National Focus: Stories from Scotland

Tributes Paid to Local Search and Rescue Hero

Mass commemoration from around the country has been paid to the RAF Mountain Search and Rescue veteran David ‘Heavy’ Whalley, who has died aged 72. During his career, he helped save hundreds of lives, responding to over 1,000 mountain incidents. Whalley was famously the senior team leader of rescue efforts that followed the Lockerbie disaster, which saw Pan Am Flight 103 crash on 21 December, 1988, killing 259 passengers and crew members, as well as eleven residents living in the Scottish town. After the disaster, Whalley helped establish support structures for first responders and rescuers who suffered from PTSD and other trauma related disorders as a result of their work. Tributes have poured in, including from Scottish Mountain Rescue, who described Whalley as a “leader, a mentor, and a friend to so many in the mountain rescue community and beyond.”

Investigation into the University of Dundee's finances announced

An independent investigation concerning the financial crisis at the University of Dundee is now underway, commissioned by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC). Earlier this month, the University announced a £35 million deficit and the consequent need to cut 632 jobs. The SFC has approved a £22 million support package for the University. The probe, headed by former Principal of Glasgow Caledonian University, Professor Pamela Gillies, will analyse management and governance, information flows, and cultural issues as potential factors for the “deterioration” of the University’s finances, and consider why this went undetected by University leadership. The University has stated that it is “committed to engaging fully” with the investigation and acting on its findings.

Police Scotland Announce Funding Crisis

Police Scotland have announced that a lack of investment has caused large areas of the country to have very little police presence, regions described as “policing deserts”, and has since led to the closing of police stations and an increasingly reactive service. The chair of the Scottish Police Federation (SPF) spoke at the Federation’s annual conference, stating that falling officer numbers have left parts of the country “with an almost invisible policing presence”, largely due to a “chronic underinvestment in policing”. He told the conference, which was attended by Justice Secretary Angela Constance, that “SNP ministers must accept that policing our communities cannot simply be reliant on the goodwill of officers. They should show some common sense by finally providing Police Scotland with the funding they need to keep communities safe.”

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