Earlier this month, the memorial at Craik Forest to the crew of a Halifax bomber that crashed there in 1944, was rededicated.

The plaque on the memorial wall, illustrated with engravings of a Handley Page Halifax, records how the aircraft, which was on a night navigation exercise from its base near Doncaster in Yorkshire, flew into high ground at 11.30pm on April 1, 1944.

The plaque also records the names of the eight crew, all of whom perished.

They were: Flying Officer Ronald Ross, Sgt Harold Simpson, Flying Officer John Birkett, Sgt Cyril Farthing, Sgt Peter Burchell, Sgt John Hinder, Sgt Brian Bell and Sgt Herbert Smith.

The memorial was originally erected on the 50th anniversary of the crash on April 1, 1994, by Nos 2463 (Currie & Balerno) Sqn; 1007 (Duns) Sqn, Air Training Corps and the Forestry Commission .

In volume eight of the Royal Air Force’s records of Bomber Command’s losses for heavy conversion units during the war, it tells how the Halifax flew into high ground in the vicinity of Muckle Knowe.

As the bomber struck the hillside, the night sky was illuminated by flames, with debris scattered over a wide area. The remains of the crew were interred in cemeteries across England.

Do we still need trade unions? It’s a big question, but with a simple answer: of course we do. They’re hugely important because they promote rights in the workplace and good employment practice.

They’re a key contributor to social justice, to the prosperity of individuals, to economic competitiveness – indeed, to democracy itself.

Anyone who thinks trade unions aren’t relevant to rural areas such as the Borders should remember that the movement really started in 1832 with the Tolpuddle Martyrs – agricultural workers from a tiny Dorset village asserting their rights.

These days unions are built into the fabric of our society. But the Tory government at Westminster is trying to dramatically restrict their rights with a controversial bill which is currently going through the Commons.

I and the rest of the SNP are determined to oppose this legislation. It’s a vicious assault on the rights of working people, moving more power from the employee to the employer and attacking civil liberties. Indeed, the TUC General Secretary has said that it will make legal strikes close to impossible.

Of course, everyone wants harmonious industrial relations, and by and large, that’s what we have. The 704,000 working days the UK lost to strikes in the 12 months to April 2015 may seem like a large number until you look back to the 1970s, when the average figure was 13 million days a year. So relations are actually now pretty good.

It’s astonishing that, at a time when the economy is so fragile, our membership of the EU is in crisis, poverty is rising and food banks are everywhere, the UK government should consider this sort of attack on civil liberties to be a priority.

Some of the proposals are hugely restrictive. For instance, the planned requirement for a 50% turnout for a strike ballot with, in the case of essential public services, 40% of the electorate having to back a walkout before it can be legal.

It clearly hasn’t occurred to the government that many of their politicians, especially at local level, are elected on less than a 50% turnout, or that a whole bundle of their MPs elected last May couldn’t manage 40% of the vote – including, ironically, Business Secretary Sajid Javid.

The Tories are even consulting on making it compulsory for unions to tell employers and police in advance what they are planning to post on Facebook and Twitter during a strike. It’s the sort of thing you’d expect in Stalin’s Russia, not the UK.

The legislation still has to go through committee stage in the Commons, and I and my SNP colleagues will be seeing if we can get it amended. We believe in a modern and progressive approach to industrial relations and trade unionism, rather than this draconian and damaging agenda.

Scotland is a cohesive society, built on tolerance, respect and democracy. Our way forward is the right way – co-operation rather than confrontation, with the unions given the place they deserve.

I’ll be doing everything I can to keep it that way.

Motorcyclist well over limit

A motorcyclist who was almost four times the legal alcohol limit when he was involved in an accident has been banned from the road for 14 months.

Adult learning support worker Mathew Cameron pleaded guilty to the offence which happened on the Peebles-Eddleston A703 road on September 17.

Tessa Bradley, prosecuting, said police responded to a report of a motorcyclist coming off his machine and they found Cameron at the scene, smelling of alcohol.

The 39-year-old, of Home Farm, Stobo, near Peebles, admitted having a breath/alcohol reading of 81 microgrammes – the legal limit being 22.

Defence lawyer Iain Burke said Cameron had been visiting his brother and had been drinking into the small hours.

He took the motorcycle for a spin after waking up, not realising he was still well over the limit. Mr Burke added that the conditions were wet and his client lost the back wheel and ended up crashing into the verge.

Cameron was also fined £300.

Barney over birthday gift

A hotel porter involved in an hour-long argument with his partner over a birthday present she was buying him appeared from custody.

Greig Rennie, who is 23, pleaded guilty to a charge of threatening or abusive behaviour by shouting and swearing, making offensive remarks and struggling with his partner at their home in Winston Road, Galashiels, on Saturday morning.

The court heard that neighbours heard Rennie make offensive comments towards his partner of four years and they ended up struggling with each other in front of their two -year-old son before the police were called.

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said police had described it as a “volatile relationship”.

Defending, Ross Dow said the argument about a birthday present she was buying him started when they woke at 9am.

The lawyer explained his client was the main bread-winner in the family and didn’t want her spending money on him when it should go towards their child.

Rennie was ordered to carry out 60 hours’ unpaid work.

