Police in the Borders are investigating following a series of vehicle-related thefts in the Hawick area.

The first incident occurred overnight between Saturday, October 31, and Sunday, November 1, when a minibus was stolen from Fairhurst Drive.

The vehicle was subsequently found at Whitmuir House on Tuesday, November 3, with its number plates switched.

Another vehicle was subsequently stolen from Borthwick Brae, near Roberton, Hawick, on Tuesday, November 3. This vehicle is yet to be recovered.

In a separate incident, a set of number plates was also stolen from outside an address in Alemoor Court. This incident was reported to police on November 3.

Inspector John Scott said: “There have now been a number of car related thefts in the Hawick area over the last few days and we are appealing for any information regarding these incidents.

“Anyone with information is asked contact police on 101.”

Those with information can contact Police Scotland on 101 or anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Two Borders properties, Raeshaw Estates and Corsehope Farm, have had their general licences to control wild birds suspended by Scottish Natural Heritage.

This is the first time the conservation body has taken such action and the two Borders properties, both north of Stow, where joined by two estates in Stirlingshire, whose licences were also suspended based on evidence provided by Police Scotland.

Nick Halfhide, SNH director of operations, said: “There is clear evidence that wildlife crimes have been committed on these properties. Because of this, and the risk of more wildlife crimes taking place, we have suspended the general licences on these four properties for three years.

“They may though still apply for individual licences, but these will be closely monitored.

“This measure should help to protect wild birds in the area, while still allowing necessary land management activities to take place, albeit under tighter supervision.

“We consider that this is a proportionate response to protect wild birds in the area and prevent further wildlife crime.”

General licences allow landowners or land managers to carry out actions which would otherwise be illegal, including controlling common species of wild birds to protect crops or livestock, for the conservation of wild birds and for the preservation of public health and public safety.

Scottish Natural Heritage are able to prohibit the use of General Licences granted for these purposes if they have reason to believe that wild birds have been taken or killed other than in accordance with the licence.

Over recent months they have been having discussions with key stakeholders regarding “outstanding concerns” relating to General Licences, focusing on the use of traps.

“One of the key areas of work that has arisen from those discussions has been to examine how traps currently permitted for use under General Licences are used in practice in order to ensure that their use is efficient, effective and with minimal risks in terms of welfare and capture of non-target species,” said an SNH spokesperson.

Investigations continue and SNH say that the period of suspension could increase if more offences come to light.

Councillors are to receive an update on Scottish Borders Council’s commitment to resettle Syrian refugees in the region at the next full council meeting on Thursday, November 12.

The report asks councillors to agree that SBC begins negotiations with the Home Office, with the proposal that the Borders aims to welcome up to 10 refugee families over the next four years as part of the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme.

This figure would be in line with the region’s share of the 2,000 refugees coming to Scotland.

The report proposes that two families are resettled initially in the Galashiels area, with other locations considered as the scheme progresses in future years.

The Syrian Vulnerable Persons Relocation Scheme prioritises refugees who are women and children at risk, people in severe need of medical care and survivors of torture and violence.

As a result, the Council, local registered social landlords, NHS Borders, Borders College and Police Scotland are working together to ensure these families who have suffered significant trauma are properly settled and supported.

The report also acknowledges the significant support offered by community organisations and members of the public, with a plan to approach the voluntary sector to help establish a group to provide additional assistance for refugees.

SBC’s Executive Member for Social Work and Housing, Councillor Frances Renton, said: “The Council and its partners are fully committed to assisting the UK and Scottish government’s Syrian refugee schemes.

“Being an area which has not previously been involved in the relocation of refugees has meant we have taken more time to get ourselves into a position to welcome families. However, it is vital we ensure we are fully prepared and have everything in place ahead of their arrival.

“These are vulnerable people from a war-torn country who have undergone a traumatic experience. I am sure the people of the Borders will welcome them into their communities when they arrive.”

Football and literary fans from across the Borders will be given the chance to take part in a special ‘stramash’ at Netherdale later this month as part of Book Week Scotland.

On Saturday, November 28, at 2pm, author Daniel Gray brings his unique combination of football, travel writing and social history to the Borders in a special free event at Gala Fairydean Rovers stadium prior to their Lowland League Borders derby with Vale of Leithen.

