The Journal - Edinburgh Issue 047

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EDINBURGH'S STUDENT NEWSPAPER

ISSUE XLVII

WEDNESDAY 4 MAY 2011

Scottish election 2011: The Final Word The Journal talks to Tavish Scott, Annabel Goldie and Patrick Harvie in the second half of our party leader interview series

» 6/7

'Easy, tiger' Lib Dem candidate in sexism row at EUSA hustings

IN NEWS >> 9

Artist Anonymous Secretive street artist JR is to transform Edinburgh as the lavish TED conference comes to town

Alex Cole-Hamilton denies claims of sexism towards Labour MSP Sarah Boyack Marcus Kernohan Editor-in-chief STUDENTS EXPECTING A dramatic showdown at the Edinburgh University Students’ Association-hosted hustings for the key battleground constituency of Edinburgh Central bore witness to a strange spectacle last week, after a lacklustre performance from all five major political parties in a debate which saw the Lib Dem candidate accused of sexism.

The event, held in the union’s Teviot Row House building and moderated

by University of Edinburgh politics head Mark Aspinwall, saw incumbent Labour MSP Sarah Boyack pitted against representatives of the Scottish National Party, Greens, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats.

Liberal Democrat candidate Alex Cole-Hamilton found himself embroiled in a minor controversy after saying “Easy, tiger!” to Ms Boyack during a terse argument over a proposed two-year council tax freeze.

Some have claimed that the remark was sexist, with EUSA president Liz Rawlings taking to Twitter to suggest that it “was meant to patronise and demean” Ms Boyack.

Ms Rawlings later told The Journal that while Mr Cole-Hamilton “has been a real supporter of students and student issues,” she felt that “the sort of

ED YOURDON

IN NEWS >> 4

Not the end for Forest Café

The Edinburgh institution has been uprooted, but there are seeds of hope among its supporters

IN FEATURES >> 15

To AV or not to AV Ms Boyack later admitted she did not actually hear the offending remark from Mr Cole-Hamilton language that has become acceptable in politics is exactly the sort of language and behaviour that puts women off entering it as a profession.”

Ms Boyack herself admitted that she did not hear the original remark,

but told The Journal that “people aspiring to represent constituents should avoid remarks that could cause offence or lower the tone of debates. I know that many attending the hustings felt that the comment was completely

inappropriate.”

Speaking to The Journal, Mr ColeHamilton claimed the remark was simply good-natured banter, emphasising Continued on page 2

QMU denies monitoring Facebook activity A leaked email and silence from university officials have left students with unanswered questions about their online privacy James Johnstone

FOLLOWING THE DISMISSAL of Queen Margaret University Students’ Union president Blain Murphy, students have expressed concerns regarding whether what they post online is logged by the university.

A confidential email, sent by

accident to the entire QMU student body by a union spokesperson, stated that they wished to get a statement out as soon as possible regarding the dismissal, “as a student had already started commenting on [Blain Murphy’s] Facebook.”

The email also contained a first draft of a press release regarding the reasons behind Mr Murphy’s dismissal, allegedly due to unfulfillment of his responsibilities.

Since then, many students have posted comments on the university’s Facebook page. PR and Marketing student Fergus Boden asked: “How did the university find out about a student comment on his personal Facebook site?”

Another student posted: “I wouldn’t mind [the university] announcing how it happened. Someone asked on the uni’s Facebook page how they found out and if they

had someone watching our Facebooks, but they ignored it.”

Responding to this, marketing officer Joanna Murray said she had personally replied to the question, but that the reply had disappeared.

She added: “To confirm, it is no-one’s job at QMU to monitor students’ Facebook profiles. They are your own personal business. I Continued on page 2

No: 58%

The Journal asks what the real implications of the Yes: proposed 42% electoral reforms will be

IN MUSIC >> 18

HMV Picture House Go Ape for Bonobo The Picture House crowd go wild for Simon Green's simian loungejazz and light-show extravaganza

2 News

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

This week in The Journal

»9

Lib Dem candidate in sexism row Continued from p1

Spin out success Academic discoveries turned profitable could be the future of Scotland’s economy

Edinburgh » 5 Climate Centre

» 18

Universities, businesses and politicians will join forces at Edinburgh’s new climate change centre

Et in Anarcadia Ego Stills host Ruth Maclennan's modern filmic meditation on absence, presence, nature and civillisation

» 23

that the phrase was one he uses “for the purpose of comedy, and without any regard for gender.”

Continuing, he said that he was “very sorry if an interpretation of that phrase has caused people offence, but it was certainly never my intent.”

James McAsh, secretary of the Edinburgh University Feminist Society said that the comment “was certainly sexist, although I doubt [Mr Cole-Hamilton] intended it to be. He criticised Sarah on the grounds that she showed emotion – in this case, anger.

“When men show anger, it is a sign of passion or strength, but if a woman does the same then she’s being hysterical and should control herself.”

Both Ms Rawlings and Mr McAsh claimed that the remark highlighted “institutional” or “societal” sexism, pointing out the continuing gender equality gap in British politics.

But despite acknowledging this imbalance as “a national disgrace” Mr Cole-Hamilton rejected any connection between his remarks and the wider issue of gender equality. “I fail to see how these two points are connected,” he said.

A former president of Aberdeen University Students’ Representative Council, Mr Cole-Hamilton currently works as head of policy at children’s charity Aberlour. In 2005, he ran against Gordon Brown for the Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath seat at Westminster, coming in third place.

He has been actively involved with the student opposition movement against the coalition government’s plans for higher education, and told the hustings audience that his party remains “passionately” in favour of the principle free education.

The debate over education funding dominated the evening, with Conservative candidate Iain McGill proposing a £4,000 graduate contribution repayable by graduates earning over £25,000. “We see that as very progressive,” he told

QMU denies Facebook monitoring Continued from p1

Hacker: Lessons from 2010/11

The Journal looks for the take-away lessons from this year's footballing season

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onlookers.

Citing a 3 per cent gap in the universities budget, Ms Boyack appeared to reject a graduate contribution for Scotland, but mooted a number of possible higher education funding solutions, referring variously to philanthropy, “service charges” and “efficiency savings”.

Marco Biagi of the SNP partially endorsed Ms Boyack’s position, commenting that “there is already a graduate contribution to higher education – it’s called income tax.” Mr Biagi further suggested that some administrative functions, such as human resources, could be merged across several institutions in order to cut costs.

Adam Ramsay of the Scottish Greens vowed that his party would defend the continued provision of free higher education in Scotland by raising the basic rate of income tax by 0.5 per cent and using the Scottish Parliament’s taxvarying powers in an attempt to raise an extra £1 billion in revenue from higher-earning Scots.

Edinburgh Central is regarded by both the Liberal Democrats and the SNP as an important target constituency: Ms Boyack has held the seat since devolution in 1999, but with an increasingly slim majority. She won re-election by just under 1,200 votes in 2007, and current polls suggest that the SNP may well unseat her on 5 May. Mr Ramsay, a former EUSA president, is at the bottom of his party’s candidate list for the Lothians region. Party officials confirmed that the party’s decision to contest only the regional list was driven by concern over the potential financial drain of lost deposits in unsuccessful constituency races.

Mr Cole-Hamilton’s comments have been compared to David Cameron’s “calm down, dear” gaffe in the House of Commons earlier that day. After using the Michael Winner catchphrase to silence an interruption from Labour front-bencher Angela Eagle, the PM has been dogged by calls for an apology.

control the QMU page by making and responding to posts on the QMU Facebook page and that’s it.”

When specifically asked by The Journal if they monitor students’ Facebook activities, a QMU spokesperson released the following statement, but did not answer the actual question: “Queen Margaret University has a substantial number of computers and allocated space for students to use on a 24 hour basis at its modern campus. Because of this, the University has not yet experienced a situation where students using computers for social networking are not competing with those using them for academic work. Computer usage has, to date, never reached 100 per

cent and students can access a system which clearly shows them where available computers are located.

“QMU recognises that students, in general, tend to spend a significant amount of time using social networking tools. However, rather than the institution finding this to be a problem, QMU has made great efforts to embrace social networking, particularly Facebook, as a method of communicating with students.”

Blain Murphy said, in a comment to The Journal regarding the confidential email, that the issue of students feeling monitored by the university is “a huge subject in itself”.

He added: “Students should be able to say what they want on their Facebooks without fear that a member of staff from the union or the university is constantly watching what’s being said.”

News 3

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Malaria on the rise in the UK

Beyond

The trend to travel to new exotic destinations could bring deadly disease to the UK

Edinburgh GILLES SAN MARTIN

Leighton Craig

NEW FIGURES RELEASED by the Health Protection Agency have revealed that the number of malaria infections among UK residents has increased by 30 per cent over the last two years.

The figures, released on 25 April to mark World Malaria Day, show that the number of cases increased from 1,370 in 2008 to 1,761 in 2010.

The findings have raised concerns about the measures being taken by UK residents travelling abroad to protect themselves from the fatal disease.

There are currently five different anti-malaria drugs available in the UK and residents are advised to seek medical advice before travelling.

Joanne Brazier, a second year student at the University of Edinburgh, caught the disease in 2009 whilst on a gap year in Malawi, despite being given drugs to prevent it. She told The Journal: “Before I went to Malawi I visited the doctor who gave me a supply of doxycycline tablets. I knew that these tablets were not 100 per cent effective, but significantly reduced the chances of catching malaria.

“I knew that there was a high risk of catching malaria in Africa, but was reassured that if the appropriate procedures were taken, it was unlikely that I would catch it. If I felt unwell, I was encouraged to go straight to the doctor because the longer malaria is

Yale committee to investigate hazing The committee was appointed in January to look into the practice of hazing within registered and unregistered undergraduate organisations, following a ritual by fraternity Delta Kappa Epsilon last year where so-called pledges shouted “inflammatory remarks”.

The report recommends the forming of an inter-fraternity and sorority council to discuss “best practice” within the student organisations, and the establishing of a fund to encourage positive initiation traditions through workshops and team-building activities.

A professor at Cambridge University claims true date of Easter New statistics show a 30 per cent increase in cases of malaria in UK residents over the last two years untreated, the more serious the effects of the disease can be.”

The infection primarily affects Africa, South and Central America, Asia and the Middle East; however over the past ten years almost half the cases reported in the UK have been related to visits to West Africa.

According to the World Health Organisation, more than 750,000

people die as a result of malaria infection each year, with 90 per cent of those deaths in Africa.

The disease is contracted through mosquito bites but cannot be spread from person to person, and is the world’s second biggest killer after tuberculosis.

The United Nations recently revealed that it is taking dramatic

measures against malaria and aims to eradicate deaths from the disease by 2015.

Ray Chambers, the UN SecretaryGeneral’s Special Envoy for malaria, said on 25 April that “Our goal is to reach close to zero deaths from malaria by 2015, there is much work to be done – many hurdles – but we are optimistic that we can achieve that goal.”

According to Sir Colin Humphrey, the Last Supper took place on 1 April 33 AD, meaning ‘Maundy Thursday’ is in fact a Wednesday.

Prof. Humphrey claims to have set to rights the age-old question of why the dates differ between John’s Gospel and Matthew, Mark and Luke: it is because John, and Jesus, worked from an older calendar than the then-official Jewish one.

Cannabis drug for MS sufferers

Prof Humphrey was quoted in Varsity saying: “I just think it would be more convenient for general life if the date was fixed to the first Sunday in April.”

The distribution of a controversial drug is halted in Scotland, despite showing great effect on MS patients

Universities in Sweden celebrate spring festival Valborg

Greg Bianchi

SUFFERERS OF MULTIPLE sclerosis (MS), an inflammatory disease that affects the nervous system, might not be prescribed the drug Sativex as distribution has been halted in Scotland due to budget cuts and the awaited approval by the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC).

The cannabis-based drug is orally administered by spraying it under the tongue of the patient and promises

pain relief where other types of medications have failed.

However, Sativex is an expensive drug to produce and following cuts to the NHS some local authorities south of the border have deemed it as not being cost-effective, leaving many MS patients short of alternative treatments.

The use of Sativex has been controversial, despite having been deemed safe by medical authorities in July 2010. Control over the production and transportation of the drug is strict, and the medical marijuana plants used to produce it are grown at secret locations

in the South of England.

The MS Society released a statement to The Journal outlining the difficulty in obtaining the drug for MS sufferers in Scotland: “Usually a clinician will only prescribe a licensed treatment if it has been approved for use by the SMC and accepted by the local health board.”

Asked about the benefits of the drug the MS Society stated: “Just under 50 per cent of people with MS who have not responded to other treatments can be expected to show a clinically significant response to Sativex after four

weeks treatment.”

The Society further described the delay of the distribution of Sativex in Scotland as “disappointing” and said that: “The MS Society believes that people with MS should have access to proven treatments for their condition no matter where they live in the UK.” Sativex is on the market in the UK, Spain, Canada and New Zealand through Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis. It is currently awaiting regulatory approval in Germany, Italy, Sweden, Denmark, Austria and the Czech Republic.

Celebrate in style at michelin starred 21212 What better way to reward yourself or a loved one for the fantastic achievement of graduating than to treat yourselves to a special three course lunch from £26 at our exquisite restaurant with rooms – 21212? Or choose to come for dinner and we will start off your celebrations with a complimentary glass of Prosecco before your five courses priced at £67.

At this exciting time of year for new graduates, in addition to our normal opening hours, the restaurant will open on Monday 27 June and Monday 4 July to accommodate the graduation celebrations taking place and with special bedroom rates available for those visiting from afar it makes the perfect choice.

At Uppsala University Valborg marks the day to don graduation caps, drink champagne and take part in a boat race where imaginative, homemade rafts compete in tackling Fyrisån’s falls.

Project manager for the race, Christoffer Lindqvist, was quoted in the university’s paper Ergo saying: “They will gather good speed, but if someone falls off, the divers won’t have any problems picking them up.”

Amanda Svensson-Falk

21212, 3 Royal Terrace, Edinburgh, EH7 5AB Tel: 0845 22 21212 www.21212restaurant.co.uk

4 Local News

News Shorts

GIANT TV SCREEN TO BE MOVED OR SCRAPPED

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

The Forest Cafe close one door only to open another As a new stage beckons for the current inhabitants, the future of the Bristo Place premises may include an unlikely saviour in the form of Edinburgh University Students' Association

THE GIANT TELEVISION screen in Festival Square that was intended to show live sport during the London Olympics is facing the prospect of being moved, while some are calling for it to be scrapped completely.

Tory culture spokesman, Gordon Buchan, is keen to save the “energy and money” being wasted on the city’s giant television screen. He stated: “There is very little support for it and we should be turning it off as soon as possible.”

Councillor Steve Cardownie, however, was keen to stress there are possible alternatives for the £100,000 screen.

“St Andrew Square might get permission because it has been well used.”

ELLA BAVALIA

Rosalind Brown

ROYAL WEDDING MAY HAVE FUELLED BIN DISPUTE THE ONGOING DISPUTE at the heart of Edinburgh Council’s refuse collection has been stirred by division among staff over the Royal Wedding.

It is claimed that some staff were forced to work last Friday while those staff based in offices were allowed to celebrate with a day off.

Binmen in the city have been protesting with a work-to-rule policy for almost two years and city streets can often be found with overflowing bins.

The Journal has learned that the council intend to rectify the wedding-day issue, with a spokesman saying: “Staff will receive an additional one-day holiday added to their annual leave entitlement.”

WALK EDINBURGH WEEK SET TO GET CITY MOVING RUNNING FROM 20 to 26 May, Walk Edinburgh Week is a new event intended to promote walking as a healthy and free activity. Dr Alison McCallum, Director of Public Health and Health Policy at NHS Lothian said: “Being more physically active is a great way to protect and improve your health, release stress, socialise, improve confidence and gives you the ‘feel good’ factor.”

There are reportedly around 22 walking groups already in the city and Councillor Paul Edie, health leader for Edinburgh, explained: “There are many fantastic walks in this lovely city and I would urge everyone to put their trainers and boots on for ‘Walk Edinburgh Week’.”

Al Innes

The Forest must leave their current premises on 1 September

THE FOREST CAFE, with its decadelong legacy as a platform for up-andcoming writers, musicians and artists, will on 1 September stand empty for the first time since its opening in 2000.

Questions are now being raised about what will become of the building once the Edinburgh community institution leaves it behind. In February, when a buyer was found for the building, the mood in the Forest Action Group was bullish with Sean Hammond, a long-time Forest volunteer, stating: “Potential buyers should remember that last time we had a big scare, when Eidyn Architects wanted to turn the building into private flats, objection letters from around the world forced them to withdraw.”

Last week, however, Brittonie Fletcher, a member of The Forest Action Group, explained to The Journal: “It looks like we’re not going to raise the money, so we’ll have to move out. It’s sad that we’re leaving but this is an exciting time for The Forest. It’s a time for change, to shake things up a bit in the way we run and what we do. This is the best time to get involved.”

Earlier this year, the charity which owned the lease on 3 Bristo Place, Edinburgh University Settlement,

found itself bankrupt and saddled with £4 million in debt. Save The Forest was quickly established in the hope of raising the required funds to buy back the building through a series of charity concerts, art auctions and generous donations.

According to the action group, so far, they have raised over £20,000.

They said: “Our target is to reach £50,000 by 1 June: ambitious, but definitely achievable. That’s about enough to pay a year’s commercial rent in this or a similar building.”

Edinburgh University Students Association (EUSA) has taken an interest in the building; the ideal space for establishing a green union.