Assault allegation

A Galashiels teenager will stand trial by jury accused of assaulting a male to his severe injury on New Year’s Day.

Jordan Whittaker, 19, of Wood Street, denies punching Dean Pearson to the head and knocking him to the ground in High Street, Galashiels.

He also pleaded not guilty to a charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner at the Harrow Inn, also on New Year’s Day.

Shop raid charges

A second man has appeared in court in connection with a robbery at a Kelso shop during which staff were allegedly assaulted with an electrical implement.

Steven Modeste, 36, faces three charges of assault and robbery, as well as possession of a prohibited weapon.

It follows an early-morning raid on the Original Factory Shop in Bowmont Street last Monday during which shop workers, including pregnant Jacqui Young, 31, were assaulted before money was stolen.

Modeste, of Newtown St Boswells, made no plea or declaration during a private hearing at Jedburgh Sheriff Court on Friday and the case was continued for further examination.

He was remanded in custody and was expected to appear at Selkirk Sheriff Court this week.

James Irvine, 53, also of Newtown St Boswells, has already appeared in court on similar charges.

Police Scotland are looking for a third suspect.

Cannabis

charge

A Hawick man will stand trial by jury on January 25 on a drug-dealing charge.

Paul Marshall, 32, of Burnfoot Road, denies being concerned in the supply of cannabis.

The offence is alleged to have been committed on the B6088 road near the Carter Bar on December 12, 2014.

An intermediate hearing has been set for January 5.

Mother admonished

A frustated mother ended up assaulting her former partner in the street because he had not turned up to pick up their 16-month-old child.

Twenty-five-year-old Emma Garment saw red when she spotted James Armstrong in Langlands Place, Newtown St Boswells, at 11.30am, having what her lawyer described as “having a good time” while walking in the street with her brother.

She pleaded guilty to charges of shouting and swearing and making abusive comments, and also assault on June 18.

Selkirk Sheriff Court was told Garment, of Millburn Park, Lauder, had been of good behaviour for four months while on deferred sentence and was therefore admonished.

Academic

on trial

A university academic has been accused of causing serious injury to his wife by dangerous driving.

John Mosley, 50 – head of Edinburgh University’s Hospital for Small Animals – denies driving on the opposite side of the carriageway and colliding with another car on the A72 road near his Blyth Bridge home in Peeblesshire on June 20 last year.

The case has been set down for the jury sitting on November 2 at Selkirk Sheriff Court.

A debate will take place on October 26 about legal issues affecting the case.

Arrested at caravan park

Two men appeared in private at Selkirk Sheriff Court after being arrested at a Berwickshire caravan park at the weekend.

Paul Gillies, 28, from Bathgate, is charged with being in possession of a bladed article. David Finlayson, who is 26 and from Eyemouth, is accused of having an offensive weapon in his possession.

The offences are alleged to have been committed at the High View caravan park in Coldingham on Saturday.

Both men made no plea or declaration when they appeared separately on petition.

Their cases were continued for further examination and both were bailed by Sheriff Peter Paterson with special conditions.

Disqualified driver jailed

A motorist caught driving while disqualified on the outskirts of Galashiels has been jailed for four months at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

Forty-six-year-old Robert Reilly of Wilson Drive, Hawick, appeared from custody and pleaded guilty to the offence which happened on the B6360 between the Tweedbank roundabout and the A7 at Tweedbridge on Sunday.

Reilly also admitted having no insurance.

In addition to the prison sentence, he was disqualified from driving for three years and four months.

Accused of sex offences

A Selkirk man has been accused of sex offences involving a girl under 16 years of age.

James Mercer, 49, denies a total of five charges involving the victim which are claimed to have happened at his home in Montrose Place over a four-year period. He also pleaded not guilty to an allegation of being concerned in the supply of cannabis between August 2013 and August 2014.

Heather Shand, 42, also of Montrose Place, faces three charges of sexually assaulting the girl, but has yet to enter a plea.

The case will next call at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on January 5, with a jury sitting scheduled for January 18.

Breached order

A 60-year-old man has been accused of breaching the terms of his Sexual Offences Prevention Order by not informing police of his new address.

Robert Angus Edwards is said to have committed the offence in Stirling Street, Galashiels, between December 23 and 31, last year.

Edwards, of Renton Terrace, Eyemouth, will stand trial on November 2.

Background

reports

A St Boswells man who admitted carrying out an assault in a Galashiels public house will be sentenced next month.

Alan Cairney, 30, of Springfield Terrace, pleaded guilty to punching Lee Martin on the head and butting him at Wetherspoon’s in High Street, Galashiels, on April 8.

The offence was committed on bail.

Cairney also admitted a charge of causing fear and alarm by repeatedly banging on a window in Earlston on August 11.

Background reports will be prepared in time for November 23.

A pub row spilled into the street and ended with Colin George head-butting a police officer, Selkirk Sheriff Court, pictured, heard this week.

The 40-year-old, of Bountrees, Jedburgh, admitted charges of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner, and struggling violently with Thomas Farrell to his injury outside The Woodcutter in Galashiels, as well as assaulting the constable in nearby Marigold Bank on August 18.

