Scottish Government in the Criminal Proceedings statistics each year. The first part of Jamie Greene’s claim is that rapists “are being handed community sentences”. The Scottish Government presents statistics on sentencing for rape and attempted rape together. This shows that community sentences for these crimes are extremely rare. The latest figures show just one community sentence handed down, out of 130 convictions, with the vast majority resulting in prison sentences. According to court data, which has been provided by the Scottish Sentencing Council, there were 35 community payback orders (CPOs) for rape or attempted rape between 2011-12 and 2020-21. Of the 35 CPOs, 26 were given to offenders under the age of 21. The latest data released by the Scottish Government, for 2019-20, shows 98 per cent of those convicted of rape or attempted rape were given a custodial sentence. About 95 per cent of rape and attempted rape convictions have led to prison sentences since 2011-12, the Scottish Government data shows. Government data does not separate out the data for rape and attempted rape, so we cannot say which crime those who were given CPOs as opposed to prison sentences committed. Ferret Fact Service verdict: Mostly False It is very rare for a person convicted of rape or attempted rape to receive anything other than a prison sentence, and there are no statistics which separate out the two offences so we cannot say for sure whether any rapists were given community payback sentences. In the latest figures, only one person convicted of rape or attempted rape was given a community payback sentence. Claim: “domestic abusers. are being handed community sentences.” It is certainly the case that community payback orders (CPOs) are regularly handed down to people who commit domestic abuse crimes. The latest Scottish Government statistics covering 2019-20 suggest it is the most common sentence for those convicted under the domestic abuse act. Ferret Fact Service verdict: True This claim is accurate. Claim: “The equivalent of 76 years’ worth of unpaid work is outstanding. is nothing but an insult to victims.” The second part of Green’s claim relates to uncompleted hours of unpaid work that convicted people are required to do as part of their community payback order. Those with a CPO can be ordered to carry out between 20 and 300 hours of unpaid work. His claim, which was also reported by Scottish media outlets, is that the equivalent of 76 years’ worth of this unpaid work was outstanding. This comes from freedom of information requests sent by the Scottish Conservatives to Scottish councils, asking for the number of “outstanding unpaid work hours that need to be completed as part of Community Payback Orders within the local authority”. The request was for data up to 18 January 18. These figures appear to be accurate up to that date, based on The Ferret’s analysis of the FoI responses provided by the Scottish Conservatives. Greene’s tweet goes on to claim this is “an insult to victims”. It is important to note these figures r...
Anti-racism groups have warned that a far right group which allegedly distributed leaflets in Glasgow’s south side includes “neo-Nazis” trying to “stir up hatred” of migrants. Their claims were made in response to leaflets – passed to The Ferret – allegedly produced by Patriotic Alternative (PA), a far right group opposed to immigration which is recruiting in Scotland. Campaign Against Antisemitism was among groups voicing concern. It warned that far right organisations can potentially divide communities and “poison impressionable minds”. The leaflet was headlined ‘White Britons to be a minority by the 2060s – or Sooner’. It states it was “printed and promoted by Patriotic Alternative” and provides an address in Pudsey, West Yorkshire, which is the same contact address listed on PA’s website. The Ferret was able to download the same leaflet from PA’s website. Exposed: Inside far right group Patriotic Alternative We asked PA to comment in reply to concerns raised about the leaflet but it did not reply to our email. The leaflet was delivered to homes in Pollokshields, an area in the south side of Glasgow, one of the most ethnically diverse places in Scotland. It is where a white youth called Kriss Donald was abducted before being murdered in 2004. The leaflet claims: “Immigration is not enriching Britain – it is making life worse for the vast majority of people. But it isn’t just about waiting lists and rising prices – mass immigration has an effect on our culture, our ways of life and even our safety.” It also claims that Britons are “left stuck in traffic every morning as our roads are grid locked (sic) meaning it takes even longer to get to work”. PA is a white nationalist group based in West Yorkshire whose leader Mark Collett is the former head of the British National Party’s youth wing. Campaign Against Antisemitism Their propaganda, which is designed to stir hatred towards minority groups, including Jewish people, has no place in British society. In 2021 The Ferret revealed that supporters of PA in Scotland included neo-Nazis and former members of the British National Party. Our investigation found they posted racist and antisemitic comments, alongside disturbing images, in a private group on the messaging app, Telegram. Anti-fascism group HOPE not hate claimed recently that PA’s Scottish branch is the most “active and hardline” in the UK. Stirring hatred towards minority groups Commenting on the leaflet, David Lawrence, a senior researcher with HOPE not hate, alleged that PA tries to “hide the true extent of its extremism from the public” and that its supporters include “neo-Nazis”. He added: “For example, the group’s leader has described Hitler as a ‘simple, humble painter’, has recommended Mein Kampf to his audience and hosts a show with a former Ku Klux Klan leader. Their views are disgusting to the overwhelming majority of the British public, however, and whilst we must be wary of their attempts to sow division in our communities, PA remains a highly fringe group.” A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism alleged that PA targets and recruits youths with “racist indoctrination”. The spokesperson added: “Their propaganda, which is designed to stir hatred towards minority groups, including Jewish people, has no place in British society. “We have seen with other far-right organisations how the dissemination of flyers and stickers by their members can escalate into serious crimes. Left unchecked, these activities have the potential to divide communities and poison impressionable minds.” Scottish far right group compiled a list of individuals who oppose racism and fascism Unite Against Fascism said: “The claims made by the Patriotic Alternative are ludicrous. If they were really were serious about the social problems listed on their leaflet then they should be joining and supporting unions fighting cuts to public services and the NHS, working with anti-poverty campaigners fighting fuel poverty – instead they see...
Deliveroo has been accused of making a “hollow and cynical PR move” aimed at preventing its workers from pursuing their rights by signing a “partnership deal” with the GMB union. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
Two global insurance giants have confirmed that they will not provide coverage to controversial new oil and gas fields in the North Sea. The Ferret asked 46 international insurers if they would consider underwriting the Jackdaw gas field, or the Cambo and Rosebank oil fields. The only firms who said they would not cover the projects on climate grounds were Aviva and the Italian firm, Generali. Both have committed to phasing out insurance of oil and gas production to “help drive the transition to a low-carbon, climate resilient economy”. Climate campaigners welcomed the commitment by the companies because insurers “know better than many what fossil fuels are doing to our climate”. They added that by ruling out covering them, the companies had “acknowledged that allowing these new fields to proceed goes against climate science”. The oil and gas industry said that it would be “wildly misguided” to stop insuring new fields, though. It argued that gas would be needed as a back up to renewable energy, while oil is a “key manufacturing component in green products like solar panels and wind turbines”. Seven other insurers have introduced restrictions on their coverage of new oil and gas production since 2020. These companies either did not respond to our enquiry, said they do not comment on individual projects, or do not have significant operations in the UK market. Two other firms – Spanish insurer, Mapfre, and German company, HDI – said they were not currently involved in the insurance of the fields. HDI said this was based more on business than climate considerations, while Mapfre declined to give more information. Insurers invest £6bn in North Sea oil firms while removing cover on climate frontline The other companies contacted either did not respond or said they were not willing to comment on individual projects. Insurance companies play an important part in the financial infrastructure which supports new oil and gas projects. Without insurance to cover companies against environmental risks, new oil and gas exploration cannot go ahead. The oil and gas market is also lucrative for insurance companies. It is estimated that insurers receive £13.7bn each year in premiums from customers in the industry. But contracts between fossil fuel firms and insurers are not made public, meaning it is very difficult to find out which companies are underwriting new projects. There is growing pressure for financial institutions to drop their support for the fossil fuel industry. Calls for divestment have grown louder since the International Energy Agency (IEA) warned in May 2021 that no new fossil fuel projects can go ahead if global warming is to be limited to no more than 1.5 degrees. This was the target of the 2015 Paris Agreement. Recent years have seen a growing number of insurers excluding coverage of the most environmentally damaging fossil fuels. 38 global insurers have excluded or restricted underwriting of new coal mines, while a further 17 have adopted similar policies on tar sands projects. Tessa Khan, Uplift The insurance industry knows better than many what fossil fuels are doing to our climate, so this is a welcome move by these companies. Jackdaw, Cambo and Rosebank have provoked opposition from environmental groups because of their size, and the fact they are being progressed despite the IEA announcement. Jackdaw’s owner, Shell, unveiled new plans for the field in March 2022 with a view to getting production up and running by 2025. The project was rejected on environmental grounds by the UK Government in October 2021. Shell claims that the field will produce enough gas to heat 1.4 million British homes, and will help wean the UK off foreign gas imports. Cambo – which was the subject of fierce opposition from campaigners in 2021 – was recently purchased by Ithaca Energy. The company has links to illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank. Ithaca has pledged to develop the field after it was put on hold by its previous owner, in...
Asylum children in Scotland have spent months living in overcrowded B&B rooms with their families and struggled to access schooling, due to long delays with the asylum screening process. Charities claim that since January this year over 30 asylum seeking children and their families have been accommodated for between 50 and 174 days – almost six months – by Home Office contractor Mears Group, usually sharing one room with their parents and siblings of all ages.Under Scottish housing law, families with children can legally spend no more than seven days in B&B accommodation, as it’s considered unsuitable. But because these families are fleeing violence and persecution in countries including Syria, El Salvador, Iran and Iraq, their housing rights in Scotland are trumped by UK Immigration laws.Families staying at the Glasgow B&B often arrive already traumatised, say campaigners, with the additional uncertainty about their future causing distress. Esther Muchena, services manager at Scottish Refugee Council This is a way of seeing asylum seeking children as totally different from other children. We are not considering here that every child matters. The office of the Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland said the situation breached their human rights and called for proposals for a Scottish asylum system to be considered.The accommodation placement is supposed to be a short stopgap of no more than about two weeks, before a move to a community-based flat to stay while their asylum claims are assessed.However due to severe delays in Home Office screening interviews, which allow families to start the asylum application process, they have found themselves living in limbo.Though meals are provided, families are completely destitute and receive no money or benefits until their claim is accepted. The process is sometimes taking months. They then receive £8 per week.The Home Office told The Ferret that strict protocols meant all children should be registered at school, but it is claimed that last term dozens were not. Grassroots charity Migrants Organising for Rights and Empowerment (MORE) intervened last month when they discovered that multiple families had missed months of schooling, including at least one who had not been at school in Scotland for a whole term.Glasgow City Council says it registered the children as soon as the issue came to light. But MORE claims some children have still not been registered, and is looking for reassurances that new arrivals will not face the same wait.It has managed to fund an iPad for one family. But other charities said families who had been out of school had been left without any devices to help them with online learning, or paper-based learning materials.Safeguarding concerns were also raised with The Ferret. While most children are sharing overcrowded rooms with their parents, some older ones have been given single rooms, which are not always nearby. This, said one charity, was causing “great stress for parents, children and staff in the hotel alike”. Single men and women are also housed in the B&B. Yvonne Blake, MORE Scottish Government’s commitment to end child poverty and its constant mantra that “Refugees are welcome here”. Education is a devolved issue. They should step in and make sure that children are not missing school. Mears said it tries to “use adjacent rooms wherever possible and we would discuss the arrangements with the family”.Others, they said, were finding their health and wellbeing impacted. Two years ago last Thursday, Syrian asylum seeker Adnan Olbeh was found dead in his room at the guest house. He had repeatedly sought help for his mental health.Mears said a weekly NHS clinic was held at the hotel and its Resident Welfare Managers “are required to escalate any mental health concerns”.The Ferret spoke to one parent, whose children had missed months of school due to being at McLay’s Guest House. They were fearful about being identified but said the whole family ...
Animal welfare groups have condemned Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) for continuing to allow fox hunts into public forests which are home to protected species such as otters, wildcats and badgers. The criticism followed a freedom of information (FOI) request to FLS by The Ferret which revealed a fox hunting foot pack was granted access to public land, despite a new government bill which aims to protect foxes from being “chased and killed by packs of dogs”. We revealed in 2020 that foxes were being chased by hounds and shot in public forests, prompting angry responses from wildlife groups. The reply by FLS – which owns a third of Scotland’s forests on behalf of the public –revealed that Three Straths Fox Control Association was given permission to run its hounds through public land earlier this year, south of Inverness. Critics have condemned FLS for continuing to allow this “cruel activity” to take place in Scotland’s public forests. In response FLS said its policy is in line with the law, while a group supportive of fox hunting said threatened species such as capercaillie and curlew “rely on effective fox control”. A foot pack – in contrast to traditional fox hunting with riders on horses – is where a huntsman, accompanied by colleagues acting as beaters, uses hounds to chase foxes out from cover to then be shot. Videos previously released publicly by The League Against Cruel Sports revealed how foot packs operate. They show people digging out foxes from underground to be set upon by hounds, while others encourage the dogs to chase and kill the fleeing animal. Critics want hunting with packs of dogs completely banned in Scotland and are urging government ministers to outlaw foot packs as well as mounted hunts. The Hunting With Dogs (Scotland) Bill – published in February and currently going through the Scottish Parliament – seeks to replace a widely criticised 2002 law which aimed to ban fox hunting in Scotland. Internal FLS emails, obtained by The Ferret, reveal discussions this year between FLS and Three Straths Fox Control Association. In January the association requested permission from FLS to run hounds through public land. But the agency said it needed to “provide a justification as to why you need to control fox’s using foot packs on the national forest estate”. The association’s initial request was refused by FLS in an email on 25 January 2022, which said: “The attached justification report does not provide sufficient detailed evidence for a permission to be granted. “In the permission request, please can you provide specific examples of ongoing issues with predation and locations. You previously informed me that all estates keep records of fox impact, time spent on fox culling and anticipated livestock/game losses.” On 10 February 2022 FLS staff raised the issue of possible offences regarding European protected species (EPS). Its email warned it is an offence to “harass an animal or group of animals” and pointed out the area the fox pack wanted to use would include otters and wildcat. Kirsty Jenkins, OneKind’s policy officer We will be working hard to ensure that the proposed fox hunting ban is just that – a complete ban that does not contain any loopholes to allow fox hunting to continue. FLS also cited the Protection of Badgers Act 1992, which means people cannot damage a badger sett or disturb one if it is occupied. Three Strath replied on 10 February 2022 and said: “In the hypothetical event of something taking place that is not intended, whoever witnessed it would contact the huntsman by radio immediately and the hounds would be recalled. “Extra protection of non-target species is not required because we have had no incidents of them coming under any threat. If that happened obviously changes would have to made but if it isn’t broken why would we be trying to fix it.” FLS granted the association permission to hunt on 22 February. Animal welfare charity, OneKind, said it was “disappointed” to see FLS has cont...
