The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Missing man’s dad in plea for life-saving kit
The father of a missing Perth man has joined forces with other campaigners to call for safety equipment at a popular River Tay beauty spot where a swimmer drowned last year. Thomas Cunningham’s son Declyn was last seen at nearby Smeaton’s Bridge a...
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Early prison release for Perthshire tea fraudster
A notorious tea fraudster, who scammed more than half a million pounds from top hotels, planters and retailers, has been released from prison after serving just a fraction of his sentence. Thomas Robinson, pictured, was jailed in June 2025 after he...
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Child rapist on run for day before alert
A dangerous escaped criminal evaded capture for a full day before the public were warned he was on the loose, The Courier can reveal. Child rapist Clifford Lyons Dobbie, pictured, absconded from an unknown location in Perth city centre while on...
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Historic business chamber to close
Per thshire C hamber of Commerce is being wound up after 85 years, with board members saying the organisation is “no longer viable”. The historic chamber has appointed an insolvency practitioner following “a period of financial challenges”. The...
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‘Shock’ as panel fails to reject killer’s parole bid
The family of a man stabbed to death at a flat in Perth say they are “shocked and appalled” after the parole board failed to kick out a freedom bid by his killer. Robbie Smullen was sentenced to more than nine years in prison for killing Barry Dixon...
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Man in court charged with murder of Minnie, 9
A man appeared in court yesterday accused of murdering nineyear-old Minnie Merriman in Arbroath. Christopher Rice, 35, of Wakefield, West Yorkshire, faced a single charge when he appeared in private at Forfar Sheriff Court. He made no plea and was...
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Perthshire Pride official axed for ‘hate’ messages
A board member at Perthshire Pride sent “hateful” messages to a right-wing political party, telling members they would “die the most painful death”. The LGBTQ+ charity confirmed Pride organiser Philip Ross has left the group, less than 24 hours after...
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Town in shock after death of nine-year-old
A man has been arrested over t he suspicious death of a nine-year-old girl after she was found critically injured at an industrial estate in Arbroath. Emergenc y cre ws were called to Elliot Industrial Estate at 12.02am yesterday. The youngster was...
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Cafe duo shocked by council order to quit
A Perth gran is reeling after council bosses told her she will have to quit the bus station cafe that has been her life for the last 26 years. Since 2000, Mary Graham and daughter, Christine, pictured, have run Bus’y’ Bite cafe at the Leonard Street...
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Lifetime ban driver admits killing OAP
A drug- driver with two lifetime bans has pleaded guilty to killing a Broughty Ferry pensioner after crashing into his garden and hitting him with a stolen Maserati. The High Court in Edinburgh heard Fraser Garden reached speeds of 85mph moments...
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Big worries over future for city’s farmers’ market PERTH:
A drop in customers and traders has left Perth Farmers’ Market at a critical point. The number of vendors has dropped dramatically in the last year, say board members and stallholders Karen Steel and Francesca Casella. Smaller markets popping up...
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Ice sports lifeline could come from Saints owner
St Johnstone owner Adam Webb has revealed that plans to build a hotel on Mcdiarmid Park land have gathered pace. The Perth club could also be in a position to help solve the city’s ice facility problem. When Mr Webb bought the club two years ago,...
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Killer to seek freedom despite brutal attacks
Perth killer Robbie Smullen will go before the parole board again this week despite being convicted earlier this month of two brutal assaults while on temporary release from prison. Smullen was jailed for nine years for stabbing Barry Dixon to death...
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Mcgregor gives backing to teen’s movie project
Hollywood A-lister Ewan Mcgregor has given his backing to a Perth teen’s latest movie project. Andrew Hutchison was filming in the city centre when he spotted Ewan and his wife and asked them to pop by the shoot. He explained: “I did a double take and...
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Radio host hits out as Heartland axed
A Heartland FM presenter has hit out at the station’s bosses after it left the airwaves after 34 years. Roger Cartwright, pictured, claims there had been “very little explanation” for the Perthshire station’s closure, run by the Heartland Radio...
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Saints’ matchday alcohol licence bid
St Johnstone FC is seeking a licence to sell alcohol to supporters during matches at Mcdiarmid Park. Bosses at the club want to sell pre-match and half- time drinks when they host Kilmarnock next weekend. The Perth and Kinross Council licensing board...
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New owner lined up for Perth shopping centre
A new owner could soon be moving into the St John’s Shopping Centre in Perth after a whopping £29 million price cut. On sale for more than £2.5m, the centre is now “under offer”, says estate agent Savills. The asking price for the shopping hub, home...
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Recycling centre hit by second major blaze
F irefighters attended at Ladybank Recycling Centre after a fire broke out for the second time in three months. Smoke could be seen billowing from the recycling plant from as far away as Dundee at around 1pm yesterday. The Scottish Fire and Rescue...
