21/11/2011 Reporting Scotland

Welcome to Monday's Reporting Scotland. Tonight on your national

news... The former Scottish athletic star

Liz McColgan has been found not guilty of assaulting her estranged

husband. Later in the programme...

As the festive season approaches, are wallets staying tightly shut?

Christmas is coming, the lights are on but where's the retail rush? The

numbers visiting high streets and shopping centres take a nose-dive.

It's a bumpy ride in Scotland. We've got more potholes per mile

than anywhere else in Britain. Rock climbing started in Scotland

one hundred and forty years ago. Now intrepid BBC filmmakers have

decided to re-create that first ascent.

The former world champion athlete Liz McColgan has been found not

guilty of assaulting her estranged husband. A court heard today how

the couple had fallen out over a solicitor's letter she received

from Peter McColgan suggesting they should sell their family home. If

convicted, it would have spelt the end of the Olympic silver

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 131 seconds

There was bad news for retailers today as figures suggested that the

number of people passing through Scotland's shopping areas has

fallen by 9% on last year. The Scottish Retail Consortium has

called it a nosedive and with just over a month to go until Christmas,

retailers will be hoping for a This year, a lot of bang, but not

so many box. The man Scottish consumers spent last month was

lower than the year before by 0.1%. Inflation soared by 5%. But for is

another measure, the number of people walking past the shop doors.

It has nosedived by 9%, three times the UK rate of fall. Fewer people

are going shopping. Why? There is less money around and prices keep

going up. It is very worrying to see these figures so close to

Christmas. Retailers have had a very tough time up until now. Lots

of them are investing an enormous amount of hope into Christmas. What

they really want to see his spending going up, which requires a

shopper numbers to go up. There are other changes. We are shifting our

spending on line. That is good news for Amazon's Scottish distribution

centres. And we are spending earlier because of last year's snow.

Today is manic Monday, the first of two spikes inactivity. If the

system works, then people will be increasingly attracted to doing

that, rather than going into the shops. And you can prize compare

online. Price is a driver during a recession and going online maybe

the solution for many. The big growth area this Christmas could be

around smart phones. One scan of a barcode on this and I can get price

comparison online and on the High Street to find out where the best

deals are. Between technology and caution on the economy, the

consumer is in charge. I am usually quite lucky at Christmas and I

normally get bargains. I try to get quite a bit online. It makes it

easier. You can shop around. I just give my wife my cheque book and she

spends it! As one Glasgow Shop founder this morning, another way

of boosting football and getting people into your shop, getting

Westlife to pay a visit! Still to come: The unique link that

is helping recovering drug addicts here, as well as some of the

poorest people in Africa. So Scottish fishermen are hailing a

new deal to sell their prawns closer to home instead of abroad.

The SPL are celebrating the signing of a lucrative new five-year TV

deal. But Andy Murray is sweating over his future at the ATP World

Tour finals in London, after losing out to David Ferrer.

Her murder trial has heard how the badly decomposed body of a toddler

was found in a top. -- in a cot. There was a terrible smell in the

house and a child had been dead for some time. His mother denies

murdering him and pretending he was still alive.

The jury heard today what a paramedic and police found in his

flat in Paisley when called to it in March last year. Raymond Kelly,

a paramedic, was first to arrive at 6:20pm. He told the court that the

first thing he noticed was the smell. They did not seem to be any

electricity. The place was in darkness. He said he went into the

room and saw a baby. He quickly realised there had been a death. He

called the police. The police constable that derive told the

court that there was a god awful smell. I saw the child lying in the

cot and I knew we had been dead for some time. The body was quite badly

decomposed. Andrew Dunn was a detective

sergeant with the police at the time. He was the crime scene

manager that night. He told the court when the end cake is came to

take the body to York Hill, that he had to be carried out on the

mattress. -- when the undertakers came. He told the court about the

unkempt and dirty flat. There were open milk cartons, alcohol bottles

and clothes strewn around the floor. The police constable said there was

a pile of soiled nappies sitting in a child's bath. The court also

heard from the health visitor Linda Flanagan. She became involved with

the mother of the child in August 2009. She told the court that she

had repeatedly tried to visit her of but on each occasion there was

nobody in. At the beginning of March, 2010, she officially

notified social services of her concerns. The mother sobbed loudly

in the dock. She denies murdering her son and all the charges against

her, including attempting to defeat justice, by pretending to a number

of people that Declan was still alive. The trial continues.

