:00:13. > :00:16.Welcome to Reporting Scotland. On the programme tonight:
:00:16. > :00:20.Labour's Eric Joyce pleads guilty to assault, after a brawl in a
:00:20. > :00:27.House of Commons bar. The Falkirk MP admits he's fortunate not to be
:00:27. > :00:31.in jail. It is a matter of considerable personal shame. For
:00:32. > :00:35.what happened two weeks ago, I have been duly punished today. I have
:00:35. > :00:40.been lucky to avoid prison. We'll be live in Westminster with the
:00:40. > :00:43.latest on what the future does hold for Mr Joyce. Also this evening:
:00:43. > :00:46.The Rangers first team squad finally do a deal with the
:00:46. > :00:54.administrators and sign off on huge wage cuts to help save the club and
:00:54. > :01:03.the jobs of non-playing staff. Everyone wants to succeed. A lot of
:01:03. > :01:11.people here want to have a good job at the end of the dead. And can
:01:11. > :01:14.Scotland break their the six-nation stuck with a win against the Irish?
:01:14. > :01:17.The Falkirk MP Eric Joyce has avoided prison after pleading
:01:17. > :01:19.guilty to assaulting four people in a House of Commons bar. Appearing
:01:19. > :01:22.before Westminster Magistrates Court, he was instead given a 12-
:01:22. > :01:25.month community order. He was also banned from entering pubs and
:01:25. > :01:28.licensed premises for three months and a curfew was imposed on his
:01:28. > :01:31.movements. Speaking outside the court, he said he was ashamed of
:01:31. > :01:38.what he had done. Labour now says it now intends to expel him from
:01:38. > :01:43.the party. Our Westminster correspondent David Porter reports.
:01:43. > :01:53.Not your average Friday engagement for an MP. Appearing at Westminster,
:01:53. > :01:55.
:01:55. > :01:58.yes, but not in the Commons, in the dock charged with the sort. It was
:01:58. > :02:02.in the bar which overlooks the River Thames that a drink with
:02:02. > :02:08.friends turned to violence over a fortnight ago. This picture
:02:08. > :02:15.obtained by the BBC shows damage to a nearby door during Mr Joyce's
:02:15. > :02:21.address. The prosecution said Mr Joyce was hammered, shouting at
:02:21. > :02:27.police, you cannot touch me, I'm an MP. One witness said his eyes
:02:27. > :02:33.looked like nobody was at home. The MP later told police he mounted a
:02:33. > :02:38.guy. Passing sentence, the judge said his actions had caused
:02:38. > :02:44.physical harm and very real distress. He said the MP had shamed
:02:44. > :02:49.himself and the place he worked, Parliament. Eric Joyce was given a
:02:49. > :02:53.12-month community order, fined �3,000 and ordered to pay his
:02:53. > :02:57.victims �1,400. He told the magistrates he would draw a line
:02:57. > :03:03.under his drinking and he has been banned from entering any bath for
:03:03. > :03:06.three runs. It is a matter of considerable personal shame. For
:03:06. > :03:15.what happened two weeks ago, I have been duly punished today. I have
:03:15. > :03:21.been lucky to avoid prison. Frankly, that is something I am very sad
:03:21. > :03:31.about. I am very ashamed of that. Would it be easy for you to step
:03:31. > :03:31.
:03:31. > :03:37.down? It would be. Little sympathy for this MP. He has disgraced
:03:37. > :03:42.himself. Somebody has put him in that office, they can take him back
:03:42. > :03:50.out. He should have got time. had been anybody else, he would
:03:50. > :03:56.have got time. Eric Joyce is not a fit or proper person to be a member
:03:56. > :04:00.of Parliament. Tonight, the MP says he wants to put the whole incident
:04:00. > :04:04.behind him. Few believe he will be allowed to do so. It is likely that
:04:04. > :04:14.the former army major and ministerial aide will best be
:04:14. > :04:23.