Scotland’s council elections are approaching, with voters across the country set to cast their ballots. Many parties have campaigned on national issues, such as the fallout surrounding ‘partygate’ and ongoing Scottish constitutional debates, on which councils have no direct influence. But what are the actual powers of Scottish councils, and what does voting in council elections directly affect? Ferret Fact Service looked at how Scottish local authorities are organised, elected, what powers they have and how they pay for services they provide. What do local councils look like? Scotland is divided into 32 local authority areas, each of which is governed by a council made up of elected councillors. There is a large variation both in the geographical size and population of different local councils. For example the Highland council area is 427 times the size of Dundee City, while Glasgow has a population of 635,640 and Orkney just 22,400. How are decisions made? The 1,227 elected councillors in Scotland are responsible for making decisions in a similar way to MPs or MSPs, except they govern only their local authority area. These responsibilities include executive decision making such as passing council budgets, scrutinising decisions made by council leaders, as well as how well services are being delivered. They are representives of their ward, meeting constituents and providing support and assistance in areas of local concern. Local authorities are led by the council leader and a civic leader -–known as the Lord Provost in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee. Decision-making in councils takes place on a few different levels. The full council meeting governs the local authority, with all councillors able to debate and take decisions. Certain decisions can only be made in full council meetings, such as electing a council leader or setting annual budgets. Many other policies are decided in committees or subcommittees. These are made up of elected councillors who take collective decisions on specific areas, often informed by non-voting committee members with specialist knowledge drawn from the local community. What powers do councils have? Scotland’s 32 local authorities have a number of longstanding responsibilities and functions which they must provide. The powers of councils can be divided into three main categories: mandatory, permissive and regulatory. Mandatory powers are those things which councils are legally-bound to provide. These include: Councils provide primary and secondary schooling as well as nursery provision. Providing social care for old people, people with disabilities, mental health and addiction issues. Waste management, including bin collection, providing public bins and dealing with litter in public areas. Implementing recycling schemes, and waste reduction. Road maintenance, such as dealing with potholes and improving cycling lanes. Responsibility over local public transport, and dealing with parking fines. Setting business standards, such as issuing licences and permits. Council housing, homelessness services and dealing with planning applications. Permissive powers are not considered necessary, but councils usually provide: Cultural activities, such as museums, galleries, public monuments, and cultural events in the council area. Promotion of local sports, and providing access to leisure facilities and sports centres, as well as public facilities such as tennis courts or football pitches. Some form of economic development, such as support for local business and job creation. Regulatory powers give councils power over: Licensing and permits, such as for taxis or those wishing to sell alcohol. Trading standards and environmental health, and the power to fine those who do not adhere to the law. Scotland’s ageing population has been identified as a problem affecting councils, as they need to shift the services they provide, as well as overall increases in demand for council services and inflation-based pr...
With the cost of living crisis growing, debate around the need for affordable and social housing has been intensifying, with a recent survey finding it is one of the top priorities for Scots. The issue is of particular relevance to political parties campaigning ahead of Scottish local elections on 5 May.Ahead of the vote, the SNP made a claim on Twitter about its housing record in government on 29 April. SNP Twitter We’ve delivered over 105,000 affordable homes across Scotland. Ferret Fact Service looked at this claim and found it True. Evidence Affordable housing is defined as housing of a reasonable quality that is affordable to people on modest incomes. It can include social and mid-market rentals, shared ownership and discounted housing. But there is no one agreed definition of affordability. In Scotland, affordable homes are delivered by the Scottish Government’s Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP). It firstly provides funding to allow housing providers to deliver homes for social rent. This is housing owned and managed by public authorities (mainly councils) and housing associations. These are often known as council houses. Twenty-six Scottish councils provide council homes. The other six – including Glasgow City Council, the country’s largest local authority – have transferred the homes they owned to registered social landlords (RSL). Most of the budget for the AHSP is used for new build housing, although it can also be used for the rehabilitation of existing housing and purchases of existing housing. Also counted in the AHSP total are properties that are offered for mid-market rent. Lower than market rate but higher than social rent, this is sometimes capped at the local housing allowance, the maximum covered by benefits. These homes can be built by both housing associations and private developers. Finally the AHSP figures include schemes for low-cost home ownership in communities across Scotland, under a variety of schemes. Affordable homes built by private developers also count towards this Scottish total. In order for private developers to get planning permission from councils they must include “affordable housing” amounting to an agreed percentage of the total number of units proposed, usually 25 to 35 per cent. Unlike housing associations and local authorities who do attract subsidies to deliver affordable housing, private developers are expected to provide this as part of their planning bid. But sometimes developers pay the local authority the equivalent value rather than build affordable housing. Purchase prices of these affordable homes are set lower than market value.Since 2007, when the SNP first led a minority Scottish Government, figures show that a total of 108,106 affordable homes under these mechanisms have been made available. Just over 75,000 of these – almost 70 per cent – have been for social rent. What are the Scottish Government’s housing targets? A key target, often referenced by housing campaigners, is the Scottish Government’s commitment to deliver 50,000 affordable homes, including 35,000 for social rent, between 2016-17 and 2020-21. A total of £3.5bn was committed in that time frame, an 84 per cent increase in spending when compared with the previous parliamentary term. It followed a 2015 report by the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Scotland, Shelter Scotland and the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) published research that concluded there was a need for at least 60,000 affordable homes across Scotland – 12,000 per annum for five years. The following year the Right to Buy Act – introduced in 1980 by Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative Government – was scrapped by SNP ministers. Between the years 1979-80 and 2014-15 a total of 494,580 Scottish council and housing association homes were sold under the scheme. Is the Scottish Government meeting its targets? According to Scottish Government figures it delivered 41,364 homes – almost 9,000 short of its 50,000 target in...
A hereditary peer has been paid £90,000 by the Scottish Government so that a former airfield can be used as an overflow lorry park in Dumfries. The Earl of Stair, one of the largest landowners in Dumfries and Galloway and a cross-bench hereditary peer, received the payments for leasing Castle Kennedy airfield to Transport Scotland as part of the agency’s Brexit contingency plans. Additional customs checks are required for goods moving between Scotland and Northern Ireland as a consequence of Britain leaving the EU. Officials feared that delays caused by the extra checks could have led to gridlock around the Port of Cairnryan, if additional lorry parking facilities were not made available. The arrangements for additional overflow lorry parking were put in place on December 21 2020 . Since then Transport Scotland confirmed that the Earl has been paid £90,000, equivalent to 15 months rent. He will continue to receive £6,000 per month from the Scottish Government through the “open-ended” commitment. Before the UK left the EU, around 400,000 freight vehicles were said to travel between Scotland and Northern Ireland each year using the port. There is some evidence that freight traffic to Northern Ireland ports has increased since Brexit. But critics have called on the UK Government to cover this cost instead, arguing it is the “neglect and incompetence” of Conservative politicians at Westminster which is responsible for the ongoing uncertainty over the trading rules between the UK and the EU. Since the lease began 15 months ago, the Earl’s airfield has been used as a temporary lorry park twice – and only once as a consequence of disruption caused by Brexit. According to a Transport Scotland spokesperson “the site has been used for both Operation Overflow (EU Exit) in early 2021 and during Storm Arwen in November 2021”. A legal agreement seen by The Ferret, shows that taxpayers also paid the legal fees for setting up the arrangement. The lease is listed on the Earl of Stair’s parliamentary Register of Interest as a 12 month arrangement, where land is said to have been “provided to HM Government for temporary storage of commercial vehicles should need arise following change of UK status on 1 January 2021”. However, Transport Scotland officials said that there are no plans to end the arrangements, with “next steps currently under review”. Ongoing Brexit uncertainty There is ongoing uncertainty about the customs checks that will be needed at Cairnryan. So-called ‘vet checks’ on phytosanitary goods – products with animal or plant-based contents like cheese or gain – are currently only required on goods leaving the UK for the EU. Since leaving the EU, the UK Government has waived the need for these checks to be undertaken on goods coming from the EU. Willie Rennie, Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson The Government is having to spend money on a host of quick fixes that are only necessary because they have pursued a policy that is both wasteful and harmful. Vet checks were due to be introduced on goods coming from the EU in July this year, but with just weeks to go, the UK Government announced that the checks are to be postponed once more. They will not be introduced until the end of 2023 at the earliest. UK Government ministers claim that the Northern Ireland Protocol “is not working” and have been attempting to renegotiate the deal for months. To date, an agreement has not been reached. Either of these changes –the introduction of vet checks on inbound goods to Scotland or amendments to the Northern Ireland protocol –could still affect the flow of freight traffic through Cairnryan. Scottish Liberal Democrat economy spokesperson Willie Rennie said: “Brexit has been bad for business and people. “The Government is having to spend money on a host of quick fixes that are only necessary because they have pursued a policy that is both wasteful and harmful. “Given that it was the UK government that broke our previous trading arrang...
Wild swimmers face “a risk” to their health from a toxic pesticide discharged into lochs and the sea from over 220 salmon farms around Scotland, according to an expert report for the fish farming industry. The report — commissioned from consultants by the industry body, Salmon Scotland — concluded that levels of hydrogen peroxide in salmon cages could be 28 times higher than those considered safe for swimmers. In high concentrations, hydrogen peroxide can be “harmful if swallowed”, and “toxic if inhaled”, the report said. It can cause “severe skin burns and eye damage” as well as “respiratory irritation”. Campaigners warned that the “poisons” dumped into the water by salmon farms were endangering the health of wild swimmers. They demanded action from regulatory authorities to cut the pollution. But Salmon Scotland insisted that the “worst-case” estimate in its report “would never occur in real life”. The pesticide would be dispersed and diluted in the water, it argued, and swimmers kept a “safe distance” from industrial sites and vessels. The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) also said it was “highly unlikely” that swimmers would be exposed to harmful levels of hydrogen peroxide. Following concerns raised by swimmers, the risks are being investigated by NHS Highland. Data previously released by Sepa under freedom of information law suggested that more than 40 million litres of hydrogen peroxide were discharged between 2016 and 2021 from over 220 salmon farms run by eight companies. The chemical is used to kill the sea lice that can plague caged fish. Salmon farm pollution rises 10 per cent Salmon Scotland commissioned environmental consultants, WCA, to investigate the “potential risk to human health” of three lice pesticides used by the salmon farming industry. The resulting 73-page report was submitted to Argyll and Bute Council in December 2021. The council is considering a planning application from the Norwegian salmon farming giant, Mowi, for a new 12-cage farm in North Kilbrannan Sound between Arran and Kintyre. Objectors have raised concerns that the pesticides could put swimmers’ health at risk. The WCA report reviewed the evidence from dozens of animal tests and estimated the concentrations of the pesticides in water that would have “no observed effect” on people. It set this “no effect” level at one, and calculated the risk level for hydrogen peroxide to be much higher at 27.7. “This indicates a risk associated with the concentrations of hydrogen peroxide used in the fish treatment baths,” the report said. “Therefore characterisation of dilution and dispersion factors are likely to be required to be taken into account to demonstrate that discharges of hydrogen peroxide are safe for open-water swimmers.” The report calculated the risk level of a second pesticide, azamethiphos, at 0.8, just below the “no effect” level. It suggested that the risk level from a third pesticide, deltamethrin, was much lower. The estimates were based on a series of “worst case assumptions” for an average adult swimmer weighing 71.8 kilograms. These included swallowing 25 millilitres of water an hour and swimming for two hours without a wet suit through a “static plume” of pesticide pollution. In an addendum to the WCA report, Salmon Scotland modelled the dispersion of hydrogen peroxide in water in order to put the report’s findings “into context”. This concluded that it was “exceedingly unlikely” that swimmers would be exposed to hazardous concentrations. Hydrogen peroxide would fall below the “no effect” level 30 minutes after use and “generally” within 200-300 metres, Salmon Scotland said. There would be “very few, if any” people who would swim for two hours in Scottish coastal waters, it added. Salmon farm antibiotics leap 50 times But the Coastal Communities Network, which brings together 23 groups concerned about the marine environment, warned that the pesticides threatened the health of swimmers. “The industry’s own repo...
Councils have been accused of a “moral failure” to provide decent housing to homeless people and of overseeing a “fiscal disaster” as costs top quarter of a billion. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
A company owned by the Chinese government lobbied a Scottish minister to reduce the rent it will pay at a future wind farm in the North Sea, The Ferret can reveal. In an August 2021 letter, Red Rock Power told energy minister, Michael Matheson, that rental terms at the proposed Inch Cape offshore wind farm would have a “negative impact” on the project’s chances of being built. These terms were set by the Crown Estate in 2011 when developers were initially granted a 10-year lease agreement for the project. Red Rock claims that rents at Inch Cape – which will be paid to the Scottish Government via Crown Estate Scotland (CES) – are now much higher than at other offshore wind farms in the North Sea. In its letter to Matheson, the firm said that rental costs at Inch Cape would now make it “unlikely” that the project will receive financial support from the UK Government. Failure to land this support would deal “a blow to the Scottish supply chain and net zero targets”, the company argued. Paul Sweeney MSP, Scottish Labour This is another sad indictment of the mess being made of the ownership of Scotland’s renewables industry. In response, Matheson said he would raise the issue with CES officials. According to CES, there have been “no changes” to the rental terms at Inch Cape, though. Critics said the lobbying was a “sad indictment of the mess being made of the ownership of Scotland’s renewables industry”. They argued that Red Rock’s attempts to reduce the amount they pay into the Scottish public finances “add insult to injury”. Red Rock – which is owned by China’s State Development and Investment Corporation (SDIC) – told The Ferret that the rents were a “major barrier” to the project securing the long-term financing it needs to go ahead. It pointed out that the project would “deliver green jobs and carbon savings for Scotland”. Red Rock now owns fifty per cent of Inch Cape, alongside its partner, Ireland’s state-owned energy company, ESB. If it goes ahead, the project will see 72 turbines installed off the Angus Coast with the potential to power one million homes. The letters were released to The Ferret by the Scottish Government under freedom of information legislation. The August 2021 letter was sent to Michael Matheson ahead of a meeting between the minister and Red Rock on 14 September 2021. It includes a presentation outlining the company’s case for the rental terms to be reviewed. In it, the firm argued that the rental terms at Inch Cape “no longer reflect market value for offshore wind projects”. If they are not decreased to current market rates – the firm claimed – then rents at the wind farm would be “inconsistent” with efforts to “promote the economic and environmental wellbeing of Scotland”. Wind farms producing £3bn of energy to pay ‘loose change’ to Scots while fuel bills soar The company calculated that Inch Cape would be spending four times as much of its revenue on rent as Beatrice and Neart Na Gaoithe offshore wind farms, which are also located off Scotland’s east coast. These high rents were “likely to be the difference between success and failure” in the project’s attempts to land a Contract for Difference (CfD), Red Rock said. CfD is the UK Government’s main means of providing financial support to new renewable energy projects. Wind farms which secure a CfD are paid a fixed amount for the energy they produce over a 15-year period. Red Rock raised the same points about rent at Inch Cape at the September meeting with the minister. Michael Matheson replied to them in writing on 7 October 2021. In his response, Matheson said he had asked Crown Estate Scotland (CES) to “revisit” the issue and “provide assurances that they have duly considered all options available”. Matheson’s response noted that changes to rental terms at one project “may have to be considered for all”, however. In a subsequent letter on 23 December 2021, Matheson stated that CES was “maintaining the position” it had already set out on the rental...