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley explained how the accused walked into the bar around 4pm and “slightly bizarrely” asked the barman for a spoon for the food he had brought in with him.

She said: “At the same time, Mr Farrell came in and Mr George continued hassling the barman for a spoon. He started speaking to Mr Farrell and an argument developed.

“The accused called him a w*****r and asked him to go outside to settle their difference. The witness went outside and other witnesses tried to stop it happening.

“George grabbed Mr Farrell and a struggle developed between them, during which the witness suffered a minor cut.”

She added: “The accused went back into the pub and started hassling the barman again for a spoon, and was again refused. At this time George was told to leave the pub and the police were contacted.”

Police arrived on the scene at about 4.25pm and were told what had happened. They went looking for George and found him in the chip shop next door to the pub.

Ms Bradley continued: “They arrested Mr George. As they were taking him to the police car he complained the handcuffs were too tight on him. The constable said he would look at loosening them as the accused was sat in the car, but at that point he head-butted the officer to the right-hand side of the head. There was minimal contact and no injury, but a police van was called.”

The prosecutor said George was disruptive on the journey to Hawick police station and continued to shout and swear. On arrival at Hawick other officers were required to get him out of the van. She added: “He had to be restrained before being put in the cells.”

Stephanie Clinkscale, defending, said: “It is fairly clear he had been consuming alcohol on that day.”

Her client had secured a part-time job which would would give him a focus in life.

Sheriff Peter Paterson told George the root of his problem was alcohol, but accepted he was addressing the issue.

He was ordered to carry out 90 hours of unpaid work.

The future of livestock marts in the Borders and Wooler looks assured following an £8.2m merger of two of the UK’s oldest mart firms.

The deal, officially finalised yesterday, sees the John Swan & Sons PLC marts in Newtown St Boswells and Wooler join the seven operated by H&H Group PLC in Cumbria, the Borders and County Durham, and creates the UK’s biggest livestock mart based marketing operation.

The H&H Group operates in auctioneering, property advice and sales, insurance and printing with a focus on the agricultural and rural economy.

All 40 John Swan staff will transfer to the H&H Group –which owns Harrison & Hetherington and employs 275 – and which is already advertising to grow the team.

As part of the deal, the H&H Group has also acquired extensive property interests in the Borders and Edinburgh from John Swan, which it is keen to develop over the coming years.

The deal first became public back in December due to it involving the acquisition of a PLC - public limited company - and it was the additional work needed because of this element that has seen the merger process take the length of time it has.

H&H Group chief executive Brian Richardson says the deal is very much about bringing together two long-established auctioneering business.

“H&H has seven marts with £120m livestock throughput, with £45m through Swan’s marts. Combined this makes a very significant business.We recognise the heritage in the John Swan business and it is very much the intention to keep growing it,” he told us.

Mr Richardson says not all local farmers are using the John Swan marts at Newtown St Boswells and Wooler to market livestock and this is an area H&H group wants to target. “They have found other ways of marketing their livestock and what we need to do is reintegrate with those farmers,” he explained.

“So we will be looking to get people out onto those farms and talking to them. It is not just about selling livestock in the ring, but about marketing livestock for farmers.

“Whatever farmers want to do in terms of marketing their livestock, we need to be there to help them do that. But the marts at Newtown and Wooler will be the hub of what we do here.

“We want to invest in these sites, bring our land agency and insurance businesses there and develop the sites as rural business centres, not just marts.

“The two marts are currently operating two or three days a week - we want to make them busy all the time.”

Along with the marts, the deal sees H&H acquiring various other property assets, including land.

“There is land with potential for housing and commercial property and we will look to develop those over time, as long as it is surplus land that doesn’t interfere with the operation of the marts,” added Mr Richardson.

Almost 10 years ago, John Swan’s directors revealed a wish to build a new mart on the opposite side of the A68 from the present mart in Newtown St Boswells, freeing up the existing mart site for development, including housing and community facilities.

Quizzed over whether that plan might still be a possibility, Mr Richardson says the financial crisis of 2008 had altered the landscape for new marts.

“Being realistic, after the financial crisis, the ability to generate enough cash to build new marts has become quite difficult to do now.

“We are very much focussed that the Newtown St Boswells mart is in the right place at the moment, and we will invest in that site and develop it.

“As for land around the site, we will look at adding things to that, but I suspect the existing mart will be where it is for quite a few years yet.”

Scottish Borders Council (SBC) is insisting it will not spend money to actively promote a not-for-profit credit union which already has 19,000 members in the Borders and Lothians, and assets of more than £20million.

The local authority, along with NHS Borders and Scottish Borders Housing Association, is a “sponsoring employer” of the Edinburgh-based Capital Credit Union (CCU).

As such, staff with these organisations can save with the CCU directly through their salaries.

Last year, the CCU launched CredEplus, a reloadable prepaid card which works like a high street debit card. Wages and benefits of people without bank accounts can be paid directly into the CCU with rent, council tax, social care charges and other monthly bills paid by direct debit.

The remainder of a client’s cash is loaded onto the card to pay for goods and cash withdrawals.

