Count our blessings as a new year dawns
Christmas is behind us and in a couple of days so too will be another year.Christmas will have been many different things to many different people – for some it will have brought joy and happiness,...
View ArticlePolice drive to put brakes on uninsured motorists
A POLICE crackdown on uninsured drivers resulted in 62 vehicles being seized by officers in the Borders during the five months to November 30.And most of the culprits did not have cover because they...
View ArticleHarsh turn to economy and weather
another severe winter – and the economic recovery that apparently bypassed our region – were reflected in these columns in the first six months of 2011.Lauder may still be divided over where its new...
View ArticleNew finds and stunning rewards
Here we are again at my annual look back at the Borders countryside as observed through my weekly ramblings. This week I will review the first half of the year and I will conclude next week.JANUARY:...
View Articleopen country
Unusually it was me persuading Dad that we should go out hillwalking. Despite the fall of snow I believed the conditions on the hill would be favourable and not too difficult. The rangers’ route is too...
View ArticleNFUS chief set to host DEFRA official
THE DEFRA secretary of state will visit NFU Scotland president Nigel Miller’s Borders farm in the new year.The purpose is to push for Scottish farmers’ views of how the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP)...
View Articlelandlines
Some subjects are guaranteed to heighten emotions, start arguments and possibly a fight. For example, Hearts v Hibs, Hawick v Gala, wind turbines anywhere, and whether membership of the European Union...
View ArticleChime scene investigator
Jedburgh antiques dealer and clock expert Ron Turner makes sure one of his favourites – an eight-day mahogany clock with an enamel dial by Victorian maker James Patterson of Edinburgh – is in top...
View ArticleCourt in firing line
COUNCILLOR Kenneth Gunn is urging colleagues on Scottish Borders Council to fight the threat of closure to Selkirk Sheriff Court. He’s asked fellow Selkirkshire councillors Vicky Davidson and Carolyn...
View ArticleSouters will be up to speed with broadband
NEWS that Selkirk is one of the next 47 Scottish communities which will benefit from faster broadband services has been welcomed in the royal burgh, writes Mark Entwistle.Communications giant BT has...
View ArticleDeath threat man jailed
A MAN who attacked his former partner told police and court officials that he would jump into his car and kill himself if he was freed on bail.Sheriff Donald Corke took Evander MacRae’s threat...
View ArticleDesign logo for national contest
SCHOOLCHILDREN and students are invited to submit what they think should be the logo for Scotland’s National Food and Drink Conference next year.The winning design will be printed on shopping bags and...
View ArticleMelrose pupils’ drumtastic event
AT an event evoking the excitement of the classic Jack Black movie Rockschool, students of St Mary’s in Melrose gave full rein to their talent and enthusiasm when they performed a drum bash in front of...
View ArticleBand ends year on a high note
THE Scottish Borders Pipe Band which swept the board this year has been promoted to Grade 3 – and will face tougher challenges in 2012.The world champions, comprising mostly of pipers and drummers from...
View ArticleHome complex Christmas trees stolen – again
A SUSPECTED Boxing Day prank has left some elderly people in Galashiels dismayed.CCTV footage at the sheltered housing complex, Corn Mill Court in St John Street, shows two men stealing two small...
View ArticleSpeed cameras in focus across region
MOBILE speed cameras are currently in operation at the following locations within the Borders: A7 at Heriot and Stow; A68 Soutra; A701 Cowdenburn and Romanno Bridge; A702 Dolphinton; A703 Edinburgh...
View ArticleHot times in Dragon’s Den
CREATIVE youngsters at Tweedbank had a chance to shine in the run-up to the festive season – they came up with inventions and pitched them to a Dragon’s Den.Walkerburn’s Ross Dickinson, inventor of the...
View ArticleAndrea, Borders champion of victims of abuse, is honoured
A BORDERS expert on domestic abuse has been named as this year’s winner of one of the region’s most prestigious awards.Andrea Beavon, from Bowden, is the violence against women and domestic abuse...
View ArticleChildren’s crisis feared as SBC aims to recruit foster parents
UP to 15 new foster parents are needed immediately to help cope with the increasing number of children coming into the care of Scottish Borders Council (SBC).The local authority intends launching a...
View ArticleEttrick councillor slams homes plan
COUNCIL planners moved last week to ensure new affordable houses built around the village of Ettrick meet the highest possible standards.But their efforts were branded “pointless” by a community...
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