NEW recycling figures released by SEPA show that Glasgow is certainly not living up to its Gaelic name of the Dear Green Place.

Less than a quarter of household waste is recycled, earning Glasgow a place 4th from bottom in comparison with other Scottish regions.

This shows there is a long way to go for the city to meet the EU target of 50 per cent of all waste being recycled by 2020.

Fife and Stirling are the only places in Scotland which achieve this.

Jim Coleman, spokesman for the council’s land and environmental services, said: “Recycling has always been a challenge for Glasgow, largely due to the nature of its housing stock.”

However, other major Scottish cities recycle far more, with Edinburgh, Dundee and Aberdeen all achieving around a 30 per cent rate.

Council chiefs in Glasgow said they expect improvements in the next few years as they introduce new bin collecting measures and a controversial £154m waste management plant.

Despite opposition from the SNP and the Green Party, the city council gave the go-ahead to he Viridor Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre, which will be built in Polmadie, in Glasgow’s south side.

Due to open in 2015, the facility will process 200,000 tonnes of domestic rubbish a year and the council hope it will boost recycling as well as save £254m a year and power the equivalent of 20,000 homes with renewable energy.

MEN who are stressed are more likely to prefer heavier women, a study has found.

• Men tend towards heavier body traits in females when put under stress, study finds

• Slimmer females associated with increased incidence of ill health and reproductive deficiencies

Experts showed men pictures of women of all shapes and sizes and tested their reaction to the images.

They found men who were prone to getting stressed found larger ladies more attractive.

The experts, from London’s University of Westminster, said the study confirms people idealise mature body traits, like heavier body size’ when they experience an “environmental threat” such as stress.

Study leader Dr Viren Swami said: “The results provide the first experimental evidence that the experience of psychological stress shapes men’s judgements of female body size.

“In situations marked by resource uncertainty, individuals should come to idealise heavier individuals as fatness would be associated with access to resources.

“Conversely, thinness in such contexts may be associated with increased incidence of ill health and, for women, ovulatory irregularities and lower capacity to support pregnancy.”

He said the findings would be useful for future studies which looked at cultural differences in relation to body size, such as races which perceive larger ladies as more attractive.

A group of 81 men were split into groups for the study with one team had to carry out a stressful task, the other did not. Both teams were then shown the same images of different sized women, from very thin to morbidly obese, and asked to rate their attractiveness.

The experts discovered the stressed group gave significantly higher ratings to women considered “normal weight and overweight figures”, by UK standards, than the non-stressed group did.

THE buried secrets which lay beneath one of Edinburgh’s busiest nightspots have been uncovered by an archaeological dig in the 
Cowgate.

Archaeologists digging in the historic Edinburgh street have discovered a series of buildings dating back to the 16th century and artefacts ranging from combs to a primitive board game.

The last phase of excavation of the site, which is being developed by SoCo, has revealed the street frontages of the 16th-century buildings previously discovered.

Experts have already described the finds as among the most important ever uncovered in the Capital.

The latest findings are the final phase of architectural work which has been going on for the past ten years, following a major fire which raged for more than 52 hours and destroyed 13 buildings in 2002.

City council archaeologist John Lawson, pictured below, told the Evening News: “This part of the dig was the last piece of the puzzle – when all the discoveries are put together, I think it will be one of the most important archeological finds in Edinburgh. We’re getting evidence of 500 years of Edinburgh history, covering everything from early mansions of the rich to the slums of the 19th century.”

The excavation is also believed to have uncovered the work of the famed Scottish archeological family the Adams.

Among the finds are street frontage walls of 16/17th-century houses and later tenements, artefacts including pottery, bone comb and possible fragment of a gaming board and a complex of stone-lined drains.

Mr Lawson added: “The exciting thing about this latest stage of the excavations is we are getting the frontages of the buildings themselves, which, usually, we don’t get.

“That’s really important because it allows people to map accurately the changes that took place in the Cowgate.

“We’re finding quite a lot of artefacts and we have a lot of evidence for the domestic use of the street, from the 16th century right through to the early 19th-century slums. It all encapsulates Edinburgh in microcosm. Hopefully, this will tell the story of the Capital.”

The archeological findings, which it is hoped will remain with the council as part of the museums collection, will now undergo analysis.

Councillor Richard Lewis, convener of the culture and leisure committee, said: “This is a significant find as it completes the picture of artefacts and structures archaeologists hoped to find on the site.

“The dig is in the final phase and so this is the last chance for us to discover the secrets that lie in this historic area of the city.

“Everyone involved in the project is delighted that the site continues to provide important insights into this little-researched area of Edinburgh’s Old Town.”

PRINCES MALL now stands where the subterranean Waverley Market once stood.

It is located at the east end of Princes Street in the city centre, next to Edinburgh Waverley Railway station.

Built in 1872 it served as a livestock market and exhibition space.

The glass-roofed structure was demolished in the 1970s with the Princes Mall shopping complex opening in its place in 1985.

Like its predecessor, the Princes Mall was primarily built underground to preserve the views of Edinburgh Castle and Old Town .