Scotland has more pot holes per mile than anywhere else in Britain,

according to an army of pothole hunters. It is the result of

research carried out by members of the motoring organisation. Many

councils have increased spending on road repairs after two severe

winters. They are the bane of every driver's life. The cause of bumpy

journeys and damage to cars. At this garage in Aberdeen, they are

fixing more pothole damage than ever. This brings, the wheels are

damaged, and this year is much worse. -- springs. You are talking

about hundreds of vehicles compared to last year. Now a survey suggests

that the problem in Scotland is worse than anywhere in the UK.

According to the Automobile Association, are a typical stretch

of road, there could be 35 pot holes or defects, compared to the

UK average of 28. This was no surprise to some Edinburgh taxi

drivers. The repair to my black cab have been more than double in the

last two years. Sometimes when we were put 12 hour shift, then we

feel sore in our back. -- when we work a 12 hour shift. The roads in

Edinburgh are bad. Councils are responsible for the vast bulk of

our roads. Two severe winters stretched resources and many up to

the amount they spent on repairs, but money is tight. With the

pressure on council budgets throughout Scotland, we need to

make hard decisions. For example, we have done over 8000 pot holes in

the last financial year. Battling pot holes can seemed

never-ending. Almost as soon as one gets repaired, there is a report of

a new one somewhere else. But the number of potholes can beg

legitimate questions about how much is spent trying to maintain roads

before they deteriorate. The worse the road is to begin with, the more

likely pot holes are to form. Now some of the other stories

across Scotland. Two students at Forth Valley College's Falkirk

campus have the dreaded tuberculosis. The cases are

believed to be linked. -- have contracted tuberculosis. Family

members and students will be given precautionary checks.

Jobs will be created in Moray. Capita is opening a call centre in

Forres. Staff will be working on behalf of an energy company and

will start work in February. Europe's biggest lottery winners

have given �1 million to the Scottish National Party. Chris and

Colin Weir from Largs say that the gift from the �161 million winnings

is about more than party politics. It is the largest donation in the

SNP's history and will help to fund their independence referendum.

A unique link giving employment and hope has been forged between Ghana

and Greenock. It is based on a naturally occurring nut, harvested

by the poorest people in Africa. The project has helped them and

also recovering drug addicts in Inverclyde.

It is about as far from the heat of Africa as you could imagine. From

high in the hills above Greenock, comes hope for impoverished women

and children. Shea butter, the product of a wild growing nut in

Ghana, is being turned into Premium soap and cosmetics. It provides

fair trade income for people in Ghana. Women have been earning

Sunday 5p per day. When they work with us, that income goes up to one

pound 50. -- 75p per day. With us, that income goes up to one pound

50p. And they are not selling their children into bonded labour and

child trafficking. We are changing To gathering there not only give

the local women and income for a short time. Now, 1000 women turned

and not saying to shea butter. That gives them an income all-year-round.

The charity plows products back in two Ghana and provides a school for

the local community. There is a benefit for Scotland, to. Back in

Greenland, recovering -- Greenock recovering drug addicts make the

shea butter. They receive training and employment vital if they are to

stay drug-free. The process has given us the opportunity to get

back into employment. It has given us confidence. It has shown us new

skills to get back out there and back into society. If you don't

have a job, nobody will touch you. It will give us a bit of money.

That will give us something to focus on and a normal life. A new

factory will provide 20 jobs giving employment hope in Ghana and

Greenock. And from shea butter to prongs.