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Report reveals £279k costs of murder probe
The cost of the investigation into the murder of Aberfeldy groundsman Brian Low has cost the public purse almost £280,000, it has been revealed. According to a report by Police Scotland, expenses for the probe amounted to £279,909. David Campbell,...
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Battery blamed for Perth recycling fire
A major fire at a Perth recycling centre over the weekend was caused by a lithium battery, the site’s operators have said. Fire crews spent more than 18 hours tackling the blaze, which started at around 4pm on Saturday. Officials from Enva say the...
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City shoppers urged to look beyond high street
A Perth retailer is urging shoppers and decision-makers to look beyond the high street as it marks 10 years in the city centre. Wilkies, one of six branches in a Scottish fashion and cookshop chain, opened in the city’s John Street in 2016. Its...
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Traders’ Whatsapp helps tackle crime
A Whatsapp group to raise awareness of instances of crime and antisocial behaviour has been set up by business owners in Perth. So far 47 firms have signed up to the chat, amid a flurry of disorder in the city centre. Shops are reporting frequent...
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FM meets Perth traders in bid to tackle city crime
Businesses in Perth have met First Minister John Swinney to help tackle disorder in the city centre. After Highland Health Store owner Victoria Ritchie wrote an open letter to Police Scotland, Mr Swinney and Perth and Kinross Council highlighting...
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Gym plan for unit after 10-year gap
controversial unit at a Dundee industrial estate that has been since it was built nearly 10 years ago could finally be filled. The unit at Dunsinane Industrial Estate was built in 2017 but, despite extensive marketing, the s i t e’s owner has been...
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Solar farm bosses seek public views
The developer behind what has been called the UK’S biggest solar farm between Perth and Dundee has broken its silence. A senior manager at global renewables developer Aukera said it would shortly be announcing a public consultation on the Carse of...
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Million-panel solar farm would be the ‘biggest in Britain’
Carse of Gowrie campaigners fear a “truly massive” solar farm between Perth and Dundee could be eight times bigger than any similar schemes in Scotland and the biggest in the UK. The 500MW Halfway Energy Park would cover a vast area of farmland either...
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Fears raised over ‘truly massive’ solar farm bid
Fears have been raised after plans for a “truly massive” solar farm in the Carse of Gowrie were lodged with the Scottish Government. Large swathes of farmland either side of the A90 between Errol, Inchture and Rait would be occupied by the 500MW...
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Baby joy and degree all within 24 hours
On Thursday afternoon, Clare Hart was in Ninewells Hospital, Dundee, after giving birth to her first child, Sol. But by yesterday morning, the newborn baby was at the Caird Hall, kitted out in a tuxedo, as his mum walked across the stage to receive...
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Row erupts over £20m plan for Horn Milk Bar
A councillor’s Facebook post has sparked a fresh row over controversial plans to build a £20 million A90 roadside services development near the Horn Milk Bar. Horn Developments, owned by Ashfield Land, has lodged two planning applications for the site...
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Drink-driver who killed Erin is jailed
A drink-driver has been jailed for eight years after killing a teenager in a horrific high-speed crash on a Perthshire road. Kyle Patrick, pictured, was hitting speeds of up to 119mph in his Ford Fiesta ST-3 turbo when he lost control on the B9099...
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Residents set for battle over holiday lodges plan
Residents in Highland Perthshire say they are fighting for the future of a conservation area as they prepare to do battle over plans for riverside holiday lodges. Supporters say the Pitcastle Estates’ plans for eight holiday lodges in Strathtay,...
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Pride ‘downsized’ amid anti-trans protest concerns
Perthshire Pride is to make its return after being cancelled l ast year; however, organisers are scaling back the event due to concerns about “anti- transgender protests”. The LGBTQ+ event is set to take place on August 8, with a parade through the...
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Tayside officers see rise in misconduct probes
A rising number of Tayside police officers are facing on-duty misconduct investigations, The Courier can reveal. Six officers from D Division (Tayside) have faced professional standards probes linked to allegation of misconduct while on duty since...
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Fears over impact of village housing
Residents of a Perthshire village have voiced their concerns over a developer’s bid to bring 163 new homes to the area. Ogilvie Homes are seeking permission from Perth and Kinross Council for their new properties on St Martins Road in Balbeggie. And...
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Mum’s plea to halt baby unit downgrading
A mum whose daughter was born with unknown internal bleeding has pleaded with SNP health chiefs to stop the downgrade of the neonatal intensive care unit at Ninewells Hospital in Dundee. The baby was also delivered with hypoxia ischemic encephalopathy...
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Saints owner’s plan for flats and pub approved
The owner of St Johnstone FC has seen his plans to convert a Perth city centre building into a bar and flats for players greenlit. Adam Webb unveiled proposals to turn the two properties into accommodation for players, a basement bar and a ground...
