News.Scotland.Org

Parking fines are said to be dearer from now on to keep a check to the offenders and boost the revenue for the government. This rise is slated in order to reduce the illegal parking of vehicles and to meet the cost of staffs. This move might have come as a positive move to keep a check on the illegal parking incidents, but has sparked a fury among the motoring groups.

Opposition even came from the Edinburgh transport leaders and Association of British drivers who termed this rise as outrageous. Reports also suggest that this revised fine on illegal parking would apply across six local authority areas, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Pert & Kinross and South Lanarkshire.  It is told that Parking fine revenue in Glasgow has increased one fifth to £5.5 mn which is substantially higher than last year. Edinburgh too showed a rise in the increase in parking fine revenues.

With the hike in the parking fines to £100, it seems the parking system will be the cash cow for the council with better salaries and perks for the staffs. On the contrary the outrageous transport leaders and car owners are left to bear this extra burden of such soaring fines. Now it has to be seen will this increase in parking fines comes  up as a smart move by the council or triggers more protest.

News Source : Scotsman

Feel free to talk more about this news in our Scotland news group section.

Located in Glasgow, Pollock Park touted as one of the best parks in Europe is  a great holiday spot for families with the right mix of quiet corners and interactive attractions. It is not just a cheap and enjoyable option but also an excellent way to take a peek to the culture and history of this city. Originally part of the  Maxwell family estate, Pollok Country Park was gifted to the City of Glasgow in 1966 and is a subtle blend of natural and man made elements . There are many interesting rural icons that are unique to Glasgow including the hulking, shaggy Highland Cow, which is undeniably one of the most lovable and popular figurines among the children of Glasgow.  The 18th century mansion of Pollock House is another interesting feature. Run by the National Trust , it offers the best views of the White Cart River and is home to many impressive paintings and antiques and a  well stocked library.

The Squat hedge maze that lies adjacent to the house is another must see spot. It is very popular among kids and adults alike. The quaint garden house, the lion guarded gates and the symmetrical design of the alluring Pollock House would take you back in time with the rapture of birds and the intertwining wines completing its quixotic profile. The old sawmill with an enclosed stable background remains as the tell tale of the glory of the yesteryears.

Ideal for  a romantic day out, Pollock house is car friendly and makes it well suited for families with small children or elderly members as well. Enjoy the shadow play of natural light, shade and reflections in this park, which probably is not seen in many other parks. Well recommended for family holidays and corporate weekends, Pollock park is one of few cheap holiday options that are worth exploring in and around Glasgow.

Heard of anything like waking up the mother nature from her long winter sleep with a unique celebration? Various theories originating to the Whuppity Scoorie day celebrated on March 1st in Lanark, Scotland, it is a unique celebration that goes way back into the mid -nineteenth century.

On March 1st, just before the clock strikes 6 and the sunlight gets shadowed, the town school children  gather at St. Nicholas Church at Lanark where as the tradition goes a small bell is rung at 6 pm and the children are found to be running around the church in an anti clockwise direction three times, all the while waving a piece of paper on a string over their small heads.

Used to be a race, considering the safety of the children, these days the race element has been eliminated. At the end of the run, children are allowed to catch up with their luck of getting as much as coins thrown on the ground by the members of the Royal Burgh of Lanark Community Council.

Various theories had been put forward to the origin of this ceremony and its unusual name. But as there is little evidence for all these fanciful explanations it is possibly put forwarded as a custom that had grown to be a spontaneous celebration to mark the onset of leisure that could be appreciated in daylight by the apprentices and the other youth of the town.

This event is surprisingly not celebrated by the other districts or towns of Scotland, it is unique to Lanark and remains an annual and a decidedly original Scottish celebration.

Travel to Scotland and experience something so different, The land is known for golf and the popular fields. Another best thing about Scotland is it’s vibrant tradition, culture, traditions and beauty. Apart from golfing Scotland is associated with a significant culture, tradition and serene beauty. Apart from having the historical account of almost half-a-century the city is a growing core of transformation and an imminent destination for development. Scotland golf holiday offers you the combination of golfing as well as travelling. Golfing holiday in Scotland gives you a juncture to relax and mesmerize into the ravishing beauty of Scotland.

You are assured to get a bunch full of varied itineraries, which will suit your budget as well as your desires. If you are planning on traveling to Scotland for a golfing holiday then you won’t have a lack of options for anything. There is a host of options from which you can choose – accommodation, golf courses, number of days you want to stay, cuisine and many more. With the popularity of golfing holidays rolling to rise, Scotland gathered its own recognition for golf holiday packages, which includes golfing activities, tourist activities and seeing the natural sites of the region.

It was once again snow every where in Scotland this Friday with the return of the big freeze causing worries for commuters. The icy roads brought chaos in many parts of the country with reports of road accidents and collisions. Shetland was worst hit with heavy snowfall, schools and other establishment remained closed.

A month ago Scotland experienced heavy snowfall which paralysed the life of Scots to a great extent.  Now it seems they have to face the same situation once again with the snow fury making life difficult in many parts of Scotland. Even the Met Office have declared a snow warning with a moderate risk of severe weather in the northern and eastern part of the country.

