:00:17. > :00:20.Welcome to Reporting Scotland. From sweltering to shivering. The wintry
:00:20. > :00:30.weather returns bringing power cuts, mountain rescues and treacherous
:00:30. > :00:31.
:00:31. > :00:36.conditions on the roads. Tried to get back and forwards is just
:00:36. > :00:39.impossible. It is no good for buses. No good whatsoever.
:00:39. > :00:42.We'll have a full roundup from round the country. Also tonight. A
:00:42. > :00:45.witness in the trial of a man accused of murdering Glasgow
:00:45. > :00:47.gangster Kevin Carroll denies luring him to his death in a
:00:47. > :00:52.supermarket carpark. Clamping down on uninsured
:00:52. > :00:55.motorists - police launch a crackdown.
:00:55. > :01:05.And dancing robots making their debut at the Edinburgh Science
:01:05. > :01:06.
:01:06. > :01:08.The arrival of Arctic April brought 10 inches of snow to parts of the
:01:08. > :01:10.country today, power cuts, difficult driving conditions and a
:01:10. > :01:18.dramatic mountain rescue after nine hillwalkers, six of them teenagers,
:01:18. > :01:21.became trapped overnight in the Cairngorms. This time last week we
:01:21. > :01:30.were reaching for the sun oil, today it was snow shovels, as Colin
:01:30. > :01:34.Wight reports. A week ago they were sunbathing
:01:34. > :01:41.here in record temperatures. Today they were snowing -- throwing
:01:41. > :01:46.snowballs. A drop in temperature of over 20 degrees on last week.
:01:46. > :01:52.are really excited about it. I have a five-year-old boy who did not get
:01:52. > :01:58.on his toboggan this year. Last week it was boiling hot. I got a
:01:58. > :02:01.bit of sunshine on my face and now back to jackets. Abbot of a shot
:02:01. > :02:08.and I did not expect it. I was choosing not to believe people.
:02:08. > :02:13.Last week, I was in the garden cutting by grass. It is
:02:13. > :02:21.unbelievable. A week ago, we were having lunch in the garden. This
:02:21. > :02:23.week, we're thinking of building a snowman. In these mountains, six
:02:23. > :02:29.youngsters and three adults were rescued by our Royal Navy
:02:29. > :02:34.helicopter. They had got trapped in bad weather. The set text messages
:02:34. > :02:39.this morning for help. We have had a mixed winter and people with very
:02:39. > :02:44.little snow and very little mountaineering experience could
:02:44. > :02:47.have navigated well enough. This shows that full winter can return
:02:47. > :02:51.in the space of a night and you need to have the skills to deal
:02:51. > :02:57.with that. Those expecting the temperatures of last week will not
:02:57. > :03:06.expected this week. Many high-level routes were closed and transport
:03:06. > :03:10.disrupted. This bus were stuck for hours. Tried to get back and
:03:10. > :03:17.forwards is just impossible. The weather is OK but no good for buses.
:03:17. > :03:23.No good whatsoever. Thousands of homes were without power. These
:03:23. > :03:32.power lines came down. Weather warnings were issued yesterday so
:03:32. > :03:38.we were not surprised but it still came as a shock. Elsewhere, people
:03:38. > :03:45.to 10 inches of snow. This is in the areas which recorded soaring
:03:45. > :03:51.temperatures last week. As the snow swept south, drivers near Harthill
:03:51. > :03:58.had to face blizzard conditions. My satellite pictures so that it
:03:58. > :04:05.transition from last week's heatwave to snow today. This source
:04:05. > :04:09.of the Year was North Africa coming up through Scotland. Today, we have
:04:09. > :04:13.Arctic air coming in from the North poll which has brought the cold air
:04:13. > :04:18.which has turned the rain to snow. So on were quick to make the most
:04:18. > :04:22.of the conditions. The lambs must be asking their mothers were the
:04:23. > :04:26.grass went and the daffodils wondering what happened to spring.
