14/05/2014 Reporting Scotland

The best employment figures in a generation.

The number of people here in work is at its highest level

The last remaining Commonwealth Games tickets were due

to be sold on Monday but, after crashes and delays,

organisers admit it could be days before sales are up and running.

Quiet on the outside, mayhem on the inside.

Over 40 inmates are involved in an overnight disturbance

As St Mirren's new leadership blends youth with experience,

the new man in the middle outlines his credentials.

There are a host of personalities. This includes them all.

The number of Scots in work has reached its highest

In the period between January and March, there were just over 2.5

And, over the same period, the number of people out

Here's our economics correspondent, Colletta Smith.

When I grow up, I would like to be an athlete in the Olympics doing

gymnastics. I would like to be a physio in football. I would like to

be an interior designer. For those at the other end of the school

system, people sitting their Highers, the prospects of finding a

job are very real. Today's statistics show companies are taking

on new staff. That has been welcomed. It is great news and a

sign that the economy is moving into recovery mode. We are seeing really

strong recruitment activity across a number of sectors, ranging from oil

and gas through to renewables. Also the ICT and digital technology

sector. Really strong recruitment activity. They used to say that you

should be a lawyer or a doctor. Those days are gone. Software is

taking over everything across all sectors. This is something that

Scotland really has incredible talent at producing. We just need

more people. Today 's statistics show the Scottish and implement rate

is at 6.4%, lower than the 6.8% which is the average for the UK as a

whole. The number of people who were claiming the dole last month fell by

2000 compared with March. Today's figures are not only good news for

those who had jobs but they also reflect well on the Scotland economy

as a whole and that makes it much more likely the work dreams of these

children can be turned into reality in years to come.

The ticket provider for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games now say

it may take some days to resolve the problems with their website.

Yesterday, Glasgow 2014, in conjunction with Ticketmaster,

took the decision to shut it down after thousands

of people were unable to buy tickets because of technical problems.

Our Commonwealth Games reporter, Jane Lewis, joins me now.

This area behind me will be a hive of activity during the Games this

summer. It will host the gymnastics and also play host to the finals of

the boxing and the netball. Anyone who has been keen to try to get

their hands on any of the extra tickets made available for these

sports and for others well, they have not been able to do so today.

That is 24 hours on from Ticketmaster shutting down its

website. It has been contacted by Glasgow 2014 to provide tickets for

these Games. They did release a statement earlier today when they

talked about regretting any frustration that was caused to any

customers over the past two days. As I say, that statement was released

earlier this morning. A short time ago, Glasgow 2014 has released a

statement. They say improvements will be made to the website if

needed. They also at this. They say, once this review is complete and any

measures have been implemented and tested, we will be in a position in

the coming days to advise when ticket sales will be back up and

running. Of course, some people did manage to get their hands on tickets

before the website shut down yesterday, 24 hours ago now. Around

60,000 of those available tickets have been sold. There were many,

many other people who were left frustrated. It has to be said those

frustrations have been felt by many. Many people have been offering words

of sympathy, none other than the first minister Alex Salmond. He said

today that while he was sympathetic, it shows that everyone

wants to get in on the Glasgow 2014 act. He says, such was the demand

for these tickets. The company that operates

Grangemouth has announced that it has been granted planning permission

for the largest ethane tank Ineos say it will help secure the

future of the petrochemical plant What is the significance

of this announcement? Last Christmas I went to Norway to

see what the future of Grangemouth could look like. They have built an

enormous tanks they could be the first in Europe to import cheap

shell gas from the United States to process into plastics. These are the

plastics that are used to going to milk bottles. It is more than 100

feet tall. The One Show Grangemouth will be twice that size. -- the one

at Grangemouth. Even after shipping, the shell gas will cost half the

price of the North Sea gas they currently use costs. You can see

there will be a big saving. The petrochemical side of the plant was

nearly shut down. After a dispute between management and the union,

workers signed up to a survival plan and the huge tank is part of that

plan, to secure the jobs. The company says it could secure the

site for the next 15 years. Not everyone is welcoming it? Concern

has been expressed. The company has said it is essential to keep the

business going at Grangemouth and it need not always been from America.