Visit Lost Edinburgh’s Facebook page to view more images >>

A WIND farm which is set to provide power for more than 30,000 homes in Scotland was approved today.

Planning consent was granted to develop the Galawhistle wind farm, between Muirkirk in East Ayrshire and Douglas in South Lanarkshire.

Up to 34 jobs will be created during construction of the 22-turbine farm which will generate enough electricity for 31,311 homes.

Only two objections were received from members of the public when developers Infinis Plc applied to the Scottish Government in March 2010.

Both South Lanarkshire and East Ayrshire councils supported the scheme which is expected to result in a £2.7 million investment in the local economy during its 25 years of operation.

Announcing the decision to approve the plant, energy minister Fergus Ewing said it represented a “significant boost” to the local economy.

He said: “Once it is up and running the wind farm will save thousands of tonnes of carbon dioxide each year, and will produce enough electricity to power more than 30,000 homes.

“I am confident that Galawhistle will provide great benefits to its local community and play an important part in helping Scotland reach its target of the equivalent of 100 per cent of electricity demand generated from renewables.

“In consenting this application I have put in place a series of conditions to protect the outstanding natural habitats and landscapes and local communities.”

Since May 2007 the Scottish Government has dealt with 57 renewable energy applications including 33 onshore wind farms, one offshore wind farm, 19 hydro power developments and four wave and tidal project. Only six have been rejected.

OUR cartoonist wonders what will become of the thousands of people employed by the Olympics, and depicts the ‘Four Horsemen of the Recession’ biding their time until the Games ar eover.

Illustration by Brian Adcock

NATIONALIST politicians have called for Scotland to receive its fair share of the multi-million-pound Olympic 2012 legacy to reflect the success of Scottish athletes.

They said the legacy should be used to transform Scotland’s poor health record, starting with grass-roots sporting initiatives to encourage youngsters to emulate their Olympic heroes.

The call came amid SNP concerns that Scotland has not received its full quota of Olympic-related benefits.

Pete Wishart, the SNP’s sport spokesman at Westminster, said Scotland should benefit from “at least our population share” of the Olympic spin-off, “especially after our athletes’ contribution to the 
Olympics”.

Scotland accounts for 8.4 per cent of the UK’s 62 million population. With an anticipated £13 billion legacy, Scotland would therefore be entitled to a £1.1bn share, on a per capita basis.

Mr Wishart said: “You would have thought that, given the significant contribution that Scottish athletes have made to the whole of Team GB, when we are in line for a legacy and the rewards, that the same proportion should come to Scotland.

“There is so much that could be done. Young people throughout Scotland could be inspired to emulate their Scottish Olympic heroes and it is important that they get every opportunity and resource to do that.”

The Perth and North Perthshire MP claims Scotland did badly out of contracts awarded directly by the Olympic Delivery Authority.

“We did appallingly badly in the contracts,” he said. “We were promised a Games for the whole of the nation, but of the contracts that we saw for tier one, Scotland only got 25 out of 1,433. So let’s see if the UK government can do better when it comes to rewarding the legacy.

“Thankfully, we have started to put in place some magnificent infrastructure for the Commonwealth Games, like the Chris Hoy velodrome, which is a great example.”

Improving and building local sports facilities, saving playing fields from developers and improving transport links to swimming pools and gyms for children in rural areas are among the ideas being pursued by SNP politicians.

There is also concern that the feel-good atmosphere created by the Olympics may not result automatically in youngsters of all physical abilities being encouraged to pursue more sporting activities.

Politicians are anxious to avoid the Australian experience, where it was felt the success of the 2000 Sydney Games did not translate into children abandoning their sedentary lifestyles.

Christine Grahame, the Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale SNP MSP and former chair of the Holyrood health and sport committee, said it was important a way was found to ensure that success on a global stage would inspire youngsters to take up sport.

She said: “I would like to see the money applied to local sports facilities and, where children are in remote rural areas, helping them to have transport to those facilities. Many of them can’t stay behind for school sports because they have got to get the four o’clock bus. Also, we should not be letting local authorities sell off playing fields.

“These are simple things but the knock-on effect is that you actually start to nail obesity and diabetes in children.”

Ms Grahame admitted persuading children to leave their computer games and televisions in pursuit of healthier activities would be a “challenge”. She cited evidence presented to the Scottish Parliament by Professor Fred Coalter, of Stirling University’s School of Sport, which suggested major sporting events had “minimal” impact on grassroots sport.

“We looked at what is the sporting legacy from international events and, to be blunt, there isn’t one,” she said. “People tend to get fatter eating their crisps and drinking their Irn-Bru watching the event.

“You do get stadia. In the case of cycling, there has been a professional cycling school in Manchester and that has paid off. But, in terms of the health of the public and just getting children into sport – who are not going to be elite performers – the answer is no. There has not been much of a health legacy.”

