HMP Highland (front) (image courtesy of BakerHicks)Commercial property specialist Colliers International has prepared and lodged a Planning Permission in Principle (PPP) application for an unusual and ambitious project: the first new prison in the Highlands of Scotland for more than a century.

The new HMP Highland will replace the 112-year-old HMP Inverness Prison, located in the city centre, with a new 21st century fit-for-purpose prison development.

Working on behalf of the Scottish Prison Service, Colliers International’s planning team lodged the PPP for the new prison facility on land to the south of Inverness Retail and Business Park. As the development proposal represents a technical departure from the Development Plan, Colliers’ work has involved significant pre-application discussions with The Highland Council in addition to the statutory pre-application public consultation.

Meabhann Crowe, Senior Planner at Colliers International, said: “Identifying a suitable site for a new prison facility is a rare task. Finding a suitable location was not as straightforward as with many other buildings. However, the Highlands, Islands and Moray areas need a modern, fit-for-purpose prison facility and we have found an excellent location for the impressive designs, which the Scottish Prison Service has commissioned.

“The new HMP Highland is proposed on a site which we believe to be wholly suitable to this development. It benefits from good accessibility and existing landscaping on the site will assist in creating a setting for the building. The response to the public consultation we carried out was overwhelmingly positive with a complete 100% of respondents in support of the Prison Service’s aim to create a modern, fit for purpose facility.”

Colliers International worked alongside the Scottish Prison Service and a specialist consulting team, including BakerHicks, ITP Energised, Fairhurst Engineers, TGP Landscape Architects, AOC Archaeology and ERM Consulting in bringing the planning application together.

As part of the process, Colliers International’s planning team coordinated pre-application discussions with The Highland Council, statutory pre-application public consultation on 30th March and submission of the overall planning application to The Highland Council on the 25th May 2017. The consultancy team involvement will continue as the application navigates its way through the application process.

Meabhann added: “The consultancy team has worked hard to ensure the proposal is the right development in the right place, and incorporates an exciting design philosophy.”

HMP Highland will serve Highlands, Islands and Moray areas. SPS’ estates strategy involves the commitment to replace historic accommodation with modern facilities which contribute to a Safer Stronger Scotland.

The application is expected to be determined later this year.

Dr David StevensonAn international arts management education conference will be staged in Scotland for the first time in its 36 year history this summer.

The Association of Arts Administration Educators (AAAE) Annual Conference will take place at Queen Margaret University (QMU), Edinburgh, from 31st May until 2nd June.

Over 120 arts management experts from the USA, Canada, Europe, China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Colombia and across the UK will come together for the first time in the Scottish capital to discuss the latest research, policy and practice in arts and cultural management education, as well as address the future of the industry.

The theme of this year’s conference is New Places, Spaces, and Faces: Exploring Possibilities and Crossing Borders.

Keynote speakers will be Shona McCarthy, CEO of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society; and JP Singh, Director of the University of Edinburgh’s Institute for International Cultural Relations. Featured speakers will include Lynne Halfpenny, Director of Culture for City of Edinburgh Council and QMU graduate; and Lindsay Robertson, Service Manager – Arts, Festivals, and Events for City of Edinburgh Council.

Cultural activities and workshops will take place across the Capital, including an exclusive pre-conference Festivals Workshop delivered by Festivals Edinburgh, an opening reception at Dovecot Studios, and special site visits to Summerhall, Stills Photography Studio, the Festival and King’s Theatres, Creative Scotland and The Hub.

QMU was chosen as the host venue for this landmark event due to its widely recognised expertise in creativity and culture, including its internationally popular postgraduate programme, MA Arts, Festival and Cultural Management.

Dr David Stevenson, Head of Division for Media, Communication and Performing Arts at QMU, and programme leader for MA Arts, Festival and Cultural Management, said: “We’re extremely proud to have been selected to host this landmark cultural management event in the UK for the first time.

“We hope that the conference will establish an ongoing conversation among thought leaders and leading networks in cultural arts management education and related fields, as well as reinforce QMU’s international reputation for expertise in creativity and culture.

“The conference will also help to strengthen and build the University’s links with a variety of arts sector partners around the world.”

QMU is currently working in partnership with Arts Council Malta to influence the future of the cultural sector in Malta as its capital city, Valletta, prepares to become European Capital of Culture in 2018. QMU’s Dr Stevenson recently visited Malta to deliver a programme of training with a diverse range of cultural organisations, including the Valletta Film Festival; BLITZ: a contemporary art project space; and Opening Doors, an arts association that promotes the active involvement of adults with learning disabilities in the arts. All of the organisations involved were part of Art Council Malta’s Cultural Partnership Agreement, which is part of its five-year training strategy focusing on partnerships with a number of national and international organisations.