Therein lies another controversial debate about the ethics of fracking

for shale gas. For now, this means that Grangemouth has gone from

almost closing down last year to having a future.

You're watching Reporting Scotland from the BBC.

Still to come on tonight's programme...

How work on a rural bypass in the south west turned up a treasure

In the sport, the new man in charge of St Mirren says he has no problem

taking over from his former boss. More on that and, if Eurovision was

not to your taste, how about this? Yes, I am afraid the Cup Final songs

from Dundee United and St Johnstone have been recorded.

No ifs, no buts, the words of the Chancellor, George Osborne today, as

he insisted no deal will ever be reached which will allow Scotland to

use the pound in the event of independence. He was giving evidence

to the Commons Scottish affairs committee. The first minister said

his position was a campaign gambit which had failed to sway voters

against independence. Our Westminster correspondent reports. A

new campaign unveiled amid reports of concerns over strategy and

denials from Downing Street as too negative. It comes three months

after the Chancellor ruled out the Scottish Government plans to share

the pound after Scottish independence. Today he restated the

position, rejecting claims by the Scottish affairs committee that the

move may have alienated Scots voters. There will not be a currency

union. That is not just my position, it is the position of the Labour

Party and the Liberal Democrats. Any combination you can possibly imagine

of a British Government for the foreseeable future has ruled this

option out. The senior Treasury official who advised against this

was sitting alongside. Both mental the committee will be huge practical

financial consequences if Scotland wanted to use the pound without

agreement. We have had a procession of economists calling these

arguments ridiculous. We have had senior government ministers quoted

as saying, of course there will be a currency union. This is just a

gambit for the campaign. I think the reaction among the Scottish people

for these edicts among -- from on high says that began bit of George

Osborne has failed. It is about the pound in your pocket. Mr Osborne use

the formal surroundings of the Commons committee to say he was not

laughing. Voters have for months to decide who they think is telling the

truth. -- laughing. An investigation is under way after prisoners were

involved in a disturbance. They had control of a unit at Grampian

prison. Damage to the unit has been described as considerable. From the

outside, just a few clues to what has been going on in the new

Grampian prison. Although there is no obvious sign of a disturbance to

those passing this new jail, activity levels have been higher

than normal. This is the prison on the inside, just a few weeks ago,

when the first inmates arrived. Around 9pm yesterday, some prisoners

began vandalising some of the 60s and fittings, staff were treated and

locked them behind one of these sets of bars. They remained there for

more than 13 hours until this latest in a series of incidents was brought

under control. I do not think it is right to categorise it as a problem.

You do get some incidents and teething problems in any new

establishment. Historically that has been the case. What we have seen

here today is blatant disregard for those people behaving in a manner

that is totally unacceptable. 41 prisoners, who are in the

accommodation block, are in the process of being moved to other

jails. The Scottish Prison Service says the amount of damage caused was

considerable. Police will examine what happened with a view to

prosecuting. The Prison Service said inmates did not voluntarily end

their disturbance this morning. Instead, a specially trained team of

staff entered the accommodation block, wearing body armour and

helmets, and retook control. That said, the Prison Service points out

that no staff or inmates were injured.

A look at other stories from the across the country:

Inverness Prison has problems with overcrowding, according to the Chief

Following an inspection in February, his report says it was holding 26

more prisoners than its 103 capacity, and that the

A fisherman has died after falling from a boat off

He was one of two people aboard a Loch Ewe-based creel boat

He was recovered from the water by his colleague and airlifted to the

A developer has cleared the first hurdle to turn one

of Perth's most historic civic buildings into a luxury hotel.