:04:24. > :04:29.remembered for attacking parliamentary colleagues. Will Eric
:04:29. > :04:34.Joyce remain as an MP? I spoke to every joyous and he said, yes, he
:04:34. > :04:38.wanted to continue to represent Falkirk until 2015, the date of the
:04:38. > :04:41.next expected general election. He said he won't stand at another
:04:41. > :04:46.election. Labour have already suspended him from the party. They
:04:46. > :04:51.have let it be known they are going to expel him from the party. That
:04:51. > :04:55.is a double edged sword from Eric. They can cut themselves adrift from
:04:55. > :04:58.him but also there is no pressure on him. There are a growing number
:04:58. > :05:05.of people who are saying that he should stand down sooner rather
:05:05. > :05:09.than later. Something, I think, will be important in this, is the
:05:09. > :05:14.financial consideration. Every joist is living in rented
:05:14. > :05:19.accommodation, that he has no savings or assets, so the salary of
:05:19. > :05:23.�65,000 a year he will receive as an MP will be vitally important. At
:05:23. > :05:28.the end of the day, it will come down to just how determined he is
:05:28. > :05:32.to stay as MP, whether he feels he will be shunned here at Westminster
:05:32. > :05:36.or in his constituency. Tonight, Eric Joyce has an awful lot of
:05:36. > :05:39.tough thinking to do. The BBC understands that Ticketus
:05:39. > :05:42.is considering making an offer for Rangers. The finance company, which
:05:42. > :05:44.bought a large number of the club's season tickets, is also believed to
:05:45. > :05:48.have held talks with former director Paul Murray earlier this
:05:48. > :05:51.week. Meanwhile, there appears to have been progress in negotiations
:05:51. > :06:01.between the players and the administrators on pay cuts aimed at
:06:01. > :06:02.
:06:02. > :06:06.preventing redundancies. Jonathan Sutherland reports. The day began
:06:06. > :06:11.in unusual circumstances for Rangers pounds. Good news for a
:06:11. > :06:18.change. Two of the club's top players had agreed to wage cuts of
:06:18. > :06:23.75%. To be honest, we want the best of the club. That needs to be known.
:06:23. > :06:29.The club is doing all they can to get a solution. A lot of Rangers
:06:29. > :06:33.fans just want to get it fixed. What were the negotiations are
:06:33. > :06:37.like? Everybody has been trying to come to a good conclusion and get
:06:37. > :06:44.the best for the club. Everybody wants to succeed. There are a lot
:06:44. > :06:48.of innocent people here who want to get on with their lives. Today
:06:48. > :06:54.could have seen mass redundancies at the club should which pubs not
:06:54. > :06:58.have been agreed. But suddenly, the mood was lighter. However, as the
:06:58. > :07:03.morning tipped over into afternoon, it became clear that although a
:07:03. > :07:07.broad agreement had been reached, as yet, no deals had been signed.
:07:07. > :07:12.Concerns, no doubt, for the administrators. They have been here
:07:12. > :07:16.before. They saw a wage cut deal collapsed at the last minute
:07:16. > :07:19.previously. Some players were finally putting pen to paper. There
:07:19. > :07:23.was also movement in terms of the various parties interested in
:07:23. > :07:33.taking over at Rangers with Harvard School of Public Health at the
:07:33. > :07:37.
:07:37. > :07:44.centre of it. They -- Ticketus. We understand Ticketus have not ruled
:07:44. > :07:49.out making their own offer. They have also had talks with another
:07:49. > :07:55.potential suitor, Paul Murray. Rangers supporters trust have also
:07:55. > :08:03.held talks with Ticketus. It appears the battle for the control
:08:03. > :08:07.of the club is heating up. Some breaking news. Be representative of
:08:07. > :08:12.the fictional Football Association has emerged from Murray party says
:08:12. > :08:19.a deal to save Rangers has been agreed. Our reporter is there
:08:19. > :08:25.tonight. What did he say? Just in the past five minutes, he addressed
:08:25. > :08:32.the media and said there is complete consensus among the
:08:32. > :08:37.players for wide-ranging wage cuts all the way from 75% down to 25%.
:08:37. > :08:42.One thing we have to remember is that not all players have signed on
:08:42. > :08:50.the dotted line. They have all agreed, that is my understanding,
:08:50. > :08:57.not all have signed. We have no details as to who those players are
:08:57. > :09:00.all when they will sign. But the players know they have to take the
:09:00. > :09:06.responsibility to take the hit to try and get this club through to
:09:06. > :09:10.the end of the season and that now looks to be the case. Rangers'
:09:10. > :09:12.immediate future is secured. You're watching Reporting Scotland
:09:12. > :09:15.from the BBC. Still to come on the programme:
:09:15. > :09:18.Nine people are arrested in the North East and Fife as police swoop
:09:19. > :09:23.following football violence. In sport, we're on Rangers watch.
:09:23. > :09:26.We'll bring you the latest from Murray Park.
