August 9th – August 15th, 2025
Does anyone oversee government investment in the Arts? No Marathon for the Commonwealth Games …. but first …
Scottish Movies Premiere in …. Canada
Four films which received money from Scottish government quango Screen Scotland will not be debuting in Scotland but in Toronto. Scotgov paid £540,000 to bankroll Brian Cox’s directorial debut film ‘Glenrothan’; and with ‘California Schemin’, directed by James McAvoy; the David Mackenzie heist thriller Fuze; and a remake of Frankenstein by Guillermo del Toro, the four received £1.7 million from the Scottish taxpayer, so not debuting in Scotland is a bit of a kick in the teeth.
Why did Summerhall get over £600,000 of public cash?
At the Edinburgh Fringe, trans artistes felt so unsafe by the mere presence of Kate Forbes that they had to set aside a ‘safe room’. Summerhall Arts don’t seem to follow the news as they were unaware of Kate Forbes or her views and will ban her from attending in future after some artistes claimed to be ‘terrified’ by her. They also seem unaware of the law which makes it illegal and discriminatory to ban gender-critical views.
But having been paid over half a million of government cash, are they not obliged to be non-partisan and present ALL views? Perhaps the most surprising thing is that so many people seem to view obeying the LAW as optional.
Swinney’s £180K present went on Advertising
Funding given by the First Minister to the Nexo Golf Championship (previously the Scottish Championship) at Trump International course at Menie, Aberdeenshire, was already raising eyebrows. It now appears the money went to tourism quango VisitScotland, which spent it on adverts including a giant Visit Scotland sign, a 30-second online advert and some ‘Scotland’ billboards at the course.
The European tour, including Aberdeenshire, is sponsored by DP World, which received £15 billion revenue last year and is run by a Dubai entrepreneur (Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem) who is worth about £7 billion, and the competition has a £2 million prize pot. So why did they need advertising paid for?
Gender Starting to Unravel
New guidance has finally been issued by Police Scotland to cover single-sex spaces. Better late than never, but is it still ‘interim’ guidance? The choice of toilets, changing rooms and any other single-sex spaces is now to be decided on the basis of biological sex, as it always should have been. The Scottish Prison Service has finally agreed that male and female prisoners should be housed in different parts of a prison, but does not say anything about trans prisoners.
But some are still entranced
The National Library of Scotland (NLS) has removed ‘The Women Who Would Not Wheesht’ from its Dear Library Exhibition after staff complained to National Librarian Amina Shah that they would feel ‘unsafe’ at the presence of a book. It got four public votes for inclusion in the exhibition and was initially included, but was removed after staff complained, although it is available to see in the reading room. Perhaps NLS’ recruitment policies should be amended to require staff to be a bit more robust and fair.
And Glasgow University Union seem to employ particularly timorous bar staff. Last weekend, a manager closed the bar to gender-critical women who had booked and paid for a space following a Let Women Speak rally, arguing that the women’s beliefs and opinions could constitute harassment against his staff and make them feel ‘unsafe’!
Hope he’s never confronted with a gang of drink-fuelled students knocking seven bells out of each other, then. How would he cope? Now that’s what ‘unsafe’ really means.
Why did Flamingo Land Correspondence Disappear?
The Scottish government is already under fire as it appears the planning department are ‘marking their own homework’ by returning the appeal to David Buylla, who originally passed the plans. Now it appears critical correspondence relating to the project has been deleted from the government website. Could the process be ‘tainted by bias’ as claimed by Ian Cowan, an environmental lawyer representing MSP Ross Greer? A letter by Cowan to the government was one of six files removed from the Appeals Division website, as was another letter criticising the process.
53-Council Summit Snubbed
An invitation by community councils to Scottish Energy Secretary Gillian Martin and UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks (MP for Rutherglen) to discuss the ‘barrage’ of major renewable proposals for the Highlands has been rebuffed. Ms Martin refused the August 12th meeting as it would be discussing live applications which may end up being referred to her; Mr Shanks refused on the grounds that the planning aspect of energy development is devolved to the Scottish government.
But they may be in breach of the UN-administered Aarhus Convention, a binding piece of legislation which guarantees the right to a healthy environment, enshrining people’s right to access information, participate in decision-making and express their concerns. Highland councillor Helen Crawford, chairman of the Community Council Convention, says the response is ridiculous as government ministers often meet with large developers while applications are ongoing.
