15 July 2012
Last updated at 23:56 GMT

Cardinal O’Brien has been an outspoken opponent of same-sex marriage

Britain’s most senior Roman Catholic has urged the Scottish government to hold a referendum on proposals to legalise same-sex marriage.

Cardinal Keith O’Brien said a vote should be held because of “intense public interest” in the issue.

The Scottish government has previously said it “tends towards the view” that same-sex marriage should be introduced.

Its consultation on the issue resulted in almost 80,000 responses – the most for any government consultation.

Plans for same-sex marriage legislation are expected to be announced by the Scottish government – which has said that faith groups and their celebrants will not be obliged to solemnise the ceremonies – later this week.

The issue has ignited a debate between gay rights supporters, who staged a mock wedding outside Holyrood last week, and the Catholic Church, which is strongly opposed to same-sex marriage.

Cardinal O’Brien, leader of the Catholic Church in Scotland, highlighted the fact that the marriage consultation received three times more responses than the government’s consultation on the independence referendum, which saw more than 26,000 people share their views.

Gay rights campaigners staged a mock wedding outside Holyrood last week

He said: “The Scottish government’s consultation on redefining marriage had three times more respondents than the consultation on the constitution, demonstrating clearly that far more people are concerned about fundamental matters of morality at the present time.

“Clearly, if it is sensible to hold a referendum on independence, it is crucial that we have one on marriage. It is the only way the country can move forward on this issue.

“Let all those who have a view on this subject place their trust in the Scottish people and let Scotland decide.”

A Scottish government spokeswoman said: “The cabinet have had a first discussion on the next steps following the consultation on same sex marriage and the registration of civil partnerships and have asked for some further detail.

“We fully expect to be in a position to publish the way ahead this month.”

Earlier this month, Cardinal O’Brien, who has previously described the potential law change as “madness”, authorised a plan to raise £100,000 through special church collections to support the Scotland For Marriage campaign against same-sex marriage.

He said: “Marriage is under threat and politicians need to know the Catholic Church will bear any burden and meet any cost in its defence.”

The leaders of all of Scotland‘s main political parties are united in support of same-sex weddings being legalised.

Currently the law in Scotland, as in the the rest of the UK, allows civil partnerships between couples of the same sex.

Although civil partnerships in Scotland offer the same legal treatment as marriage in areas such as inheritance, pensions provision, life assurance, child maintenance, next of kin and immigration rights, they are still distinct from marriage.

A man and a woman can opt for a religious or civil marriage ceremony, whereas a same-sex partnership is an exclusively civil procedure.

SHOCKED neighbours of a “quiet” man alleged to be one of the world’s most
wanted terrorists told of their disbelief last night after he was arrested
in a police raid at his home.

Suspected ETA terror chief Benat Atorrasagasti Ordonez has been a fugitive for
11 years and while on the run was sentenced to five years behind bars for
transporting gunmen between France and Spain.

But the 36-year-old Basque separatist was snared by cops who raided his rented
flat in Leith, Edinburgh, on Friday night.

Bob Bulloch, 67, who lives above the apartment, said: “I heard all the
commotion and there were dozens of police everywhere, they took someone away
in a van. At first I thought there must have been a murder or it was drug
related because of the amount of police.

“I’m shocked it’s someone linked to terrorism. I’ve never seen the guy
before, they always had the curtains closed and kept a really low profile.

“The family were so private, it did make you wonder. I was certainly
suspicious of them.”

Ordonez — who is expected to appear in court today — is believed to have been
living under a fake name with his partner and two children while working as
a van driver in Livingston. Alarmingly, it’s thought he was lying low in
Scotland as a sleeper while waiting for orders from the feared terror
group’s high command, who announced a ceasefire last year.

Jane Fletcher, 23, who lives two doors away from the fugitive’s property,
said: “I’m in total shock, I can’t believe it.

“I’ve seen the guy a few times stood outside the house smoking and I’ve seen
him walking in the street with a woman and two small children as well.

“They had the curtains closed most of the time and seemed to keep themselves
to themselves.

“I’ve never seen him hanging around in any of the local bars or with friends.
It all seems quite obvious now that he was lying low.

“You do expect serious crimes in big cities, but finding out that an alleged
terrorist who has been on the run for ten years is living on your doorstep
is very scary. I don’t know how much of a threat he posed, but I’m just glad
that they got him.” The front of the tenement flat — where the family are
believed to have been living for around six months — was secured with metal
panels yesterday.