:09:27. > :09:35.And we're in Dublin where Scotland will try to break their Six Nations
:09:35. > :09:41.duck against Ireland. Three games, three defeats. Can things only get
:09:41. > :09:44.better? The SNP will use their spring
:09:44. > :09:47.conference in Glasgow this weekend as a launch pad for their local
:09:47. > :09:50.government election campaign. In just eight weeks' time, Scots will
:09:50. > :09:52.go to the polls once again and the nationalists are hoping to make
:09:52. > :09:55.significant gains. Party strategists say Alex Salmond will
:09:55. > :10:03.also make an appeal to voters who are still unsure about which way to
:10:03. > :10:07.vote in the independence referendum. Once again, the SNP are holding
:10:07. > :10:14.their spring conference here. Since last year, the independence debate
:10:14. > :10:18.has not drifted along, it has moved at warp speed. First, the party
:10:18. > :10:25.stormed back into power at Holyrood with an overall majority. Now, we
:10:25. > :10:30.are on course for a referendum in autumn 2014. That is the driving
:10:30. > :10:39.force behind this conference. It is no confidence -- coincidence it is
:10:39. > :10:47.being held in Glasgow. In 2011, we held a conference in Glasgow and
:10:47. > :10:53.bring to win. I hope that victory can be replicated this year. We are
:10:53. > :10:59.confident about our chances of success in the council elections in
:10:59. > :11:01.a Glasgow and across Scotland. Salmond will also try to sway those
:11:02. > :11:07.who are undecided about independence, saying they shouldn't
:11:07. > :11:10.be scared about his plans. Independence is about putting
:11:10. > :11:14.control of the big decisions that affect Scottish Life in the hands
:11:14. > :11:20.of the Scottish people, making sure we have the powers and the tools
:11:20. > :11:24.and the resources to take the decisions to build a Scotland that
:11:24. > :11:28.is wealthier, healthier and of course, that will be a key theme of
:11:28. > :11:35.the conference. Another key theme will be the road to independence.
:11:35. > :11:39.Should there be one questioner or two on the ballot paper? Plenty of
:11:39. > :11:48.two -- plenty to discuss for delegates who will take the
:11:48. > :11:55.nationalist message home and spread it far and wide. Nine Aberdeen
:11:55. > :11:59.football supporters have been arrested. It follows a match at
:11:59. > :12:01.Ibrox last month. Police say the violence was organised but there is
:12:01. > :12:11.no return to the levels that blighted football matches in
:12:11. > :12:13.
:12:13. > :12:18.Scotland during the 1980s and 1990s. 68 m and a rude awakening for nine
:12:18. > :12:26.suspected football hooligans. Homes in Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Fife
:12:26. > :12:36.targeted. There are problems and the problems we experienced at
:12:36. > :12:46.Ibrox, we will take action. what you are about to hear... More
:12:46. > :12:46.
:12:46. > :12:51.than 35 officers were involved in this morning's operation. He can
:12:51. > :12:55.fight the corner. That is a great finish. Seven of the arrest
:12:55. > :13:01.followed a serious disturbance ahead of this match at Ibrox in
:13:01. > :13:03.January. Two police officers were hurt and clashes involving 100
:13:03. > :13:09.people outside. Some of the troublemakers had travelled from
:13:09. > :13:14.Germany to get involved. It is certain not a return to the 1980s.
:13:14. > :13:24.The figures are less. But that gives us no room for complacency.
:13:24. > :13:25.
:13:26. > :13:33.We have a few folk in custody -- in custody this morning. The vast
:13:33. > :13:38.majority of fans are very well behaved. Two of the suspects are
:13:38. > :13:48.suspected of being involved in a serious incident in Glasgow's city-
:13:48. > :14:06.
:14:06. > :14:10.centre after a football match last Saturday. I would like to reassure
:14:10. > :14:20.people this is being treated as a random attack. There are additional
:14:20. > :14:25.Abode is to be lowered into one of Europe's largest man-made holes to
:14:25. > :14:29.carry out a survey work. The quarry closed in 1971 and now needs work
:14:29. > :14:34.to lower water levels. Dundee council is taking legal action to
:14:35. > :14:41.evict protesters to a camp in the city centre. The Occupy Dundee
:14:41. > :14:45.group say they have public support. The police men do not want us to be
:14:45. > :14:50.evicted, it is the city council that creates the problem. The main
:14:50. > :14:54.issue is that it is a peaceful demonstration. There are concerns
:14:54. > :14:59.about the future of an island under the Skye bridge which has been cut
:14:59. > :15:04.and -- up for sale by transport Scotland. It is renowned for its
:15:05. > :15:11.population of otters. The Scottish., man has had to bail out the
:15:11. > :15:16.controversial Hyslop housing project. Over �5 million had to be
:15:16. > :15:20.borrowed to build 24 homes, but so far only seven of them have sold.