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Drones could tackle antisocial behaviour
Drones could be used to help tackle antisocial behaviour in Perth and Kinross, the council leader has suggested. Members of the finance and resources committee had previously agreed to allocate an additional £150,000 to recruit e xtra visitor r angers...
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Bomb squad alerted to Perth anti-tank rocket
A "highly explosive" anti-tank rocket has been found in a Perth residential street. The bomb squad was called out on Friday afternoon to remove the rocket, discovered on Wilson Street. They checked over the anti-tank ordnance – dubbed the "super...
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Rural crime spree targeting farmers
Farmers across Perthshire and Stirlingshire are being targeted in a rural crimewave, according to claims in Holyrood. Stirling MSP Alyn Smith and First Minister John Swinney made the link to their areas after a 14% increase in the cost of rural crime...
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Bus parking fees paused amid A9 slip road delays
Parking charges for coaches and buses in Pitlochry have been scrapped for the rest of the year because of the disruption caused by a closed slip road. Councillors approved the move at a meeting this week. The A9 northbound off-slip to Pitlochry is...
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Firm plans hundreds of new energy jobs in Perth
Hundreds of jobs are to be created in Perth and Kinross over the next four years as part of a multi-billion-pound investment by Perth-based SSEN Transmission. The energy company has announced a £29bn investment in new and upgraded electricity...
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Swinney tells of agony over Murrell SNP case
First Minister John Swinney described the Peter Murrell saga as “agony”, after his party’s former chief executive was sentenced to five years and three months in prison for embezzlement. The Perthshire MSP spoke to journalists following Murrell’s...
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£7m works will tackle Broxden traffic chaos
Perth’s notorious Broxden Roundabout is set to benefit from a £7 million improvement programme to tackle traffic chaos at the junction. The project includes the installation of traffic signals, carriageway widening and changes to improve traffic...
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Council official sorry over sweary outburst
The deputy leader of Perth and Kinross Council was forced to apologise to its former leader after being accused of a foul-mouthed outburst during a public meeting. It is alleged that towards the end of a marathon council meeting on Wednesday, Ian...
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Objections to hotel ‘should be heeded’
Perth residents must be listened to over plans for the city’s controversial “hotel” project, a councillor has said. A special meeting of the Perth Common Good Fund committee takes place next week, when members will be asked to approve the sale of part...
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Perthshire killer fails in conviction appeal
A former gamekeeper who shot an excolleague on a remote farm track near Aberfeldy has failed in his bid to have his murder conviction overturned. David Campbell, pictured, mounted an ambitious legal challenge after he was found guilty of shooting...
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Tourist tax plans take another step forward
Perth and Kinross residents will be consulted on a proposed tourist tax later this year after councillors agreed to take the controversial plans forward. The council says a £4 nightly supplement could generate £8 million a year. This would then be...
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Inspectors criticise city infirmary care failings
A Perth Royal Infirmary patient was left on a bedpan for a “prolonged period of time”, an inspection has revealed. A report published after an unannounced visit to the hospital in February said there were “delays in assisting patients to use the...
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Kickboxing champ is given ban after crash
A motorist told a court how he thought “Well, that’s me then” as his car was smashed into by a kickboxing champion making a dangerous overtaking manoeuvre. Benjamin Marshall, 51, was driving along a straight stretch of the A822 between Muthill and...
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MBE award for cancer research campaigner
A Perthshire man who has campaigned for cancer research since his wife was diagnosed with a rare tumour that claimed her life has been honoured by the King. Jo Williamson, pictured, who has worked tirelessly for more than three decades f or Cancer...
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Vape oil may have led to teen’s death
The heartbroken parents of an Invergowrie teenager who died on holiday believe his death was caused by vape oil bought in Spain. Harry Whitton, pictured, who lived with his parents in the village, was on h o l i d ay in Benidorm with his girlfriend...
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A night to remember for school leavers
BY BEN MACDONALD Infuriated business owners in a Highland Perthshire village say long-term A9 roadworks are damaging trade and driving customers away. The 8.2km Tay Crossing to Ballinluig project is in place until 2028. Last week, a temporary...
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Go-ahead for Traveller site despite flood risks
A new council-run Traveller site in Perth has been approved, against the advice of the authority’s own planners. Perth and Kinross councillors unanimously agreed yesterday to the application for a transient site at North Muirton. Planners said lives...
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‘Unreal’ new cancer drug saves grandmother’s life
A Perthshire grandmother who was told she had run out of cancer treatment options has hailed an “unreal” new drug which saved her life. Anne Head, 72, pictured, was given the new drug, talquetamab (Talvey), as part of a trial after she was diagnosed...
