Kelso United manager Scott Dowie has been replaced by his predecessor, Tom ‘Prof’ Blaikie, after spending only four months in the Woodside Park hot seat.

Dowie’s departure came about on Monday evening following the Tweedsiders’ 1-0 defeat to Eyemouth United last Saturday.

Dowie told TheSouthern: “I received a phone call from club chairman Mike Tait who informed me that there had been an emergency committee meeting and that it had been decided that I should part company with the club.

“This came as a great shock to me as I have only been manager for eight or nine games.

“When I first come to the club there were only six signed players in the squad and I have since built this squad up.

“I had big hopes of strengthening this squad for next season.

“This is not going to happen now though and I am very disappointed as I felt I could do a job for Kelso.”

A spokesperson from the club confirmed that Dowie had been relieved of his post earlier in the week and that Blaikie would take on the manager’s role until the end of the season.

This weekend United, who are currently propping up the East of Scotland First Division table, travel to take on Burntisland Shipyard.

Elsewhere, high-flying Peebles Rovers play host to Eyemouth United, while Hawick Royal Albert make a trip to Hawthorns Park to tackle Duns.

In the Scottish Lowland League, Gala Fairydean Rovers have the chance to erase some of the pain they have suffered at Yarrow Park this season (7-0 and 5-1 defeats) when taking on Selkirk at Netherdale.

Gala assistant manager Bryan Templeton told us: “If we can get our passing game together we can put things to rights. Our boys won’t need fired up as they will be firing themselves up. It should be an interesting game.”

Selkirk team boss Steve Forrest said: “Since I became manager, Selkirk have not won at Netherdale. On the astroturf Gala are a very good side and we will have to match up to that.”

Vale of Leithen travel to face Threave Rovers.

A drunken man who walked into a couple’s Kelso home and stole two handbags has been remanded in custody until tomorrow (Friday), when he has other business at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

Thirty-two-year-old Roderick Kennedy of Roxburgh Street, Kelso, admitted the £100 theft, shortly after midnight on December 7, while he was on bail and an ASBO (antisocial behaviour order).

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley told how the couple had been in their livingroom, with the front door and porch door closed, but unlocked.

The woman heard a noise in the hallway and her husband went to investigate, seeing Kennedy heading out of the house.

Two handbags and their contents, worth about £100, were found to be missing.

A police officer spotted Kennedy in Edinburgh Road nearby, and noted he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

He was searched and a bank card and WH Smith loyalty card belonging to the woman were found.

Defence solicitor Mat Patrick said his client, who appeared from custody, had “significant addiction issues”, adding “Drugs and alcohol are a factor in all his offending, and he remembers nothing of this.”

He said Kennedy had a DTTO (Drug Treatment and Testing Order) review on Friday (tomorrow) and urged that he be released on bail, adding: “He fully acknowledges he is on thin ice.”

But Sheriff Michael Wood refused bail and remanded the accused in custody until tomorrow, saying: “He is not just on thin ice, he is through it.”

The replacement of old metal gas mains in Galashiels is “essential”, according to infrastructure utility Scottish Gas Networks (SGN).

The company has apologised in advance for any “inconvenience” resulting from the works which will see the closure – for at least two months – of a key section of the town centre road network.

And it has announced a compensation scheme for local businesses hit by the disruption.

The three-phase upgrade, involving the installation of plastic piping with a lifespan of 80 years, will start on Monday, January 5, with three weeks of work on Bank Street Brae, which traffic will be able to pass. The major second phase, between the junctions of Bank Street Brae and Sime Place, will see the complete closure of that section of one-way Bank Street and High Street for eight weeks.

Two local diversion options will be in place: the first will circumnavigate the works via Bank Street Brae, Livingstone Place, Scott Street, Kirkbrae, Hall Street and Island Street – allowing access to the top end of High Street; the second will be via Albert Place, Braw Lads Brae, George Craig Bridge (between the supermarkets), Currie Road, Ladhope Vale and Bridge Place.

Pedestrian access will be retained throughout, while bus diversion routes are still being discussed and will be publicised later this month.

The closure is set to continue for an unspecified period to allow Scottish Borders Council to carry out its scheduled resurfacing of Bank Street and High Street.

“We are still in negotiations about this with SGN, but our aim is to minimise disruption,” said a council spokesman. “It was made clear to SGN that this is a busy area of Galashiels which has already experienced a lot of disruption, but SGN say the work is essential.”

The final phase of the gas mains replacement, which traffic will be able to pass, will focus on the stretch of Bank Street between the junctions of St John Street and Bank Street Brae and is scheduled to last for six weeks.

SGN says that during the works, a member of its finance team will be available to deal with questions about a compensation scheme for small businesses who suffer “genuine loss of trade”. Further details of this scheme and how to apply are available on www.sgn.co.uk.

“We will be doing everything we can to minimise disruption and complete our works as quickly as possible,” said SGN construction manager Stuart Pinder.

“We understand road works can be frustrating and we’re very sorry for any inconvenience.”

After festive celebrations with work colleagues at Kelso Races on Sunday, boozed-up Neil McKenna returned home and attacked his wife, dragging her by the hair through the hallway of their home.

The 31-year-old appeared from custody at Selkirk Sheriff Court the following day and admitted assaulting his wife at their home in The Glebe, Ancrum.

McKenna, who provided an address at The Courtyard, Manderston House, Duns, was released on bail with a condition not to contact his wife and son, or to enter Ancrum.

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said the offence happened at the family home after McKenna had been out with work colleagues at Kelso Races. He returned home at 8pm and she found him sitting in the kitchen, “clearly drunk”.

When his wife asked him how he got home, McKenna began punching the kitchen units, then shouting and swearing as his wife walked upstairs.

Ms Bradley added: “He pushed her against a banister, causing her to bang her head, then grabbed her by the neck and pushed her against the bedroom door. She went downstairs and he knocked her down and dragged her through the hallway by her pony tail. She shouted, ‘You are going to kill me’, and he replied, ‘good’.”

When McKenna walked outside into the garden, his wife locked all the doors and police were contacted. She had grazing beside her eye, a carpet burn to her elbow and finger marks near her collarbone.