Fans of both clubs, and people from across the Borders, are being invited to attend the event which is being funded by the Scottish Book Trust and charity Nil by Mouth as part of its Kiss Bigotry Goodbye Campaign.

Daniel is the author of Stramash: Tackling Scotland’s Towns and Teams, a football travelogue which takes him across 12 Scottish towns and teams during a football season.

He also hosts STV Edinburgh’s People’s History Show, and has written several books including Hatters, Railwaymen and Knitters: Travels Through England’s Football Provinces and Homage to Caledonia: Scotland and the Spanish Civil War, which was turned into a documentary by STV in 2009.

Daniel said: “As an author, I’m privileged to be asked to do live events across Britain. I always look forward to them and am humbled that people turn up to hear my words, but there is something extra-special about this one. It has everything I love about a good day out – a train journey, a walk around a cracking town, a match, chatting with folk I’ve never before met ... and even sweets.

“I can’t wait to be back in Gala, either. We did a chapter about it for my most recent book, ‘This is Scotland’, a mix of my travel writing and the evocative photography of Alan McCredie.

“I developed a real soft spot for the town, and am excited about coming back to feel the railway buzz. We visited Netherdale for the book, the first time for both of us.

“We were absolutely mesmerised by the main stand. I’ve been to many, many football grounds, but seen nothing like it. We both kept staring at it, like we’d found a giant Picasso painting. It is something else, and beautiful.”

During the event, he will read from a number of his books and take questions from the audience about his adventures across Scottish towns and football clubs.

GFR secretary Graeme McIver said: “We think a Borders derby at Netherdale, on a Lowland League matchday, is the perfect setting for Daniel Gray to read from his writings on both travel and football.

“A genuine love of the game at all its levels shines through from the pages of Daniel’s books and I am sure will have a particular resonance with supporters of non-league football. The fact that the event has been organised by our community partners Nil by Mouth ensures that as well as being enjoyable and informative, the day can play a part in advertising and raising awareness about the charity’s important Kiss Bigotry Goodbye campaign.”

Book Week Scotland is a week-long celebration of books and reading and will take place from Monday to Sunday, 23-29 November.

The first 50 people to arrive at the venue will also receive a free copy of the ‘Journey’ book – donated by the Scottish Book Trust.

There will also be chances to win specially-signed copies of Daniel’s books.

Gala Fairydean Rovers’ inclusivity consultation with Eastern Europeans on Saturday may not have attracted as many people as organisers may have wished, but according to club secretary Graeme McIver, it was a good start.

Jennifer Malone, diversity and inclusion officer at the Scottish Football Association, travelled to Galashiels on Saturday to give a presentation to immigrants who had been invited along to both take part in the consultation, as well as take in the club’s match against Edinburgh University.

Only three people turned up on the day. One was Irina Juodeike from Lithuania, whose son Faustas plays for one of the junior teams. The others were Langlee Chip Shop owners Dennis Akan and Emin Basanmay from Turkey, who had not had any previous contact with the club, but were curious about it. Because of the few atendees, it became a question and answer session, looking at how the club can better engage with the local community as a whole, including those who are new to the country.

One of the problems raised was that many people work on Saturdays and therefore could not attend either the consultation or any matches. Another was that there was a stigma attached to the term immigrant, which could stop the youngsters from wanting to take part.

Dennis and Emin revealed that they were part of a team that played a team of Romanians every Sunday at Tweedbank.

Mr McIver said he would look at the possibility of arranging for them to play at the 3G Arena, or getting coaches from the club to go and watch them play.

He told The Southern: “There may not be many here, but this is a start. We want to know how best to connect with the whole community and the information we have gained here will help up do that.”

Scottish Borders officers are appealing for witnesses following a break-in to a petrol station in Galashiels in the early hours of Thursday, November 5.

The incident happened around 3.45am when four persons in black clothing broke into the Esso station in Melrose Road and stole a large quantity of cigarettes.

Officers are now urging anyone with information to get in touch.

Detective Constable Callum Peoples said: “We are keen to speak to anyone who can assist us to trace those responsible for this incident.

“Anyone with information is asked to contact us on 101 or via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.”

Today (Thursday) marks exactly two months since Golden Ticket Day heralded a whole new era of rail travel in the Borders.

The lucky few who had been awarded the shiny cards sat in comfort for their journeys up to Edinburgh and back to Tweedbank, and it was unanimously hailed as an excellent addition to the region’s transport network.