Katy Coy, Executive Director of AAAE, said: “We’re thrilled to be in Edinburgh, a world renowned cultural hub, for this year’s conference.

“As the arts and cultural management field internationalises, it’s critical to cross borders and create opportunities for connection and exchange, as the theme of our conference suggests. We’re delighted to partner with QMU to provide an exceptional opportunity for our members and colleagues to do just that with this event.”

For more information on the AAAE Annual Conference at QMU and to book tickets, visit: http://conference.artsadministration.org

The Norway model. The Swiss model. The Turkish model. A CETA (the EU-Canada trade deal) inspired Free Trade Agreement. What kind of deal can the UK strike with the EU? And can businesses prepare for one of these options – or even for the possibility of leaving the EU without a transitional or future agreement in place in 2019?

The answer is: at the moment – no. The implications of each of these scenarios are far-reaching – affecting issues such as movement of people, tariffs, taxation arrangements, customs procedures – and the difference between each of these models is so significant, that it is currently too challenging to scenario-plan for any of these eventualities.

This is why many businesses are choosing to get on with their day-to-day work, and wait until there are further developments in the upcoming negotiations. Of course, there are some – such as those that use the UK as a hub into Europe, or businesses that were already looking to expand to the continent prior to the referendum – for whom Brexit has been a catalyst to strengthen their footprint on the continent.

For most other businesses, it is a question of wait and see. But when details start emerging on the future arrangements with Europe, the high-level discussion of models will need to be brought back down to earth. Businesses will not be concerned with how the deal will be called. Instead, they will want to know answers to questions such as: Will I now have to pay VAT on imports? What kinds of origin rules do I need to adhere to? Will I need to prepare myself for longer customs procedures? If my products go through phytosanitary checks in the UK – would they now have to go through a second set of checks in the EU?

These are the questions that will have the greatest impact on UK trade in the immediate term. Changes in areas such as taxation and customs will have significant implications for supply chains, for importers and exporters alike, for companies both large and small. But where a larger company can, should they wish, afford to think through potential answers to the above questions – SMEs will remain focused on the day-to-day running of their business, and wait until there are clearer answers.

And that is why, when significant progress is made in the negotiations, and future arrangements with the EU become firmer – the government must communicate this to businesses without delay. At the end of the day its companies that trade, not governments – so they must make sure not only to deliver the best deal for business but also take into account the tangible impacts and focus on the practicalities for firms.

Only when the future UK-EU trade ‘model’ is broken down into its practical nuts and bolts can Government truly enable companies to keep thriving in their trade with the EU – and beyond.

 

New alliances open up new opportunities for Edinburgh companies

Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce has participated in one of the first network-wide overseas trade missions to China, led by a delegation of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce.

Chief Executive, Liz McAreavey joined senior representatives and business people from Aberdeen, Ayrshire, Dundee & Angus, Glasgow, and West Lothian. The mission explored new trading opportunities and links with business, education and government organisations.

As part of the programme, Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) announced the official opening of a new International Trade Office in the city of Yantai. The formal opening ceremony was hosted by the Vice Mayor of Yantai city, Madame Zhang Bo, together with senior officials from Yantai Municipal Government.

As part of the event, both parties signed a Memorandum of Understanding for trade engagement and partnership, designed to achieve an effective channel for exchange of business between Scotland and Yantai.

During the trade visit, Edinburgh Chamber participated in a series of productive meetings with senior business people, highly influential politicians including Vice Governor Wang Shujian, and local government officials as well as national ‘think tanks’ bodies in Beijing, Yantai and Jinan in the Shandong Province

Chief Executive, Liz McAreavey commented: “The Chinese economy continues to grow at a faster pace than western economies and the rate of growth within new cities such as Yantai and Jinan opens up the potential for Edinburgh businesses to promote and sell its goods and services which Chinese businesses and consumers want and need. That demand, together with a more recent policy of ‘opening up’ to new trading partners and overseas alliances by the Chinese, presents a myriad of opportunities for our local businesses to capitalise on.

