Latest news with #Molyneux
The Herald Scotland
10 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Glasgow should copy Barcelona when putting on big concert
Sting, Simple Minds and Stereophonics will all follow over the next seven days. TRNSMT festival will then take place in Glasgow Green during July, but the events can cause disruption for the local community, with complaints about parks being damaged in recent years. Read More: Cllr Jon Molyneux, co-leader of the city's Green group, said: 'Big events bring people into Glasgow and support our global reputation as a city of music. 'But having to rely on Glasgow Green and Bellahouston Park to host them does have an impact on citizens who have huge swathes of their parks fenced off for weeks at a time and then have areas that are badly damaged afterwards. 'Bellahouston is also slap bang in the middle of a residential area and the events put big strain on public transport as well as dozens of road closures.' He thinks Glasgow should look to Barcelona where the popular Primavera Sound is held at Parc del Forum — which was created for the 2004 Universal Forum of Cultures and has since hosted many events and festivals. Land around the SEC could be used, he suggested. Cllr Molyneux, whose Pollokshields ward covers Bellahouston Park, highlighted how the events space in Barcelona has dedicated bus and tram connections. 'It is in a purpose-built space which combines both indoor and outdoor venues that are able to support a wide variety of events all year round,' he said. 'Something similar could be done using the land around the SEC, including its massive surface car park, all the way up to the Riverside Museum. 'If not there, then Glasgow is not exactly short of unused land, some of which is not suitable for building on, and this could also be integrated into plans for Clyde Metro. 'If we believe parks should serve local communities as well as wanting to keep Glasgow on the musical map, I think this is something the council and city partners should give consideration to.'
Glasgow Times
13 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Glasgow Times
Councillor says Glasgow should look to Primavera Sound Festival
As Glasgow's Summer Sessions concerts in Bellahouston Park get underway today, Molyneux of the Scottish Greens, has called on the city to invest in a dedicated outdoor events space to take the pressure of holding major events off public parks. READ NEXT: Glasgow Subway issues warning ahead of Glasgow Summer Sessions (Image: Image: Newsquest) Bellahouston Park will see the Sex Pistols headline this weekend, with Sting, Simple Minds, and Stereophonics to follow over the next seven days, Crowds of up to 35,000 are expected for each show. July will then see Glasgow Green fenced off for TRNSMT festival, which will run between the 11th and 13th. Councillor Molyneux said the council and commercial partners should look to the success of the Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona, which takes place in a purpose-built events space called Parc del Forum, which also has dedicated bus and tram connections. (Image: Image: Newsquest) READ NEXT: Spanish bar where Ross Monaghan and Eddie Lyons shot reopens under new name Councillor Molyneux said: "Big events bring people into Glasgow and support our global reputation as a city of music, but having to rely on Glasgow Green and Bellahouston Park to host them does have an impact on citizens who have huge swathes of their parks fenced off for weeks at a time and then have areas that are badly damaged afterwards. Bellahouston is also slap bang in the middle of a residential area and the events put big strain on public transport as well as dozens of road closures. "The set up for Primavera Sound is totally different. It is in a purpose-built space which combines both indoor and outdoor venues that are able to support a wide variety of events all year round. "Something similar could be done using the land around the SEC, including its massive surface car park, all the way up to the Riverside Museum. If not there, then Glasgow is not exactly short of unused land, some of which is not suitable for building on, and this could also be integrated into plans for Clyde Metro. "If we believe parks should serve local communities as well as wanting to keep Glasgow on the musical map, I think this is something the Council and city partners should give consideration to."