The days and weeks that followed, however, saw an unpredicted amount of people taking the train, and the half-term school holiday week brought the line to a standstill several times.

Several trains were cancelled – 91 cancellations on the Borders Railway had been recorded up to last weekend, due to signalling problems, delays and “unexpected unavailability of train crew”. Scotrail says that this only accounts for 3% of the total number of services run.

So, is the Borders Railway a victim of its own success? Or has the Borders joined, or indeed put further pressure on, a situation stemming from a national shortfall of rolling stock which people in other parts of the country just take for normal?

We asked Scotrail what they were doing to improve the service.

A spokeswoman said the majority of feedback from customers told of a pleasant experience.

She said: “The huge interest in the Borders Railway over the first two months highlights its remarkable appeal to commuters and leisure travellers alike.

“Weekend trains and midweek trains at peak times are naturally busier than others so, to ensure we can carry as many passengers as possible on the new line, we’ve temporarily added extra carriages to some of our trains.

“This information is available on our website so customers can see which services have extra carriages.

“Furthermore, now that steam trains are no longer running on the line, we are able to run our full timetable every day of the week, which enables demand to be spread more evenly.”

The spokeswoman added: “The Borders Railway will also benefit from ScotRail’s annual festive plans to add carriages to trains to help people get home from nights out, and to complete their Christmas shopping.”

A statement from VisitScotland this week showed that the return of the trains seems to have benefited local businesses, with four out of five shops in Galashiels reporting takings to have doubled.

Abbotsford House reported an 18.4% increase on 2014 in visitor numbers, leading to an extension in the attraction’s summer opening hours into October, and the Herges on the Loch restaurant in Tweedbank had a 50% increase in its lunches with the steam train packages having a particular impact.

Certainly, the special steam train journeys were incredibly popular, with around 6,200 passengers travelling on 17 sold-out trips between September 10 and October 18.

Nesta Gilliland, ScotRail’s head of marketing said: “It’s been wonderful to see such high demand for our first-ever steam trains on the Borders Railway.

“They really caught the imagination of customers, excited by the thought of embarking on romantic journeys through Midlothian and the Scottish Borders.

“The feedback from customers was wonderful, and our partnerships with Melrose Abbey and Abbotsford House worked out very well with a large number of customers using the bus links to visit these sites.

“It’s been a great opportunity to showcase Scotland’s newest rail line and the beautiful landscape.”

So, will the steram trains make a return to the Borders Railway?

The Scotrail spokeswoman said: “Operating steam trains isn’t as easy as deciding on dates – the locomotives and carriages are in high demand and all train operators must book them some time in advance.

“We currently have no definite plans for our 2016 steam trains, but we will share these as soon as dates and locations are confirmed.”

It was also revealed this week that a lucky passenger on the line would receive a prize for being the 250,000th passenger, with similar prizes for the 500,000th and millionth passengers.

Scotrail said that there have been more than 200,000 people recorded on the line to date, so that first milestone could be very soon indeed.

No details of the prize has been released.

The number of people visiting the region’s five VisitScotland information centres (VICs) has fallen by nearly 10,000 in a single year.

In 2014/15, the total footfall at the outlets – in Jedburgh, Hawick and Peebles which are open all year round and in Melrose and Kelso which operate seasonally – was 95,584, compared to 105,342 the previous year.

Accommodation bookings made at the centres over the same period were down by a third – from 421 to 311.

The figures reflect a downward demand for the facilities which, five years ago, attracted more than 120,000 visitors and took 738 over-the-counter bookings.

The future of the local network – to which Scottish Borders Council contributes an annual £61,000 – is due to be decided in the new year, following a major review by the national tourism agency.

A report to SBC’s executive on Tuesday acknowledged that, while VIC business had fallen, there had been a “significant” increase in website visits and online booking to the benefit of businesses.

“We have to bow to the inevitable with regards to how people now access tourism information,” said Councillor Stuart Bell, executive member for economic development, who chaired the meeting.

“However, we need to ensure we are fully consulted on any changes this review may throw up.”

To that end, the executive agreed that senior managers from VisitScotland should brief all councillors on the implications and progress of the review.

“I will be pressing for this briefing to take place next month, so we don’t end up being tail-end Charlies,” said Mr Bell.

However, the report from chief economic development officer Brian McGrath conceded: “It is likely changes will be made to the delivery of visitor information in the Borders.”