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Council was not aware ‘hotel’ firm had folded
Council bosses did not know a “hotel” developer was in administration when they agreed a £1.9 million deal to convert their former offices at 1-5 High Street, Perth. London-based Henley Homes had debts of £67m when it collapsed in August 2023 and Per...
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Appointment-only night rule for A&E
Patients with a minor injury or illness will now have to book an appointment before attending Perth Royal Infirmary after 8pm. The new rule has been introduced at both PRI and Ninewells in Dundee to try to cut the number of people who do not need...
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Holyrood votes to back Courier rates campaign
The Courier’s campaign to breathe new life into our high streets and shopping districts has won a crucial Holyrood vote. Less than a week after The Courier, The Press and Journal and The Sunday Post jointly launched the Fresh Start initiative for...
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PERTH:
Planners have recommended Perth and Kinross councillors block their own authority’s proposals for a Gypsy/traveller transit site in Perth. The North Muirton plans have been drawn up by the council following a three-year hunt for a site, and have...
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Swinney welcomes our Fresh Start campaign
First Minister John Swinney has said he “very much welcomed” The Courier’s new Fresh Start campaign to help Scotland’s high streets flourish again. The Courier has joined forces with sister titles The Press and Journal and The Sunday Post to ask the...
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Fresh Start
Our high streets are struggling...but it doesn’t have to stay this way. For the first time, The Courier, The Press and Journal and The Sunday Post are joining forces and calling on the Scottish Government to relax business rates rules to give our local...
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Specialist hub for pupils approved EDUCATION:
A long-awaited specialist unit for children with complex additional support needs (ASN) has finally been approved for a Perthshire school. But the youngsters will still need to travel 23 miles to a different school while the work is carried...
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Horse rider’ s first words after waking from coma
The family of Kinross showjumper injured in a horrific fall say she has said her first words since waking from a threemonth coma. Louisa Milne Home fell at a showjumping acompetition in Aberdeenshire in February, suffering a diffuse axonal injury – a...
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Broxden jams are blamed as lorries avoid new link road
Congestion at Perth’s Broxden roundabout is forcing lorry drivers to avoid the Cross Tay Link Road and drive through the places which were supposed to benefit from the new route opening. One Perth and Kinross councillor even wryly suggested a solution...
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Yousaf angry at ‘betrayal’ by SNP embezzler Murrell
Former first minister Humza Yousaf says disgraced EX-SNP chief executive Peter Murrell deserves “quite a hefty sentence” for embezzling more than £400,000 from the party. Mr Yousaf had been just one week into the top job when Murrell was arrested as...
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New ‘urgent’ plans to cut city centre traffic
“Urgent” plans to cut the amount of traffic coming into Perth city centre will be shown to the public for consultation. Perth and Kinross Council bosses say the Cross Tay Link Road, which opened last March, has already led to a reduction in vehicles....
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Police hunt attacker in city centre stabbing
Police in Perth have launched an investigation after a man was hospitalised following a stabbing in the city centre. The 21-year-old was rushed to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee after the attack in the Kinnoull Street area at around 10.45pm on...
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Reassurance over wedding bookings
A Perthshire wedding venue insists it is business as usual despite falling foul of planning rules. Boreland Loch Tay bosses applied to Perth and Kinross Council for a certificate of lawful use or development for its events barn last year. The council...
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Shopping centre for sale at £2.5m
St John’s Shopping Centre has gone on the market – for a fraction of the cost when it was last on sale 15 years ago. Estate agent Savills says it has been instructed to seek offers for the Perth city centre site in excess of £2.5 million, exclusive of...
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Students showcase creative flair at end of year art display
The hugely popular Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design’s Undergraduate Degree Show starts this weekend. The exhibition features work from 380 final-year students across subjects including fine art, animation, architecture and graphic...
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MP reveals spinal health scare after diagnosis by rogue medic
Perthshire MP Pete Wishart has revealed the health condition he endured for 15 years which was first diagnosed by now disgraced NHS Tayside surgeon Sam Eljamel. The SNP veteran had surgery in April to remove a bit of his spine to ease nerve pain...
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Punching inmate ends prison officer’ s career
A one-punch assault on an inmate during a “violent and hazardous” transfer operation cost a Perth prison officer his dream job. Operations officer Keiron Abbott punched prisoner Scott Devaney after the latter started a blaze and barricaded his door...
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A9 slip road to Cross Tay Link is speeding hotspot
New figures have revealed the A9 approach to the Cross Tay Link Road is a new speeding hotspot. Since opening last March a total of 791 speeding offences have been recorded at the slip roads connecting it to the A9. And data from Police Scotland...
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BROUGHTY FERRY FAYRE
Broughty Ferry Parish Church is hosting an antiques and curiosities fayre from 10am today. Browse a mix of antiques, vintage pieces and collectors’ items from dealers across Scotland. From vintage jewellery and homewares to decorative antiques, bees,...
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