18/10/2011 Reporting Scotland

Tonight on Reporting Scotland. Battling the parasites. Fish farms

could be banned from parts of Scotland's coastline to protect

wild salmon. Rangers withdraw all co-operation

from the BBC - they accuse the corporation of muckraking in a

documentary to be broadcast on Thursday. The gritters are out in

the Scottish borders tonight, how can councils maintain frontline

services this winter in the face of budget cuts?

And also tonight. Or of a sudden, the whole thing exploded. I could

hear a loud noise just past my ear, really loud. Forty years on -

remembering the victims of the Clarkston gas explosion.

Fish farms could be banned from some parts of Scotland's coastline

to protect wild fish such as salmon and sea trout. The Scottish

government is considering the move, because parasites are causing

serious problems. But that's strongly denied by the fish farming

industry. Here's our special correspondent, Kenneth Macdonald.

Netting for sea trout. Some biologists here see wild fish

stocks in decline and a. It in part on tiny parasites. -- and are

blaming it. Anglers suspect fish farms on making it worse. There

will be 500,000 fish in a salmon farm. You have a healthy sea trout

population here with about 20,000, so there is a magnitude of fish. So

there is a natural relationship between wild fish and parasite

numbers and you have 10 times as many with parasite, you can have 10

times as many parasite. industry sees no scientific reason

why a farms should move. We cannot see it will have an impact. I think

it would be wrong to say, we do not know, we do not really like this,

but we think you should go out of here, that is not a reason for

leaving. But the Scottish government has told the BBC it is

considering asking some farms to go elsewhere to protect wild trout and

salmon. We are looking at marine protected areas. To what extent

might that protection extent? made do and we will consult on that.

Could we see a position like Norway with areas where fish farming is

not allowed to protect wild fish stocks? Everything is open for

discussion but we have to have the consultation and we have to

understand and the environment we have in Scotland what the effects

of different options would be. now, the talk is only of

consultation, but if followed through, it would be a major

departure for the Scottish government, which is committed to

expanding this -- expanding the fishing industry.

And you can see more on that tonight in "Scotland's Fishy

Secrets" on BBC One Scotland at 10:.35.

Rangers Football Club has withdrawn all co-operation with the BBC over

what it describes as "repeated difficulties" with the broadcaster

this season. The Ibrox club claims that a documentary, to be aired on

Thursday, is little more than a prejudiced muckraking exercise. The

BBC has strongly denied the allegations. Our business and

economy editor, Douglas Fraser, joins me now. Douglas. What is

Rangers saying the BBC has got wrong?

In the south bank of the Clyde, at Rangers and the BBC are close

neighbours but not getting on well at the moment. The BBC will

broadcast a documentary on Thursday looking at the financial plight of

Rangers and what might happen to it with the new majority shareholder

and chairman. Some of the findings of the investigation have been sent

to Rangers to give them a chance to respond. The response is that all

co-operation with the BBC has been withdrawn. It said the documentary

looks nothing more than a prejudiced muckraking exercise and

there are allegations of instances of reporting that were not accurate

and fair, and a general charge the BBC has on occasion, it says,

showing a predetermined negative attitude to Rangers and its fans.

The BBC has also issued a statement rejecting the allegations in the

strongest terms. It says it places a value on the accuracy and

impartiality of journalism and the documentary will have rigorous

editorial standards applied, and nothing will be broadcast at is not

accurate. There has also been more Rangers funds frozen by a court

order today - what's happened there? This is to do with Donald

Macintyre, who was the finance director until May when he was

suspended by Craig White. And then a new owner came in. He is suing

them for wrongful dismissal and earnings and went to the Court of

Session as his former colleague, Martin Bain, the former Chief

Executive did, to free his funds because they are concerned raiders

will not be able to pay its bills. The Court of Session has agreed

there is a substantial risk Rangers may not be able to pay bills

because of the large tax bill it faces. Another �300,000 is to be

frozen pending the outcome of these legal cases.

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

seven. Designs for a hugely controversial

redevelopment in Aberdeen city centre go on public display.

And new views on how the game of football was evolving in Scotland

much earlier than previously thought.

In sport, Celtic extend the contract of midfielder Beram Kayal.

