AGENDA
:— Stopover to be stopped
An emergency hostel for the young, single homeless in Glasgow is threatened with closure at the end of November. Stopover has been situated in Pollokshaws Road for seven years but its Urban Aid funding is about to expire. In the past fortnight. redundancy notices have been issued and there is fear that the project will close even sooner as staff leave to find alternative employment.
Stopover, which is managed by the Glasgow District Council for the Single Homeless, was recently praised in Strathclyde Regional Council’s Inspectors‘ Report. it provides for fourteen l6—2|-year-olds with family, drug or alcohol problems, many of whom have been barred from other hostels. offering them a place to stay for ten weeks and working to find them secure long-term accommodation. There is growing concern that these facilities will not be fully available in the District Council’s proposed replacement project. A campaign group has been formed by staff. ex-members of staff and residents to fight the closure, and the Transport and General Workers‘ Union intends to embargo any alternative council-created posts.
‘Obviously people are concerned about their jobs but our main concern is the young people Stopover accommodates,’ explains Linda Gilliland speaking on behalf ofthe group. ‘lt will reduce the choices available to them. We know from experience that they won’t be accommodated within the existing network. Stopover is the only project that provides emergency accommodation.
‘Most other projects have referral procedures to go through, but if somebody refers to Stopover and there’s a vacancy they can be accepted within half an hour. It’s hard for somebody who is roofless to access
other accommodation because there’s no one to fight their corner for them. Given that youth homelessness is increasing, it’s outrageous that a housing authority like Glasgow District Council which claims to be sympathetic to the needs of homeless people is shutting down this project.’
The District Council have yet to announce details of their plans for a replacement facility. But Bill Hood, chief housing officer of the Council-run Hamish Allan Centre maintains there is a range of accommodation run by other organisations like the Archdiocese Blue Triangle Housing Association and which provide accommodation for young people who need a high level of support.
Hood said that both the District and the Region have bent over backwards with limited finances to come up with a solution to the problem. ‘We give priority under the Homeless Persons Act to people who are between 16 and 2| — that obliges us to provide accommodation for them. in the interim between the closure of Stopover and the creation of a new facility we have undertaken to ensure that young people don’t suffer. We have a new hostel which will be opening in October in Dennistoun.
‘We could be in a position in the next couple of weeks to know who will be the managing agent for it and we are satisfied that we will have one of the national agencies that are involved in childcare.‘ (Fiona Shepherd)
I livingston Cinema The last film was screened at the Caledonian Cinema in Livingston last Sunday to make way for yet another bingo hall; by Monday afternoon all the seats, screen and projection equipment had been removed. The site is owned by CAC Leisure. which made itself unpopular with filmgoers by closing Glasgow’s Salon Cinema last autumn. The Caledonian had been scheduled to close in August, but was briefly reprieved due to the popularity of Jurassic Park.
I Financial difficulties Citizens’ Advice Bureaux in Scotland reported record levels of enquiries last year with a huge increase in the number of people with money worries seeking help. The 64 CABs in Scotland handled over 90,000 cases of debt problems in 1992/93, up sixteen per cent on the previous year. Bureaux staff help people with debt problems by negotiating with creditors and drawing up manageable repayment schedules.
I Gorbachev visit The former Soviet Union president Mikhail Gorbachev has been lined up to speak in Edinburgh in December as part of the Lothian European Lecture series. The ex-president comes to Britain for the first time since the dissolution of the USSR for a speaking tour of cities to raise money for the Gorbachev Foundation which promotes medical research and funds children’s hospitals. The 1993 lecture series. which is sponsored by Lothian Regional Council. will consider the theme of ‘Europe and the New World Order’ and Gorbachev is expected to comment on the integration of former Soviet bloc countries into an expanded Europe.
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The Faslane Peace camp is now in its twelfth year and has kept up the steady drip, drip of protest against the nuclear submarine base at a time when such demonstrations of dissent have become rather unfashlonable. ilowever, peace canp stalwarts hope to reawaken some of the enthusiasm that made household mes of the Greenham Common protesters In the mid-80s with a direct action blockade of Goalport, the iloyal levy mts depot which is used to store Polaris missiles and is shortly to be used for handling Trident warheads.
‘The idea is to delay Trident for as long as possible by stopping traffic c entering the base,’ according to “re, whohasllvedatthepeace captora year. ‘This is the first major action for several years and we are hoping for as
many people as possible.’ The blockade will take place on Monday 20 September, but protesters are invited to spend the weekend at the camp to get to know one another and plan the protest. Those who are happy to protest against the base but don’t want to be arrested are welcome but the success of the blockade is likely to be measured in arrests.
‘Vle will be giving training In non- violent direct action because lt can be dangerous if you don’t know what you’re doing,’ Jake added. (Eddie Gibb) The weekend of protest starts on 11 September with accommodation for up to a 100, though protesters are asked to bring sleeping bags and tents if they can. Further information from Faslane Peace Camp on WW1.
V ACTION
I SEAD conference There are a handful of places left for Shifting the Balance. Scottish Education and Action for Development’s annual conference on l7-l9 September at Pollock Halls, Edinburgh. Details from SEAD on 031 226 6384.
I Scottish Referendum Fund Pro- democracy pressure group Scotland United is launching a Scottish Referendum Fund which it hopes will generate enough cash to finance an independent referendum on Scotland’s political future. The fund will be launched on Sunday 12 September at 4pm in the City Halls, Glasgow and. the organisers hope to capitalise on the interest in last year’s Scotland Demands Democracy demonstration in Edinburgh which attracted 30,000 people. ‘We demand a Scottish Parliament precisely because we didn’t vote for the Poll Tax, we don‘t want private water, private railways or a private Health Service,’ writes organiser Gordon McDougall in a fund- raising letter to members. ‘We know that with a Scottish Parliament on our side, none of this would be happening now.’ Details from Scotland United on 04l 331 1710.
I Racial equality Lothian Racial Equality Council is holding an open day on Friday 24 September at l2a Forth Street, Edinburgh to give the public a chance to find out about the group’s work which includes representation of victims of racial harassment at tribunals and advice on equal opportunities policies. Details from LREC on 031 556 0441.
I Filmhouse debates The Edinburgh Filmhouse is launching a series of monthly debates on film and cultural issues with a special screening of Shame, an Australian movie about sexual harassment and rape in a small town. The film, which is shown on Wednesday 22 September at 7.30pm, will be followed by a public debate on the portrayal of violence towards women in films led by a panel of guests. Those finalised when The List went to press were: Brijid Cherry. film critic of Harpies & Quines; STV filmmaker Mandy Rhodes; media studies lecturer and writer about women in film, Kay Weaver of Stirling University; and Ann Bradley. a freelance journalist. ‘We have decided to hold a big debate to focus on the month‘s programming which will look at film and moral issues.’ says Filmhouse education officer Shiona Wood. The discussion is likely to consider the use of graphic rape scenes in films such as Man Bites Dog. The Accused and Mike Leigh’s forthcoming Naked. Details from the Filmhouse on 031 228 2688.
I CID Conference Scottish CND is holding its annual conference at the City Chambers. Edinburgh on Saturday and Sunday ll and 12 September. Investigative journalist Duncan Campbell, who has specialised in nuclear defence stories, will give the keynote address on Saturday morning, followed by workshops looking at nuclear dumping. Trident and peace in Europe. Non-members are welcome to attend as observers. Details from Scottish CND on 041 339 4844.
The List 10—23 September 1993 5