Nick Clegg, the Deputy Prime Minister appeared to give ground on the issue of VAT charged on new equipment for Mountain Rescue Teams. The issue has been raised by Mountain Rescue for some time and has been put into sharper focus recently with the recent rise on VAT to 20%. Nick Clegg was speaking at public meeting in Boat of Garten, Strathspey, last week. In response to a question from a member of the public he pledged to investigate the issues and said there were “very compelling” reasons to look into scrapping the VAT charges for MRTs.

The Government’s plan to privatise the Search and Rescue service (SAR) throughout Britain appears to have collapsed as the Royal Bank of Scotland has pulled out of the consortia bidding to run the privatised service. The previous Government had announced plans to privatise the whole of the SAR and after a brief suspension of these plans, the new coalition Government decided to go ahead with the privatisation. This covers the helicopters used to search for lost and injured walkers and climbers in Scotland. The plans do not affect the Mountain Rescue Service which will continue as a voluntary service, although…

With the current Scottish thaw not predicted to last, and with plenty of snow on many higher slopes, a useful avalanche advice card has been updated with mountaineers and ski-tourers in mind. The plastic-coated card, designed to fit into a rucksack or jacket pocket has been produced by the Mountaineering Council of Scotland (MCofS) in association with Avalex. 90% of people involved in avalanches actually trigger the avalanche themselves. This popular card aims to reduce this by providing a handy reference including the following information: * Clues to instability/stability * Rutschblock Test * Safe travel techniques * Search and Rescue…

This year’s Fort William Mountain Festival has a full programme of films, lectures, workshops and events. Highlights include evenings with adventurer Tim Emmett discussing his latest exploits, and Cameron McNeish and Richard Else talking about mountain film making, films from the Best of Banff World Tour, and an evening of paddling films. The Festival runs from Friday 11 February and ends with a party at Nevis Range on Tuesday 15 February. During the daytime there will be courses on avalanche awareness and winter walking and climbing skills. During the Festival the Scottish Award for Excellence in Mountain Culture will be…

A Sheriff has determined that the avalanche which killed two climbers on Buachaille Etive Mor last year was a tragic accident that could not have been foreseen. The Fatal Accident Inquiry report by Sheriff Douglas Small into the deaths of Chris Walker, 29, from Cumbria, and Robert Pritchard, 37, of New Malden, last February, has been published and it states that the slab avalanche could not have been predicted. Sheriff Small reported: “I am satisfied that the avalanche was completely unpredictable and that the circumstances of this accident were highly unusual. I consider that this was a tragic accident which…

Coach firm Scottish Citylink has teamed up with three of Scotland’s ski resorts to offer a new timetable and a 20% discount on equipment hire for passengers when they produce their valid return ticket. The new timetable and offer covers Nevis Range, Cairngorm Mountain and Glencoe Mountain with regular departures from Inverness, Glasgow and Edinburgh. The timetable will run until 22 May 2011. The new deal has come at just the right time for boarders and skiers who want to take advantage of one of Scotland’s coldest ever winters and plenty of snow. Chris Sankey, for Scottish Citylink, said: “Winter…