James McAsh, EUSA Teaching and Learning Convenor said: “We don’t know all the details so it might not be feasible. But if it is then this would be a fantastic way of saving a treasured institution while also dealing with the problem of lack of society space.”

The group are currently understood to be in the early stages of a dialogue with EUSA, though VicePresident Services Sam Hansford is believed to have expressed some reservations over the proposals' feasability.

The Forest is currently looking at a new home off The Royal Mile. Though the building will change, many have expressed their hopes that The Forest will still be an important part of Edinburgh’s art scene.

Is there room for Hume?

David Hume's tercentenary celebrations get underway but fears emerge that they may pass many people by Al Innes Local News Editor THE 300TH ANNIVERSARY of the birth of David Hume is being celebrated with a new exhibition at the Writers’ Museum along with a series of lectures from the University of Edinburgh.

However, some scholars question if Edinburgh is doing enough to celebrate the man who is considered to be among the most important figures in the history of Western philosphy.

The exhibition at the Writers’ Museum features material which until now has never been on public display.

Included among the artefacts are rare books and original manuscripts by Hume as well as exquisite images of Hume and other Enlightenment figures.

At the opening last week, the Culture and Leisure Convener, SNP Councillor Deidre Brock, was delighted with what she saw: “This terrific new exhibition at our Writers’ Museum will give a fascinating insight into the life and works of David Hume, one of Scotland’s most

revered writers and thinkers and a key figure in the Scottish Enlightenment.

“The exhibition has been made possible thanks to the generosity of Dr William Zachs, who owns these wonderful artefacts. We are very grateful to Dr Zachs for allowing the Writers’ Museum to become the first place to display this material publicly.”

Some have argued that the small collection, while welcome, is not as significant a recognition as the philosopher deserves. Mr Zachs himself described his collection as a “kind of scrap, a small slice” when compared to what exists in national archives.

Kevin Williamson, poet and editor of Bella Caledonia, was somewhat critical and slightly surprised by a perceived lack of media attention for Hume’s 300th anniversary, explaining that: “It would seem that Hume, despite his international reputation, is still regarded in some quarters as a beyondthe-pale heretic and intellectual outlaw.

“It does come as a surprise that journalists haven’t stopped to honour the great man. After all, perhaps more than any other thinker, Hume promoted the

DAVID SELBY

The exhibition includes previously-unseen material from Hume best possible modus operandi for their trade: a healthy dose of scepticism.”

The University of Edinburgh is running a series of lectures in recognition of Hume’s contribution to a wide range of disciplines, including Dr Peter Millican on the legacy of the Enlightenment

on 23 May. More talks will follow over the summer with the final lecture in the series delivered on 14 December in Edinburgh’s George Square.

The display of Hume’s work at the Writer’s Museum will run until 17 September.

Academic News 5

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011 DAVID SELBY

Cancer breath test underway PAULA BIRCH CALENTANO

New breath test will specifically target lung, head, and neck cancer Sophie Marion de Procé

ECCC will be based near the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood

PROGRESS IS BEING made towards designing a cancer “breath test”, as researchers at the Technion (the Israel Institute of Technology) are working on an electric nose device to detect lung or head-and-neck cancer before symptoms appear.

Head-and-neck cancer is often detected too late for any treatment to be effective and the current ways to diagnose it require complicated specialist tests, making a non-invasive breath test for various cancers an appealing option.

Around 9,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with head-and-neck cancer each year, such as those of the eye, mouth, voice box and food pipe. The preliminary study, published in the British Journal of Cancer, used 82 volunteers, including 22 who had various head-and-neck cancers, 24 who had lung cancer and 36 who were healthy.

The breath test is essentially a nano artificial nose, which makes use of the chemicals emitted by the surface of

Scientists hope to detect some cancers before symptoms appear cancer cells. The research found that sensors could be used to detect these chemicals in the breath. The sensor uses gold nanoparticles to detect levels of so-called volatile organic compounds that become more elevated in cancer patients. The test uses five sensors to detect five different volatile organic chemicals.

In the experiment, the sensor successfully distinguished between patients who had lung cancer, patients who had head-and-neck cancer, and healthy individuals, irrespective of their age, gender and lifestyle, such as smoking habits.

Even though this research is only in its early stages, and will be years before

the test can be used in the clinic, it holds promise for an early diagnosis of these life-threatening diseases. Larger studies on wider samples will however be needed before the test can be considered fully reliable.

In addition to providing an early diagnosis of these cancers before tumours become visible in X-rays, the device could also be used to assess and monitor the effectiveness of cancer treatment and detect relapses earlier. Most GPs only see a few cancers in their career and diagnosis is difficult. Eventually, the aim is to be able to detect cancer instantly in a simple test at a stage where treatments have a good chance to succeed.

Plans for an Edinburgh climate change centre unveiled Scientists protest against New climate change centre hopes to help strengthen Scotland's green economy

proposed stem cell ban

Struggle over the ethics versus merits of stem cell research continues EUGENE BRANDON

Jenna Spence

THE UNIVERSITY OF Edinburgh is to create a new climate change centre with the central aim of making Scotland greener.

The Edinburgh Centre on Climate Change (ECCC) will be developed in a refurbished university building that is situated near the Scottish Parliament at a cost of £10 million.

Dr Andy Kerr, Director of the Edinburgh Centre on Climate Change believes the ECCC will be a fundamental development for Scotland’s green economy. He said: “We can build on our strengths to help shape the future of the green economy in Scotland and beyond.”

Scotland’s green sector is forecast to be worth an estimated £12 billion by 2015 and the centre hopes to be vital in developing a skilled workforce.

News of the development of the centre came at a time when the current Scottish government is promoting a greener, more energy-efficient Scotland. The SNP manifesto for the upcoming Scottish Parliament elections on 5 May outlines the potential direction for future green policies in Scotland.

The “renewables revolution”, as outlined in the SNP manifesto, could see more funding for research in energy

efficiency.

Initially, the ECCC hopes to contribute to low-carbon solutions for buildings, organisations and transportation.

It is anticipated that the centre will evolve into a vital Scottish green energy organisation.

The centre will encourage University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh Napier University and Heriot-Watt University academics and climate change professionals to co-operate with Scottish businesses and liaise with the Scottish Government on future green policies. In addition, Master’s courses and courses for executives will be available.

The centre hopes to transform Scotland into a more economically green country.

Professor Stuart Sayer, Executive Director for the Scottish Institute for Research in Economics, stresses the importance of the new centre in establishing an effective working relationship between researchers, politicians, organisations and the wider community: “In order to solve the problem… we need to communicate the fruits of our research more effectively to politicians, business leaders and people in communities”.

It is hoped the centre will open in 2012. The ECCC has been given a £1.4 million award by the European Regional Development Fund to get started.

Lily Panamsky Academic News Editor RESEARCH SCIENTISTS ARE openly protesting against a recent motion to ban stem cell patent protection, which could possibly block stem-cell research in Europe.

On 10 March, Yves Bot, advocategeneral of the European Court of Justice, spoke out against current patents that allow research using embryonic stem cells. Bot argued that it was unethical and immoral to patent human cells for commercial use.

Embryonic stem cells, which are naturally found in all humans, can be artificially grown in a lab. Because they are at an early stage of development, they can be transformed into any kind of human tissue, such as muscle or nervous tissue.

Scientists believe that embryonic stem cells can be used as healthy replacement cells for cells that are damaged due to trauma or disease.

Scientists hope that stem cell therapy will eventually be able to treat conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, spinal cord damage and burns.

The first official trial involving embryonic stem cells in patients began in October 2010 in the US, treating

Scientist claim potentially life-saving research is being stifled people with spinal injuries.

Key leaders of stem cell projects responded to Bot’s statement via an open letter published in the scientific journal Nature. The letter expressed “profound concern” over the motion to ban patents.

The corresponding author of the letter is Professor Austin Smith, professor of biology at Cambridge University and director of the Wellcome Trust Centre for Stem Cell Research. Smith received his doctoral degree from the University of Edinburgh in 1986 and joined the University’s Centre for Genome Research, which later became the

Institute for Stem Cell Research. Smith was the leader of the Institute from 1996 until 2006.

Smith said: “It would be devastating if the court was to follow this advice. It would put at threat the future of biomedical research in Europe and some projects here could collapse.

“It would also send the message that scientists are engaged in immoral activity so this is very negative for our community and it would erode public confidence in what we do.”

The European Court of Justice is expected to submit a ruling within the next two months.

6 National Politics

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

2011 Scottish Parliament elections Patrick Harvie, Scottish Greens

A Green View for Scotland At the last election they were the kingmakers: will the greens once again help form a new Scottish Government?

Patrick Harvie seems optimistic

Robbie Marwick Interview/Profile Editor FIRST WE FIND that we can't access Patrick Harvie’s office as Parliament is not in session, and are thus forced relocate to the Scottish Greens’ Glasgow headquarters, which conveniently, is a 90 degree turn to the left; one door down along the corridor which is shared with other office space. The Green Party do not luxuriate themselves in any of the prolifigacy available to some politicians and instead I get a real sense of pragmatism. The office we are in is dainty, has two desks and is stacked to the brim with election materials and paraphernalia. The surroundings give an air of genuine grassroots politics.

Easing into the interview, I mention the protests against the cuts. Harvie is fully supportive: “there is a large range of really creative, peaceful direct action…and it is fantastic to see that happening rather than see people put up with the UK Government’s agenda”.

His support plays into the perception that the Greens cater to populist sentiment, however on pressing for alternatives he is happy to elaborate on some

proposals that they have developed.

The first of these is an increase in the basic tax rate by one pence in the pound, which Harvie estimates would raise roughly £400 million. Whilst not as progressive as he would like – under the limited income tax raising powers that Scotland has, it is currently only possible to alter the basic tax rate, not the upper rates – he feels it is, on the whole, fair for the revenue it would raise as “people on the average income would pay a few pounds a month extra, and people on the upper rates would pay about 30 pounds a month extra”.

The Greens would also like to see an expansion of local taxation powers - where Scotland has more flexibility under the devolution agreement – in order to allow local governments more flexibility and opportunity to raise income. By taking “an empowering approach, not a prescriptive approach”, he would hope to make councils directly responsible for balancing their spending, allowing for a plurality of approaches across Scotland, which may make councils more accountable and also more competitive.

The most substantial of their tax proposals is the land value tax, “which would replace council tax and business

rates…instead charging a levy on land values, rather than building values”. He argues that this could raise an extra £1 billion in tax revenues whilst acting as a disincentive for holding land for purely speculative reasons and as such could help bring land back into productive use and in the long run reduce land prices. He illustrates these points with reference to the revenue to be made from large rural estates which are currently “not paying any kind of business rates or making any contribution through tax for public services”, and the savings to be made for people making “efficient use of land, such as tenements”, where all the flat owners would pay proportionally for the land value of their shared plot. He describes this policy as a “wealth tax, not levied on services” and a rejection of the “hotel model of society” where you are not “a member of society, but simply a customer of society buying the services that you use”.

With such plans for taxation it is not surprising that Patrick Harvie is supportive of greater fiscal autonomy for Scotland, referring to the Calman Powers as “a bit of a dog’s dinner”, saying they won’t provide the conditions

“Green politics begins with a recognition of the transformation which is required in our society and our economy and our politics if we are going to achieve sustainability.” for Scotland to “actually exercise any fiscal power”. He is also supportive of a referendum on independence and would be campaigning for a yes vote.

However when pressed on the economic viability of such a transition and the rationale behind independence, the similarity of his position

with that of the SNP shifts significantly. Providing justifications on the grounds of empowering local economics and local people with a focus on the social benefits, he removes himself from the macro-economic considerations of the effects on GDP or international competitiveness, stating that: “the debate on whether independence will increase Scotland’s wealth is not one [he] is interested in”.

Moving on to discuss university funding, Harvie states that the Scottish Greens are “completely opposed to fees and graduate taxes”, whilst noting that without providing further funding to the universities in order to maintain quality “this is possibly the worst thing we could do”. Postulating that universities and students provide “benefits to the whole of society”, he feels there is justification for funding to come from general taxation, with the proposals outlined above being possible avenues.

Coming to his prospects for the election, he is “hopeful”. With the SNP now the status quo, he feels the Greens are the party “to stand up to the UK government’s agenda and to propose an alternative solution for Scotland”.

He might be right, but that might not be what people are looking for.

Annabel Goldie, Scottish Conservatives

A Conservative View for Scotland Received wisdom suggests that the Tories rarely gain much ground in Scotland, but Annabel Goldie stands by her party's record Sean Geddes

AROUND MIDDAY I received a voice mail asking if the meeting I had with Annabel Goldie at 3pm could be brought forward half an hour.

This wouldn’t have been a problem, but I didn’t actually know about the meeting.

Arriving at Holyrood, a little dishevelled, I was guided through the back ways of the parliament building – engaging in the typical small talk as one always does in this business – before I was placed in an office to wait. Reaching for one of the unopened papers on the table, I quickly checked myself and returned that day’s edition of the Guardian. Stepping into the immaculate office of the leader of the Scottish Conservatives, I was met by one of the most assured people that I have interviewed; she comes across as a person

who believes totally in what she says and is very persuasive in those beliefs.

“Harold Wilson’s socialism did not appeal to me at all and [I realised then] that I was a Conservative.” With her political leanings firmly established, there was never any doubt that the then 14-year-old Annabel Goldie would go into politics. Discussing the Scottish Conservatives’ plan to introduce a graduate tax, Goldie appears to miss the hypocrisy with which most politicians discuss this issue, many of whom themselves received grants and funding: “It is fair to say that once you are equipped with a degree and have the means whereby you have a better or improved earning capacity, you pay for the privilege of having that education”. The argument put forward echoes her counterparts in Westminster, “if we want Scottish universities to remain at the pinnacle of achievement then we need to find a means to get more money into them”. Compelling as this may be,

it does seem to reinforce the parody of baby boomers pulling the ladder up after them.

A further feature of the Scottish Conservatives’ plans is a focus on primary and secondary schools, and further education colleges. “I do think that Scotland would benefit from more choice for parents in our school education sector and in the state sector”, said Goldie discussing free schools, a program started by the Con-Dem coalition in Westminster where local charities, parent groups and religious bodies can create their own school, free from government control and funded by the tax payer. However, important as schooling is, Goldie recognises that it isn’t right for everyone, emphasising her plans to allow pupils who demonstrate an aptitude in another area to go straight into college or vocational apprenticeships at the age of 14: “There is a proportion of the school population that is attending but not getting anything out of it and

"Young people... will have a better expectation of work if we can expand the private sector in Scotland." can’t wait to leave when they are 16 and I think that is a shame.” This would be a serious reform of the schooling system and is likely to be controversial from a number of social perspectives.

Although echoing the Party line from Westminster, Goldie does recognise the need for the public sector and is quite

emphatic in describing her vision of how it should operate. “I have stood up and defended the public sector as an essential provider for some services. I may question how they deliver, I may want them to do more outsourcing or be more flexible on how they provide the service, but they should still be the deliverer of that service.”

Bringing the interview to a close, Goldie provides an indication of her vision for the future: “There are a lot of opportunities in Scotland; there is no one that is a silver bullet. It is about being flexible, that we reconfigure what we are doing in Scotland to expand the private sector to boost the prospects of young people in this country.”

William Hill may be giving the Scottish Conservatives 125-1 odds of winning, but with the Scottish electoral system making minority or coalition governments likely, they may still have a large say in the future of young people in Scotland.

National Politics 7

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Tavish Scott, Scottish Liberal Democrats

A Liberal View for Scotland

Biography: Patrick Harvie

Tavish Scott attempts to revive the Lib Dems' fortunes north of the border

PATRICK HARVIE, 38, attended Manchester Metropolitan University where he dabbled briefly with the Labour Party. Before joining the Scottish Green Party, he had “brief stints at a recycling charity, a phone line for teenagers, and the Inland Revenue”.

In 2003 he was elected as an MSP, as a regional representative for Glasgow. He has since also become Joint Convenor of the Scottish Green Party. During his time in Parliament he has worked on a number of social and economic issues including asylum and civil liberties as well as sexual health and food policy.

"In Scotland, we don't have presidential elections - we have votes on what people want"

Robbie Marwick Interview/Profile Editor

Biography: Annabel Goldie ANNABEL GOLDIE, 61, graduated from Strathclyde University with an LLB. Initially helping to canvas for Conservative candidates and then running for the Westminster seat of West Renfrewshire and Inverclyde in 1992, Goldie soon became noted as a rising force within the Scottish Conservatives. “We didn’t win, but we did quite well. We reduced the Labour majority and on the back of that I was asked to be a deputy chairman for the party.”

Continuing her work as a Lawyer, this position was voluntary until 1997, when she decided to go into politics full time with the advent of the Scottish Parliament. “I thought that I was in a position in my career that I could change direction and I’ll stand for Parliament. That’s what I did and I started in '97 as one of the first MSPs.” With the resignation of David McLetchie in 2005, Goldie became the unopposed leader of the Scottish Conservative Party, the first woman to hold the position, and only the second woman to lead one of the four top parties in Scotland since devolution.

Biography: Tavish Scott Tavish Scott, 44, holds a BA (Hons) in Business Studies from Napier. Working first for Jim Wallace MP, he went straight into politics after graduating and in 1990 became the Scottish press officer for the Liberal Democrats. He then returned to Shetland to manage his family’s farm and between 1994 and 1999 was a local councillor, acting as vice-chairman of the Roads and Transport Committee and chairman of Lerwick Harbour Trust.

