Matty (right) installing solar panels.
Written by Midlothian View Editor, Phil Bowen
East Lothian-based sustainable energy specialist Gensource has made its first move into professional sport sponsorship by backing rising Scottish golf star Matty Wilson.
The Musselburgh-headquartered business has teamed up with the 26-year-old for the 2026 season, in the process cementing a close family bond with the former North of Ireland Amateur Open Champion, a title he won at Royal Portrush in 2024.
Currently competing on the Tartan Pro Tour, Matty is the younger brother of Gensource co-founder Robert Wilson, himself a scratch golfer.
The pair cut their teeth on the fairways of Horsforth Golf Club in Leeds before the family moved to the north of Scotland 12 years ago to set up their new home in Moray, with Forres Golf Club on their doorstep.
With their dad Peter Wilson running his own well-established plumbing and heating business, the siblings were soon combining their golfing prowess with learning the tools of the trade.
With Gensource building on its success from its Musselburgh headquarters, it gave Matty the opportunity to continue his development as a renewables installer outwith the golf season, the winter months seeing him working on solar panel installations.
“For the past couple of winters when the Scottish golf season has finished, Matty has been employed by Gensource as a renewables installer, working in one of our in-house installation teams,” said Robert, who established the company with Josh King in December 2022 with the aim of providing turnkey sustainable energy solutions to suit clients’ needs.
“This has been a great fit for both parties, with the timing of the Scottish golf season meaning he can provide additional capacity to our installation teams when daylight hours are low and poor weather often slows our works, meaning the company’s output across the winter months is bolstered by the extra capacity.
“It feels incredible to have now built the company in a short space of time into a position where sponsorship of my brother is possible. To have come full circle like this is a proud moment not only for the family but the business as well. I’d like to thank my fellow directors for being on board with supporting him not only as a Gensource employee, but as a professional golfer.
“Matty showed great potential from early on and playing with me and my friends who were all four years older, his competitive nature made him want to beat us even though he was much smaller and younger!
“It’s great to be able to support him on his professional golf journey and hopefully there are more exciting times ahead.”
Matty, who intends to be competing in the DP World Tour Q School later this year, said: “Working on the tools with my dad helped give me a grounding in the construction/renewables sectors.
“It’s great having that knowledge and skillset, and that allows me to work for Gensource as a qualified installer when I’m not playing competitive golf.
“Robert and the team have done a brilliant job in building up the business and I’m really appreciative of their support.
“You could say it’s a ‘par-fect’ match!”
Christine Jardine MP hosting Ukrainians in parliament
Written by Midlothian View Reporter, Liam Eunson
The reality of life for families and widows of the war in Ukraine was laid before MPs and Peers in parliament this week at a cross-party event hosted by Christine Jardine MP.
The urgent need for support to reinforce social resilience for the population beyond battlefield aid was told through the stories of those closest to the conflict.
Jardine’s event, NGO KSPA’s Still We Love: The Experiences of Wives of Ukrainian Defenders, was a reminder of the profound impact of war on veteran reintegration, families, and communities.
The Edinburgh West MP stated that supporting Ukraine means standing with the Ukrainian people; ensuring veterans and families are given long-term international backing.
Christine Jardine MP said:
“The stories shared today remind us of the deep human cost of this war. We cannot afford complacency or assume that military aid alone is enough to sustain Ukraine’s recovery and long-term stability.
“I was deeply moved by the systemic challenges highlighted, from the realities of veteran transition to the resilience of military families. We must do all we can to foster comprehensive social support and prevent the pressures of war becoming an even greater social crisis.
“I met 12-year-old Viktor who gave me an incredibly moving letter to me about his personal experiences in the UK since leaving Ukraine in 2022. It was a particularly poignant reminder of how morally vital the UK’s support for Ukraine is and how we can help children have the best life possible by caring for them here.”
Pat Sharp outside the former bank building in North Berwick's Westgate she and her husband bought to turn into a home
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
An Edinburgh couple have won an eight-year battle to turn a former bank in North Berwick into a home.
Pat Sharp and her husband Nigel bought the vacant building on the town’s Westgate for more than £550,000 in 2018 after it was put on the market by the Royal Bank of Scotland.
But while the purchase was intended to allow them to retire to an accessible home for Nigel, who has Parkinson’s Disease, Pat is now planning to put it back on the market as her husband’s condition means he is now in full time care.
She described the battle to get planning permission to create a residence in their property as “exhausting” after East Lothian Council planners repeatedly rejected their applications.
They said the use of the building for a residential home would be an unacceptable loss of a commercial property in the town centre but have now approved plans to maintain the ground floor as two commercial officers and create an extended first floor flat above it.
The new proposals would see a one bedroom flat built above the new offices with it own separate door and access.
The Sharps bought the building for more than £550,000 when it first went on the market as Nigel’s health battle made it clear their first floor flat in Edinburgh would not be suitable in the future.
It was also meant to be a place their grandchildren could come on holiday near the beach after they lost their mother to cancer. One of her last wishes had been that her own mother, Pat, recreated the seaside holidays they had shared when she was young for her daughters.
Speaking after the last application was rejected last year Pat said the couple’s dreams of spending their retirement in the town had been shattered by the drawn out battle with planners.
She said: “My husband has been robbed of the chance to spend his final years in what we wanted to be our dream home, looking out over the North Berwick coast and remembering all our wonderful times here.”
