AIDS infections - 'No-one wants a return to the fearful 1980s'

Anyone who remembers the 1980s will know what it is like to live in fear of HIV and AIDS.

Chilling television adverts - some featuring a couple in bed underneath a tombstone - interrupted primetime viewing with the stark warning from actor John Hurt, "don't die of ignorance".

Embarrassed teenagers squirmed in front of family TV sets as a massive awareness campaign did its best to shock them into taking charge of their own sexual health.

There was a sense of panic across the country - and nowhere more so than among drug users in Edinburgh - amid warnings of an impending epidemic.

Thankfully, we are all more knowledgable these days about the issues surrounding AIDS. We all know to ignore ignorant claims that you can become HIV-positive from everyday actions like hugging or using communal showers.

But, with new HIV infections in the Lothians now back at the same frighteningly levels as the mid-80s, it is clear that not everyone has got the message.

More than 100 new cases are now expected every year for the foreseeable future. And there are growing concerns about the number of people ignoring the safe sex message, particularly among the gay community.

AIDS is now no longer a death sentence, but it remains a potentially life-shortening and debilitating condition, which is only controlled, not cured, by drugs.

No one wants to return to the fearful days of the 1980s, but we do need to find a way to once again spread more awareness about how to avoid this dreadful infection.

Class acts

EVERY parent who sends their children to the city's state schools will be glad to hear that local kids are once again out-performing the rest of Scotland.

The increases in pass rates across Standard Grades, Highers and Advanced Highers will encourage those who opt for a state education (or can't afford the alternative) that they are doing the right thing.

Of course, there is still a big gap between even the best schools and their private counterparts - one which will never be entirely filled.

The trick for the council is to keep the city's schools going in the right direction even at a time of funding cuts. That is one test in which failure simply cannot be tolerated.