Before joining the Scottish Cabinet in June 2005 as Minister for Transport, he was the Deputy Minister for Parliament and also Deputy Minister for Finance, Public Services and Parliamentary Business. Becoming Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth in 2007, he was subsequently elected Leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats in 2008 and has since been the face of the Scottish Liberal Democrats.

Meeting with Tavish Scott, he comes across as less polished than other politicians I have interviewed, but like other party leaders, appears quietly confident. Conducting our interview over a ‘jammy scone’ in a quiet café, he displays a genuine and affable disposition; characteristics which for many are considered typical of Liberal Democrats. A less favourable projection towards the Party however, perhaps unfairly, is the allegation that behind their enthusiastic goodwill there is little real substance, and as such I am eager to see if his convictions on policy hold up.

Starting first on Independence – the SNP are the incumbents after all – Tavish is direct: “I believe in a federal United Kingdom … and ensuring they [the constituent parts] work together in improving the nature of the country and ensuring they work together to help the people who need it”. The question was slanted towards the economic viability of such a policy and his justifications reflect this; postulating that a UK-wide social security and benefits system is “more efficient and therefore fairer”, whilst stressing that in times of economic hardship the costs of transition make for a misplaced priority. His position is further rationalised with reference to the financial meltdown and the reliance of Scottish banks on UK taxpayers for a bailout substantially larger than the Scottish economy.

A fortunate lifeline, he suggests, which might not have been available if independent, illustrating his point with comparison to the experience of other small countries such as Ireland.

Discussing the Scottish economy, I angle for his position on the movement towards greater fiscal autonomy; prevalent notably in the Calman report on Scottish devolution and also a key policy recommendation put forward by the think tank Reform Scotland. Tavish supports an increase in fiscal powers; arguing that greater responsibility for raising income will make those who spend it more accountable and that flexibility will allow a more effective approach, tailored to the economies of Scotland. Elaborating, he tells me that strengthened powers to alter income tax planned for 2015 will provide a “practical means of supporting small businesses”, as due to their size and structure the majority of small business-people pay taxes as personal income rather than corporations, and as such a reduction in income tax would directly support these small enterprises. This screams populist politicking, however given that the powers are not coming in till 2015, he is rather ahead of the game, and the conviction seems genuine.

Revolving around his approach to fiscal austerity, I raise the inevitable issue of university fees and funding.

With estimates of a shortfall ranging from £93 million to around £200 million, he states that there is a “debate

to be had” and that “the gap must be filled”. He balances this with the almost cliché but politically essential homage to the principle “that you get to university on your ability to learn not your ability to pay”. Insisting that the Scottish Lib Dems don’t want to see any fees in Scotland nor a graduate endowment, he posits that there is room within the Scottish budget to cover the funding gap. Pressing for some concrete proposals – this logically suggests either a reduction in spending or an increase in taxes – Tavish ensures me they have some, and provides a cap on public sector top pay and an end to public sector and consultancy bonuses - “ a scheme which costs tens of millions of pounds each year” - as examples.

“For the Scottish Liberal Democrats this election is about creating jobs, restoring excellence in education and keeping important local services really local.”

Focusing on the upcoming election, I suggest there might be a changed dynamic given the coalition south of the border, but Tavish is firm: “I believe this is a Scottish election and I will set out what we want to do in Scotland”.

Suggesting they might be influenced by Coalition policies, he is light-heartedly defensive: “I will very strongly advocate the right solutions for Scotland and if they are not those of Westminster, then tough!” Playing on this jest, I enquire after the possibility of a coalition up here, maybe even with the Scottish Conservatives: “The logical position is we’ll talk to the largest party first, and that won’t be the Conservatives”.

Having spoken with Tavish Scott, I find him palatable in manner and encouragingly enthusiastic. However most politicians you meet are, sometimes surprisingly, rather charming and seemingly good natured. When answering questions, he takes his time, often appearing hesitant; this could be construed negatively, however with no notes he appears not to be relying on a prepared Party line, rather on his own considered responses. The Liberal Democrats may not win the election in Scotland, but they could once again be the kingmakers.

8 Student News

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

NUS lash out against Tory funding plan

Scottish universities should 'sell extra places' A report by a leading think-tank suggests that universities should consider introducing private fees to raise extra revenue

Scottish Conservatives challenge NUS Scotland's claim that their university funding plan is unsustainable Scott Stables

THE NATIONAL UNION of Students Scotland (NUS) has condemned Conservative Party plans to fund higher education claiming they would create a “black hole” in spending.

The NUS have pointed out that Conservative plans to introduce tuition fees of up to £4,000 would only provide graduate contributions from 2017, resulting in an interim funding gap of £1.5 billion.

NUS Scotland president, Liam Burns, who was recently elected as President of NUS stated: “The Scottish Conservatives have claimed they are the only party being honest with the electorate but their own figures show they are misleading the electorate, students and universities on a breathtaking scale”.

He continued: “The graduate contribution proposed by the Scottish Conservatives wouldn’t provide full income from fees or loans until at least 2017, four years later than they assume. This leaves a huge black hole in the Conservatives’ costings.”

However, Conservative finance

SERENA EPSTEIN

Jonathan Baldie National Politics Editor

spokesperson Derek Brownlee, hit back against the claim. He told The Telegraph: “This attack from NUS Scotland is just not credible... If we listen to NUS Scotland, then universities will face a black hole in their funding.”

Meanwhile, Scottish Conservative leader Annabel Goldie warned that failing to address higher education funding could result in 13,000 university places being scrapped by 2014.

The criticism comes less than two weeks before the Scottish Parliament elections, where higher education funding is a key issue in party manifestos. The Conservatives are the only party to have confirmed that they will introduce tuition fees. The Scottish National Party, Liberal Democrat and Labour parties have all pledged not to introduce student contributions to higher education.

The latest YouGov poll, which was released last week, put the SNP ahead in the polls with 45 per cent of those asked stating they would vote for the party in the constituency vote. Labour trailed behind with 32 per cent whilst the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats garnered 10 and 8 per cent respectively. The Scottish Parliament elections will take place on 5 May.

A REPORT BY the Fraser of Allander Institute at the University of Strathclyde has recommended that the next Scottish Government should charge for those willing to take extra places on Scottish degree courses.

The Fraser of Allander Institute report also suggested that Scots should pay a graduate contribution after leaving their institution.

Currently, the Scottish government decides how many Scots students can be enrolled in universities and pays for those places, and the Scottish Conservatives are the only political party not to rule out the policy of charging tuition fees.

The report says, as an example, that a law department with enough staff and space in lecture theatres to take 80 students would be able to take in 10 feepaying students over and above the 70 places paid for by the government.

The report’s author, Professor Jim Love, suggested private fees in line with government fees, currently between £4,000 and £16,000 a year.

The report said: “Governments could restrict themselves to being in a contract with universities to purchase given numbers of student places.

“Equally, of course, universities, as autonomous institutions, should be

The report also recommended a graduate contribution scheme able to decide whether they wish to take student numbers and fee levels as offered by government.

“Removal of control numbers and the associated clawback arrangements would allow universities to offer places on programmes to home or EU students currently denied access, provided they satisfy entry requirements.”

Edinburgh Napier University declined to comment on the issue, on the grounds that it “had not entered the tuition fee debate.”

Universities Scotland director Alastair Sim said: “There are some interesting ideas in the Fraser of Allander paper.

“But as four of the five main parties have now ruled out contributions of any kind from students or graduates, the focus now needs to be on Scotland’s politicians stepping up to the mark to find the public funding necessary to keep our Scottish universities competitive with those in England.”

He added: “Our greatest concern about another review of Scotland’s universities is that it cannot be allowed to delay the urgent need to plug the funding gap that will start to emerge between Scotland and England’s universities from next year. Preventing that from happening will need immediate action after the election.”

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Student News 9

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Students to help with TED art installation

News Shorts

Scottish public supports tuition fees

University students will help TED Award winner JR set up his installation as TED Global conference comes to Edinburgh CARSTEN TEN BRINK

Jessica Abrahams Student News Editor A GROUP OF students will help French artist JR set up his installation in the streets of Edinburgh ahead of this year’s TED international conference.

TED is a non-profit organisation that brings together experts in the fields of technology, entertainment and design to spread new and important ideas on all aspects of human life.

Its bi-annual conference, TED Global, has been held in California each spring and in Oxford each summer. This year, however, Edinburgh is set to host to the conference for the first time. The organisers have said that Edinburgh was chosen for its academic heritage, historic architecture and cultural vibrancy.

Speakers at the event have not yet been confirmed but last year’s conference included lectures from Bill Gates, Hillary Clinton and Jamie Oliver. The conference is only open to TED members, who pay an annual $6,000 fee and must demonstrate that they are a world leader in their field. It is broadcast online for free.

The TED Prize is a $100,000 fund awarded annually to an outstanding individual, intended to pool the exceptional resources of the TED community.

French graffiti artist JR's real identity remains a mystery The 2011 winner is JR, a French street artist whose full identity is unknown.

He simulates graffiti by flyposting large black and white photographs in public locations.

In the run up to TED Global, he will be creating an art installation in the streets of Edinburgh that will remain on display indefinitely. He has advertised for a workforce of 20 students from the University of Edinburgh and Edinburgh College of Art to help with the project via the Edinburgh University

Students’ Association (EUSA) volunteering office.

EUSA President Liz Rawlings, who has been liaising with JR’s team, told The Journal that the volunteers will be working in direct contact with JR as he sets up the installation during June.

Ms Rawlings said: “I’m delighted that Edinburgh students will be involved in JR’s new installation. This is an exciting opportunity for students to work with one of the world’s most innovative new street artists on a

project which will be unique to the city.”

A spokesperson for JR told The Journal that the project is still being developed and the details are due to be finalised next month. TED Global will be held at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre between 11 July and 15 July 2011.

More information about the volunteering opportunity can be found at www.eusa.ed.ac.uk/volunteering or by emailing volunteering@eusa.ed.ac.uk

Scottish universities' spin-out success Survey reveals Scottish universities' lucrative business initiatives as Heriot-Watt launches its Converge Challenge award KAYSGEOG

Polly Dallyn

SCOTLAND’S UNIVERSITIES HAVE produced more spin-out companies in the last decade than any other part of the UK, a survey has revealed.

The news comes as Edinburgh’s Heriot-Watt University launches its second annual Converge Challenge to provide business funding to a lecturer or student. The survey, conducted by internet database SpinOuts UK, looked at the commercialisation of intellectual property at institutions across the UK. The results highlight the ability of Scottish universities to transfer the discoveries of academic research projects into profitable businesses. In total, Scottish higher education institutions launched 172 firms in the last decade, 125 of which are still active.

Editor of SpinOuts UK Jonathan Harris said: “By providing this information we hope to help universities produce more successful spin-outs and commercialise more innovations and inventions, fuelling economic growth which is vital in the current economic climate.”

The University of Edinburgh created

the largest number of spin-out companies of any UK university in the last two years, with a total of 16. It has launched 49 businesses in the last ten years.

Last year, Heriot-Watt launched Converge Challenge, a dragons-den style competition where students and academics with business ideas battle it out for £43,000 worth of funding.

The prize includes business mentoring, financial and legal advice and marketing.

The competition will be running again this year with an increased prize fund. Last year’s winner was Dr Paul Henderson, a chemistry lecturer who developed technology that would enable saliva-based drug testing.

Although his product is not yet on the market, Dr Henderson told The Journal: “In this difficult economic climate winning the prize really sent me on the right track with the business plan.”

Grant Wheeler, head of company formation at Edinburgh Research and Innovation, the organisation responsible for guiding University of Edinburghbased research projects to market, told The Journal: “The current economic climate is clearly impossible to ignore, but there is a credible view offered by many that during these times of change, the

Of 172 firms launched in the last decade, 125 are still active greatest opportunities appear.

“What this demands of entrepreneurs is careful planning and analysis of markets. Making the right decisions is critical. That’s where Edinburgh Research and Innovation can help.”

Two Edinburgh-based spin-out companies have been singled out as

particular success stories. HeriotWatt’s technology firm Memex was sold to US software giant SAS for an undisclosed sum last year. The University of Edinburgh’s MTEM, another technology firm, was sold in 2007 for $275 million, less than four years after being set up.

THE MAJORITY OF the Scottish public believes that students should pay for university education, a survey has revealed.

The survey, commissioned by the Scotsman and conducted by YouGov, questioned 1,135 Scottish adults about their views on tuition fees.

Plans by the SNP, Labour and the Liberal Democrats to maintain free education at taxpayers’ expense proved unpopular, with almost two-thirds of respondents saying that universities should be funded by tuition fees or graduate contribution.

A majority of the Lib Dems, Labour and SNP supporters all preferred the Conservatives’ graduate contribution policy to the promise of free higher education, however Labour voters by only 56 per cent.

Sighthill Campus Shortlisted for RIBA Award NAPIER UNIVERSITY’S £60 million overhaul of the Sighthill Campus has been nominated for a prestigious architecture award.

The redevelopment was designed

by RMJM Architects and features simulation hospital wards, a sports hall that can recreate high altitude conditions and panoramic views of Edinburgh Castle and Arthur’s Seat.

It is one of 17 projects in Scotland shortlisted for the 2011 Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) awards.

The shortlist was selected by the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland and each project will now be visited by the RIBA judges before the panel meets in May. The RIBA Awards are considered one of the most prestigious architecture awards in the country, and they are awarded on a regional basis.

Universities fuel Scottish immigration OFFICIAL STATISTICS HAVE revealed record levels of immigration to Scotland, with international students featuring prominently in the figures.

About 21,500 more foreigners were living in Scotland last year compared with 2009, bringing the Scottish population to its highest level in 33 years.

Asylum seekers and foreign students were identified as leading factors in the growth, with overseas populations focused around Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee.

Critics are blaming the SNP’s abolition of tuition fees for fuelling immigration from the EU. The number of students from the EU studying at Scottish universities has increased by about 50 per cent since fees were abolished in 2007.

The news comes as Glasgow’s Caledonian University has been stripped of its right to recruit overseas students, after high numbers were found to be breaching visa requirements which limit the hours of paid work they can carry out.

Jessica Abrahams

EUSA GRAD BALL POSTER PRESS AD.indd 1

01/04/2011 09:55

Student Politics 11

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Edinburgh University's climate change group suffers setback

News Shorts

Transition Edinburgh University are still optimistic about future projects despite facing major budget cuts NANCY CARELS

James Johnstone

A CLIMATE CHANGE group at Edinburgh University will have to make cutbacks after its bid for more funding was deemed “too ambitious”.

The group, Transition Edinburgh University, had been granted over £350,000 from the Scottish Government’s Climate Challenge Fund over the last 18 months, but were unsuccessful in their bid for another year of funding.

The original £27 million, to be distributed through Keep Scotland Beautiful, was set up to last three years.

But after lobbying from community groups, the government granted an extra £10.2 million for this year.

Transition is a community-based project consisting of six full-time paid staff, students and dozens of volunteers who are working to create a low-carbon university. The project is committed to a number of different issues, such as climate change and oil resources.

Transition’s spokesperson David Somervell said the organisation will have to streamline its work as a result of the decision.

Speaking to The Journal last week Mr Somervell said: “We had six almost

Transition Edinburgh University failed to secure another year of Climate Change Fund grant funding full-time staff, and were able to pay nearly 20 student undergraduate interns. Inevitably, not having that extension of full-time paid commitment means that these activities will be diminished. They’ll be reduced.”

Speaking on the project’s website, events and outreach worker Ric Lander believes that “it is up to the volunteers to shape the future of the project”.

He continued: “What we’re doing is we’re looking at those parts that can

be continued on a voluntary basis and these include the Big Green Makeover.”

Mr Somervell said he was “particularly disappointed” to lose out on the money.

He added: “It’s quite difficult to read the minds of the organisation that is dispersing the funds. We felt we complied with their requirements, so I was being ironic when I said they were just spreading the money around, and not to necessarily continue funding a

successful project.

“It is particularly disappointing, but a significant number of other projects have not been extended, and a substantial number of new projects, 140 in fact, have been funded.”

Despite the cutbacks, Mr Somervell remains optimistic: ”In some ways you have to just celebrate that central Government funding - public money has been allocated to furthering other initiatives.”

Scottish Tories will not endorse NUS Reclaim Your Voice campaign A majority of the Scottish parties speak out against tuition fees whilst supporting student protesters DAVID SELBY

Hannah Raine Student Politics Editor IT EMERGED LAST week that the Scottish Conservative party will not be supporting NUS Scotland’s Reclaim Your Voice campaign. This means the Conservatives will not be following in the footsteps of their fellow rivals Labour, Scottish National Party and Scottish Greens who signed up earlier last month.

The NUS campaign is calling on politicians to continue to fight the implementation of tuition fees, improve support for students and protect graduation numbers and college places.

Showing his support for the campaign, Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray said: “I was the first person in my family to go to university and I refuse to impose additional barriers on Scotland’s next generation. Education is the single most important lever in transforming people’s lives.”

Similarly, the Scottish Green party candidate Alison Johnstone stated: “Not only will Greens oppose a return to tuition fees in Scotland, we’ll oppose a graduate tax too. There already is one, and it’s called income

QMU EDINBURGH’S QUEEN MARGARET University is celebrating this week after picking up a Gold Accreditation at the recent National Union of Students Best Bar None Awards Dinner in Manchester.