The cost of staging the Olympics is estimated at £9.3bn, but the UK government forecasts it will result in £13bn being ploughed into the British economy over the next four years. London mayor Boris Johnson has announced a £300 million construction project to transform the Olympic site into the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, with the creation of 8,000 jobs.

The UK government pointed out the value of so-called tier one contacts to Scottish businesses was £33 million, and that more than 150 Games-related contracts had been awarded to firms from north of the Border.

Among the tier one contracts, Barr, from Glasgow, helped build the basketball arena, Impact Test Equipment, from Ayrshire, won work on the Aquatics Centre and Aberdeen-based Balmoral Sectional Tanks provided stadium supplies.

A UK government spokesman said: “Scotland has already seen huge legacy benefits. Contracts worth over £33m were awarded to businesses, three pre-Games training camps were held, and over 50 cultural projects inspired by London 2012 took place across the whole of Scotland leading to economic, cultural, sporting and tourism benefits.

“Going forward, Scottish athletes will continue to be funded through UK Sport and extra lottery money will lead to greater funding for sport projects helping to build on the success of London at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014.

“There will also be benefits from sharing expertise and best practice for Glasgow 2014, and the UK government is also supporting Glasgow’s bid to host the Youth Olympics in 2018.”  

A Scotland Office spokesman said: “The whole point about Team GB and its huge success is that our athletes have access to funding, support, coaching and facilities across the length and breadth of Britain. The Games have been a great example of how much we can achieve when we work together across the UK.”

The Scottish Government indicated it would act to improve grassroots sport for youngsters. Sports minister Shona Robison said: “We’re working very hard to make sure that if you’re good at a sport, you can go all the way. We’re increasing investment in PE, our active schools network is a huge success – opening up five million sporting opportunities for young people to try sports – and we are opening up schools to become community sports hubs to provide a healthier and more active Scotland.”

THE Battle of Britain clash between Hearts and Liverpool is set to bring a major financial boost to Edinburgh, as bars, restaurants and hotels prepare themselves for an invasion of the Reds later this month.

Thousands of fans will make the trip north for the Thursday night fixture on August 23, with many expected to stay until the weekend.

It is expected the glamour tie could be worth up to 
£1 million to businesses across the city, while the club could collect more than £1m from TV rights, prize money and additional 
revenue.

According to Uefa, Hearts stand to receive £78,500 in prize money from the play-off game.

With TV rights expected to be worth up to £350,000, as well as ticket revenue from huge gates at Tynecastle and Anfield, and associated sales of corporate hospitality and merchandise, the club could be looking at a payday of more than £1m.

The potential earnings will be doubled should the club make it past Liverpool, and while the odds are stacked against them fans will no doubt take some encouragement from their side’s head-to-head record.

The Tynecastle team have played Liverpool six times and have won all but one of them – although the last time the teams met was in 1929.

The results will still be seen as a good omen for the Jambos, and whatever the result on the park their club and the city will benefit greatly from the tie.

The game against the Premier League side comes after their two-leg draw against Tottenham Hotspur last August, which experts estimate was worth around £2m to the Capital.

Although Liverpool is only a three-and-a-half-hour drive from the Capital, it is expected that due to holiday season timing and the game being on a Thursday night many fans will take the opportunity to have a long weekend break.

The announcement of the draw yesterday was welcomed by the hotel trade, which despite the Festival influx is experiencing a 20 per cent slump in takings per room on last year.

Ticket numbers for supporters are still to be divided but it is expected that between 1500 and 2500 Liverpool fans will make the trip north, with thousands of Edinburgh fans cramming into venues screening the big game.

Colin Paton, chairman of the Edinburgh Hotels Association, said: “This has got to be a boost for hotels. Historically Edinburgh hotels have always filled in certain months, of which August is the busiest, but this has been a very soft year.

“Occupancy in the first seven months has been lower and rates per room have been lower. The Olympic effect has not been positive for Edinburgh this month, with rev par [takings per room] down 19 per cent on last year, so this might be the cavalry we need.”

Pubs and bars in west Edinburgh were also preparing themselves for one of the busiest weekends of the year.

Paul Waterson, spokesman for the Scottish Licensed Trade Association in Edinburgh, said: “Obviously it’s a great draw and I’ve no doubt it will help trade generally, specifically the pubs.

“With the trouble that’s going on in Scottish football this is exactly what we need, it’s a glamour game with big-name players.”

Tickets for last year’s Europa League qualifier between Hearts and Tottenham are understood to have sold out in less than four hours and when released the ticket rush for Liverpool is expected to be just as ferocious.

Ex-Hearts striker and lifelong Jambo Scott Crabbe said the draw was “fantastic” and confidently predicted a white-hot atmosphere at Tynecastle a week on Thursday.

“It will be an amazing atmosphere. For Spurs, there wasn’t a seat left in the house. Liverpool will be similar, if not better.

“I think it’ll be harder to get a ticket for this than it was for the cup final.”

Steven Kilgour, secretary of the Federation of Hearts Supporters, said that his phone had been ringing off the hook since the draw was made, with supporters already keen to sort out transport to Liverpool for the return leg.