At last week’s council meeting, Councillor Gavin Logan (Con., Tweeddale East) cited the example of Perth and Kinross Council which has, in association with that area’s main credit union, financed the distribution of a similar card among social housing and social care clients, as well as people at risk of homelessness.

Anyone can apply, with no credit checks required.

Mr Logan said that pilot scheme had been a success and asked Councillor Frances Renton, executive member for social work, if her council would follow suit and promote the CCU card via council tax bills and in the quarterly SB Connect newspaper.

“This card has a myriad of benefits, particularly for those people without access to bank accounts,” he claimed.

Mrs Renton said her council had promoted the use of credit unions generally in the region and had recently allowed the CCU to promote its services in council headquarters at Newtown.

“CCU has also attended this council’s Strategic Partnership Against Poverty where these matters are discussed and we would welcome a discussion with them on how best they can be supported with this or any other initiative,” she said.

“While we are always willing to support the work of ethical credit lenders … we cannot actively ‘promote’ a single organisation, bearing in mind there are other products out there,” she added.

The rolling hills of the Borders – which take pride of place in Matt McGinn’s song, especially rousing when performed by Hawick band Scocha – are undoubtedly one of this region’s outstanding assets.

They are a major feature of the landscape which draws visitors – and their money – from many corners of the globe.

That’s why we make no apologies for singing the praises of efforts by the Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland (APRS) and the Scottish Campaign for National Parks to secure National Park status for the southern Borders (see our report on page 5).

As well as added protection – no doubt to the delight of anti-wind farm campaigners – more economic spin-offs could be expected.

National Parks have been in existence south of the border since 1951 – indeed our Northumbrian neighbours have had one since 1956.

While welcoming new developments such as the return of the railway to the Borders, our long-established assets must be protected.

A National Park would help achieve this.

ScotRail has apologised after two services on the new Borders Railway were cancelled due to overcrowding.

Passenger numbers on the Tweedbank to Edinburgh line have increased during the October holidays, according to the rail franchise.

The trains were cancelled on Wednesday and replaced by a bus service.

Earlier this month the new line was hailed a “soaraway success”, after more than 125,000 journeys were made during its first month.

Frank Wielbo of Lilliesleaf captured this Vulcan XH558 on its farewell mission after 33 years’ service on Saturday afternoon.

He took it as the jet passed Roberton after overflying East Fortune and Dalkeith, heading to Carlisle.

There has been a “tremendous influx” of new teachers in the Borders with the region not having the recruitment problems experienced in other rural areas of Scotland.

That upbeat message was conveyed to last week’s meeting of Scottish Borders Council by Sandy Aitchison, executive member for education.

“We are extremely fortunate compared to authorities, particularly in the north and north-east, who are having extraordinary difficulties recruiting teachers,” said Councillor Aitchison.

He confirmed that, as a result of a recruitment day held at Cardrona in March, all vacant secondary posts – including those in maths and science where there are national shortages – had been filled before the summer holidays.

Since then, four maths vacancies had arisen and these were being advertised nationally.

“We expect to be able to recruit to these vacancies in the very near future,” he added.

Earlier, he rejected a suggestion that secondary students in the Borders were being disadvantaged by being restricted to studying for no more than six National 5 (N5) examinations which replaced Standard Grades two years ago.

Mr Aitchison claimed the approach in the Borders was consistent with the rest of Scotland although he admitted “a few schools” in other areas offered pupils up to eight N5 presentations.

“Despite the changes to the qualifications, entry level to university remains the same,” he said.

“Students require good quality grades at Higher level for all degree courses and, for some courses, require to gain Advanced Highers in specific subjects.

“Our approach to N5 exams provides our students with a strong foundation to prepare for Higher and Advance Higher exams which are more relevant and necessary for entry to university.”

He stressed that the Borders had the fourth best record in Scotland for providing school-leavers with “positive destinations” - in work, training, further or higher education placements.

Meanwhile, a Freedom of Information response has revealed there are fewer supply teachers on SBC’s books than at any time over the past five years.

In 2014/15 there were 109 supply teachers in primary and 97 in secondary, compared to 225 and 175 respectively in 2010/11.

Over the same period the council’s annual spend on supply teachers fell from £1.57m to £1m.

The best gardens and floral displays in Galashiels were rewarded with trophies, certificates and prizes.

Kenny Hay and John Gray toured the town in early August and came up with the winners. Chairman of Galashiels Community Council, Ian Purvis, was on hand to present the awards. The presentations for the annual competition, sponsored by the community council in conjunction with the Chamber of Trade, took place in Old Gala House. The awards acknowledge the quality of gardens attached to private houses and commercial properties throughout the town, as well as commercial frontages, allotments and residential complexes for the elderly.

Winners (pictured) – best private garden floral d isplay – 1, Mr I. Hamilton; 2, Mr J. Telfer; 3, Mr and Mrs N. Miller; 4, Mr and Mrs G .Tait; best private gardens floral display (hard landscape) – 1, Mr N. Hay; 2, Mr and Mrs Ancell; 3, Mr G. Millar; best private large garden – Mrs R. Nugent; best commercial premises (floral display) – 1, Binniemyre Guest House; 2, Kingsknowes Hotel; best commercial frontage display – 1, Watson Lodge Guest House; 2, The Auld Mill; 3, The Golden Lion; John Windram Memorial Trophy for best allotment – 1, Mr D. Kellett; 2, Mr Bob Norris; best floral display in residential complex – Gala Nursing Home; best rose display – Mrs R. Nugent.

