Fire crews tackle blaze in Glasgow as smoke billows across M8 motorway
An SFRS spokesperson said: "There are no casualties and crews remain on the scene."Members of the public have been advised to stay away from Stanley Street and Milne Park Street which are closed."Residents are advised to keep windows and doors closed to prevent smoke inhalation."
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The Sun
7 minutes ago
- The Sun
15 reasons why the Ford Transit is the GOAT of the van world – from transporting rock bands, elephants and even ROYALS
WE could argue all night about who is the GOAT. 15 15 15 But when it comes to vehicles, it's not even a debate. G reatest O f A ll T ransit. The humble Ford Transit has been Britain's best-selling van since day one - August 9, 1965. That's like Liverpool winning the Prem for 60 years on the bounce. Everyone else might as well give up and go home. To celebrate Transit's 60th, we've peppered today's column with quirky facts, as well as hearing from owners with a cherished van from each decade. Ford's famous Backbone Of Britain telly ad from the Eighties was genius marketing. Yet also 100 per cent true. Transit keeps this country ticking. Everything we see and touch was transported in a van. 15 15 One reason Transit is successful is that Ford engineers sit with owners to find ways of making the next model even more useful. Like the bloke who shoved a lump of wood through the bottom of the steering wheel to make a lunch table. The latest Transit Custom has a tilt-up steering wheel with a tray for his quinoa tuna salad. Bosh. Ford's insane V8 1971 Transit Supervan Retired builder Peter Lee, founder of the Transit Van Club, said: 'Transit is like a forklift with two doors. "Built to work. They're good honest vans that will do the job.' The OG and still the best. 3 MILLION UK sales and counting. Always available in white. 15 15 15 15 15 15
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
Electric car grants and discounts round up – Citroen first to get grants, while Vauxhall and Fiat are the latest with discounts
Citroen is the first car maker to offer discounts on its electric car range as part of the official government Electric Car Grants that were announced three weeks ago, with the eligible Citroen models now showing on the official government website as being available with grant money applied to the list price. Models including the Citroën e-C3, e-C4, e-C4 X and e-Berlingo are getting £1,500 off with immediate effect, with customers automatically benefiting from the discounts without having to do any paperwork. The upcoming e-C3 Aircross and e-C5 Aircross models are also set to get the same £1,500 discounts when they go on sale in the coming months. The first official discounts come three weeks after the government's announcement of the Electric Car Grant, and as news broke of a drop in car sales. Overall car sales were down five per cent in July, while there was a clear slow down in the rate of growth of EV sales. It had been expected that there would be a pause in electric car sales as buyers waited to see which cars would be eligible for discounts and which cars wouldn't. One car company executive, speaking anonymously to The Independent, confirmed that dealers were reporting customers cancelling orders until it was clear which cars were and which cars weren't eligible for grants.. The electric car grant was announced on Monday 14 July and went live on Wednesday 16 July. Car makers must apply for the grants, which are available on EVs up to the price of £37,000 and where car makers have signed up to low-carbon 'science-based targets' around manufacturing. Grants of between £1,500 and £3,750 will be available for eligible cars. While the announcement of the EV grant has been broadly welcomed by car makers, it took many of them by surprise, with some learning about the government plan via the media. As car companies grapple with the process involved in getting approval for the grants, many of them have introduced their own discount schemes to incentivise customers to keep buying their electric cars. The latest discounts come from Vauxhall and Fiat – fellow Stellantis brands to Citroen. Vauxhall is offering £1,500 off its entire range of Corsa, Frontera, Mokka, Grandland, Astra and Astra Sports Tourer, with additional benefits including up to £1,500 deposit contribution on zero per cent finance on some models, or a £2,500 deposit contribution towards finance on the Grandland. Vauxhall's 'Electric All In' offer of £500 towards a home charger or public charging also still stands. Fiat is offering £1,500 off its 500e, Fiat 600e, Abarth 500e and Abarth 600e all-electric models, with zero per cent finance still available on the 500e. Volkswagen Group brands VW, Skoda and Cupra have launched a 'Grant Guarantee' discount scheme while waiting for news from the government. VW is offering £1,500 off selected ID. 3 and ID. 4 all-electric models. 