“Games don’t come much bigger,” he said. “Liverpool are up there with Barcelona, Manchester United, Read Madrid as one of the biggest names in European football history.

“We’ll have a full house at Tynecastle and I think Hearts will take at least 5000 to Anfield. We had 4000 at White Hart Lane and Liverpool is much more accessible.

“It’s going to be very hard to get through but you never know – miracles do happen.”

NHS Lothian has apologised to patients who were forced to languish for eight hours or longer while waiting to be seen in accident and emergency departments.

In response to a parliamentary question this week, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon revealed that it had taken the health board at least eight hours to see 1108 people in 2011-12.

Of those patients, 130 had still not been assessed by a doctor within 12 hours over the course of the financial year.

Last year, the number of patients waiting at least eight hours in Lothian hospitals was the highest recorded in the four years for which statistics were published, and had more than doubled since 2008-9 when just 470 had faced the delay.

Dr David Farquharson, medical director of NHS Lothian, said that less than half of one per cent of the 243,242 patients who were treated in emergency departments last year had waited eight hours or more.

“Our staff worked extremely hard to provide the best care and ensure that patients did not have long waits,” said Dr Farquharson. “Patients are assessed and seen in order according to need. However, a diagnostic decision or transfer to another site for specialty purposes may take significantly more time and we apologise to those who waited too long.”

There were 689 cases of patients waiting more than eight hours recorded at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, rising from 523 the previous year and 317 in 2008-9, but less than the 779 in 2009-10. In addition, it took at least eight hours to see 287 people at Livingston’s St John’s A&E last year, 124 patients were stuck at the emergency department at the Western General for eight hours, while eight endured the long wait at the Sick Kids.

Dr Farquharson added: “We are working closely with the Scottish Government to reduce waiting times and have begun implementing an action plan to put us back on track, and the figures show that it is already working. However, we will continue to look at ways of improving our service to build on the achievements so far.”

Across Scotland, 5097 patients waited eight hours or more in A&E departments, compared with 2190 in 2008-9.

Dr Jean Turner, executive director of the Scotland Patients Association, said the numbers were “horrifying”.

“They have got to realise these aren’t numbers, they are people. If you were one of the these people hanging about for that length of time you would feel abandoned. It’s not good enough.

“Targets are a great thing, but you have to provide staffing and accommodation levels to meet them. I think the staff are trying their best but it’s getting worse.”

daniel.sanderson@edinburghnews.com

THE decision to overturn a 48-hour alcohol ban imposed on Tesco after it failed a test purchase has been branded 
“ridiculous”.

• Two-day ban on selling alcohol had been imposed on Tesco store in Dalkeith after a test purchase where a 16-year-old was able to buy two bottles of beer

• Overturning of ruling criticised as “ridiculous”

The two-day ban at Tesco’s Hardengreen store in Dalkeith, imposed by Midlothian Licensing Board, has been overturned by the courts, with the board ordered to pay the supermarket giant’s costs.

The ban was due to start at midnight on December 15 last year, but an 11th-hour challenge saw alcohol sales resume at 3pm the following day.

Had the licensing board’s decision been upheld, Tesco would have been made to serve the remainder of the ban.

Councillor Adam Montgomery, a member of the board, said: “This is big business getting away with something that a small retailer would never be able to. It’s ridiculous and I’m really quite angry about it.”

The licensing board hearing was held at the request of Lothian and Borders Police after the store failed a single test purchase on July 21 when a 16-year-old youth purchased two bottles of beer.

At Edinburgh Sheriff Court, Sheriff Principal Mhairi Stephen said there was “no proper basis” for suspending the licence to “protect children from harm”.

The law defines a child as a person under the age of 16 and a young person as aged 16 or 17.

“On the contrary, there was evidence that a follow-up test purchase was met with an appropriate challenge and refusal and there was evidence of other test purchases organised by the pursuers themselves, which had been passed,” she said.

“Accordingly, there is no evidence to support the conclusion that the licensing objective of protecting children from harm had been engaged.”

She added: “There is nothing in the reasons given by the board to explain how the public interest might be served by a short suspension of the licence.”

Hitting back at the decision, Cllr Montgomery said: “Is there any point in carrying out a test purchase when big firms can get away with failing it?

“Tesco sold alcohol to an underage person, there’s no getting away from it.”

Alcohol Focus Scotland said it had recommended that Ministers should consider changing the objective related to protecting children from harm to include young people.

Dr Jonathan Chick, an alcohol expert and honorary professor at Queen Margaret University, said: “Tesco have a responsibility to follow the law – they have failed to follow the law on this occasion.”

A Tesco spokesman said: “We are a responsible retailer of alcohol, and are pleased that the appeal was successful.”

What’s a Dalmatian’s favourite website?

www.dalmatian.dot-dot-dot-dot-dot-dot-dot-dot.

Grant Thomson, Joppa

What do university students and deer have in common? They both stand in the middle of the road and stare at your headlights.

