News Elsewhere contains mainly articles we have permission to republish from Views of Scotland and Country Guardian. You can learn more about these organisations by visiting: http://www.countryguardian.net/ and http://www.viewsofscotland.org/. Occasionally we will also post news from elsewhere on the web.
Alien among us It is gratifying to hear the National Lottery Heritage Fund has awarded £6 million to restore Scotland’s rare Atlantic rain forests. Local folk will be trained to restore precious habitats in Torridon, Morvern and Argyll, as well as help with the removal of invasive species. Isn’t it Read more
The SNP Public Finance Minister used to work for Equinor and still has shares in the energy company which may benefit from reforms to compulsory purchase orders. Campaign group Scotland Against Spin has raised concerns over Ms Goodlad’s potential conflict of interest, as Equinor may be given powers to buy Read more
REGULATORS are to meet an onshore wind farm operator after questions were raised about safety requirements for proposed developments in Scotland. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has arranged a meeting with Galileo Empower following concerns raised during a two-year investigation by retired chartered civil engineer and chartered environmentalist Jim Read more
Conclusions from the handling of my complaint. Background and purpose Many of you will be familiar with my ongoing correspondence with the Institute about a complaint (Ref: LIC2025-01ii) that, in my view, has not been appropriately investigated. In my letter to the President dated 10 October, I set out why Read more
A HIGHLAND councillor has written to the Ethical Standards Commissioner seeking “clear guidance” on bias and conduct when councillors publicly express different views on renewable energy development. Speaking to The Herald, Councillor Matthew Reiss described a climate at Highland Council’s north planning applications committee (NPAC) of “virtually zero tolerance for Read more
The number of wind farm loads needing a police escort through the Highlands has risen elevenfold in two years, raising concerns about the pressure on Police Scotland’s road policing units. Freedom of Information responses obtained by the Scottish Liberal Democrats reveal that Highland Council approved 340 “Special Order” movements for Read more
Our letter in the National today. A REPORT by the Fraser of Allander Institute at the University of Strathclyde claims that almost 50,000 people are working in the Scottish renewables sector, but it should be taken with a very large pinch of salt. The report was commissioned by Scottish Renewables, Read more
The government will veto new clean energy projects if the electrical grid cannot handle their output. Healey declared there is “no sense in building power that can’t connect and then paying to switch it off.” This marks a tactical retreat from previous rigid decarbonisation timelines in order to prioritize consumer Read more