20/04/2012 Reporting Scotland

Welcome to Reporting Scotland. Tonight on your national news:

Rangers on the brink, as one bidder pulls out, and another outlines his

plans to take over the club. The manager believes time is running

Anger as it is revealed that doctors had to battle to keep a

patient alive when an operating theatre lost power at one of

Scotland's biggest hospitals. A coastguard helicopter pilot is

suspended after flying to Orkney to pick up a delivery of meat from a

local butcher. And on the eve of the Scottish

Grand National, the clerk of Ayr racecourse tells us that horse

safety is his main priority. It has been another dramatic day at

Rangers Football Club. One bidder has pulled out, but another has

outlined his plan for taking over the club. All this, as the manager

Ally McCoist warned of liquidation before the end of May.

It is business as usual for the players today, but behind the

scenes, another tumultuous day. His time running out to save the club?

There are fears they are nearing the end of the road as key points

approach. On 30th April, clubs will vote on new roles over insolvent

clubs that could have an impact. -- rules. They would come into effect

on 14th May, the end of the season and when income a -- dries up even

more. He thinks are not done by the end of May, it could be cataclysmic.

Serious cuts or potential liquidation. I do not like to guess,

but you are probably dealing in the latter, I think. Effectively, the

end of May is do or die. Before that, in my opinion. They need a

buyer now. But today, Bill Ng withdrew interest. But stepping up

to the plate is this man, the American Bill Miller. For the first

time, he has gone into detail about plans. In a lengthy statement he

outlined his �11 million offer, and includes demands of the football

authorities that the club would begin play in the 2012 season in

yes P L without a loss of points and with historic titles intact. --

SPL. He is critical of other interested parties, saying they

interested parties, saying they have until Monday to come back in,

He talks of setting up an incubator company. What will that mean?

go down the bid, and the bid is successful, I would expect that

Rangers would be liquidated. I do not believe that is likely, in that

I do not believe the bid will be accepted. But the administrators

said they will act upon the bid if no others come in by the start of

next week. Bill Miller seems to be in pole

position to buy the club. They he certainly is, no doubt in the sense

that his offer is the only one deemed acceptable so far by the

administrators. He will wait until Monday before

formalising the offer. The administrators believe they can

entice the Blue Knights back to the table. There have been discussions

today. I would not rule them out altogether. We have seen in the

report the conditions attached to Bill Miller's offer, not penalising

Rangers and fining them any further, that is a big stretch of the

imagination to believe the football authorities would acquiesce to the

demands. More details have emerged of the 11

minutes when one of Scotland's leading hospitals lost all power.

It happened on the 29th March, when workers for Consort, the company

which maintains the hospital building, accidentally cut the

power supply. One operation had to be completed by torchlight. Tonight

the Health Secretary has told Consort to get its act together.

Gavin Walker reports. At first, it was an operation like

many others, standard procedure. But things went wrong. The

operating theatre suffered a complete power failure. The room

was in total darkness and for the first minute and a half staff Pat

User Manual them to lay to get to keep the patient breathing --

Manual ventilator. It was 11 minutes before the power came back.

Maintenance staff from the operator's Consort had turned the

electricity off by mistake. NHS Lothian said they can tolerate no

more. The need to have guarantees from the providers -- we need

guarantees to the hospital this will not happen again. Vosper will

has support in demands. -- a hospital has the support.

thought it was a scandal that the company made such a mess of the

responsibility they to have gone. The other scandal is that the

health board has had to put up with other problems. Consort built and

runs the hospital and receives �55 million each year to do so. The

contract runs until 2028. This company is paid handsomely from the

public purse. There is no excuse for the performance we have been

seeing. The is the latest of this series of errors and there was a

similar power failure in December when a baby was delivered by

torchlight. NHS Lothian said the tolerance it has is dwindling.

It is clear the Health Board is at the end of its tether with the

company that built and manages the hospital. What can they do?

They cannot do as much as the people we heard would like to be

able to do. Much needs to be done. This was a loss of power to two

operating theatres while they were expected to be in use. The big

problem is the contract. It is for 30 years. Worth more than �1

billion. There is nothing in it that allows a hospital to terminate

it for this type of thing. The company Consort is owned by a

massive organisation that has lawyer's it is expected would

challenge any attempt to cancel the contract. Negotiations go on. One

hospital is expected to meet with someone from Consort next week.

They will tell them how angry they are and express to them that

whatever the contract says, it cannot be allowed to happen again.

You're watching Reporting Scotland from the BBC. Still to come on the

programme. How revolutionary treatment has

changed the life of a woman plagued by hearing problems.

And a tiramisu made from sawdust and make-up. One of the highlights

of the Glasgow International Festival of Visual Art.

We hear from the Celtic management team about Neil Lennon's treatment

by the Scottish FA. And we'll be at Ayr race course for

a look ahead to tomorrow's Grand National.

We might talk about fashion, as well.

Alex Salmond says next month's council elections are not about

independence. The First Minister was speaking as the SNP published

its manifesto for the poll on May 3rd. But many politicians fear

turn-out could be low. And as our local government correspondent

reports, some voters are still struggling to feel motivated.