Brian Clarke, Carrick Knowe

Blood donors in the Edinburgh and Lothians area are being urged to “be like our Olympic heroes” and come forward, with blood stocks down seven per cent over the summer.

The Scottish Blood Transfusion Service is appealing to those with O+ and O- blood types. O+ is the most common blood group, while those with O- blood are universal donors, meaning their blood can be given to anyone. O- blood is essential for those receiving emergency treatment, when there is often not time to test for type.

Vincent Mooney, donor services manager for Edinburgh & SE Scotland Blood Transfusion Service, said: “Over the summer demand for O- has remained high. Only 9.5 per cent of the population is O-, so it is challenging to make sure we have enough.”

Underage drinking remains one of the biggest concerns of communities across the Lothians despite repeated efforts to crack down on the problem.

Parents of young teenagers especially worry about their children getting involved and neighbourhoods suffer sleepless nights and worse from the antisocial behaviour that goes hand-in-hand with youths drinking on street corners.

So it is astonishing that when one of our best-known high street stores is caught red-handed breaking the law by selling alcohol to an under-18 it gets away with it scot-free.

For that is exactly what has happened to Tesco after a 16-year-old “test purchaser” walked into its Dalkeith store and bought two bottles of beer. With teenage drinking a problem on the streets around the supermarket, the local licensing board quite rightly threw the book at Tesco – only to see its 48-hour ban on the store selling booze overturned in court. To add insult to injury, the sheriff ordered the board to pay Tesco’s legal bill.

The board appears to have fallen foul of a technicality by citing the protection of “children” as the reason for its ban. Legally, apparently, a 16-year-old is a “young person”. Such fine distinctions in a case like this simply makes the law an ass.

The big supermarkets are quick to trumpet the training they give their staff and systems they put in place to prevent the sale of alcohol to under-18s. That is all well and good, but when they break the law they should be punished.

What would happen if a motorist caught speeding tried to escape a fine by pointing to years of trouble-free driving? They would, quite rightly, still be fined.

What happens the next time that a big supermarket is caught out? Will the licensing board hesitate to punish them for fear of being landed with legal costs should their ban be overturned?

This decision smacks of the person with the most expensive lawyer winning rather than the one with right on their side and the best interests of the local community at heart. It does not seem like justice.

THIS is the year that Scotland will hopefully become a Fair Trade Nation. The campaign, led by the Scottish Fair Trade Forum, aims to deliver real impact in the fight against global poverty.

Many people in Scotland already know a bit about Fairtrade, but more needs to be done to raise awareness. Many of the products we buy in supermarkets are produced by people who are not paid properly for their work and, as a result, many live in poverty. Fairtrade guarantees a fair price to producers – enough to pay a living wage regardless of how low prices go. Fairtrade also safeguards against child labour and promotes rights for women. Fairtrade enables producers to plan for the future by providing long-term contracts and includes a social premium that is often reinvested into local products.

The Scottish Government must work to promote Fairtrade and use the products internally. In addition, the number of people who know about Fairtrade must increase by five per cent every year until it reaches 75 per cent, and 75 per cent of those people must buy a Fairtrade product every year. Visit www.sftf.org.uk for further details.

In West Lothian, there are now four Fairtrade towns – Bathgate, Livingston, Whitburn and Linlithgow. This is thanks to the work of committed communities. Scots from all walks of life are now being encouraged to join the campaign.

By working together and making smarter shopping choices, we can make a difference to global poverty. That is why I am supporting the Fair Trade Nation campaign and hope you will, too.

• Graeme Morrice is MP for Livingston

IT’S the ultimate in competitive fine dining – where you might just meat your match.

An upmarket eating contest has been launched at a city restaurant, with culinary athletes challenged to devour five side dishes and a monstrous rump steak weighing in at 92oz all inside one hour.

The huge slice of beef is more than ten times that of a standard cut, with the entire feast clocking up a whopping 7352 calories.

Those determined enough to complete the epic challenge would have to run around 60 miles to work off the calories from the meal.

The belt-tightening competition was inspired by reality TV series Man v Food, which sees food enthusiast Adam Richman attempt gargantuan eating challenges at restaurants across the US.

The challenge goes on the menu from today at Steak Edinburgh in Picardy Place, with duty managers turning umpire to thwart would-be cheaters and enforce strict rules.

Split decisions over unfinished meals will be determined by head chef Jason Wright, while entrants will also be followed to the toilet to prevent scraps being illegally discarded.

Challengers can take part in the arduous meat feast for £160, with winning entrants eating for free and their picture pinned to the reception wall.

There is an age restriction of 18 and entrants must sign a waiver absolving the restaurant of liability for potential health problems.

The competition is thought to be the first of its kind in Edinburgh.

Mr Wright said: “For starters, my tip would be not to eat too fast. You have to train yourself up to it and anyone that harbours any hope of completing it should take some weeks of training.

“Perhaps for breakfast they could have steak and eggs, with a steak sandwich for lunch and beef 
Wellington for dinner. We expect about one in 100 to get through it, but what they don’t finish they can take home.”