The Cairncross Review into the future of news in the UK has been released today, following a period of public consultation. The Ferret was one of a handful of Scottish organisations that submitted evidence to the review. Lady Cairncross has proposed a number of measures that The Ferret supported in our submission, although there are a number of issues that she also does not address in sufficient depth. Key proposals in the review include setting-up a new public body to provide funding for public interest news, recommendations that charity law and tax breaks are given to public interest news providers, and the review also proposes a probe by the Competitions and Markets Authority into the online advertising market. The final report is silent of the role that the devolved administrations of the UK can play in supporting public interest local news, and, in our view, it does not sufficiently address the scope for using taxpayer cash to support new, sustainable models of locally-owned non-profit journalism or tackle important issues around media plurality. A spokesperson for The Ferret said: “Whilst we welcome the broad thrust of the Cairncross Review the devil is in the details. We see a risk public resources could be channelled to major players who are already failing readers rather than new models who genuinely have public interest at heart.” “Policy makers must now look to the future and be clear about how they will ensure any funds for public interest journalism are used to deliver maximum public benefit.” The Scottish Government did not participate in the Cairncross Review, but here are three examples of policies that would support public interest news that the Scottish Government could take forwards independently of the UK government: Establish an independent fund for public interest news, with the explicit aim of promoting media plurality, supporting the development of high-quality reader-supported non-profit news models, and tackling public interest reporting news gaps. Reform of defamation laws in Scotland. Reform of charity law in Scotland, to allow promoting public interest journalism to be adopted by Scottish charities and donors as a charitable purpose. The Ferret is an award winning investigative journalism co-operative owned by our readers and writers. You can subscribe here: You can find the full Cairncross Review report here: You can find the full Ferret submission to the Cairncross review here:
Homeless people across Scotland owe councils over £34million in “highly questionable“ charges for temporary accommodation, according to research by a Glasgow-based public law firm, which alleges local authorities may be acting unlawfully. Campaigners said the “extortionate” charges were leading to debts worth thousands of pounds, and putting strain on people’s mental health when they were at their most vulnerable. The report on charges incurred for temporary housing, due to be published next week, is based on freedom of information requests made by the Legal Service Agency to every local authority in Scotland.Lawyers asked for details of unpaid charges as of December 2020. These can be incurred for rent for temporary homeless accommodation when it is not covered by housing benefit, either because people are not eligible or because the rent charged is more than the benefit will cover. In addition some councils and housing associations will charge for services offered through supported accommodation, food in catered hostels or for “management fees”.In total, charges worth £34,478,480 were recorded as of December 2020 by 29 local authorities. Three did not provide the data. Temporary housing – which includes furnished flats, hostels and homeless B&Bs – is offered on a no-choice basis when people find themselves “unintentionally” homeless. By law any charges made for temporary homeless accommodation should be ‘reasonable‘. But LSA argues charges are often excessive and accused councils of potentially acting unlawfully. Shelter Scotland claims charging a homeless person full rent for temporary accommodation is legally challengeable.Campaigners and housing charities said high charges – including rent of up to £550 a week for poor quality accommodation – meant some were unable to access temporary accommodation, leaving them without a safety net. They also pointed to the long delays in the housing system leaving people trapped in debt for months or even years. Last year people spent an average of 199 days in homeless accommodation. As of March 2021, 13, 097 people in Scotland were housed in temporary accommodation, a rise of 12 percent on the previous year.But councils contacted by The Ferret insisted they acted according to Scottish Government guidance and took individual circumstances into account. Many of the highest levels of debt were recorded by Scotland’s largest local authority areas. These included City of Edinburgh Council, which reported arrears of £12,711,641 from 1 January to 6 December 2020.In total 4,855 households stayed in temporary accommodation for at least one night in the local authority in that period, and data provided by the council suggests that a total of 2,248 were liable to make a direct payment. In Glasgow a total of £5,163,685 in arrears was owed as of 31 December 2020, with 5,735 people charged for temporary accommodation last year.In North Lanarkshire the total outstanding debt owed by homeless people for temporary accommodation charges was £4,801,817 as of 18 December 2020. Homeless people built up debt worth £4,417,123 in Highland Council, which provided figures for the 2019/2020 financial year. Both Fife and Aberdeenshire councils recorded total debts for temporary accommodation charges of over £1million. LSA asked for the information from all councils after noticing several of its clients had been asked to pay charges for temporary accommodation it viewed as unaffordable. The legal practice also re-examined case files while compiling the briefing report.Ben Christman, solicitor at LSA, said temporary accommodation – which is usually offered to homeless people on a no-choice basis – was often both “exorbitant” and “substandard”. In one case, he said, a client was asked to pay £500 a week for a Glasgow homeless hostel.He said the “shocking” sum of debt owed by homeless people across Scotland showed it was time for the nationwide issue to be addressed. “Clients are often angry, stressed and upset by...
Environmentalists have told the Scottish Government to replace a fleet of “gas guzzling” high speed trains — which require three times as much energy as a standard diesel train — when it takes over ScotRail in March. Twenty six refurbished high speed trains (HSTs) — which are diesel-powered and leased from a company in England — have been introduced to ScotRail’s services since October 2018. This fulfilled a promise made by the company’s operator, Abellio, when it took over Scotland’s railways in 2015. But these HSTs have a much larger carbon footprint than the rest of ScotRail’s trains. They produced 19 per cent of the carbon emissions from the company’s trains in 2020, despite making up just seven per cent of the trains in ScotRail’s fleet. Green campaigners told The Ferret that the HSTs were “clearly a lot more damaging to the climate than the rest of the fleet in Scotland”. The Scottish Government should prioritise “getting rid” of the trains, particularly when it is encouraging people to use public transport to minimise their climate impact, they added. Transport Scotland — the Scottish government’s national transport agency — said that it was aiming to replace the HSTs with zero-emission alternatives by 2030, while all diesel trains would be phased out of its services by 2035. Gavin Thomson, transport campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland The leased high speed trains are clearly a lot more damaging to the climate than the rest of the fleet in Scotland, so when the Scottish Government takes over the franchise, they’ll need to start by getting rid of these gas guzzling trains. The HSTs require over 18 kilowatt hours of energy for every kilometre that they travel. Standard diesels need just over 6 kilowatt hours for every kilometre, while electric trains need just under two kilowatt hours. ScotRail does not publish figures on the carbon emissions produced by the HSTs, standard diesels and electric trains per kilometre. However, given that the HSTs run on diesel fuel, and require three times the energy of a standard diesel, it is likely that their emissions are significantly higher. The 26 HSTs produced the equivalent of nearly 26,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions in 2020. By comparison, Scotrail’s 118 diesel trains produced 63,640 tonnes of emissions, while its 235 electric trains produced 45,884 tonnes. Bus firm failure to cut toxic fumes branded ‘disgrace’ The refurbished HSTs are known as Inter7City trains because they travel between Scotland’s seven cities. They were previously leased by Great Western Railway (GWR) in Wales and the West of England and first came into service in 1976. After being put out of action by GWR, their interiors and doors were refurbished by the English firm, Angel Trains, who leased them to ScotRail. The Scottish Government is set to take over the running of Scotland’s railways at the end of March. Abellio has run the franchise since 2015 but had its contract ended early amid criticism over cancellations and poor performance levels. Transport is Scotland’s highest emitting sector, producing the equivalent of 12 million tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2019. Encouraging more people to travel by train rather than car is viewed as a key way of reducing transport pollution. Gavin Thomson, transport campaigner at Friends of the Earth Scotland, said that the emissions from travel show “we need to make urgent changes to the way we move around”. “Making public transport as accessible as possible is a vital part of this, so it’s important the climate impact of our trains is considered a priority as we encourage more people to use them,” Thomson noted. “The leased high speed trains are clearly a lot more damaging to the climate than the rest of the fleet in Scotland, so when the Scottish Government takes over the franchise, they’ll need to start by getting rid of these gas guzzling trains. “A fleet of electric trains is essential if Scotland is to meet our climate commitments, and for this to ma...
Highland Council has been accused by conservationists of causing potentially criminal damage to native trees at Loch Morlich. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (Sepa) paid private PR and social media firms £170,000 following a cyber attack in 2020, despite having its own communications department. A freedom of information request by The Ferret can reveal that two contracts awarded by the government agency following a hack that paralysed it cost the taxpayer nearly £15,000 a month for a year. The total cost to the public purse of the 2020 cyber attack on Sepa has risen to at least £5.5m, as revealed by The Ferret earlier this month. Critics said the PR bill was “shocking” and there were “serious questions” to be asked of Sepa over its spending of taxpayers’ money on communications firms. In reply Sepa said it “deliberately prioritised communication” after the cyber attack to support “colleagues, customers and partners” – including those whose data was stolen and “illegally published”. The agency added it no longer pays private firms for help with communications. Cost of Sepa cyber attack doubles to £5.5m The attack against Sepa’s computers was launched on Christmas Eve 2020 by an international criminal gang known as Conti. It demanded a ransom, which Sepa refused to pay. In June 2021 The Ferret reported that Sepa estimated the hack would cost taxpayers £2.5m. But new documents released by Sepa earlier this month showed the final bill has more than doubled. They also revealed that £170,000 was paid to two private companies to assist the agency with communications following the attack. A public relations firm called 3X1 Group was paid £136,000 (£113,400 ex VAT) for “public communication, employee and stakeholder engagement” in a 12 month contract. Sepa initially told The Ferret that the contract was worth £246,000 but amended the figure following our request for a comment. A social media agency called We Are Hydrogen was paid £36,000 for “comms support – social media”. Sepa has its own communications department which, according to its website, “works closely with all areas of the business to ensure effective internal and external communication”. Opposition political parties have now raised concerns over SEPA’s spending. Beatrice Wishart MSP, Scottish Lib-Dems The bill for this cyber hack has spiralled significantly but perhaps the most shocking feature is their public relations bill. Scottish Labour Finance spokesperson Daniel Johnson questioned the spending of over £100,000 of taxpayers’ money on PR firms during a cost of living crisis. He added: “It is completely reasonable for Sepa to pay for the technical upgrades they need after the cyber attack – but no one can say that giving over £100k to a PR firm is part of a technical upgrade.” Lib Dems’ rural affairs spokesperson Beatrice Wishart MSP acknowledged that SEPA has had a “torrid time” over the past three years, but added: “The bill for this cyber hack has spiralled significantly but perhaps the most shocking feature is their public relations bill. As the organisation rebuilds, it has serious questions to ask about how it prioritises spending and whether it is delivering value for money for taxpayers.” Those concerns were echoed by Scottish Conservative shadow finance and economy secretary Liz Smith MSP who claimed that “eyebrows will be raised among the public” at the sums spent by SEPA. She said questions must be answered by “top officials at Sepa” as to the “process behind spending so much money” on communications firms. Smith added: “While this was a significant cyber-attack, costs to the taxpayers are threatening to spiral out of control. People are struggling right now with rising bills and tightening their belts, yet it appears there is little limit on what Sepa are prepared to charge to the public purse.” Stuart McGregor, chief finance officer at Sepa, said: “Following a significant cyber-attack by international serious and organised criminals, a series of independent reviews, including by Audit Scotland, were clear both on the current cyber-threat level to Scottish organisat...
The National Union of Students Scotland is officially endorsing an environmental pledge calling for all educational careers services to end relationships with oil, gas and mining recruiters. The students’ union is calling for all universities to “end their relationships” with companies linked to fossil fuel production, and urging every university careers service to stop promoting jobs from these sectors to students. The pledge is part of a People and Planet project named Fossil Free Careers, which is urging universities to sever ties with employers who promote work that causes environmental harm to students. NUS Scotland (NUSS) is a part of the National Union of Students (NUS), representing universities across the UK. Today the unions released a joint statement in support. They said they have “a long and rich history of supporting campaigns that use boycotts and divestments as a non-violent strategy to pressure organisations into ending unethical practices.” Matt Crilly, the president of NUSS Students deserve to be trained in sustainable, green jobs that protect both people and the planet. University and college careers departments should not be supporting oil, gas and mining industries which contribute to climate and colonial violence. Education institutions today, the NUSS claims, are allegedly complicit in violence against human life and the planet in multiple ways. The union argues that these education institutions “uphold the fossil fuel and arms industries through their investment portfolios.” “These companies are also bolstered through recruitment pipelines from education into corporations responsible for great injustice and harm,” the NUSS added. Grassroots, student-led divestment campaigns have successfully challenged this across the sector, and 60 per cent of the UK higher education institutions are now committed to fully excluding fossil fuel extractor companies from their investment portfolios. When careers services continue to platform the extractive industries and the arms industries, the NUS concluded “the activities of oil, gas, mining and arms companies are implicitly condoned, and their presence normalised to students when they are platformed at careers fairs and in job listings”. J Clarke, acting director of campaigns at People & Planet Now is the time to turn that public image into public action by excluding big polluters from recruiting on campuses in Scotland. Students deserve to be trained in green jobs Matt Crilly, the president of NUSS, told The Ferret the union “is proud to support the Fossil Free Careers campaign.” “Students deserve to be trained in sustainable, green jobs that protect both people and the planet. University and college careers departments should not be supporting oil, gas and mining industries which contribute to climate and colonial violence. Now is the time for our universities and colleges to step up and end their complicity in the destruction of our planet”. Edinburgh students first in Scotland to boycott fossil fuel recruitment J Clarke, acting director of campaigns at People & Planet, said individual Scottish colleges and universities should sign up. “Many Scottish universities were falling over themselves to tout their green credentials and publicise their involvement in COP26.” they added. “Now is the time to turn that public image into public action by excluding big polluters from recruiting on campuses in Scotland. In March, students at Edinburgh University became the first in Scotland to vote to boycott all oil, gas and mining industry recruiters from campus. Like the NUS, Edinburgh University students’ association (EUSA) are also putting pressure on the institutions themselves to take the same approach. Student campaigners are pushing for the university to exclude fossil fuel recruiters from its careers fairs and service, and publish an ‘ethical careers policy’. Photo Credit: Jacob Ammentorp Lund
An animal welfare group has accused a fox hunt of showing “complete ignorance” of the mood in Scotland to end fox hunting. The League Against Cruel Sports (Scotland) commented after Renfrewshire Council approved a planning application which allows Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire Foxhounds to relocate its hunt kennels. The move comes despite a new Scottish Government Bill which aims to protect foxes from being “chased and killed by packs of dogs”. The League said the planning application was “quite surprising” given the public’s backing for tighter legislation on fox hunting, claiming it was evidence of a business as usual attitude by the hunt. The Hunting With Dogs (Scotland) Bill – published in February – seeks to replace a widely criticised 2002 law on fox hunting in Scotland. The Protection of Wild Mammals Act – enacted 20 years ago – saw the use of dogs to hunt wild mammals banned, except in limited circumstances. Although hunting with dogs was technically outlawed, packs of hounds could still be used to flush foxes from cover, so they could be shot as pest control to protect livestock or curb disease. But animal welfare campaigners said the law was flawed and packs of hounds still chased foxes. They allege that hunts used the loophole to flout the 2002 legislation. The hunts denied the accusations and said they always act within the law. Footage of fox hunt released amid calls for legislation to be strengthened The new Bill would limit the number of dogs allowed to flush animals from cover to two, instead of packs, which the SNP say will close the loophole. However packs of hounds may still be allowed to flush animals under a new licensing scheme. Critics say this would simply replace one loophole with another. The application for new kennels was submitted last November by Houston Farms, in Renfrewshire. It was passed last month and allows for the Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire Foxhounds’s hunt kennels to be relocated to a new site. Robbie Marsland, director of The League Against Cruel Sports (Scotland) said: “A planning application with this much ambition is quite surprising at a time when the hunting legislation is under so much scrutiny, with the Scottish Government pledging to strengthen the existing law and properly ban hunting, and has already started the legislative process. He added: “It’s hard to say whether this shows a complete ignorance for the political and public will currently in Scotland to end hunting for good, or just the usual lack or regard hunts seem to have for sticking to the law.” The Hunting with Dogs Bill was published in February following a public consultation that received more than 11,000 responses. The legislation would also ban trail hunting, which replicates traditional hunting practices by encouraging dogs to follow the scent of a fox – but without the fox being killed. The Scottish Government said the Bill’s purpose is to protect “foxes, hares and other wild mammals from being chased and killed by packs of dogs”. According to ministers, the majority of respondents agreed with its proposals to tighten the law. Robbie Marsland, Scotland director, The League Against Cruel Sports It’s hard to say whether this shows a complete ignorance for the political and public will currently in Scotland to end hunting for good, or just the usual lack or regard hunts seem to have for sticking to the law. Holyrood’s Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee is now seeking views on the Bill and people have until 13 May 2022 to respond. Announcing its decision on the planning application, Renfrewshire Council said: “The proposal complies with the policies and guidance of council. It is therefore recommended that the application should be approved.” Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire Foxhounds did not respond to our request for a comment. Houston Farms did not respond to our request for a comment. The Scottish Countryside Alliance – which supports fox hunting – declined to comment. Photo thanks to iSto...