A spokesperson for VisitScotland said: “The way visitors access information about Scotland has changed dramatically … we need to ensure we respond quickly to those changes.”

Mr McGrath had earlier highlighted that “interactive screens” already installed in Kelso and at the Galashiels Transport Interchange, would be available in Tweedbank, Melrose, Hawick, Abbotsford and Stow by next spring.

selkirk

Monday Club

At 2pm on Monday, November 9, at St Joseph’s Church Hall. Ruth McDonnell will be talking about the Borders Recycling Service. All are welcome. The members wish to thank Selkirk Rotary and R.S. McLeod, Selkirk Flood Prevention Scheme for their kind contribution to a very successful outing last week.

Rotary club

The support we enjoyed for this year’s community quiz allowed us to raise over £750, which will be donated to ex-high school students Jen and Kirsten Love. Jen and Kirsten will be travelling back to Sugod Elementary School in the Philippines where they will continue their work to build up a school feeding programme.

Our photos show the winning team, ‘The Davidson Three’, collecting their prize from President Edith. Our grateful thanks are extended to quiz master Brian Redman and his technical assistants Yahsin Ahmed and Euan Nicol. The High School assembly hall was an excellent venue, with particular thanks to Paul Brownlie for his setting up efforts. Half time sustenance was generously donated by Subway.

What better way to promote the work of our local Rotarians, raise funds for an excellent cause, and have a laugh along the way.

Club members and guests were recently updated on progress of the Selkirk Flood Protection Scheme by Scott Marr and Sylvia Taylor, who visited us last night.

Whilst the town is in the midst of considerable disruption, Scott outlined the 38 different ‘Flood Cells’ which directed where and when the work is done.

The two-year project is due for completion in December 2016 during which time more than 100,000 tons of cohesive materials for the flood embankments will be moved in.

It was very clear from the presentation that minimising disruption to the community was very much uppermost in the contractors’ minds.

The club recently joined forces with RJ Mcleod, Flood Protection Scheme, to support over 30 members from St Johns Monday Club, to a special outing marking their 40th Anniversary. The group boarded their coach in Selkirk to be taken to Mayfield Garden Centre in Kelso for a lovely afternoon tea.

SWI

National Drama competition, Victoria Hall, Selkirk, Friday from 7pm and Saturday from 2pm. Institutes compete for the coveted Anstruther Gray trophy. Tickets available in advance from 01750 62219 or on the door, £9 for both days or £6.50 for a single day.

yarrowford

SWI

The October meeting was the AGM and the committee was elected as follows: President - Annie Coltherd, Vice President - Evelyn Horsburgh, Treasurer - Shirley McDonald, Secretary - Margaret Watson, Social Secretary - Ena Mitchell, Committee - Linda Bradshaw, Betty Fraser, Gill Kerr, Margaret Robinson, Hannah Young. The cups were presented with Margaret Robinson winning the cup for the most points and Linda Bradshaw winning the Barrie Cup. The AGM was followed by a ‘Taste and Try’ which was thoroughly enjoyed. The next meeting is on November 10 with a talk by Liberty Star Trading. The competitions are favourite brooch and a flask of soup.

TALKING FAITH

Thought for the week

The person who created the light bulb, Thomas Edison was a fascinating person. Last week he taught us about forgiveness. He was someone who always found a positive outcome from everything that happened to him and was willing to keep persevering. When a reporter asked him if he felt he’d failed because he’d tried so many different substances to see which would work as an element in the bulb, he replied, “Not at all. I now know all the different ones which don’t work and soon I’ll find the one which will.”

There are many things in life which frustrate us and might cause us to give up. One thing God offers to those who ask is His Spirit to help us persevere through our troubles. We do not have to stumble through them alone and can learn important lessons in life through them.

Rev Margaret D J Steele

The Campaign for Borders Rail hit the green signals at its annual meeting last week in Stow – less than two months after the re-opening of the former Waverley line, closed in 1969.

CBR has pledged to continue the next stage of the fight to extend the line to Hawick and then Carlisle.

Allan McLean, who has taken over as chairman after Simon Walton stood down as he has moved to a new job in Salford, is the driving force of the group, which itself was instrumental in bringing the railway back to the Borders.

With experience as a former Virgin Trains employee, Mr McLean has been joined by Robert Drysdale as his vice-chairman.