:04:26. > :04:29.An icy blast in April isn't rare, but the rapid change in conditions
:04:29. > :04:38.has been striking. And nowhere has the change been more keenly felt
:04:38. > :04:43.than in Aboyne where Colin Wight is keenly feeling it. It is a
:04:43. > :04:47.beautiful evening here. Only 20 minutes ago, there was a fear some
:04:47. > :04:53.blizzard which gives you an idea of how changeable things are. Things
:04:53. > :04:59.have changed a lot in a week. A week ago, it was over 20 degrees
:04:59. > :05:07.here. Today it was barely two Celsius. A big change. Thousands of
:05:07. > :05:10.homes were affected today by power cuts, now down to around 100. The
:05:10. > :05:15.local ski centre will open for business tomorrow but there is a
:05:15. > :05:20.warning to make for drivers. Skies are clear in meaning further snow
:05:20. > :05:25.showers but those Clearing skies could mean frost and ice on the
:05:25. > :05:30.roads. If you are planning to get out into Scotland's mountains and
:05:30. > :05:34.hills over the next few days, beware. There is a warning to myth
:05:34. > :05:38.of avalanche. April is here with a vengeance.
:05:38. > :05:41.A witness in the trial of a man accused of murdering a Glasgow
:05:41. > :05:44.gangster has denied luring him to his death. Steven Glen told the
:05:44. > :05:47.High Court a lot of people thought Kevin Carroll, known as Gerbil, was
:05:47. > :05:50.out of control. But he also denied knowing that Gerbil was going to be
:05:50. > :05:59.shot. Ross Monaghan is accused of the murder and denies all charges.
:05:59. > :06:03.Julie Peacock was at the high court and joins us now. It was in this as
:06:03. > :06:09.a car park in Glasgow that Kevin Carroll was shot and killed in
:06:09. > :06:14.broad daylight in front of shoppers. Stephen Glen, a drug dealer, sort
:06:14. > :06:19.happened. He told the court that he had arranged the time and place of
:06:19. > :06:24.the meeting. This was after pressure from Jebel who called him
:06:24. > :06:28.to say you're going to get in line and get shot. He admitted he was
:06:28. > :06:32.terrified of Kevin Carroll and had heard stories of how he tortured
:06:32. > :06:38.and mutilated those who crossed him. He decided to bring a friend to
:06:38. > :06:43.watch his back. He was asked, if you are terrified, you would have
:06:43. > :06:53.had more than one person watching your back? He replied, I just
:06:53. > :07:05.
:07:05. > :07:07.wanted someone to see what happened. Stephen Glen told the court a lot
:07:07. > :07:12.of people thought that Kevin Carroll was out of control. He
:07:12. > :07:17.denied that he would come here to his death. He said he had no idea
:07:17. > :07:21.it was going to happen. Ross Moynihan is charged with the murder
:07:21. > :07:31.of Kevin Carroll. He denies all charges and blames it eight other
:07:31. > :07:31.
:07:31. > :07:35.men for the crime. -- Monaghan. You're watching Reporting Scotland
:07:35. > :07:38.from the BBC. Still to come on the programme. In sport, BBC Scotland
:07:38. > :07:40.has learnt that Brian Kennedy will make a second bid for Rangers,
:07:40. > :07:45.we'll have more on that and other developments from Ibrox.
:07:45. > :07:47.The post split SPL fixtures have been released. And ready for their
:07:47. > :07:57.Heineken Cup challenge, but Edinburgh say their European
:07:57. > :07:59.
:07:59. > :08:02.opponents are the Manchester United Well, the Conservatives officially
:08:02. > :08:05.launched their council election campaign today with a promise to
:08:05. > :08:07.put the local back in local government. So can their new leader
:08:07. > :08:11.Ruth Davidson win some new followers and reconnect with
:08:11. > :08:20.disengaged voters? Here's our local government correspondent Jamie
:08:20. > :08:28.McIvor. This is not the People's Front of
:08:28. > :08:31.Judaea. I am not the Messiah, I'm a very naughty boy. It is the
:08:31. > :08:37.Scottish Conservatives looking to connect with voters, who may be
:08:37. > :08:45.feeling disconnected from the whole political system. 10 minutes' drive
:08:45. > :08:50.away, at Cafe. This woman does not feel connected with politicians of
:08:50. > :08:54.any party. I do not feel connected at all with the world of politics.