It’s always great to receive your e-mails, if only to have it confirmed that someone is actually reading my weekly ramblings.

Most are queries about unusual wildlife encounters, but occasionally you come up with a nice wee story with a happy ending.

Last week I received just such a message from reader L.S. from near Duns. She told me “A goldcrest collided with our eight-year-old daughter Molly’s double glazed window last weekend.

“After securing our Border Terrier in the house, she dashed out to pick it up from the garden where it was looking rather dazed and poorly. She helped to bring the bird back to strength by bringing it into the warmth of the house and giving plenty cuddles!

“It flew away perfectly after 20 minutes and a quick photo.”

Most of us experience bird strikes on our windows at some point and it is often difficult to know what to do. On examination, the bird may show no external injuries, but it appears to be dead and is limp.

If you pick it up gently and feel a heartbeat, then it has a chance. If its neck is broken it will not regain consciousness, otherwise, the chances are, that like a boxer receiving a knockout punch, it will come round.

The best plan is to put it in a box somewhere warm, quiet and dark until it recovers. If it shows no obvious injuries then it can be safely released.

Well done Molly you probably saved the life of the smallest bird in Britain!

In last week’s column I mentioned the harrowing experience of a Denholm man who had his regular visiting hedgehog attacked and killed by a badger in his garden.

It seems that all badgers are not so averse to our prickly friends, as reader R.B. from the Kelso area proved with another e-mail and picture.

He told me “We live near Kelso and feed both badgers and hedgehogs in the garden from the same dish! In the 18 months or so that they have been visiting we have never witnessed aggression between them, indeed they sometimes feed side by side, although the badger will occasionally nudge the hedgehog out of the way to get at the food, which is mainly peanuts”.

Keep those e-mails and pictures coming. Send to corbie@homecall.co.uk

Adopting a Geordie accent yet again – “Day six hundred and eleventy-nine in the kitchenless house, and a strange air akin to what could be described as ‘Blitz Spirit’ has descended.

The housemates are now resigned to missing or broken IKEA kitchen parts, which has become a regular occurrence. Every day, they report a missing part to the IKEA helpline. They now burst into floods of tears when the ABBA’s ‘Mamma Mia’ plays, as this is Ikea’s ‘on hold’ song. This experience has ruined that song for the whole household, forever.”

A flooded kitchen floor didn’t help, but it certainly helped Mr E find a stop cock (which he had been unable to locate for two days) in a heartbeat when the chips were down. It did seem rather improbable that we didn’t have a stop cock, and now we know that we do. Every day’s a school day, as they say. It was just covered by an inch of muck and a layer of gravel.

Why? Because it just was. Graham and Joan who lived here before us has lived through the war. Graham had been a paratroop officer at Pegasus Bridge. A bit of gravel over the stop cock access was no biggie to them.

The upside of the flood is that another huge chunk of the manky beige Flotex carpet (remember Flotex? That 70s love child of a union between vinyl and carpet?) Is now in the yard. Yay! The uneven, drab, grey concrete floor that has been left behind is far more attractive than the wretched Flotex.

At last, the worktop re-delivery date came and the lorry arrived and ... no worktop. A few flustered phone calls from the lorry driver and it was discovered our worktop had indeed been delivered ... to a house in Melrose. And they had a delivery out near Berwick to do next. So off they went to deliver, then pass our house to go back to Melrose, collect our worktop, and bring it back to us. Groan.

So, a day later than planned, our utility worktop was gingerly cut to shape and the sink popped in. Proudly, the tap was fixed in place. Could it be we were only a few seconds and a bit of push-fit plumbing away from having actual, real-live water coursing through the pipes into our utility again at last? What, no more traipsing to the downstairs bathroom for a kettle of water?

No, as it turned out. The push-fit plumbing wouldn’t push or fit on to our pipes. Awwww naaaawww! So close and yet so far!

A phone call later The Fantastic Elliott who does all our plumbing was on the way.

He connected up the sink and was also able to move some pipes which would have stopped some units in the kitchen fitting snugly to the wall. Job done.

And so, for the first time in quite a while, we were able to turn on the tap in the utility and marvel at the miracle of clean water piped into our home. The Young Mistress stood there, flicking it on and off, eyes wide in wonderment, like a child who has just had a standpipe installed in their remote Third World village by a charity.

I sincerely hope that as the utility is now finished (hopefully) and the last units go into the kitchen proper, that you won’t have to tune in next week for Act Three.

And just as I type this, we discover that the super-duper fridge which has a cabinet door fitted to the front of it so it is ‘hidden’, has come without two tiny hinges which are supposed to hold said cabinet door in place. Mamma Mia, here I go again ...

tapestry

Decision a foregone conclusion

So much for democracy. The sighting of the Great Tapestry of Scotland in a new and expensive building at Tweedbank has caused much heated and heartfelt debate over recent weeks – yet only four members (not even 50%) of the council’s planning committee bothered to turn up for such an important vote.

