ALEX SALMOND GREETS ARCHBISHOP CONTI - Image courtesy of Paul McSherry

First Minister, Alex Salmond visited Glasgow this month to launch

the fund to establish an Italian Memorial Garden next to St Andrew's

Cathedral. The garden will allow anyone to commemorate a loved one

who has died on a "wall of names" to be built in the memorial garden.

This is likely to become a particularly fond spot for the Scots Italian community

and is likely to be the largest facility of its kind in Britain.

During his launch speech, Alex Salmond spoke very warmly

of links between Scotland and Italy.

He said: "Since Italians first began to come to Scotland in the late 19th century,

they have made a huge contribution to this country. Indeed just as Scots have

made a disproportionately significant mark on the world, so too has the

contribution of the Italian community in Scotland far exceeded its size.

Truly the Italian community is one of the strongest and brightest threads in the

fabric of Scotland. "

The garden will serve also as a memorial to the 446 Italians who tragically

lost their lives in the sinking of the Arandora Star

during the Second World War. The First Minister praised the new memorial:

"I believe it is fitting that we should remember those men, who were taken

away from their homes, their families and their lives in Scotland, never to return,

following Italy's entry into the war."

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