:08:54. > :09:00.It might be nice to see more politics going on instead of just
:09:00. > :09:05.out and about. This customer has similar views. There's a certain
:09:05. > :09:11.amount of disconnection. It is still bred within me to vote but I
:09:11. > :09:17.do not always feel now that I am getting something positive from it.
:09:17. > :09:22.The Conservatives hope to make that connection. Their plan - more local
:09:22. > :09:26.decision-making, helping connect politics with real life. This is
:09:26. > :09:29.about returning the word local to local government. We believe in a
:09:29. > :09:33.local agenda and that decision making should happen as close to
:09:33. > :09:38.people and communities as possible. We dislike the centralisation at
:09:38. > :09:43.Holyrood. If we want local councils to have more control over services
:09:43. > :09:53.in their area. Conservatives are saying that more power to local
:09:53. > :09:54.
:09:54. > :09:58.governments as at the heart of their vision. Their two key parts
:09:58. > :10:03.to this campaign. One is devolving more powers to local communities.
:10:03. > :10:10.Secondly, making it all voters understand that any vote cast via
:10:10. > :10:14.an SNP candidate will be betrayed by a Alex Salmond as a vote for
:10:14. > :10:21.separation. This year, the Conservatives are putting up
:10:22. > :10:25.candidates in every constituency for the first time ever.
:10:25. > :10:28.And another election story tonight. The SNP have suspended a council
:10:28. > :10:31.candidate in North Lanarkshire who appeared to make a number of highly
:10:31. > :10:34.offensive remarks on the internet. Let's go back to Jamie who's in our
:10:34. > :10:42.Edinburgh studio. Jamie, just what did sort of things did this man
:10:42. > :10:47.say? The suspended party member is a council candidate called Lyall
:10:47. > :10:51.Duff. A month the comments he appeared to make on Facebook, he
:10:51. > :10:58.described Kaplan midwives who refuse to carry out abortions as
:10:58. > :11:01.money-grabbing old witches. -- Catholic midwives. He charged
:11:01. > :11:08.people looked a bargain at Royal Bank of Scotland bankers and
:11:08. > :11:11.appeared to use the most offensive swearword to defeat -- described
:11:11. > :11:15.the Labour leader Ed Miliband. A spokesman said he did not deny
:11:15. > :11:19.making the comments. The SNP have suspended his party membership
:11:19. > :11:24.pending an inquiry and have made it absolutely clear that comments like
:11:24. > :11:28.these are unacceptable. Because nominations have now closed for the
:11:28. > :11:35.council elections, it could be that his name will still appear on the
:11:35. > :11:39.local ballot paper as an SNP candidate. This is all about one
:11:39. > :11:43.candidate in one ward, but on the other hand, the SNP would want to
:11:43. > :11:48.act quickly to try to prevent this row caused in any wider damage to
:11:48. > :11:52.the party. They will want to make sure it does not undermine the
:11:52. > :11:56.efforts they had been making in recent years to reach out to the
:11:56. > :12:00.Roman Catholic community. There is a lesson here also fought all
:12:00. > :12:05.politicians. That comments made on Facebook and any other website can
:12:05. > :12:08.certainly come back to haunt you. And A team of experts could travel
:12:09. > :12:12.out to the stricken Elgin platform in the North Sea tomorrow, ten days
:12:12. > :12:15.after the gas leak began. Operator Total says a team are preparing to
:12:15. > :12:18.fly out to the platform 150 miles east of Aberdeen either tomorrow or
:12:18. > :12:21.Thursday depending on the weather. They'll assess whether a so-called
:12:21. > :12:27."top kill" operation can be used to stop the leak by pumping heavy mud
:12:27. > :12:31.in to suppress the flow. A seventh person has died in an
:12:31. > :12:34.outbreak of flu at a nursing home in Dundee. NHS Tayside says in
:12:34. > :12:41.total 28 residents at Orchar Nursing Home are known to have been
:12:41. > :12:45.infected. The cause of the outbreak is still under investigation.