This shows a lack of respect for the people the councilors are elected to represent.

As Lintie Gibson pointed out (letters, October 8), posters strategically placed in Galashiels Transport Interchange and at Edinburgh’s Waverley Station, proclaiming that the tapestry will be in the Borders from 2017, made it a forgone conclusion.

What is the point of us expressing well-researched and expressed objections if the decision is already made?

It is about time the council listened to the people it represents, rather than outsiders looking for an opportunity at our expense.

If the tapestry trustees are so concerned about its safety that nowhere other than Tweedbank will do, they would have demanded more security in Kirkcaldy where a section of it was stolen during its recent exhibition there.

Surely they could now be persuaded to house it elsewhere in the Borders – what about the top two floors of the Interchange which are standing empty? It would surely give visitors to Galashiels something to look at other than empty shops.

A textile heritage centre, which is what Gala was built on, would also have been good had not the mill buildings been demolished to make way for various retail parks and the one remaining working one relocated to Selkirk which is not on the rail line.

Thousands of people have already seen the tapestry free of charge at various venues across the country – who is going to pay £10 to see it at Tweedbank?

Of course if the building has a public toilet this might be worth the entry fee to some desperate travellers as there is not one at

the station.

Mary Douglas

Glendearg

Galashiels

refugees

Shocking priority case

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said that Scotland will take in even more refugees than the 2,000 every year she originally indicated.

Our NHS, schools and social housing are already under intense pressure.

Scotland has an acute housing shortage and needs at least 12,000 new affordable homes every year for five years since thousands of children and their parents are living in temporary accommodation across Scotland. There are now 4,896 children without a permanent roof over their heads.

It is shocking that “refugees” will get priority over them.

Perhaps Ms Sturgeon plans to instruct all her 56, sorry 55, MPs and 64 MSPs to share their homes with young men or a family of refugees, ensuring no costs are sneaked through as political expenses.

I nearly forgot, how many refugees did Nicola say she would accommodate?

Clark Cross

Linlithgow

EU

Water

contract

For many years now I have believed in Scottish independence. 

A strong government in Edinburgh looking after the people and land, rather than distant English governments who seem to think the UK still rules the waves and are prepared to use military power to topple regimes.

The Scottish Government has awarded a £350million water contract to a private English company – a saving of £40million to the taxpayer. This contract had be awarded under EU laws.

I hope that no Scottish workers are made unemployed because of this and I will certainly not be voting Yes to stay in the European Union.

As for the £40million, will this change the bedroom tax or one foodbank.

R. L. Simpson

Halliburton Place

Galashiels

railway

Customer not satisfied

I have made my first journey by train from Tweedbank to Edinburgh.

Tweedbank is quite a bleak station with no passenger facilities other than a ticket machine (not operating) and a draughty shelter. It was quite a chilly morning and the long wait for the train to arrive (the one I planned to catch was cancelled due to a breakdown) was not particularly pleasant.

The two-coach train was packed to capacity as, in effect, two trainloads were now being transported by one train. Some passengers joining the train at Galashiels had to stand for the duration of the journey to Edinburgh.

What really puzzles me is why, at Tweedbank, is there a large car park and no passenger facilities (what looked like a waiting room turned out to be a building for railway staff), whereas at Galashiels there are excellent passenger facilities and no car park.

This line has great potential but, to achieve this, the railway authorities will quickly have to improve the service. Customer satisfaction is paramount for this to be a success.

Joy D. F. Williamson

Pinnaclehill Park

Kelso

rugby

Supporting the English

I was in St James’ Park, Newcastle, for Scotland’s rugby match against South Africa and spoke to several Englishmen supporting Scotland.

I know some Scots who will support anyone playing against England – we mustn’t.

We all love to support the underdog. Some of us Scots love to support anyone playing England because Scotland is England’s underdog (38,500 registered rugby players compared to 2 million).

The Scots and English should stick together through thick and thin, be it rugby, football, any sport, anything.

I have great sympathy for our neighbours being knocked out early from the Rugby World Cup’s toughest group.

Will Ramsay

Bughtrig

Coldstream

named person

Scheme should be scrapped

The future of the SNP’s flagship Named Person Scheme is called into question by the conviction at Elgin Sheriff Court of a “named person”.

Dayna Dickson-Boath, a secondary school teacher and named person, has been placed on the Sex Offenders Register.

The Named Person Scheme mandates a “named person” to oversee the upbringing and wellbeing of each child in Scotland from before birth until they are 18 years old. The scheme presupposes that every “named person” can be trusted with the confidential information of our children and the power to initiate interventions into our families.

This fundamental assumption is now demonstrated to be false.

The scheme also assumes that no parent can be trusted to bring up their children without supervision by state officials. Common experience teaches us that this assumption is simply wrong – evolutionary theory confirms this. Also, the scandalously-poor outcomes of children “in care” demonstrate that the greater the state involvement in children’s upbringing, the worse the result.

The Named Person Scheme is not due to come fully into force until August next year, although some local authorities, including Dickson-Boath’s former employer, have already implemented it.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon should accept that this scheme has no place in a free society and lead the repeal of the enabling legislation.