Glasgow Times
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Labour clash with SNP and Greens over Kneecap in Palestine debate
The council was debating a motion on Palestine and all three parties united in condemning Israel and branding the war a genocide. However, the comment by the band 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP' meant Labour wouldn't support the motion as it resisted efforts to ban the group and the Greens refused to remove it. READ NEXT:SNP and Labour unite on migrants but clash over Starmer 'nation of strangers' speech Jon Molyneux, Green councillor, said the people of Palestine are being given a choice to 'move or starve.' He said: 'Israel's genocide is one of the greatest tragedies of my lifetime'. He said the 'world watches on and chooses equivalence, complicity and profit". Molyneux said the council has already chosen not to support Israel's genocide. The councillor said Kneecap's comments on politicians were 'stupid' and said they have apologised. He added there is a 'deliberate attempt to shut them up' because of their views on Palestine. He added: 'Israel is precipitating a genocide and must be stopped.' Holly Bruce, Green councillor, said protesters seeking justice in various battles need to show 'allyship' with one another. Ahead of the debate, she changed into a T-shirt with the slogan 'From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be Free". (Image: newsquest) READ NEXT: Council tells Celtic fans 'Do not attend' title party in Trongate on Saturday She had her speech cut off for being out of time, but councillor Molyneux said her closing remark was to have echoed Welsh artists, who said: 'Kneecap is not the story, the story is the slaughter in Gaza.' Dan Hutchison, Green councillor, echoed the phrase when he ended his remarks stating, 'From the River to the sea, Palestine will be free.' Susan Aitken, Council leader, said: 'It is clear the playing at diplomacy of the Trump administration has made the situation worse." She said it has: 'Piled misery on misery and murder on murder.' Aitken added it made it more important for Keir Starmer and other leaders to 'step in to take action to prevent further escalation of this genocide". On Kneecap, she said the "hurt" and "anger" in some quarters caused by those words were sincere and had to be understood. She added: 'Provocative statements by artists shouldn't always be taken literally. 'It's the role of art to make us uncomfortable. Freedom of expression has to be for everyone.' She said just because something makes people feel discomfort or a statement is in distaste, it 'doesn't mean we have the right to cancel artists because we might be offended". Labour condemned Israel for its actions in Gaza, which it said was a genocide, but did not support the motion unless it took reference to Kneecap out. Bill Butler, Labour councillor, said: 'Calls for murder, plain and simple, is not satire.' On Palestine, he said: 'We believe what is occurring in the Gaza Strip and West Bank does not resemble a genocide, it is a genocide.' Rashid Husain, Labour group leader, said Palestinians are being 'bombed and starved' by Israel. On Kneecap, he added: 'There is room for provocative material. 'We don't agree with any hate speech and killing of politicians is unacceptable.'
Mint
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- Mint
Defender SUV's prices to drop as Jaguar Land Rover plans local assembly
Tata Motors Ltd-owned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) plans to locally assemble the Defender sport utility vehicle, its highest-selling model in India, as the British brand seeks to retain local operations for at least the existing models even after the India-UK free-trade agreement. 'Most of our models are locally assembled in India at the Pune plant,' JLR's chief financial officer Richard Molyneux said on Tuesday, referring to its Range Rover series during a post-earnings call for the January to March period. 'For Defender, plans are in process to assemble the cars locally,' he said. 'We want to tap demand from ultra-high-net-worth individuals in the upcoming years and grow presence in the Indian market.' Analysts expect it could lead to a price reduction of over ₹ 20 lakh. Currently, the ex-showroom price of Defender variants ranges from ₹ 1.05 crore to ₹ 2.79 crore. That would help the sport utility vehicle (SUV) compete in the sub- ₹ 1 crore range to take on German brand Audi's Q7. Molyneux's announcement comes a week after the country announced a free-trade agreement (FTA) with the UK, under which tariffs on completely built units will go down to 10% from 110% under a quota. The FTA marks a trade success for the two countries at a time JLR awaits clarity on duties in the US, among its largest markets. JLR contributes roughly about 69% to the overall revenue of Tata Motors. 'Most of the current models being sold in India have local assembly,' he said in the call. 