West coast prawn fishermen say a significant deal to supply a major

supermarket chain will allow them to get rid of their dependency on

unstable markets. From this week, west-coast Proms are going to be

sold at hundreds of Sainsbury's stores. The search for fresh

Scottish Proms can be fruitless. It is seen as a travesty that as the

West coast's finest shellfish is exported but then bars of landing

here, customers are left to buy an inferior product imported from as

far away from Bangladesh and Thailand. It is incredible.

Compared to our stuff, which is just on the doorstep. It is a far

tastier product. There are no rubbish Scottish Proms. They're all

good quality, succulent and delicious. In a unique deal struck

between the Sainsbury's supermarket chain and local fishermen, fresh

supplies of these are set to become available at fish counters

throughout its UK stores. I am hoping it will bring a bit of

stability to the prices. For too long, they have been there too low.

We were used to have a big fleet of boats to get them, but there's

hardly any left. That as many been down to poor prices. The contract

is a godsend for struggling West coast fishing communities.

Fishermen from here can reduce the dependency they have on overseas

markets. It is also voted for offer them some protection from an

unsteady eurozone. There is obviously tremendous economic

volatility and currency volatility. We are hoping that the immediate

benefit will be a degree of price stability, which allows the crews

and the boats themselves to plan their futures better. Sainsbury's

bosses say they are delighted to be involved in a partnership which

gives quality to customers while supporting the Scottish fishing

industry. And now the sport.

The Scottish Premier League has secured a new live TV deal worth

�50 million more than the previous one. Sky and ESPN have renewed

their skirt partnership with the league for a further five years.

That may help in the search for a new sponsor.

Despite what you might sometimes hear and see, the Scottish Premier

League can actually be quite good. Sky and ESPN certainly thinks so.

They are committed to a new five- year deal with the League. The

previous one struck three years ago was worth �65 million. Today, at

the Scottish Premier League announced that deal would be cut

short to be replaced by a new The SPL cannot go into the

financial detail, but I understand it is worth �85 million, an

increase of �50 million on the previous deal. Those TV deals are

on the decrees, so that is pretty good business. The SPL hope that it

will help them attract a new sponsor. I think this is

fundamental to the type of sponsorship deal and it puts us in

good shape. We have seen increases in viewer numbers on to be over the

past few years. There is a real interest in Scottish football and

the SPL, and a thing that has been reflected in the announcement today.

Mr Doncaster says that viewing figures are by 28% following the

recent deal, but there is some doubt about whether that is due to

the SPL. If you are signing up to a Sky package, you are doing it to

get the English games. You will watch the Scottish football as well,

but would you get that deal if you did not get the English football?

Probably not. It is misleading to say that Scottish football is

attractive purely based on their viewing figures. The clubs have

been persuaded not to pursue their plans to launch their own channel.

Andy Murray's future at the ATP World Tour finals hangs in the

balance. He aggravated a groin injury after he was defeated by

David Ferrer. He will decide whether he is fit enough to carry

on in the tournament. We report from the O2 Arena in London.

A warm welcome from the London crowd. They watched their man score

an early lead in game three. But with him serving badly, he allowed

David Ferrer to break right back. To a very good game from the

Spaniard but too many mistakes from Andy Murray. He did find some

rhythm. But the Spaniard was digging in and claimed the first

set, while the Scot was left frustrated and hurting in more ways

than one. The massage seemed to work wonders because to do than

instant advantage in the second set. -- he took an instant advantage.

But to let that advantage slip again. He found his way through the

second time, but David Ferrer went one better, getting his first ever

victory against the spot on hard court surface. -- this spot.

problem with my groin. We will have to see how it goes for tomorrow. I

will decide tomorrow whether raw not I can keep playing. Injury

permitting, he will play either Novac Djokovic or Thomas Berdych on

Wednesday. Gary Anderson's dream of winning

his first ever grandson of darts has fallen short. He lost out to 15

times World Champion Phil The Power Taylor in Wolverhampton. It was a

one-sided final but Garrett Anderson received a �60,000

consolation prize for reaching the last two. -- Gary Anderson.

Newtonmore won de shinty World Cup title by beating Kyles Athletic.