Plus, we'll have an exclusive report about the Sion's plans to

take UEFA to court, which could force European football's

constitution to be ripped up. A war of words has broken out

between the Scottish and UK governments over remarks made by

the First Minister. The Scottish Secretary has accused Alex Salmond

of showing a "worrying disrespect" for Scottish voters, following

comments in a magazine interview in which the First Minister suggested

that only nationalist MPs had a mandate to talk about an

independence referendum. I am not interested in Division

Four division's sake. It is important Scotland's two

governments work closely together. On the issue of the future of the

constitution, we are delivering through the Scott and build the

biggest transfer of fiscal powers since the creation of the United

Kingdom -- the Scotland Bill. The First Minister once got on to be

independent, but he has to answer the -- and so hard questions people

are asking. -- answer. Earlier, our Westminster

correspondent, Tim Reid, explained just how serious this row is.

Alex Salmond has ruffled a few feathers. He came in a political

magazine in which he suggested the only Scottish Nationalist member of

the committee had the right to talk about the referendum but he also

said Westminster did not -- people did not want to see Westminster

legislating with anything. The other parties jumped on him.

Michael Moore suggesting that Mr Salmond is the only sane

nationalist votes count. Brett -- he wants to close that argument.

Michael Moore has set out questions he wants Alex Salmond to answer

which he says he has not come up with. I think this will come to a

head in the Scottish Affairs Committee tomorrow afternoon in

which Michael Moore is giving evidence. The harsh winters of the

past two years have pushed councils' resources to their limits.

But with temperatures beginning to drop once again, local authorities

are facing tough choices over where they can trim costs. This morning,

one council agreed to cut its winter services budget by �50,000.

But Borders Council insists the decision won't affect frontline

services. It is a cut. But in terms of

efficiency, we are getting more efficient equipment to put salt on

in a more controlled manner that will save money. Is that an

efficiency cut? It is getting better value for money and that is

what it is all about. How does the council planned to make the

savings? Our reporter is in the borders.

Bad news, it has started again already and here we go again. This

critic is out tonight in the Scottish borders for the first time.

In the back, there will be 10 to hunt -- 10 tons of this stuff, rock

salt. This goes on the roads but is not cheap. So the council is

bringing in its new satellite links into the Greta's to control each

driver and make them go to the most efficient route through the borders

-- into the greatest. And it will control this which controls how

much grit comes out depending on what road you on, which could save

thousands. They have already saved tens of thousands by not bringing

in these boxes off the streets this summer, but they will re

prioritises where they are positioned which could mean some

communities in the borders might lose them. The council are

encouraging them to get their own to maintain that. Down here, it was

so severe last winter that this is the salt from last winter mixed

with grit to make it go further and deal with the severe conditions.

Hopefully, it will not be that bad this winter. So it is a mix of

trimming down the service and a bit of wishful thinking. But councils

across Scotland will have to work out the fine balance between

delivering important frontline services this winter and meeting

those budget cuts. It all brings it rather close! Thank you for that.

One in five young Scots is out of work, according to figures released

today. The data from the Office for National Statistics shows that an

estimated 80,000 youngsters are unemployed - a near record rate.

Catriona Renton has been speaking to some youngsters about the

difficulties in finding work. This is the largest graduate Fair

in the UK. 86 and players are here actively looking for workers. But

youth unemployment has it an all- time high and graduates are not

exempt. I am not kicking -- getting a look in for a lot of jobs I feel

I am qualified for so I am having to trade down, even basic clerical

jobs that on may be looking for three Standard grades as a base.

When you do not even get an invite for that, you have to question what

you can do. It also met this girl who graduated in psychology earlier

this year. It has been pretty dismal, really. As soon as I

graduated and if not before, I was applying for jobs and graduate

schemes, any job that was related to my psychology degree in any way.

But still, three months on and I am unemployed and looking for work.