During the five-month assessment process, employees of Queen Margaret University Student Union (QMUSU) were instructed to complete a workbook and an on-site assessment was carried out by a representative of Best Bar None.

The panel found the QMUSU to be “very well run in a positive and upbeat manner. Drink, food and games are all available in well-lit and well-maintained facilities. The staff are aware of their duties and by following them the premises has a good atmosphere and is very welcoming.”

Newly-elected Michael Breckenridge will take over as QMUSU president on 10 June, and among his exciting plans for the following academic year is a complete overhaul of the rather dated student’s union bar.

EDINBURGH UNIVERSITY LAST WEEK, ELECTIONS were held at Edinburgh University Sports Union (EUSU) to choose its new president for the coming academic year.

EUSU Vice President and Men’s Hockey Captain 2010-2011 Sam Trett, believes his experience on the EUSU committee has given him a good understanding of how the union works, stating: “I would love to get the job as I am passionate about all university sport and believe I have the credentials to take sport at Edinburgh to the next level.”

Rival candidate Erik Rowbotham, EUSU Honorary Treasurer and Archery Club Ordinary Committee Member 2010-11, has 12 years of experience and numerous awards for archery. If elected, Erik promised to “recognise the specific issues and circumstances of each club and treat them accordingly… give the best service to individuals, clubs and Edinburgh University Sports Union.”

Voting closed on 28 Apri, but the results are yet to be announced.

ELECTION PLEDGES ON EDUCATION

The Scottish Conservatives are the only major Scottish party not to back the campaign tax.”

At the Edinburgh Central election hustings, held last week at Edinburgh University, SNP candidate Marco Biago agreed with Ms Johnstone, saying that the income tax is already enough of a graduate contribution.

Last month, on the day of the dissolution of parliament, students, teachers and trade unionists were

among the protesters who marched to Holyrood and rallied outside the Scottish Parliament building for support from the parties.

University of Edinburgh student Samantha Le Summer was among the protestors, and said: “I believe that education should be based on intelligence and not your parents’ income”.

The march continued in Stirling this

week, where students and staff turned out to support the campaign.

President of NUS Liam Burns described the overall response to the campaign so far as “amazing”. However, he believes that what politicians say now is only the beginning. What is more important, Mr Burns says, “is ensuring that they do the right thing after the election”.

THE SNP HAVE pledged their support to colleges to help deliver 100,000 new apprenticeships over the next four years.

The Scottish Lib Dems’ platform rejects the introduction of either tuition fees or a graduate contribution. The Scottish Conservatives have also rejected the reintroduction of fees, but support a graduate contribution.

Scottish Labour have promised to improve the transition from school to university and to work to achieve “a better student experience”, while the Scottish Greens have placed the twin aims of keeping student debt to a minimum and ending student poverty high on their agenda.

12 Editorial

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

EDINBURGH’S STUDENT NEWSPAPER

ISSUE XLVII

Picture of the Week

Electoral reform

A real alternative As The Journal arrives on campus today, fewer than 24 hours remain before polls open and the Scottish general election gets underway. We will not here issue any kind of partisan endorsement – you will vote in accordance with your personal principles, so for us to do so would be both irrelevant and inappropriate – but the election of a new government to the Scottish Parliament is only half of tomorrow’s battle.

Tacked onto the bottom of your ballot paper, you will find posed a riddle that could fundamentally alter future elections: a referendum question on whether we should replace our current simple-majority voting system with the more complex Alternative Vote.

It is a conundrum that the official Yes and No campaigns have spent months attempting to answer on your behalf, and by now it would take a miracle for you not to have been exposed to their often-garish efforts to influence your votes. Those campaigns have not been well-fought: they have become divided

largely along party lines, with an uneasy Labour-Lib Dem alliance agitating for a Yes vote and the Tories fronting the No campaign. Both sides have resorted all too easily to crude populism and scare-mongering rather than engage in an open and honest debate with the public over the virtues and vices of either system.

But the real problem is that we are deeply engrossed in entirely the wrong debate. Proponents of AV will argue that the system’s great benefit is that it stamps on a new government a more nuanced interpretation of the public will. But if that is really the goal, why are we not voting on the introduction of true proportional representation? Why are we instead limiting the discourse to a lesser-of-two-evils compromise?

The answer, unfortunately, is readily apparent: because the political parties that stand to benefit most from proportional representation are not those currently in positions of power and influence. The wavering hegemons of Labour and the Conservatives are sceptical of

PR because it threatens their pride of place in the political landscape, and even the Liberal Democrats – who have for years spearheaded the electoral reform movement – are curiously quiet on the subject because the assumptions they once held of substantial Lib Dem gains under such a system now look far more dubious.

A failed referendum on AV – which is widely seen in the public eye as some sort of stepping stone to more substantial change – will kill the electoral reform agenda for a generation. We will continue with the current pattern of governments placed in office by just 20 or 30 per cent of the electorate. Current polling suggests that AV will probably fail to pass, but we must not allow the movement for change to be so easily stifled. Rather than sleepwalking back into the status quo, students should be leading the charge for a debate on electoral reform that explores a range of options, rather than a simple Yes or No choice on those systems that the party machines give us leave to consider.

Osama bin Laden

Death of a terrorist AS THE JOURNAL went to press, we heard the news of a dawn raid in Pakistan that resulted in the death of AlQaeda leader Osama bin Laden at the hands of American soldiers. In a stern White House press conference early on Monday morning, President Barack Obama announced the news to a stunned world, and in the streets of several American cities, hundreds gathered for spontaneous celebrations. It was, we are told, justice served upon a monster; a blow struck that would dent Al-Qaeda’s ability to continue its campaign of terror. A little later on, from behind a thin facade of stoic statesmanship we saw British prime minister David Cameron and foreign secretary William Hague hail the operation as a great victory over the spectre of Al-Qaeda.

Let us be clear: Mr bin Laden was a terrorist directly responsible for unspeakable atrocities – not least the awful events of 11 September 2001 which have defined the geopolitical course of the last decade – but the glee with which many have greeted the

news of his demise is nauseating.

It cannot be denied that the events of 9/11 loom large in the American national consciousness: how could they not, when 3,000 innocent civilians were murdered in the most terrifying attack ever carried out on US soil? There is, perhaps understandably, a sense that its architect’s death brings with it some sort of symbolic closure for those affected by the attacks. But the political back-slapping and vengeful joy that have consumed much of the Western world are disgraceful for two reasons: first, because it is inhuman to take such pleasure in war, and second, because it is potentially fatally naïve.

Mr bin Laden’s death is a small victory in the poorly-monikered ‘War on Terror’. Al-Qaeda and jihadist groups like it will not be silenced by one death, no matter how senior – did the assassinations of Baitullah Masood or Abu Musab al-Zarqawi put a stop to the bloody insurgencies and terrorist attacks in Afghanistan or Iraq?

To imagine for even a moment that it

might leaves us open to an unthinkable shock.

Al-Qaeda, as any political scientist will tell you, is not a state, or even a particularly cohesive group. It cannot be fought like one. It is, instead, what is termed a ‘transnational network’: its operations are carried out by small cells that operate almost entirely autonomously, and its leaders are, at most, figureheads responsible for strategy only at a very abstract level. Mr bin Laden himself has not been ‘in command’ in any operational sense for years.

World governments should take care not to make too much of this ‘victory’: a perception of the West as entirely fixated on revenge will only serve to further alienate us from the Islamic world at a time when we desperately need a constructive dialogue rather than heavy-handed bloodletting or fearmongering rhetoric about ‘radicalisation’. A little more respect for human life and a little less time spent gulling the Western public into more mindless fear could go a long way.

Burying bad news

Below the fold ON THE MORNING of the 9/11 attacks, as the full scale of the disaster became clear, a bungling Westminster spin doctor named Jo Moore sent an ill-advised note to her Labour Party colleagues noting that it was “a good day to get out anything we want to bury.” In a moment of fitting natural irony, the email was leaked and Ms Moore was forced to publicly apologise for her outrageous insensitivity.

Last week, in rather less tragic circumstances, that ruthless spirit of

spin reared its head once again as the much-hyped royal wedding dominated successive news cycles. On the day of Prince William’s marriage to Kate Middleton, as global nuptial hysteria reached its vicarious peak, the Department of Health revealed that the 137 Foundation Trust hospitals in England and Wales would need to make “efficiency savings” of 7 per cent. The average cuts across the NHS were previously mooted at around 4 per cent.

Closer to home, meanwhile,

Edinburgh City Council admitted that the unpopular, over-budget and behindschedule tram project may only make it as far as Haymarket in the city’s west end - not St Andrew’s Square in the city centre, as originally planned.

Fortunately, neither story slipped below the press’ radar. The lesson?

Sadly, we are now so jaded that when a major story monopolises the headlines, we glance down the page knowing full well that we are likely to find bad news hidden there.

Beltane fire festival on Calton Hill by David Monteith-Hodge

Letters The Free Hetherington Is this a joke? The events reported in this article happened on the 22nd March and you're only picking up on them now?

You've also missed a key part of the story which is that after discussions with University authorities, the protestors were allowed to re-occupy the building. So the occupation wasn't "ended" by the police.

You really must try harder.

- Stuart Monro, via web

Publisher Devon Walshe Editor-in-chief Marcus Kernohan Creative Director Dorothy Butchard Design Team Joni Langdale Lisa Henderson Production Manager Bethany Ridley-Moran Picture Editor David Selby Chief subeditor Jen Owen Deputy Editor (News) Megan Taylor

Good to see that the 4 week delay didn't change the article at all. It would have been terrible to read something from a current perspective which might have added something on top of The Guardian, The Herald, Scotsman, BBC, STV, Subcity, GUST et al’s coverage - Glasgow Hack, via web Editor’s note: the version of this story originally published on the website was an early draft which failed to mention that the occupation had restarted the day after the eviction.

We apologise for the error.

General News Amanda Svensson Falk Local News Melissa Wong National Politics Jonathan Baldie Academic News Lily Panamsky Student News Jessica Abrahams Student Politics Al Innes Deputy Editor (Comment & Features) Richard MartynHemphill Comment Joe Coward Features Alexa Caldecott Interview/Profile Robbie Marwick

Theatre Amy Taylor Art Matthew Macaulay Comedy Emily Carson Food & Drink Ben Kendall Music Saskia RothsteinLongaretti Fashion Jessica Heggie Deputy Editors (Sport) Jamie Timson, Mark Simpson, Sean Gibson Subeditors Jenny Kassner, Greg Bianchi

Deputy Editor (Arts & Entertainment) João Abbott-Gribben

Incensed, interested or confused?

Write to us at editor@journal-online.co.uk

Comment 13

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Comment Discussion&Debate

Big choices, high stakes

The head of the University of Edinburgh's Institute of Governance explores the likely outcomes of this week's Scottish parliamentary election.

DAVID SELBY

Nicola McEwen Co-director Institute of Governance

A

ND SO SCOTLAND goes to the polls once again on Thursday.

We all have an opportunity to elect the new Scottish Parliament. But what is at stake? The answer to that question depends on which of the two main contenders you ask.

For the Scottish National Party, this election is first and foremost about electing a Scottish Government. The party is standing on its record in government over the last four years, with the central campaign slogan asking voters to “Re-Elect” the SNP to continue in government. Above all, for the SNP, the contest is about electing a First Minister, and the party’s campaign continually pits Alex Salmond against Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray, as the best candidate to fulfil that role.

In contrast, the Scottish Labour Party’s campaign has been conducted against the spectre of a Tory-led government at Westminster. The opening page of the Labour manifesto declares: “Now that the Tories are back, we need a Government in Scotland that will fight for what really matters.” Buoyed by successive polls in the run-up to the campaign that suggested they had a comfortable lead over their SNP rivals, Labour clearly thought they could repeat their message – and success – in last year’s Westminster election in Scotland. In 2010, Labour’s vote may have crumbled elsewhere in the UK, but in Scotland the party retained a stranglehold on Scotland’s Westminster representation, holding all their seats and increasing their share of the vote. The message then, as now, being – when the Tories govern the UK, only Labour can defend Scotland.

There are two main explanations for these contrasting interpretations of what is at stake. First, the SNP knows that Alex Salmond is more popular than Iain Gray as a candidate for First Minister. Poll after poll has indicated that Salmond is better recognised and better rated on most leadership characteristics than Iain Gray. The SNP’s rise up the opinion polls suggests that turning the election into an almost presidentialstyle contest for the office of First Minister seems to have borne fruit. With less than a week before polling day, the SNP now has a commanding lead over their Labour rivals in the opinion polls.

For Labour’s part, they have banked on this election being what, in political

science, we refer to as a second order election. Second order elections – which could include by-elections, municipal elections, European parliamentary elections as well as some regional elections – are deemed to be of secondary importance, with voters perceiving there to

be ‘less at stake’ in the outcome. As a result, turnout is usually lower while those who do participate are often more inclined to give their support to smaller parties, or crucially, to use their vote to protest against national government. It is this latter aspect of the second order

theory which is reflected in Labour’s campaign strategy.

This seems to have been a misjudgement on Labour’s part. Most academic analyses suggest that regional elections in strong territorial regions, where people feel a strong sense of territorial

identity, and governments can exercise significant policy autonomy, are not primarily second order elections. The Scottish Parliament has given Scotland a greater voice in the Union, but it is more a vehicle for expressing Scottish distinctiveness than for protesting against the UK government. The government of Scotland has significant decision-making authority over a wide range of public policies and public services, including education, health, criminal justice, local government finance and many more. The performance of the Scottish government and the decisions it takes matter to voters in Scotland.

There are those who may use the election to express their opposition to the UK coalition government. But, in Scotland as elsewhere in the UK, it is the Liberal Democrats rather than the Conservatives who appear to be paying the price. Moreover, polls suggest that the SNP may stand to benefit more than Labour from an apparent decline in the Liberal Democrats vote share.

The outcome, however, is far from certain. The SNP and Labour are the only parties with a realistic chance of winning this election. But there are three more parties competing to maintain or increase their share of seats in the parliament – the Scottish Conservatives, the Scottish Liberal Democrats and the Scottish Green Party. In addition, a host of other smaller parties and independent candidates are standing, including Lothian’s Margo Macdonald, competing for her fourth term as an MSP. These parties and candidates are important. Their share of the vote in constituencies and, especially in the regional list, can have a significant effect on the prospects for success of the big two. The regional vote – often called the ‘second vote’ - should not be seen as a second preference, as it is this vote which is used to determine the share of seats that a party should be allocated in parliament.

Furthermore, as a form of proportional representation, the mixed member system used to elect members of the Scottish Parliament makes single party majority governments highly unlikely. Single party minority governments or majority coalition governments are the norm. The smaller parties can therefore influence policy-making either on the opposition benches in parliament, or potentially as a junior partner in a coalition with the winning party.

There is, then, much at stake in this election and all to play for, whatever your political preferences. I hope Edinburgh university students will turn out in big numbers to make your voices heard.

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Feature 15

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

The Alternative Vote: is now the time for electoral reform?

Current opinion polling suggests a massively divided public on the question of electoral reform, as the No campaign continue to slowly garner a lead. But what is the real impact of the Alternative Vote, and how would it affect our representation?

James Turley

THE REFERENDUM WHICH will be presented to the British public on 5 May is one of the few opportunities in which we are able to participate directly in the democratic process. Politicians and political activists alike have seized upon the current public uncertainty advocating either the preservation of the current electoral system First-pastthe-post (FPTP) or the introduction of the Alternative Vote (AV). However, the chance to shape our political future should not be taken lightly, and this important question merits an impartial reflection on AV’s potential for change.

AV does not represent an alien concept to the British public. Whereas voters select a single candidate under FPTP, under AV candidates are ranked numerically in order of preference.

Each MP must win at least 50 per cent of the votes in their constituency in order to win the seat. If no candidate is successful after the distribution of first preference votes, the least popular candidate is eliminated.

Those voters supporting this candidate have their votes transferred to their second preference. The process is subsequently repeated until a single candidate achieves the 50 per cent requirement. Voters are therefore able to award their vote to their preferred candidate, safe in the knowledge that if they are eliminated their vote will still influence the final outcome.

The obvious difference under AV is that each elected MP would be able to claim an overall majority of support in their constituency, an advantage currently enjoyed by 34 per cent of MPs. Aside from this, both electoral systems are structurally quite similar. AV would continue to produce a single MP for each constituency, safeguarding the British parliamentary tenet of specific, local accountability between the public and their elected representatives. Secondly, contrary to assertions made by the ‘No’ campaign AV would maintain the principle of one person, one vote.

Votes may be transferred but never multiplied. In a similar fashion, any difference in electoral results under AV would be distinctly moderate.

The Australian experience of AV over the last century has produced a markedly stable political system, much like our own. In light of this, AV does not constitute proportional representation and to that end, would not rectify the inequalities present in the current system. Parties such as UKIP and the BNP would continue to be excluded from Parliament as they do not enjoy the widespread support necessary to surpass the 50 per cent quorum. In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland it would be expected that the results for nationalist parties would remain

AV referendum:

Vote intention by age

If it were held tomorrow how would you vote?