The best way of making cuts was the topic today. But not have councils

should face up to tight budgets. Some staff at this salon in

Stirling are not feeling particularly engaged with the local

campaign. They would like to be. do not watch a lot of television.

If they got out there, we would know a lot more about it. My nearby,

the SNP were launching their campaign to engage voters. They are

fielding a record number of candidates with a clear aim. Making

Scotland better. Their vision is SNP councils and the SNP government

working closely. A we offer a partnership for progress. That is a

vision of government and councils working together for jobs for the

people, helping families, such as the council tax freeze, and

establishing fairness. So that everybody gets the benefit from

progressive policies. Some manifesto pledges highlight how

councils could play a part delivering existing SNP commitments,

delivering the council tax freeze, delivering the council tax freeze,

more flexible nursery hours and a guarantee of training and education

guarantee of training and education guarantee of training and education

for everybody between 16 and 19. This document sets out the aims for

councils, communities and local economies, independence is hardly

mentioned. The independence issue will be settled by the people of

Scotland at the referendum. This local election is about

establishing fairness for families and building the Partnership for

progress. The SNP has more councillors than any other party.

Will they win what some see as the selection's ultimate prize? Control

of Glasgow. Find out in a fortnight. Police searching for the missing

16-year-old schoolgirl Moyra As- Chainey in Easter Ross say a female

body has been found in woods near the teenager's home in the village

of Edderton. They say no formal identification is been made but the

search for Moyra has been stood down. It's too early to say whether

there are any suspicious circumstances.

A grandmother from Fife who became the first person in Scotland to

undergo revolutionary treatment for hearing loss says the procedure has

changed her life. Susan Rae spent years combating chronic ear

infections that meant conventional hearing aids were useless. But just

when she had all but given up hope, a Dundee doctor gave her the chance

to hear the birds singing once again.

For more than 20 years, the volume on her life had gradually been

turned down. Despite numerous trips to the doctors, efforts to combat

Susan Rae's hearing loss were frustrated and as time went by

problems intensified. Not being able to socialise properly, not

being able to hear the grandchildren. Something as simple

as the birds. Not being able to hear them because you have not

heard it for so long, you do not remember what it sounds like.

Susan's life-changing moment arrived when she was transferred to

a specialist hospital where she was the first patient in Scotland to

have an implant -- fitted. I was first aware of it when I attended a

course in France years ago but it never took off in the UK tour

relatively recently. There are a number of centres in England that

have been offering it. I thought it should be offered to patients in

Scotland. The implant eliminates problems with infection and

feedback. Two months on, Susan and her husband marvel at the moment it

was switched on. It is amazement that they have developed as

something so fantastic. My confidence is coming back. I had

lost confidence, and that is returning. I think that the more

people who can have it, the better. Next month, Susan will have the

same procedure on her left ear and is looking forward to life in

A look now at what else has been happening across the country this

Friday. One person had to be cut free after a serious accident on

the A82. Two cars were involved, and one of them went down an

embankment beside the Loch Ness. Scientists at Aberdeen University

are trying to make healthy turkey burgers by adding a beetroot.

beetroot, we think from experiments, might stop the fact in the burghers

becoming toxic, facts that have been implicated in studies -- fats.

Disabled workers protesting over the closure of their factories

staged a demonstration at the Edinburgh office of the Secretary

of State for Scotland. Four factories in Scotland are to shut

with the UK Government wanting the workers in mainstream employment

rather than dedicated work places. Unions say it will be difficult for

disabled people to find work in the current climate. A woman was

arrested after a shop dummy was entered as a candidate for the

council elections in Aberdeen. The mannequin was registered under a

name and it is understood the dummy has been seized and a 63-year-old

woman has been charged under the representation of the People Act.

St Andrews University is building a green energy plant to power its

campus. The former paper mill will create energy from Hydro, biomass

and grounds sauce heat bumps. And footage has been released of a calf

being rescued earlier this month on an uninhabited island. A lifeboat

crew were on a search-and-rescue exercise when they spotted the

beast stuck on the rocks. And there are more stories from your area 24

hours a day on BBC Scotland's We have had a lot about the

stakeholder society but the crew of a coastguard helicopter might have

taken it too far. In fact, the pilot of the Shetland coastguard

helicopter has been suspended after dropping in on a butcher in Orkney

to pick up meat. Just popping into your local

butchers. The coastguard's rescue helicopter on manoeuvres makes a

surprise landing next to the pictures on the East of the Orkney

mainland. Two of the crew HAN -- jump out and a consignment of meat

is handed over. Bosses are anger its by the footage and have

suspended the pilot. The picture says the response was heavy handed.

I feel he has done nothing wrong. It was a training flight. They land

here 40s, it was a rough landing. We are only a mite -- about one

mile away and we are on the flight path anyway. He made no it -- he

made no detour, he was just trying to save some money obviously. It is

terrible, I cant believe it. The helicopter company says the

exercise would have finished before the helicopter landed meaning that

the company picked up the Bill rather than the taxpayer.

Going to such lengths to pick up a stake has seen this pilot land in

some serious trouble. One of the highlights of the horse

racing season takes place tomorrow, the Scottish Grand National at Ayr.