Other major concern remains the frosty roads, there’s a definite need for the Administration to be in a state of alert.

News Source : Scotsman

The weather unpredictable and no distinct seasonal weather patterns, it is upto luck how you find a nude beach in Scotland. But that is not a question when you find the official nude beach located on the isle of Arran, about 50km southwest of Glasgow in the Firth of Clyde – Cleat’s Shore. It shouldn’t be a surprise when you find only certain differences between this beach and the other average nude beaches. Nick Mayhew, author of the definitive guide to British naturalism “Bare Britain” calls it “probably the least visited nudist beach in the known universe”.

If your interest in naturism comes mainly from the alacrity to see other people naked, be aware that Cleat’s is very often empty. An ideal place for those who are looking for a place to commune with nature without the barrier of clothes, crowds, and often no people at all. It is far more likely to meet up with seals that are commonly found throughout the place.

Anyone who wants to test whether Cleat’s is a really nude beach -beware!The law in Scotland is a little vague, and open to local official’s interpretation. If your nudity manages to “alarm, distress or harass” others, you can be arrested for breach of peace. So, if you really want to try it, it’s always best to ask around to see if people would be offended.

Take the ferry to Cleat’s Shore and then continue to the island’s southern coast. Signs will direct you to the trail that leads to the clothing-optional area of the only nude beach in Scotland. There is something to be seen whether the roads to this shore lies deserted or not for long?

E-Clear, the credit card processing company, has been put into administration as it failed to prove that it has enough funds to pay its debts to FlyGlobespan, the collapsed Scottish airline. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers, FlyGlobespan’s administrators. the payment firm has not credited £35m it received from Globespan customers of which about £12.5m is the money that relates to flights that never took off, paid by customers for flights by credit card or Visa debit.

E-Clear specialised in offering payment processing services to smaller firms that were considered risky by other credit card processors. The travel industry is considered a high risk segment by many payment firms because it involves huge amounts of money received well in advance of the flight or holiday date.

It is widely believed that the financial muddle caused by E-Clear has been a major factor for the collapse of FlyGlobespan on 16 December. Though E-Clear chief Executive Mr Elia had bought a controlling stake in NordFinanz, a small bank in Germany he could not use that to bankroll the E clear operations in London due to resistance from the regulators. E-Clear is caught in the two other legal wrangles linked to the overdue payments it owed to collapsed Slovakian airline SkyEurope and Canadian travel firm Go Travel Direct though E-Clear has contested all these allegations.

The collapse of FlyGlobespan has left a huge gap of over , 700,000 seats flying out of British airports mostly Scotland. Though a few routes were picked up by other airlines, there is still scope for new companies to fill in the gaps left by the sixth largest operator, Flygospan; and with new operators flying these routes, the era of low fare flights might come to an abrupt end.

Scottish Enterprises are on the verge of a face-lift to the tune of £1.2 million funding package. It has been intended to place Royal Deeside and Cairngorms as a world class tourist destination. The place is well-known for its high mountains and valley.

The work on developing and turning this place into a key tourism began in the year 2006. This led to the creation of Destination Management Organisation (DMO) that led Royal Deeside and Cairngorms. Together it brought industry leaders and business houses of Deeside to come out with a blue print and suggestion improvise the quality of Scottish tourism quality and let the visitors have better experience.

June, 4

Well if you people out there are worried about your ageing then there is new thing which will curb the effect of ageing. Research has found that red wine has the magical effect to curb ageing. The study suggested that a compound in the skin of grapes bears the power to cure the ageing tendency.

If we look at the French one could easily find out why they have healthy hearts and arteries, it’s the effect of the red wine which is a vital part of French meals. The research also revealed that the compound named resveratrol found in red wine is known to have anti cancer and anti-inflammatory properties. These essential facts which the research highlighted were surprising.

Meanwhile the experiment with mice indicated that even low doses of resveratrol mimic have the effect of calorie restriction to fight out ageing. Scientist suggest that it still needs further study to clearly fix that resveratrol can be a unique source for extending lifespan. This effective compound originates naturally by plants under the attack from bacteria or fungi.

So next time you sip in a glass of red wine it may taste more sweet for you as its fighting out your ageing.

May, 17

In this new era where girls have over powered guys in almost all departments, a shocking figure has shown how girls are committing crimes lightly. The number of offences done by girls has soared up to a great level in recent years. Figures have showed an increase of 25 per cent in the number of crimes by Girls in England and Wales. This new trend in the crime ratio has pointed out a fact that girls are committing more number of offences these days in comparison with boys.

If we look at the figures, we can see that girls committed 59,000 offences in the year 2006-07 which is far more than of previous years. These crimes include robberies, assaults, criminal damages, and other offences. In this growing number of crimes about half of such offences were committed by young girls between 10 to 17 years of age.

This rapid jump in such crimes by girls is said to be also due to the teenage drinking and drug abuse which is making them more violent and use to such crimes. The study has found that such behavior of girls needs to be tackled in the initial stage before things get worse.