Yes

No 41%

59%

51%

49%

60%

40%

67%

33%

18 - 24 25 - 39 40 - 59 60 +

Yes: 41%

No: 59%

Vote intention by party No 41% 51% Liberal Democrats

60%

Total

Yes 59% Conservatives 49% 40%

Labour

Yes: 47%

No: 53%

Yes: 38%

No: 62% Yes: 42% No: 58%

Yes: 39%

Yes: 45%

No: 61%

No: 55%

Source: YouGov

largely unaffected. The most notable effect of AV is its ability to more fairly represent the Liberal Democrats, awarding them with a proportion of seats which their popular support merits. As the Liberal Democrats are a centrist party they would be most likely to win second preference votes

The obvious difference under AV is that each elected MP would be able to claim an overall majority of support in their constituency, an advantage currently enjoyed by 34 per cent of MPs. which may benefit them in closely run seats. However, any gains made would be relatively small. Research conducted

by David Sanders at Exeter University suggests that the Liberal Democrats would have won only 32 extra seats, at the expense of the Conservatives and Labour.

Whilst minor parties may not directly benefit from the introduction of AV, experience in Australia suggests that the system encourages cooperation between parties. Due to the 50 per cent requirement, larger parties often engage with smaller parties offering them certain policy concessions in return for the second preference votes of their supporters. This would facilitate an informal negotiation process prior to general elections, fostering collaboration between parties.

The potential gains associated with electoral reform makes the political wrangling surrounding this debate inevitable. However, the reality of the situation is quite straightforward. A ‘No’ vote on the 5th will preserve a system which although flawed, is at the heart of the world’s oldest parliamentary democracy. A ‘Yes’ vote for AV represents a moderate reform option for British politics, maintaining the core principles of our democracy whilst altering the electoral system to better reflect the contemporary political environment of cooperation.

Arts & Entertainment 17

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

The TheJournal JournalOn On the the horizon horizon

Feature

THEATRE

Tallest Man on Earth

05/05/11

Welcome to Hotel Caledonia TRAVERSE THEATRE

The Trav present their second election special, after Gordon Brown - A Life in Theatre, directed by David Greig

7 - 9 MAY

The Great Lafayette Festival FESTIVAL THEATRE

An exhibition celebrating the work of Marcus Adams, who depicted generations of royal children overturning the long established tradition of formal royal portraiture.

COMEDY

The Swedish songwriter is head and shoulders above the rest

14/05/11

Dom Joly: Welcome to Wherever I Am

MATT PERICH

QUEEN’S HALL, £21

Dom Joly invites you to catch a glimpse of his bizarre universe before you are squinting through tears of laughter.

The Festival Theatre Edinburgh 12/05/11 presents a weekend of events to commemorate the centenary anni- The Thursday Show versary of the death of the infamous THE STAND, £8 (£7/£4) magician, The Great Lafayette.

Paul Tonkinson, Steven Dick, Toby Hadoke and Andrew Learmonth 9 -10 MAY form the cream of host Scott Bank of Scotland Agnew’s crop.

Imaginate Festival VARIOUS

SUNDAY 8TH MAY

Sixteen of the world’s finest shows for children and young people will feature across seven venues in the Capital and beyond, between Monday 9th and Sunday 15th May

Dan Clark

Cheeky comedian mixes stand-up with comic songs performed with his live band.

19 - 20 MAY

CLUBS

The Interminable Suicide of Gregory Church TRAVERSE THEATRE

The Traverse’s most popular writer and performer, Daniel Kitson returns to the Traverse with his Fringe First Award-winning show from 2009.

ART UNTIL 3 JULY

Jeff Koons

THE SCOTTISH NATIONAL GALLERY OF MODERN ART, FREE

QUEEN’S HALL, £15

07/05/11

Big n Bashy

BONGO CLUB PRICE TBC

New night of chart music, featuring dubstep, indie and electro

14/05/11

Bedbug

CABARET VOLTAIRE PRICE TBC

Trouble and Wolfjazz team up for a night of hip-hop

11/05/11

Badlands

SNEAKY PETES, FREE ENTRY Jeff Koons is one of the world’s most commercially successful art- Reggae music from P Selector ists, but does that necessarily mean his art is any good? You can decide.

MUSIC

UNTIL 10 JULY

05/05/11

Artist Rooms: August Sander

David Ford

August Sander has dedicated his life to photographing the German people, and his work forms a fascinating social document. Well worth more than a look.

Sounds pretty damn good on his myspace, and probably even better in real life- check it out.

DEAN GALLERY, FREE

UNTIL 1 MAY

French Drawings: Poussin to Seurat

NATIONAL GALLERY COMPLEX, FREE

From its first showing at the Wallace Collection in London an eclectic exhibition of French drawing comes to Edinburgh.

UNTIL 17 JULY

Ruth Maclennan Anarcadia STILLS, FREE

CABARET VOLTAIRE, £12 (STANDING)

13/05/11

Mariza

USHER HALL £25 (£21)

Leading Portuguese ‘Fado’ singer, a rare example of traditional and contemporary poetry-to-song from across the sea, the essence of bittersweet.

14/05/11

Headlight (Curators) WEE RED BAR (£TBC)

Indie rock from Glasgow and Aberdeen, a good taste of Scotland.

19/05/11

I Spy Strangers

New film and series of photographs THE STORE (£TBC) made among the desert expanses of Birmingham five-piece ready to Kazakhstan. blow your tiny mind with rock straight from the sea (and theain’t UNTIL SUNDAY 5 JUNE no candy about it)

Marcus Adams: Royal Photographer THE QUEENS GALLERY, £5 (STUDENT)

Caption

Adam Gavshon Brady

K

RISTIAN MATSSON, A.K.A. ‘The Tallest Man on Earth’, is statistically quite a short one, measuring in at a mere 5”7. However, if you believe the Washington Post, “Size is not a measure of dimensions but of presence; and in this regard, Matsson looms large indeed”. The misnomer adds a degree of earnestness to him that the lonesome predicaments described in his songs and his face (reminiscent of Emile Hirsch in ‘Into the Wild’) confirm. Matsson’s music betrays a seemingly insecure man’s innermost thoughts. This is a man who questions the idea of love, who is a sponge to his surrounding Scandinavian countryside and who lithely emotes and easily moves his listener. A modern-day guitar-wielding Wordsworth, if you will.

Matsson is from Leksand, a tiny town of under 6,000 people in Central Sweden. Perhaps this contributes to the intangible quality of his music. Cryptic lyrics perhaps purposely conceal the route to universal accessibility; they attest to the more microscopic and fantastical elements of his world: “Once I held a pony by its flying mane / And once I called the shadow in the turning game.”

There is a definite naivety and youthful innocence to Matsson’s music. Seldom written down, and performed as a way of narrating ancient myths and extra-ordinary experiences: for me, this is the fundamental idea of national folk music. However, Matsson refutes the idea that he’s a folk singer:

according to a 2010 interview, he prefers to remain “indefinable”.

He never gives away the meaning behind his lyrics, but prefers the listener to attribute their own implications and experiences to what he sings.

However the wider support of this elusive elfin man is anything but ethereal. His support is huge in the USA, and he is signed to the independent American label ‘Dead Oceans’. He has supported Bon Iver and is friendly with frontman Justin Vernon. His fan base in the UK is correspondingly increasing, with a gig at Stereo in Glasgow in November 2010 and an upcoming gig at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London (19 May). His debut album ‘Shallow Grave’ (2008) is a masterpiece and the follow up ‘The Wild Hunt’ (2010) compares strongly, though the tidier and more sophisticated sound is not quite so harrowingly beautiful.

‘The Wild Hunt’ is just Matsson and a guitar, occasionally featuring a piano, banjo or ukulele, and the effect produces a sparse and raw record; under produced, but that’s OK. The songs from ‘Shallow Grave’ seem to tumble effortlessly from his mouth, accompanied by remarkably agile finger-picking and meticulously rhythmic strumming. I think the most notable tracks lie right in the middle of the album, forming a satisfying peak. On track 4, a tinny chromatic introduction from the banjo conjures up a delicate and vulnerable sound in direct contrast to the punchier blues of the preceding ‘Honey Won’t You Let Me In’.

This is followed by ‘Where Do My Bluebirds Fly’, where we journey to a dark world in which Mattson declares to his unknown subject: “I

could drown in your kerosene eyes”, vividly envisioning the oily falsity of unrequited love. The album is studded with beautiful images like this. Though occasionally incomprehensible, the confident delivery and compatibility with the lyrical nature of his music only adds to the mournful tone.

There have been many trite parallels drawn between Matsson and Bob Dylan, commenting on their similarly raspy voices and the poetic yet sometimes nonsensical lyrics. Matsson has admitted Dylan’s influence but has also tried, as any artist would, to separate himself from this kind of judgment.

Ironically, his second album ‘The Wild Hunt’ reached #16 in NPR Music’s ‘Best Pick of 2010’, while Dylan’s most recent offering only made #52. If we must compare, then I reckon ‘The Tallest Man on Earth’ is an updated version of what a man with a guitar should sound like. I am still surprised by the originality of his chord sequences and the manner in which his words transcend an objective representation of emotion.

There is such vast depth and mystery to his music, lyrics and performance that I feel there is plenty more to discover about him.

Matsson’s sunken eyes have that inscrutable quality indicative of a typical artist genius. His aloofness makes you want to know more, and yet still desire him to remain an enigma in order to preserve the sanctity of his talent. His music is often instantly gratifying and at the same time unyieldingly saddening. While there is no doubt he can sometimes be difficult, he is also endlessly rewarding for those prepared to meet the challenge.

18 Arts & Entertainment

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Art

Theatre

Music

Ruth Maclennan: Anarcadia

Alice

Bonobo

Scottish Ballet's Alice fuses a strange soundtrack and awkward movement with disappointing results

Live Show or Light Show?

Anarcadia documents the revitalising and destructive effects of human activity on nature

Alexandra Wingate

RUTH MACLENNAN

AFTER CRITICAL ACCLAIM with their New Year run of Cinderella, Scottish Ballet are back with their long-anticipated Spring tour of Alice, a take on Lewis Carroll’s classic tales.

But far from the warm and familiar fantasies so vividly brought to life through the imagination of generations, Scottish Ballet’s production is stark, harsh, and rather dry.

Choreographer Ashley Page is famous for his modern, almost severe style. While his choreography is strong and instantly recognisable, it doesn’t feel like he’s giving his audience anything new. The dancers are often presented in lines of four, each dancing independently but in unison with an absence of stand-out movements to really differentiate each dance. An awkward feeling of necessity to follow and explain the story dominates at times, and the focus sometimes drifts too strongly into mimed and unnecessary acting than self-explanatory dancing.

Robert Moran’s specially-commissioned contemporary score is a million miles from anything typically associated with ballet. Full of syncopated rhythms and sudden flourishes of seemingly-random instrumentals, choreographing and staying in time with it is no doubt incredibly difficult. Nevertheless, any challenges should be met with unwavering competence.

Unfortunately, the rigid and

João Abbott-Gribben

VENUE: STILLS

Arts & Entertainment Editor

DATES: 9 APR 2011 - 17 JUL 2011

TRADITIONALLY, ARCADIA’S ASSOCIATIONS are with an idyllic land in Greece where humans’ simple pastoral life leaves them constantly content, and nature unspoiled. The addition of the prefix ‘an’, meaning ‘without’, creates the show’s title, that of the film inside, and sets the tone for a meditation on the result of mankind’s absence from nature, as well as the desolation caused by our exhaustive activity within it.

The show starts with a series of photographs; pretty enough but serving more effectively as a tie-in to the 35 minute film in the back room. They depict the ruins that human activity leaves behind, as well as scenes of rocky mountains and deserts: the sterility of the latter matches that of the ruins, inviting the concept of whether, despite our continual destruction of it, our existence provides nature with a meaning it would lack without sentient thought to appreciate it.

This theme is perpetuated in the film. In it, an archaeologist and a resource surveyor are documented moving through the boundless steppes of Kazakhstan. The archaeologist’s preoccupation with the histories and remnants of human activity is contraposed with the surveyor’s fascination with the chemical and geological processes that all human

PRICE: FREE activities are inevitably reduced to.

As much as both world views are romantic and compelling, they also ring hollow. One cannot help but feel their fascination with the distant human past or the unforeseeable geological future prevents a full engagement with the living present.

The movement between these is articulated by measured panning shots of the steppes’ unbroken horizon, which is further punctuated by close-ups of settlement ruins. The finest example of this marks the movement from the distant precipitation of a leviathan blue cloud, to the ruins’ microscopic crumbling aridity.

The sublimity of the landscape is undeniable - as is its barrenness. It is unfortunate then, that the nobility of the images is regularly interrupted by what has to be a didgeridoo, an instrument guaranteed to wrench one out of any serious thought and into recollections of hippy films about a bland flower-powered unification of man, culture and nature.

However the vast sky and land still give the viewer space, even in the short time of 35 minutes, to let their thoughts wander near the clearly lofty heights of the film’s ambitions.

precise nature of the choreography means that every timing issue or outof-sync movement is glaringly obvious – and there are so many that it all feels very under-rehearsed, and more like an early dress rehearsal than a mid-tour performance.

Antony McDonald’s set is typically grand and colourful, but set against the ominously plain black background it becomes overly stark at times. The exception is the wonderfully detailed and manic kitchen scene, complete with a smoking redhot oven and baby that ‘magically’ transforms into a piglet.

The highlight of the production has to be McDonald’s beautifully envisioned costumes, which work wonders to bring the characters to life. It’s the most disturbing outfits that add most to the feeling of childlike fantasy in this production, like the hideously grotesque Humpty Dumpty with a fried-egg for a bald head, a bloating belly and oversized bottom. But it is the Jabberwock who truly personifies horror, completed by his menacing face-covering black cube hat, bloodied chest and axe that drags slowly and heavily behind him.

Whilst Scottish Ballet should be congratulated for once again creating a new production full of grand ideas and ambition, one can’t help but feel that somewhere in the production or rehearsal line something didn’t quite tie together.

VENUE: FESTIVAL THEATRE DATES: WED 20 - SAT 23 APRIL PRICE: £10.00 - £37.50

Saskia Longaretti Music Editor BONOBO EMERGE ONSTAGE to achingly long bass notes that reverberate my sternum, the drums lay down something seriously nice and we’re off. A slow start, but the crowd is already whooping like Will’s on sax and Kate’s on trumpet. Collaborator Ruby Wood is summoned onstage to thrill the crowd with her mellow ‘ooh oooh oooohs’ and Shirley Basseyesque hand movements while frontman Simon Green plays mostly flute in addition to alto and tenor sax, electronic equipment and the oboe.

The band is tight and the sound is extremely rich and mellow.

The lighting is noticeably amazing; five vertical bulb-studded strips line the stage, moodily illuminating the band through the layers of misty vapour that enshrouds them throughout. Evolving impressively, the light show both enhances the music and, in pink and red, glorifies the band (whose stage presence is otherwise nonexistent). Mostly, however, the lighting is the most exciting part. Sadly no amount of guest vocalists, instrument changes, spotlights or swirling mist can disguise the fact that this is essentially lounge jazz. It was in 2004 that mastermind Green decided to take his critically acclaimed music to the stage; I’m just not sure why he did. Although I’m positive the whole audience would roundly disagree and cry ‘triphop’, to my ears, Bonobo is background music.

That’s not to say they don’t have their moments (if lacking crescendos). When the luxuriously laidback Wood croons alongside electronic noise and the light pulses, Bonobo start to sound like a psychedelic trip to paradise. Thick, heavy bass seeps through the cracks; trumpet and flute tango with steps as sultry as an Argentinean and the drums show what they’re made of with a heartstopping solo.

When each musician isn’t fighting for breathing space, the set shines.

And just when we thought it was over, sax and drums reappear to battle it out, blow for blow, as a spotlight ricochets between them. Green samples himself repeatedly with a pedal until the band descend to end as they began, with rapturous applause.

VENUE: HMV PICTUREHOUSE DATES: FRIDAY 22 APRIL PRICE: £15

EDMUND FRASER - LIGHTS OUT COLLECTIVE

Arts & Entertainment 19

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

EUAN MYLES

Theatre

Music

Pandas

Metronomy

Rona Munro's latest play finds love in some of Edinburgh's most recognisable places

You can Metronome any day

Kate Adams

SCOTTISH PLAYWRIGHT RONA Munro’s profile could not be bigger at the moment; the Ken Loach directed film Oranges and Sunshine for which she wrote the screenplay is on national release in cinemas and the opening of her play, Little Eagles, at London’s Hampstead Theatre is in the same week as the premier of her new romantic comedy thriller Pandas, at Edinburgh’s Traverse Theatre.

Directed by Rebecca Gatward, Pandas is set against the backdrop of spring time on the meadows. Lin Han (Crystal Yu) and Jie-Hui (Siu Hun Li) have met for the first time after exchanging hundreds of e-mails and are discussing the prospect of falling in love. At the same time jaded policeman James (Phil McKee) and his wife Julie’s (Vicky Liddelle) relationship crumbles as she leaves him for a dodgy dealer in Chinese rugs.

Things start to get more complicated however as Jie-Hui’s business partner Andy (Keith Fleming) is shot

Harriet Braine

and hospitalised and his ex-girlfriend Madeline (Meg Fraser) a passionate entomologist – that’s the study of “wee beasties” to you and me - is brought in for questioning by James.

Although at first it seems that this may be just your average romantic comedy, Pandas is an incredibly funny play with such highlights as Madeline’s hilarious confession of both her crime and her sexual fantasy into a tape recorder whilst left alone in a police interview room, and Andy’s outof-body experience in hospital.