It comes just one week after two horses were killed at the Grand

National at Ayr and treat -- at Aintree. The clerk at the course of

Ayr says that everything is being done to minimise the danger to

horses. It always attract big crowds and

usually some controversy. Two horses collapsed and died after

last year's race. Campaigners say it is cruel and want it banned.

Organisers insist that safety is their prime concern.

A we always go over and above the requirements and we have plenty of

ambulances and veterinary staff on site.

We asked a big fee for a Tep. What are your thoughts? Harry the

Viking. Alex Ferguson on steps and we have heard good things. -- Alex

Ferguson owns that one. Your horse running tomorrow has a

bit of a pedigree. Tell me about its background.

He won it two years ago and then he came back last year and was second.

We think we still have him on the go and I think he will have as good

a chance tomorrow as he has had. There are 25 runners and anything

can happen. It is not all about the racing.

There is also the chance to get the glad rags on.

What have you made about some of the outfits?

There are a few nice ones but not my cup of tea. Some nice dresses

abound but tomorrow will be busier. It looks like someone has called

the fashion police. Nothing for these fashionistas to get too

worried about. As for the others, ladies you can make your own mind

Having had a two-match ban from the Scottish FA yesterday, Celtic

manager Neil Lennon sits -- Neil Lennon chose not to speak at his

clubs up press conference yesterday. His assistant said the club feels

vindicated after his boss escaped punishment for another incident

during the last Old Firm derby. I think the verdict is there and

you know obviously that Neil was vindicate his and we are vindicated

by the decision from the SSA that he did not get a suspension from

that game. That is the news just coming in.

The police investigation into the Motherwell footballer Steve

Jennings has been dropped. Merseyside police were

investigating allegations of betting irregularities. But no

further action is to be taken. There has been disappointment for

Andy Murray at the Monte Carlo Masters. Despite winning the first

set, he was eventually beaten. The winner will go on to take on

Djokovic in the next round. The hair has made a difference. It

claims to represent Glasgow' -- Glasgow's Art Scene. Every two

years, the GI festival showcases some unusual and important public

works of art. This year there is an inflatable stonehenge, a giant

Italian pudding and a project that involves sounds being catapulted

across the Clyde. This might not look like a work of

art but at the t I, anything goes. This project involves projecting

sound from one side of the Clyde to the other.

We have telephones and marine a signal flags and the tall ships

will send messages to each other and we are building catapults that

will throw get so with messages across the river to reach other.

This newest work has already been nicknamed the Glasgow tiramisu.

While these layers of sawdust are not at that -- are not edible,

there is an appetite for this kind of work.

This city is the second most important place in the UK for

making art. It is one of the most important cities it for art

production in Europe. It is to do with an energy and a peer group who

worked very hard. Or two consistent decades, world-class artists have

been wanting to live here and make work here and be part of this

community. For the home-grown scene, GIA is

simply an international celebration of what happens here all year round.

While some might be amused by the work on offer, there is no doubting

that contemporary art as a mass appeal.

The Turner Prize achieved record- breaking figures when it was that

the Baltic in Newcastle. It shows there is a real appetite and

interest in what is going on. The days of it being seen as a marginal

activity are long gone. The thus lending library allows you to

borrow your favourite work and take Like today, this weekend will be

sunshine and showers. We have said it -- we have seen a few number

this afternoon. There was some sunshine in between but one or two

were fairly heavy. Tonight, the savage will ease. In eastern parts

of the country, they will stay cloudy and there will be continued

outbreaks of rain. Further west, clear skies. Perhaps some lower

temperatures in the sheltered glens. Winds will be staying white as well.

Tomorrow, to start the weekend, sunshine and showers. A cloudier

start further east compared with areas further west. Showers will

continue and there will be heavier than places and come with the rest

of pale or thunder. The Met Office has a yellow warning in force. With

light winds, they will be slow- moving. There could be surface

level flooding to contend with. Further north, good sunshine.

Across Orkney and Shetland, cloudier and rain for Shetland. We

could see snow showers if you are walking and clown -- climbing in

the hills. Thundery towards the South and west. Further east, sums

those showers for the Cairngorms. Heavy showers and thunder a for the

Border hills. Rents are generally light for all. There will be

thundery showers for the South West. Further east, across the Firth of

Forth there will be heavy showers and thunder will be less of a risk.

In the second half of the afternoon, the showers are still with us but

much slighter compared with the daytime. Towards Sunday, the area

of low-pressure that of those showers starts to push away. It

will still be a day of sunshine on Sunday with lighter showers

compared with the first half of the weekend. Temperatures are a little.

Mountain snow above where anyone leads on above any of the high road

routes. An area of low pressure next week feeding in sunshine and

more showers but there will be -- they will be reasonably light.

Just before 7pm, a summary of the top stories. Another dramatic day

at Rangers football club with one better pulling out and another

outlining his plans for taking over the club. Ally McCoist warned of

liquidation before the end of May. The Bahraini government insists

that this weekend's Grand Prix will go ahead despite clashes between

security forces and anti-government protesters. The Crown Prince of