Otto Inglis

Inveralmond Grove

Edinburgh

party lists

Paul playing

it safe

To their credit, Borders MSPs Christine Grahame, SNP member for Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale, and John Lamont, Conservative member for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire (ERB), have declined to go onto their respective parties’ lists for the South of Scotland region which stretches from Dunbar to Ayr.

They are standing by their own constituents and rejecting the security of the fall-back position of being on the list.

Compare that to the stance of Paul Wheelhouse, SNP candidate for ERB, who has chosen to be on his party’s list as well. If successful there, he would have an electorate of over half a million to attend to.

Perhaps Mr Wheelhouse is more interested in his political future rather than Borders constituents.

David S. W. Williamson

Pinnaclehill Park

Kelso

thanks

Blooming

great folk

I write to offer our thanks to the many people who helped Newtown not only take second prize in Scottish Borders Council Floral Gateway 2015, but also win a wooden bench seat as the inaugural Quality of Life award.

Particular mention must be made of John Gordon from Whitehill who helped us with the purchase of a water bowser.

All the businesses in Newtown got behind us by sponsoring hanging baskets or providing their own, and special mention goes to Hans at the former RBS branch who really got into the spirit and sponsored five baskets.

Bob Johnston of Philiphaugh Plants did a marvellous job filling the baskets which looked wonderful all through the summer. As in previous years, we are indebted to Nigel Gibb and the horticulture students at Borders College for their help with the planters.

The judges noted that Newtown benefits from many well-tended and beautiful private gardens, so well done all you keen gardeners.

Lastly, nothing would happen without the small, but committed band of volunteers who work so hard throughout the year.

Barbara Graham

(Newtown in Bloom

co-ordinator)

Arthritis research

I would like to thank the generous people of the Borders who supported Arthritis Research UK at our sale at Borders General Hospital and the pop-up shop in Selkirk.

During that week we made over £1,400 for the vital work of this charity.

Our next event is the Borders Big Band Bash, including a fish supper, on October 23 in Melrose Corn Exchange.

Trefor Davies

(chairman, Melrose branch, Arthritis Research UK)

“The History of the Braw Lads Gathering”, published earlier this year, has raised more than £4,500.

The authors, ex-Galashiels Braw Lad Gordon Keddie, pictured left, and Rotarian John Gray, right, are donating this sum to local causes, many of whom helped with research and funding.

The money was divided between the various groups at a presentation on Saturday. The groups are: The Braw Lads Executive, The Ex-Braw Lads Association, The Old Gala Club, Langlee Choir, The Town Band and the Galashiels Ex-Service Pipe Band.

Gordon and John’s book is on sale at DS Dalgleish in Melrose Road and other locations for £10.

It was a huge pleasure to address the Conservative Party Conference last week as the first Conservative Secretary of State for Scotland for 18 years.

Prime Minister David Cameron made his intention for this government clear right from the start: to reclaim the mantle of One Nation, one United Kingdom. That is what over two million Scots voted for, just over a year ago.

It was a clear message: No thanks to independence.

Here is a fact you might not know: more people in Scotland voted to keep the UK together than have voted for any party, in any election at any time in Scottish history.

But we know we cannot be complacent. The SNP’s success in turning 45% for Yes into 56 seats in the general election shows that championing the UK must be a full-time job.

And we’ve seen over the past few weeks that those who want to break up Britain will never stop trying to achieve that, even after Scots decisively rejected it. The ballot boxes had hardly been put away before SNP leaders started muttering threats of a second referendum.

We had the debate. We had the vote. The result was clear.

The priority now for Scotland’s two governments should be to deliver on our commitments and govern in the interests of everyone in our country.

For me, that means delivering the Scotland Bill, with new powers for the Scottish Parliament. For the first time, the Scottish Parliament will become responsible for raising most of the money it spends. With control of income tax, they will have the means to increase their budget if they want to.

Public spending can rise, but taxes will have to rise to pay for it. So when people in Scotland go to the polls next year, the parties will need to present their plans for income tax.

Ruth Davidson has committed that under the Scottish Conservatives, Scots will never pay more tax than our neighbours in the rest of the UK. Ruth made that clear again at conference, and was warmly received by delegates from across the UK.

So the ball is now squarely in the SNP’s court. Instead of constant gripes about detail and process, it’s time they told us straight.

What do they plan to do with powers coming to Scotland – and who in Scotland is going to pay for it?

The Scottish Borders stretches from the coast at Eyemouth across to West Linton on the Edinburgh to Lanark road, but the centre of attention for residents is Edinburgh.

East–west communications within the area are far less important than those radiating from Edinburgh.

After the creation of the Borders Region in 1975 it was the policy of the new council to develop Galashiels as the hub of the Borders Region, and it was an early aspiration of the council to improve the east-west communications. A policy of scattering facilities around the region was adopted, so that, for example, Eyemouth has a major swimming pool and Kelso has the ice rink, and there were some road improvements to make travelling easier within the region.

The Waverley line having been closed in 1969, the trunk bus route to Edinburgh was improved, and the bus links to Carlisle and Berwick were designated as Rail-link services.

British Railways offered through tickets to Borders towns by these services, and these still exist, at least via Berwick, so that Duns and Earlston are still railway destinations, although Hawick seems to have been discontinued.