Heather Stewart, defending, said the offence was “extremely out of character” and questioned whether her client’s drink could have been spiked.

The lawyer went on: “He did have a huge amount to drink at a Christmas works do, and is vague about how he got home. He remembers screaming and shouting, and then being in the police car. He is extremely shocked and remorseful.”

Sentence was deferred until January 16, at Jedburgh Sheriff Court, for reports.

SEIZED SPECIAL CONSTABLE

When a friend was escorted away by police after fighting, Luke Milne grabbed the officer by the shoulder and tried to pull him away.

After repeatedly trying to intervene, Milne was arrested.

Milne, 21, of Forest Crescent, Galashiels, admitted obstructing a special constable restraining a male by seizing him on the body and pulling him away in the town’s Channel Street on August 31.

The offence happened during the early hours of the morning when the area was busy with people dispersing from a nearby nightclub.

Police intervened when they spotted two males fighting and separated the pair.

“They were agitated and were taken away from the crowd when the accused ran over behind the special constable and grabbed his shoulder, trying to pull him away. He was told to get back and repeatedly tried to intervene,” explained Tessa Bradley, prosecuting.

After being arrested and taken to the police station, Milne told officers: “I beat the police in court two years ago, so you can f**k off.”

Defence solicitor Heather Stewart said her client had been out drinking, adding: “He was aware of one of his friends was in a fight and stupidly tried to intervene. He says that he apologised for his behaviour.”

The freelance graphic designer was fined £300.

‘ALARMING’ EMAILS

The weekend after they separated, a former postman bombarded his alarmed wife with emails.

Douglas Kellett, 48, of Thornfield Crescent, Selkirk, pleaded guilty to engaging in a course of conduct which caused his ex-partner fear and alarm by repeatedly sending her emails at Hillside Terrace, Selkirk, between November 4 and 14.

The first offender married in January 2011, separating from his wife in October this year.

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said: “His ex-wife has asked that all contact be made through solicitors, but he seems to have difficulty accepting that and has continued to contact her directly.

“The weekend after they split up, she received 28 emails from him, and the tenor became threatening and harassing. He bombarded her with messages, some of which were alarming.

“One of the problems in the relationship was his controlling behaviour and she felt he was trying to manipulate her.”

When she received a message saying, “OK, fine. I know when you leave for work”, the woman was alarmed.

Kellett told police: “If she’d replied to one, she wouldn’t have got so many.”

Questioned about that specific email, he said it was “to put the fear of life and death into her, because I wanted to speak to her”.

“That was a silly one,” he added.

Kellett, who had no legal representation, was asked if he had anything to say about the offence and replied: “Nothing at all.”

Sentence was deferred until February 2. He was bailed, with a condition not to approach or contact his wife.

SHOUTED AT HIS WIFE

A drunken man told his wife he was going to get his sons to come from Dumfries and “sort her out”.

Colin Service appeared from custody and admitted making abusive comments and threatening violence at Whitehaugh View, Hawick, on Sunday.

The accused had gone out to the pub for the afternoon.

“He telephoned his wife and said he was going to get his sons to come from Dumfries and sort her out,” the prosecutor, Tessa Bradley, told the court.

The 48-year-old returned home at 7pm, sat on the sofa and began shouting at his wife.When he went through to the kitchen she could hear him banging doors of the kitchen units.

The prosecutor added: “She was alarmed as she thought he was looking for a knife or some similar item. All was quiet when police arrived and the accused answered the door, saying everything was okay.”

Heather Stewart, defending, said: “He had been out drinking and came home and there was a stupid, drunken argument. They have been married for two years and he has no idea why there should be any suggestion he was going to look for a knife. He was making himself something to eat.”

Service, who works as a parcel courier delivering Yellow Pages in the Hawick area, was released to an address in Annan. He was granted bail with a condition not to enter Whitehaugh View or Havelock Street in Hawick.

Sentence was deferred for reports until January 16 at Jedburgh Sheriff Court.

wooler

At their weekly primestock sale last Wednesday John Swan Ltd had forward and sold 729 lambs and 361 ewes.

Lamb numbers tight, helping trade along to make returns greater on the week quite substantially; more numbers could easily be handled in front of a good ring of buyers.

Leading prices per head:- Tex:- £98 South Ditchburn, £94.50, £93 (2) Lickar Moor, £90 South Ditchburn, £89, £88 Greenhead, Reston, £88 Lilburn Estates, £87.50 Springhill, Seahouses, £86 Low Middleton, £84.50 Mindrum Farming Co, £84 Lorbottle. Suff.x:- £95 Kinross, £88 Mindrum Farming Co and Kypie. Ven:- £82 Craigshouse.

Leading prices per kilo:- Tex:- 210.3p Lilburn Estates, 206.3p Mindrum Farming Co, 205.3p Lorbottle, 201.2p Mindrum Farming Co, 198.9p Springhill, Seahouses, 195.2p Lilburn Estates, East Fleetham and Springhill, Seahouses. Bel.x:- 207.9p Lilburn Estates, 200p (2) Ladykirk. Suff.x:- 196.5p East Fleetham.

Ewes numbers similar and again very dear again more numbers could easily be handled.

Leading prices:- Tex:- £130 Kinross, Bamburgh, £119 Elwick, £105 Barmoor Red House and Mayfield, £97, £91 Barmoor Red House. Suff.x:- £119 Kypie, £115 Mayfield, £109.50 North Lyham. Char.x:- £100 East Fleetham. Chev:- £100 Linbrig. Mule:- £89.50 Barmoor Red House, £89 Mayfield. BF:- £67.50, £64.50, £63.50 Lilburn Estates.

Rams:- Tex.x:- £126 Shoreswood Hall.

St boswells

At their weekly primestock sale on Monday John Swan Ltd sold 121 clean cattle, 37 OTM cattle, 2,338 new season lambs and 562 ewes.