:12:45. > :12:48.The man jailed for killing a waiter in Orkney in 1994 has lost his
:12:48. > :12:55.appeal against his conviction. Former Black Watch sniper Michael
:12:55. > :12:57.Ross was 15 when he shot Shamsuddin Mahmood in Kirkwall. His bid to
:12:57. > :13:00.have his murder conviction overturned has now been rejected by
:13:00. > :13:03.the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh. His defence lawyers have
:13:03. > :13:13.indicated that they could now take his case to the Supreme Court in
:13:13. > :13:14.
:13:14. > :13:18.Hundreds of uninsured and unlicensed drivers are taking to
:13:18. > :13:26.Scotland's roads, but police are determined to catch them. They cost
:13:26. > :13:30.the rest of us millions in higher insurance premiums.
:13:30. > :13:38.The technology used by officers means that a suspect car is spotted
:13:38. > :13:46.in seconds. It could be something as simple as a couple of missed
:13:46. > :13:50.monthly payments to the insurance company. Uninsured drivers are
:13:50. > :13:57.responsible for 23,000 injuries and over 100 deaths per year.
:13:57. > :14:07.consequences for driving without insurance for general road-users is
:14:07. > :14:08.
:14:08. > :14:15.-- are terrible. Back on the roadside, a call to the
:14:15. > :14:23.DVLA confirms the details. It would appear that they own two vehicles,
:14:23. > :14:29.neither of which is insured. There is a fee to have it released from
:14:29. > :14:33.the power and, which is Canley �150. If it is left for any more than
:14:33. > :14:38.seven days it is liable to be crushed. The car heads to the pound.
:14:38. > :14:42.There is compensation for victims of the uninsured, but to fund it,
:14:42. > :14:46.every law-abiding driver sees around �30 added to their premium.
:14:46. > :14:51.The operation has only been running a short time but two vehicles are
:14:51. > :15:00.already been brought to this pound. They face a hefty fee on top of a
:15:00. > :15:03.minimum �200 fine and -- before they can get their vehicles back.
:15:03. > :15:07.It is time to check out those insurance details!
:15:07. > :15:17.Now let us take a look at what else has been happening across the
:15:17. > :15:19.
:15:19. > :15:23.country this Tuesday. Attempts to rescue a -- a whale on
:15:23. > :15:27.a beach in North Berwick have failed.
:15:27. > :15:33.A major investment in Scotland's railway station network has been
:15:33. > :15:38.announced. The idea of setting up a substantial fund for new railway
:15:38. > :15:46.stations will come as good news to many people across Scotland. We
:15:46. > :15:54.have long harboured to -- harbour to the ambition to have good
:15:54. > :15:57.stations everywhere. An appeal for BMX riders has been
:15:57. > :16:05.launched in Dumfries and Galloway after a competition is taking place
:16:05. > :16:09.without local riders. Only 2% of ticket sales for the
:16:09. > :16:15.Edinburgh Festival are made by Glaswegians.
:16:15. > :16:22.Children in Inverness are to be taught pipes and drums, before
:16:22. > :16:28.being selected for the massed band. Some of the models as well. The it
:16:28. > :16:31.is really encouraging. The resident male osprey at our
:16:31. > :16:41.reserve near Aviemore had a shock when he returned for another season.
:16:41. > :16:42.
:16:42. > :16:47.His mate, who came back earlier, was entertaining another of Ospreys.
:16:47. > :16:57.BSS PCA was called in Aberdeen after a snake was spotted in an
:16:57. > :17:03.attic. Closer inspection -- their SS PCA. Closer inspection found it
:17:03. > :17:06.to be a draught excluder. Ospreys and snakes and, just to let
:17:06. > :17:11.you know that we will be Updating on the pandas later in the
:17:11. > :17:15.programme. First, the latest sports news.
:17:15. > :17:19.The future of Rangers should become clearer in the next 24-hours. Who
:17:19. > :17:23.is in the frame to take over and what is likely to happen next?