Designer Liz Cooke has created a

beautiful and fluid set with paperylooking cherry trees which at certain key points have cherry blossoms projected on to them, and when real cherry blossoms cascade from the ceiling at the end of the play, the effect is visually stunning. The same too can be said of the lighting and sound design (by Colin Grenfell and John Harris respectively) as although subtle these elements are, they underscore and highlight the mood of the piece effectively.

The characters are believable and the performances genuine, although

sometimes you get the feeling that the way that all these characters are linked to each other is a little too convenient. Equally, the ending seems a touch on the predictable side, with the play not yet feeling quite complete.

Overall however, like the panda waiting for its perfect mate to pass, this production is definitely one worth climbing out of the trees for.

VENUE: TRAVERSE THEATRE DATES: TUE 19 APRIL - SAT 7 MAY PRICE: £14.00 - £16.00 (£10.00 - £12.00)

Theatre

Somersaults SHRAVEN SAMURAI

Iain Finlay MacLeod probes the death of Scotland's mother tongue in this moving drama Caroline Bottger

I POPPED ALONG to see Metronomy with a friend who is a real-and-trueabsolute fan of theirs. She’s asked me to listen to them a million times - but no one ever does that unless you’re forcibly sat down and made to, right?

Turns out this isn’t a problem with Metronomy. They make a great and sexy first impression live, and soon I’m belting out the lyrics as if I’d been an avid listener since 2007 (when they first appeared with this line-up).

Besides the music, what’s new to me (but immediately appreciated) are the band’s trademark ‘beating heart’ disk-lights pinned to their shirts, flashing in time to the music. Very good.

If you’re a sucker for the kind of jerky rhythms that make one want to gyrate, Metronomy provide well in this area. Though under-prepared, the heavy bass introduction to ‘Heartbreaker’ has me pretty much as excited as is physically possible. Not to mention the rest of the crowd, who are going crazy - they already know what they are in for. Catchy doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Listening hard to the music, I find the more moody parts of the set, (‘We Broke Free’ from their recent album ‘The English Riviera’) more pleasing than their earlier Hot Chip-esque stuff.

Listening on at home, I can see that it might eventually begin to grate. However, they do a seriously cool thing live and their show is worth the price of a ticket any day.

VENUE: CABARET VOLTAIRE

WHEN A JOKE is told in the theatre and only two people laugh, the consensus is that it probably wasn’t a good joke. However, in Somersaults, the newest play by Gaelic playwright Iain Finlay Macleod, the circumstances have changed. The joke is in Gaelic, and the joke is on us.

The number of people who speak Gaelic as their mother tongue is shrinking, and Macleod explores this through the experiences of James (Tony Kearney), the death of his father (Angus Peter Campbell), and the simultaneous disappearance of his mother tongue, Gaelic.

James (Kearney) is lucky. He left home, went to Cambridge, married Alison (Frances Grey), settled down in an expensive London flat, but of course, he is dissatisfied. He cannot remember the Gaelic for “somersault”.

DATES: MONDAY 25 APRIL 2011 PRICE: £12.75

He is losing his mother tongue. He is forgetting other words, even words which only exist in Gaelic.

What begins as one man’s story becomes the story of 56,000 people in Scotland who still have a link to this ancient language. One could argue that the story is a cliché: man has all, man loses all, man finds redemption.

The debate over Gaelic has certainly seen better days. In spite of all this, Somersaults works. It works so well, it keeps its audience transfixed even when it veers off into moralistic territory by the end.

However, the reaction to the loss of one’s mother tongue is so emotionally fraught that morality is inescapable. Kearney is a convincing, powerful leading man, and injects psychological realism into a piece which embraces avant-garde staging so fully.

However, despite the best efforts of Grey and Power, the secondary characters remain distinctly secondary and unlikable, which feels reductionist for such a smart play. John Ramage and Angus Peter Campbell are masters of composure, and act as

believable anchors when the play gets overly emotional.

The platform stage closes the gap between the audience and the actors, but scenes in Gaelic between James and his father cleverly keep us at a distance. Overall, this is a good production which gracefully alters perspectives on such a politicised, personal issue.

VENUE: TRAVERSE THEATRE DATES: THU 10 - SAT 19 MARCH PRICE: £8.00 - £12.00

20 Food & Drink

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

FOOD&DRINK

Great Scott's!

CLUBS

The Egg

Lovable little Deli in the heart of Bruntsfield

An egg-cellent night out Rebecca Monks

Tabitha Standish-Hayes

THERE ARE A number of words I could use to describe Scott’s Deli. One is ‘lovely’, though that isn’t exceptionally descriptive. Another would be ‘cosmopolitan’; however this may present the wrong image, as Scott’s has few similarities with the cocktail. Instead, perhaps the best word to embody this place is ‘fresh’.

Everything about this charming delicatessen is bright and invigorating. The walls, painted vivid green lend a fresh and summery feel. The menus emphasise that all food is fresh, as does the variety of food at the deli counter, all of which is either prepared that morning or right in front of you.

The range of food here is impressive. There are a large number of ingredients on offer for sandwiches and salads: roasted peppers, artichokes, fresh salad vegetables, a decent selection of

cheeses (including my one true love, Applewood smoked cheddar), cold meats and sauces, which pretty much guarantee an excellent lunch. There are a number of hot meals on offer too, including a selection of tarts and soups; I would especially recommend the potato and spring onion tortilla, which is both filling and gorgeously flavoursome – I wish I had the recipe.

The sweet options are equally tasty, with classics like millionaire shortbread on offer alongside more exciting options such as fruit tarts and cake pops (cake on a stick – what genius!). Another asset is the large number of meat-free options; vegetarians will really appreciate having a choice comparable to that of carnivores for once, and said carnivores will be pleasantly surprised by the amount of flavour discoverable in a vegetarian dish.

However, as fantastic as the food is, what sets Scott’s apart from other similar establishments is the friendly

atmosphere. The staff are laid-back and happy, something that doesn’t seem to couple with delicatessens too often, and the place is also exceptionally accommodating to families. The newly-opened Bear Cave downstairs is devoted to entertaining children, complete with a slide, big squishy teddy bears and, best of all, a ball pit.

It is honestly so much fun I would be more than willing to regress a couple of decades just to spend all of my time down there.

There is seating space in the Bear Cave too, so parents can keep an eye on their kids as they have lunch. If ballpits aren’t your cup of tea, the seating on ground level is both plentiful and relaxed. It also has free wi-fi, making it the perfect place to spend a long lunch hour or three.

You can probably tell I’m enamoured, and I make no apologies for this. Scott’s Deli is definitely worth a visit if you are in the area, and as I am, I intend to make the most of it.

Clubs Editor SATURDAY NIGHTS IN Edinburgh have always been tricky for students. With the exception of some choice classic favourites, namely regular evenings at The Hive and the Big Cheese, door and drink prices make an affordable night out virtually impossible. Though The Big Cheese is famous for its sentimental qualities - mostly bottles of VK, blinding venue lights and a regular homage to Journey - The Egg at The Wee Red Bar offers an interesting alternative student union night that ought to be equally as popular.

As frequenters of the egg will know, the night flashes by in a flurry of red stripe, red lighting and a requestfriendly DJ. The decks are skilfully spun with a variety of musical genres, including 60’s, 70’s indie, electro and northern soul. The Wee Red Bar in itself is a small environment which encourages an easy evening of simple

enjoyment. It is unpretentious in its approach to clubbing, with drinks served from the can, and a simple eggcovered curtain separating the dance floor from the seating area. The room is littered with enormous couches and vintage game machines, creating an edgy yet familiar haunt for student clubbers to relax and enjoy.

As a union venue, it offers a comfortably cheap yet coolly classy environment. It is an affordable alternative to many indie and electro nights, and rivals Cabaret Voltaire and The Caves for its impressive quality evening without the usual Saturday night entry prices. The DJ is willing to take requests, and the familiarity of the surroundings makes it a low-key and original night out that should become a regular Saturday night haunt. For those in search of a more interestingly eclectic weekend club night, the Wee Red Bar is the place to be. For a cheap, cheerful and gloriously understated evening, it’s highly recommended.

FOOD&DRINK

Cellar Door The Journal visits an old favourite with a new look Caroline Bottger

TABITHA STANDISH-HAYES

THE CELLAR DOOR has a special place in my heart. It used to be the Olive Branch, and it was at the Olive Branch that I had my first date with my first, actual, long-term, you’re-crazy-but-Idon’t-mind boyfriend. Unfortunately, the Olive Branch went under and the Cellar Door replaced it. If I’d had to write about the Olive Branch, I probably wouldn’t have remembered a thing because I was so focused on how sweaty my feet were and how freaked out I was that a boy wanted to go on a date with me.

Anyway, I digress. The Cellar Door is a charming, understated restaurant, a welcome alternative to the Outsider which is just across the street. The décor is a little awkward, and the staff a little overbearing, but these are small points. It is nice to be taken care of in

a city where the service can sometimes feel slightly alienating. Another downside, depending on your point of view, is its popularity; it’s turned me away (through no fault of my own, I was sober and wearing all my clothes) twice due to overcapacity. The prices are on the slightly higher end of the student budget, but this makes it ideal for a date or a parents’ visit.

The food is a mite unimaginative: burgers, steak and potatoes for the omnivores; risotto for the vegetarians.

However, the food is actually good. Due to the sheer amount of restaurants in Edinburgh which serve this fare, the Cellar Door has to differentiate itself and it succeeds. The emphasis is on good-quality meat – beef, lamb, chicken – and fine wine. The Cellar Door prides itself in its use of fresh, first-rate ingredients, and this may translate into higher prices on the menu, but it also translates into a highly enjoyable dining experience.

Cask Ale Hobgoblin, Deuchars IPA & Guest Ale Addlestones Premium Cloudy Cider Student Discount On All Food Including Our Famous “Big Nachos” Metal, Punk & Goth Jukebox Find Us In CAMRA’s 2011 Good Beer Guide! www.theauldhoose.co.uk 23-25 St. Leonard’s Street, Edinburgh EH8 9QN ELLA BAVALIA

Fashion 21

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Vi Nouveau: Vintage Reworked The Journal meets Zoe Radcliffe, one of the creative minds behind up and coming Edinburgh brand Vi Nouveau

Anna Warren

F

OR VINTAGE LOVERS and fashion fanatics, look no further than new Edinburgh based designers, Vi Nouveau. Vi Nouveau was established in 2010 by two friends, Fiona Scott and Zoe Radcliffe, who share a love for vintage styling, fashion and design.

Fresh out of fashion school these girls have an eye for vintage gems and unique treasures. So what do Vi Nouveau have to offer? They provide bespoke, tailored vintage clothing, customising as well as revamping older styles to create beautiful oneoff pieces.

Vi Nouveau are firm believers in giving clothing a second chance and aim to transform worn out pieces back to their former glory, if not better! If this sounds like something that takes your fancy, get in there quick; these girls are in popular demand after their recent styling of Charlie Miller, Austin Thompson and Harley Davidson shoots, as well as keeping their online shop stocked with revamped vintage beauties. And if this isn’t enough for all you fashionblogging lovers out there, Vi Nouveau also run an online blog keeping you up to date with their new shoots and the inside scoop on the latest designers in the world of vintage and ethical fashion. I was lucky enough to meet up with Scott and Radcliffe in order to gain some inside information on the label and the world of all things vintage.

Where did you study and what became your inspiration for the business?

Could you tell us a bit more about Vi Nouveau and what clothes you have to offer? Also most importantly how can we get our hands on your clothes?

Vi Nouveau is an online store

LAWRENCE WINRAM

Radcliffe: I started studying Fashion and Textile Design at Edinburgh’s Telford College, which secured me a place in second year to study Fashion Design at Edinburgh College Of Art. Fiona studied Politics at Edinburgh University, and as much as she enjoyed aspects of the degree and her time at University, decided that Politics wasn’t for her in the long run and instead would try to turn a love for fashion into a career of some sort.

Shortly after graduating both Fiona and myself became high street store managers for a couple of years before taking the scary yet well-overdue plunge into starting our own online store in 2010.

For me it was a huge step-from being a dreamy art student; there I was, slap, bang in the midst of paper work, targets, staff training and constant meetings! It definitely made me more business orientated and I began to see fashion in a different light in terms of what a huge machine the fashion industry is - designing, buying, and selling, over and over again!

selling vintage clothing and accessories for men and women, specialising in revamping and customising our garments. We are a new business and still learning a lot, but so far it’s been so much fun (albeit challenging and of course very hard-work!).

The customising of vintage pieces involves adding anything we feel will ‘enhance’ the style or look of the garment. It could be something as simple as sewing an over-sized bow to the back of a simple boucle mini skirt, or completely transforming the shape of a dress, which previously looked tired and frumpy.

On our buying trips we come across so many unloved or unworn

clothes and we simply assess what can be done to revamp it so that it will become loved by someone again!

As our name suggests, we sell a perfect mix of the vintage styles we know and love from bygone decades mixed with current styles on the catwalks and represented on the high street. Our customer doesn’t want to look like they’re going to a fancy dress party or playing a part of a 1950s housewife; they want their clothing to be a vintage gem, unique to them but also be stylish and current. We felt that through customising and overhauling and keeping in touch with current trends we could bring vintage ‘back to life’ so to speak

and promote it in a way so that it’s got appeal for 16-year-old school girls as well as women in their 30s and 40s.

Lastly, who are your most inspirational fashion icons/designers?

When watching fashion shows or looking though new collections I always want to see drama and showstopping designs so for those reasons John Galliano is a fashion god to me!

The same can be said about fashion lines from Comme des Garcons, Vivienne Westwood, Viktor & Rolf and of course the great and much missed Alexander McQueen. They

may be obvious choices but I feel that the reason their work is so widely recognised all over the world is due to their fashion brilliance. Ann-Sofie Back’s collections inspired me when I was studying. I admire her bravery when experimenting with and manipulating fabrics and silhouettes.

Equally Prada’s prints are always absolutely beautiful and MiuMiu’s collections are not to be missed!

The pieces designed by these girls are unmissable, so for summer weddings and post-exam nights-out, get yourself onto their website www. vinouveau.co.uk and you will be sure to pick up a one-of-a-kind vintage gem.

P ROP ERTY LI S T INGS PROV IDE D B Y WWW.CIT YLE T S.CO.U K

Property

Broughton Blandfield, 850, 3, 3D E PG P, 0844 635 6450 East London Street, 850, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9302 East London Street, 775, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Broughton Street, 750, 2, 2D -1B -1T, 0844 635 9332 Hopetoun Street, 750, 2, G PG P, 0844 635 3780 Huntingdon Place, 650, 2, 2D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9332 Mcdonald Road, 650, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9390 Bonnington Road, 550, 1, 1D 1B G O, 0844 635 9448 Logie Green Road, 550, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 9318

Bruntsfield Bruntsfield Place, 2200, 5, 5D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Bruntsfield Place, 1995, 5, 1S 4D G O, 0844 635 9322 Upper Gilmore Place, 1850, 5, 5D G Z, 0844 635 9322 Merchiston Place, 1750, 5, 5D G CG Z, 0844 635 9558 Glengyle Terrace, 1600, 4, 4D G Z, 0844 635 9324 Merchiston Place, 1580, 4, CG, 0844 635 9308 Bruntsfield Gardens, 1500, 4, 4D G CG Z, 0844 635 2418 Forbes Road, 1440, 4, 4D W CG O, 0844 635 9362 Gillespie Crescent, 1320, 4, 1S 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9326 Leamington Terrace, 1300, 4, 1S 3D G O, 0844 635 6450 Bruntsfield Avenue, 1100, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 2418 Barclay Place, 1080, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Upper Gilmore Place, 1060, 3, 1S 2D G, 0844 635 9560 Valleyfield Street, 1000, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9322 Leamington Place, 980, 3, 1S 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9384 Bruntsfield Place, 975, 3, 3D 1B G CG Z, 0844 635 9326 Viewforth Terrace, 895, 3, -1S -1D -1B -1T, 0844 635 9596 Westhall Gardens, 850, 2, 2D -1B -1T Z, 0844 635 9314 Bruntsfield Place, 710, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 8696 Thistle Place, 550, 2, 0844 635 9338

City Centre Bank Street, 1800, 5, 5D E Z, 0844 635 9316 St David’s Place, 1200, 3, 3D G CG P, 0844 635 4820 Mcdonald Road, 1000, 3, 3D G P, 0844 635 9446 Dalry Gait, 875, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9300 Russell Gardens, 850, 3, 1S 2D G CG P, 0844 635 2422 Broughton Street, 850, 2, Z, 0844 635 9352 Broughton Street, 825, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Brunswick Street, 800, 2, -1S -1D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9596 Grindlay Street, 750, 2, 2D -1B -1T Z, 0844 635 9314 York Place, 750, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 4820 Cornwall Street, 725, 2, PG Z, 0844 635 9352 High Riggs, 700, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 4820 Lothian Road, 650, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 9679 Upper Grove Place, 625, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9592 Young Street, 625, 1, 1D E Z, 0844 635 9320 Elm Row, 620, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Dumbiedykes Road, 600, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 2418 Morrison Street, 575, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9474 Young Street, 575, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9320 Bread Street, 550, 1, Z, 0844 635 9308 Rose Street, 525, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 4820 Upper Grove Place, 525, 1, G CG Z, 0844 635 9322 West Maitland Street, 395, 1, 1D, 0844 635 2418

Comely Bank Comely Bank Road, 960, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9424 Comely Bank Road, 650, 2, 2D 1B G Z, 0844 635 3337 Comely Bank Row, 550, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9478