Exclusive footage of a rescue mission which saved the lives of more than 100 people in the Mediterranean Sea has been released to The Ferret by Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The video shows MSF staff on board a ship called the Geo Barents assisting Libyan refugees stranded after their vessel had ground to a standstill, forcing passengers to spend the night at sea. The humanitarian ship operated by MSF in the Mediterranean carries out search and rescue missions at sea. The group shared the footage as the UK government reaches the final stages of passing the Nationality and Borders Bill into law. The Scottish Parliament voted against the Bill in February. During the mission, search and rescue teams brought survivors into a rescue boat. After medical checks were completed, survivors were housed on the ship’s shelter desk, where they were fed, and later slept. The crew were alerted to the struggling rubber dinghy – crammed with people who were attempting to escape the north African country – in the early hours of 20 January. The 109 passengers were located and brought on board the Geo Barents, where a number were treated for mild hypothermia. They were said to be doing well when they were released into the care of Sicilian authorities 12 days later. The group are among those fleeing Libya, a country where migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees face arbitrary detention. Those under the care of authorities suffer from ill treatment, sexual assault, forced labor, and extortion, according to the Human Rights Watch. At least 66,770 people used the Mediterranean Sea route in 2021. In December 2021, more than 160 people drowned in two separate shipwrecks off the coast of Libya in one week, bringing the total number of people drowned on the central Mediterranean route to roughly 1,500 people. In 2021, Libyan coastguards captured 32,425 refugees and migrants at sea and returned them to the country. Hours after the Libyan rescue mission, the Geo Barents brought aboard another 100 survivors from Pakistan, who were crowded on two levels of what appeared to be an unstable wooden boat. By 24 January, three days later, the Geo Barents crew in Italy had requested a port of safety in Italy for a total of 439 people in need of care. Sophie McCann, advocacy advisor for MSF Australian government in Nauru showed some of the worst mental health suffering we’ve ever seen among refugees in our fifty years of experience Leo Southall, the deputy search and rescue team leader on Geo Barents, said the ship spends “24 hours a day” searching for any vessels where lives might be in danger. Since 2015 its search and rescue activities have saved more than 80,000 lives. Rescues can happen at any time of the day or night, with the completion of a mission sometimes taking weeks. Staff take turns to look for boats under stress. Southall said the number of people needing critical care is linked to the poor quality vessels available to those desperate to escape. “The sorts of boats people are coming over in are not suitable for any sort of crossing, really,” he added. “They are really flimsy, or usually made with poor construction materials and as quickly or cheaply as possible. “On top of that, these rubber boats are sometimes loaded with 120 people reliant on very thin inflatable tubes. They’re then pushed out into a port, tasked with an open sea journey of well over 100 miles. “There’s many reasons why these things go wrong, and we rarely see these rubber type boats arriving safely without help. Quite often, they have already broken or deflated 30 miles from the Libyan coast.” FFS explains: Refugees, migration and channel crossing Finding a safe place for those in need is significantly harder than it used to be, Southall claimed. Libyan authorities can designate a place of safety outside of the country, but the crew often struggles to make contact. In some cases, countries will outright refuse to assist those in need. “We’re seeing nowadays that there will be q...
Protests against the increase in energy bills across the UK have intensified in recent weeks, with one particular action getting significant media coverage. The Big Power Off initially took place on 1 April, with people encouraged to switch off electrical appliances in their homes. Further switch offs took place on 10 April and 16 April, and a nightly switch off has been taking place from 22 April onwards. A widely shared Facebook post made a claim about the impact of the protest on energy supplies. Social media post This short power off will cause an imbalance on the national grid, where consumption becomes lower than predicted and therefore the electrical supply is too great. To protect the grid, power stations will be temporarily disconnected or issued notices to attenuate their output. Because the grid is publicly owned, but power supply is private, this effectively creates a 10 minute boycott of the privatised portions of our power supply, losing them up to an estimated £9m in revenue. Ferret Fact Service looked into some of the claims about the protest. Background The Big Power Off is a protest against higher energy bills caused by an increase in the energy price cap, which rose by 54 per cent on 1 April. This means costlier energy bills for customers. The initial protest action was organised by the Sheffield branch of Disabled People Against Cuts, which encouraged people to turn off, or turn down, gas and electrical appliances for the day. Was the protest successful in Spain? A meme posted on social media claimed a switch off protest in Spain had “reduced energy back to 2019 level”. The UK’s Big Power Off protest action is inspired by a similar one, called ‘Not Another Minute’, which took place on 15 March in the Murcia region of Spain after energy price rises. People were encouraged to turn off their electricity for one minute “so that only the light of the moon and the stars” illuminated the region. Similar protests took place in other Spanish regions, as well as strike action by the transport sector over the spiralling cost of gas. A number of street protests also took place, including a reported 150,000 people demonstrating in Madrid against the energy prices. Claim UK pension is worst in developed world is Half True The Spanish government later announced a package of measures to alleviate the impact of price rises, but it is not clear whether the ‘Not Another Minute’ action was the catalyst as it was part of a wider protest movement. Verdict: Unsupported Could the protests “cause havoc” in the national grid? Posts on social media made various claims about the impact of the protests, including a claim it could “cause havoc” in the grid system. According to one widely shared social media post the power off leads to “an imbalance on the national grid”. To protect the system, power stations will be “temporarily disconnected” or told to reduce their output, the post claimed. The national grid is a network of electricity infrastructure, such as power stations and powerlines, that transports gas and electricity across the country. Essentially it moves electricity from where it’s generated to where it’s needed. Energy suppliers buy the electricity from generators, such as power stations and windfarms, and then sell it on to customers. National Grid ESO, which operates the UK’s electricity system, uses a system to ensure electricity supply and demand are balanced within the network. Because energy needs to be used at the time of manufacture, the national grid must predict when there will be a difference between supply and demand. When this is likely to occur, the grid uses a mechanism to pay for increases or decreases in energy production, which balances the network. Claim treasury secretary said pensions would be paid by UK after independence is False Social media users claimed there had been a surge in energy created by the 10 minute switch off on 1 April. However, the National Grid ESO told FFS there had been no notic...
Scottish Water agreed to keep prices in line with inflation as requested by the Scottish Government. But said this may impact its ability to meet agreed targets. This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
Phone calls made by prisoners to the Samaritans more than doubled in just six months, This content is for Standard Monthly , Standard Annual, Gold Annual, Lifetime, Gold Monthly, and Corporate members only.Register
A cement works, a glass plant and a well-known whisky distillery are among Scotland’s top 20 climate polluters, The Ferret can reveal. Over six million tonnes of carbon dioxide were also released by six big oil and gas companies in Scotland in 2020, according to a new inventory of industrial pollution from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). Campaigners said that the data exposed a “rogues’ gallery of the most climate-trashing sites in Scotland”. They argued that oil and gas companies “cannot be trusted to lead the transition to a zero-carbon economy”. The companies, however, all stressed their efforts to cut emissions, including the introduction of new carbon storage and hydrogen technologies. The energy and products they provided were essential to meet society’s needs, they said. Sepa highlighted that carbon dioxide emissions from all industries had fallen by six per cent between 2019 and 2020. But it added that some of this could be attributed to site closures and cuts in production caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. On 31 March Sepa published the Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory for 2020, which was delayed because of a cyber attack and the pandemic. The inventory contains data on 48 air pollutants from 1,298 sites around the country. Ineos, SSE, and Exxon top climate polluter ‘league of destruction’ The Ferret analysed the data to uncover the top 20 carbon dioxide polluters. The gas is the primary driver of climate warming which is causing droughts, floods and storms around the globe. By far the biggest polluter was the petrochemical giant, Ineos. Five of the company’s plants at Grangemouth emitted over three million tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2020, down eight per cent from 2019. SSE’s gas-fired power station at Peterhead was the biggest single polluter in 2020, as it was in 2019 and 2018. The plant emitted 1.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2020, 18 per cent less than in 2019 because of the pandemic. Another major emitter was ExxonMobil’s ethylene plant at Mossmorran in Fife. Its emissions increased by a third to over 900,000 tonnes in 2020, though according to Sepa this was mainly due to the plant being closed for four months in 2019 for maintenance. Other sites in the top 20 polluters’ league included two in Shetland, EnQuest’s Sullom Voe oil and gas terminal and the TotalEnergies Laggan-Tormore gas plant. There were also two operated by Shell: the St Fergus gas plant at Peterhead and the Mossmorran gas plant in Fife. The sixth largest carbon dioxide emitter in 2020 was Tarmac’s cement works at Dunbar in East Lothian. Two waste incinerators, William Grant’s whisky distillery in Girvan and an O-I glass manufacturing plant in Alloa were also in the top 20. Two paper mills in Irvine and Stirling and two biomass plants in Glenrothes and Lockerbie were on the list. But they argued that most of their emissions were “carbon neutral” because they were burning wood rather than fossil fuels. [table id=219 /] Friends of the Earth Scotland called on governments to support a transition away from high-carbon industries. “This list is a real rogues gallery of the most climate-trashing sites in Scotland,” said the environmental group’s head of campaigns, Mary Church. “As individuals are being urged to make greener choices to tackle climate change, these big industrial sites seem to get away with polluting year on year with near impunity.” Church described Peterhead, Grangemouth and Mossmorran as “serial offenders” because of the harm they do to the environment. “Workers across these sites have the skills and knowledge to transform what they do into decent, green jobs in industries that support people and planet,” she argued. Mark Ruskell, Green MSP Oil and gas companies cannot be trusted to lead the transition to a zero-carbon economy. Professor James Curran, a former Sepa chief executive and climate scientist, pointed out that the latest United Nations report concluded that it was “now or never” for cutting c...
The public could be banned forever from one of Edinburgh’s most historic and popular footpaths, under plans being considered by a Scottish Government agency. An internal report by Historic Environment Scotland (HES), obtained by The Ferret, reveals that the leading option for Radical Road around Arthur’s Seat is to “permanently prohibit all access”. The route has been fenced off for more than three and a half years because of the risk of rock falls. The prospect has alarmed walkers, climbers and geologists, who warned that permanent closure would create “a terrible precedent”, putting public health and tourism at risk. They accused HES of failing to consult or to listen, and of assuming it “knows best”. HES said it was still consulting experts and partners on “the most appropriate option” for Radical Road. It did not rule out permanent closure, insisting that “the health and safety of our visitors and staff must always be paramount”. Radical Road runs for three-quarters of a mile beneath Salisbury Crags, near the Scottish Parliament, towards the top of Arthur’s Seat. Giving panoramic views over Edinburgh, it used to be one of the main attractions in Holyrood Park, which is visited by more than two million people every year. The road was famously built by unemployed weavers from the west of Scotland two years after the Radical War of 1820. The project was suggested by Sir Walter Scott to try and avoid further political unrest. In recent decades the path has attracted hundreds of walkers and joggers a day, while the crags above have long challenged climbers. A section at the south end is internationally renowned to geologists as a place which inspired the 18th century “father of modern geology”, James Hutton. But HES closed Radical Road after it was hit by 50 tonnes of rock falling from Salisbury Crags on the afternoon of 11 September 2018. No-one was injured, but the incident was regarded by HES as a “near miss”. HES initially erected temporary barriers to prevent access. In the summer of 2021 these were replaced by two-metre high, weighted, wire fences with locked gates and warning notices at every access point. Now a 24-page “options appraisal” conducted by HES in 2021 has been released to The Ferret under freedom of information law. It concluded that making the existing restrictions permanent was the safest — and cheapest — option. “A permanent closure of the Radical Road footpath would achieve the highest reduction in residual risk of injury to visitors and staff, and would allow Salisbury Crags to remain fundamentally unchanged, preserving the fabric and iconic setting within gates and high barriers,” the HES report said. “Loss of this established footpath and the installation of permanent prohibition measures across all routes above and below the crags is likely to attract some negative public response.” The capital costs of keeping the path shut were estimated at between £50,000 and £150,000, plus maintenance costs. A map showed a proposed fence stretching for a mile around the bottom of Radical Road, and enclosing both ends. Other options included wrapping Salisbury Crags completely or partially in wire mesh, building a tunnel, or engineering a new road sticking out from the cliff. The HES report estimated that these would each cost a minimum of £2.5 million, and would have a “high impact” on a “unique and iconic landscape”. The option of re-opening the footpath with increased monitoring was rated as a “high to very high” risk to visitors. It was reckoned to cost between £50,000 and £100,000 for each inspection, plus expert fees. According to the HES report, the risks have “clearly increased” in recent years, partly because of climate change. Rocks break off after being fractured by heavy rain, repeated freezing and thawing, and the roots of invasive plants. Existing barriers have also failed to keep people out, the report said, with some “bypassing and moving the signage and barriers” and “ignoring clearly signed cl...
Seabed and pesticide pollution of Scottish lochs by the salmon farming industry increased by over ten per cent in a year, according to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). The latest official pollution inventory reveals that discharges of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and zinc from salmon cages rose by more than 4,000 tonnes between 2019 and 2020. Overall emissions of pesticides used to kill sea lice also increased by 45 kilograms. Campaigners have branded the rises as “disappointing”, a “major concern” and “completely unacceptable”. They have urged “radical reform” to stop Scotland’s seas being used “as a sewer”. Salmon farming companies, however, pointed out that the operations of farms were “hugely affected” by the Covid-19 pandemic. It caused lost markets and staff shortages, which meant that fish had to be kept in the water longer than usual. Sepa’s Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory for 2020 reports on discharges of 12 pollutants from over 150 salmon farms along the west coast and on islands. This covered the first year of Covid restrictions. Waste food and faeces contaminate the seabed beneath salmon cages, and pesticides used to treat fish spread into the water. Both are known to harm marine wildlife. Salmon farm antibiotics leap 50 times Sepa told The Ferret that emissions of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and zinc due to fish feed increased by approximately 10 per cent between 2019 and 2020. “In contrast, the annual production in tonnes for the salmon industry was down by 5.8 per cent in 2020 compared with 2019,” said the agency. “The implications of Covid-19, as well as the European Union exit contributed to both the increase in emissions and downturn in production during 2020. These factors had the potential to have impacts at various stages of production and processing, as well as reducing the access to markets.” Sepa added: “These circumstances required some operators to hold fish on sites for longer than normal, delaying slaughter and reducing production. During this holding time however, the fish would have required to be fed resulting in an increase in emissions that are directly related to feed.” Sepa also pointed out that discharges of the pesticide, azamethiphos, from salmon farm boats and cages rose by 17 per cent between 2019 and 2020. Discharges of two other pesticides, deltametrin and emamectin, decreased by 15 per cent and five per cent respectively. But the quantities of azamethiphos used are much greater, meaning that there was an overall rise in pesticide pollution of 13 per cent from 335 kilograms in 2019 to 380 kilograms in 2020. Stuart Brooks, National Trust for Scotland Open cage salmon farming requires more radical reform and alternatives. The National Trust for Scotland warned that fish farms posed a threat to the marine environment. “It is disappointing and concerning to see a further increase in the discharge of pollutants to our marine ecosystem from open cage salmon farms,” said the trust’s head of conservation, Stuart Brooks. “This is further evidence that open cage salmon farming requires more radical reform and alternatives. Closed systems should be being developed by the industry if it wishes to continue and expand.” The Coastal Communities Network, which brings together 23 local groups concerned about the marine environment, warned that the pollution would smother and kill underwater wildlife. The discharges of azamethiphos were “completely unacceptable”, said the network’s John Aitchison. “If Cabinet Secretary, Mairi Gougeon, wants this industry to be truly environmentally sustainable, rather than just claiming to be as it does at present, she must cut through the greenwashing and make sure that fish farmers stop treating Scotland’s seas as a sewer, by preventing them from dumping pollution altogether.” The wild fish group, Salmon and Trout Conservation Scotland, called on Sepa to show “zero tolerance” for fish farm pollution breaches. “The industry knows that it can ...