Official figures say it only 6% of graduates are unemployed. But

anecdotally, we have been talking to employers and one said over five

months, be received 1,200 applications for they graduate

training scheme this year -- and this year they have received over

700 in just four weeks. Many employers here are our IT and

finance companies and they accept graduates may not get into the job

they want first time. It has always been the case but more so now that

graduates will have to expect to have steps towards their ride deal

of their graduate career. With 4,000 people expected to come here

over the next couple of days, they will hope they will be the lucky

ones. Plans to redevelop the Union

Terrace Gardens in Aberdeen have been the subject of fierce debate

for more than a year. Today, the public had the first chance to see

the six designs which have been shortlisted to compete for the �140

million project. But with opposition remaining, the local

authority is considering holding a referendum on the issue. Steven

Duff reports. Six visions submitted by six

internationally renowned teams of architects. To transform these

gardens. Some are quite simple, the They have done a lot of work on

these drawings and designs. But leave it as it is. Yes, that's

quite modern. It looks quite exciting. I wouldn't mind part of

the gardens being retained as they are. Not everyone wants change.

Outside the public exhibition of the designs, protesters want to

keep the -- the gardens as they are. But there is a short list. Amazing.

It is a great testament to Aberdeen. The designs have a all been costed

to meet the �140 billion budget. The jury will pick a design next

month. But the fee could still rest on a referendum which is under

consideration. A woman has admitted dangerous

driving after going down the wrong way on a dual carriageway and

causing this accident. It happened on the road backwards at the

Aberdeen in March. The drive of the lorry which recorded the smash was

injured. 21-year-old Shazida Begum will be sentenced next month.

Plans for a controversial coal- fired power station have attracted

more objections than any other development at Scottish planning

history. According to the Royal Society for the Protection for

Birds, more than 20,000 people have signed a petition to stop the plans

in Hunterston going ahead. The Royal Society for the Protection

for Birds say the power station could damage a nationally important

wildlife site. Protest as a spending another night

camped out bins and Andrew Square. The occupation started on Saturday.

Similar protests are also being held in Glasgow.

It was the worst mainland gas explosion since the Second World

War. 40 years ago, shops at Clarkston Toll ball ripped apart

killing 22 people. This week, relatives and shopkeepers will

gathered to remember those who died. This is Clarkston on the south side

of Glasgow. It is a lifeless a bubble shops and restaurants at its

core. -- a lively suburb with shops and restaurants. But tragedy struck

It was a terrible sight to see. Shops exploded, windows were blown

out. Pyre lit up through cracks in the pavement. That was the scene of

utter devastation. -- fire lit up. Where were you when the explosion

happened? This woman was working in one of the shops when it happened.

All of a sudden, the whole thing exploded. I could hear a loud

whooshing noise, a really loud just passed my ear. The whole window

completely lifted off the ground and as it came back down again,

huge pieces of glass just shattered. Shopkeepers had been mixed --

complaining of a strong smell of gas for days. I took two of the men

into the window, the children's window, and I said I didn't want to

go back because of the gas. They said there was not enough gas in

the air to come out. An inquiry found no one to blame. It was

simply an accident. This plaque is a memorial to the 22 people who

lost their lives that day. It sits at the end of the row of shops can

be blown apart by the explosion. But for some people, this plaque is

not enough. Given the scale of the disaster here and the loss suffered,

they should be something more substantial to recognise that. It

is pretty much the felt -- the for -- forgotten explosion. No further

memorial is planned, but they will continue to have commemorate. -- to

commemorate. There was good news for Celtic

today as midfielder Berem Kayal signed an extended contract with

the club. It came as the ructions continued with Celtic's Europa

League group. As we revealed last night, UEFA have drawn up plans

which could see FC Sion parachuted into Celtic's group. But the Swiss

side are still not happy and aim to proceed with legal action against

UEFA, which could have massive ramifications for football as a

whole. Beram Kayal has made a major impact since arriving at Celtic.