Dalry Springwell Place, 800, 3, 0844 635 9338 Ardmillan Place, 745, 2, 1S 1D, 0844 635 3700 Caledonian Place, 725, 2, 2D 1B G CG O, 0844 635 2627 Caledonian Crescent, 720, 2, 2D E P, 0844 635 9560 Cathcart Place, 650, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700

Caledonian Road, 620, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Caledonian Road, 600, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Dalry Road, 595, 1, 0844 635 9338 Downfield Place, 525, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 3330 Caledonian Road, 500, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 4820 Caledonian Crescent, 495, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 9424 Downfield Place, 495, 1, 1D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9332 Orwell Terrace, 495, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9334

Easter Road Hawkhill Close, 850, 2, 2D P, 0844 635 4820 Hawkhill Close, 675, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 4820 Hawkhill Close, 675, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 4820 St. Clair Road, 675, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9679 Albion Gardens, 650, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9456 Thorntree Street, 600, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 8694 Drum Terrace, 595, 2, 2D E CG P, 0844 635 9679 Easter Road, 575, 2, 1S 1D E P, 0844 635 9340 Rossie Place, 575, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Bothwell Street, 550, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 1614 Hawkhill Close, 550, 1, CG P, 0844 635 9308 Bothwell House, 545, 1, 1D E O, 0844 635 9679 Albion Road, 520, 1, G O, 0844 635 9328 Rossie Place, 500, 1, 1D, 0844 635 3700 Thorntree Street, 450, 1, 1D E O, 0844 635 6450

Fountainbridge Yeaman Place, 700, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 4820 Grove Street, 650, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Ritchie Place, 625, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9558 Gibson Terrace, 500, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9446 Yeaman Place, 495, 1, 0844 635 8696

Gorgie Gorgie Road, 990, 3, 3D G PG O, 0844 635 9679 Alexander Drive, 650, 2, 2D G CG P, 0844 635 9320 Gorgie Road, 625, 2, O, 0844 635 9308 Gorgie Road, 595, 2, 2D G CG, 0844 635 1312 Gorgie Road, 575, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 9560 Westfield Road, 525, 1, 1D 1B G CG O, 0844 635 9245 Wardlaw Place, 495, 1, 1D G CG O, 0844 635 6458 Wardlaw Terrace, 475, 1, 0844 635 1312 Stewart Terrace, 470, 1, 1D W, 0844 635 9560 Westfield Road, 450, 1, 1D 1B CG O, 0844 635 9245 Gorgie Road, 440, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9560

Grange Mortonhall Road, 850, 2, PG, 0844 635 9308 East Champanyie, 600, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9245

Grassmarket Merchant Street, 1275, 3, 3D G, 0844 635 3330 Grindlay Street, 975, 3, 0844 635 9338 Frederick Street, 595, 1, -1S 1D -1B -1T Z, 0844 635 9314 Grassmarket, 550, 1, 1D E Z, 0844 635 9334 Websters Land, 490, 1, 1D W Z, 0844 635 9434

Haymarket Eglinton Crescent, 2250, 6, 6D G Z, 0844 635 9334 Morrison Street, 1000, 3, 1S 2D G, 0844 635 9234 Caledonian Road, 950, 3, 1S 2D G Z, 0844 635 3332 Upper Grove Place, 700, 2, 1S 1D, 0844 635 3700 Duff Street, 650, 2, 0844 635 9338 Upper Grove Place, 610, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9474 Orwell Terrace, 525, 1, CG Z, 0844 635 9352

Holyrood Canongate, 1090, 3, 3D G, 0844 635 9560 Viewcraig Gardens, 990, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9302 Nether Craigwell, 925, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 1614 Holyrood Road, 800, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 4820

Leith Portland Gardens, 960, 3, 3D G CG P, 0844 635 9390 Western Harbour Brkwater, 850, 2, 1S 1D G CG P, 0844 635 4820 Coburg Wharf, 725, 2, -1S -1D -1B -1T G O, 0844 635 9596 Portland Gardens, 725, 2, 2D -1B -1T P, 0844 635 9314 Western Harbour Brkwater, 725, 2, 2D G CG P, 0844 635 9330 Fox Street, 700, 2, 2D W P, 0844 635 9422 Constitution Street, 695, 2, 2D E P, 0844 635 1614 Elliot Street, 695, 2, 2D E CG P, 0844 635 9234 Giles Street, 695, 2, 2D E CG P, 0844 635 9558 Western Harbour Brkwater, 675, 2, 2D E P, 0844 635 4820 Arthur Street, 650, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 2418 Dalmeny Street, 650, 2, 2D 1B G O, 0844 635 9238 Dickson Street, 650, 2, 2D E CG O, 0844 635 4820 Dicksonfield, 650, 2, 2D P, 0844 635 4820 Great Junction Street, 650, 2, O, 0844 635 9308 Murano Place, 650, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9320 Sheriff Bank, 650, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Couper Street, 625, 2, 2D E O, 0844 635 9679 North Junction Street, 625, 2, 2D E O, 0844 635 1614 Sheriff Park, 625, 2, 0844 635 9338 Chapel Lane, 600, 2, 2D W O, 0844 635 9245 Giles Street, 600, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 1312 Great Junction Street, 600, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 9384 Mitchell Street, 600, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 3920 Yardheads, 600, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Great Junction Street, 575, 2, 1S 1D G, 0844 635 9456 Annfield Street, 565, 2, 2D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9332 Buchanan Street, 525, 1, 1D E O, 0844 635 2152 Dock Place, 525, 1, 1D E, 0844 635 4820 Murano Place, 520, 1, 1D W, 0844 635 9560 Albert Street, 510, 1, 1D G CG O, 0844 635 9322 Portland Street, 500, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9334 Albert Street, 500, 1, 1D G CG O, 0844 635 9558 Ferry Road, 500, 1, 1D, 0844 635 3700 Elliot Street, 475, 1, -1S 1D -1B -1T O, 0844 635 9314 Lorne Street, 460, 1, 1S -1B -1T W, 0844 635 9332 Admiralty Street, 450, 1, 1D CG O, 0844 635 9326 Sheriff Park, 450, 1, O, 0844 635 9308 Duke Street, 440, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9560 Duke Street, 430, 1, 1D W CG O, 0844 635 6450

Leith Walk Kirk Street, 1700, 5, 5D G O, 0844 635 9460 Leith Walk, 1450, 5, 5D, 0844 635 9384 Dicksonfield, 950, 3, 3D G P, 0844 635 4820 Dryden Gait, 900, 3, 3D G P, 0844 635 9460 Iona Street, 795, 2, 2D, 0844 635 8696 Leith Walk, 750, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Jameson Place, 725, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 4820 Brunswick Road, 695, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 2154 Smith’s Place, 645, 2, 2D P, 0844 635 9316 Brunswick Road, 610, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9238 Dalmeny Street, 600, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9558 Leith Walk, 600, 2, 2D W CG O, 0844 635 9594 Leith Walk, 600, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Stead’s Place, 595, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9302 Elliot Street, 575, 2, 2D E Z, 0844 635 9326 Leith Walk, 575, 2, 2D E, 0844 635 9560 Dalmeny Street, 575, 1, 1D 1B G O, 0844 635 1614 Dickson Street, 550, 1, 0844 635 9338 Balfour Street, 495, 1, 1D CG O, 0844 635 9460 Buchanan Street, 475, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9320

Marchmont Spottiswoode Street, 1900, 5, 5D G CG Z, 0844 635 9322 Strathearn Road, 1850, 4, 4D G CG Z, 0844 635 2418 Thirlestane Road, 1775, 5, 5D G CG Z, 0844 635 9390 Marchmont Road, 1600, 5, 5D G, 0844 635 9326 Strathearn Road, 1600, 4, 4D, 0844 635 9558

HOW TO USE THE LISTINGS Meadows

Area Agent phone number

Buccleuch Street, 750, 2, 2D W CG Z, 0870 062 9434

Bedrooms Monthly Rent Location

Marchmont Road, 1500, 4, 2S 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9322 Lauderdale Street, 1400, 3, 3D G, 0844 635 3330 Marchmont Street, 1323, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9324 Strathfillan Road, 1300, 4, 1S 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9326 Arden Street, 1300, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Spottiswoode Street, 1300, 3, G, 0844 635 3780 Livingstone Place, 1275, 3, 3D G, 0844 635 3330 Roseneath Place, 1240, 4, E CG Z, 0844 635 9322 Marchmont Road, 1200, 4, 4D G, 0844 635 9594 Strathearn Road, 1200, 3, CG, 0844 635 9308 Warrender Park Road, 1200, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9558 Marchmont Road, 1100, 4, G O, 0844 635 3880 Spottiswoode Road, 1075, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9334 Arden Street, 1050, 3, 3D G CG O, 0844 635 9438 Marchmont Crescent, 1050, 3, 3D G O, 0844 635 9322 Marchmont Road, Edinburgh, 1050, 3, 3D G CG O, 0844 635 9322 Spottiswoode Road, 1020, 3, 3D G CG O, 0844 635 9322 Warrender Park Road, 1020, 3, 1S 2D W CG Z, 0844 635 9326 Arden Street, 1000, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9326 Montpelier Park, 990, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9424 Spottiswoode Street, 990, 3, 1S 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9322 Warrender Park Road, 960, 3, G, 0844 635 9560 Marchmont Crescent, 850, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Marchmont Crescent, 850, 2, 2D 1B Z, 0844 635 4820 Spottiswoode Road, 795, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9488 Marchmont Road, 695, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9320 Argyle Place, 650, 2, 1D 1T G Z, 0844 635 9320 Livingstone Place, 620, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 9560

Meadowbank Dalgety Road, 950, 3, 3D G CG P, 0844 635 2418 Meadowbank Crescent, 700, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 4820 Wolseley Terrace, 650, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 3330 / Moray Park Terrace, 625, 2, 2D -1B -1T P, 0844 635 9314 Moray Park Terrace, 625, 2, 2D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9332 Abbey Lane, 575, 2, 1S 1D G O, 0844 635 9560 Dalgety Road, 575, 2, 2D -1B -1T E P, 0844 635 9314 Dalgety Street, 565, 2, 2D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9332 Dalgety Avenue, 500, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9302 Dalgety Road, 450, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9456 Dalgety Street, 450, 1, 1D -1B -1T O, 0844 635 9314

Meadows Lutton Place, 2100, 5, 5D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Lauriston Gardens, 1900, 5, 2S 3D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Buccleuch Terrace, 560, 1, 1D 1B G, 0844 635 9324

Morningside Morningside Road, 1700, 5, 5D G CG Z, 0844 635 9422 Morningside Road, 1650, 5, 2S 3D, 0844 635 3700

Morningside Road, 1300, 4, 4D W Z, 0844 635 9424 Steel’s Place, 1125, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9478 Morningside Road, 1095, 3, 3D, 0844 635 3700 Morningside Drive, 1000, 2, 2D G PG O, 0844 635 9362 Falcon Avenue, 975, 3, 1D E CG Z, 0844 635 9558 Craighouse Gardens, 795, 3, 3D E P, 0844 635 3337 Morningside Road, 675, 2, Z, 0844 635 9308 Canaan Lane, 650, 2, 1S 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9478 Jordan Lane, 650, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 2418 Balcarres Street, 625, 2, 2D W CG O, 0844 635 2418 Springvalley Terrace, 620, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9478 Craighouse Gardens, 575, 1, 1D E CG P, 0844 635 9679 Springvalley Terrace, 525, 1, 1D 1B, 0844 635 9318 Balcarres Street, 500, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 4820 Balcarres Street, 500, 1, 1D G CG O, 0844 635 3768

New Town Broughton Place, 1900, 4, 4D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Howe Street, 1750, 4, 4D G Z, 0844 635 9464 St Vincent Street, 1750, 3, 3D G PG Z, 0844 635 4820 Heriot Row, 1600, 2, 2D G PG P, 0844 635 4820 Great Stuart Street, 1475, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Antigua Street, 1420, 4, 4D G Z, 0844 635 9362 Dundas Street, 1375, 4, 4D G Z, 0844 635 9316 Great King Street, 1300, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Dundonald Street, 1200, 3, 3D 3B E Z, 0844 635 9464 Eyre Crescent, 1200, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Howe Street, 1200, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9362 Fettes Row, 1195, 3, 1S 2D G P, 0844 635 6604 Barony Street, 1155, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9422 Royal Crescent, 1100, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Northumberland Place, 1100, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 1614 Royal Crescent, 1100, 2, CG Z, 0844 635 9308 Howe Street, 1050, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 4820 Mansfield Place, 1015, 3, 3D -1B -1T Z, 0844 635 9314 Eyre Crescent, 1000, 3, 1S 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Northumberland St Sw Lane, 995, 1, Z, 0844 635 9308 Forth Street, 950, 2, 2D G PG O, 0844 635 9300 Henderson Row, 875, 2, CG O, 0844 635 9308 Fettes Row, 800, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 4820 Huntingdon Place, 800, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 4820 Fettes Row, 790, 2, 2D P, 0844 635 4820 Huntingdon Place, 790, 2, 2D P, 0844 635 4820 Barony Street, 775, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Hart Street, 775, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 St Stephen Street, 775, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 4820 Mansfield Place, 750, 2, 2D G PG Z, 0844 635 9578 Silvermills, 725, 2, 1S 1D G P, 0844 635 4820 Albany Street Lane, 675, 1, W, 0844 635 9300

Bedrooms: Heating: Garden: Parking: Furniture:

St Stephen Street, 575, 1, 1D E Z, 0844 635 4820

Newington South Clerk Street, 1900, 5, 5D G Z, 0844 635 9302 Nicolson Street, 1875, 5, 5D G Z, 0844 635 9592 South Clerk Street, 1650, 5, 2S 3D G Z, 0844 635 9326 Dalkeith Road, 1600, 5, 5D, 0844 635 9558 Mayfield Road, 1600, 5, 5D G CG O, 0844 635 9326 Dalkeith Road, 1400, 4, 4D G O, 0844 635 9340 Dalkeith Road, 1400, 4, 4D G, 0844 635 9340 Dalkeith Road, 1300, 4, 4D G CG Z, 0844 635 9558 South Clerk Street, 1300, 4, 1S 3D G Z, 0844 635 9326 Mayfield Terrace, 1200, 3, 3D CG Z, 0844 635 9478 Salisbury Road, 1150, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9558 Clerk Street, 1145, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9316 East Suffolk Park, 1025, 2, 2D G CG P, 0844 635 4820 Oxford Street, 1005, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9330 Mayfield Road, 995, 3, 3D E O, 0844 635 9558 Salisbury Road, 995, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9334 South Clerk Street, 990, 3, 1S 2D G CG, 0844 635 9424 West Savile Gardens, 990, 3, 3D G CG P, 0844 635 9438 South Oxford Street, 960, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9326 East Mayfield, 950, 3, -1S -1D -1B -1T G, 0844 635 9596 Mayfield Road, 895, 3, 3D G CG, 0844 635 2418 Clerk Street, 850, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9679 Saville Place, 810, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 4820 Buccleuch Street, 800, 2, 2D Z, 0844 635 9679 West Powburn, 750, 3, 1S 2D G CG P, 0844 635 3920 Grange Court, 750, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9558 Nicolson Square, 750, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 9592 Ratcliffe Terrace, 740, 2, 2D, 0844 635 9316 Dalkeith Road, 700, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 9478 East Mayfield, 695, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9424 Nicolson Street, 695, 2, 2D, 0844 635 9316 Rankin Drive, 680, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9424 Mayfield Road, 675, 2, 2D, 0844 635 9578 East Mayfield, 650, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9460 West Nicolson Street, 620, 2, 2D E Z, 0844 635 9434 Causewayside, 575, 1, 1D W P, 0844 635 9424 Nicolson Street, 575, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9679 Pleasance, 575, 1, 1D, 0844 635 3700 St. Patrick Square, 575, 1, 1D W, 0844 635 9424 Nicolson Street, 530, 1, 1D, 0844 635 3700 St. Leonards Street, 480, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9679

Old Town Cranston Street, 1050, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9560 South Bridge, 800, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 9679 Niddry Street, 795, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 9464 High Street, 750, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 9460

S Single D Double T Twin B Box G Gas Central W White Meter E Electric PG Private CG Communal Z Zone O On-Street P Private UF Unfurnished

Jeffrey Street, 750, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 6604 Blair Street, 725, 2, 2D W Z, 0844 635 9390 Old Tolbooth Wynd, 725, 2, 2D -1B -1T P, 0844 635 9314 Bells Wynd, 720, 2, 2D, 0844 635 9316 St. Marys Street, 700, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 9302 Viewcraig Street, 650, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 6458 Canongate, 600, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 4820 Calton Road, 550, 1, 1D -1B -1T E Z, 0844 635 9314 Canongate, 540, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9320 Jeffrey Street, 525, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 9245 Websters Land, 525, 1, 1D, 0844 635 4820 Forresthill, 500, 1, 1D, 0844 635 4820

Pilrig Bonnington Road, 525, 2, 2D W, 0844 635 4820 Springfield, 410, 1, 1D W CG P, 0844 635 9334

Pilton Ferry Road Place, 600, 3, 3D G CG O, 0844 635 9302 West Pilton Street, 600, 2, PG P, 0844 635 9488 Pilton Drive North, 550, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9558 Crewe Bank, 520, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9302