Despite these efforts, the fact remains that the main connections from all parts of the Scottish Borders are to Edinburgh, and it seems that some people feel that Berwickshire might be better associated with East Lothian rather than being part of the Scottish Borders.

As an aside, when the writer arrived in the area 40 years ago there was a real live possibility that Berwick would be re-united with its shire and be transferred to Scotland, which is why Berwick has a Scottish postcode. The logic of this was that the Tweed valley is the main line of communication through the Borders.

As an argument, this would have held up better if the two east-west railway lines, through Kelso and through Duns and Earlston, had survived.

As it is, Galashiels has been developed as the hub of the Scottish Borders with a population just short of 15,000, and now benefits from the revival of the railway thus far from Edinburgh.

Hawick having previously been the largest settlement, with a population of more than 14,000, is strongly advancing the case for an extension of the railway.

In Berwickshire, a population of around 12,000 is pressing for the re-opening of Reston station on the East Coast Main Line.

There has been pressure to re-open Reston station since 1979, and this became formalised with the creation of the Rail Action Group for Eastern Scotland (RAGES) in January 1999.

Success was achieved when the Scottish Government included it with East Linton as a requirement to be included in the franchise for Scotrail which took effect in April this year, and a draft timetable was published in the expectation that it would operate from December 2016.

Unfortunately it became evident that the right sort of train would not become available until 2018, when a whole tranche of new trains will be introduced for the major electrification of lines in the central belt known as the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Project (EGIP).

Even more unfortunately, some people of influence but apparently only a hazy knowledge of local geography, seem to think that the opening of the Borders Railway has met the needs of the whole of the Scottish Borders, and the pressure on the council to approve funding for the construction of Reston station has been relaxed.

Consequently, direct pressure from Berwickshire has had to be redoubled to ensure that Network Rail can be authorised to begin construction so that the station is ready for the beginning of operation as soon as the trains are available.

Network Rail’s horizon is the boundary fence, outside which it has little or no influence, but Scotrail is operated by Dutch National Railways (Nederlands Spoorwegen), which trades in Britain as Abellio, and it is difficult to avoid the feeling that the railway management might be expecting a more integrated approach to the development of a new station than appears to be the case so far.

This will require action by the council in developing the surrounding area, which has suffered from planning blight awaiting the certainty of the new rail service and station, and also in connection with the bus routes passing through Reston, which will form essential links to the railway from the whole of eastern Berwickshire.

John Wylde is the author of ‘Integrated Transport – a Will-o’-the-wisp?’ This book is priced at £14.95, post paid and signed by the author. Also ‘Experiments in Public Transport Operation’, at £11.95. Order through the author’s website, www.john-wylde.co.uk, or from Grieves on the corner of Church Street in Berwick.

When Mary Low offered her first series of Gaelic singing workshops in the Borders five years ago, she thought she would be lucky to get six or seven people.

Twenty-four turned up on the first night. Numbers fell back a little after that, but there was enough sustained interest to form the first Borders Gaelic singing group, Turas.

One doesn’t have to speak Gaelic to enjoy a new series of singing workshops which start next week – but if they can it helps.

Rachel Newton of The Shee is expected on the opening night to fire things up with some feisty melodies, beautiful harmonies and humour. Then it’s over to Mary who learnt her skills in Skye, South Uist and Benbecula, supported by Turas.

The workshops are held in St Boswells village hall and run for six Tuesdays (7-9pm) from October 20. More information is available from 07990 842256.

The picture shows some members of Turas performing at a reception in the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh, in October last year. The occasion was the retirement of Selkirk GP John Gillies.

Lauder in Bloom is among groups that have made significant environmental and sustainable improvements in their local communities after being awarded a Keep Scotland Beautiful Community Grant, funded from the proceeds of the carrier bag charge collected by Tesco in Scotland since October last year.

Lauder in Bloom was among the recipients of the £250 Community Grant, which allowed it to become further engaged in the local environment, make a sustainable difference locally and positively improve outdoor experiences in the town.

The grant helped Lauder in Bloom invest in plants from a local nursery and subsidise workshops for local residents. Participants learned skills including making bug hotels, bird boxes or hanging baskets - encouraging residents to be greener, tidier and more floral than ever before.

A Facebook promotional competition for the I ♥ Gala campaign saw the iconic bags sent all over the world.

Pictures were sent in from as far flung places as the International School in Manila, Wellington, New Zealand and Fuerteventura.

It has also been embraced by members of the Romanian rugby team during the Rugby World Cup.

But the winning photo came from Tom Kyle, who sent his bag all the way to New York, New York, where it was seen draped on the statue of Hans Christian Andersen in Central Park.

Organiser Mark Timmins said: “The pictures in the competition captured the spirit of the competition, which was to show Galashiels to the world and we wish to thank everyone for their wonderful entries and hope that they are still loving and using their bags on a daily basis.”

Tom was presented with his prize of a Border Reiver statue, created and donated by Ballantynes of Walkerburn, at the h his Border Reiver, at the Salmon Inn in Galashiels, on Thursday afternoon.

Tom said that he was amazed and proud, to be the winner of the statue, which would hold a place of pride in his home.