'We welcomed the Government's announcement of its Electric Car Grant and wanted to make sure customers could start benefitting from lower-cost electric motoring as quickly as possible. We have already seen an uplift in enquiries since the Government's grant was announced, which is great news for Volkswagen's electrification plans,' said Rod McLeod, Director of Volkswagen UK. Skoda is offering the same £1,500 discount across its Elroq and Enyaq model range, but not the Enyaq Coupe, while Cupra is offering £1,500 off many of its Cupra Born models. VW, Skoda and Cupra offers apply to cars bought during August and registered for the new 75 registration plate with deliveries starting on September 1. However, VW, Skoda and Cupra have all made it clear that if the government's EV grant comes through, the brands' Grant Guarantee scheme will end – customers won't be able to receive both. Last week, Volvo introduced a discount in lieu of any government grant, with £1,500 off any of the brand's EX30 electric models, even those that cost over the £37,000 limit. Smart also offered its own 'EV grant' with £1,500 off the whole range of Smart #1 and #3, in addition to existing incentives. That means you could save a total of £3,500 off a Smart #1, for example. Hyundai has its own electric grant, with the biggest discount available on Hyundai's smallest model. The Hyundai Inster – recently voted World Electric Car of the Year – gets a £3,750 'grant' bringing the entry-level car's price down to £19,755. There's still an additional £500 off if you go for Hyundai's low-rate PCP finance, too. The rest of the Hyundai electric car range, including models over £37,000, are also getting a £1,500 discount as part of the offer. Buyers of Chinese-made EVs were also left to reconsider their purchases with news that the government wasn't expecting those models to be eligible for the Electric Car Grant. Speaking on Radio Four, Minister for the Future of Roads, Lilian Greenwood, said: 'We don't expect any cars that are assembled in China to be eligible for this scheme. 'The grant is restricted to those manufacturers that reach minimum environmental standards. And, frankly, if you generate a lot of the electricity that powers your factory through coal power stations, then you are not going to be able to access this grant." The Department for Transport told The Independent: 'We expect dozens of models will be eligible but manufacturers will need to apply for the grant before we can confirm eligibility. We have held multiple calls with vehicle manufacturers to explain vehicle eligibility and how to apply for the grant. These discussions will continue to ensure manufacturers have all the information they need. 'All eligible models will be published on once the application has been approved. Applications will be processed on a first come, first served basis and as quickly as possible.' Chinese car brands have been quick to react by introducing their own 'EV grants' to stimulate demand among private buyers. Leapmotor was first out of the blocks with its Leap Grant, offering £1,500 off the Leapmotor T03, making it Britain's cheapest car at £14,495, while the Leapmotor C10 family SUV gets a £3,750 discount, taking the price down to £32,750. MG followed with its own EV grant, offering a discount of £1,500 off the MG4 and MGS5 EVs on top of existing offers, while another Chinese brand, GWM, has taken the full £3,750 off its GWM ORA 03 models with its Green Grant, bringing the starting price down to £21,245. Relatively unknown Chinese brand Skywell is also throwing its own EV grant of £3,750 on top of a £6,000 dealer deposit contribution if you buy the Skywell BE11 on finance. That brings the potential list price down to just £27,245 for the entry-level car. The BE11 is far from the best EV you can buy, but at that price it represents a lot of car for the money. It's not just Chinese brands applying discounts, though. Alfa Romeo is offering £1,500 off its Alfa Junior Elettrica range, on top of existing zero per cent finance offers and the promise of a free EV home charger with standard installation.
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Redcar Council parking patrol CCTV cars to get £100k upgrade
A council has approved funding of £100,000 to upgrade CCTV car which captures footage of motorists flouting parking and traffic restrictions and introduce a second and Cleveland Council sanctioned spending on for new front and rear stingray cameras on its existing car which mainly patrols near in bus stops was another area set to be subject to increased monitoring, which in some instances blocked passengers from being picked up and dropped 2018 the enforcement vehicle had provided evidence leading to 2,450 penalty charge notices, the council said. A spending decision document said the greatest challenge for officers was the size of the borough and the number of schools with "significant challenges for repeated and equitable enforcement of restrictions".It said ensuring road safety around primary schools in particular on mornings and at home times was "imperative".A council spokesman said: "The authority is now looking to deploy a second enforcement vehicle which may be used in areas where crime and anti-social behaviour are identified as ongoing problems, as well as supporting public safety at events." The Labour-led authority signed off on £99,443 of funding, the Local Democracy Reporting Service sum included the cost of a five-year support and maintenance contract. Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