:15:20. > :15:25.Edinburgh council has postponed plans to charge for small-scale
:15:25. > :15:28.arts events in the city. Investors and the licensing committee voted
:15:28. > :15:33.for a public consultation on the proposal. A village near Sterling
:15:33. > :15:37.showing off a range of initiatives at a renewable energy show. The
:15:38. > :15:41.company from a wind farm has paid for several green schemes,
:15:41. > :15:51.including home insulation. More on those and other stories on the BBC
:15:51. > :15:52.
:15:52. > :15:57.Scotland website. Here is David with the latest on Rangers and
:15:58. > :16:02.other sport. It now appears deals have been done between Rangers
:16:02. > :16:06.players and the administrators to cut wages, prevent redundancy and
:16:06. > :16:09.keep Rangers going until the end of the season. Here is what the
:16:09. > :16:14.players' union chief had to say a few months ago. We are not going
:16:14. > :16:18.into details of how much and how many, but what I would say is that
:16:18. > :16:22.his is a huge gesture by the players and by the club to the fans.
:16:22. > :16:26.They knew from the word go that at some point they would see a massive
:16:26. > :16:29.hit in terms of the finances and they knew they were the biggest
:16:29. > :16:34.cost to the club, but one point they have stuck by is that they
:16:34. > :16:37.wanted to protect as many jobs as possible, like every job of the
:16:37. > :16:40.football club, and there is news coming out that there has been a
:16:40. > :16:44.success and there will not be redundancies elsewhere. From that
:16:44. > :16:50.point of view, the players are thankful, because that was their
:16:50. > :16:54.priority in this process. reporter is that Murray Park and
:16:55. > :17:04.joins us. Chris, have the players, in effect, saved Rangers in the
:17:05. > :17:05.
:17:05. > :17:09.sort term of short-term? Three it appears that way and that was the
:17:09. > :17:12.initiative. It is the players' wages that make up the most of the
:17:12. > :17:16.costs at the club so it would be the case they would take the
:17:16. > :17:19.biggest hit, and that is the case certainly. The players saying that
:17:19. > :17:25.they knew that they had the responsibility and they have now
:17:25. > :17:29.reached agreements to take huge wage cuts, some as high as 75%.
:17:29. > :17:36.There will be a media conference behind me in the next 10 minutes,
:17:36. > :17:40.so we should get more details from the administrators as to just what
:17:40. > :17:46.the new contracts signed by the players entail. One thing I can
:17:46. > :17:49.tell you is that there is a clause in some of the contracts that says
:17:49. > :17:52.if the owner comes back and has anything to do with the day-to-day
:17:52. > :17:56.running and management of the club, they will be allowed to walk away
:17:56. > :18:06.on a free transfer. Chris, get yourself into the conference and
:18:06. > :18:07.
:18:07. > :18:10.watch yourself crossing the road. Amid the Rangers crisis, it's a
:18:10. > :18:12.case of keep calm and carry on for the rest of Scottish football.
:18:12. > :18:16.Quite right because it's Cup quarter final weekend. Holders
:18:16. > :18:19.Celtic are away to Dundee United on Sunday. United are the in form team
:18:19. > :18:22.in the Premier League unbeaten in their last seven games and up to
:18:22. > :18:25.fourth in Premier League. Mind you, Celtic haven't lost since October.
:18:26. > :18:29.They have been a fantastic run, the quality was magnificent last week
:18:29. > :18:34.and they won comfortably. What we have to make sure his we put on a
:18:34. > :18:38.better show and try to match them in every department. And also we
:18:38. > :18:41.need a little bit of luck. you're a Hearts fan or a St Mirren
:18:42. > :18:44.fan - or even if you're not - you're luck's in tomorrow, because
:18:45. > :18:52.the quarter-final between the clubs is live on BBC One Scotland. The
:18:52. > :18:56.show starts at 12:15pm. It's also Scotland are in Dublin looking for
:18:56. > :18:58.a win to avoid a wooden spoon showdown with Italy. With three Six
:18:59. > :19:02.Nations' defeats so far, the expectations of many going into the
:19:02. > :19:07.tournament have long gone. Now it's a case of salvaging something from
:19:07. > :19:17.another disappointing campaign. From Dublin, here's our Six
:19:17. > :19:18.