He added: “I do think it is manageable, although I don’t think I could carry out the challenge myself as I’m only little. It’s a great deal – you’re getting a meal that would cost you less than half the price if you ordered it normally.”

Restaurant manager Malcolm Elder said there were “obvious dangers” of over-eating, but that trained first aiders would be among the staff.

Mr Wright added: “As a restaurant, you can’t take yourself too seriously. I would rather people were comfortable in here than in many fine dining establishments where sometimes [they] don’t know how they should behave or what they can do.”

However, experts have warned against taking on the eating challenge.

Dr Fred Pender, a weight management dietician at Edinburgh University, said: “This is not exactly a sensible thing to do. Our systems are not equipped to deal with that volume of food in that small a timescale. It’s a massive amount of protein to consume. It’s important to stay hydrated throughout.”

david.mccann@edinburghnews.com

AN airline which flies from Edinburgh Airport has issued another profits warning after passenger numbers fell.

Flybe planes have been left less than two-thirds full, with chief executive Jim French saying the firm was battling “another very challenging year”.

The Exeter-based airline said it would respond with cost-
saving measures.

It has issued a series of profits warnings in recent years, causing its shares to slump in value from about 325p at the time of its flotation at the end of 2010, to 64.3p today.

All over the country, a pattern has been forming. A hobby has cast a spell and can be seen on buses, in libraries – and even at Wimbledon’s Centre Court.

Once seen as the preserve of frugal grannies, people of all ages are rediscovering the joy of knitting.

It has become a trend, attracting the attention of Winona Ryder, Madonna and even Hollywood hardman Russell Crowe.

Now the craft is to be the subject of a two-day event at the National Museum of Scotland.

Wool-tastic! will spin the tale of wool and see the museum’s Hawthornden Court transformed into a woolly wonderland. Knitted board games, a woolly tree and a Fairisle chair will be among the more unusual sights at the event, which will celebrate knitting’s place in the history of British 
craftsmanship.

The two-day knitting extravaganza, part of the Edinburgh International Fashion Festival, has been set up by Eribe Knitwear in Galashiels, at which a luxury design can take as long as 90 hours to create.

“Knitting is a tradition which is still very much alive,” says the owner of Eribe Knitwear, Rosy Eribe (pictured), who hails from the Capital. “People want to get back to their roots. We aren’t being taught these skills at school any more.”

Rosy says: “In Scotland, the popular Arran style came from the island and the west coast. The Guernsey style would be found down the east coast, in places like Portobello and Pittenweem. All the men used to wear Guernsey pullovers.

“But sea and tragedy were closely linked, and pullovers were used to identify sons and husbands who had died.

“The patterns were never written down. One lady refused to give the pattern used to knit her son’s pullovers to her daughter-in-law and the pattern died with her.

“In more recent years, there was a dip in the appreciation of the hand-knit with the arrival of cheaper knitwear from China, but its popularity has started to pick up once again.

“In Italy, Germany and even Japan – where people said it would never catch on – people are learning more about the skills involved.”

As well as exploring the story of the natural yarns and the origins of the fibres used to knit, Wool-tastic! will offer people the chance to pick up a pair of knitting needles for themselves, even if it is their first time.

“We’re hoping to get young people and families interested through this event,” says Rosy. “Anyone can drop in and find out why knitting is such as great hobby.

“It’s such a social activity and it can also have health benefits – it’s even good for things like depression.

“With crochet and knitting you can travel anywhere. I was at the theatre recently and a man in front of me was knitting his socks!”

There lies one of knitting’s endearing qualities – something that caused some controversy on the social networks earlier this year during a tense Wimbledon encounter between Andy Murray and Marcos Baghdatis. While most were on the edge of their seats, one woman was caught on camera with her knitting needles – sparking a Twitter debate in which some condemned the mystery knitter for wasting her highly sought-after ticket, while others leapt to her defence.

Being able to socialise while knitting has led to a huge rise in the popularity of groups at which dyed-in-the-wool knitters and close-knit friends can get together for a chat.

Carolyn Spence, 51, who runs the Knit and Natter group at Sighthill Library, said: “We’ve had people in their 20s through to their 80s coming along to our group.

“Lately we have been knitting Olympic figures – Usain Bolt, Jessica Ennis, Mark Spitz has proved very popular with his little Speedos.

“It’s definitely becoming more popular, you can have a catch-up and a laugh.”

It is hoped the Wool-tastic! event will showcase the versatility of knitting as craft.

Anna Freemantle, director of the Edinburgh International Fashion Festival, said: “Knitting is something that Scotland is celebrated for, but it is perhaps not something that is always seen.

“This is going to take it out of the traditional sense and look at it in a different way.”

n Wooltastic! takes place from 11am to 4pm on Saturday, August 18 and Sunday, August 19 at Hawthornden Court in the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street.

While style may be the only thing that never goes out of fashion, it’s usually only a matter of time before what was once deemed a disaster is again gracing some skinny catwalk 
shoulders.