“We all want the railway to move ahead and plan to continue our good work,” he said.

The Borders Community Rail Partnership, which will be officially launched this month (November), is the bridge to link the railway with local communities.

A ‘paper’ my Michael Spencer entitled ‘Onwards to Hawick’ is seen as the catalyst for the line extension with plans for leaflets to be ‘dropped’ into every house in Hawick and Newcastleton.

“We aim to encourage the benefits of the railway to other place, taking in not only Hawick,” Mr McLean said, with Kim Elliot and Alastair Redpath acting as Hawick representatives.

Mr Walton, in his final address, said: “I believe that the reinstatement off the line to Carlisle is now on the horizon, but there is a long and difficult way ahead.”

For the first time, members were able to travel to the meeting by train, and the speakers were MP Callum Kerr; Hugh Wark, ‘retired’ Project Manager (Network Rail) of the Borders Railway; and Lisa Beattie, Midlothian councillor.

And despite early gremlins on the line with cancelled trains, over-crowded carriages and failed ticket machines, the restoration of the line was seen as a major coup for the Borders.

The third-year students from Heriot-Watt University put on a grand fireworks show last night in Galashiels.

Photographer Robin Malone of RM Photography took some photos and asked if we would like to share them with our readers.

Well, why not!

Click on the button above to see the gallery of Robin’s photos.

Duns-based biomass heating engineering company de la Haye Engineering Ltd is now the UK agent for a major European manufacturer.

This latest development puts the company, which has been installing boiler systems across Scotland and the north of England for the past 12 years, on the UK biomass map.

De la Haye Engineering Ltd, is an established Berwickshire family business – Peter de la Haye is managing director, Ruth de la Haye, company secretary, and Kester de la Haye and Reuven de la Haye, are directors.

It has become the UK-wide agency for the Danish biomass boiler manufacturer HS Tarm.

“Liaising directly with the manufacturers ensures we have an unrivalled technical knowledge of the products we supply, which is of great benefit to both local customers and national installers, as well us enabling us to offer these quality products at a highly competitive price,” explained Peter.

“As well as supplying and installing wood chip, log, and pellet boiler systems, we have been specifying and supplying Akvaterm Accumulator tanks and associated accessories throughout the UK since 2005.

“Over the last 12 years, we have installed and commissioned over 66 boiler systems across Scotland and the north of England, ranging from Caithness to Cumbria, and Aberdeenshire to the Isle of Mull.

“These systems have varied in size from 22kW pellet boilers heating modern town houses to 250kW woodchip boilers heating several stone-built estate properties.

“We also provide one-off engineering projects such as wood chip drying floors and bespoke fuel stores.”

The company was also responsible for installing the Abbey St Bathans community wood heating project, which provides 20 homes in the village with low carbon affordable heating.

“As the designers and installers of the Abbey Heat Scheme, we found that its bespoke elements, from the woodfuel production and drying to the distribution of heat across roads and the river, made it a satisfying project,” added Peter.

“It’s great to see such a varied engagement with biomass at the community level.”

SB Alert, the service that gives weather warnings, crimes, road closures etc to people in the Borders, has now been going for a year.

In that time 2,500 people joined up to receive up-to-date email alerts on what was happening in the region and team behind the service are keen to get feedback from those using it.

The SB Alert team at Scottish Borders Council said: “Thank you to the 2,500 people who have joined SB Alert to receive up-to-date information on a variety of issues since it was launched one year ago.

“From weather warnings, utility failure updates, road closures, crimes and trading standards issues, all have been covered in the messages sent out to individuals, communities and businesses over the last 12 months by the council, Police Scotland and other agencies.

People in the region who have been able to prepare for bad weather, avoid inconvenience by finding out about road closures ahead of time, or who have been alerted to door-to-door scams in the area were asked to get in touch and let the team know how SB Alert had helped them and whether they feel it is a useful service.

Towns and villages across the region have signed up to SBC’s Resilient Communities service, each one having their own co-ordinator and team of volunteers who will step in to help in emergency situations such as winter weather or searching for a missing person, and SB Alert

As winter approaches it’s worth signing up to SB Alert to get regular messages about what’s going on in the region at www.sbalert.co.uk.

A Roxburgh farmer is urging dog walkers to prevent their pets from running free in farmers fields after he discovered a severely injured sheep.

Rory Bell from Roxburgh Mill Farm discovered a ewe last weekend which had deep lacerations to both ears, one eye and her nose.