Bullocks (50) averaged 220.2p per kg and sold to248p (-0.5p on week), heifers (70) averaged 217p per kg and sold to261p (-6.2p on week), one young bull sold to £155p (n/c on week) and 37 beef type OTM cattle averaged 124.1p per kg and sold to 2p (n/c on the week).

New season lambs averaged 202p per kg (+20p on the week) £88.26 per head and sold to £101, top price 236p per kg for Beltex. Ewes averaged £64.39, and sold to £106 for Suffolk. Heavy ewes averaged £74.06 and light ewes sold to £65 for Blackface and averaged £50.54.

Principal prices per head: Bee Edge £1555.56; Lurdenlaw £1543.70, £1489.50; North Synton £1527.96, £1504.16

Principal prices per kg: Bee Edge 2.61, 2.45 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.53 Robert L. Wilson, 2.53 W. Taylor (Lockerbie) Ltd, 2.45 M/s H. Black and Sons Ltd; Upper Nisbet 2.48 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.46 M/s J. Gilmour and Co; Lurdenlaw 2.46 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.43 Robert Pringle; Wester Ulston 2.46 M/s J. Gilmour and Co Ltd; Honeyburn 2.45 Shaws of Lauder; Longnewton 2.42 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons; Dunslaw 2.42 M/s J. Saunderson Ltd, 2.41 J.F. Finlay and Co Ltd; Humbie Mill 2.42 J.F. Finlay and Co Ltd; Shidlaw 2.40 M/s J. Saunderson Ltd.

Bulls: Hyndsidehill Hill £1180 (100p); Bowershields £705.60 (80p).

Annual Show and Sale of Cows was judged by M/s G. Aitken and Sons, Traprain, who awarded the champion to Ramrig for b. Blue.x which weighed 826kgs, 160p, realising £1321 and reserve was awarded to Wester Middleton for a Char.x which weighed 960kgs, 163p realising £1564.80.

Beef cows - 1. Ramrig; 2. Wester Middleton; 3. Ramrig; OTM - 1. Humbie Mill; 2. Nisbet; 3. Humbie Mill.

Cows per head: Wester Middleton £1564.80, £1469.16; Ramrig £1321.60, £1243.44; Nisbet £1212; Hyndsidehill £1180; Shidlaw £1106.30, £1099.82, £999.46; Huntington £1084.72; Cockburn £1031.94; Caverton Mill £1017.24, £967.44; Nisbet Mill £982.80; Barmoor Red House; Outerston £926.86.

Cows per kg: Nisbet 2.00; Shidlaw 1.85; Wester Middleton 1.63, 1.59; Ramrig 1.60, 1.57; Huntington 1.49; Caverton Mill 1.47, 1.39; Nisbet Mill 1.35, 1.31;; Barmoor Red House, 1.29(2); Cockburn 1.31.

Light lambs also met a sound trade selling to a top of 2.35p pkg, £77.50 for Belt.x from J. and G.S. Sinclair, Crookston. Averaging overall £63.76/192.9p pkg.

Other top prices:- Belt.x;- £77.50 Crookston, £77 Threeburnford, bf;- £77, £67 The Peel, £65 Middlesknowes, £64.50 Burncastle, SM;- £75 Belford on Bowmont, £72 Threeburnford, Suff.x;- £73 Woodside, £65 Kirktonhill and Woodside.

A good show of quality lambs forward, trade was firmer for all classes of lambs and levelled at 202.1p a rise of 20p/pkg on the week, averaging £88.26 per head.

John Swan Ltd held their Annual ‘St Boswells Christmas Cracker’ which was sponsored by the Royal Bank of Scotland.

A fantastic show of cattle was forward: the judges were Mr C. Tulloch, Paisley, Mr J. Worsley, Dewsbury, and Mr J Robertson, Eskbank. Overall champion - Lim.x Heifer from W.B. Hamilton and Son, Bee Edge, 564kgs, 310p sold to Michael Malone of Edinburgh Ltd. Reserve champion Lim.x Heifer from S. and J. Allen, Longnewton was 580kg, 290p to W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons.

longtown

The Cumberland and Dumfriesshire Farmers Mart plc had forward 42 prime cattle, two young bulls, 31 over 30 month cattle, 6,423 prime lambs and 3,377 cast ewes and rams at their weekly sale at Longtown last Thursday.

At the annual Christmas show and sale there was a good entry of 23 cattle put forward to the judge J. Craig, Ballard Butchers, Castle Douglas. Mr Craig awarded the championship ticket to a Limousin heifer jointly owned and shown by Kilnstown Farms Ltd and E. Telfer and Son, Newton High House, which later went on to make 375p/kilo (£2043.75) and was purchased by the judge.

The reserve championship and best British breed went to the same animal, a Galloway bullock which was jointly shown by Kilnstown Farms Ltd and H. Watson, High Stobhill Farm, and later realised 360p per kilo (£1656) and purchased by Whitepeak Farm Butchers Ltd, Derbyshire.

The mart is grateful to the sponsors, Jobson Animal Health, for their generosity and the judge, Mr Craig.

Tomorrow (Friday) at 7.30pm, the Maxwell String Quartet will perform in Melrose Parish Church Hall. Their programme includes one of the greatest of all chamber works, Schubert’s Death and the Maiden Quartet No 14 in D minor.

Hailed as front-runners in young UK ensembles [Classical Music Magazine, 2013] the Maxwell Quartet is rapidly emerging as a dynamic and exciting force in the chamber music world, with a drive and commitment to expanding the string quartet repertoire.

Formed in 2010, when the players were postgraduate students at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, the quartet became Residency Artists for Enterprise Music Scotland 2011-2013, which saw them give several acclaimed concert tours.

First violin, Colin Scobie, is already established as one of the most creative and compelling violinists and chamber musicians of his generation, and has performed as a concerto soloist to wide acclaim. George Smith, second violin, has performed across the UK and abroad as a chamber musician, soloist and Scots fiddle player. David BaMaung, the violist, was one of four players in the prestigious Hallé String Leadership Scheme 2012-2013. The cellist, Duncan Strachan, began learning the cello aged 4 and, like George, attended St Mary’s School in Edinburgh and became Academic Scholar in Oxford.

