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Daily Record
19 minutes ago
- Daily Record
Conor Coady to Rangers transfer snag 'revealed' with rival club willing to meet Leicester asking price
The Foxes defender has just 12 months remaining on his contract at the King Power Stadium Rangers have learned that a fee of £2million will be required to sign Conor Coady. The England international has been a key target for Russell Martin all summer, with the 32-year-old identified as someone who could bring some added experience to the Gers young squad. Coady has just 12 months left on his current deal with the Foxes but has featured heavily in their pre-season schedule, with new Leicester manager Marti Cifuentes hinting that he does see the centre back as part of his plans in the coming campaign. But the Light Blues aren't the only team keen on the former Wolves captain, with ambitious Championship side Wrexham also in the race. And talkSPORT claim that the Welsh side - who have achieved back-to-back promotions to England's second tier under the ownership of Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney - are willing to fork out the seven-figure sum to bring the veteran to the Racecourse Ground. The report adds that Rangers were close to sealing a deal for Coady earlier in this summer but were ultimately put off by the £2million asking price. Wrexham have already broke their transfer record twice in the summer window with the captures of Empoli's Liberarto Cacace for around £4million and Lewis O'Brien from Nottingham Forest for £5million. The Red Dragons are set to smash it again with a £7.5million deal for Ipswich Town's Nathan Broadhead edging ever closer. Meanwhile, departed defender Robin Propper admits his return to FC Twente this summer was far from a smooth process. After weeks of negotiation between the two clubs, the Dutchman until he was finally able to put pen to paper on a four-year contract with Twente last week after just one season at Ibrox. Propper, 31, insists he enjoyed his time with Rangers but concedes his exit did drag on a bit. He said: "I'm really happy with how everything went. I went there with my family and experienced what it's like to play in a major foreign league. "It's a club with a lot of history and a loyal fan base. I witnessed that first-hand. "The media got wind of it (his Rangers exit) pretty early on, but it wasn't as easy as it seemed "Luckily, we were able to smooth things over and I was able to return."
The Herald Scotland
19 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
We should learn a lesson from America's can-do attitude
But rather than looking at the alleged injustices of one high-profile incident, as the Orgreave Inquiry will do, it is surely just as important to explore the wider social and economic injustices inflicted by the decline of mining and other traditional industries. The most recent State of the Coalfields report from Sheffield University, which explores the condition of former mining communities across the UK, concludes that in Scotland these areas 'still display acute social and economic disadvantage'. It is something which Westminster's Scottish Affairs Committee has also touched on in its inquiry into industrial transition across Scotland. Read More: All of which underlines the necessity of sustainable reindustrialisation, the kind which rather than delivering here today-gone tomorrow employment, instead brings good jobs, skilled work and properly rewarding pay. These things should not be too much to expect. But for those who have fallen through the cracks in society in the years since the decline of older heavy industry, it has often felt that way. Now, with Scotland and the rest of the UK well placed to drive forward the industries of the future, a new era of opportunity is before us. That is why I'm delighted that we are on the verge of securing no fewer than 1,200 jobs for Ayrshire, in a development that promises to lock in growth, opportunity and community wealth for the long term. The UK-based undersea cable manufacturer XLCC is poised to deliver 900 manufacturing-related jobs at Hunterston, making the area a key hub for European and global development of technology which will help power the next generation of renewable energy projects at home and abroad. With global demand for high voltage direct current (HVDC) subsea cables rapidly outpacing supply, the company aims to build the world's biggest and most advanced HVDC manufacturing facility here in Scotland. It is hard to overstate the importance and significance of this project. For years we have been told that Scotland, with its huge green energy potential, is on the verge of a new industrial revolution which can provide the jobs and energy security we so badly need. Too often however, it has felt like we have been waiting and waiting for that long-heralded promise to become a reality. That is why the XLCC project is so vital, and so exciting. In addition to the jobs at Hunterston, 300 additional jobs are expected to be created in Kilmarnock , with the multi-award winning HALO enterprise and low carbon innovation centre identified as the preferred location. I have developed HALO over many years in the 28-acre site of the former Johnnie Walker bottling plant in the town. These posts, including project delivery and sales teams, will drive and support the manufacturing facility at Hunterston. The XLCC development has been in the pipeline since 2020, and like HALO will only be delivered through partnership between the private sector, unions, local authorities and both the Scottish and UK Governments, all working at pace to ensure this massive opportunity is secured. There are two other points worth making in relation to this promised jobs windfall for Ayrshire. Firstly, I would urge both the Scottish and UK Governments to do more to speed up the pace of investment in regeneration and reindustrialisation, including the easing of planning laws to make such development easier. Checks and balances, along with due process, are important when it comes to planning. But too often we are forced to wait too long to turn potential into reality. And delays are one reason we see valuable jobs going to other countries instead of being created here. That links directly to the second point, which is just how important it is for the manufacturing bases for the industries that will power the rest of this century to be based in this country. Scotland may have an abundance of natural resources when it comes to our energy potential. We are blessed with huge advantages when to green power, in addition to the oil and gas which is still an important part of our energy mix. But that only counts for so much if the infrastructure and industrial gain required to exploit those resources is outsourced to other nations. The arrival of XLCC in Scotland will be a powerful counter to the notion that we have to look elsewhere for energy manufacturing. And, as Scotland and [[Ayr]]shire witnessed during the visit of US President Donald Trump, we could do worse than take a leaf from the playbook of America's can-do attitude to business, enterprise and opportunity. We have the resources, and we have the skill – we just need the political will to ensure potential becomes reality. Dr Marie Macklin CBE is a leading Scottish businesswoman and investor.
STV News
19 minutes ago
- STV News
Dedicated task force removes thousands of pieces of chewing gum from city streets
Thousands of pieces of chewing gum have been removed from Aberdeen city centre thanks to a £27,500 grant. The clean-up on Union Street comes after Aberdeen City Council became one of 52 areas across the country that successfully applied to the Chewing Gum Task Force. Aberdeen City Council co-leader councillor Ian Yuill said: 'This additional action to remove chewing gum really helps with the shared aim of improving the city centre. 'The area should be pleasant and attractive for the benefit of all businesses, visitors, and residents. 'The £27,500 grant from the Chewing Gum Task Force is a welcome boost to enable more cleaning and to introduce signage aimed at preventing the unacceptable practice of discarding chewing gum. 'The collective work is important and will hopefully be able to make a lasting difference.' Cleaning teams use a machine to remove detritus from the pavements to see the gum, and then they use heat and low pressure to melt the gum away. Aberdeen City Council Net Zero's environment and transport vice convener, councillor Miranda Radley, said removing gum takes 'time and money' and has urged residents to keep the streets clean. 'The council's cleansing team work hard keeping Union Street free of litter. 'We'd ask people, as always, not to drop litter, including chewing gum, as it is unsightly and its removal takes time and money.' The £27,500 grant awarded to Aberdeen City Council was part of a UK-wide chewing gum task force grant scheme. The scheme was established by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and run by environmental charity Keep Britain Tidy. The task force, a new fund aimed at helping authorities clean chewing gum from the UK's towns and cities, has given £7m to councils across the UK. Allison Ogden-Newton OBE, chief executive of Keep Britain Tidy, said: 'Chewing gum continues to be an unsightly form of litter in our public spaces – though thankfully the scheme is leading to significant reductions. 'People need to remember that disposing irresponsibly of their gum causes harm to our environment as it takes years to decompose naturally – and, ultimately, costs the public purse to clean it up.' Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
