The Scotsman

New Airport Scanners Will Ease Clampdown On Carrying Liquids

AIR passengers may be allowed to carry larger bottles in handluggage if trials of sophisticated new scanners prove successful. Security experts predict the relaxation of restrictions on liquids could be implemented within three years.

Hopes Rise of New Scotrail Commuter Route for Edinburgh

SCOTRAIL is to start running trains on the busy Dunbar-Edinburgh line to provide more frequent services for the growing East Lothian town. The operator will run two services a day from December 2010, with a view to stepping these up to hourly, as The Scotsman reported last year.

Medics Spark Anger with Call for Alcohol Ad Ban

DOCTORS have called for a total ban on alcohol advertising and sponsorship of sport and music events to tackle the UK's serious drink problems. The British Medical Association (BMA) yesterday outlined a package of tough measures to "tackle the soaring cost of alcohol- related harm".

Music Review: Neko Case

NEKO CASE *** ORAN MOR, GLASGOW

Clooney Kids Around

GEORGE Clooney arrived at the Venice Film Festival for the premiere of his new movie yesterday. The Men Who Stare at Goats, directed by Grant Heslov, is a comic tale of "psychic warfare" by the US military.

Critic's Choice: Until 12 September

Katya Kabanova SCOTTISH Opera kicks off its new season with Kally Lloyd-Jones's new small-scale touring production of Janacek's harrowing love story, Katya Kabanova.

Cruise Goes On Despite Vomiting Bug

THE operators of a cruise liner visiting Scotland said it would continue its voyage despite nearly 80 passengers being struck by a vomiting bug. The Balmoral was due to dock at Portree yesterday, but strong winds forced it to anchor at sea off the Skye port.

The Good Wife

Edwina Currie is no longer a Tory firebrand, but has turned her passion for politics into a passion for fundraising, finds Emma Cowing EDWINA Currie has been picking blackberries. In fact, she's been meandering the hedgerows of the Surrey countryside she lives in for so long, she's lost track of time. "I'm so sorry," she says when she finally phones back nearly an hour after we were scheduled to speak. "It's just such a nice day and I was out with the dogs and picking these delicious blackber...

Deflation Sees Cheaper Food Lead High Street Prices Down

CASH-STRAPPED consumers have been given a glimmer of hope after news that deflation has hit the high street for the first time in two years. Figures released today show prices across the retail sector dropped by 0.1 per cent last month against a year ago.

Fighting Talk Over the Future of the Country's Comprehensive Schools

The new president of the SSTA union tells Fiona MacLeod why he believes that a combative approach is needed to protect his members' interests PETER Wright understands first-hand the power of comprehensive education to transcend economic backgrounds and transform lives.

Victim Set On Fire After Drunken Beating

Case study BRYAN Boyle, 18, and Greig Maddock, 21, were sentenced to at least 15 years and 12 years respectively for killing father-of-two Brian Bowie.

Pensioner's Body Hidden for Four Years

Case study ROBERT Kelly, 34, was jailed for 15 years for choking pensioner Agnes "Nessa" Mechen to death for GBP 340 and then hiding her body under his floorboards for four years. Kelly, of Govanhill, Glasgow, was found out when his girlfriend told the police.

Worst Murderers Should Die in Prison, Argues Lord Advocate

MURDERERS in Scotland face heavier sentences - "life to mean life" in the worst cases - if appeal judges heed a call by the Lord Advocate, Elish Angiolini, QC. The country's senior prosecutor complained that a sentencing scale for murder of 12 to 30 years in jail was too compressed and inadequate for exceptional cases, such as terrorism or repeated sexual violence.

Un Role Considered for Salmond

THE National Conversation's document on foreign affairs is a "blueprint" for First Minister Alex Salmond to be made secretary- general of the United Nations, it has been claimed. Opponents have said that the document published yesterday has given Scots an insight into Mr Salmond's grandiose retirement plans after he leaves Scottish politics.

Snp Sets Out Independence Stall On the World Stage

THE first document outlining how an independent Scotland would conduct its foreign affairs has been unveiled by the SNP. At a ceremony in Brussels, Scottish external affairs minister Mike Russell said Scots could have a "dual citizenship" arrangement with the rest of the UK.

'A Very Different Model but Which Enhances Relationships'

WHAT HE SAID THE document states: "A Scottish foreign service and embassy network could and should look very different from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office model. Scotland's approach would be much more likely to be similar... to those of other small nations."

Folk, Jazz, Etc: Reunion for Burton As the Vibraphone Master Jams with Ex-Berklee Star Pupil Smith

BACK in 1985, at Boston's Berklee School of Music, the newly appointed dean of curriculum, Gary Burton - who was already established as a ground-breaking jazz vibraphone player and fusion pioneer - had a promising 18-year-old saxophonist pointed out to him by the pianist Chick Corea. "Chick turned to me and said, 'This young sax player, you should have him in your band'," Burton recalls from his home in Florida. "And the more I heard Tommy, the more I agreed."

Classical & Opera: Hall Is Not Well at Eif

Lacklustre performances, missed chances... the Usher Hall programme should be the Festival's proud flagship. What went wrong this year? IF THE Usher Hall series is the proud father of the Edinburgh International Festival music programme, why did so much of it feel like a neglected uncle this year? It's a question that's been nagging me since last month's opening night: a concert featuring Handel's mixed-bag oratorio Judas Maccabaeus. Not one of Handel's greatest works.

'Suspicions' Raised Over Law Society's Abandoned Office Move

AN ABORTIVE office relocation project that cost the Law Society of Scotland GBP 98,000 has been described as "suspicious" by members after the society put forward plans to refer it to external auditors. In an open letter to the Scottish legal profession, former BBC lawyer Alistair Bonnington questioned the handling of the society's move away from its current Drumsheugh Gardens base, which was abandoned last year after the owner of proposed new premises refused to drop the agreed purchase price.

Full Inquiry to Be Held On Megrahi

A HOLYROOD committee is to hold a full inquiry into the way the decision to free the Lockerbie bomber was made. It is understood that the planned inquiry, by the justice committee, will focus on concerns that the decision to send Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al-Megrahi back to Libya was based on investment and trade concerns rather than legal and health grounds.