Scotland’s environmental regulator is investigating a near threefold increase in releases of a potent greenhouse gas from industrial sites in 2020. According to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa), five facilities across the country released 3,241kg of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) into the air in 2020. In 2019, Scots industrial sites reported the release of just 1,263kg of HFCs. HFCs are a group of industrial chemicals primarily used for air conditioning and refrigeration. Three of the sites which reported releases of HFCs are in the chemicals sector, while the other two are involved in food and drink production. HFCs are powerful pollutants which contribute to the climate crisis. It is believed that one tonne of the most commonly used HFC contributes as much to global warming as 1,430 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Sepa said the two food and beverage companies had “accidental releases” of the substance and had since updated their refrigeration systems. The regulator added that investigations are ongoing to understand what happened at the three sites in the chemical sector. The spike in HFC releases has provoked a concerned response from environmental activists. One campaigner said the 2020 HFC emissions were “the equivalent of adding several thousand extra cars to our roads”. HFC Releases The Sepa data - which comes from its new Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory - shows that SmithKline Beecham’s manufacturing facility at Irvine in North Ayrshire was the worst offender, releasing 1,250kg of HFCs into the air in 2020. The firm told The Ferret this was caused by a fault with a piece of equipment but the problem had been “rectified”. The Irvine plant was closely followed by agribusiness company ABP UK’s Perth processing facility, which was responsible for the release of 905kg of HFCs. Dr. Richard Dixon It is alarming that emissions have actually risen, meaning that HFC emissions were the equivalent of adding several thousand extra cars to our roads. The Perth site was the only one of the five which also had releases above the reporting threshold in previous years. It produced 2,097kg of HFCs in 2018 and 933kg in 2019. Sepa said that ABP may have achieved a bigger decrease in HFC emissions if it had not had an accidental release of 510kg in 2020. DSM’s Drakemyre Chemical Works followed closely behind the ABP site, emitting 898kg in 2020. It blamed the numbers on a one-off release caused by a mechanical breakdown of cooling equipment. Syngenta’s manufacturing centre at Grangemouth and Arla Foods’ creamery in Lockerbie also reported significant releases of the chemicals. Dr Richard Dixon, an environmental campaigner and consultant who was the former director of Friends of the Earth Scotland, told The Ferret that the increase in HFC emissions was “alarming”. Dixon said: “HFCs are more than a thousand times more dangerous to the climate than carbon dioxide, so we should be trying very hard to reduce their emissions to zero. “It is alarming that emissions have actually risen, meaning that HFC emissions were the equivalent of adding several thousand extra cars to our roads. “Where the releases were a mistake or an accident, Sepa should be looking at fining the companies concerned.” Sepa noted that regulatory work to “investigate the three sites in the chemicals sector reporting HFCs is ongoing”. It added: “The 188 per cent increase in HFCs between 2019 and 2020 can be linked to multiple factors. “Two food and beverage sites released HFCs in 2020. Both had accidental releases and have taken steps to upgrade their refrigeration.” HFC’s were developed by industry as a replacement for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which were previously used for refrigeration and air conditioning. CFCs were phased out because they damage the ozone layer, part of the earth’s atmosphere which protects us from the most damaging radiation from the sun. An international treaty to stop using CFCs, called the Montreal Protocol, was signed in 1987. But it s...
Carbon pollution from three waste incinerators in Scotland rose by over 100,000 tonnes in a year, according to new data from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa). Campaigners described the 23 per cent increase between 2019 and 2020 as “truly alarming”. They are calling for a permanent moratorium on new incinerators. But incinerator operators pointed out that by diverting waste from landfill, they helped cut emissions and deliver a “zero waste, circular economy”. Sepa stressed that incineration should only have a small role for “residual waste”. Incinerators are increasingly being used to burn waste that would otherwise be dumped in landfill sites, and to generate energy. An analysis by The Ferret of Sepa’s new Scottish Pollutant Release Inventory has revealed that carbon dioxide emissions from three household waste incinerators increased from 468,000 tonnes in 2019 to 575,000 tonnes in 2020. Most pollution was from Viridor’s Energy Recovery Facility at Dunbar in East Lothian, where carbon dioxide emissions rose 15 per cent to 316,000 tonnes in 2020. Emissions from the company’s Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre at Polmadie rose by 55 per cent to over 96,000 tonnes. Pollution from FCC Environment’s Recycling and Energy Recovery Centre at Millerhill just outside Edinburgh increased 23 per cent to 163,000 tonnes. All three plants have been opened since 2018 and reported their carbon dioxide emissions for the first time in 2019. Ten new waste incinerators ‘will threaten recycling targets’ Up to ten new incinerators are either in planning or due to begin operations in the next few years. These new incinerators could create the capacity for an extra 1.5 million tonnes of waste to be burned in Scotland. The amount of waste burnt has increased by over 800,000 tonnes since 2011 But the climate pollution caused has sparked growing concern amongst environmental groups. They warned that burning more waste could cause the Scottish Government to miss its recycling targets. In September 2021 the circular economy minister, Green MSP Lorna Slater, announced a review of the role of waste incinerators. A public consultation closed in February and the review, chaired by Dr Colin Church, is expected to report in the coming months. Slater’s colleague, the Scottish Greens environment spokesperson, Mark Ruskell MSP, told The Ferret: “I am confident that review will conclude that there is no case for new, polluting incinerators.” Kim Pratt, Friends of the Earth Scotland The quickest, cheapest and most effective way to limit emissions would be to ban the burning of plastic. Friends of the Earth Scotland urged a permanent moratorium on new incinerators. “The rise in incineration in Scotland is truly alarming,” said the environmental group’s campaigner, Kim Pratt. “Burning more waste means carbon emissions will rise accordingly. Incinerators contribute directly to climate change by burning fossil-based materials like plastic.” Pratt argued that Scotland should “turn its back” on waste incineration as Wales had done. “We must urgently reduce emissions from existing plants,” she added. “The quickest, cheapest and most effective way to limit emissions would be to ban the burning of plastic.” The UK Without Incineration Network warned that carbon dioxide emissions from existing incinerators were just “the tip of the iceberg” as more were planned. “Burning waste creates carbon dioxide, and so the more Scotland burns the higher the greenhouse gas emissions,” said the network’s co-ordinator, Shlomo Dowen. “We hope that Scotland’s incineration review will result in time being called on consenting new incinerators as burning waste is a terrible idea for so many reasons.” In March 2022, the waste company, Viridor, cancelled plans for a major new incinerator at Stonehouse in South Lanarkshire. This was viewed as a major victory for the local community which had put sustained pressure on the company to scrap the project. The incinerator a...
The parent company of the firm which owns the Cambo oil field is on a United Nations blacklist for doing business in Israeli-occupied West Bank settlements, The Ferret can reveal. Ithaca Energy last week acquired Siccar Point Energy in a £1.1 billion deal. In doing so, it inherited a controlling 70 per cent stake in Cambo, an oil field off the west coast of Shetland which was the target of fierce opposition from environmental groups in 2021. Ithaca is the UK arm of Delek Group, one of Israel’s biggest energy companies. Delek was among 112 companies named in a 2020 UN list of businesses whose activities in the West Bank “raised particular human rights concerns”. Human rights campaigners alleged that by doing business in Israeli settlements — which are considered illegal under international law — Delek is “contributing to systemic violations against Palestinians”. Delek did not reply to our requests for a comment. The think tank, Common Wealth, has also drawn links between Cambo’s new owners and West Bank settlements. They pointed out that Ithaca Energy has been operating in the North Sea for years and was acquired by Delek in 2017. Ithaca declined to comment on Delek’s links to the Israeli West Bank settlements but said Cambo would play an important role in securing the UK’s energy security for “the next quarter of a decade”. Scots universities have shares worth £2m in firms linked to West Bank settlements The West Bank — a piece of land located on the west bank of the River Jordan near Jerusalem — has been occupied by Israel since the 1967 Middle East war but its occupation has long been opposed by the majority Palestinian population. Conflict between the Israeli settler and Palestinian populations have resulted in alleged human rights abuses stretching back decades. According to Amnesty International, the Israeli military killed 75 and injured 14,679 Palestinian civilians in the West Bank in 2021. There were also 118 attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians in the region last year. Two Israeli civilians were killed in attacks by Palestinian terrorist organisations in the West Bank in 2021, as reported by Israel’s Defence Forces. Amnesty produced a report in February 2021 accusing Israel of apartheid against Palestinians by “enforcing a system of oppression and domination” against them. But the Israeli government denied the claim, arguing it was “divorced from reality”. The UN Human Rights Council produced the list of businesses following a fact-finding mission to “investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people”. Companies were included in the list if they were participating in one of ten “listed activities” which “raised particular concerns” for members of the mission. Delek was named because the UN determined it was involved in two of these activities; the provision of services and utilities to support the maintenance of Israeli settlements, and the use of natural resources for business purposes. Peter Frankental, Amnesty International UK Settling civilians in occupied territories violates international law. Businesses which profit in the context of this illegal situation are contributing to systemic violations against Palestinians. Peter Frankental, economic affairs director at Amnesty International UK, called on Ithaca and Delek to “comply with their international responsibilities and stop doing business with Israel’s illegal settlements”. Frankental said: “In light of the UN’s evidence linking Cambo’s new owner to Israel’s illegal settlements, there are serious questions to be answered. “Settling civilians in occupied territories violates international law. Businesses which profit in the context of this illegal situation are contributing to systemic violations against Palestinians.” In 2021, Norway’s municipal pension fund, KLP, announced that it was divesting its stakes in Delek and 15 other companies linked to the West...
Transgender victims of crime will still be recorded by Police Scotland according to how they identify their gender, in contrast to new rules for English police forces to record their sex as assigned at birth. The gender of anyone who comes into contact with police will be “based on how they present or how they self-declare, which is consistent with the values of the organisation,” a spokesperson from Police Scotland told The Ferret. The force clarified its position after Police Scotland reviewed its policy on self-ID for anyone who deals with the police in February 2022, following a backlash from gender critical campaigners. Murray Blackburn Mackenzie, an Edinburgh-based thinktank which has questioned reform of the Gender Recognition Act, and a decision to allow people to list their sex according to their gender identity in Scotland’s 2022 Census, submitted a freedom of information request late last year. It asked Police Scotland if people accused of rape are identified through their gender or sex they were assigned at birth . Police Scotland replied that rape suspects are recorded by their gender identity, which many campaigners have said is in line with a human rights approach. But some gender critical campaigners condemned Police Scotland’s decision to record rapists as women if they “identify as female”. They included Harry Potter author JK Rowling who condemned the move on Twitter saying: “War is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength. The Penised Individual Who Raped You Is a Woman,” alongside a link to an article about the policy. Despite this, after undertaking a review, the Scottish Police Authority upheld Police Scotland’s decision and said that data collection “must be carried out in a way that treats all people with dignity and respect”. Its approach stands in opposition to new Home Office guidance introduced earlier this month requesting that police forces in England log the sex that victims, suspects and witnesses were assigned at birth in police reports, unless they have a gender recognition certificate. Dr Kevin Guyan This development is not about data quality, it is about erasing certain lives and experiences from the data. The English change was introduced under the 2022/23 annual data requirement. It was revealed through an FOI request asking for the latest set of rules for the way police force collect data on gender identity, which is mandated by the Home Office. The Home Office said the new measures “will bring greater accuracy and consistency to recording,” and “allow forces to benchmark against the resident population using the Census.” The UK government department told The Ferret that forces have been asked to do this on a voluntary basis, and it “intends to request forces to collect an individual’s gender identity if it differs from their legal sex status, where they are willing to provide that information”. “This follows the approach adopted in the 2021 Census of recording gender in line with birth certificates or gender recognition certificates,” a spokesperson from the department said. However Police Scotland said it doesn’t need “evidence or certification as proof of biological sex or gender identity other than a person’s self-declaration” – unless it is “pertinent to any investigation” where it is “evidentially critical” that a victim, witness, or anyone accused provides proof. “We would look for the most sensitive way to acquire this information,” a spokesperson added. LGBT+ data expert Dr Kevin Guyan claimed Police Scotland “is right to continue its current approach”. He argued that the UK government’s change in tack will “erase certain lives and experiences from the data”. “The Home Office’s proposal that forces should record the sex of both victims and suspects, based on what is recorded on an individual’s birth certificate or gender recognition certificate, raises serious concerns as to how this will work in practice,” added Guyan, a research fellow at the University of Glasgow a...
Hayden says he is exhausted. Since 2019, he’s been fighting to get a ramp installed to enter his home. The 31-year-old wheelchair user applied to his local council for funding to build a ramp that leads to his doorway, replacing a row of stairs stacked below the doorframe. When it is built, it will allow him to leave the house independently, rather than relying on his parents for assistance. Hayden is one of thousands of disabled Scots who have applied for a funding grant to adapt their home. He still doesn’t have a ramp to enter his home, and is applying for assistance for the second time, after his first application was rejected. Under the Scheme of Assistance, local authorities have a legal responsibility to provide funding for disabled people to adapt homes, installing the likes of ramps, stairlifts and rails in bathrooms so they are suitable for use. But new data – obtained after a freedom of information request (Foi) was submitted by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism – has revealed that holes in the grants system are leaving thousands of disabled people at risk of being “stuck indefinitely in inadequate and inaccessible housing”. Since 2018, more than 31,000 people have applied for adaptations to be made to their homes. The figures, taken from the records of 28 local authorities in Scotland, show that just over 12,000 installations have been completed, only a 38 per cent success rate for those who apply. The shortfall is leaving people like Hayden living in unsuitable homes, with some living in properties without vital accessibility adaptations. “I didn’t even get as far as approval or installation with my application,” Hayden told The Ferret. “ I was told by the council that because I bought my motorised wheelchair privately, the local council has zero obligation to accommodate me. “I was confused. I fundraised for mine because it’s difficult to get a decent customised wheelchair via the NHS”. Even though Hayden’s GP said he would support his application, he didn’t have any luck progressing it. “I contacted the council’s access team, and they never got back to me,” he said. Though he needed the ramp, during the pandemic, Hayden said he “couldn’t find the energy to challenge the council”. He spent most of his time indoors, and avoided going outside. He requested that The Ferret change his name in case it affects his new application. “The experience knocked me down a bit,” he added. “I have mental illness as well as physical disabilities, and things like this and getting constantly rejected for PIP, a benefit payment which helps with extra living costs, takes a lot out of you.” As Hayden has experienced firsthand, multiple obstacles stand in the way of securing a grant, with thousands falling at the first hurdle of proving eligibility for funding. After the grant application has been processed, occupational therapists visit the home to assess the need for the adaptations. If they are approved, the applicant may have to cover some of the costs. If they don’t have the funding to move forward, then the work stalls. In the last year, 28 out of 29 local authorities decided need to cover adaptation costs. A total of 3275 adaptations were approved with 100 per cent funding, while 7197 received the cash to cover 80 per cent of the costs. Susie Fitton, policy manager for Inclusion Scotland We have heard of cases where disabled people have had to be carried in through windows for a lack of a ramped front entrance, disabled adults having to be washed at the local leisure centre, or disabled children being washed at school because their bathrooms are inaccessible. This is simply unacceptable. It’s a breach of disabled people’s human rights Hayden’s application might have had a different outcome if he lived in a different area of Scotland. As disability adaptation funding is provided at a local level, he is dependent on the decision his local authority makes, rather than the government. In the Shetlands, a disabled person coul...
The news that Channel 4 is set to be privatised has prompted controversy and varying reactions from politicians and the public. The UK Government is moving forward with plans to take the channel out of public hands, with culture secretary Nadine Dorries saying government ownership was “holding Channel 4 back”. A number of politicians and commentators commented on the move, with many claiming the channel was currently funded by the taxpayer. Darren Grimes “If Channel 4 is profitable and successful it’ll do just fine without the taxpayer.” Evidence Channel 4 is a publicly-owned broadcaster that was set up by the government under then-Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1982. It operates as a not-for-profit corporation. As a public service broadcaster, it is required to produce content in line with its agreed remit, which includes having a proportion of educational programming. This is set by the UK’s television regulator, Ofcom. Its board is appointed by Ofcom in agreement with the culture secretary. How is Channel 4 funded? While Channel 4 is publicly-owned like the BBC, it is entirely commercially funded. This is done mostly through selling advertising. A number of social media posts suggested the channel was taxpayer funded. Culture secretary Nadine Dorries claimed the broadcaster was funded through taxation in a select committee hearing at the House of Commons in November 2021, saying it was “in receipt of public money”. This is incorrect. Channel 4 is not funded by the taxpayer, and it recorded a pre-tax surplus of £74m in its latest accounts, covering 2020. The broadcaster is described as a “self financing public corporation” by the UK Government, which means it must be profitable and “not require subsidies or other financial support from its parent department”. Because Channel 4 is publicly-owned, if it had to borrow money that would be part of the UK’s public sector debt, however it does not appear the government has ever had to cover the channel’s debts. Unlike Channel 4, the BBC is funded primarily through the licence fee, which is essentially a tax people in the UK must pay to access live television.Channel 4 does not produce its own content, instead commissioning production companies to make programmes it then broadcasts. For example, its flagship Channel 4 News is produced by ITN. Will it be privatised? The view of the UK Government is that Channel 4 should be privatised, and it launched a consultation on a potential sell-off in July 2021, arguing the channel would be better served if it did not have the “constraints that come with public ownership”. Dorries tweeted on 4 April that “government ownership is holding Channel 4 back from competing against streaming giants like Netflix and Amazon”. Would Channel 4 still be a public service broadcaster if it was privatised? Yes. The public service broadcasters in the UK are the BBC, Channel 3, 4 and 5, as well as S4C, which delivers Welsh programming. ITV and STV, which control the Channel 3 slot are both privately-owned, as is Channel 5. These channels are required by law to do certain programming that is considered to be for the public good. This often means that privately-owned public service broadcasters are unable to make the profits that private channels can. It is possible that conditions could be put on the sale of the broadcaster to make sure it continues to produce a certain amount of news programming. But media experts have expressed concern that the privatisation could put the channel’s public service remit at risk. Ferret Fact Service verdict: False Claims that Channel 4 is funded in any way by taxpayers is incorrect. While the channel is publicly-owned, it generates its own funding commercially. This is primarily through advertising. It is technically possible that if Channel 4 required borrowing, it would be counted as UK public sector debt but it does not appear that this has ever happened, and the company reported a pre-tax surplus in its most recent a...