Along with the rise in economic and environmentally-conscious shoppers and the resurgence in popularity of burlesque over the past decade, this fact is probably the reason why our thirst for vintage clothing is growing.

So, with the Festival in full swing it’s possible that Judy’s Affordable Vintage Fair, being held in the city next weekend, may attract even more people than the 1500 who turned out for its previous visit earlier this year.

The fair’s founder, Judy Berger, pictured below, says: “We’ve certainly got our fingers crossed for at least a repeat performance. With a lot more than our stalls on offer – 1940s tea party, retro hair and make-up, live acts and DJ sets – we want folk to make an afternoon of it, enjoying old-world glamour, without paying through the mouth.”

And it’s not just die-hard fashionistas who are wont to darken the fair’s 
doorstep.

Judy says: “Eclectic is definitely the word for our clientele. Everyone from thrifters and art students, dandies and rockabillies, young couples looking for affordable furnishings, art students looking for fabrics, high-street shoppers on the hunt for affordable trends, to grandparents and families enjoying the nostalgia.

“With affordability at our core, flexibility is what we’re all about, from sale rails and bargain buckets to discount designer finds, our traders try and keep things as cheap as possible. We’re also giving out free discount cards on the door – the Advintage card – to make your pennies stretch further.”

Given that Judy was a personal shopper at Selfridges before starting the fair, now in its fourth year, it’s a solid bet that she’s got her finger firmly on the fashion pulse. So what trends should dedicated followers be filling their wardrobes with?

“On the crux of the autumn, our eyes are certainly on the new season and what it’s set to bring; a 90s revival, monochrome and repeat prints, military and gothic as well as Gatsby-esque opulence,” she says.

And for those who can’t wait until next Sunday, Judy also has some tips on where to unearth fashion finds to make you the envy of your friends all year round.

“I love the Frayed Hem on Cockburn Street. As time’s gone on, we’ve got some great Scottish traders on our books – Glasgow-based Once Upon a Time are certainly a trader I would check out and they will be at our Edinburgh fair.

“I’ve also made some amazing finds in thrift stores over the years. You’ve got to keep your eyes open as you never know what’s going to pop up. It would be tough to pick a favourite item, possibly a bargain £10 Ossie Clarke dress bought from one of the fairs we held in Oxford or a pair of vintage gold Chanel earrings picked up in a thrift store in New York. I also just got back from Denmark where I bought some vintage fisherman lights for a fiver – they cost more than £200 in London.”

Judy isn’t the only one who thinks the 90s are coming back. Evening News fashion writer Lynne McCrossan, author of A Girl’s Guide to Vintage, said: “Fashion historian James Laver wrote many seminal works on fashion, one of the most famous of which is Laver’s Law. According to him, things generally come back into fashion once the time when they were last popular is far enough away that they can be regarded with nostalgia by the people who wore them then, and can also be rediscovered by a new generation.

“This usually takes about 20 years, so the early 90s are due for a comeback. If you saw The Voice recently you’ll have noticed Jessie J wearing lots of loud prints which are very reminiscent of Versace clothing from that time, and we’re also going to see a revival of the Britpop style – Oasis parkas and the Fred Perry look Blur used to sport. The type of music popular then is coming back too, a lot more hardcore dance rave is creeping up the charts.”

Following the recent Jubilee and the Olympic Games, a return to Cool Britannia couldn’t have been timed better.

Lynne also has some tips on where to make those fashion finds.

“I absolutely love Herman Brown on West Port. It’s run by a woman called Anna Nicholson and her stuff is just amazing. She’s in her 60s, so she’s been in the business for a while and she’s got a great eye.”

n Judy’s Affordable Vintage Fair will take place at the HMV Picture House on Sunday, August 19, from 11am-4pm. Entry is £2, £1 for students and OAPS. Under-12s go free.

jen.lavery@edinburghnews.com

Some 10,000 Scots turned to employment tribunals last year in an attempt to secure fair pay deals, new figures show.

Of 27,900 cases in Scotland that were referred to an employment tribunal in the 2011-12 financial year, more than a third were in relation to equal pay,
according to research by Ashworth Black, a pay and reward consultancy. It predicted that more workers could take action as awareness of their rights increases in the difficult economic climate.

It said employers in Scotland were ignoring a “ticking timebomb” by continuing to pay some staff more than others for doing the same job.

Many of the claims were made by employees of local authorities, which have been accused of dodging their obligations by failing to pay out to equal pay claimants.

Thousands of equal pay cases remain lodged in the tribunal system, according to the GMB union, which said local authorities are deliberately delaying and leaving workers out of pocket.

Local authorities are not alone in failing to ensure that employees are paid fairly, however.

Lorna Ashworth, managing director of Ashworth Black, said: “These figures show that Scottish companies and employers still have some way to go to ensure parity across their employees.”

Employers are now expected to use pay structures based on job evaluation schemes that conform to the Equality Act 2010. But Ashworth said too many employers have failed to put a job evaluation system in place, leaving them open to challenge from female employees seeking parity with male colleagues.

