Scottish motorists most likely to hit animals

NEW research into the types of crashes motorists have has shown people in Scotland are the most likely in the UK to hit an animal.
Although rear end bumps are by far the most common road accidents, car insurance specialist elephant.co.uk. looked into the more unusual types of incidents, in particular where they happen.
elephant.co.uk looked at data from over 1.3 million claims over five years and found the top five postcode areas for accidents involving animals were all in Scotland.
Some of the unusual claims were more of a surprise and include incidents of motorists hitting badgers, swans, horses, cows and even monkeys. One policyholder even struck a rabbit which despite its small size, wrote off the car!
The Galashiels area was the fourth worst in the UK for cars hitting trees while Berwick was the fourth worst for hitting walls!

The voice of rugby Bill McLaren

EVEN if you are not a rugby fan you loved Bill McLaren who sadly died in his home town of Hawick earlier this week at the age of 86.
Scotland has lost 'the voice of rugby' and we will all miss the pearls of wisdom which made his commentaries legendary.
No-one loved his sport more. His knowledge was encyclopaedic, his attention to detail was extraordinary and his ability to recall facts and figures unrivalled.
The world of sport and broadcastling has lost a true legend.

Snow angels!

PROOF this week, if it were needed, that faced with adversity people rise to the challenge - and succeed.
Proof also that community spirit is alive and well in Berwickshire and the Borders, whether it is helping to keep elderly neighbours fed and warm; collecting prescriptions for those unable to get out or banding together to clear roads where the gritters feared to venture.
The big freeze has brought out the best in some of the good hearted people around the district and Scottish Borders workermn, NHS Borders staff and many nothjers have gone beyond the call of duty. Well done to all of you.
Unfortunately, one victim of the weather was the Berwickshire News!
For the first time in living memory, the paper - along with a number of others including our sister titles the Berwickshire Advertiser and Southern Reporter - printed at Sunderland did not hit the shelves last Thursday.
The vans bringing the papers north were stopped south of Berwick in the early hours of last Thursday morning and a combination of roads closed due to snow and vehicles being stuck meant the distribution company which delivers the titles was unable to get them here.
Apologies to all readers - we hope that picking up the paper a day later did not spoil your enjoyment.

Don't be a grumpy shopper!

The shops are getting busier and everyone is rushing around preparing for Christmas.
The run up to Christmas can be exciting, but, unfortunately, it can also be a time when shoppers get aggressive towards shopworkers. When items are out of stock or the queues are long, people are often stressed and have a very short fuse.
Nearly a third of shopworkers have been verbally abused in the past month. This is clearly not acceptable. They are under a lot of pressure, often working long hours, and are just trying to do their job.
Think again before becoming aggressive, keep your cool and give shopworkers the respect they deserve this Christmas.

What's your favourite Christmas song?

WHENin comes to Christmas we’re just a load of old softies!
It’s official the nation’s favourite Christmas song is …Driving Home for Christmas.
In a recent poll carried out by One4all gift cards the Chris Rea classic topped the charts with 33% of the votes, closely followed by Do They Know It’s Christmas by Band Aid (26%) and Wham’s Last Christmas (23%).
It seems that at Christmas we soften up a bit and go for a mellow feel to life, and that’s not just in music.
The title of favourite Christmas movie is pretty evenly spread between Home Alone (27%) Love Actually (24%) and It’s A Wonderful Life (23%).
But there was one clear winning in the Christmas Carol category, with 43% of the votes, Silent Night.

New Forth Road Bridge

RESULTS from a YouGov poll released last week indicate that just 34% of Scots support SNP plans for a new road bridge over the Forth, while 57% believe the existing Forth Road Bridge should be repaired.
According to the Scottish Government, the new bridge is currently expected to cost up to £2,300 million. The Forth Estuary Transport Authority estimates that repairing the existing bridge would cost just £122 million.
Later this month the Scottish Government is expected to publish legislation which would authorise the new bridge if approved.

Bagpipes run out of puff

SCOTSCARE, the London based Scottish charity has announced the shortlist for Scotland’s Greatest Contribution to the World with the winner to be announced to mark St Andrew’s Day.
The charity has previously conducted St Andrew’s Day searches for Scotland’s favourite Comedy Moment and Scotland’s Favourite Song.
Currently out in the lead is Penicillin which was discovered by scientist and Nobel laureate Alexander Flemming, in 1928. This is perhaps unsurprisingly followed closely by our national drink, whisky.
Others to make the short list of eight include Television, Rab C Nesbitt, Golf, and the Scotland’s favourite Irn Bru.
The most surprising contributions not to make the shortlist are surely bagpipes and the telephone which received no votes at all. Nessie, Robert Louis Stevenson and even the deep fried Mars Bar were also unfortunate not to make the final eight.
Votes can be placed on ScotsCare’s website, www.scotscrae.com.______________________________________________________________________