A woman who was allegedly attacked by her Bumble date is urging the app to release the pair’s conversation history, which could provide vital evidence to secure his conviction. Lowri Llewelyn was allegedly attacked in the early hours of 16 March by a man at his flat in Edinburgh. She met up with the man after speaking to him on Bumble, an online dating app. She has spent the last three weeks asking Bumble staff to release messages the pair exchanged on the app after the man unmatched her shortly after the attack, deleting all evidence of their chat history. Llewelyn, who was visiting the city to celebrate her 30th birthday, noticed the man getting “increasingly aggressive” when she asked if he’d join her outside his flat while she waited for a taxi. Rachel Adamson, co-director of Zero-Tolerance It is extremely concerning to hear that Police Scotland took a week to question a man on an incident of violence against women, but not surprising. Women are all too often being let down by police. Minutes later, the man was said to have grabbed her by the hair, pulling her down to the floor. He then dragged her across his kitchen. “I remember screaming, I remember him laughing in my face when I was hyperventilating. He had a look in his eyes. He looked like he was going to kill me,” she said. “I stumbled down the stairs, and reached the flat entrance, but the door was shut. Shaking, I called 999, and screamed for the police to get me out.” The next day Llewelyn saw the man had messaged her on Bumble minutes after the attack. When she clicked on the message, she realised he’d unmatched her – deleting the message and the pair’s entire conversation history. She messaged Bumble to ask if she could retrieve the history and report the man, and asked for his profile to be suspended. “At first, I was told I couldn’t get the chat because of data protection issues, then I was told the police could make a subject access request to get it. I emailed the officer dealing with my case to ask them to do it, but they never responded to my emails,” she told The Ferret. “When Bumble eventually told me I could make the request myself, I was told to send over a scan of my ID. Llewelyn last heard from Bumble on 1 April, when she emailed support staff to ask if they’d received the scan. Lowri Llewelyn It markets itself as a feminist dating app, but all I’ve had is hot air. When it comes down to it, I don’t think they have womens’ best interests at heart. I don’t feel they’ve done all they can to protect me. “A week went by and I didn’t hear anything, so I contacted them again,” she said. “I received an email saying my message hadn’t been received because my case had been resolved”. On 11 April, a Bumble spokesperson confirmed it had removed the man from the app, three weeks after the alleged attack took place. After The Ferret contacted Police Scotland, Llewelyn was assigned a specialist officer from the domestic abuse unit to deal with the case. The woman said she has “lost faith” in the dating app and the police. “I feel so let down by Bumble,” she added. “It markets itself as a feminist dating app, but all I’ve had is hot air. When it comes down to it, I don’t think they have womens’ best interests at heart. I don’t feel they’ve done all they can to protect me. “I’m also disgusted that it took eight days for the police to arrest him. I could have bumped into him in those eight days, or he could have done it to someone else. “The specialist unit has been brilliant. They want to take another statement, and seem to genuinely care. But the experience has been a real eye-opener,” she added. In February, BBC News reported that 6000 crimes linked to dating apps have been reported to UK police forces between 2017-2020, double the number of incidents reported during the previous three years. Feminist campaigning group Zero Tolerance said “Bumble’s inaction” is “indicative of the lack of importance tech companies give to preventing violence against women”. “It i...
Police Scotland is investigating allegations that fraudsters claimed Covid-19 business grants from the tourist board, VisitScotland. In response to a freedom of information request lodged by The Ferret, VisitScotland said it made a report to Police Scotland on 2 March 2022 regarding “an identified instance or instances of fraud” relating to Covid grants. VisitScotland has not disclosed the value of the grants it believes were obtained fraudulently, but said they represented less than “0.1 per cent” of the total Covid-19 support it gave out. The body has given out £100m in grants to businesses impacted by restrictions on tourists entering Scotland following the onset of the pandemic in March 2020. It notified the Scottish Government about the police report on 9 March. VisitScotland told The Ferret that a “very small number” of allegedly fraudulent grants had been identified when giving out top-up grants to other businesses. Police Scotland confirmed that it had received the report from VisitScotland and that “enquiries are at an early stage”. No arrests have been made so far. Daniel Johnson, Scottish Labour’s finance spokesperson Every penny of this stolen money could have gone to people facing hardship, struggling businesses, or our overstretched NHS. Any instances of fraud must be investigated and properly dealt with. Fears over further fraud In total, the Scottish Government gave businesses over £4.5bn between March 2020 and October 2021 to help them through the initial phase of the pandemic. A further £350m in support was announced in the winter of 2021 following the emergence of the Omicron variant. The money gave a financial boost to companies whose earnings were impacted by restrictions introduced during the pandemic. But there are growing concerns about how much of this money has ended up in the hands of fraudsters. In March 2022, the government’s finance watchdog, Audit Scotland, said that it was unable to do a detailed analysis of where Covid business funding went due to gaps in the data collected by the Scottish Government. The Audit Scotland report also noted that the government does not have an analysis of the total amounts paid out to different sectors of the economy. The Scottish Government estimated in 2021 that between £16m and £32m of the £1.5bn of business support given out by Scotland’s local authorities was at risk of fraud. Scottish Labour’s finance spokesperson, Daniel Johnson, said that the Scottish Government’s response to these estimates “cannot be to shrug and leave it be”. He said: “It is right that this support was allocated as quickly and smoothly as possible during the pandemic, but this is not an excuse to cut corners and it is certainly not a free pass for fraudsters. “Every penny of this stolen money could have gone to people facing hardship, struggling businesses, or our overstretched NHS. Any instances of fraud must be investigated and properly dealt with. ‘Hollow’ Government rules let tax haven Highland estates get Covid grants Willie Rennie, economy spokesperson for the Scottish Liberal Democrats, argued that the government needed to “get on top of chasing down fraudsters”. Rennie said: “In the interests of shepherding Scottish businesses through the pandemic, there was an acceptance that the Scottish Government needed to get money out of the door and into bank accounts fast to prevent jobs being lost. “As we come out of the pandemic, there will be a need to squeeze value for money from every penny to get the economy firing again.” VisitScotland We put in place robust processes to ensure controls were built in at every stage to mitigate against any risk of fraud. VisitScotland said that during work carried out to deliver top-up payments, it identified a “very small number of potentially fraudulent applications” from an earlier round of funding. This was reported to auditors and the relevant authorities, including Scottish Government and Police Scotland. A VisitScotland spokesperson added...
A far-right podcast hosted by a West Lothian butcher that features convicted criminals and extremists has been condemned by anti-racism campaigners and politicians. P.A. Talk, a podcast by the far-right group Patriotic Alternative (PA) Scotland, is hosted by Simon Crane, the group’s organiser and an employee of the Broxburn-based butchers, Tailford Meats. Crane’s show has broadcasted Australian far-right extremist and convicted criminal, Blair Cottrell, as well as numerous PA members linked to the banned neo-nazi terrorist group, National Action. Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) said Crane’s podcast is “at the heart” of the far-right group’s multimedia strategy, claiming it aims to “indoctrinate listeners and viewers of all ages. Crane and PA told The Ferret: “Patriotic Alternative repudiates these ridiculous claims and is unequivocally [sic] in our condemnation of violence and terrorism. “Our organisation unapologetically stands up for the rights of the indigenous people of this country. We are determined to gain registration as a political party. Rights and safety of our people are paramount.” Scottish Labour deemed PA “extremists” and said Scotland had “repeatedly rejected far-right candidates at the ballot box”. Crane, who operates under the pseudonym Si Borg, has been with Tailford Meats for 12 years, the butcher’s website says. Crane is a “family man”, it adds. The company did not respond to our repeated requests to comment. In September, Crane hosted the Australian far-right extremist, Blair Cottrell, a convicted criminal charged with offences including arson, burglary, and inciting contempt, revulsion or ridicule of Muslims. Cottrell once said he had “manipulated” women by “using violence and terror”. In November, Crane hosted Kevin MacDonald, who the Southern Poverty Law Centre (SPLC) describes as “the neo-Nazi movement’s favourite academic”. PA Scotland has filmed young people attending its events for use in promotional videos and Crane has featured two members of his group’s PA Young Scots youth wing on his podcast. The butcher’s current co-host uses the monikers ‘Mean Peem’ and Jimbo. In an earlier P.A Talk stream, he deemed Kyle Rittenhouse – the teenager who fatally shot two people during the 2020 unrest in Kenosha, Wisconsin – a “saint”, according to Hope not hate. CAA deemed PA “among the savviest of far-right groups on the scene”. “It uses popular platforms and mediums to indoctrinate listeners and viewers of all ages” and “the PA Talk podcast is at the heart of this twenty-first century multimedia strategy,” said Binyomin Gilbert, CAA programme manager. “Patriotic Alternative uses these platforms to present its followers with some of the most odious people on the planet, with long records of racism and even criminal convictions. No streaming platforms should want their brand associated with this podcast.” PA links to National Action Several PA members including its leader, Mark Collett, share links with National Action – the first UK far right organisation to be banned since World War Two ended. Kris Kearns, who regularly co-hosts P.A. Talk with Crane, is an alleged former National Action member and a founder of a ‘Fascist Fitness’ movement. We previously reported Kearns’ apparent aspirations for PA, which emerged in a leaked voice recording. He said: “I want a cult. I want fanatics, people who are willing to die for this cause. That’s the level of commitment I want and expect. We want a hardcore group of people who know exactly what they want. It’s that simple.” In an undercover ITV investigation, which found former National Action members were still meeting in secrecy, PA leader Collett was filmed combat-training at a camp. Collett, who appeared on P.A. Talk with Crane in December, was pictured with the activist Garron Helm. Helm was imprisoned for telling a Jewish MP that Hitler was right. Collett has previously denied involvement with National Action. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon My view of what i...
Inspections at fish slaughterhouses by a government agency are now a mandatory requirement, The Ferret can reveal. The Animal, Plant and Health Agency (APHA) – a UK Government agency responsible for safeguarding the health of animals – said Scottish salmon firms slaughtering fish would be monitored from the 1 February 2022. The news was revealed to campaign group Animal Equality in response to a freedom of information (FoI) request it submitted to APHA. Animal Equality welcomed the step as “a move in the right direction” but argued it does not go “nearly far enough”. It is calling for legislation to ensure that CCTV is installed in every fish slaughterhouse in the UK, due to animal welfare concerns. Salmon Scotland — which represents the farmed salmon industry — said in reply that “fish welfare is central to everything Scotland’s salmon producers do” and that CCTV is already used by every “harvest station” The Scottish Government said the UK Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) is currently considering this issue and that it would “explore the need for any changes to current practice or legislation” once the committee’s findings have been published. In February 2021 Animal Equality released a video after an undercover investigation into an onshore fish abattoir operated by The Scottish Salmon Company. It showed fish having their gills cut while still conscious and being clubbed by workers and left to asphyxiate on the ground. Jenny Canham, of Animal Equality UK This step is a move in the right direction – and we expect the rest of the UK to follow suit – but in reality it doesn’t go nearly far enough. Fish must be given detailed and specific protections in law and CCTV must be mandated in abattoirs. It’s the very least we can offer these already vulnerable animals The campaign group said its footage revealed “extremely serious animal welfare abuses”. The video led to scientists and academics calling for CCTV to be made mandatory for all slaughterhouses, as reported by The Ferret. In an open letter to the AWC — which advises the Scottish Government on welfare issues — 25 signatories called for “regular, frequent, and unannounced inspections” at fish slaughterhouses in Scotland, and across the rest of the UK. The letter was organised by Animal Equality last December. A few weeks later, in January, the campaign group submitted a FoI request to APHA asking if inspections were taking place to monitor animal welfare at fish slaughterhouses. The FoI reply from APHA said: “From the 1st February 2022, the Scottish Government (SG) animal welfare policy requires APHA Scotland to commence visits to monitor fish welfare at slaughter. For this first year, it is one visit for each major salmon company carrying out onshore processing.” Animal experts call for CCTV in farmed fish slaughterhouses Jenny Canham, of Animal Equality UK, welcomed the move but said there is a “disturbing lack of oversight” in the aquaculture industry, which leads to fish experiencing “extreme and prolonged suffering”. She added: “This step is a move in the right direction – and we expect the rest of the UK to follow suit – but in reality it doesn’t go nearly far enough. Fish must be given detailed and specific protections in law and CCTV must be mandated in abattoirs. It’s the very least we can offer these already vulnerable animals”. Professor Culum Brown, of Macquarie University and assistant editor of the Journal of Fish Biology, said consumers are increasingly concerned about animal welfare in food production. “The process of slaughter is arguably one of the most important processes to ensure minimum pain and suffering occurs at the time of death,” he added. Salmon Scotland We have always welcomed measures designed to support this sector-leading position on animal welfare and are happy to engage with any organisation wanting to learn about how today’s salmon sector operates. “While rules and regulations may stipulate how the slaughter process should occur, without a...
More than 100 journalists, politicians, celebrities and campaigners are among the signatories of an open letter calling for the UK Government to stop breaching freedom of information (FoI) legislation. The letter – coordinated by openDemocracy – calls on the UK’s information commissioner, John Edwards, to improve investigations into FoI breaches and to stop government secrecy. The letter comes amid growing concern about the state of freedom of information in Britain. It has been signed by – among others – The Ferret, Guardian editor Katharine Viner, Observer editor Paul Webster, Tory MP David Davis, the Green Party’s Caroline Lucas and shadow solicitor general, Andy Slaughter. 2020 was the worst year on record for freedom of information in the UK, with just 41 per cent of requests made to central government granted in full. In 2021 a British judge criticised the Cabinet Office for its “profound lack of transparency” after openDemocracy exposed the existence of an FoI ‘clearing house’ in government, which was coordinating responses to requests from journalists and others. A parliamentary inquiry was launched in July 2021 and is ongoing. Ministers accused of ‘stalling’ on freedom of information The open letter is addressed to Edwards, who became the information commissioner in January 2022. It says the “current regulatory approach to FoI is clearly not working” and urges Edwards to do more to keep the government accountable. “The accountability that FoI provides is in real danger of disappearing, which poses a threat to the long-term national interest of this country. It is time for fresh thinking and bold action to deliver FoI transparency in the public interest,” the letter says, urging the Information Commissioner’s Office to allocate more resources to investigating complaints about FoI. It also calls for clear protocols to be introduced to deal with authorities that have systemic patterns of poor transparency. When the government fails to meet its transparency commitments, it is essential that the ICO is able to step in to make sure ministers and public bodies comply with the law.a Nik Williams, a director at The Ferret, said: “Without a modern, transparent, and effective FoI regime, too many new stories that have emboldened public knowledge and engagement would have been unreported. This absence of public interest reporting would hollow out the civic space upon which UK democracy needs to thrive.” He added: “With a new FoI commissioner we have an opportunity to turn the page and make the necessary changes to ensure that the public bodies that govern our everyday lives are open to scrutiny and democratic accountability. As an investigative journalism cooperative, The Ferret’s work is underpinned by the ability to request and access information to support our readers, members and the wider community.” The FFS Show 23: PartyGate & Freedom of Information with Jenna Corderoy from openDemocracy Peter Geoghegan, editor-in-chief of openDemocracy, said that as the British public is still being “kept in the dark over partygate”, the importance of transparency has “rarely been more obvious”. “At openDemocracy, we are constantly encountering public bodies and government departments which stonewall, delay and dodge freedom of information requests,” he added. “As you can see from the huge range of signatories to the open letter, we are far from alone in having serious concerns about transparency. “FoI is a key tool for holding public bodies to account but currently the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is not ensuring that the Freedom of Information Act delivers. We welcome the new information commissioner’s listening exercise and are keen to share our views on how FOI can be better policed.” Katharine Viner, editor-in-chief at The Guardian said journalism in the public interest often depends on freedom of information laws, which help the public understand decisions made by the authorities. “Such laws are essential to a well-fun...