The City Hall, built a century ago, has lain empty for nearly ten years.

Arguments have raged over its future,

Now a council committee is recommending planning consent is

granted to develop the building as a five-star hotel.

We have to decide the process will be. As far as I'm aware, we will

have to apply to remove that application to demolish this. Beyond

that, council may have to decide whether they will not be building

back. Councillors in Aberdeen have been

discussing a bylaw to deal with The Labour-led administration says

something needs to be done to protect public places

from being used. The SNP has branded

the move discriminatory. This year's Edinburgh Jazz

Blues Festival is promising 140 gigs Venues across the capital will

host musicians from around the The organisers say it's

the most ambitious programme yet. Immigration often features

in the debate over the future of the European Union,

because as the EU has expanded and new countries have joined,

more people have had the right to With the European Parliament

elections just over a week away, our political correspondent,

Glenn Campbell, has been asking if free movement has

been good for Scotland or not. Whether they come bypass or by boat,

plane or train, every EU citizen has the right to travel to this or any

other EU country to live and work. SNP say Scotland needs to attract

more talent to thrive. Scotland is not full. We know one of our

challenges is to grow our working age population so we can support and

sustain the services needed for our ageing population. The UKIP message

could not be more different. They want out of the EU, and tablet --

tougher immigration controls than any of the four largest Scottish

parties. Witham it is clear people in Scotland they got the whole they

should be slightly less immigration then there is now. They also want to

make sure they have public services that are well staffed and have

qualified doctors and nurses. A recent poll for the migration

observatory at Oxford University suggested that Scotland is indeed

more positive about immigration then England and Wales. But a clear

majority of those asked still said that immigration should be reduced.

It is something on the doorstep. People feel they are worried about

their workplaces and opportunities. That can sometimes be translated

into a fear of others. We believe it is scapegoating other people. Only

7% of Scottish residents were born outside the UK, and less than half

of them, 158,000, are from other European Union countries. What is

clear is that Scotland's people like having the benefit of being in

Scotland and we are very tolerant about people coming here as well.

The Scottish Greens have also put welcoming Europeans at the centre of

their campaign. The six new MPs will send representatives to Brussels and

Strasbourg will be elected next Thursday.

Let's turn our attention to sport and get the round-up from David.

St Mirren's new manager Tommy Craig says he had no hesitation

Craig was Lennon's assistant until Monday, when Lennon was told

The new boss says he wants the team to continue playing

Meet the three bodies. The new boss but to be more consistent.

Meet the three bodies. The new boss and player encourages. They all seem

surprised to get the gig. I'm grateful to Danny, who brought me to

the club in the first place, and now I find myself in the number one

position. It is sad to see Danny Reeve, and then gaining the

opportunity, but we both have a good relationship. The whole thing has

been crazy, to be honest for stop it was something offered to us, and

opportunity we could not turn down. Do you have any thoughts? We are

obviously standing here as part of a management team, so it is great.

While St Mirren were helped to win by Denny last year, the league form

in the season just ended was patchy. The new regime's major is

consistency with style. People will say it is all about results, and I

agree with that, but surely along the way we could give the public

something they will enjoy watching. We owe them that. We were to get

cracking on talking to a number of players, and then recruiting players

into the club. Anyone signed up since taking over? That is none of

your business. That is made back in my place.

Three days and counting to the Scottish Cup final.

And if you thought Eurovision was bad, what about this?

St Johnston going for a mellow approach to

Not so Dundee United players, complete with backing singers!

That is how we found ourselves so high up the league by putting

experienced players there on the day. We need to make sure it comes

together and that we work together and that we click. We have a chance

of winning the first Scottish cup, and being in the first final.

Andy Murray's breezed into the third round of the Italian Open.

The Scot defeated Marcel Granollers of Spain in straight sets in Rome.

Murray could face World number one Rafael Nadal in the quarter finals.