'However, for our future models, India becomes an attractive market due to the free-trade agreement.' Currently, the Defender is manufactured at JLR's £1bn facility in Nitra, Slovakia. It imports the completely built units into the country, which attracts effective tariffs of 110%. However, inbound shipments of completely knocked down (CKD) units attract 16.5% effective tariffs (prior to the FTA). JLR's plan to assemble the SUV comes a year after it started locally assembling its Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models at its Pune plant, which was inaugurated in 2011. That brought down the ex-showroom price by ₹ 44 lakh to ₹ 2.36 crore for one of its models. A Range Rover Sport's ex-showroom price fell from ₹ 1.69 crore to ₹ 1.40 crore. Mint could not independently ascertain when the company plans to start the local assembly of the Defender. Queries emailed to Tata Motors Ltd and Jaguar Land Rover remained unanswered. The British brand, acquired by Tata Motors in 2008 for $2.8 billion, recorded the highest-ever retail sales in the country last financial year. Its volumes jumped 40% to reach 6,183 cars, with the January-March quarter recording a 110% growth to 1,793. The growth allowed the company to reach the third position in India's car market, overtaking Audi India. The Defender's sales surged 90% during the year, while locally assembled Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models registered 72% and 42% growth, respectively. 'If the move to locally assemble the Defender materalizes, it will be a huge positive for the company to increase growth in the large SUV segment,' said Amit Kaushik, managing director at Urban Science, an auto analytics firm. '[Tata Motors'] decision to locally assemble other models recently has started to pay off as it continues to gain momentum in the market. JLR's bid in the large SUV market will further strengthen.' The company's move to increase presence in India contrasts with headwinds in other markets. 'Tariffs and related geo-political actions are making the operating environment uncertain and challenging,' the company said in its post-results statement, hinting at reciprocal tariffs levied in the US. 'The global premium luxury segment and Indian domestic markets are expected to weather this relatively better.' JLR avoided giving growth guidance for the current financial year as it assesses the impact of US tariffs on its sales. The North American market contributes roughly a fourth to the company's overall sales. Jaguar Land Rover's FY25 revenue declined 0.1% to £28.9 billion. The British firm's Ebitda margin also declined by 160 basis points to 14.3% during the year. Its sales in the European market fell 11% to 82,000 cars, while China saw a 10% decline to 47,000 cars. Overall, sales marginally declined to 400,000 units.
The Herald Scotland
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Herald Scotland
Resist calls to ban Kneecap from TRNSMT, says Glasgow councillor
One of the members attracted condemnation recently for a remark made in 2023 when he said: 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.' It brought condemnation from Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch and First Minister John Swinney, who said the band 'crossed a line' and should be removed from the TRNSMT lineup. Councillor Molyneux has brought a motion to Glasgow City Council which will be debated next week. READ MORE: More fool the Scottish politicians who took the bait of Kneecap's provocations The First Minister does not get to decide who plays TRNSMT festival Calls for Kneecap to be axed from TRNSMT over 'kill your local MP' comments Molyneux said the reaction to Kneecap's performance at California's Coachella Music Festival and 'the resulting smear campaign, is a direct result of Kneecap's outspoken support for Palestine and should not be indulged.' He said other acts will have views on other subjects or displayed behaviour that some people don't agree with but have not been met with the same condemnation. The motion continued: 'Some Glaswegians will choose not to support an act with views that Kneecap hold, just as others will not support acts which support violence within their music or who have convictions for violence, specifically domestic violence. 'Such acts are scheduled to play in Glasgow this summer and have received no similar condemnation." Chris Brown, who has a conviction for violence when he was given five years probation and a community service order for an assault on his then girlfriend Rihanna in 2009, is to play Hampden in July. (Image: Chris Brown) The rapper 50 Cent, who has admitted his lyrics are misogynist, and who raps about gun violence, is also on the TRNSMT bill. In the motion, he also backs the right of people to protest and wants the policing policy in the city reviewed. He said: 'The rights of citizens to lawful protest as a vital part of our democracy and urged the council to 'call on the UK Government to repeal the Conservative's draconian anti-protest legislation'. Ha wants the council to ask the Safe Glasgow partnership to 'urgently undertake a review of the policing of protest in Glasgow' and for it to include taking evidence from those involved in protests. The councillor recalls a previous motion from March where the council, 'expressed solidarity with the people of Palestine, reaffirmed its calls for peace in the region'. He expressed 'deep disappointment at the failure to, so far, secure a lasting ceasefire' and condemned 'the Israeli government's ongoing blockade of Gaza and its resumption of air strikes' which he said has continued the killing of innocent Palestinians. He also called on Glasgow's Pride to: 'Establish ethical partnerships and sponsors which adhere to the Palestinian led Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) guidelines and the Fossil Free Pride pledge, committing to social and environmental justice'. The motion will be debated at the full council meeting in the City Chambers next Thursday.