Newtonmore add this title to become a niche Cup that they won last year.

Congratulations to them. -- These days, huge numbers of people

around the world climb for sport. But just who were the first people

to climb, not just because they had to, but for the sheer fun of it? A

BBC documentary reveals that 140 years ago, a team of young Scots

climbed across to the Stack of Handa, on the Sutherland coast

which was, quite possibly, the world's first ascent. Our

correspondent David Henderson takes up the story.

Take care! Setting off across the abyss. Scotland's leading rock

climb or takes his life in his hands. He swings out towards the

cliff. It is a massive land work. It really is the start of it. It is

the first time recreational climbing has been recorded in our

country. It predates anything in the Lake District. Rock climbing

started in Scotland. 140 years ago, three young men arrived here by

boat. They cross from the North tip of Lewis. They came to climb and

the stack just for fun. It must have been one of the greatest. It

was certainly mentioned in my childhood. There was a lot of

competition and aggression between and the people of Lewis and of

Sutherland. The men of Louis would construct themselves in this way

and tell others to beat that. today, this is an amazing feat. In

the 1870s, it was much more. A moment in history when the sport of

climbing was born. Climbing has changed a lot since that epic first

ascent. The equipment is better, and as a sport, it is enjoyed by

millions of people around the world. At its heart, it remains the same.

All you need is a sense of adventure and a wild dream. For

many years, this kind was ignored and forgotten. Now, it can take its

place as the first of its kind. And you can see more on that on BBC Two

Scotland tomorrow night at 7pm. Let's get the weather forecast now

Things are going to get more changeable by the middle of the

week. The seething, there is a lot of dry weather initially, although

we will start to see an area of more persistent rain edging and

across western and southern Scotland. It will extend across the

country. We will see some heavy bursts of rain. There will be some

mist and fog patches developing over the higher ground of the

Southern Highlands. By the end of the night, we will see clearer

conditions developing along the west coast. The temperatures will

reflect that. Further East, under that rain, that temperatures will

be as high as nine degrees. Tomorrow starts off with this dry,

clear weather in the West, which turns to sunshine once we see first

flight. Effectively, it chases that rain away as it pushes the way into

the North Sea. Some lovely spells of sunshine developing for western

Scotland during the morning. If we take a closer look at tomorrow

afternoon, for the Inner Hebrides and the south-west, at a beautiful

day. Since buying -- fine spells of sunshine. Nor Sir, it will be

similar. Along the North, a lot of sunshine to be found. Rain and

cloud in Shetland. That could be the legacy of the morning's cloud

and rain. But that will clear during the afternoon. For the

eastern coastal areas towards the border, dry with bright spells of

sunshine. Temperatures of ten Celsius. During the afternoon, we

will start to see a bit of a change with cloud increasing across the

Outer Hebrides. A strong south- westerly wind develops across the

Outer Hebrides. For the outlook, this weather front will straddle

the country on Wednesday, bringing outbreaks of rain for western and

southern Scotland. Here is that frame. It will be heavier cross and

North-West with light from the south-west. Little gets through to

Now, just before seven o'clock, a summary of tonight's top stories...

Milly Dowler's mother has described how she believes she was duped by a

phone hacker into believing her teenage daughter was alive. She

told the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics about the moment when, after

days of finding Millie's voice mail full, she was suddenly able to

leave a message. What she didn't know at the time was that Millie's

phone had been hacked. More than 30 people have been

killed and 1,800 wounded in clashes in Cairo between Egypt's miltary

and pro-democracy supporters. The civilians are unhappy at how the

country is being run, nine months after the dictator Hosni Mubarak

was ousted. The former world champion athlete

Liz McColgan has been found not guilty of assaulting her estranged

husband. A court heard today how the couple had fallen out over a

solicitor's letter she received from Peter McColgan suggesting they

should sell their family home. The number of people passing through

Scotland's shopping areas has fallen by nine percent on last year.

The Scottish Retail Consortium has called it a nosedive and with just

over a month to go until Christmas retailers are hoping for a quick