Mr Bell strongly suspects the ewe sustained the injuries from a dog that was allowed to run off its lead and into his fields down by the River Teviot.

He said: “The farm is on the Teviot and Borders Abbeys Way and a lot of people come and walk their dog here.

“The fields are now fenced off so the dog would have had to go through it or over it to get into the field which is unnecessary.”

Mr Bell, who took over the farm from his father, was forced to put a barbed wire fence around the fields 15 years ago to stop the sheep being chased.

Despite this he has seen an increase in the amount of sheep that have sustained injuries.

“Over the past few years I have had three or four sheep seriously attacked, last year I had to put one down following a particularly violent attack,” explained Mr Bell.

He went on to say: “It’s not the dogs’ fault, they are descended from wolves and it is in their nature to chase and hunt. It is all about education, if they have been allowed into the fields and got a taste for it then they will do it again and again as if it’s a game.”

Mr Bell suggests that a solution to the problem would be better education and awareness to guidelines set out in The Countryside Code and The Scottish Outdoor Access Code.

The access code has clear regulations in regard to walking dogs near farm animals.

Mark Wrightham, policy and advice manager for Scottish Natural Heritage said: “Scotland’s outdoors is a great place for dogs and their owners, but it’s important to remember that you and your dog share the outdoors with others – and dogs that aren’t kept under proper control are a real concern for land managers.

“Whenever possible it’s best to avoid going near sheep. If you need to go into a field of sheep, keep your dog on a short lead or close at heel and keep your distance from them.

“Don’t take your dog into a field where there are lambs - go into a neighbouring field or onto land next to it.

“Never let your dog worry or attack livestock.”

Mr Bell is planning to put up pictures of the injured animals to prevent future attacks.

He said: “I think a lot of people think it’s a myth and these attacks don’t actually happen.

“I’m putting up these signs as a warning rather than threats about shooting aggressive animals.

“I would rather educate than have to do that, the carrot rather than the stick.”

We’re into November and the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness as the poet wrote approvingly, but that is not so readily appreciated by those negotiating foggy, leaf-thick, rural roads in the warmest November spell for 70 years.

And what’s good for autumn crop growth is also good for crop pests and diseases, one more example of why farmers are never 100% happy.

That’s also why it is never easy to be 100% confident that harvest is complete. Somewhere in our area there will still be a field of beans or oats to harvest as a farmer who had been waiting for just the right conditions blesses the day after day of mist and dampness. But according to most reports, including the round up from members around the country by the NFUs, harvest is over and it has been one of heavy to record yields and low prices.

Stocks of grain are bigger than average and the chances of prices rising much, if at all, are slim. Forecasts are already gloomy for next harvest with talk of farmers leaving fields fallow rather than growing crops to lose money. But looking round the countryside large areas of the crop-growing parts are now green, tram-lined and growing well with oilseed rape, winter barley and winter wheat so there is some optimism about.

David Hay in Perthshire, formerly one of Scotland’s large-scale potato growers, said recently that the family had given up the crop this year because it no longer made financial sense. The June census results for Scotland confirm that he is not alone as the potato acreage fell 10% to 26,000 hectares. At one time most farms capable of growing a crop would have ten or 20 acres of potatoes.

Now there are only a few hundred potato growers, some with more than 1,000 acres, and the investment needed in machinery and storage systems to meet supermarket requirements is huge. Planting and harvesting are like a military operation and crops are sprayed up to 20 times a year to maintain growth and health. As with dairying, pigs and poultry we’re unlikely to run out of potatoes as growers quit. Instead those who stay in the game produce more.

Against the decline in potato production, pea production in Scotland more than doubled and bean production increased by 46%. That was partly adaptation to new European Union rules on environmentally friendly crops. The downside is that in a wet year peas and beans are difficult to harvest.

The difficulty of thousands of relatively small businesses trying to get a decent return from the open market is illustrated by another census return, that for dairy cattle. We’ve had a year of low prices for milk and numerous stories about dairy farmers quitting, all true. The only way to encourage prices to rise would be to cut production. But dairy cattle numbers increased, ergo more milk, not less.

A Scottish Labour Party protest against the government’s proposed cuts to working tax credits will be held in the Borders this weekend.

Labour activists in the region have organised a protest this Saturday from 11am until 1.30pm at Galashiels Market Square.

