Comment: Anonymity for tram whistleblowers is right

given the amount of time we had to wait to see trams run on the streets, it would have been no surprise to see the inquiry kicked into the long grass.

News today, though, that Lord Hardie is getting on with the prelimenary work by meeting with key names like city council chief executive Sue Bruce is welcome.

It will benefit everyone to have the inquiry carried out and concluded as swiftly as possible as well as satisfying the need for some real answers on what exactly went wrong.

We will have a better chance of establishing the truth if people feel free to speak out without fear of the consequences.

The offer of effective anonymity to whistleblowers, therefore, seems to make sense.

Clearly we would not like to see this applied to anyone who may ultimately be held culpable for the city spending £776 million on a truncated line to the city centre, but it may just convince a crucial witness to come forward with information they might otherwise suppress.

Assuming Lord Hardie and the legal teams are aware of the identity of the witness and are therefore able to assess the merits of the information then this could prove a useful tool.

Much is expected from this long-awaited inquiry and Lord Hardie is held in high regard as a man who will get to the truth.

With work already beginning, it may be arriving sooner than we thought.

Easy does it

Another day and another story of incredible fundraising in aid of our Shockingly Easy campaign.

Today we tell how one woman raised £1250 to buy a defibrillator for the football club which plays across the road. Well done to her and to everyone who has so far supported the fund in memory of Jamie Skinner.