Raasay raising cash for hydro projects

ISLANDERS on Raasay are selling shares to raise £650,000 so they can build two hydro-electric schemes. The hydro projects on the Inverarish and Mine burns will together generate enough power for about 130 homes. Ross Gillies, a director of Raasay Community Renewables, the body behind the schemes, said: “We have raised over £300,000 in grants…

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Parents splurged £1,608.97 on children’s presents

THE five most popular presents for Christmas 2020 cost a grand total of £1,608.97, according to figures from technology website Music Magpie. Last month’s total swelled following the launch of Apple’s iPhone 12 Pro (£999) and Sony’s PS5 video games console (£449.99). Computer game Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War (£64.99), Lego’s Super Mario…

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Directory supports rural and island businesses

SHOPPERS can now support even more rural and island businesses following the launch of the Rural Enterprise Directory Scotland (REDS). Joe Sykes, founder of Perthshire-based Joelato Gelato, is one of the businesses that has signed up to be listed in the directory. He said: “Scotland’s rural businesses have faced incredible pressures over the past few…

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Brave new world: the lasting impact of the covid-19 pandemic

THE prolonged coronavirus lockdown has dramatically changed how we live and work and this has had a profound impact on the world economy. In this article, we look at the lasting economic and social impacts of the lockdown and identify four key areas that may never be the same again. Deglobalisation Even before the coronavirus…

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Socially-responsible investing – ESG and impact investing

The experts from independent financial planning and mortgage management firm RobMac share their thoughts on socially-responsible investing. AT ROBMAC, we receive a lot of enquiries about socially-responsible investments and whether we are able to prepare appropriate portfolios either on a standard or tailored basis.  These types of investment are sometimes referred to as environmental, social…

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£10m fund to revive rural businesses and their suppliers

RURAL businesses and their suppliers are poised to benefit from a £10 million fund being raised to help them recover from the coronavirus lockdown. Companies will be able to able to apply to the Rural Enterprise Directory Scotland (REDS) Fund for grants of up to £5,000, with half the money going to the applicant and…

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Look after the pennies and sort out the pounds

Whether it’s our stock market investments or our chaotic personal finances, we should all be getting to grips with our financial problems and putting us on a course for recovery. Bills have to be paid, credit card debts wrestled with and our spending horns drawn in to give our finances some semblance of recovery. But…

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