The Death and the Maiden Quartet, composed in 1824, after the composer suffered a serious illness and realized that he was dying, is Schubert’s testament to death. This is preceded by Mendelssohn’s Opus 44, No. 3, quartet in E flat major, considered to be one of the composer’s most classical works, poised, balanced and well crafted.

Tickets at the door for non-members of Melrose Music Society are £12.

Accompanied children are admitted free.

Borders MP Michael Moore has described moves to secure UK aid at 0.7 per cent as “one step closer” after the passing of his International Development Bill in the House of Commons, writes Sandy Neil.

Mr Moore’s bill would make it a legal requirement for the UK Government to spend the UN target of 0.7 per cent of gross national income on international aid. His Private Members’ Bill was backed by the heads of top UK international development charities. It passed its third reading, despite attempts by some Conservative backbenchers to use parliamentary tricks to block it.

During the debate, Mr Moore said: “This bill matters because UK aid saves lives and transforms lives. It provides people with their most basic needs, builds capacity and contributes to vital economic development. It also honours the commitment the three main UK political parties made in their 2010 manifestos.

“Through this bill we will give predictability to our partners and aid recipients, and we will show leadership around the world and encourage other countries to join us. Passing this bill will move the debate on to how we spend aid rather than how much we spend, and it will ensure proper scrutiny of our aid.

“I wish to thank all supporters of the bill, including MPs from all parties, campaign groups, NGOs and colleagues across the House, and I am proud that today we are taking this step.”

Mr Moore told The Southern how his Borders background helped him seize the opportunity. “As the son of a minister in Jedburgh, the conditions of people in the developing world would be brought into sharp focus,” he said. “After church, there would be Fairtrade coffee, which taught us at a young age there was another world out there, where others are not as fortunate as ourselves. A huge number of constituents share these concerns.”

He was proud, he said, to join a tradition of Borders MPs who have guided Private Members’ Bills through the Commons – David Steel sponsored the Abortion Act in 1967, and Archie Kirkwood sponsored two in two years: the Access to Personal Files Act in 1987 and Access to Medical Reports Act in 1988.

A church elder exposed himself to a beauty therapist during a massage treatment, Selkirk Sheriff Court, pictured, heard this week.

Retired businessman Charles Fraser was having a full body massage in the spa room of Barony Castle Hotel, Eddleston, when he committed the offence on May 23.

During a one-hour session, Fraser, 66, of St David’s Gardens, Dalkeith, told the female therapist an abdomen massage was his favourite.

When the therapist turned round after getting more massage oil, she found an aroused Fraser had removed the towel and was lying on his back with his hands above his head. The distraught woman fled the room, describing the accused as “a perv” to a colleague.

Prosecutor Tessa Bradley said the accused and his wife had been in the hotel bar when he asked the beauty therapist to book a massage appointment.

Ms Bradley added: “He said he wanted a full body massage and a one-hour appointment was made. She showed him through to the spa facility, and he told her how he had had cancer and radiotherapy.

“He asked her about the hotel policy on underwear and was told that he should keep it on.”

Fraser said other places had a “no underwear” policy, adding that he had frequented nudist resorts.

The prosecutor went on: “He was left to change and when she returned, he was lying face up on the treatment table. He was talking about previous massage treatments and repeatedly said that an abdomen massage was his favourite.

“She would normally do that, but was feeling uncomfortable by the tenor of his conversation and decided to try to avoid it.”

Fraser was asked to move on to his stomach and the therapist continued to massage his back.

Ms Bradley told Monday’s hearing: “She noticed that he stopped talking and began moving his hips and, as she was massaging his lower back, he began complimenting her, saying, ‘Do you do that for everyone’. He said that his buttocks and abdomen were his favourite parts to be massaged and specifically requested her to do that.”

The therapist told Fraser to move over on to his back and tucked the towel into the waistband of his underwear.

The prosecutor said that when she turned back after getting massage oil, he had removed the towel and was exposing himself.

“She immediately moved the towel back, as she felt obligated to continue with the treatment, although she felt uncomfortable,” explained Ms Bradley.

When the therapist again found Fraser with the towel moved down, exposing himself, she fled the room.

The prosecutor added: “She was so disturbed she said she didn’t want to see him and told a colleague, ‘You’ll have to take his payment. He’s a perv’. She was visibly shaking and distraught.”

Fraser paid and also left a tip.

After the duty manager was informed about what had happened, it was agreed to notify the police. “He said he may have lowered the towel and admitted being aroused,” concluded Ms Bradley.

Fraser’s solicitor said her client had been receiving treatment for prostate cancer for two years.

She explained: “One of the treatments is injections which stop the production of testosterone. Active treatment ended in January 2013 and monitoring continues, but the effect of the treatment continues for some time.

“During the course of the massage he began to feel aroused, and that was the first time in two years that he had had those feelings. An abdominal massage was part of the full body massage – it is not a sinister or unusual thing, and it is not a sexual thing.”

The lawyer added: “He previously lived in Elgin and a massage therapist there suggested it to him as a good type of massage for relaxation.

“He has had this massage before with no effects of this nature. He accepts his behaviour was completely unacceptable and is nothing short of mortified over how he behaved.”

Fraser, a first offender who pleaded guilty, has been involved in voluntary work since his retirement. He is a church elder and clerk of a Children’s Panel advisory committee.

He has been married for 43 years and had been staying overnight in the hotel with his wife.

The solicitor told the court: “He deeply regrets his action and realises that the lady should not have been subjected to such behaviour.

“He puts it down to the effects of the medication he had been on. He was extremely relaxed and uninhibited, which caused him act in a way he would never normally behave.”

Sentence was deferred until February 2 for reports, and Fraser placed on the Sex Offenders Register meantime.

Rural job losses and lengthly court cases could be two of the unwanted outcomes of the Scottish Government’s land reform plans, according to countryside organisations and oppositions parties.

When he was First Minister, Alex Salmond launched the Land Reform Review Group with the aim of transforming Scotland from a nation owned by the few to a country owned by the many. And in her maiden speech as First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon signalled not only her intention to stick with the land ownership shake-up, but to go further and scrap business rate exemptions for shooting and deerstalking estates.

