Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP
GORGIE DALRY GAZETTE (Scottish & Newcastle site, Bevin Boy Badge)
Over the last few months the Scottish and Newcastle brewery buildings have been coming down to make way for the new. The finalised plans are for a mixture of housing, offices, small business units and a new local shopping centre.
The area from the west of Lothian Road, increasingly referred to as the ‘Financial Centre’ as more high quality office space is occupied by pensions and investment companies, lawyers and accountants. The plan has identified opportunities for this financial district to expand westwards onto the sites that will become available following the closure of the brewery. This could bring job and business opportunities.
Local shops and small businesses will be welcome and give a boost to the area but what’s offered needs to be right for those who live here as well as work here.
And we desperately need more affordable housing in the city. The plan has identified that this area could accommodate 1200 housing units. But people tell me they want a choice of more than one and two bedroom flats squeezed into a part of town which seems to have high density as an over-riding factor. Promises have been made about affordable housing and they need to be kept.
When developing the area further, it’s important to consider the views and needs of people who live here and to be mindful of local history.
Remembering the past is what Veterans Day is about. The first ever Veterans Day was introduced on June 27th last year to remember and celebrate all who served in the Armed Forces. The HM Armed Forces Veterans Badge launched in May 2004 has been enormously popular.
It’s right we remember sacrifices were made at home and abroad during the war. The “Bevin Boys” played an important part in keeping this country going during World War Two.
The Bevin Boys scheme was introduced in 1943 by then Minister for Labour and National Service, Ernest Bevin, in response to an increasing shortage of labour in coal mining. 48,000 men between 18 and 25 years old, including thousands in the Lothians and other Scottish coalfields, were selected or volunteered under the scheme.
I was pleased to announce that a lapel badge, which formally recognises the contribution made by the Bevin Boys will be introduced towards the end of the year, with a view to awarding the first Badge in March next year to coincide with the 60th anniversary of the de-mobbing of the last Bevin Boy. We all owe the Bevin Boys our thanks and this badge is a fitting way of paying tribute to that work.
