News.Scotland.Org

Scotland, May 21: There are pros and cons raised over the issue of determining the class size and its impact on learning ability. Researchers were carried out in US and England focussing this topic. On the contrary to those studies the researchers in Glasgow have found that there was little change in the performance of pupils of class sizes that range from 18 to 25.

This study gains significance in the backdrop of Scottish government’s attempt to limit class sizes to 18 in the first three years of primary school. While the MSPs bid to hear evidence regarding the benefits of smaller class sizes is under cloud of uncertainty.

EIS, the prominent teaching union also supports minimising class sizes. They are also stressing the MSPs on the education committee to support the petition. Education committee will also consider the opinion of Glasgow University researchers who have found that the study conducted in the US fails to differentiate class sizes of 15 and 20.

A research in England has found that there was no visible change or improvement in performance between class sizes of 18 to 25. Researchers consider other factors like quality of teaching and the home atmosphere of pupils as the crucial factor in determining the performance of the pupils.

Scotland, May 19: Addressing the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in Edinburgh, the Prime Minister Gordon Brown expressed his vision for a global society controlled by shared moral sense.

The prime minister opined that the lessons he learnt in the Kirkcaldy parish manse where he grew up is unforgettable and helps to add more value to his life. Mr Brown’s father was a Kirk minister that allows him to share the enduring vision of the good society. “We are not moral strangers but there is a shared moral sense common to us all that binds us together,” he said.

He also told the General assembly that there was a consistent ethical core in all the major religions of the world from which most of the people drew their inspiration, which shows we are not moral strangers but there is a shared moral sense common to all of us. Creating unity in this information revolution and creating human urge to cooperate for justice to realise the dream of creating a truly global society is the need of the hour.

Mr Brown asked people from all places to share their values, indulge in communication with people from different part of the world in order to create a single moral universe to bring about changes.

On the sidelines of global climatic change Mr Brown said: “It is developing as an uncontrollable situation, billions of people voice for the change. By acting together we can effectively minimise the adverse effects of climate change. By joining hands the first generation mankind addressed the problem of illiteracy that paved way for ensuring the right to education for every child. The eradication of tuberculosis, diphtheria, malaria, polio and the attempt to eradicate HIV/Aids are made possible only because of this.”

During the time of industrial depreciation Margaret Thatcher quoted St Paul saying: “If a man will not work he shall not eat.”

Meanwhile the spokesman of Mr Brown opined that it is mere coincidence that Mr Brown’s speech came 20 years after Lady Thatcher’s famous address.

The General Assembly will conclude on 21 May.

Scotland, Apr 19: On the backdrop of the commencement of major military exercise the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) has raised its concern over the adverse effect of sonar noise from the warships in whales. The society members suggest that the sound will make the whales to strand themselves on beaches; they also pointed out that at least 43 marine mammals died since February.

About 36 warships and 70 aircrafts representing the UK and 16 Nato countries will take part in the joint military exercise named Joint Warrior that will be staged off the west coast of Scotland. Live firing at ranges simulated bombing are among the activities.

While commenting on this the Sarah Marines of WDCS said: “Until now we haven’t received any satisfactory response from the Ministry of Defence (MoD) that indicates that sonar related whale deaths were not taken seriously.”

Earlier in February WDCS and the Hebridean Whale and Dolphin Trust submitted a Freedom of Information request to the MoD to find out the link between the stranding of Cuvier’s off the islands of Tiree, Islay and Harris and the use of military sonar.

Replying to that the spokesman of Royal Navy said there were no vessels in that area on the month of February. The lowest frequency of active sonar will not be used when the marine mammals were near by. The hydrophones used by the specialists on board can effectively detect whales and dolphins.

Conducted twice a year the joint exercise of the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force will involve several countries including the US, Germany, France, Denmark, New Zealand, Netherlands, Canada, Poland, Latvia, Spain, Norway, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Turkey and Norway.

Scotland, Mar 26: Glasgow councillors have given their approval to the contentious tree-top adventure course proposed to implement in Pollok Park. Go Ape is the company behind this project and the play area includes several platforms and zip slides that are placed in the trees near the Burrell collection in the park.