“The aim of our mission was to strengthen relationships and increase engagement with existing and new contacts in sectors where there are direct B2B or knowledge-sharing opportunities for Edinburgh companies. Yantai is a city of 7 million and SCC’s base in Yantai will enable us to plan a comprehensive approach to exploiting the many opportunities in Yantai and further afield for our members and non-members.”

Shandong Province represents the third largest economy in China with a population of over 97 million and a GDP in excess of 6.3 trillion yuan (£0.7 trillion). It is China’s best wine growing region accounting for over 25% of all wine production. Yantai is the biggest trading port in North China and in 2016, the city imported over $19 billion (£14.7 billion) of goods and services.

Chief Executive, Liz McAreavey also visited the city of Jinan, which is home to one of the first national high-tech business incubators and since its foundation in 2002, it has incubated more than 1,000 small and medium sized science and technology enterprises. It focuses on cultivating fast-growing sectors such as biomedicine, ecommerce, energy, environmental protection and new materials.

Key sectors for Edinburgh Chamber based companies to meet key economic needs in the Chinese target cities include: electronic information, robotics and artificial intelligence, bioscience, R &D and smart technologies, food and drink and even football management.

The accelerated growth of consumers in Shandong province also opens opportunities in consumer goods, recreation and tourism services, financial and professional services and education.

Chief Executive, SCC, Liz Cameron said: “We now have a deeper understanding of how we can achieve the best exchange for business, where the opportunities exist for Scottish organisations and how we can best pursue these.

“We have also identified a number of potential opportunities for inward investment into Scotland and will be working with Scottish Government and SDI as well as other trade organisations to explore these and leverage the momentum of change within China.

SCC intends to return to Shandong Province later this year to conclude discussions on further Memorandums of Understanding and explore new ways to foster co-operation between the two countries.

GOD'S OWN COUNTRYEdinburgh International Film Festival (EIFF) is delighted to announce that Francis Lee’s debut feature GOD’S OWN COUNTRY will open the 71st edition of the Festival on 21 June, 2017.

Shot entirely on location in West Yorkshire, GOD’S OWN COUNTRY is a contemporary tale of self-discovery and emotional-awakening set on the sheep farming hills of rural Northern England. Rising star Josh O’Connor (The Riot Club, The Durrells) takes on the central role of Johnny, a young man carrying the weight of his family’s sheep farm alone until the arrival of Romanian worker Gheorghe (Alec Secareanu). Supporting the central pair are acting stalwarts Ian Hart (Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, The Last Kingdom) and Gemma Jones (Spooks, Bridget Jones’s Diary), who respectively play Jack’s stroke-afflicted father Martin and formidable grandmother Deidre. Key cast will be in attendance on Opening night.

Mark Adams, EIFF Artistic Director commented: “We are thrilled to be staging the UK premiere of Francis Lee’s accomplished debut, GOD’S OWN COUNTRY. This hotly-tipped feature debut is one to watch in this incredible year for independent film and perfectly reflects the Festival’s ongoing dedication to delivering audiences the most original and artistically accomplished work in international cinema.”

Johnny Saxby (Josh O’Connor) works long hours on his family’s remote farm in the north of England. He numbs the daily frustration of his lonely existence with nightly binge-drinking at the local pub and casual sex. But when a handsome Romanian migrant worker (Alec Secareanu) arrives to take up temporary work on the family farm, Johnny suddenly finds himself having to deal with emotions he has never felt before. As they begin working closely together during lambing season, an intense relationship starts to form which could change Johnny’s life forever.

Captivating and broodingly beautiful, GOD’S OWN COUNTRY is the award-winning debut feature from writer/director Francis Lee. Bracingly open hearted, this is a thrillingly romantic story set in the heart of rural Yorkshire. Both poignant and moving, this finely crafted British film features a host of standout performances, marking it out as an absolute must see.

Yorkshire-born director Francis Lee commented: “It’s a great privilege that GOD’S OWN COUNTRY has been selected as the Opening Night film of the Edinburgh International Film Festival. After the incredible critical and audience responses to the film in both Sundance and Berlin earlier in the year, I’m thrilled to bring GOD’S OWN COUNTRY to the UK for the first time.”

Following its UK premiere at the Festival, distributor Picturehouse Entertainment will be releasing GOD’S OWN COUNTRY on Friday 1 September, 2017.

Tickets will go on sale at 10am on Wednesday 10 May through the EIFF website. For more information visit www.edfilmfest.org.uk.

The 71st edition of EIFF runs from 21 June – 2 July, 2017.

For further information, please contact: carly.cadogan@ddapr.com or 0207 932 9800