Polwarth Ashley Terrace, 1400, 4, 4D G, 0844 635 3330 Polwarth Crescent, 1400, 4, 4D G, 0844 635 9560 Polwarth Gardens, 1200, 4, 4D E CG O, 0844 635 9322 Tay Street, 1180, 4, 4D, 0844 635 3700 Polwarth Crescent, 1075, 3, 3D G O, 0844 635 9316 West Bryson Road, 895, 3, 3D E P, 0844 635 3337 Ashley Terrace, 790, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Granville Terrace, 725, 2, 2D G O, 0844 635 4820 Dundee Terrace, 650, 2, -1S -1D -1B -1T E O, 0844 635 9596 Dundee Terrace, 600, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 9245 Bryson Road, 585, 2, 2D W CG, 0844 635 9245 Watson Crescent, 510, 1, 1D G, 0844 635 3330 Bryson Road, 495, 1, 1D E CG Z, 0844 635 9302 Fowler Terrace, 475, 1, 1D E, 0844 635 9560 Watson Crescent, 450, 1, 0844 635 9338

Slateford Angle Park Terrace, 1200, 4, 4D E CG, 0844 635 9474 Appin Place, 900, 3, 1S 2D G P, 0844 635 9478 Moat Terrace, 775, 2, 2D, 0844 635 4820 Appin Place, 750, 3, 1S 2D G P, 0844 635 2418 Hutchison Crossway, 600, 2, 2D G CG, 0844 635 3780 Slateford Road, 600, 2, 2D G CG O, 0844 635 9478 Hermand Street, 595, 1, -1S -1D -1B -1T E O, 0844 635 9596 Slateford Road, 575, 1, 0844 635 8696

Stockbridge Carlton Street, 1500, 4, 4D 1B G CG Z, 0844 635 2627 Raeburn Street, 1050, 3, CG Z, 0844 635 9308 Learmonth Court, 1000, 3, 3D E CG Z, 0844 635 9679

Danube Street, 995, 1, Z, 0844 635 9308 St. Stephen Street, 850, 2, 2D G P, 0844 635 9320 Raeburn Place, 775, 2, 2D 1B G, 0844 635 4830 St Stephen Street, 775, 2, 1S 1D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Raeburn Place, 750, 2, 1D 1T E Z, 0844 635 9434 Saunders Street, 650, 2, 2D 1B G O, 0844 635 9434 Silvermills, 600, 1, 1D P, 0844 635 4820 Dean Park Street, 575, 2, 1S 1D G CG O, 0844 635 6450 Howard Place, 475, 1, G, 0844 635 9326

The Shore Rennie’s Isle, 995, 3, 3D G P, 0844 635 1614 Lindsay Road, 900, 3, 3D G P, 0844 635 9679 Constitution Street, 875, 3, 1S 2D W, 0844 635 1614 Timber Bush, 715, 1, 2D E P, 0844 635 0085 Constitution Street, 695, 2, 2D W O, 0844 635 1614 Ocean Way, 675, 2, 2D G CG P, 0844 635 2154 Giles Street, 600, 1, G, 0844 635 9558 Commercial Street, 595, 2, 2D W P, 0844 635 6450 Constitution Street, 550, 1, 1D E, 0844 635 1614

Tollcross Lothian Road, 1900, 5, 5D G, 0844 635 3780 Lauriston Place, 1200, 3, 3D G CG Z, 0844 635 2287 Valleyfield Street, 1050, 3, 1S 2D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Glen Street, 975, 3, 1S 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9422 Lauriston Place, 975, 3, 3D, 0844 635 3700 Glen Street, 900, 3, 2S 1D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Glen Street, 800, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 9679 Panmure Place, 650, 2, 2D G CG Z, 0844 635 2287 Brougham Street, 560, 2, 2D, 0844 635 3700 Fountainbridge, 550, 1, 1D, 0844 635 3700 Lochrin Place, 500, 1, 1D W P, 0844 635 4820

Viewforth Gilmore Place, 1150, 3, 2D 1B G PG Z, 0844 635 9558 Granville Terrace, 750, 2, 0844 635 9338 Granville Terrace, 650, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 2418 Mcneill Street, 550, 1, 1D G O, 0844 635 9324

West End Coates Gardens, 1200, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 4820 Torphichen Street, 900, 2, 2D, 0844 635 9316 Belford Road, 880, 3, 3D G Z, 0844 635 9560 Rothesay Mews, 875, 2, 2D G, 0844 635 6450 Drumsheugh Gardens, 800, 1, 1D G CG Z, 0844 635 9390 Eglinton Crescent, 750, 2, 2D G Z, 0844 635 4820 Shandwick Place, 750, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 9679 Rothesay Place, 725, 1, -1S 1D -1B -1T Z, 0844 635 9314 Buckingham Terrace, 710, 1, 2D G, 0844 635 4820 Oxford Terrace, 650, 1, 1D G Z, 0844 635 4820

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Sport 23

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

Sean Gibson

Five things we should learn from the 2010/2011 season As the football season draws to a close, The Journal looks for a moral to take away from a season of big spending, big disappointment and big bomb-scares Jamie Timson Sport Editor 1. Wayne Rooney isn’t as stupid as he looks…but then neither is Fergie. When in October Wayne issued a statement declaring he would not be signing a new contract at Manchester United, it seemed that the double Glazer-ing had finally fallen in on the house that Sir Alex built. That night, Fergie retaliated with a metaphor straight out of the Cantona textbook: “They (Rooney) look in a field and see a cow and they think it's a better cow than the one in their own field”. Yet, just 3 days later following some helpful advice from balaclavaclad United 'fans' outside his home, Rooney signed a new five-year deal at the club. While Wayne undoubtedly showed a staggering degree of self-interest in achieving a hefty pay-rise, even his most ardent critics could not doubt Sir Alex’s power of persuasion to keep his talisman

at the club. The result, a soon to be record 19th title for his club.

2. £50 million pounds is a lot of money when you’re not scoring on the pitch…but it’s priceless when you’re scoring off it. It's perceivable that had Roman Abramovich found himself writing songs rather than cheques the Abba line “If I had to do the same again, I would, my friend, Fernando” would read a little differently after this season. Torres’ multi-million pound move seemed a pricey but good bit of business, particularly after he had dispatched the champions so effortlessly earlier in the season. However, it took 14 appearances in a Chelsea shirt for him to score and even then he had a rather large assist from a puddle on the Stamford Bridge turf. Next season should be better for el nino if Drogba leaves, just no-one mention a certain Ukranian predecessor.

Meanwhile, a premier league star would have benefited greatly from Roman’s riches particularly as he

has just taken out a super-injunction to prevent marital affairs becoming public. It seems this season was all about the “Money, Money, Money”.

3. Gareth Bale is not and never has been the best player in the world. According to Jamie Redknapp – he of “hanging out the back of it” shame - it takes one hat-trick against a player never lauded for his defensive capabilities to turn Bale from exciting prospect to world beater. Yes, Bale played well that night, yes, he is a threat in an everimproving Tottenham team, but on statistics alone, Shola Ameobi has more Premier League assists than Gareth Bale and arguably Luka Modric had the better season. With a lot of hard work Bale could become one of the top wingers in world football, but then it's not unimaginable that someone might have said a similar thing to Shola once.

4. Scottish football has some serious problems. This was the season when changes were to be

seen. Throughout Britain, managers, players and referees all spoke of the word “respect”. However, this was the season when Scottish referees went on strike due in no small measure to the biggest clubs questioning their integrity. Respect seemed to be lacking from all quarters and this is no more so the case then when Celtic manager Neil Lennon was sent a bomb through the post. Lennon seemed particularly blasé about the situation declaring it was “something he would have to live with” – the threats one would assume, rather than the bomb itself.

Furthermore, Rangers will find themselves without away support in Europe next season due to sectarian singing in their game again PSV in march. All three incidents highlight the darkest issues within Scottish society as well as the national sport - it is only hoped there will be changes next year.

5. That No.10 for Barca looks alright...

Bramall Lane beckons for cupfinal footballers Sean Gibson Sport Editor Edinburgh Men’s First XI has reached the BUCS Knockouts cup final, which will be held at Bramall Lane, Sheffield, on 11th May. They began the cup run way back in October with a 2-0 away win at York St. John, before strolling past Sheffield

Hallam 4-1 at home in November.

After Christmas yet another Yorkshire team was put to the sword with a 2-1 away win at Leeds University and in February Birmingham University visited Peffermill, only to leave disappointed with the 2-1 scoreline.

At the end of March, Edinburgh’s men faced their sternest test yet – a semi-final against a Bournemouth

team that came to Peffermill and took the game to extra-time and penalites with a 2-2 draw. Edinburgh came through the shootout though, winning 4-3, to take their place in the final.

Their opponents there will be UWE Hartpury, who have played two games fewer to reach the final, but who have seen off the Universities of Sheffield, Manchester and

Loughborough on their way.

It has been a season of terrific success for Edinburgh’s first-teamers, as they recently celebrated winning the Scottish Conference league title on top of their cup exploits.

Whatever happens now at Bramall Lane, Edinburgh have shown that they will fight to the death and it promises to be a tight, exciting final on 11 May.

Murrayfield Sevens THE FINAL LEG of this season’s HSBC Sevens World Series takes place in Edinburgh at the end of this month. Last season’s Edinburgh Sevens Plate winners Scotland have been handed a tough assignment in Pool D and face Pacific Islanders and renowned sevens specialists Samoa and Fiji, with their performances on the day determining their opponents in the knockout rounds the next day (Sunday). Last season the Scots performed heroics on home soil, beating Fiji, Wales and the USA before trumping both South Africa and Argentina on day two to win the silver platter.

Northampton and Leinster to do battle AN OVER-POWERING FIRST-HALF display from Northampton saw them tear Perpignan apart and set up a Heineken Cup final against Leinster. Ben Foden cruised over early on before Jon Clarke scored a fine try, with Stephen Myler converting both and adding two penalties and then a third after Perpignan retaliated to make it 23-7. Meanwhile, a talismanic display from captain Brian O’Driscoll meant Leinster ran out 32-23 winners against a battling Toulouse side. The match turned out to be a bruising encounter as Leinster avenged last May’s semi-final loss to the same opposition.

‘Lockout’ threatens to knockout NFL season A US APPEALS court has put a “lockout” imposed on NFL team owners back into effect, throwing the league into chaos. The decision came hours after players had returned to work, after a judge on Monday granted players a temporary injunction to end the lockout.

The dispute began seven weeks ago after talks over collective bargaining rights and revenues broke down. The news threatens to curtail the annual draft of new players into the league, if the talks continue to falter, the start of the 2011 season may be pushed back or even suspended entirely.

24 Sport

The Journal Wednesday 4 May 2011

FOOTBALL

Throwing your money down Wembley way

RAHIT MATTOO

Lessons from the 2010/11 season

» 23

London's biggest, baddest white elephant Sean Gibson Sport Editor LATER THIS MONTH Wembley Stadium will host not only the FA Cup final but the European Champions League final as well. However, this is not the time for congratulations-all-round; this veneer of progress masks gravely concerning trends at the very top of the sport.

Forget the clumsy handling of the actual construction of the stadium; what is crucial is the amount of money – £757 million – that the FA invested in the new Wembley. Such a large sum is difficult to put into perspective, but what is clear is that the FA are prepared to ruthlessly recoup every penny of it that they can.

This attitude in itself is defensible; football is undeniably a business and this is just sound business strategy.

However, it certainly weighs unequally against the disrespect being shown to football fans and the damage being done to the game. There is endless talk of managers and clubs not showing due respect to officials, as well as competitions such as the FA Cup, but this

is nothing when lined up alongside the FA’s own actions.

To kick off with, there is no better way to kill ‘cup fever’ stone dead than hosting FA Cup semi-finals at Wembley.

Fans’ delirium is tempered by a sizeable dose of unease at not having really earned a Wembley visit. What is more, if you think it is too expensive these days to follow your team regularly in the league, the cost of a Wembley visit will seem like some sort of sick joke.

The most common price for an FA Cup semi-final ticket this year was £50 and prices only spiral come the final. Add to this the discontented rumblings from UEFA about three-figure ticket prices for the Champions League final and the FA really appears to be pushing its luck.

In one fell swoop, then, the FA ensures that fans can barely afford the shirts on their backs, whilst devaluing the oldest, most historic club football competition in the world. It doesn’t stop there, though. If respect is so highly prized, how about showing some to the fans of this year’s play-off finalists in League One, League Two and the Conference Premier. They will be denied the traditional Wembley

Hacker:

League Table FOOTBALL BUCS Scottish Conference Men’s 1A P W D L F A GD Pts Heriot-Watt 1st 7 3 4 0 15 5 10 13

The new stadium cost £757 million - but was it worth it? visit – instead being shunted down the priority queue to the Old Trafford and Eastlands stadia in Manchester, due to Wembley’s hosting of the Champions League final.

UEFA stipulates that no matches can be held at Wembley within two weeks prior to the Champions League final, which is where the FA has painted itself into a corner. So desperate for money and prestige is the FA that its own hallowed cup final will now be held on the same day as several Premier League matches, and neither UEFA nor the Premier League could care less. Cup final day is supposed to be sacred, but apparently tradition has a price.

The fact that a team’s ticket allocation is actually reduced from 34,000 to 25,000 between the semi-final and the

final only adds further insult, as does the thoroughly distasteful Club Wembley initiative. At the recent Stoke City vs. Bolton Wanderers FA Cup semi-final, the Club Wembley seats were barely one-tenth full, whilst Stoke had sold-out their half of the ground. These corporate seats make up the middle-tier and run the full perimeter of the stadium, splitting the partisan fans into two sections.

Basically, if you want anything resembling an atmosphere in with your ticket price you have to work hard to get it.

The whole recipe makes for a truly repulsive meal. On this evidence the FA has never been so weak nor so out of touch with the sport it governs. Football fans had better savour the little victories – the FA is poised to ruin any greater aspirations.

Edinburgh 1st

6 4 0 2 14 4 10 12

Glasgow 1st

7 3 2 2 15 14 1 11

Edinburgh 2nd

8 2 3 3 7 9 -2

Strathclyde 1st

8 1 1 6 9 24 -15 4

9

RUGBY BUCS Scottish Conference Men’s 1A P WDL F

A

GD Pts

Edinburgh 1st

8 8 0 0 333 52 281 24

Aberdeen 1st

8 6 0 2 320 147 173 18

St Andrews 1st 8 5 0 3 274 184 90 15 Stirling 1st

6 1 0 5 115 257 -142 3

Heriot-Watt 1st 7 1 0 6 91 224 -133 3 Robert Gordon 1st 7 1 0 6 55 324 -269 3

HOCKEY BUCS Scottish Conference Women’s 1A P W D L F A GD Pts

FOOTBALL

Student Newspaper Derby 2011

DAVID SELBY

The Journal 6 The Student 1 Sean Gibson Sport Editor THE CROWN JEWEL of the capital’s student journalism year saw The Student and The Journal do battle on the Meadows last Friday lunchtime, in a game of football that was ‘friendly’ in name only. The Journal strode to victory with a performance which can only be described as emphatic and the scoreline – in no way flattering – secured some serious bragging rights for the victorious publication.

After arriving late, The Student were slow out of the blocks and were made

8 8 0 0 25 5 20 24

St. Andrews 1st

8 4 1 3 16 13 3

13

Glasgow 1st

7 4 0 3 15 14 1

9*

Edinburgh 2nd

8 1 2 5 12 25 -13 5

Caledonian 1st

7 0 1 6 3 14 -11 4*

BUCS Scottish Conference Men’s 1A MATTHEW HAUKE

After a one-year hiatus, the third annual Journal-Student grudge match sees the upstart independent triumph gloriously to pay. The Journal wasted no time in taking the lead through Sean Gibson, but The Student in fact mustered an immediate reply. A hopeful punt upfield from The Student’s goalkeeper was disregarded by players of both teams alike, with the wind playing the most crucial role in eventually carrying the ball over the line. The Journal’s players were not deterred, however, and fired several more warning shots before Gibson nutmegged the keeper to make it 2-1. As they continued to swarm forward, The Journal added a third and fourth before the break, utilising a style of ‘total football’ that belied the bobbly playing surface. The Student were so bamboozled that they even put the third one in themselves.

Any hopes of a revival were snuffed out within minutes of the restart as

Edinburgh 1st

P W D L F A GD Pts Heriot-Watt 1st

7 6 0 1 25 6 19 21*

Edinburgh 1st

8 7 0 1 25 7 18 21

Glasgow 1st

8 3 0 5 16 24 -8

Dundee 1st

7 2 0 5 9 24 -15 6

Aberdeen 1st

6 0 0 6 9 23 -14 -3*

9

* = points deducted/awarded

We gave them a 'right kicking' The Journal’s Jamie Timson skilfully steered home a cross with his groin.

The Student were visibly demoralised, finally tightening up their defence at the expense of sending aimless long balls forward. The Journal lapped these up though, dealing with them as assuredly as what little else The Student had thrown their way. Editor Marcus Kernohan made sure The Journal’s work ethic

didn’t wane, getting thoroughly stuckin in the second half – and it wasn’t long before Michael Mawdsley added a sixth to complete the rout. The Student left the Meadows shell-shocked, offering only vague promises to return stronger next year. A triumphant day from start to finish for The Journal, with their team’s only quandary being whether or not to buy themselves a trophy.

is recruiting Getwww.journal-online.co.uk/get_involved involved: www.journal-online.co.uk/recruitment