A spokesman for the Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association said: “The Scottish Gamekeepers’ Association will be making a detailed submission to the consultation and will also be seeking a meeting with the First Minister due to our concerns for rural employment for working people and their families.

“We feel very strongly that creating a fairer or more socially just country does not mean taking away lifeline rural employment which is a very real danger if the drive to change ownership patterns turns into discouragement of inward investment.

“If present owners decide conditions in Scotland are no longer favourable, and take their investments elsewhere, the gamekeepers’ jobs go, the ghillie, the boatman, the tractor man, the forester, the various contractors, the estate staff and so on, not to mention the affect on businesses and the fabric of the community. That is not easy employment to replace in a rural area.

“Of course, we believe those who manage land should do so in the public interest and we believe the well-managed estates in Scotland will be able to quantify this very well.

“However, greater transparency has to work both ways and we hope public bodies and large land-owning charities tasked with similar public interest responsibilities are placed under the same scrutiny as private owners.”

Scottish Tories oppose the Scottish Government plans and Borders MSP John Lamont said: “It beggars belief that the SNP believe it is acceptable in modern Scotland to allow the government to force private landowners to sell just because they don’t like what they are doing with their own land. This Scottish Government needs to see landowners as part of the solution, not part of the problem, and must recognise the contribution estates make to rural economies and rural jobs in the Borders.

“The notion of a Central Belt-based land commission determining who was using their land ‘properly’ and who wasn’t is quite simply unacceptable. The inevitable consequence is that these matters would end up in the courts, where the Big Brother plans will be fiercely contested.”

But Ms Sturgeon said: “Scotland’s land must be an asset that benefits the many, not the few.”

David Johnstone, chairman of Scottish Land and Estates, said they were working hard to back government aims for renewable energy, agriculture and housing, adding that sporting estates already make a key contribution to rural tourism, employment and the environment.

A councillor who came upon a pile of flaking asbestos in a quiet country lane has called for tougher sanctions against the perpetrators of fly-tipping.

And Scottish Borders Council, which spent more than £1,000 disposing of the dangerous material, has this week asked the public to report any incidents of illegal dumping.

Councillor Gavin Logan (Tweeddale East) made his discovery while walking his dogs on the back road between Ashiestiel and Walkerburn, which runs alongside the River Tweed, last Thursday.

“It looked like a bag of builders’ rubble with plaster board scattered around and, as I have done too many times, I reported it to the council the following day,” said Mr Logan.

The nature of his discovery was revealed at Monday night’s meeting of Clovenfords Community Council by Jason Hedley, SBC’s neighbourhood services officer.

He described how staff had gone to the site and identified the material as asbestos. As a result, a firm of specialists had to be called in to safely remove the pile – at a cost to the council of over £1,000 for a single fly-tipping incident.

SBC does not hold cost figures for dealing with illegal dumping as it is considered part of the daily operations of its neighbourhood services division.

But figures obtained by The Southern suggest it is a considerable strain on the public purse.

In 2013/14, the local authority had to deal with no fewer than 382 fly-tipping incidents across the region – up by around 40 per cent on the previous year’s total of 285.

The haul included 18 animal carcasses, 44 white and electrical goods, 111 items of furniture, 31 tyres, 112 domestic bin bags and three chemical drums. Most of the dumping took place in laybys or outside farm gates.

A spokesperson for SBC told us yesterday: “Fly-tipping in any form is unacceptable, but the illegal dumping of asbestos in particular is a costly and potentially dangerous action which could jeopardise the environment and present risks to humans and animals.

“We would appeal to the public not to carry out such acts, with anyone caught facing fines of up to £40,000 or six months’ imprisonment. Members of the public can play their part by reporting any incidents on publicly- owned land to the council.”

Despite the potentially-harsh sanctions, a recent Freedom of Information response revealed that just 10 people suspected of fly-tipping had been reported to SBC’s legal department over the last three years and not a single case had resulted in a successful court prosecution.

“With so many community facilites in place for taking rubbish, there is simply no excuse for fly-tipping which is such a blight on our countryside, our environment and our tourism,” said Mr Logan.

“This single incident shows it is also draining the council’s resources, so not only do we want the cooperation of the public, we also need much tougher penalties which are properly enforced.”

A Hawick soldier is facing a second probe into the death of an Iraqi civilian in 2003, writes Bob Burgess.

Barry Singleton was serving with the KOSB when he opened fire at a checkpoint in Basra.

The soldier fired into the man’s car when he sped away after being challenged.

The lance corporal was investigated by the army after being accused of firing 12 shots and was cleared in 2006.

But he has now been told there is a fresh investigation. And that could lead to a charge of murder.

The former KOSB i, 33, is now a sergeant with the second battalion of the Royal Regiment of Scotland, the Royal Highland Fusiliers.

The Iraq Historic Allegations team has until 2016 to complete their investigation.

The army’s prosecuting authority confirmed the probe but said Sergeant Singleton had not been charged.

His friend and former boxing coach John Sharkey has branded this second investigation a complete joke.

He added: “As far as I was concerned this had been fully and thoroughly investigated and he was cleared.

“This is disgraceful. I just cannot believe the stress this will have caused Barry and his mum.”

Mr Sharkey said he would again write letters of support on behalf of his friend.

This week we seem to be reporting on an endless stream of roadworks across the Borders.

And one thing that has become clear is the havoc these can cause when signage is less than ideal.

Selkirk traders along Dunsdale Road, at the bottom end of the town, have been feeling the brunt of things this month after Dunsdale Haugh was closed due to unexpected work having to be undertaken in connection with the Flood Protection Scheme.

While everyone will agree, the flood prevention work is crucial to the town, particularly to those people living and working close to the river, drivers wanting to access their homes or businesses in that area have a 1.5-mile diversion round part of the town.

For drivers who don’t know Selkirk well, it’s a hassle.

But for the businesses who have seen their takings plummet due to people assuming the road closure means they are not open for business, or who have difficulty finding them, it is disastrous.