Scottish Twins help MND Research
Tommy and Davy Zyw from Edinburgh are assisting Sheffield University in their research into a possible cure for Motor Neurone Disease (MND). One twin developed the disease, the other did not, and Sheffield Uni are examining a possible link between strenuous exercise and the development of MND. Both twins love cycling, running, climbing and snowboarding, and while Tommy developed MND it is the twins’ love of strenuous exercise which may have helped him survive past the usual 3-year MND survival timeline. He is even hoping to secure a place in the 2026 Winter Paralympics snowboarding team.
Some people who do very intense anaerobic exercise carry a higher genetic risk of MND. This seems to be independent of sustaining a head injury, which has been previously linked to MND. A Swedish study showed intense skiers were more at risk of MND, but middle-range skiers had a 50% less risk.
But while exercise may increase the risk, it seems that some intense exercise may arrest the progress of the disease.
NHS Scotland Consults External Consultancy Firms
Private management consultants have cost Scottish NHS boards £53 million in five years, including £200,000 from NHS Highland for ‘conflict management resolution’ relating to problematic workplace relationships; £23,000 for media advice for the State Hospital Board relating to Carstairs high-security psychiatric hospital; £97,000 paid by Public Health Scotland for change management and business service consultancy from auditors KPMG; £373,000 paid to a private consultant to plan Scottish Ambulance Service rosters between 2019 and 2023; and £210,000 paid by NHS Education Scotland to a private firm to draw up a business case for the Scottish government’s new health and social care app!
Sturgeon may move … to London
One of several underwhelming revelations in her book ‘Frankly’ is that she wants to live in London, as she would be freer there than in Scotland. Ironically, of course, it was the London government who saved Scotland’s women from our own government in the gender self-ID gender debacle, yet we are still living with the messy unravelling of Scottish government advice which was issued with not even a passing wave to the actual law.
Was it fear of politicians being imprisoned and fined as in Catalonia? Was it her obsession to push niche policies as the priority which clearly independence was not? Some thought her the ‘Saviour of the Union’ who set independence back by decades. Bet London can’t wait.
University Cancels Exams to Save Money
Edinburgh University teaching staff are allegedly being pressurised to cancel exams in order to save money. The reason is the £140 million cuts it needs to make, which have resulted in the sell-off of buildings and planned job cuts. But now they have hit on the idea of cutting exams in order not to have to hire rooms for the exams to be held in. But academic staff fear that the move may leave the institution more exposed to AI influence in the coursework which will instead be used to mark students.
The university rents the Edinburgh International Conference Centre for exams at a cost of £9,500 + VAT per day for the Cromdale Room (£9700+VAT next year). The Lennox, Lammermuir and Moffat rooms cost £13,000 + VAT per day (£13,650+VAT next year).
It is not clear why they are renting anywhere for exams. It is a hangover from Covid, before which the university just used its own gymnasiums. Now, conference rooms are rented for four or five weeks in May and three in December, during a budget crisis.
Will the Commonwealth Games be a Damp Squib?
Concerns have been raised after it was revealed that there will be no Marathon event at the games in Glasgow next year. Former MP and MSP Dennis Canavan held meetings with some of the organisers but they stand by their decision to exclude road events to ‘reduce operational complexity, ensure significant savings in transport and security costs and minimise the disruption’ of road closures.
Canavan suggested one solution could be making the marathon a mass participation event, with the elite athletes representing their countries starting before the public, who would pay to participate while the elites compete free.
Finally
Legal Row over Scott McTominay
A bid to trademark the Scottish footballer’s nickname ‘McFratm’ has run into a legal challenge. Napoli FC have already registered the nickname and McTominay even has a shrine dedicated to him in the Decumani district of Naples city centre. Now St Andrews businessman Giorgio Cozzolino wants to use the nickname to publicise his McFratm gin, plus pizza, coffee, whisky, restaurants, sporting goods and stationery, but is being challenged by both Napoli FC and McDonald’s. Cozzolino maintains the term just means ‘my brother’ in the Naples dialect and is not unique to Napoli FC. Negotiations are ongoing.