:17:23. > :17:28.Chris McLaughlan has more. This time tomorrow, the future of
:17:28. > :17:30.this club could be in the hands of one consortium. 5:00pm is the
:17:30. > :17:36.deadline for what the administrators call best and final
:17:36. > :17:42.offers. With that in mind, let us look at how things stand. What do
:17:42. > :17:47.we know about the biggest? Administrators say that four or
:17:47. > :17:53.five could be on the table by 5pm. Back at the table is Brian Kennedy.
:17:53. > :17:58.The sale sharks or owner has already had one big rejected.
:17:58. > :18:03.Liquidation is still an option. The administrators -- the
:18:03. > :18:08.administrators have already contacted footballing bodies to
:18:08. > :18:18.discuss and new Rangers. And what about Craig Whyte? Will he stand in
:18:18. > :18:19.
:18:19. > :18:22.the way? He says that he will not make a deal but will not stand in
:18:22. > :18:30.the way. The club's very future is at stake.
:18:30. > :18:40.Will it have a future? We should know more in the next 24-hours.
:18:40. > :18:46.
:18:46. > :18:50.The SPL have announced their posts- The fine old Firm derby of the
:18:50. > :18:53.season will be played on 29th April. Edinburgh are facing the Manchester
:18:53. > :18:57.United of French rugby in the Heineken Cup quarter-finals on
:18:57. > :19:01.Saturday. That is according to Tom Smith. The players are confident
:19:01. > :19:06.that they can continue with their impressive European form, with one
:19:06. > :19:12.telling us he has total belief in his team mates. It is their biggest
:19:12. > :19:15.match of the season, so despite the conditions, there is no escaping
:19:15. > :19:25.training. The players are limbering up and they are ready to stand
:19:25. > :19:29.
:19:29. > :19:33.shoulder to shoulder to try to beat to lose. -- Toulouse. They have
:19:33. > :19:37.been at the top for some time and they have some of the best
:19:37. > :19:41.individual players in the world. It is a great opportunity for us. We
:19:41. > :19:45.will hopefully win. Over 30,000 fans are expected to fill
:19:45. > :19:50.Murrayfield. Given that it is a European match, much is expected of
:19:50. > :20:00.Edinburgh. The club are struggling in the league, where they set --
:20:00. > :20:04.
:20:04. > :20:09.set second from the bottom. Continuing their recent run of all
:20:09. > :20:19.wins would ease the pain of Bath Poor Six Nations campaign for
:20:19. > :20:24.
:20:24. > :20:29.Scotland. Glasgow were doing well. We have a big chance this weekend.
:20:29. > :20:32.Hopefully that will see Edinburgh come out on top.
:20:32. > :20:37.At the men's world curling Championships in Switzerland,
:20:37. > :20:42.Scotland have lost another match. Tom Brewster's rink were beaten 5-3
:20:42. > :20:46.against France. They have won four and lost two of their round-robin
:20:46. > :20:49.matches. They play China later this evening.
:20:49. > :20:58.One Sport Nation tonight it is all about Scottish Olympic dreams. Here
:20:58. > :21:04.is John and Rona to tell us more. We are in London tonight for a
:21:04. > :21:11.special. From Katherine Grainger to Sir Chris Hoy, we will tell you the
:21:11. > :21:14.Tories -- the stories of Scots who are hoping for big things here.
:21:14. > :21:22.That is tonight in about ten minutes.
:21:22. > :21:25.Tune into that. A group of dancing robots from
:21:25. > :21:35.Edinburgh University were making their debut at the Edinburgh
:21:35. > :21:44.
:21:44. > :21:48.Science Festival week -- will be making their debut.
:21:48. > :21:53.These are the new kids on the block. These humanoid robots are not just
:21:53. > :21:57.nifty on the dancefloor, they are examples of cutting-edge research
:21:57. > :22:03.and a global race to get robots to mimic the behaviour of humans.