While there is light at the end of the tunnel for Selkirk’s traders, Galashiels businesses and shoppers can expect weeks of roadworks in connection with gas pipe laying and the railway come January.

Can we urge the council – who admittedly have had a difficult task managing all the changes – to learn lessons from Selkirk’s difficulties, and make sure that future signage is clear and disruptions are kept to a minimum for everyone.

wooler

At their weekly Primestock sale last Wednesday John Swan Ltd had forward and sold 729 lambs and 361 ewes.

Lamb numbers tight, helping trade along to make returns greater on the week quite substantially; more numbers could easily be handled in front of a good ring of buyers.

Leading prices per head:- Tex:- £98 South Ditchburn, £94.50, £93 (2) Lickar Moor, £90 South Ditchburn, £89, £88 Greenhead, Reston, £88 Lilburn Estates, £87.50 Springhill, Seahouses, £86 Low Middleton, £84.50 Mindrum Farming Co, £84 Lorbottle. Suff.x:- £95 Kinross, £88 Mindrum Farming Co and Kypie. Ven:- £82 Craigshouse.

Leading prices per kilo:- Tex:- 210.3p Lilburn Estates, 206.3p Mindrum Farming Co, 205.3p Lorbottle, 201.2p Mindrum Farming Co, 198.9p Springhill, Seahouses, 195.2p Lilburn Estates, East Fleetham and Springhill, Seahouses. Bel.x:- 207.9p Lilburn Estates, 200p (2) Ladykirk. Suff.x:- 196.5p East Fleetham.

Ewes numbers similar and again very dear again more numbers could easily be handled.

Leading prices:- Tex:- £130 Kinross, Bamburgh, £119 Elwick, £105 Barmoor Red House and Mayfield, £97, £91 Barmoor Red House. Suff.x:- £119 Kypie, £115 Mayfield, £109.50 North Lyham. Char.x:- £100 East Fleetham. Chev:- £100 Linbrig. Mule:- £89.50 Barmoor Red House, £89 Mayfield. BF:- £67.50, £64.50, £63.50 Lilburn Estates.

Rams:- Tex.x:- £126 Shoreswood Hall.

St boswells

At their weekly primestock sale on Monday John Swan Ltd sold 121 clean cattle, 37 OTM cattle, 2,338 new season lambs and 562 ewes.

Bullocks (50) averaged 220.2p per kg and sold to248p (-0.5p on week), heifers (70) averaged 217p per kg and sold to261p (-6.2p on week), one young bull sold to £155p (n/c on week) and 37 beef type OTM cattle averaged 124.1p per kg and sold to 2p (n/c on the week).

New season lambs averaged 202p per kg (+20p on the week) £88.26 per head and sold to £101, top price 236p per kg for Beltex. Ewes averaged £64.39, and sold to £106 for Suffolk. Heavy ewes averaged £74.06 and light ewes sold to £65 for Blackface and averaged £50.54.

Principal prices per head: Bee Edge £1555.56; Lurdenlaw £1543.70, £1489.50; North Synton £1527.96, £1504.16

Principal prices per kg: Bee Edge 2.61, 2.45 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.53 Robert L. Wilson, 2.53 W. Taylor (Lockerbie) Ltd, 2.45 M/s H. Black and Sons Ltd; Upper Nisbet 2.48 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.46 M/s J. Gilmour and Co; Lurdenlaw 2.46 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons, 2.43 Robert Pringle; Wester Ulston 2.46 M/s J. Gilmour and Co Ltd; Honeyburn 2.45 Shaws of Lauder; Longnewton 2.42 M/s W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons; Dunslaw 2.42 M/s J. Saunderson Ltd, 2.41 J.F. Finlay and Co Ltd; Humbie Mill 2.42 J.F. Finlay and Co Ltd; Shidlaw 2.40 M/s J. Saunderson Ltd.

Bulls: Hyndsidehill Hill £1180 (100p); Bowershields £705.60 (80p).

Annual Show and Sale of Cows was judged by M/s G. Aitken and Sons, Traprain, who awarded the champion to Ramrig for b. Blue.x which weighed 826kgs, 160p, realising £1321 and reserve was awarded to Wester Middleton for a Char.x which weighed 960kgs, 163p realising £1564.80.

Beef cows - 1. Ramrig; 2. Wester Middleton; 3. Ramrig; OTM - 1. Humbie Mill; 2. Nisbet; 3. Humbie Mill

Cows per head: Wester Middleton £1564.80, £1469.16; Ramrig £1321.60, £1243.44; Nisbet £1212; Hyndsidehill £1180; Shidlaw £1106.30, £1099.82, £999.46; Huntington £1084.72; Cockburn £1031.94; Caverton Mill £1017.24, £967.44; Nisbet Mill £982.80; Barmoor Red House; Outerston £926.86.

Cows per kg: Nisbet 2.00; Shidlaw 1.85; Wester Middleton 1.63, 1.59; Ramrig 1.60, 1.57; Huntington 1.49; Caverton Mill 1.47, 1.39; Nisbet Mill 1.35, 1.31;; Barmoor Red House, 1.29(2); Cockburn 1.31.

Light lambs also met a sound trade selling to a top of 2.35p pkg, £77.50 for Belt.x from J. and G.S. Sinclair, Crookston. Averaging overall £63.76/192.9p pkg.

Other top prices:- Belt.x;- £77.50 Crookston, £77 Threeburnford, bf;- £77, £67 The Peel, £65 Middlesknowes, £64.50 Burncastle, SM;- £75 Belford on Bowmont, £72 Threeburnford, Suff.x;- £73 Woodside, £65 Kirktonhill and Woodside.

A good show of quality lambs forward, trade was firmer for all classes of lambs and levelled at 202.1p a rise of 20p/pkg on the week, averaging £88.26 per head.

John Swan Ltd held their Annual ‘St Boswells Christmas Cracker’ which was kindly sponsored by the Royal Bank of Scotland.

