An autistic civil servant was fired by tax office managers after union representatives labelled him a health hazard, a tribunal has heard, writes Craig Brown. Patrick Roberts, 48, was sacked from his job with Customs and Excise when representatives from the LTS union described his behaviour as “a health and safety risk” to his fellow workers.

Ministers are proposing to abolish the distinct roles of district nurses and health visitors, leading to fears that thousands of patients will not receive the specialist care they need. Under the plans, the extensive range of titles currently used by more than 8000 NHS nurses who work outwith hospitals would merge into one new “community health” job. But nurses’ leaders are concerned the proposed shake-up will ultimately turn all community nurses into generalists and dilute their specialist skills.

Coca-Cola has admitted that it got it wrong when it used the word ‘psychos’ in an advertising campaign for a new soft drink. Complaints from ‘see me’, the Scottish mental health anti-stigma campaign and supporters of Stigma Stop Watch have resulted in the ad being withdrawn from TV, billboards and newspapers as of today, 24th July 2006.

Cocaine Use among Scots in their late 20s and early 30s has almost doubled in a year, according to a new report that suggests it now appears to be the drug of choice for young professionals. Across all age groups, use of the class A drug increased slightly, but in the 25-29 age group it almost doubled, from 1.4 per cent to 2.7 per cent of the population. In the 30-34 age group there was also a marked jump, from 1.9 per cent to 2.8 per cent.

Sensitive criminal record information and pre-conviction data is to be pooled in a UK-wide database for the first time to try to improve child protection provisions. The Scottish intelligence database has traditionally been kept by and for Scottish forces. But from September, it will be linked to the new national system in England and Wales, allowing officers to access information on any individual across Britain.Critics say the move, which follows the inquiry chaired by Sir Michael Bichard into the deaths of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman in Soham in 2002, raises questions about civil rights and data protection.

The health service helpline NHS 24 was criticised yesterday for failing two patients who later died, after an inquiry concluded they both could have been saved if their life-threatening illnesses had been properly diagnosed. In a damning determination, Sheriff James Tierney ruled that the telephone triage system, used to assess patients, had led to crucial delays in a teenage schoolgirl and a 30-year-old joiner receiving lifesaving treatment. In each case the system failed to identify the fact that both patients,

The number of youngsters in Fife continually getting into trouble with the law has risen. Latest figures show that the number of persistent young offenders in the region rose by 28 to 78 in the year 2005-06. But with more diversionary tactics and a step up in direct action by the police and voluntary agencies involved with young people, the rise has been put down to more hard graft and an increase in the reporting of crime.

A merger to form the UK’s biggest HIV charity has been branded ‘secretive’ by Scots rivals who claim the new charity has a history of aggressive business tactics. Terrence Higgins Trust (THT), one of the biggest HIV charities in England and Wales, this week announced a merger with Glasgow-based PHACE Scotland to create THT Scotland. However, Scots charities who have been engaging in talks to create a single Scottish national charity say it could have a negative impact on the life-styles of people with HIV in Scotland.

Research by Shelter Scotland has found that more than 6,000 families are being evicted from their home each year. The study showed that 1,625 households were evicted by local authority and registered social landlords in 2004-05 and that 4,441 households were made homeless by the loss of their private sector tenancy in that period. Shelter has called on people in Scotland to back its Home Is… campaign to ensure everyone is housed by 2012. The campaign aims to collect at least 5,000 quotes on what home means to the people of Scotland, to highlight its importance to politicians.

Communities Scotland has awarded £150,000 to Greyfriars Community Project to establish a project giving opportunities to homeless people to make and sell products in Edinburgh’s Old Town. The funding will be used to secure premises and to set up workshops to produce goods to be sold in the shop. In addition the Edinburgh Cyrenians organic farm will supply vegetables to be sold in the shop. The aim of the project is to create 10 full-time jobs and help 60 people into a job.