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) has revealed that the cost to taxpayers of a cyber attack that paralysed the organisation in 2020 has risen to at least £5.5 million. The attack against Sepa’s computers was launched on Christmas Eve 2020 by an international criminal gang known as Conti. It demanded a ransom, which Sepa refused to pay. In June 2021 we reported that Sepa estimated the hack would cost taxpayers £2.5m. But new documents released by Sepa show that the final bill has more than doubled. They give a breakdown of the costs and full details of crucial environmental data that remains lost, more than a year after the attack. The breakdown shows that the organisation’s internal systems and networks had to be rebuilt from scratch. More than £1.1m was split between seven private firms who assisted with “systems recovery and rebuild”. Nearly half a million pounds was spent on digital forensic and recovery services to try to investigate the hack. £353,000 had to be spent on getting crucial warning and communications systems — such as the national flood warning system — back up and running. The agency also spent £280,000 on external communications and social media firms under the budget heading of “sharing our learnings widely.” Officials now estimate the agency lost more than £1.3m in missing income as a consequence of the attack. Although Sepa insists that 80 per cent of the data encrypted by the hackers has been recovered, there is still crucial data that the agency cannot access. According to a Sepa spreadsheet, there are seven datasets that have not been recovered. These include “annual complex exemption returns” for waste licences, “farm inspection” records relating to water, as well as “bathing water control zones.” The detailed spreadsheet is available to Ferret members as a download. In February we reported that information on thousands of environmental checks and pollution breaches over 15 months had been permanently lost. One former Sepa boss described the lost databases as a “disaster”. Pollution data permanently lost because of cyber attack Sepa‘s acting chief executive, Jo Green, said a series of independent reviews, including by Audit Scotland, “were clear both on the level of threat to Scottish organisations and that Sepa is not a poorly protected organisation”. “We’ve spoken out on our readiness, resilience, response and recovery, and shared our learnings widely,” Green added. “Whilst recovery is challenging and complex, we’re making strong progress. We moved quickly to prioritise service delivery and continue to work to a clear plan for the medium term restoration of all our services. Green said Sepa had recovered 80 per cent of the data illegally encrypted by criminals, and recently published “two significant compliance and reporting datasets and are working on next steps”. She continued: “In line with what we’ve said, we’ve confirmed the detailed cost of the cyber-attack as £4.4m, with £1.1m investment brought forward from future years.” The Ferret first submitted a freedom of information request seeking more information on the cyber attack in March 2021. The latest documents have been released, more than one year on, following an investigation by the Scottish Information Commissioner into the handling of the request. The new figure of £5.5m was published in a statement on Sepa’s website at the same time as a final response was provided to the freedom of information request submitted by The Ferret. Photo Credit: Unsplash/Vivianne Lemay
Cracks which could increase the risk of a radioactive accident have appeared at the ageing Torness nuclear power station in East Lothian. The plant’s operator, EDF Energy, wrote to a local liaison group in February saying that three cracks had been found in the graphite core of one of the station’s reactors. According to EDF, the cracks were “entirely expected” and would not “on their own” affect the safe operation of the power station. But campaigners are calling on the company to bring forward the closure date of Torness, currently set for 2028. In May 2020 The Ferret reported evidence from the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) suggesting that cracks at Torness could lead to a meltdown which could result in a radiation leak. In 2020 the ONR predicted the reactors at Torness would start cracking in 2022, six years sooner than had previously been thought. This prompted EDF to bring the plant’s planned closure date forward by two years, to 2028. Pete Roche, nuclear consultant and critic EDF will obviously be hoping it can keep Torness open as long as possible. Anti-nuclear campaigners now argue that Torness may need to close “as soon as 2024” to avoid “taking any unnecessary risks as the cracking gets worse”. But EDF has no plans to move forward the closure date of Torness as a result of finding the cracks. Torness nuclear reactors predicted to start cracking in 2022 Two reactors have been in operation at Torness, near Dunbar, since 1989, when the plant was opened by then-Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher. The site has been targeted by anti-nuclear protests since 1978. Torness plays an important role in the East Lothian economy. According to EDF, the station employs around 500 staff and 200 contractors, and contributes around £45 million to the local economy. The cracks – which have appeared on reactor one – are fissures at the base of key slots in the graphite cores of the reactors. These types of cracks are known as keyway root cracks. They were identified by an EDF inspection carried out at the start of 2022. Inspections are due to take place on a six monthly basis so it is unknown if new cracks have appeared since. An inspection on reactor two is scheduled for May. EDF closed down two similar, but older reactors, at the Hunterston B power station in North Ayrshire at the start of 2022. Those reactors suffered from hundreds of cracks in the graphite bricks at their cores, and it was determined that the station could no longer operate safely. Cracks were first discovered on one of the reactors at Hunterston in 2014. ONR inspectors have previously pointed out that there is a difference in design between Torness and Hunterston, though. Torness and its sister station – Heysham, near Lancaster – have seal rings between the graphite bricks that make up the reactor core. Cracks cause Torness nuclear plant to close early ONR quoted EDF saying that the cracking could lead to a “systematic failure” of the seal rings. ONR said this could cause debris with “the potential to challenge the ability to move or adequately cool fuel”. If hot fuel is not cooled, the result can be a meltdown with the potential to release radioactivity into the environment. This happened during the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan in 2011. Initially scheduled to close in 2023, Torness’ lifetime was extended to 2030 in 2016. Following an assessment by the UK’s nuclear regulator, the Office for Nuclear Regulation in 2020 – which found that cracks were expected by 2022 – the closure of the site was moved forward again, to 2028. According to the nuclear consultant and critic, Pete Roche, “logic suggests” that the closure date of Torness should be brought forward to 2024 or “soon after”. Roche said: “EDF will obviously be hoping it can keep Torness open as long as possible, but it was only in May 2020 that we learnt that the cores of the two reactors were predicted to start cracking in 2022, six years earlier than previously thought. “Torness has a significan...
Four Highland estates owned in tax havens together received £69k in Covid-19 grants, despite Holyrood voting to ban firms owned offshore from accessing support during the pandemic. A Ferret analysis of Highland Council Covid grants found that the Ben Alder, Gledfield, Kilchoan and Dorback estates, each received financial support while being owned by companies located in either the Bahamas, Guernsey or Jersey. They were eligible because Scottish Government rules only excluded companies from support if they were owned in a country named on an EU blacklist of tax havens. There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing and the estates pointed out the grants helped them survive during the pandemic. The EU list focuses on very small jurisdictions which are only involved in 0.5 per cent of global tax avoidance. It does not include any of the countries named in the top twenty of the Tax Justice Network’s corporate tax haven index, which includes the Bahamas, Guernsey and Jersey. The Scottish Government said its powers to tackle tax avoidance were “constrained by the devolution settlement”, and that it does not have the powers to “independently designate tax havens”. But opposition politicians argued the findings showed the government’s commitment to stopping tax haven firms receiving support was “utterly hollow”. Tax experts said the Scottish Government could have used benchmarks, other than the EU list, to ensure that public funds were not “wasted” on tax haven firms. Ben Alder Estate — located on the outskirts of the Cairngorm National Park — received total payments of £34k. It is majority owned by a company called Argo Invest Overseas which is incorporated in Guernsey. Kilchoan Estate, near Mallaig — which received a £10k grant — is also owned by a firm located in Guernsey. Gledfield Estate in Sutherland received a £10k payment in Spring 2020. At the time it was owned by a firm located in Jersey. The Jersey company sold Gledfield to an unconnected company — which is registered in the UK — in September 2020. The new owners have not claimed any Covid grants. Dorback Estate near Aviemore, meanwhile, is ultimately owned by a holding company registered in Nassau, in the Bahamas. The money was paid out by Highland Council which told The Ferret that the Scottish Government did not require local authorities to check company declarations about whether they were owned in tax havens before issuing the payments. The Scottish Parliament voted to block firms owned in tax havens from receiving Covid-19 bailout funds in May 2020. MSPs said at the time this would prevent companies which do not “contribute to society” from “getting handouts when things go wrong”. Scotland followed other European countries, including Denmark and France, in placing some restrictions on firms in low-tax jurisdictions receiving support. The restrictions were written into emergency legislation produced by Holyrood at the start of the pandemic. The rules were criticised by the Tax Justice Network (TJN) when announced, because the countries identified as tax havens were those included in the EU’s list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes. The campaign group has dismissed the EU list as “biased” because it does not include any EU members. TJN – which campaigns against the use of tax havens – produced a list of 13 jurisdictions which should be excluded by governments. The list was based on TJN’s tax haven and financial secrecy indexes and included both the Bahamas and Jersey. Paul Sweeney MSP It cannot be right that while families are struggling to pay their bills, the Scottish Government is handing out public money to companies owned in tax havens. The campaign group said the Scottish Government could have avoided a lot of issues with the EU list if it had instead excluded support from companies that do not publish their ultimate beneficial owners and their accounts. Alex Cobham, chief executive of TJN, also noted that stronger initiatives than the EU list could ha...
The Ferret’s From The Margins project works with citizen journalists who have lived experience of overlapping issues including homelessness, addiction and mental health. The series investigates the way these things can interact, making it very difficult to break out of a cycle of insecurity. One of our citizen journalists, Michelle, has a special interest in family support and addiction, due to her own experiences. We’re in East Dunbartonshire, about to speak to some teenagers about the impact of their parents’ addiction on their lives, and I’m nervous. I’m a recovering alcoholic. It took me years to get into recovery. Meanwhile my kids weren’t listened to. So as part of the From the Margins project I’ve come to hear about what it’s like from their point of view. We’re going to speak to four young women whose parents are in addiction and get support through Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs (SFAAD)’s Routes project.It’s a support group for 12-26 year-olds to give them the help they need to cope with family members in addiction. Even though it’s estimated there are at least 60,000 children affected by a parent’s drug use, and another 65,000 children whose parents use alcohol in a harmful way, it’s a pretty unique service. It was funded by the Scottish Government’s Drug Death task force, and has been running for almost three years. The young people here get one-to-one support, group activities and trips, and they can talk openly with each other and be understood. The workers here show them a taste of life outside of addiction and all the chaos that they’ve been exposed to.But it’s just one project. And it’s full, and has been unable to take new referrals for many months.Justina Murray, the chief executive of Scottish Families, says there is a huge gap in support for young people such as those in this group. But the charity doesn’t have the resources to help more of the teens that want access to the service. She says that has to change, and is hoping that more groups like this can one rolled out across the county. Because the impacts of addiction on young people and families are huge.I don’t remember my kids being taken into care at the height of my addiction. But do remember waking up and finding out that they were not there. I remember the silence. That was the worst sound you can ever hear in a family home, that’s always had kids and their pals running about it. For a couple of years I had to have TVs on in every room, noise everywhere. Just to fill that emptiness. And the other side of that coin is that kids want to know if their mums and dads are alright, when they’re not in their care. Not being able to see each other is sometimes also part of the trauma. On my son’s 16 birthday I had to leave his present and balloon in the close [of the block of flats] because I wasn’t allowed to see him. There’s a lot of things that happen like that.Now my kids are back in my care. But it’s still hard because they’ve been through a lot. Young people like them need to let people know what it’s like and to be provided with the right support.When we meet them, we find these young people have no problem with telling us what they need. They aren’t using their own names but have chosen ones they want to use so they are Brenda and Natalia, aged 15, Billie is 16 and Maisie 18.This meeting is not about asking them to retell traumatic stories – there’s enough of that goes on. So we selected words – like trust, love and family – and we asked them to tell us whatever they wanted in response.Here’s what they said, in their own words. Being let down Billie, 16: “Your parents will make arrangements for your birthday, that they’re going to turn up in the morning, sober. And us being young, we do believe it. And it comes up, and they’re drunk. Like I remember one time, after I started living with my gran, I would sit at the window, and I would wait for my mum to come. And she would arrive, staggering.”Maisie, 18: “It’s kind of like a punc...
The UK’s biggest care home provider has been fined £640,000 by a Scottish court after one of its residents choked on a piece of doughnut and died. HC One Ltd – which is ultimately owned in a tax haven – pleaded guilty to failings under the Health and Safety at Work Act this week after a 65-year-old resident died in Orchard Care Home in Tullibody, Clackmannanshire. We reported in 2017 that more than 100 complaints against HC One had been upheld by The Care Inspectorate in the prior three years. A total of 33 homes, out of the 44 operated by the firm in Scotland, had 108 complaints upheld against them. This total was greater than any other care provider in Scotland. The woman who died in Orchard Care Home, Tullibody, was on a specialist diet of easy to swallow food after a severe stroke and vascular dementia left her at risk of choking. The resident had been assessed as having a high risk of choking on 2 December 2018. Bread products are not suitable for the modified diet she was on as they cannot be mashed small enough. On 7 August 2019, however, she was given a piece of jam doughnut as a snack from the tea trolley, which she choked on. Despite efforts of care home staff and paramedics to remove the food, the resident died. Revealed: the care homes with the most complaints in Scotland Prior to her death, the resident had frequently been given sandwiches from the snack trolley, repeatedly putting her at risk, said the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal (COPFS) in a statement. Main meals at the home were prepared by the kitchen and labelled with each resident’s name. However, the snack trolley did not have information on modified diets or food suitability. Staff in charge of the trolley had also not had sufficient training on modified diets, said COPFS. HC-One Limited was fined at Falkirk Sheriff Court on Wednesday. The firm has since made changes at the home to ensure the snack trolley has suitable food for all residents. Training has also taken place. Alistair Duncan, head of the health and safety investigation unit of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, said: “The death of this vulnerable care home resident could have been prevented if suitable training and procedures were in place. HC-One Limited left all residents at risk by failing to ensure modified diets were adhered to and staff had the relevant knowledge to keep those in their care safe. Alistair Duncan, head of the health and safety investigation unit of the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service This prosecution should reiterate the need for all care homes to protect their residents and remind them they will be held accountable if they fail to do so. He added: “This prosecution should reiterate the need for all care homes to protect their residents and remind them they will be held accountable if they fail to do so. Our thoughts are with the family of the resident at what must be a difficult time for them.” James Tugendhat, chief executive officer of HC-One said: “First and foremost, we offer our heartfelt condolences and apologies to Mrs Hughes’ family and loved ones. It was vitally important to us that lessons were learned when this occurred in 2019. Additional safeguards are now in place across all our homes to prevent a repeat of an accident like this, and Colleagues now complete additional and specific training focused on supporting residents who have modified diets. He added: “The Care Inspectorate has recognised this work across our homes, as well as the very good care provided at The Orchard today. We are clear that this tragedy should never have happened, and we hope today’s judgement provides Mrs Hughes’ family with some comfort and closure. In 2020 The Ferret reported that HC One was ultimately owned by a firm based in the Cayman Islands, which is renowned as a tax haven. In reply then, HC-One said it was committed to providing “the kindest care” and that it had an impressive record with the industry regulator, the Care Inspectorate, with...