She described the issue as a “ticking timebomb” for employers: “With no proper justification of the pay scales, they don’t want to open the proverbial can of worms. So they think it is an easier way forward to ignore it and hope it doesn’t raise its head as an issue.”

They are unlikely to be so fortunate, however, with people increasingly aware of their rights.

Ashworth said: “In the 21st century it really concerns me to learn that there are still people facing issues of equal pay. As more people hear about successful claims I won’t be surprised if more people start looking seriously into challenging their own situations of equal pay and raising it as an issue.”

Many of the cases going to tribunal are against local authorities.

In one recent high-profile case, 2,400 former and current female South Lanarkshire Council workers secured a ruling in their favour in their dispute with the local authority.

An employment tribunal judged that the council’s job evaluations failed to meet the demands of the Equal Pay 
Act 1970, now part of the Equality Act 2010.

Alex McLuckie, a spokesman for GMB Scotland, said employers were dragging their feet in complying with the rules.

“It is not the amount of claims that are lodged at tribunal that is the issue for us, it is the amount of time it is taking for these cases to be heard or resolved.

“Much of this delay is caused by the employers, many of them local authorities who deliberately delay the process to avoid paying out money to the claimants.

“It’s about time those councils with outstanding cases took steps to settle all these outstanding claims”

Inheritance Tax (IHT) should be the least of our tax concerns, given it only becomes payable once we have departed this world.

In practice, however, it does matter because of the financial effect on beneficiaries, which in most cases are close relatives. Richard Johnston, a chartered financial planner with Murray Asset Management, gives his top ten tips on passing your wealth onto the next generation without helping the taxman.

1 The other half
If you’re married it, it will in most instances be best to leave everything to your spouse. Regardless of the size of the estate, inheritance tax is not charged where left to a United Kingdom-domiciled spouse
(or civil partner). This defers the problem until the surviving spouse dies, but it is presumed that by that time the value of the estate will have been diminished and, by implication, so will exposure to inheritance tax. When the widow or widower dies, the balance of the deceased’s assets (including the main home) of more than £650,000 will normally be subject to inheritance tax at
 40 per cent.

2 Seven-year hitch
You can gift assets to a beneficiary during your lifetime, rather than waiting until they pass on posthumously. Should you survive for at least seven years after making the gift, then it will not be deemed part of your estate. This rule exists to prevent individuals signing 
over their assets on their “deathbed” in order to avoid inheritance tax.

3 Use your exemptions
A gift up to £3,000 a year will be excluded from the seven-year rule (above). A couple can gift £6,000 a year between them and if no gifts were made in the previous year this can be doubled to £12,000. Exempted gifts can also be made in respect of a marriage at the rate of £5,000 for a child, £2,500 for a grandchild and £1,000 for anybody else. You can also gift up to £250 a year to any number of other persons.

4 Distribute excess income
Regular distributions of income received will also be exempt from the seven-year rule if that income is deemed to be excess to your normal living requirements. Distribution could be in the form of a simple standing order to a child or premiums payable in respect of a life assurance plan.

5 Gift money to a trust
If your concern is that the ultimate beneficiaries (eg: children) of your estate may be too young when you die – or you’re not sure if they should receive a bequest at all – you can gift the money to a trust. Often it may be best to use an investment bond for this purpose to minimise the costs and administrative burden involved with the tax and reporting requirements for trusts. This can allow relatively modest sums to be placed into trust.

6 Trust types
The problem with giving assets away (particularly to a trust) is that you cannot normally benefit from them again. Discounted gift trusts and loan trusts act as a sort of “halfway house” for giving assets away as they enable the donor to retain access to either a stream of income or the full capital value of the gift.

7 Life assurance
This won’t reduce the potential inheritance tax liability but it will provide your named beneficiaries with a means of paying it. Although you may feel that gifting the asset itself is a sufficient gesture, a problem can arise if the beneficiary receives an asset with a tax liability attached. The plan can be set up to last seven years to match a gift made during your lifetime or a “whole-of-life” plan can be used to cover the assets that you will take to the grave.

8 Shares
Businesses, unquoted shares and agricultural assets held for two years (seven years if it is a let farm) may also qualify for exemption from inheritance tax. Clearly, it is not easy to buy a business or a farm for this purpose, but one option is to buy shares listed on the Alternative Investment Market. These are quoted shares but for this purpose are defined as unquoted shares. They are, however, shares in relatively small companies and so typically high risk.

9 Help a charity
Assets left to charity are exempt from inheritance tax, giving relief of 40 per cent. Further to this, the government recently introduced rules which mean that if you leave to charity 10 per cent of the part of your estate that would be subject to inheritance tax, the rate is cut from 40 to 36 per cent. Charitable giving is often favoured by those without close blood relatives but anybody can take advantage of these exemptions.

10 Spend it!
Clearly the easiest – and often most enjoyable– way to reduce the potential inheritance tax liability is to ensure that your estate is worth less than the allowance when you die. The cost of care in later years may be sufficient on its own to produce this outcome, of course, and it is important to keep enough in case you happen to live for longer than expected.