A special meeting and visit to the site were conducted by the members of the planning committee before giving their consent to the proposal. The application is now forwarded to ministers at Holyrood as the Glasgow City Council will get financial benefit from the scheme.

“It was important that the public interest should have to be given high priority. There was a full and fair hearing to allow those interested to make factual representations,” said George Redmond, convenor of the planning committee in a statement.

The environmental campaigners who oppose this proposal on the grounds of commercialisation of the public park said that they will continue their protest against the plan. They also asked the minister to revive the whole proposal.

While commenting on this Patrick Harvie, Green MSP for Glasgow said: “The City Council of Glasgow had shown no interest in protecting the green spaces and parks. They fail to restrict the damage on green spaces and thereby they earned dislike of the people throughout the Glasgow city.”

He further added that: “The approval to the play area in the Pollock Park is the latest example for this and it is an attempt to ruin the most tranquil spot in Glasgow. The Scottish government should not encourage this move.”

Scotland, Mar 15: In a bid to protect the bottlenose dolphins the Scottish Government is planning to restrict the oil and gas exploration until its impact on the wildlife is fully calculated. This is on the backdrop of concerns raised against the development of the area and its adverse impact on dolphin population.

While, Richard Lochhead, the environment secretary, has stressed the UK government to consider the guidance put forth by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH). It suggests that there should be initiatives to measure the dolphin population. The inner Moray Firth area is a protected area because it is haven for bottlenose dolphins and it has gained popularity as a hub for environmental tourism.

Mr Lochhead conveyed his message through a letter that he sent to John Hutton, secretary of state for business enterprise and regulatory reform. While commenting on this the environmental secretary said: “Oil and gas exploration is crucial to boost the Scottish and UK economies but that should have to go hand in hand with the environmental responsibilities. We should give emphasis on the special area of conservation in the Moray Firth and its local bottlenose dolphin population.

Meanwhile the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (WDCS) forwarded a petition, postcards and letters including 18,000 signatures addressed to UK Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks. A joint statement has also been delivered by 25 scientific experts concerning the future of dolphins.

Earlier the Oil and Gas UK, the representative body for the sector has opined that the UK can fetch the benefit out of the enormous natural resources that is available in Moray Firth while ensuring the protection of wild life. Operations director Paul Dymond assured that the industry is following strict regulations.

Scotland, Mar 6: Demanding pay hike the coastguard staffs are staging strike to express their demand for a salary hike. It is the first strike of its kind in the history of Coast Guard. The strike will affect Mayday and distress calls. It is notable that Coastguards provide vital emergency services.

According to Public and Commercial Services union at least 700 Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) employees are expected to participate in the 24 hours strike.
The current pay scale is dubbed by the staffs as “poverty pay”.

While the manager opines that they are affected by the low salary. Emergency measures have been taken to ensure public safety. The Chief executive of the MCA, Peter Cardy assured that the Mayday calls, 999 calls and automatic distress calls will not be affected by the strike. He also said that the pay scale of the coastguard is lower when compared to emergency service but the mode of work is completely different.

The union demands for an extra £3,000 to the current basic pay of £14,000 per year.
While the union’s pay co-ordinator Geoff Lewtas opined that: “It is scandal, quite obviously for an organisation that deserves great importance and is considered as the fourth emergency service with its staffs being paid low wages.”

Meanwhile the general secretary of PCS union responded that: “The members are disappointed by the refusal for a pay hike like any other emergency services. The inflation pay rises are affecting the employees to a great deal. It is better to spare a thought that Coast guards provide vital emergency services and assures the smooth conduct of shipping services in British waterscape.”

MCA said that they are liable to obey government rules concerning public sector pay.

Scotland, Feb 13: In a bid to protect Scotland from floods, which arise due to the adverse effects of global warming, the Scottish government will upgrade flood protection and it will be launched by Mike Russell, the Environment Minister of Scotland.

The strengthening of flood protection will help to fulfil the demands of the 21st century. The feedback of the consultation will help to get a clear picture while drafting a new Flooding Bill. Ever since the activation of the original legislation 47 years ago, 70 flood protection schemes were built. The threat related to the consequences of global warming is looming high as flooding is expected to affect more communities in future.