:19:19. > :19:23.In the City of good crack, Scotland fans need an excuse to have a good
:19:23. > :19:26.time. Have they got something to celebrate though? Well, that's
:19:26. > :19:30.another matter. This is the first time this column players have
:19:30. > :19:33.played on the new pitch and it's a new experience of a different kind
:19:33. > :19:38.they are looking for -- the Scotland players. After three
:19:38. > :19:42.defeats in the Six Nations campaign, they badly need a victory. The last
:19:42. > :19:49.trip to Dublin two years ago was successful but the bright new era
:19:49. > :19:51.many predicted has not materialised. I thought we would sip -- kick on
:19:51. > :19:55.and we went on a tour of Argentina and had great results, we beat
:19:55. > :19:59.South Africa but we have never really transferred that into Six
:19:59. > :20:03.Nations form and that is where a lot of the frustration comes one --
:20:03. > :20:10.from for the players and also the fans. Another Chancellor Andy
:20:10. > :20:14.Robinson to wipe the slate free of unwanted statistics, just two
:20:14. > :20:20.victories in 13 six-nation matches and five defeats on the spin.
:20:20. > :20:27.a distraction to have guys like me praising your record. No, that is
:20:27. > :20:30.your job. My job is to coach the team to win. If your job is to win,
:20:30. > :20:36.and you are not winning, do you then need to make a decision before
:20:36. > :20:42.the decision is made for you? my focus is on the game with
:20:42. > :20:45.Ireland and then the activity after that. Answers may have to come, but
:20:45. > :20:51.for now Scholar need a win, and they will take an -- a helping hand
:20:51. > :20:57.from just about anyone. Something tells me the leprechaun won't be
:20:57. > :21:04.supporting Scotland. Let's see how the weather is looking this evening
:21:04. > :21:08.Looking settled for once, so good news if you want to get out and
:21:08. > :21:12.about. We are looking at the cloud thickening up across western
:21:12. > :21:17.Scotland and that will be bringing patchy rain or drizzle, especially
:21:17. > :21:21.across the north-west Highlands and we will see a little area of rain
:21:21. > :21:26.skirting the coast. Some clear spells across eastern Scotland with
:21:26. > :21:31.temperatures towards the north-east falling as low as three Celsius.
:21:31. > :21:34.Quite a brisk westerly wind pushing in through Scotland as well.
:21:35. > :21:39.Tomorrow the outlook is good. The high pressure continues to build
:21:39. > :21:44.towards as bringing a lot of dry, settled rather benign weather. That
:21:44. > :21:47.should go on to Sunday and Monday as well. Tomorrow will start windy
:21:47. > :21:51.and the rain will clear from the sole way quickly and very much a
:21:51. > :21:56.split between East and West. A fair amount of cloud across western
:21:56. > :22:00.Scotland which will stay with us for much of the day. We will see a
:22:00. > :22:03.little bit of brightness across southern Scotland, especially
:22:03. > :22:09.towards the eastern borders, East Lothian, Fife is looking good as
:22:09. > :22:12.well. 16 Celsius this morning today. Across the West, patchy rain or
:22:12. > :22:18.drizzle towards the north-west Highlands. It looks like an
:22:18. > :22:21.improving day for the Northern Isles and a shift in the cooler
:22:21. > :22:25.temperatures we will see in the south. If you are thinking of
:22:25. > :22:31.heading to the hills, the eastern ranges look the best place to go.
:22:31. > :22:34.It is dry and sunny, and we will see good visibility as well. Fairly
:22:34. > :22:39.windy at the top with gale-force winds and a severe wind-chill
:22:39. > :22:42.factor. The western areas not looking good. Cloudy outbreaks of
:22:42. > :22:48.rain and the widespread hill fog. Windy at the tops with another
:22:48. > :22:52.severe wind-chill a problem. The rest of Saturday looks the same,
:22:52. > :22:55.and the winds will ease down and it will stay dry overnight. Sunday is
:22:55. > :23:00.a repeat performance with sunshine across eastern Scotland, cloudy and
:23:00. > :23:10.the West, bits-and-pieces -- and pieces of rain or drizzle. That is
:23:10. > :23:13.
:23:13. > :23:17.Now, just before 7:00pm, a summary of tonight's top stories: The deal
:23:17. > :23:20.to keep Rangers in business has been agreed this evening. More
:23:20. > :23:30.details are expecting to emerge in a media conference due to get under
:23:30. > :23:31.
:23:31. > :23:35.way at the Murray Park training ground shortly. Eric Joyce has
:23:35. > :23:39.pleaded guilty to assaulting four people. He avoided prison are not a
:23:39. > :23:43.form and community order. He was also banned from entering pubs and
:23:43. > :23:48.licensed premises for three months. Labour says it intends to expel Mr