:22:03. > :22:06.get a robot to react and be out -- and behave even remotely closely to
:22:06. > :22:13.the capabilities of tumours, we have to look at all these different
:22:13. > :22:16.components - the sensing, the activation of the movement and the
:22:16. > :22:20.adaptability to changing environments. This is the fun side
:22:20. > :22:24.of robotics, but humanoids are being developed for health care and
:22:24. > :22:28.bionics. Edinburgh University is making great strides in robot
:22:28. > :22:34.mobility. We have a very particular arrangement of muscles and tendons,
:22:34. > :22:37.and they are good at storing energy and keeping us going. We get little
:22:37. > :22:41.differences in the terrain and we cope with that. Traditionally,
:22:41. > :22:47.robots have not been able to do that, so we're trying to bridge the
:22:47. > :22:50.gap. For now, these robots are enjoying
:22:50. > :22:54.their time in the limelight. You can catch them at the National
:22:54. > :23:04.Museum later in the week. MUSIC: "Thriller" by Michael
:23:04. > :23:10.
:23:10. > :23:15.Just before the weather, the wintry conditions do not appear to have
:23:15. > :23:24.deterred Edinburgh's pandas. Yesterday we told you that the city
:23:24. > :23:31.due -- city's zoo thought that Tian Tian may be in season and ready to
:23:31. > :23:38.mate with Yang Guang. They were paired up up five times throughout
:23:38. > :23:48.the day, when the great between them was lifted. -- when the bars
:23:48. > :23:53.
:23:54. > :24:01.between them were lifted. Spring is a transitional month.
:24:01. > :24:09.Sometimes you get warm when I up -- warm weather, and sometimes you get
:24:09. > :24:13.winter clinging on. Most places are 15 or 16 degrees cooler than this
:24:13. > :24:20.time last week. Here is the reason for it. High pressure last Tuesday
:24:20. > :24:30.was in charge. That brought in warm air from North Africa and delivered
:24:30. > :24:38.it to us in Scotland. Today we have had an area of low pressure. It
:24:38. > :24:45.moves in an anti-clockwise direction, bringing in Arctic air.
:24:45. > :24:53.Rain coupled with that cold Arctic air means that it turns to snow.
:24:53. > :24:58.Tonight will be cold and frosty across the board. Their blue what -
:24:59. > :25:08.- there will be one or two showers across the north-east and the
:25:08. > :25:13.Borders. Temperatures will be below freezing for many of us. The low
:25:13. > :25:16.pressure that brought the snow moves through England tomorrow. We
:25:16. > :25:20.will have drier and more settled conditions tomorrow and also some
:25:20. > :25:30.sunshine. Heading through the morning, there will be some cloud
:25:30. > :25:34.moving in. Those showers will push away through the Borders, too.
:25:34. > :25:44.Temperatures will be up to around eight Celsius, below average for
:25:44. > :25:53.the year. There is the risk of Some Like Rain or showers across the far
:25:53. > :26:03.north, Orkney and Shetland. -- light rain. There will be a
:26:03. > :26:05.
:26:05. > :26:15.widespread frost overnight. Rain moves in on Thursday. Temperatures
:26:15. > :26:17.
:26:17. > :26:21.will creep up a touch. Temperatures will get up to around 12 Celsius on
:26:22. > :26:28.Friday. Now summary of tonight's top
:26:28. > :26:32.stories: The arrival of Arctic April drops ten inches of snow to
:26:32. > :26:41.the country, in sharp contrast to last week's weather. The snore
:26:41. > :26:45.resulted in power cuts and a dramatic mountain rescue after
:26:45. > :26:49.hill-walkers got trapped in the Cairngorms.
:26:49. > :26:53.James Murdoch has resigned as chairman of BSkyB. He had already
:26:53. > :27:03.stepped down as the head of News International, which owns the
:27:03. > :27:03.
:27:03. > :27:07.former News of the World. -- bones. The man accused of
:27:07. > :27:11.murdering Glasgow gangster Kevin Carroll denied luring him his death.
:27:11. > :27:15.He denied knowing that the man was going to be shot. He denies all
:27:15. > :27:21.charges. Nick Clegg says the government will
:27:21. > :27:30.not ram through plans to allow security services to get access to