A fantastic show of cattle was forward: the judges were Mr C. Tulloch, Paisley, Mr J. Worsley, Dewsbury, and Mr J Robertson, Eskbank. Overall champion - Lim.x Heifer from W.B. Hamilton and Son, Bee Edge, 564kgs, 310p sold to Michael Malone of Edinburgh Ltd. Reserve champion Lim.x Heifer from S. and J. Allen, Longnewton was 580kg, 290p to W.T.S. Forsyth and Sons.

longtown

The Cumberland and Dumfriesshire Farmers Mart plc had forward 42 prime cattle, two young bulls, 31 over 30 month cattle, 6,423 prime lambs and 3,377 cast ewes and rams at their weekly sale at Longtown last Thursday.

At the annual Christmas show and sale there was a good entry of 23 cattle put forward to the judge J. Craig, Ballard Butchers, Castle Douglas. Mr Craig awarded the championship ticket to a Limousin heifer jointly owned and shown by Kilnstown Farms Ltd and E. Telfer and Son, Newton High House, which later went on to make 375p/kilo (£2043.75) and was purchased by the judge.

The reserve championship and best British breed went to the same animal, a Galloway bullock which was jointly shown by Kilnstown Farms Ltd and H. Watson, High Stobhill Farm, and later realised 360p per kilo (£1656) and purchased by Whitepeak Farm Butchers Ltd, Derbyshire.

We would like to thank the sponsors Jobson Animal Health for their generosity and the judge Mr Craig.

In the three months after garden waste collections were scrapped, the council had to fork out £128,000 in extra landfill costs.

Over the same quarter from April 1 to June 30, the volume of household waste recycled in the region fell from 44.4 per cent in the corresponding period of last year to just 34.5 per cent.

The amount of household waste going to landfill at Easter Langlee in Galashiels surged from 7,281 tonnes to 8,152 tonnes – an increase of 12 per cent.

And the landfilling cost to the local authority rocketed by 26.3 per cent – from £524,205 to £652,160.

In his performance report to Tuesday’s meeting of SBC’s executive, waste manager Ross Sharp-Dent candidly cited the “removal of the garden waste collection” as the reason for the negative trends, adding that Landfill Tax – levied by the Scottish Government – had gone up from £72 to £80 per tonne over the year.

Confirming “actions to improve or maintain performance”, he said a new community recycling centre in Kelso was due to open in the spring of 2015, while others would be upgraded. He flagged up the new integrated waste treatment facility at Easter Langlee – not due to open until at least 2017 – which, he said, would “capture recyclates previously destined for landfill”.

Mr Sharp-Dent also noted that overall recycling would increase and landfill dumping reduce when a statutory food waste collection service is introduced next summer for 24,000 households in Galashiels, Tweedbank, Selkirk, Jedburgh, Hawick and Peebles.

Unsurprisingly, the data was seized on by former Hawick councillor Andrew Farquhar who gathered an 8,000-signature petition demanding reinstatement of the green bin service.

His rearguard action was ultimately unsuccessful, with the council endorsing its decision to scrap the uplifts on October 30, albeit with an explicit expression of regret for the “inconvenience and disturbance” it had caused.

“To say the decision to scrap garden waste collections has been a false economy is an understatement, given the colossal extra costs incurred in just three months,” said Mr Farquhar. “Along with the embarrassing reduction in recycling, it is an outcome which everyone except the council could have predicted.

“I think the council has a problem with competency.”

The Stow Community Park group has been formed with the intention of creating a destination park for the whole valley to use.

There would be something for all ages, including adults, although the park would be aimed mainly at older children.

Residents are uphappy with the current playpark in Stow and gathered there to highlight how poor they feel the facilities are for youngsters aged over five.

Anyone interested in getting involved with the group, or who wants more information, should contact stowcommunitypark@gmail.com. A Facebook page will also be set up.

Photograph: phil wilkinson

Pictured are Kiaya and Leiland Hume with the Christmas torches.

Scottish Borders Council could lose nearly £600,000 a year for essential services if a controversial plan to hive off its road maintenance services goes ahead.

The proposal – which would include winter gritting – would see council roads staff, including the 60 employed by successful trading organisation SB Contracts, along with plant and equipment, transfer to a new limited liability partnership (LLP) run and owned jointly by SBC and the five councils which cover Edinburgh, the Lothians and Fife.

The cost-saving suggestion has come from the Scottish Government’s Improvement Service (SI) which is committed to “help improve the efficiency, quality and accountability of public services in Scotland”. 
But a senior officer at SBC has warned of the pitfalls of such a scenario.

In a briefing to last week’s meeting of the environment and infrastructure committee, commercial services director Andrew Drummond-Hunt said SB Contracts had a turnover of £11million last year and recorded a surplus of £584,000.

“This went into the coffers of the council to pay for services like social work and education,” he explained. “With a new Edinburgh, Lothians, Borders and Fife [ELBF] organisation, this could be put at risk.”

He admitted that SBC and the five other ELBF councils had many services in common, including road repairs, traffic light maintenance, surface treatment, flood risk management and rock salt gritting.

Advantages for councils of being part of – and jointly owning – an LLP which will formalise existing collaborative arrangements would include being able to award each other work and pursue joint procurements.

But he cautioned that SBC was already a special case because SB Contracts, which carries out the bulk of road repairs in the region and provides plant for winter maintenance, was the only arms-length trading organisation of its kind in the ELBF area.

He said income for other council services was expected to be further boosted as
 a result of SB Contracts signing a major sub-contractual deal this year with Amey for the maintenance of trunk roads.

He believed there was a risk to both the trading division and the council’s winter maintenance service if there was the “disaggregation” explicit in the ELBF proposal, and suggested a better option would be for SB Contracts to form its own LLP which would be “better placed to exploit wider contracting opportunities.”

Mr Drummond-Hunt agreed to prepare a detailed report on the full implications of the ELBF proposal for a meeting of SBC’s executive in the new year.

A council spokesperson said later: “The discussions at a regional level regarding an ELBF LLP are still at a very early stage and any decision will need to be taken by the full council.”

Sorry to bang on about Chrimbo (yet again), but this week I got one (I say one – and as I have been good this year I am living in hope that there will be many, many more goodies coming my way) of my Chrimbo prezzies.