Today, he extended his contract until 2015. Despite speculation

linking him with the move away, he insists he never once thought about

leaving. I feel happy to stay here. I feel proud. The manager wanted me

here and I always said I wanted to stay here. A lot of rumours say

that another club wanted me, but I never thought for one moment to

leave the club. Beram Kayal was part of the Celtic team that lost

to FC Sion 3-1. FC Sion have been protesting ever since. They are

refusing to let UEFA take them to the Court of Arbitration. Very

worrying times for UEFA. Anyone could challenge any of the decision

-- decisions they make in a civil court. It is different because FC

Sion are based in Switzerland and so are the UEFA headquarters. The

Swiss contracts compel them to enforce the decisions they make a

more where they could ignore it otherwise. They could be more games

against FC Sion, but right now Celtic certainly have something to

smile about. Hibs have reported a loss of �900,000 for the year

ending July 2011. Three first team regulars, Anthony Stokes, Merouane

Zemmama and Sol Bamba were sold during that time but poor results

and dwindling crowds have meant the Easter Road club have posted a loss

for the first time in seven years. Craig Levein hopes to be the first

manager to take Scotland from the fourth tier of European football to

qualification for a World Cup. Failure to reach Euro 2012 means

Scotland will start the next World Cup qualification campaign as

fourth seeds. But the national boss believes his squad are improving

and do have a chance. We will wait and see what happens. It is the

first time any manager has had to take Scotland from pot for into

qualifying position. Understand it will be difficult but the players

we have and the progress we are making, we started off from a much

better position. Just four Scots have been named on UK Athletics'

elite performance list, earning the highest level of lottery funding in

the lead-up to London 2012. Middle distance runner Steph Twell plus

paralympic duo Stef Reid and Libby Clegg retain their place on the

podium programme. And after posting improved times this year, Lee

McConnell moves up from relay support to maximum funding.

Thank you very much. There is evidence that the modern game of --

but Paul was evolving in Scotland just as early as it was in England.

The rule book for the modern game may have been written in England in

the mid-nineteenth century, but a Scottish football historian claims

400 years earlier it was already changing in Scotland from a

dangerous rammy to small teams of skilled players. When the game of

football was born, it looked a bit like this. It could involve a whole

town of men, it was rough and very dangerous. In the mid- 19th century,

the rule book was written for the modern game by enthusiasts in

England, but it didn't have to be that way as the game had been tamed

in Scotland as well, centuries before. An early football ground in

Scotland would be near a castle. We know that football games took place

there, but it was a very small space. In the 16th century, Mary

Queen of Scots had fled to their castle. She watched her Scottish

courtiers play football in the grounds. She watched a 10 aside

match. A football like this, claimed to be the oldest in the

world. It was found and Stirling Castle. It was a very dangerous

physical game. The king and queen couldn't afford to get here, so

they may have been pushing for a slightly more friendly game.

would have thought that 500 years on, the humble football would still

be providing so much entertainment and provoking so much passion?

we saw the gritters earlier in the programme. Will we be seeing them

for real Super? -- soon? There will be more in the way of blue skies

tomorrow. This evening, most of the showers were largely died out as we

head through the night. Inland, we will see a largely dry picture and

it will turn quite cool. Temperatures will be around three

or four Celsius. Tomorrow, a dry and bright start and of many places

will stay like that for much of the day. There will continue to be

showers in the West and to north- east. Strong to gale-force winds.

But through the day, they will gradually die down. They will be

some good spells of sunshine as well but it will feel quite chilly,

highs of eight or nine degrees. Tomorrow evening, most of the

showers will die out and it will become dry overnight. It will turn

fairly chilly. Thursday morning will be dry and bright to start

with and quite chilly, but will quickly see card building from the

West with the rain pushing and -- cloud building. Friday, a crowded

picture. -- A cloudy picture. This week, a bit of a mixture. That is

your weather for now. Have a lovely evening. Just before 7pm, a summary

of tonight's top stories: Fish farms could be banned from some

parts of Scotland's coastline to protect wild fish such as salmon

and sea trout. The Scottish government is

considering the move, because parasites are causing serious

problems. But that's strongly denied by the fish farming industry.

There's been another sharp rise in the rate of inflation. The Consumer

Prices Index jumped from 4.5% to 5.2% last month. The Retail Prices

Index rate which includes housing costs also rose, to 5.6 per cent,

its highest level in more than 20 years. Rising energy prices are

being blamed. Rangers football club has withdrawn all co-operation with

the BBC over what it describes as repeated difficulties with the

broadcaster this season. The Ibrox club claims that a documentary, to

be aired on Thursday, is little more than a prejudiced muckraking

exercise. The BBC has strongly denied the allegations. An Israeli

soldier, Gilad Shalit, captured when he was 19 by Hamas and held in

Gaza for five years, has been released. It's part of a

controversial prisoner swap which will eventually see more than 1,000