Scottish sporting estates are charging clients up to £1,000 to shoot wild goats years after public outrage over the practice prompted the Scottish Government to review shooting laws. The Ferret found five hunting companies advertising goat hunting trips in the Highlands and Islands, the Scottish Borders and Dumfries and Galloway. Goat shooting as a sport was brought into the spotlight in 2018 after US TV host, Larysa Switlyk, shared pictures on social media of two goats on Islay that she and a companion had killed. This sparked international media coverage and condemnation from senior politicians and members of the public, which prompted the Scottish Government to review shooting laws. Celebrity hunter tweets photos of killed animals after Scots hunting trip The government told The Ferret its review “was paused during the pandemic but will be resumed shortly”. The Campaign to Ban Trophy Hunting said it was “frankly baffling” that the government hadn’t acted more quickly, given public support for a ban. The Scottish Greens condemned “a small cabal of wealthy trophy hunters who take pleasure from killing animals” while animal charity OneKind urged the government to stop sporting estates profiting from “this cruel type of tourism”. But the British Association for Shooting and Conservation (BASC) said culling feral goats was necessary to stop damage to vegetation and generate woodland in many parts of Scotland. Goats are culled in the same way as deer, and goat management is backed by the government and conservationists, said Dr Colin Shedden, BASC’s Scotland director. Goat trophy hunting in Scotland An email shared with The Ferret shows that hunting holiday firm, River and Green, based in the Scottish Borders town of Hawick, offered a goat hunting trip from 29 May to 4 June on Jura. Clients would be able to shoot between seven and eight goats, and stay in the private wing of a hunting lodge. “Goat hunting weeks like this are extremely rare,” the email said. “There are only a few places in the whole of Scotland that this can be done and they usually get [booked] up many years in advance by repeat clients.” The company does not refer to goat hunting on its website. Companies which advertise goat stalking include the Ardnamurchan-based West Highland Hunting (WHH), whose senior staff were pictured posing with Switlyk and a dead stag in 2018. Its website says clients can hunt goats in both Ardnamurchan and the Scottish Borders. Highland hunting clients paying up to £8,000 to shoot ‘trophy’ animals In a 2020 WHH price list, obtained by The Ferret, the company charged £1,000 to clients in order to shoot feral goats and £8,000 to kill rare stags. “If an animal is struck and leaves blood on the ground it will be considered taken and charged, recovered or not,” the price list added. The London-based firm, Athina Sporting, offers goat hunting trips to the edge of Galloway Forest Park, with prices starting from £250. It promises a number of “trophy animals” and advises clients to book in advance due to high demand. The company also advertises South African hunting trips to clients, where it says they can shoot “antelope, zebra, springbok, hartebeest, wildebeest or any other of the vast range of plains game species” from prices of £2,000 upwards. Eve Massie, OneKind The killing of wild animals should be as a last resort and carried out by professionals, and we most certainly should not be offering the chance to kill these animals for fun. Highland hunting firm, Prohunt ltd and the London-based Capreolus Club, which is members only, offer feral goat stalking in Scotland. “Regrettably, ill-informed comments in the press have the potential to harm the same animals that the press purport to be trying to help,” the Capreolus Club told The Ferret. “By publishing one-sided, ill-informed comments, many journalists are doing a disservice to wildlife and the environment, both of which deserve more serious, sensible debate,” argued Peter Jones, the c...
The Ferret’s From The Margins project works with citizen journalists who have lived experience of overlapping issues including homelessness, addiction and mental health. The series investigates the way these things interact, making it very difficult to break out of a cycle of insecurity. One of our citizen journalists, Peter Murray, has a special interest in mental health and addiction, due to his own experiences. This is his story. Right from the start of the From the Margins project I knew the link between mental health and addiction was something we should focus on. Looking back, the seeds of my problems were there in childhood. I won’t go into depth, but I hated and feared arguments and sought to avoid them. People pleasing became the norm for me. On my 18th birthday I joined the ambulance service, a job I loved. But I experienced a number of traumatic events. Black humour and alcohol buried them in the depths of my memory. I got married and had two daughters. But after eight years I was divorced and my ex-wife moved to Ireland with my girls. Over time contact dwindled away. I remarried and life moved on, despite the fact I was struggling with depression.Then tragedy struck and my eldest daughter died, at just 16 years old. I find it hard to accept this now, but under pressure from my wife and my ex wife’s family, I did not attend the funeral. I was people pleasing to the core. Friends told me to go to Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meetings. They work for lots of people, but not for me.But what worked for me was reconnecting with my family. After that decision I lost any spark or self belief. I was full of self loathing.I always liked a drink. But I felt morally I was a disgrace. My self hatred increased, my mood became blacker and deeper. Alcohol was my answer. It allowed me to ignore my feelings so I drank more and more.My mental health was getting worse all the time. Eventually I spent three periods of time in psychiatric hospitals. Each time I left the ward, I was promised community support. It never materialised. That fuelled my drinking. Before long I had lost my home, lost my marriage and my job. I ended up on the streets for a short period of time. And then I ended up in hospital where I pleaded for help.While working on this project, I met lots of others who had experienced something similar. It’s been powerful to see those patterns. For me, this time the pleading worked. I was admitted to the detox centre – Link Up, as it was then – to dry out and stabilise my health. From there I was given a place at Glasgow’s Rainbow House rehab [now Crossreach] where I stayed for six months. I’m not sure it was right for me but I didn’t get a choice of options. What it did do was allow me to learn about my alcoholism and receive Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) – a talking therapy that can help you manage your problems by changing the way you think and behave. With that help, my self belief slowly returned.From there I went to supported housing for three months, when I moved into my own tenancy. Initially I struggled to adjust and felt abandoned. But with the support of friends I gradually settled. Tam’s story: ‘Lives can change when people get the right support’ Friends told me to go to Alcoholic Anonymous (AA) meetings. They work for lots of people, and are important, but they were not for me. My recovery is not abstinence-based – the term used for people who no longer drink or use any substances at all.And while anyone can go to AA meetings, the aim is total sobriety. That made me feel guilty and ashamed of my drinking, and in turn, made it worse. But what worked for me was reconnecting with my family. I got back in touch with my youngest daughter and my family, and after a lot of talking and honesty on my part our relationship has grown again. I went to Ireland on the 20th anniversary of my daughter’s death and left the grave side with a sense of peace and closure. I now have two beautiful granddaughters and a great relat...
Scottish ministers are facing growing criticism for failing to toughen and extend freedom of information (FoI) law after a parliamentary review almost two years ago. The Scottish Information Commissioner, Daren Fitzhenry, told The Ferret that the lack of progress was “disappointing”. FoI campaigners have drafted their own bill and called on ministers to “stop stalling”. Opposition MSPs argued that FoI reform was “long overdue” and criticised ministers for “kicking it into the long grass”. The Scottish Government often failed to apply the existing law, they claimed. The Scottish Government said its plans had been adjusted because of the Covid-19 pandemic. It insisted, however, that there was “no lack of action” and promised a public consultation on “possible future legislative change”. In May 2020 Holyrood’s post-legislative scrutiny committee made 39 conclusions and recommendations mostly aimed at strengthening FoI law. They included requiring government meetings to be minuted to prevent any “deliberate attempt” to evade FoI. The cross-party committee urged reforms to make clear that ministers’ private emails and social media used for public business should not be exempt. Organisations that received public funds should be “automatically” subject to FoI law, it said. The committee expressed concern at the “slow pace” at which new organisations had been brought into the FoI regime. The current legislation was “insufficiently nimble to keep pace with the changing nature of the public sector landscape,” it concluded. Information law must be toughened to prevent evasion, say MSPs Since then there has been little apparent movement from the Scottish Government. On 4 March 2022 the minister for parliamentary business, George Adam, told MSPs that the government was “currently developing” a consultation exercise. “We will announce further information about the consultation as soon as we are in a position to do so,” he said. In January the Campaign for Freedom of Information in Scotland (CFoIS) published its own 24-clause draft bill to “amend, strengthen and close the legal loopholes” in FoI law. Proposals included more proactive publication and the introduction of a statutory FoI officer in every public authority. The campaign is inviting responses to its suggestions by 24 April 2022, which will be the twentieth anniversary of the Scottish Parliament passing the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act. The draft bill was welcomed by the information commissioner, Daren Fitzhenry. He pointed out that it was also more than two years since the Scottish Government had consulted on extending FoI rights to more organisations. “While I recognise that during this time the Scottish Government has faced significant challenges arising from the pandemic, it is nevertheless disappointing that we have yet to see tangible steps taken towards strengthening and improving FoI law,” he said. “In the absence of this, the Campaign for Freedom of Information’s draft bill has provided a welcome opportunity to consider and discuss specific proposals.” Fitzhenry argued that recent experiences had highlighted the importance of access to information rights and proactive publication to build public trust. “I hope the conversation around how these rights and obligations can be protected and strengthened moves forward soon, to ensure they remain fit for purpose for people seeking information about the issues that matter to them,” he added. Carole Ewart, Campaign for Freedom of Information in Scotland Their sustained lack of action amounts to a mute refusal to deliver on the evidenced recommendations from a Scottish Parliament inquiry. CFoIS convener, Carole Ewart, argued that it was in everyone’s interest to have a robust legal framework delivering transparency and accountability. “Scottish ministers should stop stalling and deliver FoI reform,” she told The Ferret. “Their sustained lack of action amounts to a mute refusal to deliver on the evidenced recommendations...
In the Ferret’s From The Margins project, reporter Karin Goodwin works with citizen journalists who have lived experience of overlapping issues including homelessness, addiction and mental health. The series investigates the way these things interact, making it very difficult to break out of a cycle of insecurity. In this piece one of our citizen journalists, Tam, tells his story of the way these linked, structural issues have impacted his life. Picture this: before you is a drinking glass and it’s half full of resentment, anger, fear, low self-worth, no self-esteem, pride, ego, and self-doubt. Pour in homelessness, violence, unemployment and family breakdown. Now top it up with drugs and alcohol. That cocktail was once my life.It’s nothing like that for me any more. I’m five years in recovery. And over the last few months I’ve been working as a citizen journalist for The Ferret’s From the Margins series, trying to tell the stories of others in that position and give them a voice.In that time, we’ve held meetings to hear directly from dozens of people in Glasgow and Dundee, and they’ve seen the similarities in what they are telling us about the connections between addiction and trauma, mental health, homelessness and violence. We’re hoping that by showing what they are up against, and the lack of support on offer, that attitudes will change and action will be taken. Like a lot of the people we’ve met, I had a pretty difficult start. I was born in an overcrowded two-bed flat in Govanhill, the southside of Glasgow, where I lived with my grandparents, mum, brother and uncle. Growing up we never had much money, so I found my fists and learned how to fight back when people made comments about the way I looked. But by 12 or 13 I found something else – alcohol. And I was off through my teenage years, mixing it with hash, buzzing gas, getting high on ecstasy and speed, and then coming down with jellies [temazepam]. That’s something else we found talking to people in this project – drug and alcohol use often starts young. My family relations broke down and I was put out of the family home aged 17. It was the first time I became homeless. A period of sofa surfing started, an invisible form of homelessness that often isn’t seen in the official figures, even now. Lots of people still don’t understand their rights to housing. My drug use was escalating and it seemed like a good idea to chuck my job and start dealing. That will be hard for some people to understand but when you’re there, it’s easy to go from using drugs to low level dealing. What I didn’t see then, if I’m honest, was how I was being used by the older people around me. It brought violence into my life. By my late teens I’d been stabbed, in the head, chest and face for the first time. A few years later, I ended up with a punctured lung. Eventually it was my right kidney. I still suffer the effects today. Tam I disappeared for the first three months of my son’s life. When I finally asked to see him, I’d been drinking. I don’t blame his mother for driving away with our son. Later, my girlfriend got pregnant, but that didn’t sort me out. I disappeared for the first three months of my son’s life. When I finally asked to see him, I’d been drinking. I don’t blame his mother for driving away with our son. By this time I just couldn’t stay clean or sober, and it’s around this time that I end up with a heroin habit too. I found myself in early 30s – an intravenous heroin-using, crack pipe smoking alcoholic. I was street homeless in Glasgow city centre – sleeping under the bridges, in bin chutes, in NCP car parks, and behind shops. My life consisted of waking up from wherever I had skippered (slept rough) the night before, then going around the bus stops, picking up the douts (cigarette ends) for my tobacco for the day.I’d go and see if I could beg up some money for drink and drugs and then use the drink and drugs. In the evening I’d go to a soup kitchen, to tap (borrow) money off a...
People who use drugs and alcohol are being denied proper support to deal with their mental health problems, The Ferret’s From the Margins team has found. Our team – which includes citizen journalists with lived experience of this issue – heard from people who had been on waiting lists for months or even years in some cases, for psychological support. Some were told that they could not access mental health services until they “stabilised” their substance or alcohol use.Our findings come as the Mental Welfare Commission prepares to publish its investigation into the barriers people who use alcohol and drugs face in getting support with their mental health. Its work was prompted, in part, by calls to its advice line from relatives of those seeking help with both addiction and mental health support. They said they had been “left out, or stranded or abandoned”. Meanwhile those attending our From the Margins focus groups in Glasgow, and at a recovery group in Dundee, told us about the devastating consequences of failing to get the help they needed. While waiting for mental health support, some parents had children removed from their care. In some cases their children were adopted, leaving them grieving and struggling to cope. Cheryl When I phoned them they says that they would give us a phone consultation. That lasted twenty-six seconds, and [I was] told I would be put back in the waiting list. Many said the lack of psychological help meant their alcohol and drug use escalated because they used substances to “self-medicate”. Women at the Steeple Church recovery group in Dundee told The Ferret that change was coming, but not fast enough for them. We have used their first names only, at the request of the women.We spoke to Cara, who had been admitted to Carseview mental health unit in 2020 but later released without community support or follow-up. When we met, she was still waiting for community mental health support, almost two years on.She claimed statutory services did not seem to recognise the help she needed: “When you’re in addiction you feel invisible – you feel invisible to services, invisible to workers,” she said. Cara, who went into kinship care as a teenager and had her first child at 17, said she struggled to get help for many years and, as a result, found it difficult to address her drug use.She is now in recovery but two of her children have been adopted while another two are in care. “I think that if my mental health was diagnosed at the time, that I could’ve maybe not used drugs,” she said. “Not have went down the road of addiction.“They go hand in hand – you use because you’re feeling low. You’re feeling low because you’re using. It’s very much a merry-go-round. So you can’t get one thing better because another thing’s affecting it.”Cheryl, who has been in recovery for six years, said she tried to get help but all she was offered was methadone – medication to address opiate addiction. She was not offered counselling to help her deal with past trauma.She went to rehab and claims it was through Narcotics Anonymous (NA) that she was able to learn how to deal with her emotions through group sessions. She said: “Even in recovery I got my little girl removed from my care, due to previous mental health [issues]. “I then got her back after having a psychiatrist and psychological assessment. And as soon as I got her back, I got removed from mental health [services]. They said I didn’t need it anymore.She went to her GP to be re-referred. “And I’m still currently waiting two and a half years later to be seen. And that was after taking a mental breakdown at Christmas time.“When I phoned them they says that they would give us a phone consultation. The phone consultation lasted twenty-six seconds, and [I was] told I would be put back in the waiting list.Since concerns were flagged up in 2019 by both an independent inquiry into mental health services in the city, and by the Dundee Drug Commission, plans have been developed for ...
This is member-exclusive conversation about our brand new series From The Margins. Ferret Journalist Karin Goodwin speaks with Digital Engagement Editor Sam Gonçalves about the process of co-producing From The Margins and the importance of this type of grassroots journalism. You can read the series here. You can watch part 1 of this conversation, which we streamed earlier on socials, below.