The Glasgow and Scotland forward Ed Kalman has announced his retirement

Kalman made over 100 appearances for Glasgow Warriors.

Joy for Rangers and heartache for Hearts in the under 20s

Locked together at two goals each after extra time,

Badminton Scotland's appealing to Commonwealth Games Scotland to allow

Caitlin Pringle and Rebecca Findlay to compete in individual events

They've only been selected for the team event.

It's the first leg of the championship play-off tonight.

Dunfermline versus Cowdenbeath is live on BBC Radio Scotland

and online, and also coverage of League One play-offs.

Read all about the new regime at St Mirren and much more on the

Can't get those songs out of my head. Thank you, David.

They're said to be some of the oldest

and most important archaeological finds ever unearthed in Scotland.

Thousands of artefacts from ancient civilisations dating

back around 9,000 years were found during the building of a bypass

A modern highway crosses an ancient land. The construction of one

uncovering the secrets of the other. I see a dense landscape of

archaeology from 9000 years ago. Neolithic over there. You could see

the road arcing through a landscape dominated by major ceremonial

sites, with a landscape dominated by the past. When plans were approved

to divert the A75, archaeologists were applied to investigate this

during construction. They unearthed a prehistoric treasure trove. They

are series of Neolithic stone and flint items. The newest from the

Bronze Age, like this cremation urn. Most remarkably, two magnificent

necklace is made of jet. Spectacular places like these with being the

possessions of the wealthiest members of society, probably from

female graves, and they are important because they would have

been imported all the way from Yorkshire. This is particularly

important because it's the first group of fines from the south-west

of Scotland. The remains are exciting. If you look at some of the

stone tools, they don't look spectacular, but in many ways, they

are an expression of someone's daily activity. You can most see their

hands wrapped around the tools now, so in many ways, it is like reaching

back through time and shaking hands with them.

Conservation and examination of the artefacts is likely to shed new

light on a whole series of Galloway's old civilisations.

What can we expect from the weather? Christopher can tell us.

Hello. Fairly cloudy at the moment. It will be a cloudy evening and

night. Mark to the last night. A week weather front trying to push

its way in with patchy light rain at times. Something more persisted for

Shetland. Cloudy and dry for many, and milder than last night. Sunspots

were subzero. Around nine to 11 degrees. Misty and murky at times.

Thursday, I pressure to the south. That will keep the weather front of

the mainland, which means most of the country tomorrow largely dry.

Early rain in the north-east, but Backley quiz away. After a cloudy

start, it should improve, with the cloud tending to thin and break with

sunshine coming through. There are great deal milder, and moisture in

it, so we will feel warmer. Whence the sun gets through, 17, 18 or 19

degrees is possible. Not too bad at all. The West Coast cloud upper

colon. Add to Orkney and Shetland, that is where the weather front was,

and you could see patchy outbreaks of rain. More of a breeze from the

south-west as well. The rest of the afternoon into the evening, little

in the way of change. A pleasant and mild into the day. Friday, and the

high pressure is still with this down towards the south. Holding this

weather front up towards the north-west, it means the rest of the

mainland has another large dry day. It will be a cloudy stab at times,

but once again, the cloud will thin and break. The sun will come

through, and it will be warm. Add to 21 degrees possible. That cold front

in the north-west bringing rain in towards the Outer Hebrides. For the

weekend, there is that cold front sitting across the country. A bit

depth at times, but not a wash-out. Overnight, Saturday to Sunday, the

next weather front works its way in. It will be wet overnight, and then

Sunday morning, cloud and rain and wind, but for the next couple of

days, the sun will come out and will feel warm. That is the forecast.

Now, a reminder of tonight's main news:

The number of Scots in work has reached its highest

In the period between January and March, there were just over 2.5

And over the same period, the number of people out

The government in Turkey has declared three days

of national mourning after nearly 250 miners were killed

in an explosion and fire at a coal mine in the west of the country.