EXERCISE JOINT WARRIOR TO BE HELD IN D&G FROM 25th OF MARCH TO 15th APRIL 2014

The MOD will be Conducting a large-scale exercise in southwest Scotland later this month 25th of March until April the 10th 2014 titled ‘Exercise Joint warrior’ . The Exercise will involve around 1500 combat troops and 1500 support personnel  from 16 Air assault brigade and 3 Commando Brigade plus other NATO troops .These Troops will deploy in conjunction with helicopter and amphibious operations. Troops will carry weapons and blank ammunition. The troops will also be using Smoke when carrying out battle simulation.

There is most likely to be a substantial amount of fixed wing and helicopter flying in the region during the Exercise , especially in the vicinity of the West Freugh and Castle Kennedy airfields , There will be a Parachute Drop into the Braid Fell Area also . The Exercise will include concentrated tactical activity by ground troops for the duration , in the vicinity of the Galloway forest park and North east of Dalbeattie at Edingham and the surrounding area.

Use will be made of privately owned ground where permission has been obtained to do so .

Out of Hours flying been has authorised and noise disturbance may be experienced in some locations .

The low flying complaints contact details are MoD Complaints and Enquiries Unit, lowflying@mod,uk/[email protected]  or telephone 0845 6007580

Convoy movement on the A75 of slow Military vehicles can be expected from the 24/03/14 until 10/04/14 . Main convoys can be expected 24-25 march ,3-5 april and 14-15 april. Please be patient during these periods !

Info Supplied by the Mod , Pictures all supplied by ‘S Jolly Photography’ http://www.sjollyphotography.co.uk/ 

Bliss raises concerns about crippling financial costs for parents of premature and sick babies at parliamentary event

Russell Brown MP attended Bliss’ parliamentary event on Thursday 27 February. The campaign and reception were organised by Bliss, the special care baby charity, which provides support to families of babies born premature and sick across the UK.

The campaign has been launched with the release of their report called ‘It’s not a game: the very real costs of having a premature or sick baby’, which is based on a survey of over 1300 parents and 178 hospitals in England, Scotland and Wales. The report found that:

·         Parents of a baby admitted to neonatal care face extra costs amounting to £2,256 during their baby’s stay in hospital, averaging £282 per week.

·         Costs such as paying for food and drinks averaged £53 a week, while parents faced travel costs including petrol and parking averaging over £100 per week.

·         Three quarters of parents reported that their household finances were worsened, while one in five couldn’t afford to pay bills such as their rent or mortgage.

·         Alongside the financial burden is the cost to parent’s health, with almost two thirds of parents reporting that their mental health had worsened as a result of the extra pressure.

Bliss is wants more to be done to help families who face these issues and wants parents travelling more than 20 miles to see their baby in hospital to have their costs reimbursed. Bliss also believes that they should also have access to free parking and accommodation so they can be near their baby at this very worrying time, as well as meals provided and access to childcare at the hospital.

Russell Brown MP commented: “One in nine babies in Dumfries and Galloway are admitted to specialist hospital care each year. I am delighted to support Bliss to ensure all babies born premature and sick and their families get the vital support they need. I’m delighted to support Bliss’ campaign to help families concentrate on their baby instead of worrying about their finances.”

Bliss Campaigns and Policy Manager Rebecca Rennison said, ‘We are really grateful Russell Brown MP for supporting our campaign launch. Bliss is urging the Government to provide more help to families in what is an extremely difficult time. At Bliss we know that families have more than enough things to worry about when their baby is in hospital. Whether they can afford to be there shouldn’t be one of them.’

Creetown Initiative Ltd Application to Lease Land within Balloch Wood, near Creetown for Hydro Scheme
Creetown Initiative Ltd has applied to the National Forest Land Scheme (NFLS) to lease an area of land within Balloch Wood in Galloway Forest District amounting to approximately 1.2 hectares.

Administered by Forestry Commission Scotland, the NFLS gives communities the opportunity to bid to buy or lease national forest land on the basis that it provides increased public benefits.

The land Creetown Initiative have applied to lease lies to the east of Creetown. The object of the project is to install a run-of-river hydro electric scheme on Balloch Burn thereby giving the community the opportunity to generate low carbon electricity and income that can be used to support local projects and initiatives.

A 28-day open consultation period is required by the scheme and public comments on any aspect of the proposal are welcome.

Details of the application can be viewed on line at www.forestry.gov.uk/nfls and all comments on the proposals detailed in the application must be submitted by Wednesday 2 April.

Responses and comments should be addressed to Malcolm Wield, Forestry Commission Scotland, Highland Conservancy, ‘Woodlands’, Fodderty Way, Dingwall, Ross-shire, IV15 9XB or to [email protected]

Forestry Commission Scotland has a policy of making these comments publicly available, unless requested to keep comments confidential.

Pictures By R.B Photography

NEW DELIVERY MODEL ENHANCES LOCAL POLICING RESOURCE

Police Scotland today publishes local information about the number of police officers in the 14 divisions across the country.

These figures, which will be published quarterly, will appear on the Police Scotland website.

 http://www.scotland.police.uk/about-us/police-scotland/212598/

The Scottish Government today has published statistics on the number of police officers serving in Police Scotland.

http://news.scotland.gov.uk/News/Police-Officer-QUARTERLY-Strength-statistics-Scotland-31-December-2013-9f9.aspx

Both sets of data refer to the actual number of police officers on 31 December 2013.

Deputy Chief Constable Rose Fitzpatrick said: “Local policing is at the heart of Police Scotland. The creation of single service has allowed us better flexibility in allocating police officers to the right place at the right time to help keep people safe.

“Police Scotland can now provide improved access to specialist services in support of local policing right across the country, with every division now benefiting from being able to draw in this resource when needed.

“Every division now has access to every kind of specialist support without geographical boundaries. This allows Police Scotland to protect and enhance local policing for our communities.

“Police Scotland continues to maintain police officer numbers at a minimum of 17,234 to meet the Scottish Government’s commitment and we have a rolling recruitment programme.”