Borders Labour party spokesperson Barrie Cunning said: “The Conservative government is hell bent on destroying the welfare state and in turn the people who need our help the most.

“The Conservative government is so out of touch that they honestly believe that employers will pick up the tab.

“The reality is that people may not be able to afford to work and in turn live.”

Mr Cunning says in the Borders a family with three children earning £20,000 per anum will be £2,184.20 worse off per year.

He added: “We must do everything we can to stop these cuts from going ahead. I encourage everyone to come down and campaign with us.”

Police are appealing for witnesses following a vandalism at Earlston Primary School.

The incident happened sometime between 10pm on Wednesday 27th and 8.30am on Thursday 28th October.

A section of the perimeter wall was spray-painted with graffiti and local officers are now conducting inquiries to trace those responsible.

Constable David Ross of Duns Police Station said: “Such incidents of vandalism are extremely disappointing and can have an adverse affect on the local community.

“I would ask anyone who was in the area of the school and who noticed any suspicious activity around the time of this incident to come forward to police.”

Those with information can contact Police Scotland on 101 or, alternatively information can be passed anonymously through the charity Crimestoppers 0800 555 111.”

Police in the Scottish Borders are encouraging the public to be vigilant following reports of bogus workmen operating in the are

On Thursday, November 5, three men called at properties in Kingsland Road, Selkirk, and Abbotslea in Tweedbank. They were able to inspect the roofs for defects on some properties after gaining the trust of homeowners.

Afterwards they stated that they had found either loose tiles or produced a piece of rotten/damp wood. On some occasions they have managed to access the roof space via the attic before arranging an appointment to come back on the following day.

The men, however, were unable to produce suitable identification and no money was exchanged.

Police believe the same men have been operating in the area for months and are targeting elderly residents.

A thorough investigation is now underway and anyone who has any relevant information that can help identify the unsolicited callers is asked to come forward.

The first male is described as in his late 20s, around 5ft 4ins tall, heavy build with short mousy blonde hair that has a natural wave.

The second suspect is in his 30s, taller than the first male, has a slim build with messy mousy brown hair and bad teeth. He was also wearing a blue rain jacket at the time of this incident.

The final male is in his late 20s, between 5ft 5ins tall and 5ft 7ins tall, dark hair and wore a bright blue bubble jacket and a tight woollen black hat with white band.

The men are travelling in a white-coloured Transit Van and a white-coloured Citroen Berlingo with ladders on the roof.

Detective Constable Elizabeth Miller who works in the CID said: “Fortunately, the homeowners did the right thing and refused to hand over any money. Instead, they contacted the police and we are now pursuing various lines of inquiry in order to trace these men.

“From the descriptions given and the similarities in their action, there is a strong chance that these men may be responsible for at least one other report related to bogus workmen in the area.

“Anyone with information that can help us identify them is asked to come forward immediately.”

Those with information can contact Police Scotland on 101 or alternatively, the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Police in the Borders are today appealing for witnesses following a small roof fire at a school in Jedburgh.

The incident was reported to emergency services at around 2:10am yesterday, after a member of the public noticed flames coming from the gym building at Parkside Primary on Waterside Road.

No one was injured and the Scottish Fire and Rescue service quickly discovered the seat of the fire, which measured approximately 18 inches by 18 inches.

A school spokesperson said the fire “seems to have been confined to the roof of the gym hall” and that the samage was limited to the external area of the roof.

Divisional officers are now carrying out inquiries in an effort to trace those responsible and are eager to hear from anyone who noticed unusual or suspicious behaviour in the area around the time of this incident.

A small group of youths were seen in the vicinity of the school and officers are particularly keen to speak with them as part of their ongoing investigation.

Inspector Alistair Hutchens of Police Scotland said: “Fortunately no one was injured and this fire never had the opportunity to grow thanks to the actions of a member of the public and the quick response of the emergency services.

“However, this is a very serious matter and we are conducting various lines of inquiry in an effort to trace those responsible.

“We are looking very closely into the reports of a small group of youths who were seen in the area and I would urge anyone who can help us identify them to come forward immediately.”

The Melrose-based Merlin Music Academy is opening a new branch in Musselburgh.

“In Melrose we have over 250 students of all ages and abilities having fun with their music,” says director Bridget Gray. “We want to build links with the community in Musselburgh to promote learning an instrument.”