This one has come early as, after many years of loyal service, my laptop has died. Well, not so much died as ground to a halt. And as about 50 per cent of its keys have packed in, including most of the vowels, it has become impossible to write anything.

However, they would have to go far to beat this one. It is the oddly-named Hudl 2 (yes, there was a Hudl 1, although it was just called a Hudl).

You may have heard of it – the Tesco tablet. It costs £129, comes with lots of apps (ooooh, get me with my apps), front and back facing cameras (though, admittedly, these are not its strong point, I think I will stick to my iPhone for that), and is soooooo easy to use.

I have set up my free, web-based Microsoft Word equivalent on it, and here I am, tapping away like Ernest Hemingway.

Actually, Papa didn’t used to tap away, Mr E informs me. He’s a big Hemingway fan and says sometimes Papa would spend about six months on one sentence (that might be a bit of an exaggeration on my part).

Anyhoo, it’s a great wee thing and I’m loving it.

The only drawback so far is that, being a Tescopoly product, it is equipped to play Jedi mind games with you and pull you over to the dark side of shopping from your local Teutonic discount supermarket to Tescopolis, mightiest of all supermarkets.

Even so, I (a person hugely suspicious of Tesco’s – mwah-hah-hah – evil plans to take over shopping on a galactic scale) have to admit that the Tesco-ified content is waaaaaay over on the left-swipe screen and all the good stuff (in my humble opinion)

is over on the right screens.

However, if you happen to be reading my shopping list just now, I have swiped the wrong way and I take that all back.

But to the point of this column, which was not just a big gloat about my lovely, early Chrimbo present, but the name – Hudl. Certainly, the entire family has been trying to Hudl round it to nosey at what I’ve been doing.

I suppose Hudl is like cuddle and so quite a nice, cosy word. At least it shows some imagination in the hi-tech gadget naming department. You can’t libel the dead, though I wouldn’t put it past the
 deceased – but litigious – Mr Jobs to still be on the ball.
But fans of fruit-based technology, you’ll know what I mean. Mind, there’s Amazon’s Kindle (the suggestion being that you should burn your books and use an e-reader?), and the Nokia Lumia phone. (Lumia? Do you need it to make phone calls on, or to light your way to the car on a dark, winter’s eve?)

When I was a nipper, tab was what you called cigarettes.Suddenly, Hudl doesn’t sound so odd.

I suppose it had to happen sooner or later. The first snow flurries of the winter arrived on Sunday while I was out and about doing my monthly duck count. I was at the extremely high and exposed site of Lindean Reservoir when they arrived and the accompanying wind cut like a knife.

There was very little on the water to trouble my mathematics – only three swans and two mallards, so my attention wandered elsewhere.

I couldn’t help noticing that loads of new nest boxes had appeared since my last visit a month ago. With there being few mature trees round the loch with suitable nest holes, it was good to see the Ranger Service providing places for hole-nesting birds to take up residence. It wasn’t just birds that were being catered for, as I also noticed several bat boxes too. These differ from the avian variety in that they have no obvious entry holes and they are usually erected in clusters around the tree trunks. As well as the usual tit boxes, I also noticed a much bigger owl box, so they too are being catered for.

While wandering through the woodland looking at the new boxes, I also came upon an older one which had been put up previously. This particular one was a tit box, but the hole had been enlarged to almost the size of a tennis ball. The rim of the hole was jagged and had been made bigger for a purpose. This was the work of the great spotted woodpecker – not to make a nest for itself, but to get at and eat the tit chicks which were inside. Most people are unaware that this species of woodpecker does not just eat wood-boring grubs, but in the nesting season can be a voracious predator on the chicks of other species. If you have a nest box in your garden and want to avoid it looking like the one pictured here, a metal plate round the entrance hole is the answer.

For me, one of the first signs of approaching Christmas is not the strains of festive songs in the shops or the arrival of cream eggs in the petrol stations, but the sound of the annual Borders Bird Report dropping through my letterbox. It duly arrived last week. It seems to get bigger and better every year and would make the perfect gift for the birder in your life. Simply send a cheque for £8.70, made payable to “SOC Borders Branch” to Malcolm Ross, Westfield Cottage, Smailholm, Kelso TD5 7PN, along with your name and address and that’s another present problem solved!

The chairman of the local health board has moved to allay fears over the future of the region’s four community hospitals – in Peebles, Kelso, Hawick and Duns.

John Raine alluded to last month’s annual review meeting of NHS Borders, at which medical director Dr Sheila MacDonald highlighted the need to review all clinical services, including the four hospitals.

Mr Raine said on Tuesday: “Regrettably, Dr MacDonald’s comments have been misinterpreted as an intention to close hospitals.

“We know our community hospitals are highly regarded, but the review will need to look at the way all our in-patient services are used and how the hospitals work as part of the whole system of healthcare alongside other health and social care services in the community.

“Eventually, we hope to have reviewed all our clinical services to ensure we are making best use of resources, as well as opportunities for improvement. The board can give a categorical assurance that any changes would be widely consulted upon.”

Mr Raine said a report on how the wider review will be taken forward, starting with the hospitals, will be considered by the board in February.

He went on: “This will include effective engagement with the public, staff and other stakeholders, along with timescales for the programme.

“All public service organisations need periodically to review the way they deliver services and we are no exception. We have budget pressures which mean we must continue to make efficiency savings, but the fact is we are given substantial sums of public money and we need to be assured we are using our resources in the best possible way for those we serve.”

Mr Raine added: “People across the UK are living longer and life expectancy in the Borders is the highest in Scotland.

“With an increasing elderly population, the availability of new technology and better treatments and medicines is to be welcomed.

“But nonetheless, these represent challenges at a time of public funding constraint and we need to carefully consider whether the way our services are delivered should be adapted, and indeed improved, particularly in terms of accessibility and equity.”

An online petition against any closures was launched on Saturday by Michael Grieve from Hawick and by Wednesday morning had attracted 1,776 signatures.

It states: “They (cottage hospitals) are not just buildings, they are living entities. They breath life back into our communities.”