Oil refunds and Reform UK's 'despicable' Gaelic ban

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🟡 Around 1700 people across the UK are likely to get a £150 - £300 refund on their heating oil bills, following a Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) investigation into the spring price spike earlier this year. You may get a refund if your supplier cancelled your order, and then forced you to re-order at a higher price. Sadly, not all suppliers are volunteering to offer refunds, and the CMA is threatening the hold-outs with legal action. The report also shows that people in Scotland pay more for heating oil than anywhere else in the UK. Worse still, Scottish users saw greater spring price rises too. More: Competition and Markets Authority

🟡 This week Reform UK MPs in London proposed a law that would would require all election material to be “in the English language or the Welsh language” only. Publishing campaign material in any other language, including Gaelic would become a criminal offence. Highlands MSP Maree Todd said: “This despicable anti-Scottish amendment reveals exactly what Reform really thinks of Scotland," and added, "this move is all too reminiscent of the brutal anti-Gaelic laws of the Highland Clearances."
Read more: Josiah Mortimer | Byline Times.

Following a cross-party stooshie, Reform later claimed the amendment was an "administrative mess-up" and that they only intended their proposal to apply in England and Wales. Steph Brawn at The National sets out why she is sceptical of that explanation.

🟡 Tickets are now on sale for the Ewebrew Oktoberfest in Poolewe. More: Ewebrew

🟡 A 2-bedroom house has come up for long-term rent in Ullapool. More: Tailormade Moves

🟡 Local marine conservation project the Blue Hope Alliance has secured a £189K National Lottery Heritage Fund Grant to "upscale our vital work restoring regional fisheries, coastal economies and the precious pink maerl seaweed where herring spawns." More: Blue Hope Alliance

🟡 Gairloch Museum have raised all the funds they need to go ahead with their Roundhouse project. More: Hector MacKenzie | Ross-shire Journal

🟡 The Kinlochewe Kids Drama Group have space for new folk to take part. They meet every Thursday. More: Facebook

🟡 Plockton (77%), Tobermory (75%) and Dornoch (75%) all scored more highly than Ullapool (73%) in the latest Which? survey of 135 UK Seaside Towns. Could be worse. Bognor Regis comes last with 41%. More: Which?

Events

This is just a selection of some of the latest events that have been posted to our people-powered Wester Ross events calendar. You can check out all the events here. If you've spotted a missing event, you can add it using this form.

🟡 Skadoosh
Skadoosh is a new and exciting young traditional trio from the Highlands. The line-up includes Cailean Mckerron on keys, Ben Godlington on fiddle, and Myles Macrae on pipes and whistles. Their music is a mix of traditional tunes and their own compositions, bringing a freshness and shining a new light on the scene.
Fri 17 Jul | 8.30pm | Ceilidh Place Ullapool · Ullapool | More info

🟡 Bookbug Session
Bookbug - there will be a session with Aga on Monday 20th July at 11.30am - during this session we'll be singing some songs in Polish, but all are welcome!
Mon 20 Jul | 11.30am | Ullapool Library · Ullapool | More info

🟡 West Coast Arts - Robin Colvill
Robin Colvill is one of the busiest and most popular pianists performing in Britain and Europe today. What makes Colvill's career markedly different from other concert pianists is his creative and imaginative programming and the diversity of venues where he performs.
Sat 25 Jul | 7.30pm | Gairloch Community Hall · Gairloch | More info

🟡 Children's Clothes Swap
Hall open for clothes swap on Sunday 26th of July from 10 am - 12 noon with a volunteer to help you find things!
Sun 26 Jul | 10.00am | Kinlochewe Village Hall · Kinlochewe & Torridon | More info

🟡 Not The Raft Race (It's a flotilla)
Teas in the hall from 1pm. Flotilla at 3pm from the pier to the Aultbea Hotel. Prize for the best raft! BBQ from 3pm at Aultbea Hotel. Plus, music, kids tent, tombola and raffle. See aultbeahall.org.uk for full details and flotilla rules
Sat 01 Aug | 1.00pm | Aultbea Hall · Aultbea & Laide | More info

🟡 Uppies Vs Downies - Annual Village Football Match
Top half of the village takes on the bottom half in the battle for bragging rights! Everyone welcome.
Fri 07 Aug | 5.00pm | Shieldaig Football Pitch · Applecross & Shieldaig | More info

🟡 Liza Mulholland and Hamish MacDonald
Hamish MacDonald and Liza Mulholland combine musical talents with a dash of spoken word to serve a heady and entertaining broth of songs, poems and reflections on Scotland's national bard and his impact on culture at large.
Fri 07 Aug | 8.30pm | Ceilidh Place Ullapool · Ullapool | More info

Jobs

Do you have a job vacancy you are trying to fill? Reach even more local people by advertising in the Gairloch and District Times. You can book space here. And if you are job hunting don't forget we'll have more local job vacancies in the next issue of the Gairloch and District Times - out this Friday.

🟡 Gairloch Museum are looking for craftspeople including drystone/stonework, turf construction, timber/greenwood joinery and heather thatching to tender for work as part of their Roundhouse project. More: Gairloch Museum

🟡 Highland Council are recruiting for a Health Visitor, based in Ullapool. More: MyJobScotland

🟡 The Old Inn, Gairloch is looking for a Bar and Restaurant Supervisor. More: Highland Jobs

🟡 Ewebrew are looking for a Self-Employed Trade Sales Representative to help them expand in the Ullapool Area. More: Facebook

🟡 There are part-time and full-time General Kitchen Assistant roles going at the Lochcarron Centre. More: Facebook

More News

🟡 A man in medical difficulties at Red Point beach prompted an emergency response from the Gairloch Coastguard and the Scottish Ambulance Service on the afternoon of Wednesday July 15. A Scottish Ambulance Service spokesperson said: “We received a call at 13:02 to attend an incident at Red Point, near Gairloch Wester Ross. We dispatched an ambulance and an air ambulance to the scene. We treated and released one patient at the scene.”

🟡 You'll need at least £32,000 to buy the former Coastguard boathouse at Aultbea. It's up for auction, with a closing date of July 22. More: Braveheart Auctions

🟡 Lochcarron local, and newly announced Liberal Democrat candidate for the 2027 council elections, Innes Munro, managed to generate enough debate on Facebook to get the Achnasheen public toilets, or lack thereof, onto the website of a national newspaper. Cllr Kraft responded to say mysteriously: "We now have three potential options that we are exploring... our aim is clear. Toilets are essential in Achnasheen for all Highland." So having failed to sell the dilapidated building, it looks like the council has conceded that the lost public loos will, one day, return. More: Facebook

🟡 If you went to the Gairloch Highland Gathering this year the organisers would love it if you could give them some feedback on the new format. More: Facebook

🟡 The Ullapool Museum has received a £10,800 grant to support the creation of a new podcast led by its Young Curators Club. More: Museums Galleries Scotland

🟡 High Life Highland are looking for new Non-Executive Directors. More: High Life Highland

🟡 There's a load of free kids activities on offer in the Lochcarron Treehouse. More: Facebook

🟡 Have you been affected by recent bank branch closures in Wester Ross? The UK Government is conducting an Access to Banking Services Review. As part of this it's looking for evidence from the public. You can tell officials how the closures have affected you, or people you work with, until July 20. More: HM Treasury

🟡 These people managed to deftly pilot a drone up the gorge at the Victoria Falls.

Thanks to Clare Lumsden for letting us share her amazing photo of the Gairloch Skiff Club at Shieldaig. If you have taken a photo or have some news that you'd like us to share with our readers you can send it to us here.