Ordonez, of San Sebastian, in the Basque region of Spain, is due to appear in
court in Edinburgh today and will most likely be extradited for trial in
Europe.

A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police yesterday confirmed the arrest.

He said: “A 36-year-old man has been arrested in Edinburgh on two European
warrants in connection with historical crimes committed in Spain and France.

“The man was arrested in the Leith area of the capital on Friday evening. We
can confirm that no armed officers were involved and at no time was any
member of the public at risk.

“The man will appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Monday under the terms of
the Extradition Act.”

Scottish-sun@the-sun.co.uk

It has been the preferred topic of conversation for people the length and breadth of the country — even more so than usual.

But last week’s sodden conditions look to have put paid to any expectation that Scotland might see some summer sun.

As tens of thousands of revellers made the most of the swamp-like fields at T In The Park, conditions worsened as record rainfall and flooding brought much of the country to a halt.

Motorways were reduced to single lanes and other transport links were affected as some areas faced up to 15mm of rainfall in just one HOUR.

Most of us had hoped that, following the wettest June on record, July would prove to be a brighter prospect but, so far, miserable showers have continued to sweep the nation.

Some experts have even claimed the record downpours saw Scotland battered by more than half of the average rainfall in July in just 48 hours.

I’d like to say that the drab weather is in contrast to a bright economy but, unfortunately for many businesses, the economic forecast doesn’t look any better — gloomy with chances of storms.

My most shocking discovery of the week, though, was reading that economists predict the bleak conditions could have robbed our economy of up to £1billion — with more to come if things don’t improve by August.

The tourism and retail sectors are expected to have been worst hit, with travellers and shoppers being put off by the monsoon-style storms.

And the downpours have led retailers, including sporting goods brand JJB, to put big slumps down to the unseasonal rainfall.

I wouldn’t be surprised if other sectors have yet to announce problems after being battered by the blustery conditions. If so, it’s likely we’ll all notice a hit in our wallets down the line.

But, as always, not all Scots businesses are faring so badly under the poor weather conditions.

The travel industry is booming, with agents reporting a flood of customers desperately seeking sun, sea and sand on foreign shores.

Likewise the outbound travel sector showed good signs of growth, with both Aberdeen and Glasgow airports showing a rise in passenger numbers over the last month.

For me, this sums up exactly the most important rule in business — every situation can be looked at as an opportunity.

It’s a key lesson in becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Having the ability to spot a market, and servicing that need, is exactly what can make or break your success. Just a couple of years ago, I took a calculated risk to buy a large stock of domestic heaters at the height of the summer.

Some people thought I was mad, but just six months later I sold the stock during the depths of winter and made more than double what they cost me.

It is a small example of how anyone with an out-of-the-box way of thinking can create something from nothing.

One other businessman who certainly hasn’t let the Scottish drizzle dampen his spirits is Donald Trump.

The American braved the elements last week as he teed off at his swanky new golf resort in Aberdeen.

With our rich heritage as the home of golf I’ll be interested to see how well Mr Trump’s new resort fits in.

But despite a reported £750m investment behind it, it just goes to show there’s one thing money can’t buy — summer sunshine in Scotland.

With the period from April to June the wettest in the UK since records began, rain on the fabled St Swithin’s Day left Scotland facing a wash-out summer.

According to the legend, if it rains on 15 July, the next 40 days will be wet, and yesterday, while most of Britain was given a much-needed respite from persistent downpours, Scotland experienced showery weather.

A spokeswoman for the Met Office said the forecast for Scotland remained fairly unsettled for the foreseeable future. But while the continuing wet weather was bad news for most, for contestants in the weekend-long Tough Mudder event at Drumlanrig Castle in Dumfriesshire, the conditions were perfect.

The extreme challenge event is held in countries all over the world, and includes a ten to 12 mile obstacle course, with mud, fire and ice-water among the elements faced by competitors.

Almost 40mm of rain – nearly half the Scottish average for July – fell over Central Scotland during a 36-hour period between Tuesday and Wednesday last week. At the end of June, floods brought chaos to the transport system, with the two main London to Scotland train companies – East Coast and Virgin West Coast – suffering disruption to their services.

But the poor weather does not seem to have had a negative impact tourism. Figures published last week showed that overall visitor numbers to Scotland rose 5 per cent from April 2011 to March 2012, with a 6 per cent rise in UK visitors.

Figures for the north of Scotland show the region witnessed the largest rise in domestic visitors outwith Edinburgh, with a 10.2 per cent increase over the year, compared with 2010-11..