While commenting on this John Scott, Tory environment spokesman said: “Legislation should have to be reviewed and experts whether individuals or group must be selected to monitor the river catchment plans and coastal defence strategies. Swift action is needed as the work is already delayed.”

Proposals added in the consultation process will include evidence given by the Met office to MSPs, which shed light on to the fact that only half of the Scotland is covered by the radar that is capable of forecasting the rainfall as compared to 95% of England and Wales.

Scotland, Feb 12: According to a new statistics released by the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) the number of prisoners in Scotland jail has reached an all time high. At present there are 7,609 people left behind bars including 393 women.

Kenny MacAskill, the Justice Secretary opined that the total number of prisoners were about 1,000 beyond its maximum capacity. The Justice Secretary will visit the only female prison in Scotland, HMP Cornton Vale to monitor the functioning of the jail while coping with the overcrowding issue. The minister will be accompanied by the members of the justice committee of the Scottish parliament.

While commenting on this he said: “The number of female inmates has experienced a 90% rise in the last decade. The other side of the problem is that we imprison far greater than other countries in the world. The chief inspector of our prison used to hint regularly about the problem linked to overcrowding.”

He further added that: “We have to implement some fresh policies in this area the formation of independent Prison Commission to gat a wide perspective about the purpose of prison in a modern Scotland, is considered as the first step in this regard.”

Since 1991 the average prison population of Scotland has increased by 51.6%.

Scotland, Feb 4: A new scheme will be implemented to analyse and learn from the patients experiences of the NHS will be launched by the health secretary. A study centre will be opened by health secretary himself that will focus on collecting and co-ordinating feedbacks from the patients on their opinion about the treatment provided by the NHS in Scotland.

The views of the patients regarding the quality of accommodation facilities and the kind of treatment facilities will be collected. The feedback thus obtained will be used to improve the service provided for patients. This initiative is a part of the Better Together: Scotland’s Patient Experience Programme that will be commence at Stirling Royal Infirmary today.

While commenting on this the Health Secretary, Nicola Sturgeon said: “Through this initiative we encourage patients to participate in all aspect of decisions about the medical care given to them. The Edinburgh centre will be responsible for developing guidance; the health boards will then make use of this to undertake surveys of patients to upgrade the facilities provided now. The outcome of the field study conducted by the health boards and GP practices will also be analysed.”

He further added that: “This programme is considered as an important milestone towards the goal of achieving the vision of an NHS with patients at its centre. This will ensure that the best practices are shared across Scotland.”

He also expressed confident that this new national programme will pave the way for a real improvements in the quality of healthcare facilities and experience of the patients. The Better Together programme is a joint effort of various organisations such as the Scottish Government, NHS boards and NHS Quality Improvement Scotland.

Scotland, Jan 29: Environmental pollution and the related climatic change remains the hot topic of discussion among the countries of the world. The government of Scotland as an attempt to minimise the adverse effect of climatic change is planning to take measures to minimise the pollution rate by 80%. A coalition of environmental groups has claimed that with this initiative Scotland is expected to become a “global leader” in the fight against climate change.

Various environmental organisations have put forth their suggestion to tackle increase in the pollution rate. Stop Climate Chaos Scotland (SCCS) has suggested a list of measures the country should introduce to be a role model to the rest of the world. SCCS is an umbrella group for more than 30 organisations such as the National Trust for Scotland, Friends of the Earth Scotland, and the Church of Scotland.

While commenting on this the Chairman of the Climate Change Bill said: “This bill is more positive and historically significant one. Scotland has the great chance to become a role model for the rest of the world in this regard. The reduction of green house gas by at least 3% a year is essential; this should be done without any harm to our environment.”

He further added that: “Climate change is not a problem of the future, the adverse effect of it can be witnessed in the developing countries. It is our duty as being the developed world to take responsibility for our actions and seriously consider about minimising the emission rate. If the proposal is made into a reality this could be considered as the more positive and historically significant bill in our lifetime.”

John Swinney, Finance and Sustainable Growth Secretary will formally launch the consultation on the Climate Change Bill at the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh.